Tony Cable lines up for his 50th Sydney Hobart
On Boxing Day a bloke by the name of Tony Cable will start his 50th Hobart – nobody has ever done that before. It is a landmark for the Rolex Sydney Hobart; another colour to add to the tapestry of…
Offshore
News, race results plus editorial coverage from the Sydney Hobart Yacht Race, Vendée Globe, The Ocean Race, ARC, Fastnet, Transpac, Ocean Globe Race, Global Solo Challenge and Offshore Yachting from around the world.
Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race: A truly global experience
This year will see more international boats and crew than ever before. A record 27 foreign entries will cross the Sydney Harbour start line of the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race on Boxing Day. The bar at the Cruising Yacht…
Wild Oats is “locked, loaded and ready to go” in the Rolex Sydney-Hobart race
Supermaxi yacht Wild Oats XI, owned by Bob Oatley AO and his son Sandy, is “locked, loaded and ready to go” in the Rolex Sydney Hobart race according to skipper, Mark Richards, following the big boat’s final training session off…
Spindrift 2 rushes east more than 100nm ahead of the Jules Verne record
Air and water temperature: four degrees Celsius. 33-knot south-westerlies blowing directly off Antarctica. The Southern Ocean atmosphere is back! In just 36 hours since Saturday morning, Spindrift 2 has closed her 473-mile deficit on the world record pace (her largest…
IDEC Sport back at record pace, chasing Spindrift and the record
In less than 24 hours, Francis Joyon and his crew of five turned things around again in terms of the Jules Verne Trophy record time. They have just achieved another success following the one they had off the coast…
Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race: Will he or won’t he – that’s the TP52 question
Will Matt Allen race his new TP52 Ichi Ban to Hobart or will he opt to stick with his sleek black hulled Carkeek 60 of the same name? The skippers of nine other TP52s entered in the Rolex Sydney Hobart…
Heavy going predicted for the early stages of the Rolex Sydney Hobart Race
A weather forecast for the Rolex Sydney Hobart race issued early today was ringing alarm bells to the point today where Iain Murray, the tactician aboard Bob and Sandy Oatley’s supermaxi Wild Oats XI, suggested the start of the race…
Hang on to your fillings – mysailing's dark horse #1
It has been a long time since Robert Hick has designed and built a yacht that has serious contentions for the Rolex Sydney to Hobart. But when you consider Hick's last 'dark horse' was AFR Midnight Rambler that won the…
Inaugural Sydney Hobart Food & Wine Fair at Sydney Race Village
2015 marks the launch of the inaugural Sydney Race Village at the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, Rushcutters Bay. One of the highlights of the Village is set to be the Sydney Hobart Food and Wine Fair, which kicked off…
Maxi Ragamuffin returns to the Rolex Sydney Hobart Race
She was one of the greatest maxi yachts of her day; winning line honours three times, first as Bumblebee IV in 1979, and then as Ragamuffin in 1988 and 1990 and she last raced to Hobart in 1993. For the…
IMOCA skippers to help with oceanic climate observations
The Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO (IOC UNESCO) and IMOCA Ocean Masters World Championship team up to gather climate change data in the remotest parts of the globe, particularly the Southern Ocean. The IMOCA Ocean Masters skippers, such as defending…
Weather to be on the nose for big boats in Rolex Sydney Hobart
Any thoughts of a post-Christmas sleigh ride for the supermaxi yachts contesting the Rolex Sydney Hobart race are decreasing as the Boxing Day start time approaches. A preliminary weather prognosis from acclaimed yachting meteorologist, Roger Badham, indicates that while the…
Antigua Bermuda Race announced to attract boats to the America's Cup
Organised by the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club in association with Antigua Sailing Week, the inaugural Antigua Bermuda Race will commence after the 50th edition of Antigua Sailing Week in early May 2017. The Antigua Bermuda Race is designed to offer…
Spot the difference – Andrea Francolini compares Wild Oats XI with Wild Oats XI.5
Yachting photographer Andrea Francolini has taken two near identical images of Bob and Sandy Oatley’s supermaxi, Wild Oats XI, so the difference between Wild Oats XI pre and post-surgery is apparent. The location of the sailplan, rig, keel, rudder and…
The Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race: How Do We Win This Thing?
It’s not actually that long a story – though it took longer than expected, when last year, Hugh Ellis asked Gary Caulfield if he would like to do the 2015 Rolex Sydney Hobart on his Beneteau First 44.7 Twitch. Caulfield…
Entry list for 2018 Golden Globe Race now stands at 30
French champion Eric Loizeau and Estonian solo circumnavigator Uka Randmaa are the latest entrants to set their sights on winning the 2018 Golden Globe yacht race. They made their announcements at the first Golden Globe competitor conference, held at the…
Jules Verne competitors meet in the middle of the ocean
Spindrift 2, the world's largest racing trimaran, skippered by Yann Guichard, is currently racing on the Jules Verne Trophy round-the-world crewed record attempt, with a time to beat of 45 days, 13 hours, 42 minutes and 53 seconds. By crossing the…
Losing track of time when racing at 30 knots around the world
The support crew for the Jules Verne attempt by Spindrift 2 received the following message from Dona Bertarelli, illustrating one of the lesser-known irritations of a high-speed race around the world: “Don’t ask me what time it is….
LMAX Exchange back on top in Clipper Race
After 2,088 nautical miles from Albany to Sydney, and long periods of slamming seas due to strong Southern Ocean headwinds, line honours in Race 4: The Elliot Brown Timekeeper Cup went to LMAX Exchange. GREAT Britain took second place and…
Supermaxi Wild Oats XI is a “totally different animal” following hull modifications
The dramatically modified supermaxi yacht, Wild Oats XI, was a “totally different animal” according to skipper, Mark Richards, after the yacht had completed the 24-hour qualifying run for this month’s Rolex Sydney Hobart race. “She just lifts her bow and…
Lmax Exchange leads Clipper fleet into Sydney
LMAX Exchange has crossed the finish line in Sydney Harbour, taking line honours in Race 4 after racing 2,088 nautical miles from Albany through the Southern Ocean on the Elliot Brown Timekeeper Cup. It crossed the line at 1901 AEDT/0801 UTC….
Ichi Ban and Flying Cloud in front seat at CYCA Trophy–Passage Series
Matt Allen steered his TP52 Ichi Ban to a Division 1 win the CYCA Trophy Passage Series today, posting a near six minute win over Paul Clitheroe’s Balance, with a further two minutes to Tasmanian entry Cougar II, owned by…
No margin for error as Clipper fleet closes in on Sydney finish line
The heat is on as the Clipper Race fleet closes in on Sydney and the Elliot Brown Timekeeper Cup lives up to its name with the smallest of margins allowing gains and costing positions. All the teams have rounded the…
Midnight Rambler owner fighting off injury to be fit for his 36th Hobart
Two weeks ago Ed Psaltis, co-owner of Ker 40 Midnight Rambler, climbed the ladder to the loft of his garage. “I climbed this ladder 1000 times, thought I had taken enough precaution, but apparently not on the 1001st time. “I…
Spindrift 2 to pass south of Cape Leeuwin tonight in Jules Verne quest
The highlight of this third week has been the rounding of the Kerguelen archipelago which are in the middle of the Indian Ocean. The crew decided to sail north of the islands in order to avoid the drift ice located…
Nomad IV wins RORC Transat and sets new monohull record
Jean-Paul Riviere's French Finot Conq 100, Nomad IV crossed the finish line of the RORC Transatlantic Race at 19 hours 06 mins and 59 secs UTC on Tuesday 8th December 2015, taking Monohull Line Honours to win the exquisite silver…
Gamble pays off for IDEC SPORT as the trimaran ends up on the right side of the Low
The happy faces on the sailors during this morning’s video conference live from IDEC SPORT were a pleasure to see. Francis Joyon’s crew is in the process of seeing their gamble pay off and ending up on the right side…
Clipper boat diverts to Hobart for emergency medivac
Derry~Londonderry~Doire is diverting to Hobart in Tasmania for a medevac of an injured crewman as a precautionary measure. Skipper Daniel Smith contacted the Race Office at 1030 AEDT today (2330 UTC Tuesday 8 December) to report that round-the-world crew…
Pittwater to Coffs fleet surges before entries close
A surge in entries for the 2016 Pittwater to Coffs Yacht Race has the fleet currently trending at 43% higher than last year’s 28 starters with five days to go until entries close, on December 15. So far a combined…
Jean-Luc van den Heede announces entry in 2018 Golden Globe Race
Paris December 8 2015: French solo yachtsman Jean-Luc van den Heede is the latest to throw his cap into the Golden Globe Race ring. He made the announcement yesterday at the Paris Boat Show that he is to race a…
Champagne on ice for Nomad IV as RORC Transat finish draws near
Nomad IV is expected to take Monohull Line Honours in the RORC Transatlantic Race later today with ZED 6 in full flight coming in from the north and Nunatak celebrate mid-Atlantic with shooting stars and Jelly Babies. For the next…
Close call with an iceberg and 200 miles regained for IDEC SPORT
DEC SPORT has regained 200 miles in 24 hours. The Furious Fifties are pushing the big red trimaran at high speed across the Indian Ocean. But they need to watch out for icebergs. Yesterday, Francis Joyon’s crew came within a…
Big jump in Launceston to Hobart Race fleet
A fleet of 30 boats, ten more than last year, has entered the ninth annual Derwent Sailing Squadron/National Pies Launceston to Hobart Yacht Race, which starts from Beauty Point on the Tamar River on December 27. The 285 nautical mile…
If you want to know what all the appendages on Wild Oats do, buy Australian Sailing
Since her launch in 2005 as a narrow-hulled, canting-keeled coastal racer, Wild Oats XI has been radically altered on a number of occasions. She has been nick-named “the Swiss army knife” because of her many appendages, such as the canting…
Maserati prepared for a technical Sydney Hobart Race
Giovanni Soldini is known for his solo sailing. He has won two round-the-world races, competed in three Transat Jacques Vabre, done more than 40 ocean crossings and done six Ostars. Now he is in Australia to compete in the Rolex…
Nomad on final approach in RORC Transat
The majority of yachts competing in the second edition of the RORC Transatlantic Race are predicted to finish the 3,000 mile race over the next few days. Nomad IV has just over 600 miles to go and is expected on…
Maserati and Giovanni Soldini all set for the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race
At exactly 13:00 local time (2:00 GMT, 3:00 Italian time) on December 26, the VOR 70 Maserati, manned by Italian skipper Giovanni Soldini and his 11-strong crew, will line up for the start of the 71st Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht…
Spindrift sailors on high alert 24/7 for icebergs in the Indian Ocean
The north-north westerlies picked up even more strength this morning to the east of Madagascar, enabling Spindrift 2 to reach average speeds of around 30 knots once again. The area of the Indian Ocean where the trimaran has been sailing…
Chinese Whisper wins the double in Bird Island Race
Rupert Henry’s Chinese Whisper has taken the double of line and overall honours in the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia’s Bird Island Race and in the process has also taken charge of the Club’s prestigious Blue Water Pointscore. Chinese Whisper…
Kurtley Beale joins Perpetual Loyal for Rolex Sydney Hobart
Wallabies and NSW Waratahs full-back Kurtley Beale will join Anthony Bell’s Perpetual LOYAL in the boat’s last Rolex Sydney Hobart Campaign. Beale, who recently returned to Australia after the Wallabies 2015 Rugby World Cup campaign has set his sights on…
