26 January 2010
By Peter Campbell
Today marked the 174th running of the world’s oldest continuous sailing regatta, the Australia Day Regatta on Sydney Harbour, the magnificent waterway that each year is the scene for the start of the famous Sydney Hobart Yacht Race and which in 2000 hosted the sailing regatta of the Sydney Olympic Games.
The Regatta highlighted the status of yachting in Australia, a nation founded by ships of the sea, surrounded by the sea and developed by sea trade, with divisions of the fleet for Classic Yachts, Gaff Riggers and Historical Skiffs reflecting the earlier days of the sport on the Harbour.
Yachts competing included the iconic gaff-rigged Ranger, helmed by octogenarian Bill Gale from the Sydney Amateur Sailing Club, and the classic International 8-metre class sloop Erica J, skippered by Les Goodridge from the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia. The Historical Skiffs are all hand-crafted replicas of the hugely over-canvassed 18-footers that raced in the early 1900s.
Sydney turned on a superb mid-summer day, with the temperature peaking at 30°C and an easterly seabreeze reaching 10-12 knots, ideal for the fleet of modern and vintage yachts and skiffs that raced on the Harbour and for the ocean racers competing in a short offshore race in the Tasman Sea. Smaller local regattas to mark Australia Day were held on other coastal waters along the coast of New South Wales and on inland waters.
The Royal Australian Navy provided the guided missile frigate HMAS Darwin as flagship for the Regatta, with guests of the Regatta President Sir James Hardy for lunch aboard including the Governor of New South Wales Professor Marie Bashir AC and Chiefs of the Australian Defence Forces.
On the Harbour, the 174th Australia Day Regatta got under way at 1.30pm following the colourful Ferrython and Tall Ships Race, with more than a hundred yachts and modern and historical 18-footers racing through hundreds of spectator craft celebrating Australia Day afloat.
The 60-year-old International 8-metre class yacht Erica J took pride of place in the Classic Yacht division, skippered by her current owner, Cruising Yacht Club of Australia member Les Goodridge, who has restored her to pristine racing conditions..
Erica J was built of Tasmania’s renowned Huon pine on the shores of Hobart’s Battery Point by Max Creese to a Norwegian design and launched in June, 1949. During an illustrious career of racing, she represented Tasmania in six challenge matches for the Sayonara Cup during the 1950s, winning for The Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania against the Victorian defender Francis on Melbourne’s Port Phillip in 1953.
Photo Howard Wright
Erica J finished second across the line today to Nigel Stoke’s Fidelis, line honours winner of the 1966 Sydney Hobart Race, but lost first place on corrected time to Ian Kortlang’s Antara, another classic metre-style boat. Fidelis placed third.
The Gaff Riggers division saw a win for Gary Ferres’ Intrepid from Reverie (John Barclay) and Nigel Berlyn), third place going to Hoana (Martin Van Der Wall) which took fastest time.
Biggest division in the Regatta was Division 1 non-spinnaker division won by Heaven (Harold Shim) while Division 1 non-spinnaker went to prominent Sydney Amateur Sailing Club member Guy Irwin in his Endeavour 26 Clewless?
In the spinnaker racing divisions, Division 1 went to Akela (Alan Mather), Division 2 to the fast Balmain Tiger (Neil Hamilton & Brian Wood) which also had fastest time, and Division 3 to Makaha (Ian Taylor). In the International Yngling division, Ruth McCann sailed Troika to a double win.
The traditional Australia Day ocean race from Sydney Harbour south to Botany Bay and return to Sydney Harbour, retracing the passage north of the First Fleet 222 years ago to hoist the Union Jack and begin the European colonisation of Australia, attracted a fleet of near 40 yachts.
The short ocean race started at 11am in a 6 knots east-south-easterly breeze, which freshened for the return leg to 10-12 knots, giving the fleet a shy spinnaker reach back up the coast.
Line honours went to Ludde Ingvall’s 90-footer YuuZoo which recently contested the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race, winning the Geoff Lee Trophy. The City of Sydney Sesquicentenary Cup, for the lowest PHS corrected time among yachts specifically entered for the 174th Australia Day Regatta, was won by Leslie Green’s Swan 55 Ginger which finished third in fleet.
From Peter Campbell
M: 0419 385 028 E: peter_campbell@bigpond.com
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