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There is no other description. It was a magic day on Sydney Harbour as thousands of Australians celebrated our National Day afloat, including more than 800 sailors crewing some 120 yachts and skiffs that contested the 172nd Australia Day Regatta.
The warm and sunny day drew an estimated 2500 leisure craft, ferries, fire tugs, square-rigged tall ships, racing yachts and skiffs, even a P&O liner, on to the magnificent harbour that 220 years ago saw the First Fleet sail into Farm Cove.
The Regatta yacht fleet was the largest in recent years and, particularly pleasing to the Australia Day Regatta Management Committee, was the number of boats that had not raced before in this historic regatta.
The simplified starting procedure and the easy course around permanent marks of the harbour has obviously proved ideal for boats that race on Australia Day with family and friends as crew.
Every yacht and sailing club on Sydney Harbour was represented in the fleet which ranged from 60-foot ocean racers to replicas of the famous gaff-rigged 18-footers of the early 1900s.
The festivities afloat began in the morning with the spectacular Ferrython, followed by the Parade of Sail. Then a total of 96 boats set sail in the 172nd Australia Day Regatta from near the Regatta flagship, HMAS Kanimbla.
A light east-nor’easter gave the fleet a testing beat to windward down the western shore of the harbour followed by a reach down the eastern shore into Rose Bay, finally a run under spinnakers, or poled-out headsails in the non-spinnaker division, past Shark Island to the finish, again near the Flagship.
Over the harbour, an RAAF FA-118 fighter jet made spectacular and low level passes and vertical climbs, followed by a dramatic aerobatic display by the RAAF Roulettes.
Aboard Kanimbla, Regatta President Sir James Hardy entertained to lunch guests who included former Chief of the Defence Forces General Peter Cosgrove, current senior Navy, Army and RAAF chiefs, civic leaders, yacht club commodores, senior representatives of the sponsors, the Commonwealth Bank Private, and their guests.
The Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron was strongly represented among the Regatta entries and in the top results.
On the water, UBS Wild Thing, skippered by Cruising Yacht Club of Australia Day past commodore Geoff Lavis, got the gun in Division 1, but on corrected time had to accept 2nd place to 10, skippered by Ian Oatley, 3rd place going to Stormaway (Jack Stening).
In Division 2, 2nd place went to RSYS member Colin Goldrick in Allegretto, the winner being Hick-Up (Bill Ure), third going to Akela (Alan Mather).
In Division 3, the winner on corrected time was Antares (C Rozakis & A Tyson) from Hoodoo (Michael Wicks & J Kennedy) and Australia Day Regatta Management Committee member Peter Campbell’s Hornblower, with Steve Sweeney at the helm.
The 1966 Sydney Hobart Race line honours winner Fidelis, skippered by Squadron member Nigel Stoke outsailed the fleet in Non-Spinnaker Division 1 to take the line and handicap double from Goodform (Joachim Fluhrer) and Perfect Match (Alun Lewis & Syndicate).
Non-Spinnaker Division 2 saw a win for Independence, skippered by Bob Bundock from Sailability, 2nd place going to line honours winner Clewless?, skippered by Sydney Amateur Sailing Club’s Guy Irwin, 3rd to Emerald IV, skippered by Squadron member Graeme Heckenberg.
The Catalina fleet was a little disappointing in size this year, but the competition was keen with the Squadron’s Magnificat (John & Robin Hancox) taking line honours and also first place on handicap, but only by a close margin from Matilda (Robert Trayner) and Sagacious (Peter Muller).
Biggest fleet of the 172nd Australia Day Regatta was the Classic Yacht Division with 18 starters and, as such, the winner also receives the H C Dangar Memorial Sponsor’s Trophy as well as the Centenary of Federation Medal, first won back in 1901.
The winner of the Classic Yacht Division was John Barclay & Rear Admiral (ret) Nigel Berlyn’s gaff-rigger Reverie, with John at the helm. Both John and Nigel are Squadron members although Reverie races with the Sydney Amateur Sailing Club’s classic division.
Designed by English naval architect Maurice Griffiths, Reverie started life as a bilge keeler designed for the shoal waters of England’s east coast and with a Bermudan rig.
The current owners gave her a single keel and a gaff rig, the result being a comfortable cruising boat that goes exceptionally well close reaching and downwind – as was proved on Australia Day.
Fastest boat in the Classic Yacht Division was another Squadron boatoat, Mark & Amanda Tolhurst’s 30 square metre Theme, designed by Peter Cole, but they had to be content with 13th on corrected time.
Runner-up on handicap to Reverie was Gumleaf (Orion Alderton), 3rd place going to Philip Kinsella’s ‘couta boat Sylvia.
Another veteran winner was Gordon Ingate, the rising 82-year-old Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron member who recently won the prestigious Prince Philip Cup for International Dragon class yachts in Hobart.
On Austalia Day he was at the helm of the International 5.5 metre class yacht Paladin in scoring a handicap win from Pam (Peter McDonald) and Baragoola (David de Coster). Pam took fastest time.
The other international class racing in the 172nd Australia Day Regatta was the Yngling, with first place going to Yertle (James Hawkins & Andrew Howe) from Troika (Jan Newland) and Shining Star (Bryan Riddell).
Adding further nostalgia to the Regatta were the eight Historical Skiffs, replicas of the some of the spectacular 18-footers that raced on Sydney Harbour in the 1920s and 1930s.
Identified by the same emblems on their mainsails and crew rugby shirts as the original skiffs, they turned on a close race, with honours going to Mistake, helmed by colourful Irish international yachtsman Harold Cudmore, a devotee of the historical skiffs.
Second place went to Yendys, skippered by Robert Tearne, third place to Australia 4, skippered by RSYS and Australia Day Regatta management committee member John Winning.
The 172nd Australia Day Regatta ocean race to Botany Bay and return saw the City of Sydney Sesquicentenary Trophy won by Velocity (Brian & Sandra Carrick) from the Greenwich Flying Squadron, as the boat with the lowest PHS corrected time.
The Geoff Lee Line Honours Trophy went to Toyota Aurion V6, the former Brindabella, now owned by Andrew Short.
Squadron members who figured in top results in the ocean race included Julian Farren-Price with About Time (2nd IRC Division 1, Ocean Point Score and 3rd, IRC Division 1, Short Ocean Pointscore), Phil & Elesa Bennett with King Billy (2nd PHS, Division 3, SOPS) and John Taylor’s Allegro (3rd IRC Division 3, SOPS). – Peter Campbell
- The 172nd Australia Day Regatta Inc would like to thank the Sailing Office of the Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron, in particular Margaret Carney, for their very considerable assistance in the promotion and conduct of the 2008 Regatta.
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