Sydney-Hobart 2012

Sh

From Scuttlebutt Europe tonight:

Wharington Urges Sydney-Hobart Changes

Wild Thing skipper Grant Wharington has urged Sydney to Hobart organisers to heed lessons from the 2012 event, insisting race management needs to be tightened in a number of areas.

Wharington didn't want to comment much on Tuesday about whether he would consider taking any action over being prevented from racing. Advertisement

"Nothing much happens between Christmas and the New Year other than sailing. We'll just look at our options over the next week or two and see where it leads us," Wharington said.

Cruising Yacht Club of Australia commodore Howard Piggott said there was nothing to be resolved with Wharington.

He remained upset he wasn't notified of any documentation shortcomings at the final Boxing Day briefing and was also puzzled at the breakdown in procedure that meant Ragamuffin Loyal wasn't recalled after the super maxi clearly broke the start.

"It just seems like the race management has a lot of lessons there that they need to go and reflect on themselves and I think the thing needs to be tightened up in a lot of areas," Wharington told AAP. -- Adrian Warren and David Beniuk in The Age

Full article: http://news.theage.com.au/breaking-...rges-sydneyhobart-changes-20130101-2c3x1.html

 

Sh

From Scuttlebutt Europe:

Spinnaker Tales

Bob Robertson announced he was on a mission when the flamboyant Sunshine Coast Ocean racing veteran cracked the traditional bottle of champagne over the bow of his new Beneteau first 40 in July 2012.

His primary mission was to have another crack at the 628 nautical mile Rolex Sydney Hobart race hoping to better his career best result of third overall with his Farr 40 Queensland Maid. Both Bob Robertson and his team of experienced offshore sailors including experienced helmspersons Adam Brown, Mal White, Andrew Wiklund and Shannon Hart were in the box seat provisionally leading the fleet on overall handicap when they slogged into the solid southerly breeze during the first night.

But the forecast arrival of the spinnaker sailing wind swung the race for handicap in favour of the speed sailing maxi's Wild Oats X1, Ragamuffin/Loyal, Lahana and the inform maxi chasers the inform 2011 Rolex Sydney Hobart champion Loki and the 2011 QantasLink Brisbane-Gladstone race winner Black Jack.

When the Mark Richards helmed Wild Oats X1 weathered Green Cape (the entrance to Bass Strait) she was on track to break her 1 day 18 hour 40 minute 10 second race record set in 2005.

Wild Oats X1 left her line honours rivals struggling when she regularly logged speeds in excess of 25 knots as the crew enjoyed a 'sleigh ride' towards the notorious Storm Bay and the entrance to the River Derwent to further lay down their claim for a 'triple treat' line honours, race record and fastest corrected handicap time.

It is now history that the outstanding Wild Oats X1 crew handed their 76 rivals another lesson while many veterans including the former Mooloolaba Yacht Club commodore Bob Robertson were again forced to nurse some wounded pride when Wild Oats X1, Loki (Stephen Ainsworth) and the Mark Bradford steered and Peter Harburg owned Black Jack were officially named as the top three corrected handicap performers.

Unfortunately the change in wind direction and velocity ended the overall handicap challenge for Lunchtime Legend but their good start laid the foundation for them to hold a positive chance of winning their Division 3 class trophy overall.

However when the veteran Queensland skipper stepped onto Constitution Dock for the 12th time there was a spring in his step even after spending a mentally and physically tormenting 3 days 23 hours 43 minute and 41 seconds at sea.

His element of confidence was rewarded when Lunchtime Legend claimed a deserved handicap win in the highly competitive division three.

"It was a tough race, the weather had a few tricks up its sleeve although we did enjoy a 12 hour period of perfect spinnaker sailing conditions". The veteran skipper said During the traditional post race celebrations he threw his salt encrusted sailing boots in a dockside dumpster and joyfully announced that was his last ocean race.

Many of his close friends have heard the same story before and believe Lunchtime Legend will contest the 65th QantasLink Brisbane to Gladstone race and the Mooloolaba 200 later this year. -- Ian Grant

 

yes, totally. For the big boats, it was a broad reach from Sydney to 90 miles from Hobart, then a sudden 'on the nose' change. As most of the fleet was only 2/3rds down the course when the change came, the 2 lead boats nearly got a totally 'free run'.

The other boats had no hope of being competitive in that weather situation.

I suppose one year, their will be no last minute change, so the race record will be able to be bettered.

 

Not so many years ago we had quite large fleets of 80 foot Maxi racers (as documented in the MAXI book I received last week).

Then someone thought it would be "better" to have bigger boats. One such class was the MaxZ86 class. The first boat was built, a conventional keeler, like all the maxis before her. There was great interest in the class. Soon afterward the 2nd and 3rd boats were built. Canting keelers, multiple moving appendages. They broke the records of the old 80 footers. All the other potential owners walked away.

The MaxZ86s gave way to 90 footers. Not many were built. They broke the records of the 86s.

Next thing you know someone has convinced the powers that be to allow 100 footers. They break the records of the 90 footers. Now there are almost no owners willing to play.


All the breathless talk of seeing the speed of these boats is nonsense. If you actually watch a normally ballasted maxi sail along, then the next day watch a canter sailing in the same water you would not notice the difference.

I would prefer to see six or seven 80 foot conventional keelers vying for line honours in the SH, rather than one or two canters, with one being in a different league than the other.

 

Perhaps there is more to it than meets the eye.

" Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race - Who will Win?
Have a bet on Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race or make a virtual bet in our Free Tipster Competition and if you are right you may win some real money! We pay of over £3,000 each month in cash prizes to our members"

30 some years ago when I applied for a Visa to go to Australia for the Sydney Hobart, I was required to get a Professional Sportsmans Visa. ?? When I asked why ? Im just a dumb sailor going for a ride on a funky boat from Brisbane ? They answered.. prize money in sailing and gave me the forms to make my tax declaration.

Gambling is very popular in Australia. Perhaps flashy speedsters generate more media interest and hence its good for the sport. .

 

It comes down to what you think this sailing thing is all about.

How about I enter a yacht that is a large Kite where the crew live, dragging a small hull through the water to provide steerage just to still call it a boat ?

That would be a great engineering challenge, but until there are 3 or 4 of them the same in a race, it isn't a 'sport'.

Giving prizes to an engineering marvel in competition with the more traditional yachts is like sponsoring an engineering project, it isn't sport because the competition isn't equivalent.

In any event, a 'sport' loses the public interest when the odds for one or two entrants are so distorted.

The Sabot Nationals Championships being run in Melbourne at the moment are a much more important event in the sailing sport, as they involve building the skills of young sailors in head to head competitions, and are not a competition of the chequebook.

 

I dont know how " money" for regatta expenses , sailing federations and whatnot is generated. Typically the entrance fee for a regatta is modest.

Regatta Sponsors like Rolex ? or any sponsor, must be sensitive to media coverage...more the better.

 

I wounder when we will ever see multihulls be sailed in the Hobart Race ?

 

Interesting

 

Especially wild oats........... although
I have some in the fridge for later.......

 

SH---what rule? on your honor......

from Scuttlebutt tonight:

PROCEDURAL ERRORS

When Milwaukee Brewers slugger Ryan Braun failed a drug test during the
2011 Major League Baseball season, the appeal of his 50-game steroid
suspension didn't challenge the fact that his urine sample revealed the
presence of copious synthetic testosterone in the player's system. No,
instead they challenged the urine sample collection procedure.

This defense tactic ultimately overturned Braun's suspension, and it was
this approach which came to mind when it was reported how Syd Fischer's
Elliott 100 Ragamuffin-Loyal was not found at fault of being over early at
the start of the 628 nm Rolex Sydney Hobart Race. The facts did not dispute
the yacht was OCS, but rather that the race committee did not completely
follow the recall procedure as described in the Sailing Instructions...

20. - Recalls
20.1 - Individual recalls will be signalled in accordance with RRS 29.1
from the relevant race committee signal vessel on the starting line. A
sound signal may be made (amends RRS 29.1).
20.2 - A boat subject to recall will pass on the course side of and around
either of its starting limit marks and start. (In accordance with RRS 30.1)
20.3 - A boat subject to recall will be identified by the relevant race
committee signal vessel by radio on VHF 72 for the northern start line and
VHF 71 for the southern start line. Such radio recall information will be
transmitted approximately five minutes after the start signal.
20.4 - There will be no General Recall.
Link: http://rolexsydneyhobart.com/media/1126866/RSHYR SI Final.pdf

The facts found revealed that the Race Committee fulfilled their
obligations under the RRS, and there were repeated attempts by the RC to
contact the yacht by VHF beyond the prescribed requirement in the Sailing
Instruction, but the RC did not contact the yacht by VHF at "approximately
five minutes after the signal" per the prescribed requirement in the
Sailing Instruction.

This aerial video shows Ragamuffin-Loyal was OCS at the start of the Rolex
Sydney Hobart Race with no attempt made to restart per SI 20.2:http://youtu.be/FbnJoxwGl5Y

 

Fair enough - I think that it is indeed a mistake by the starters.

 

No
Thats having mates in the right place
Lets face it, the more corrupt f1 has become the more popular it has become hence more cash
Who is complaining?

 

Being a bit harsh their mate ! They fronted the umpire, and won on an important rule. Done that a few times at amateur level myself, so no mystery there.

In the scheme of things, it made no real difference to the results either.

 

A boat knows when its early on the line, these guys on the pro boats arent dumb...then the RC signals that "boats" were over early... normally sound and flag. VHF is the last call