Published: Thursday, 3rd July, 2008 11:45
Race ace Shedden swaps track for water
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SHIP’S MATES: Shedden (right) with Alex Thomson, the youngest skipper ever to win a round-the-world yacht race
DALGETY BAY motorsport star Gordon Shedden has vowed to gatecrash the British Touring Car Championship top three after swapping the track for the water at the JPMorgan Asset Management Round the Island Yacht Race.
The 29-year-old – who currently sits seventh in the touring car rankings with 84 points – was one of a host of high-profile names on the Isle of Wight alongside Formula One star Lewis Hamilton and double Olympic champion Ben Ainslie.
Shedden was joined by Team Halfords partner Tom Chilton and rival Matt Neal on the Capricorn super yacht and did himself no harm completing the 55-mile course in 6 hours, 58 minutes and 18 seconds.
TeamOrigin, under the guise of Britain’s America’s Cup strategist Rob Greenhalgh, grabbed the glory and Shedden admitted he will use his maiden sailing exploits as inspiration for success of his own.
“It seemed like it was going to be a bit of a laugh and a bit of a joke to start with but now I have been out on the boat it definitely wasn’t,” he said.
“I am always up for racing anything that goes – I had never been on a racing boat, only a pedalo on holiday and I got on a ferry to get to the island but that is about the length and breadth of my experience.
“It is a whole new ball game for me but the adrenaline buzz is out of this world, maybe even more so than touring cars.
“It has been a season of ups and downs so far but if I can get a bit of lady luck in the second half of the year then we can be up there with many more trips to the top step of the podium”
Shedden’s attentions will now turn to Snetterton where he will be aiming to forget his last outing at Croft.
The Team Halfords driver managed a best of third in his three races as torrential rain hampered his charge but Shedden is ready to relive past glories at the Norfolk circuit.
“I won at Snetterton last year, which was good, and that will give me a lot of confidence,” he added.
“Croft was a bit of a monsoon and I would have been better suited sailing instead of driving but we have everything now, we just need to kick on.”
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