Entries are taking shape for the 2025 Nautilus Marine Insurance Sydney Short Ocean Racing Championship (SSORC), inclusive of the Seven Islands Race, to take place over the last weekend of November and hosted by Middle Harbour Yacht Club (MHYC).
Both Division 1 and 2 reigning champions are returning to defend their titles.
Bob Cox has won Division 1 the past four years straight with his DK46, Nine Dragons. Can he be beaten? There are takers who are coming to try. Ray Hudson is one, bringing XS Moment down from Pittwater to challenge all Division 1 entrants and his crew had better bring their A Game.
Hudson’s crew are good offshore on the XP44 design – and they are stayers, taking line honours in the 2024 Pittwater to Coffs Harbour Yacht Race to place third overall, a race in which few held out in the light and tricky conditions. However, they will need to mix it in the two short windward/leeward courses on Day 2 if they are to succeed.
Hudson says: “We like competing against the Harbour based boats every now and again. It gives us an opportunity to see how our current form is against the Harbour regulars. This year we’re not doing the Hobart and other long races, as we’ve typically done in past, but we want to stay in form. A lot of the crew like sailing on the Harbour for a change too.”
In 2024, Matt Wilkinson won Division 2 with Foreign Affair. The Farr 30 has podiumed at the last three SSORC’s.
Local Hero is a new contender and this is a first SSORC for her owner, David Davies. After buying the BH36, he raced her at the Club’s Nautilus Marine Insurance Sydney Harbour Regatta (SHR) in March and held his own in an extremely competitive division.
Davies stated, “There’s not much in the way of IRC events around these days – and that’s our main thing. We did the Sydney Harbour Regatta and it was a really good fleet on a level playing field. The short format windward/leeward stuff is what we’re into. We did the Pittwater Regatta too, which was also great. It’d be good to encourage more clubs to run these rating events.”
Shane Foley is another owner/skipper looking forward to participating in the Seven Islands Race, which is held alongside the SSORC. Foley is the new owner of Boudicca, the Dufour 36 Performance he bought out of Townsville. He is excited about the race around Sydney Harbour’s landmark islands.
“I’m a newbie at Seven Islands, but some of my crew have done it. I’m absolutely looking forward to it and I’m going in the spinnaker division. It’s a lot of fun going with a spinnaker. Go hard or go home,” he said, laughing. “We did our first spinnaker race the other day, in the MHYC Harbour Trek and we enjoyed it.”
“For about the last five years since I retired, I’ve been sailing on Wailea (Neil Padden’s Beneteau 40.7), then I bought Boudicca and started cruising it while I raced on other boats,” he explained. “I’m doing it all to improve my own skills. I’ve just started racing Twilights with Middle Harbour Yacht Club too and I’ve now made a commitment to do their corporate, charity and feature events. I have a good database of people wanting to crew and they seem to enjoy sailing with me.”
Apart from the fun of racing around the islands, the diversity of entries in the Seven Islands Race will make the pursuit style start all-important, as Foley will discover for himself on the Saturday.
The 48th edition of the SSORC is scheduled to take place over the weekend of 29 and 30 November. MHYC CEO, Andrew Forbes, spoke of the significance of the relationship between the Club and its principal partner: “Our partnership with Nautilus Marine Insurance continues to be a cornerstone of Middle Harbour Yacht Club and the regattas we proudly host. It’s more than support – it’s a relationship grounded in a shared passion for sailing and the community that surrounds it,” Forbes concluded.
Standard SSORC entries close on Friday 21 November – so sign up now. Late entries will be accepted up until 5pm on Wednesday 26 November.
For entry and Notice of Race, please visit: www.ssorc.mhyc.com.au
Di Pearson/MHYC media
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