DART TOTNES just had the edge over the host club to win the championship of the day at the City of Exeter Regatta.

A large entry of 190 headed to the River Exe's 400-metre sprint course, which meant 108 races for 41 events at the third of the 10-regatta WEARA series.

Dart Totnes ended the day with 14 wins and took overall top spot by just one-and-a-half points from Exeter to continue their domination.

However, it was an unusually dismal day for the Dart Totnes ladies' crews who failed to achieve a single win from championship and supporting events.

Dartmouth picked up four wins, Torquay one and Teign Scullers one with Paignton still courageously chasing that elusive first win of the season.

For the first time this season the major championship event, the men's Senior A coxed fours, was contested with Exeter boating two crews against Dart Totnes.

The Dart Totnes crew of Paul Henshaw, Shaun Barker, Robbie Tucker, Simon Henshaw and cox Suzanne Hutchings came extremely close to pulling off a shock win, just being pipped by a foot by Exeter A.

Barker is an experienced and seasoned rower but the other three were just novice rowers with Paignton two years ago. Exeter A were a further half-length down in third place.

Elliot Barton replaced Shaun Barker in the Dart Totnes Senior A crew to allow them to row men's Senior B coxed fours.

Again they showed real guts to win by half-a-length from Exeter with Bideford Reds a distance behind in third place.

Exeter won the final of the men's Novice coxed fours by one-and-a-quarter lengths from the Dart Totnes crew of Conrad Gillespie, Richard Rollie, Jared Hemming, Alex Woodward and cox Steph Brown, with Falmouth half-a-length down in third place.

The men's U18 coxed fours was an all-River Dart affair with two Dart Totnes crews racing Dartmouth.

The Dart Totnes crew of Lewis van Diggele, Sam Pettitt, Tim Whittet, Steve Clarke and cox Owen Small, kept their 100 per cent record this season in a close race, beating Dartmouth's Richie Jeffs, Liam Boyd, Chris China, David Langmead and cox Marie Dayment, by three-quarters-of-a-length with the Dart Totnes crew of Sam Richardson, Elliott Legg, James Tooley, Merryck Tooley and cox Jacqui Gibbard, a quarter-length behind in third place.

In the championship men's coxed quadruple sculls, Dart Totnes won the U16 event.

The Dart Totnes crew of Simon Kerswell-Jensen, James Lovering, Merryck Tooley, Alex Rowe and cox Owen Small beat Bideford Reds B by five lengths in their heat and then beat Plymouth by two lengths in the final with Bideford Reds A a further length down in third place.

In the Ladies' Championship Senior B coxed fours, Bideford Reds were three-quarters-of-a-length winners from Exeter with the Dart Totnes crew of Maggie Hawkyard, Karen Goodwin, Kathy Lovering, Georgie Cleasby and cox Claire Gardner a further three lengths down in third place.

In the Senior C final, Exeter ran out one-length winners from Bideford Blues with the Dart Totnes crew of Nikki Pettitt, Mandy Larcombe, Zoe Butcher, Janet Richardson and cox Tom Larcombe a further length behind in third place.

At Novice, Bideford Reds were four-length winners from the Dart Totnes crew of Susanne Gardner, Rachel Gillespie, Emily Hoile, Jacqui Hamilton-Kales and cox Owen Small, and at U18 Exeter were one-length winners from the Dart Totnes crew of Jess Phillips, Jade Knight, Claire Gardner, Jacqui Gibbard and cox, Rob Crowter-Jones, with Paignton's Annabelle Ferguson, Marisa Schubert, Rebecca Stanley, Beth Hogan and cox Jane Perry a further two lengths behind in third.

The championship single sculls produced wins for Elliot Barton of Dart Totnes at men's Senior A; Lewis van Diggele of Dart Totnes at men's Senior C and Sam Pettitt of Dart Totnes at men's Novice, while Chris China of Dartmouth and Steve Clarke of Dart Totnes dead-heated at men's U18.

The supporting events produced some exciting racing, none more so than the men's and ladies' Open eights.

In the men's final Dartmouth's Chris China, Liam Boyd, Vaughan Bowden, David Hart, David Langmead, Yorkie Lomas, Steve Wallis, Terry Wallis and cox Chrissie Rugg, and the Dart Totnes crew of Sam Richardson, Elliott Legg, Tim Whittet, Lewis van Diggele, James Lovering, Merryck Tooley, Steve Clarke and cox Owen Small, dead-heated for first place with Exeter A third.

In the subsequent re-row with Dartmouth, Dart Totnes ran out half-length winners.

In the ladies' eights Exeter won by a third-of-a-length from Dart Totnes and Exeter B, who dead-heated for second place.

Other South Devon winners in the supporting events were Terry and Steve Wallis of Dartmouth at men's Senior A coxless pairs; Dartmouth's Yorkie Lomas, Vaughan Bowden, David Hart, Shaun Barker of Dart Totnes and cox Marie Dayment at men's Veteran coxed fours; Tony Szender of Dart Totnes at men's VetB/C single sculls; and Mark Eastman of Teign Scullers at men's Veteran D/E/G single sculls.

Alex Rowe of Dart Totnes won at men's U14 single sculls; Shaun Barker and Tony Szender of Dart Totnes at men's Novice double sculls; the composite crew of Maurice Dunn of Torquay and Tony Szender of Dart Totnes at men's Veteran double sculls; and Dartmouth's Richie Jeffs and Mike Tilley at Men's U16 double sculls.

There were further wins for Callum Jones and Fraser Tooley of Dart Totnes at men's U14 double sculls; and Jared Hemming, Richard Rollie, Zoe Butcher, Janet Richardson and cox Nikki Pettit, of Dart Totnes at mixed Novice coxed fours.