Neville Crichton’s Alfa Romeo remained in control of her nearest maxi opponents through a changing wind pattern overnight and into the second day of the 2009 Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race.Alfa’s afterguard, including tactician Michael Coxon and navigator Tom Addis, kept the yacht perfectly positioned at the head of the fleet to be first into the anticipated shift in wind direction from south-southwest experienced from the start to southeast off the south coast of New South Wales.
Alfa Romeo tacked on the shift at about 2145 last night to converge back towards the coast on port after the long gaining starboard tack the fleet followed after clearing Sydney Harbour from the 1300 start.
At 0800, 19 hours into the race, the Reichel/Pugh 100 was 24 nautical miles northeast of Green Cape, 2 miles ahead of Mike Slade’s Farr 100 ICAP Leopard, which was three or four miles to seaward, with another 2nm to Bob Oatley’s Wild Oats XI, a near sister design R/P 100 to Alfa Romeo. Alfa had covered 193nm of the 628nm course and was doing 10.8 knots.
All three were close to the shortest-distance rhumb line between Sydney and Tasman Island and on course for the island, but were starting to slow as the wind dropped from its 25 knot peak of last evening to 10-12 knots and less this morning.
Critical for all boats will be traversing the light airs and calms expected today in the Bass Strait, between the Australian mainland and Tasmania, before a forecast 20-30 knot westerly change tonight.
Wild Oats XI navigator Ian Burns said this morning: “The wind is pretty light now, between 6-10 knots and quite variable. The seas are flatter – it was a little rough at times last night.
“We’ve had quite a few wind shifts and some big lulls. At one stage the guys behind us [Ran and Lahana] ran almost up to us. We exchanged some tacks as the southeast-southwester fought it out but it has been hanging in the southeast for some time now.
“Some forecasts are calling for no wind at all across half of Bass Strait. The fact that we will head butt into the light stuff gives us a bit of a chance. Leopard is doing a great job for a big boat in the lighter wind, but the race hasn’t really started yet; that will be today.”
The overall handicap leader on IRC corrected time is Michael Hiatt’s Farr 55 Living Doll over the UK-based Judel/Vrolijk 72 Ran (Niklas Zennstrom), followed by the Jones-modified Volvo 70 Ichi Ban (Matt Allen).
One of the handicap favourites, Alan Brierty’s Reichel/Pugh 62 Limit, was among the retirements overnight due to problems with the halyard locks.
That brings the number of retired yachts to four in the 100-boat fleet that started yesterday from Sydney. The Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race fleet has crews representing the USA, UK, New Zealand, Spain, the Netherlands, and New Caledonia as well as every Australian state.
LIST OF ENTRIES
41 SUD FRA 8995 New Caledonia Archambault 40
Adventure of Hornet GBR7802T UK Challenge
AFR Midnight Rambler 8338 NSW Farr 40
Alfa Romeo NZL80 NZ Maxi
Another Fiasco Q999 QLD Jutson 43
Archie A35 TAS Archambault 35
Auch A44 TAS Beneteau First 44.7
Audi Centre Melbourne SM 2008 VIC Corby 49
Aurora N3 NSW Farr 40 – One Off
Bacardi SM377 VIC Peterson 44
Balance 7771 NSW Beneteau 45
Bear Necessity MH115 NSW C & C 115
Bet NSW Sydney 38
Birdsoffboats.com.au 2999 NSW Sydney 38 Mod
Calm SM5252 VIC TP52
Challenger of Hornet GBR7803T UK Challenge
Chancellor 7407 NSW Beneteau First 40.7
Charisma ESP7100 Spain S & S 57
Charlie’s Dream RQ1920 QLD Bluewater 450
CHorse 8350 NSW Cavalier 350 SL
Chutzpah R33 VIC IRC 40
Colortile 67 NSW Sayer 45
Concordia G121 VIC Nautor Swan 53
Copernicus 6689 NSW Radford 12
Cougar II SM 5200 VIC TP 52
Dekadence SM46 TAS DK46
Discoverer of Hornet GBR7804T UK Challenge
Eleni MH60 NSW Sydney 38
Evolution Racing NSW Cookson 50
EZ Street 6814 NSW Warwick 44
Flying Fish 7551 NSW Radford 16.4
Geomatic Joker M9000 VIC Jarken 38
Goldfinger 8880 VIC Farr 52
Helsal III 262 TAS Adams 20
Holy Cow! 6797 NSW Beneteau Oceanis 50
ICAP Leopard GBR1R UK Maxi
Ichi Ban AUS 03 NSW Jones 70
Imagination 35 NSW First 47.7
Investec LOYAL NZL99999 TAS Maxi
Kioni 6146 NSW Beneteau First 47.7
Knee Deep HY161 WA Farr 49
Krakatoa II 55555 NSW Pogo 40
Lahana 10081 NSW 30m Maxi
Limit AUS 98888 WA Reichel Pugh 62
Lion New Zealand NZL 3900 NZ Whitbred Maxi
Livewire.org.au 6773 NSW Oceanis 37
Living Doll R55 VIC Farr 55
Loki AUS60000 NSW Reichel Pugh 63
Love & War 294 NSW S & S 47
Mahligai BRU1 NZ Sydney 46
Matangi 5350 TAS Frers 39
Menace M24 NSW Phillips/Simpson 11.7
Merit 8679 QLD Volvo 60
Mondo 6305 QLD Sydney 38
More Witchcraft 8402 NSW Dibley 46
Namadgi 6388 ACT Bavaria 44
Next 6081 NSW Sydney 38
Ninety Seven B 9797 VIC Farr 47
Nips N Tux 5995 NSW IMX 40
One For The Road N9 NSW Northshore 37
Paca 6812 NSW Beneteau First 40
Papillon N 40 NSW Archambault 40
Patrice Six 360 NSW X41
Pelagic Magic 11407 NSW Beneteau 40.7
Pinta – M NED 1261 Netherlands S & S 41
Pippin 533 QLD Farr 37
Polaris of Belmont 5527 NSW Cole 43
Pretty Fly III 10007 NSW Cookson 50
Quest 52002 NSW TP 52
Quetzalcoatl 2001 NSW Jones 40
Ragamuffin AUS 70 NSW TP52
Ran GBR7236R UK JV 72
Rapture MAR1005 USA SW 100
Ray White Castle Hill Tartan 3846 NSW Northshore 38
Ray White Spirit of Koomooloo 2170 QLD S&S 49
Rush B45 VIC Corel 45
Sailing Services ANSON 8848 NSW Modified 66
Sailors With Disabilities 7878 NSW Lyons 54
Salona 3274 NSW Salona 37
Seahold Perie Banou II R4 WA S & S 39
Secret Mens Business 3.5 YC3300 SA Reichel Pugh 51
SES Inch by Winch 393 NSW Peterson 44
Shamrock M330 VIC Reichel Pugh 47
She 4924 NSW Olsen 40
She’s The Culprit 370 TAS Jones 39
Shining Sea 6338 SA Sydney 38
Shogun 6952 VIC JV52
Shortwave 52052 NSW IRC52
St Jude 6686 NSW Sydney 47
Strewth 6188 NSW MKL 49
Suesea F310 WA Marten 49
Swish 6073 NSW Sydney 38
The Subzero Goat 7027 NSW Sydney 38
Tokolosh AUS11111 NSW Maxi
Tow Truck M6 NSW Ker 11.3
Two True YC400 SA First 40
Valheru 1195 TAS Elliott 43
Wasabi AUS 88 NSW Sayer 12 MOD
Wicked SM4 VIC First 40
Wild Oats XI 10001 NSW RP100
Wild Thing M10 VIC IRC Maxi 98
Yendys 1836 NSW Reichel Pugh 55
Zephyr Hamilton Elevators 8289 NSW Farr 1020
Zora I 8975 NSW Salona 45
