Woody in Sydney to Hobart

[RFNK]

I thought a few people might be interested to see this classic which is currently racing in the Sydney to Hobart race. Over 70 years old, built from huon pine.

http://www.sail-world.com/photo.cfm?...sh=&Width=1200

Rick

[The Bigfella]

Yep - Launched 1932 IIRC - 30' long - and she wasn't the last boat out the Heads

[Don Kurylko]

Wow, that's some rig - I'll bet she's fast!



PS Note the position of the spreaders, the use of sail slides and the minimal shroud arrangement.

[rufustr]

This is the link to the official yacht tracker for the duration of the race.

There are at least three woodies in the fleet.

http://rolexsydneyhobart.com/yacht_tracker.asp?key=522

[rufustr]

The classic ocean racing yacht Sanyo Maris.

The classic ocean racing yacht Sanyo Maris is coming out of retirement to celebrate the 50th anniversary of her launching – by competing in two of Australia’s toughest races, the Hempel 35th Gosford – Lord Howe Island Yacht Race and the 64th Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race.

http://rolexsydneyhobart.com/news.asp?key=4037&print=1

[JimD]

Good luck to her.

[rufustr]

Spirit of Koomooloo.

Spirit of Koomooloo has a long and colourful history sailing as the original Ragamuffin and then Margaret Rintoul II including contesting 21 Rolex Sydney Hobarts, three Admiral’s Cups - 1969, 1971 and 1973 - and a Fastnet Race Win in 1971, skippered by Syd Fischer. Best Rolex Sydney Hobart results include a second to Love & War in the 30 year veterans division of the 50th race in 1994 and a division win in the stormswept 1998 race. Mike Freebairn from Queensland is returning to this iconic yacht race with Spirit of Koomooloo, the S&S 49 he purchased in March, just three months after his previous boat, Koomooloo, sank during last year’s Rolex Sydney Hobart.

http://rolexsydneyhobart.com/yacht_d...eEntryID=11944

[AJZimm]

Speaking of woodies on the open ocean, note also in the picture that Don posted, the other boat, the "Noakes Youth".

It is a plywood open ocean rowboat built for next year's Indian Ocean Rowing Race from Australia to Mauritius.

http://www.sail-world.com/Cruising/F...es-Youth/51498

[The Bigfella]

WHILE the supermaxis were stealing the limelight at the head of the fleet in the Rolex Sydney-Hobart, there was an equally intense battle 64 nautical miles astern of them between two of the oldest yachts in the race.

The battle at the back was between the oldest and smallest yacht racing, the 76-year-old Maluka of Kermandie, owned by Sydney sailing identity Sean Langman, and the 50-year-old, 36ft long yawl Sanyo Maris, part-owned by Ian Kiernan.

Despite being placed 98th and 99th, respectively, in the 100-yacht fleet last night, Maluka and Sanyo Maris were in an absorbing duel. They were just half-a-nautical mile apart, about the same distance that separated Skandia and Wild Oats XI up front.

Kiernan, who has America's Cup winning tactician Hugh Treharne in his team, was doing everything possible to close the gap, even calling for the hoisting of the mizzen staysail, a sail rarely seen in the race these days.

Kiernan decided to enter this year's Hobart race after he sailed Sanyo Maris to a handicap win in the 414 nautical mile race from Sydney to Lord Howe Island.

On reaching the island, he said: "I joked with the crew before the start of the Lord Howe race that we would need to take mongrel and cunning pills twice a day if we were to win, and look what happened.

"We treated Sanyo Maris like the lady that she is and we outsmarted the opposition. While all the hot shots sailed hard on the wind to the north of the rhumb line, we opted to give the old girl her head and let her romp along on a course to the south. The wind stayed in our favour all the way and the beautiful old Maris rewarded us for being kind to her.

"We'll be applying the same tactic to the Hobart race; just doing everything we can to outsmart the opposition and keep the yacht moving at maximum hull speed."

Langman, meanwhile, led a multi-talented team of shipwrights and took 15,000 man-hours to fully restore the Maluka to the degree where it was acceptable as an entry in the Sydney-Hobart race of 2006.

The old girl competed remarkably well that year. At one stage off Tasmania's east coast, she held a distinct chance of winning on corrected time. While that wasn't to be, the thought of taking top honours with the ark was enough for him to decide that he should give it another shot this year and last night she was leading her division on handicap.

Another of the grand old ladies in the race, the 48-year-old Ragtime, had in her wake some of the more modern and supposedly faster yachts racing south. Ragtime was surging along at a speed that would have seen her probably leading the fleet when she was first launched in 1964.

She was holding down an impressive 21st place and surfing south at up to 20 knots. A low profile and extremely buxom white spinnaker was providing the pulling power in the freshening sea breeze.

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au...018519,00.html

[shamus]

Maris won the Lord Howe Island race on corrected time. Our boat Ronita is her sister ship, and last did a Hobart in 1994 (the 50th anniversary race). We're starting to think about a race in 2012 which would be 50 years from her first in 1962.

[The Bigfella]

The Spirit of Koomooloo website doesn't have much info on the new boat - a S&S 49 - most of it is about the original Koomooloo - here's a shot of the crew bailing with buckets just before she sank.

[rufustr]

Spirit of Koomooloo goes on


Article from:
By Amanda Lulham
December 28, 2007 12:00am

A YEAR ago he stood on the deck of a rival yacht crying as he farewelled his beloved timber yacht and yesterday, on the anniversary of Koomooloo's sinking, skipper Mike Freebairn shed a brief tear before returning to battle for one of the most coveted prizes in world ocean racing - the overall honours in the Sydney to Hobart.
"It's quite emotional," the skipper told The Daily Telegraph after he and his crew threw a wreath in the water around 60 miles off the NSW far south coastal town of Narooma where his sea beauty had been lost a year ago.
Freebairn and his crew raised tots of rum and milk in tribute to the old boat before throwing into the water an Australian flora wreath prepared by his sister Vanessa while sharing the tribute with his father Don and mother Margaret via phone.
But Freebairn was unable to spend long dwelling on the past with his replacement yacht - Spirit Of Koomooloo - unexpectedly racing into the mix for the overall handicap honours in the 2007 edition of the race yesterday.
In a race expected to be dominated by the middle-sized grand prix racers such as Quantum, Yendys, Chutzpah and Rosebud, it was instead Spirit Of Koomooloo - the former Margaret Rintoul built in 1968 - which claimed the limelight on the second day of the 628-nautical mile classic.
But whether she can remain a major player in the next day or so is in the lap of the wind gods, with forecasts still tending to favour her newer, more modern rivals.
Freebairn was gutted when his old glamour girl - a striking sight with her Honduras mahogany timber hull gleaming from 20 coats of varnish - fell off a particularly nasty wave in last year's tough Hobart race, cracked her hull and started to sink. He had believed his old beauty could win the 2006 event.
Believed she was indestructible and made for the worst a Sydney to Hobart could ever throw at it.
He was wrong on both counts.
"I always knew we could win a race with Koomooloo and we were in a great position," said Freebairn, who has a picture of Koomooloo as a screen saver on his mobile phone.
"To have the chance of winning taken away was almost as bad as losing her. We are all here to win."
But in a remarkable twist yesterday her successor, a 22-time Hobart veteran, emerged as having the potential to deliver Freebairn his much sought-after overall win.
"It is going to be very difficult for us," Freebairn admitted.
"This is a heavy boat that has to go uphill to perform at her best.
"It's already been a big effort by the crew."
But for Freebairn a win will be a bonus. His biggest victory this year was coming back to tackle the Sydney to Hobart again.
"It feels good to be back. Really good," he said.
"One of the boys said he didn't want to fail again.
"But I don't see last year as a failure. A failure would be not being on the startline this year."

[shamus]

This site is of great interest to slower boats. I can't post the photo from the slow wireless connection I'm on while camping, (sad isn't it?) maybe Ian, you could do it for me.
http://www.cmar.csiro.au/remotesensi...ob/latest.html

[The Bigfella]

Ahhh - the old Margaret Rintoul. I seem to recall passing one of them on the Harbour 25 years or so back - sthe one I recall had a blue hull then - there were at least five in the series of Margaret Rintouls.

The one they have is ex Margaret Rintoul II - ex Ragamuffin.

[shamus]

Finally got on Yacht Tracker. Maris appears to be heading back to Sydney! Bugger. She was to stay down here for the festival, and we were berthed beside her.

[The Bigfella]

The website appears unable to cope with the traffic

[shamus]

Sanyo Maris- Retired

[The Bigfella]

No info on why?

[shamus]

Broken Gooseneck- heading Jervis Bay. Wonder if they might fix it there and still come down? Hope so.

[RFNK]

Me too Shamus. As we're not invited aboard your boat , it'll be nice if there is a similar one we can check out! Rick

[Wild Wassa]

"We're starting to think about a race in 2012 which would be 50 years from her first in 1962."

Would the race be the Sydney to Hobart?

I have three friends who are on Inca. Rod Saunders co-Skipper, Nick Hiliyard and David Kent. Rod and I have discussed this race in fine detail right down to the continual changes in requirements that have skyrocketed the costs. The friends are three of the crew within a total of 8 on Inca which is the Canberra Yacht Club's entry in the race.

All eight are splitting the costs equally which hasn't included the costs in getting each crew accredited nor the cost of delivering the boat back to Sydney nor the races that they had to do to qualify, nor the cost of actually doing the race. Nor any costs incured for an insurance claim ... fingers crossed.

Just to get to the start line by meeting the requirements, each of the 8 has spent the equivalent to what my Skipper and I will spend combined, to get to Melbourne and back, ship two families to Melbourne for their holidays, be accommodated for three weeks, pay $800 entry fee to the World titles and live and be entertained in Melbourne until Skandia Geelong Race Week ... and we will do well over 36hrs of racing.

I can't believe what it costs to do the Sydney to Hobart. The guys on Inca are getting little change from $80,000 for 4 days sailing and suffering the deprivation of living amongst the spew in a sail locker and being at the back of the fleet ... and now mid fleet on handicap. This isn't their first Sydney to Hobart.

If you were doing the Sydney to Hobart, you would want to be doing it in more than a slow old wooden boat. Hotels are for sleeping ... boats are for day racing. Although I do like doing the occasional overnight or 24 hr passage race like the Marlay and the Heaven Can Wait.

I backed Ichi Ban head to head against Blackjack. Go Ichi Ban. I also backed Loki head to head against Limit and Loki is 4 minutes behind Limit this morning.

Warren.

PS, Why doesn't Skandia Wild Thing win? ... gear failure? Scandia dropped her bundle last night.

[Paul Fitzgerald]

Ragtime and Impetuous are woodies as well.

[The Bigfella]

MAXI yacht Wild Oats XI has won its fourth consecutive Sydney to Hobart Yacht race, gliding in ahead of rival Skandia.
Wild Oats XI sailed in to Hobart's Constitutional Dock to a rousing welcome at 9.30am.

Wild Oats XI had to deal with a dying wilnd of 10 knots as it approached the finishing line; a wind of 25 knots had earlier helped propel the maxi across Storm Bay.

Earlier arch rival Skandia had been fighting to hold challenger ASM Shockwave 5, but was well clear of it as it passed Cape Raoul and entered Storm Bay, which represents the last stage of the race to Hobart.

Despite its spectacular run, Wild Oats XI falled to break the race record of 1 day 18 hours 40 minutes and 10 seconds.

The line honours winner needed to cross the line in Hobart before 7.40am (AEDT) to take the record.

Wild Oats XI commenced the tricky Derwent River run into the wind after rounding Tasman Island at about 5.40am (AEDT).

After overcoming a collision with a shark on Saturday evening Wild Oats built a comfortable lead overnight over Skandia, which at 6.30am (AEDT) on Sunday was 15 nautical miles behind in second place.

Skandia, skippered by Grant Wharington, had to fight off a challenge from Andrew Short on ASM Shockwave 5 which has made good ground to be only four minutes adrift of Skandia in third place.

There was plenty of wind on the Derwent River to give the expected flotilla of spectators a keen chase as they escort Wild Oats XI to a place in sailing history in brilliant weather.

Leading handicap positions have remained fairly static overnight with Alan Whiteley's Melbourne TP52 Cougar II ahead of Bob Steel's sistership Quest and Geoff Ross Reichel/Pugh 55 Yendys.

[shamus]

Warren- Yes it has got more expensive. There are some allowances made for cruising division which would help. The point would be to complete a Hobart 50 years after her first. I have a family member who is quite experienced in this race- has skippered 4- he seems to think it is feasible, but there is plenty of time to think about it, we'll just have to see.

[Wild Wassa]

Shamus, please don't think that I'm not wishing you and your boat the best.

That would be a real hoot on this Forum.

Warren.

[RFNK]

There have been several Ragamuffins over many years. Syd Fischer, the owner, always (I think it's always) calls his boats Ragamuffin. He's over 80 years old and has a most impressive sailing record, including Sydney to Hobart wins. The latest has finished the race and is currently standing at 4th on handicap but I'm not sure if that standing could change, as there are many boats yet to finish. Rick

[RFNK]

Andrew, the original Ragamuffin went on to be called Margaret Rintoul but is now called (Ray White) Spirit of Koomooloo, the new owner's replacement for the old Koomooloo which sank last year. She hasn't quite finished according to the CYC website but should finish within an hour or two. Running 27th on handicap and 57th for `line honours'.

http://rolexsydneyhobart.com/standin....x=64&Send.y=9

Rick

[Paul Fitzgerald]

Ragtime won her division, IRC2, given 1hr 55 min redress for helping sinking yacht.

http://forums.sailinganarchy.com/ind...howtopic=84063

[shamus]

Just came back from wandering around looking at a lot of expensive plastic. Ragtime looked fun, and you can still read 'Margaret Rintoul' on Spirit of Koomooloo's transom if you look hard. A few other boats with a bit of wooden trim. There was a lot more interest in the race when the lead boats took several days and there was time for several lots of weather to have an effect. I know- I'm pining for the fjiords..

[Hwyl]

Nice picture of Malulka on sailing anarchy today, currently leading IRC division 4

[Wild Wassa]

The ultimate Sydney to Hobart prize is the Tatersalls Cup for the overall winner of the race. 'Quest' a Trans Pac 52 from New South Wales, Skippered by Bob Steel won from the JV52 Wot Now (Grahme Wood) and another TP52 Cougar II (Alan Whiteley). Wild Oats XI won the Allan Payne Memorial Trophy ... the media's considered winner of the race.

Quest (15.84m) completed the course with a 12.8 knot average and a .808 knot per metre time factor which was .338 per knot/metre faster than Bob Oatley’s 30m super maxi Wild Oats Xl and .350 quicker than Grant Wharington’s Brisbane Gladstone race record holder Skandia Wild Thing.

The top eight were Quest, Wot Now, Cougar 11 (all three were on the same handicap), then came Bill Wild’s 9.9 m Wedgetail .770 followed by Stephen Ainsworth’s 19.2m Loki .690, Limit .680, Peter Harburg’s Brisbane sloop Black Jack .660 and Matt Allen’s Ichi Ban .640.

I took the shots of Quest earlier this year ... Skandia Wild Thing's boom is in the background.








Warren.

[The Bigfella]

Obviously not a woody, but I just stumbled across this shot by Carlo Borlenghi of Skandia on another forum - they look like the Freycinet cliffs to me. I sat on top of them and watched the sun rise once.... fabulous place. Taswegians - is that the place? 400' tall?

[Paul Fitzgerald]

Ragtime at 20K in S2H

http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=hoyLOW...eature=related

[The Bigfella]

Nice bit of film Paul

[RFNK]

Looks more like Tasman Peninsula to me. I trudged all the way out to the end of Freycinet Peninsula nearly 30 years ago in a brand new pair of Blundstones (what a dumb idea THAT was). The scenery was beautiful but I don't remember any cliffs - was I blinded by blisters or is my memory shot? Rick

[The Bigfella]

I know what you mean about the peninsular - but heading slightly north from that walk?