Andoo Comanche line honours, Caro handicap. Obviously wouldn't bet the life savings on either. Put some money on Black Jack on scratch and Alive for hcap also.
I just want to see he two older women in the Currawong 30 do well in the two handed division. I don't care who wins.
The two ladies sailing the Currawong 30 had a good lead over Crux [SS34 two handed] after 6 hours of racing. They must have driven her hard under spinnaker! This morning Crux has overtaken Currawong but not by as much as you would expect.
Crux rounded the wrong mark on the exit to Sydney Harbour and had to backtrack to re-round the correct buoy. They have been making up time ever since.
On this map, the purple line is their tracker's trace. You can also see Yeah Baby back at the CYC after retiring with rudder damage.
Currawong and Gunrunner are within shouting distance of each other. From the track it seems that Crux turned back and then took up the race again. Anyone know what happened?
My money is on the 75' S&S yawl 'Kialoa II' for the first yacht with white sails into Hobart.
She's currently doing battle with 'Minnie', a two handed Jones 42. Fun fact: both skippers are regular competitors in the Wednesday twilights at Woody Point on Pittwater. Nothing like a bit of healthy competition.
Currawong seems to have pulled out. No updates for organisers. Maluka screaming at 11 knots. Crux nearby at the same speed
Select to expand quoteKinora said..
Currawong seems to be heading back out again this morning.
If you use the tracker Lydia linked to, the Currawong does not say retired. They might have needed to stop for some reason!
Looks like an interesting night last night in Bass Straight.
This from. Rob Large's wife after a message this morning from Rob on their NS 38 "Inukshuk "which he is 2 handing with Cameron Boogaerdt.
Select to expand quoteRamona said..Kinora said..
Currawong seems to be heading back out again this morning.
If you use the tracker Lydia linked to, the Currawong does not say retired. They might have needed to stop for some reason!
I had the same thought. A few boats retired overnight so it may have got them a better weather window. Glad to see them able to continue.
The alternative tracker is good.
K.
I think Inukshuk and the old Jeanneau 36 Uprising are both doing remarkably well; they are well up with the modern specialist shorthanders that are shorter overall, but much lighter and not much shorter on the waterline. They are also up with fully crewed boats like the Farr 43 IOR Wild Oats, which won the whole race just a few years ago.
The sails on No Limits looked amazing at the finish. The headsail (#4?) had a tear about a metre long and half a metre from top to bottom; the mainsail had an even bigger tear with a smaller one lower down. I can't work out how the sails stood together.Select to expand quoteKinora said..Ramona said..Kinora said..
Currawong seems to be heading back out again this morning.
If you use the tracker Lydia linked to, the Currawong does not say retired. They might have needed to stop for some reason!
I had the same thought. A few boats retired overnight so it may have got them a better weather window. Glad to see them able to continue.
The alternative tracker is good.
K.
They were sitting in port waiting for better conditions, but this is the Hobart - there is no such thing as a bad tailwind. Two reefs and a poled out #4 will let them rock across the Strait.
Currrawong is about to enter Bass Strait and at the last report doing 7.7 knots. Not bad for a 4kn SB!
Kialoa II looks like being the first yacht home with white sails. Currently in 33rd over all but will need to get a wriggle on. At last report she was doing 2.8 knots.
In the two handed division, Sunfast Racing has moved up to 2nd on IRC and has a better shot at negotiating the Derwent than Mistral (IRC 1st) or Pacman (3rd) which will both be trying to get through the potential overnight parking lot to finish at dawn tomorrow while Sunfast Racing is due to finish at noon.
Select to expand quoteChris 249 said..
... they are well up with the modern specialist shorthanders that are shorter overall, but much lighter and not much shorter on the waterline.
Speaking of modern specialist shorthanders here is an interesting test of a Sunfast like a few in the race.
The full scow bow doesn't seem to like the chop and you would think it would slow the boat upwind but he specifically says that it doesn't. You can see it wanting to get up on plane downwind but not quite enough wind that day. Would have been flying last night across Bass Strait with 35 knots up the arse.
I looked over one at a Middle Harbour Yacht club boat show and another at Church Point and you wouldn't catch me off shore in one overnight. Not even a moderately rough night like last night. Everything is so light and insubstantial not to mention exposed. He compliments the two finger tiller effort required for the twin rudders but imagine hitting anything bigger than a Coke bottle at speed.
Pretty much the only thing I liked for offshore use is the window that permits viewing the sails from the chart table.
Not sure if the water ballast is legal in the Hobart but you wouldn't want anything to go wrong so that the ballast ended up on the leeward side.
I seriously doubt that the boat would hold together if rolled. Torn fibreglass everywhere.
Shades of Nexba?
Select to expand quotejulesmoto said..Chris 249 said..
... they are well up with the modern specialist shorthanders that are shorter overall, but much lighter and not much shorter on the waterline.
Speaking of modern specialist shorthanders here is an interesting test of a Sunfast like a few in the race.
The full scow bow doesn't seem to like the chop and you would think it would slow the boat upwind but he specifically says that it doesn't. You can see it wanting to get up on plane downwind but not quite enough wind that day. Would have been flying last night across Bass Strait with 35 knots up the arse.
I looked over one at a Middle Harbour Yacht club boat show and another at Church Point and you wouldn't catch me off shore in one overnight. Not even a moderately rough night like last night. Everything is so light and insubstantial not to mention exposed. He compliments the two finger tiller effort required for the twin rudders but imagine hitting anything bigger than a Coke bottle at speed.
Pretty much the only thing I liked for offshore use is the window that permits viewing the sails from the chart table.
Not sure if the water ballast is legal in the Hobart but you wouldn't want anything to go wrong so that the ballast ended up on the leeward side.
I seriously doubt that the boat would hold together if rolled. Torn fibreglass everywhere.
Shades of Nexba?
The Sun Fasts are doing Hobarts, Fastnets and Transatlantics so must be pretty tough.
I am disappointed with tests like the Matthew Sheahan one in the vid; like so many in the industry he seems to be obsessed with the pro scene, hence the many references to IMOCAs which are obviously an influence in the Sun Fast design - but so must conventional IRC/ORC boats. Arguably, as the agent implies, the reason shorthanding is taking off is that they have moved AWAY from the pro-style designs.
I do tend to think that the full bow is basically the result of packing a litre into a 750ml bottle, and it's actually better to just make the boat longer for the same beam, displacement, rig, engine, gear etc by lengthening and sharpening the bow. The Sun Fast is actually proportionately heavier than the NS38 Inukshuk (which I didn't realise. although I knew they are much heavier than some older boats) and has more beam.
The funny thing is that it was only about two years ago that the opposite - wave piercing bows - was all the rage and the sailing press went ga-ga about them without actually trying to analyse them properly, just as they seem to be going ape about scows this season.
Looking at ORC certs, the NS38 Inukshuk has a downwind VMG of 8.12 knots in 20 knots of breeze compared to Transcendence (a successful local 3300) at 8.20, which seems about right looking at how well each of them went while square running. Upwind in 20 the 3300 is .2 knots quicker in 20 knots of breeze according to ORC. Where the Sunfast does really against the NS38 is in hard reaches, when it's supposedly a knot quicker. Upwind in the light, the two boats have the same ORC speed 'till 12 knots.
As noted earlier, I find it encouraging to see the two old dacron-sailed boats in the SH division hanging in their with exotic-ragged new boats. And Pacman, the Young 11, is showing just what an amazing design it is.
Sad when gear failures ruin your standing ("Inukshuk" NS38 2H) but it's all part of the game and certainly on the cards for older yachts.
On the fun side they have upped their max speed from 20.2 to 22.6 :-)
Select to expand quoteGravy7 said..
Currrawong is about to enter Bass Strait and at the last report doing 7.7 knots. Not bad for a 4kn SB!
Kialoa II looks like being the first yacht home with white sails. Currently in 33rd over all but will need to get a wriggle on. At last report she was doing 2.8 knots.
In the two handed division, Sunfast Racing has moved up to 2nd on IRC and has a better shot at negotiating the Derwent than Mistral (IRC 1st) or Pacman (3rd) which will both be trying to get through the potential overnight parking lot to finish at dawn tomorrow while Sunfast Racing is due to finish at noon.
That 7.7 knots would be SOG and very dependent on the satellites as well. 6 knots downwind is possible with a Currawong. These two elderly women are going to finish and show up some of the early retirees with their minor breakages like a broken boom! The navy yacht retiring because of a broken boom is just a little sad.
Select to expand quoteRamona said..Gravy7 said..
Currrawong is about to enter Bass Strait and at the last report doing 7.7 knots. Not bad for a 4kn SB!
Kialoa II looks like being the first yacht home with white sails. Currently in 33rd over all but will need to get a wriggle on. At last report she was doing 2.8 knots.
In the two handed division, Sunfast Racing has moved up to 2nd on IRC and has a better shot at negotiating the Derwent than Mistral (IRC 1st) or Pacman (3rd) which will both be trying to get through the potential overnight parking lot to finish at dawn tomorrow while Sunfast Racing is due to finish at noon.
That 7.7 knots would be SOG and very dependent on the satellites as well. 6 knots downwind is possible with a Currawong. These two elderly women are going to finish and show up some of the early retirees with their minor breakages like a broken boom! The navy yacht retiring because of a broken boom is just a little sad.
Where are you getting your updates from?
Here is an interesting photograph giving an idea as to the relative sizes of maxi's vs more regular yachts of the type most of us own. It is from a number of years ago and the smaller yacht is a Northshore 38. I think we often underestimate the massive difference. Plenty of yachts smaller than a Northshore 38 too!
Select to expand quotejulesmoto said..Ramona said..Gravy7 said..
Currrawong is about to enter Bass Strait and at the last report doing 7.7 knots. Not bad for a 4kn SB!
Kialoa II looks like being the first yacht home with white sails. Currently in 33rd over all but will need to get a wriggle on. At last report she was doing 2.8 knots.
In the two handed division, Sunfast Racing has moved up to 2nd on IRC and has a better shot at negotiating the Derwent than Mistral (IRC 1st) or Pacman (3rd) which will both be trying to get through the potential overnight parking lot to finish at dawn tomorrow while Sunfast Racing is due to finish at noon.
That 7.7 knots would be SOG and very dependent on the satellites as well. 6 knots downwind is possible with a Currawong. These two elderly women are going to finish and show up some of the early retirees with their minor breakages like a broken boom! The navy yacht retiring because of a broken boom is just a little sad.
Where are you getting your updates from?
Updates here: rolexsydneyhobart.com/Standings
Better tracker with Windy overlay here: gis.ee/sh/
The breeze seems to have shut down now. Average speed of the ten boats inside Storm Bay is down to about 3 knots. Even those outside Tasman Island are mostly doing 5s. It's going to be a long afternoon and night for the two handed fleet.
well it is a down hill race 
