Sydney-Hobart 2012

Sh

Wild Oats XI still in the lead overall, but has dropped to 15th IRC.

 

Sh

WOXI has won line honors and broken the SH record(she set in 2005) and is in the running for IRC handicap win as well.
Congratulations to Wild Oats XI !!

UPDATE: WOXI wins overall, breaks the record and wins IRC as of 8pm EST ....

 

First time in my 60+ years I have actually been down to watch a finish. Perfect timing, just as the coffee shops were opening, but too early for millions of gawkers.

Great weather too, spectacular sky, and not too windy.

Two comments -
Why do spectator boats have to crowd around and get all congested ( especially all the 80+ footer white whales trying to Bogart the whole show ) - its not like the poor sods need the aggro of weaving their way into port.

Overheard from several female spectators as the sleek grey hull under sleek gray sails ghosted up the harbour

"What a shame that they dont have some bright coloured sails"

 

Interesting to see how well the boat is doing now that the CBTF setup has been replaced.

Of course, the fact that this is the least-popular maxi class in some 40 years may have something to do with the dominance of WOXI. In about eight years the "class" has seen only about half a dozen launches and apparently none are forthcoming. In the same sort of time frame we have seen 4 new J Class hit the water and construction started on three more; and there are more J Class regattas than supermaxi regattas.

The fact that there is more activity in a class that is 30' longer, much slower and composed of 70+ year old designs shows that the canting supermaxi class really has flopped.

 

Neither the Supermaxis or J boats actually " Race"

They parade around special courses for spectators and sail magazine photographers. .

Racing is always done with small boats.

Do supermaxis race with their generator running ?

 

yes, they do - defeats the whole concept I reckon

 

Yes. We've had this discussion in the past. IMO there should be a separate class for 'power assisted' sailboats. Then the purists can ignore them and the enthusiasts can get all excited about how many powered gadgets can be loaded on a sailboat before it's not really a sailboat.

Or, as part of the 'seaworthiness' qualification, they should have to demonstrate that those boats can be sailed on all points of sail in say an F5 wind with all the generators switched off and the normal complement of crew.

PDW

 

You're supposed to be finishing your kayaks not hanging about the waterfront.

PDW

 

nah - I'm on 'olidays till the missus goes back to work next weds.

Are you coming home ever ? Dont see much welding happening in your shed, and the raspberries need picking badly

 

Wo11 never dropped under 20 knots for 12 hours across the paddock. Pretty impressive motor sailer.

 

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Interesting comment since she set the first record and won the first three or four SH's using CBTF. But technology doesn't stand still and the mods they've made have certainly paid off.
Sure it has flopped(?)-but it is hard to rationalize a "flop" that has won the SH line honors 5 or 6 times or more, set the record twice and may have won the famed "triple" twice!! Some flop.....

 

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Motor sailer? That is such nonsense.....

--I suppose all the Volvo boats are "motor sailers"? And the Vendee boats as well?

 

Some people can't understand this.

Here in SoCal we have a mini version of the S-H race called the Newport-Ensenada race. Once billed as the Largest International yacht Race. Not any more.

There was (is) an Andrews 80 here in SoCal. Canting keel, turbo rig. Won line honors probably 6 times or more, with at least 4 in a row. The only thing that stopped the boat from winning 6 or 7 in a row was the owner not entering the past few years and donating the boat.

How did they do it? Well, just like Wild Oats they were the biggest, fastest turbo boat and no one came along afterward to build something faster.

Of course that changed when Disney brought his modified-to-100 foot 'Wacket to the party one year. If not for that Mags might have been able to win 10 in a row, or more.

Then again, if 'Wacket raced 10 in a row they would be first-to-finish every time.

This says more about the state of the competition than it does about the boat that is setting these "records".

 

Sh

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I think it says more about the ecomomic state of the world the past 5 or 6 years than anything else.
The great boats like WOXI create a spectacular image of super fast monohull sailboats with their use of some of the highest technology available. I believe more of these boats will emerge after the world economy gets fixed.
There is lot left to try in advanced monohull keelboat design.....

 

They are power assisted sail boats. I agree that they're not 'motor sailers' in the accepted definition of the term but also they are not pure sail boats in the accepted definition either, unless they can sail safely with all power assistance turned off.

I don't have any problem with them but they should be in their own class.

PDW