2015 Rolex Sydney Hobart

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If the start of the 2015 Rolex Sydney Hobart is any indication, this race is going to have more twists and turns than any Broadway murder mystery and nothing will pan out the way we think it will.

The drama began an hour before the start when the official start boat began taking on water. Those on board, who should have had a box seat of the start, were hastily deposited on the Zoo wharf, a good two kilometres from the super maxis milling about on the front start line.

But the race must go on, and at 1pm, a hooter rather than the traditional cannon, fired from the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia’s usual start vessel, sent the fleet on its way.

Instantly it became clear that the brisk northerly breeze, with surprisingly little east in it, was going to provide for an epic tactical start. There was no short line to the first mark. The boats would have to tack across each other at least two or three times to get there.



All images © Rolex / Stefano Gattini

Wild Oats XI skipper Mark Richards always favours the western side of the start line, and just one boat lay between the flying super maxi and the pin end buoy. It was a perfect start, and within seconds Richards threw the Oatley family’s boat onto a daring port tack and began crossing the fleet, passing a good three to four boat lengths ahead of Comanche, which quickly tacked too.

Oats, Comanche, Ragamuffin 100 and Rambler tacked over towards the eastern spectator fleet. Only Perpetual Loyal hung onto her initial starboard tack towards the western foreshore, and when she finally tacked back across, it appeared that her persistence had been a terrible mistake as she ducked behind one after another of her rivals.

Wild Oats XI’s starting plan was working a treat. She had an extra boat length on Comanche when they crossed a second time, and when they turned to cross the Harbour again on port tack, Richards seemed in total command of the Harbour.



But then Perpetual Loyal re-appeared from nowhere on starboard. Richards realized he did not quite have the room to cross in front of the charging Loyal and peeled away on a huge ark to avoid her.

Comanche threw in an emergency tack and found herself in the lee of Perpetual Loyal’s massive mainsail. By the time Oats regained her footing, she was in an unusual third place, and nothing was going to stop Perpetual Loyal leading the fleet out of the Harbour.

Comanche trailed Loyal by a boat length or two as Perpetual Loyal, Comanche, Wild Oats XI, Ragamuffin 100 and Rambler settled onto the tight reach through the Heads towards the sea mark and the turn to Hobart.

Then an astonishing thing happened. Comanche unfurled her big spinnaker, pressed the turbo button and took off. She surged to the lead. An arrogant display of raw, unmatchable power.

Start video from today!


But more was to come.

Rambler looked to be right where she needed to be, snapping at the heels of her bigger rivals, but about halfway through the Heads, someone hit the American’s afterburners. First Rags, then Oats and then Perpetual Loyal fell by the wayside as George David’s American 88 footer raced through the lumpy, jarring seas as though she was at a flat water regatta.

Jaw dropping.

And still the drama was not over .As Comanche, Rambler, Ragamuffin 100 and Wild Oats XI unfurled their giant Code Zeros for the run south Perpetual Loyal continued out to sea. Twice her Code Zero refused to burst open.

Behind the super maxis things were going more to plan for Black Jack, Chinese Whisper and Ichi Ban, but further back in the fleet Maserati, the world beating Italian V70 had managed to ensnare one of the buoys separating the race and spectator fleets. The big ocean racer finally left Sydney surrounded by small fry. But there is a long way to go.

Further back, Ark 323, the Chinese TP52, was in a collision with another TP52, Ragamuffin 52. “We were dipping down to avoid Rambler, but the boat below us (Ragamuffin 52) did not give us enough room. We have a big crack in our deck,” crew member Faris Bin Aznan, alleged back at the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia dock, following her retirement.

Also back at the CYCA were Jeremy Pilkington’s RP78, Lupa of London, and Anthony Lyall’s TP52, Cougar II from Tasmania. They, too, were involved in a collision that left Cougar II’s starboard transom stove in and broken, with damage to the bow of Lupa of London.

Cougar II’s crew were too shattered to speak, the disappointment clearly written on every crew member’s face.

On Lupa, tactician Laurent Pages told of their devastation. “We were sailing on starboard tack from the start and three boats got locked together – we were in the middle with nowhere to go.

“We were left with the decision to run into the boat above us, or the one below us,” Pages said. “This was the worst thing – the worst feeling – a stupid accident.

“The race director was very clear at the briefing this morning. The race committee told us all to take it easy at the start – there was a whole race to go. If everyone listened, this would not have happened. We are shattered – we came a long way. It seems so unfair,” Pages ended.

M3, Peter Hickson’s TP52, is also out of the race, suffering a shattered forestay. They initially thought they would return to the CYCA and try to fix it and re-start. Anthony Lyall kindly offered them the forestay from his Cougar II.


Tracker

“Despite how they were feeling, Cougar II made us a generous offer, but we subsequently had a crew meeting and looking at tonight’s forecast for a harsh southerly, we decided to retire,” M3’s skipper, Brent Fowler said.

An extraordinary start, but three hours into the race, God appeared to be back in his heaven, normalcy restored.

Comanche is approaching Jervis Bay in the lead, reveling in the brisk northerly. “We have the hammer down, doing 29 knots,” skipper Ken Read reported ”We’ve got to go fast in these conditions that suit us and put distance between us and the rest.

“The southerly is due in four to five hours. If it is sailable, we should still have the advantage, and take more miles out of the others.”

Read isn’t at all surprised that Rambler is in second place, not one of the Australian 100 footers.

“We have raced them a few times and they we have made them better. And they have made us better.”

Due to unforeseen circumstances, the live stream of the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race start was unable to be broadcast internationally. We apologise for any inconvenience and frustration that this has caused international followers.

Jim Gale, RSHYR Media

http://rolexsydneyhobart.com/news/

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Wild Oates Retires

WILD OATS XI FORCED OUT OF ROLEX SYDNEY HOBART RACE DUE TO SAIL DAMAGE

Supermaxi yacht, Wild Oats XI, has been forced to retire from the Rolex Sydney Hobart Race with a torn mainsail.
Early reports indicate that the sail tore in half when the yacht was hit by a 40 knot squall that accompanied a southerly change off the NSW south coast.
The yacht is returning to Sydney. All crew are safe.

Rob Mundle

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Carnage At Rolex Sydney Hobart


Perpetual LOYAL latest Super Maxi Casualty - ROLEX, Stefano Gattini


The Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race has taken a dramatic turn during tonight with the major super maxi contenders for line honours either retired or trying to effect repairs as they have confronted an extreme southerly change off the NSW south coast, along with others in the fleet.

Eight-times line honours winner Wild Oats XI is out with a torn mainsail and is returning to Sydney; the US frontrunner Comanche, which had been leading the race, suffered a broken rudder, initially retired but is now trying to effect repairs at sea and continue in the race; Anthony Bell’s Perpetual Loyal, with former Australian cricket captain Michael Clarke aboard, has retired, also with a broken rudder and is returning to Sydney.

The other US entry, George David’s 88 foot Rambler now leads the race, ahead of Comanche and Syd Fischer’s Ragamuffin 100.

A dark horse in the race is Maserati, Giovanni Soldini’s V70 that is well out to sea and clearly gambling on skirting the treacherous southerly that is taking this toll on the fleet.

The retirements so far are:

Ark323 (deck damage)

Lupa of London (bow damage)



Cougar II (hull damage)

M3 (broken forestay)

Dare Devil (broken rudder)

Wild Oats XI (torn mainsail)

Cex Dolce (broken mast)

Perpetual Loyal (broken rudder)

St Jude (broken rudder)

Koa (steering damage)

All retirees report crews are safe. All vessels are heading for Sydney, except CEX Dolce, which is heading to Jervis Bay.

The front that has devastated the top fancies for the race, run by the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, arrived exactly as predicted several days before the start of the race. The strong north-easterly that saw Comanche leap to the lead at the sea mark, gave way to the southerly about 10 pm, a 180-degree wind shift whose ferocity Wild Oats XI was the first to feel, gusts of more than 40 knots.

The 10 retirements leave 98 yachts at sea.

Due to unforeseen circumstances, the live stream of the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race start was unable to be broadcast internationally. We apologise for any inconvenience and frustration that this has caused international followers.

To replay the race start, please CLICK HERE

By Bruce Montgomery, RSHYR media

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Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race: Wild Oats XI retired

Record holding eight time Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race line honours victor, Wild Oats XI, has retired from the race after reporting a torn mainsail. The Mark Richards skippered crew is returning to Sydney. No further details are available at this stage.

Shortly after 10.10pm the news was received that Pierre Gal’s CEX Dolce had broken her mast and was also returning to Sydney. All on board both yachts are safe.

The front half of the fleet in the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia’s 628 nautical mile race was feeling the brunt of a stiff southerly, with Ichi Ban’s navigator, Will Oxley, reporting gusts of up to 43 knots . The southerly will filter to the smaller yachts during the night.

Further updates will be made available when more is known.

Due to unforeseen circumstances, the live stream of the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race start was unable to be broadcast internationally. We apologise for any inconvenience and frustration that this has caused international followers.

Tracker

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ROLEX SYDNEY HOBART RACE 2015: IT PROMISES TO BE A GREAT RACE…
Seven hours into the race it’s all about Comanche: she’s in her element with the weather (a strong north easterly wind) , and leading Wild Oats XI (Bob and Sandy Oatley), and Ragamuffin (Syd Fischer), by seven nautical miles. The southerly buster, with winds of 35-40 knots, is expected to hit the frontrunners within four hours. It’s all upwind from then until Bass Strait. The big challenge is expected to come off the coast of Tasmania where the wind is likely to be light and variable. It could be a lottery…. and a great race.
Here’s the race start story from the race media centre. Don’t tear up your tickets – there’s still a long way to go!

ROLEX SYDNEY HOBART YACHT RACE: WILD START WHEN NOTHING WENT TO PLAN
If the start of the 2015 Rolex Sydney Hobart is any indication, this race is going to have more twists and turns than any Broadway murder mystery and nothing will pan out the way we think it will.


The drama began an hour before the start when the official start boat began taking on water. Those on board, who should have had a box seat of the start, were hastily deposited on the Zoo wharf, a good two kilometres from the super maxis milling about on the front start line.

But the race must go on, and at 1pm, a hooter rather than the traditional cannon, fired from the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia’s usual start vessel, sent the fleet on its way.
Instantly it became clear that the brisk northerly breeze, with surprisingly little east in it, was going to provide for an epic tactical start. There was no short line to the first mark. The boats would have to tack across each other at least two or three times to get there.
Wild Oats XI skipper Mark Richards always favours the western side of the start line, and just one boat lay between the flying super maxi and the pin end buoy. It was a perfect start, and within seconds Richards threw the Oatley family’s boat onto a daring port tack and began crossing the fleet, passing a good three to four boat lengths ahead of Comanche, which quickly tacked too.

Oats, Comanche, Ragamuffin 100 and Rambler tacked over towards the eastern spectator fleet. Only Perpetual Loyal hung onto her initial starboard tack towards the western foreshore, and when she finally tacked back across, it appeared that her persistence had been a terrible mistake as she ducked behind one after another of her rivals.
Wild Oats XI’s starting plan was working a treat. She had an extra boat length on Comanche when they crossed a second time, and when they turned to cross the Harbour again on port tack, Richards seemed in total command of the Harbour.

But then Perpetual Loyal re-appeared from nowhere on starboard. Richards realized he did not quite have the room to cross in front of the charging Loyal and peeled away on a huge ark to avoid her.

Comanche threw in an emergency tack and found herself in the lee of Perpetual Loyal’s massive mainsail. By the time Oats regained her footing, she was in an unusual third place, and nothing was going to stop Perpetual Loyal leading the fleet out of the Harbour.

Comanche trailed Loyal by a boat length or two as Perpetual Loyal, Comanche, Wild Oats XI, Ragamuffin 100 and Rambler settled onto the tight reach through the Heads towards the sea mark and the turn to Hobart.

Then an astonishing thing happened. Comanche unfurled her big spinnaker, pressed the turbo button and took off. She surged to the lead. An arrogant display of raw, unmatchable power.
But more was to come.
Rambler looked to be right where she needed to be, snapping at the heels of her bigger rivals, but about halfway through the Heads, someone hit the American’s afterburners. First Rags, then Oats and then Perpetual Loyal fell by the wayside as George David’s American 88 footer raced through the lumpy, jarring seas as though she was at a flat water regatta.
And still the drama was not over .As Comanche, Rambler, Ragamuffin 100 and Wild Oats XI unfurled their giant Code Zeros for the run south Perpetual Loyal continued out to sea. Twice her Code Zero refused to burst open.

Behind the super maxis things were going more to plan for Black Jack, Chinese Whisper and Ichi Ban, but further back in the fleet Maserati, the world beating Italian V70 had managed to ensnare one of the buoys separating the race and spectator fleets. The big ocean racer finally left Sydney surrounded by small fry. But there is a long way to go.
Further back, Ark 323, the Chinese TP52, was in a collision with another TP52, Ragamuffin 52. “We were dipping down to avoid Rambler, but the boat below us (Ragamuffin 52) did not give us enough room. We have a big crack in our deck,” crew member Faris Bin Aznan, alleged back at the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia dock, following her retirement.
Also back at the CYCA were Jeremy Pilkington’s RP78, Lupa of London, and Anthony Lyall’s TP52, Cougar II from Tasmania. They, too, were involved in a collision that left Cougar II’s starboard transom stove in and broken, with damage to the bow of Lupa of London.

Cougar II’s crew were too shattered to speak, the disappointment clearly written on every crew member’s face.

On Lupa, tactician Laurent Pages told of their devastation. “We were sailing on starboard tack from the start and three boats got locked together – we were in the middle with nowhere to go.

“We were left with the decision to run into the boat above us, or the one below us,” Pages said. “This was the worst thing – the worst feeling – a stupid accident.

“The race director was very clear at the briefing this morning. The race committee told us all to take it easy at the start – there was a whole race to go. If everyone listened, this would not have happened. We are shattered – we came a long way. It seems so unfair,” Pages ended.

M3, Peter Hickson’s TP52, is also out of the race, suffering a shattered forestay. They initially thought they would return to the CYCA and try to fix it and re-start. Anthony Lyall kindly offered them the forestay from his Cougar II.

“Despite how they were feeling, Cougar II made us a generous offer, but we subsequently had a crew meeting and looking at tonight’s forecast for a harsh southerly, we decided to retire,” M3’s skipper, Brent Fowler said.

An extraordinary start, but three hours into the race, God appeared to be back in his heaven, normalcy restored.
Comanche is approaching Jervis Bay in the lead, reveling in the brisk northerly. “We have the hammer down, doing 29 knots,” skipper Ken Read reported ”We’ve got to go fast in these conditions that suit us and put distance between us and the rest.

“The southerly is due in four to five hours. If it is sailable, we should still have the advantage, and take more miles out of the others.”
Read isn’t at all surprised that Rambler is in second place, not one of the Australian 100 footers.
“We have raced them a few times and they we have made them better. And they have made us better.”


Rob Mundle

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Comanche Continues Under Replacement Rudder


Image © Rolex / Carlo Borlenghi




According to many reports, Comanche suffered rudder damage and allegedly retired, yet additional reports indicate that the crew have installed their emergency rudder and continue forward!

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Maserati Report

A hooter blast from the Australian Cruising Yacht Boat marked the start of the 71st Rolex Sydney-Hobart Race at exactly 13.00 local time (2.00 GMT and 3.00 in Italy). The 108-strong fleet got underway from three start-lines under cloudy skies and in a 15-knot north-easterly wind. All eager, of course, to tackle the tough 628-mile route separating the Australian port from the Tasman capital which will also see them traversing the infamous Bass Strait.

Maserati started from the first line alongside the rest of the big boats. The super maxis immediately took command of the race with Comanche out in front tailed by Wild Oats XI, Rambler, Ragamuffin 100 and Black Jack. However, the situation changed rapidly and at this point, a total of eight boats has retired because of accidents or breakages, including Comanche and Wild Oats XI. Having spent several hours lying ninth, Maserati has made up ground and is currently lying in fourth position behind Rambler, Ragamaffin 100 and Perpetual Loyal.

It proved something of an adventurous start for Maserati, however. Immediately after the hooter, the Italian VOR 70 became ensnared with three of the buoys marking off the spectator boat area. The crew had to halt the boat to deal with the problem, losing precious time in the process as first Carlos Hernandez and then Sam Goodchild worked their way along the hull to cut the lines entangled with the keel.

Three boats ended up retiring because of incidents at the start: Chinese craft Ark23, Cougar II from Tasmania and British entry, Lupa of London.

Four hours into the race, Giovanni Soldini had this to say: “The start was good but very dangerous with a very narrow channel to tack up. There was very little space between the sandbanks and the spectators. As we were starting, we heard an awful crash to leeward: two boats had collided. At the end of the channel, we were just a few metres from Black Jack and held the tack to the last. But we ended up in the spectator fleet and had to tack around one of the buoys that delimit it.

We’d already done that on our training days but today the keel became ensnared with a line attaching the buoy to its neighbour and we soon realised we were dragging three buoys behind us. We tried to free ourselves by backing up in the middle of the oncoming fleet but eventually we positioned ourselves to winward of everyone and with our bow to the wind, we dropped Carlos over the side. He managed to free up just one of the buoys. In the end, Sam jumped in with a knife and cut whatever he could. We’re now flying the spi and the full main in a wind that’s varying between 19 and 26 knots. Black Jack is a bit faster than we are. Her bowsprit is two metres longer than ours so that could be why.

I only hope that there isn’t still a bit of line tangled in the keel. We’re expecting the front in the next few hours”.

Skipper Giovanni Soldini is flanked aboard Maserati by a highly experienced, competitive international crew: Italians Guido Broggi, Corrado Rossignoli, Matteo Ivaldi, Francesco Malingri and Carlo Castellano; Spaniards Carlos Hernandez and Oliver Herrera; Pierre Casiraghi of Monaco; Brit Sam Goodchild; Australians Elizabeth “Liz” Wardley, Drew Mervyn Carruthers, Trevor Brown and journalist and “special guest” Nick Vindin.

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It was very dramatic night for the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race fleet with 14 boats retiring, including eight time line honours winner Wild Oats XI and Perpetual Loyal. American maxi Comanche looked to be retiring after damaging their rudder and daggerboard but were able to make repairs and keep fighting. The media centre spoke to Ken Read this morning and he explained they had “shattered the steering system” but will “punch on through.”

The boat will continue on starboard before tacking over for a long port tack. But they have had to re-learn how to sail the boat. "(On) starboard tack we had to remain low and safe, we had to learn to sail about as straight as possible.”

“Heinous” is how he has described the conditions. “We just had a massive left hand shift. 2.5-3 metre seaway for the last 16 hours.”

Kristy Hinze-Clark is motivating the team to keep going, “Kristy is in good spirits, she’s our head cheerleader,” said Read. “I keep telling her we don’t have much of a rudder and she keeps asking if we’re still going to win.”

“We came here to finish,” he said. “One way or another we’re going to finish this damn race – we’ll limp across the finish line.”

“Even if we’re paddling we’ll be there.”

- Kimberley Wilmot/ Editor Australian Sailing


Read more at http://www.mysailing.com.au/offshore...ZJI5WKy039y.99

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Published on Dec 27, 2015
After a harrowing first night during the Rolex Sydney Hobart which saw 23 yachts retire due to damage, the fleet continues south toward the Tasman Coast as the American rivals Rambler 88 and Comanche battle for line honours, while Swiss entry Teasing Machine and Soldini’s Maserati (ITA) are contenders for the overall victory.

After a decade of, by Rolex Sydney-Hobart standards, comparatively benign weather the race has returned with a vengeance to its classic persona.

The mean southerly that made life hell for sailors off the NSW south coast last night is at last abating, but it has taken a huge toll on the fleet.

Before the southerly buster kicked in there were five boats out of the race, now there are 29, an attrition rate of 27 per cent and the race still has at least another two days to run.

That’s starting to get close to the really tough 2004 race when 58 of a fleet of 117 retired; 50 per cent.

The latest casualties include Peter Harburg’s Queensland Volvo 70 Black Jack, which returned to Jervis Bay to transfer an injured crew member with a suspected fractured leg. The crew member s being transferred by ambulance to the nearby naval base for medical assistance.

The retirees at 2130 last night were:

Ark323
Cougar II
Lupa of London
M3 - broken forestay
Dare Devil - rudder damage - returning to Sydney
CEX Dolce - broken mast
Wild Oats XI - mainsail damage
St Jude - rudder
Perpetual Loyal - rudder
KOA - steering
Pazzaz - mainsail
Pretty Fly III - broken forestay
Brindabella - sail
Takani - rudder
Patrice - mainsail
GYR WOT EVA
Dekadence - electronics Issues
Samurai Jack - sail damage
HASPA Hamburg - rig
Black Jack - returning to Jervis Bay
Victoire
KLC Bengal 7 - mainsail
Frantic - mainsail
Triton - mainsail
Hollywood Boulevard - hull
Great Xpectations
Landfall - hull
China Easyway - sail damage
Jaffa - starter motor


It’s been a tough race on the digital front as well. The race’s Yacht Tracker system was affected by a global outage of a major data centre, the victim of a “sustained distributed denial of service attack” on their systems. It was large enough that their entire London data centre was affected, The yacht race became a wounded innocent bystander.

Meanwhile, the race goes on and even the front runners have taken a pretty solid beating from this classic, wild Hobart. Comanche and Rambler are licking their wounds, each having suffered damage to their starboard daggerboards and, in Comanche’s case a rudder. The damage has slowed both boats but Comanche is currently 8 miles in front and looking at a Hobart finish late tomorrow.

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Maserati Soldini: This night was pretty busy

Day 2

[Runs_with_sissors]

http://rolexsydneyhobart.com/standings/

Neck and neck for Rambler 88 and Comanche!

[Dr Phul]

You can't put feathers on a dog and call it a duck

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But if you stuff a turkey with duck and chicken you can ruin 3 dishes at once!

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When Comanche crossed the finish line of the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race at Castray Esplanade in Hobart, Tasmania, at 9:58:30 hours tonight, history was created, because Kristy Clark became the first female owner to take line honours in the blue water classic.

Kristy, who raced aboard the yacht while co-owner husband Jim stayed ashore, was thrilled to take line honours in her first foray into the race. While the yacht represents the New York Yacht Club in the USA, Kristy is of course, Australian through-and-through.



images ©carlo borlenghi /rolex

Jim was on the water to greet the Ken Read skippered Verdier Yacht Design and VPLP yacht as it made its way up the Derwent River to the finish line.

It is the first time, possibly with the exception of the early years, that a boat has retired, her crew sail 30 odd nautical miles back towards Sydney, before deciding to continue on racing and go on to win.

And the locals loved it. As Comanche zigzagged close to shore, trying to find pressure on the River Derwent, at Blackman’s Bay lights were being flashed on and off from hundreds of houses and those in cars at Blackmans Bay Beach flashed their lights on and off, making an unforgettable impression against the last light of the day.

But it was at the dock, where Comanche arrived, that one of the largest crowds in living memory had gathered. There was not a square inch to be had around the piers and wharfs surrounding Hobart where thousands cheered the American victory




Comanche’s finish was impeded by the breeze which came and went at whim as the yacht rounded the Iron Pot. At one stage she was powering at 15 knots, then down to 8.5 knots. Her finish time of two days eight hours 58 minutes 30 seconds was outside the record of 1 day 18 hours 23 minutes 12 seconds set by Wild Oats XI in 2012.

But it did not matter. The last American to take line honours in the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia’s race was Larry Ellison’s Sayonara, 17 years ago in the fatal 1998 race, so Comanche’s efforts was quite some achievement, even if their quest of beating Wild Oats XI was not to be.

However, the Oatley family and Wild Oats XI skipper, Mark Richards, were watching back home in Sydney and sent a congratulatory letter to Jim Clark.

Comanche’s highlights to this moment include:

First overall (Elapsed Time division). Voiles St Barts

First overall elapsed, Storm Trysail Block Island Race

Elapsed time record, Storm Trysail Block Island Race

First overall handicap class and fleet, Storm Trysail Block Island Race

First overall elapsed, Rolex Transatlantic Race

24 Hour Monohull Distance Record, 618 miles

First overall elapsed, Rolex Fastnet Race

First overall (Elapsed Time Class), Rolex Maxi Worlds

An updated release, including quotes from the owners and skipper Ken Read, will be sent following the presentation at Constitution Dock.

Di Pearson, RSHYR media

[Tonapah Low]

Comanche left George David's boat in the dust, I thought it would have been tighter.

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For Ragamuffin and Rambler it has been a frustrating night - they should have arrived in Hobart in darkness - instead they wallowed under the black gloom of Tasman Island, waiting for the sun to rise.

The golden rule of the Rolex Sydney Hobart is get across Storm Bay and up the Derwent River before midnight. The Derwent is a country girl. She doesn’t like to stay up too late.

Even as Comanche glided towards Hobart late last night, the breeze was petering out, the last miles covered in fits and starts as little gusts delivered a tantalizing burst of speed then wafted away again. For her defeated rivals still off Tasman Island, the Derwent message was clear.

“Relax, chill out, you’re not seeing Hobart any time soon. I am going to give you all night to contemplate what might have been”.

The two wounded boats, both with smashed daggerboards, drifted just yards apart, the wags on Ragamuffin 100 whiling away the time Face Booking. “The tide is turning, should we put out the anchor? Passing the Iron Pot, hope there are some scallop pies left.”

They needn’t have worried, the pie shop would be well open, a new batch of pies in the oven by the time they tied up.

Further back up the coast and deep into Bass Strait the scene was similar. Not much breeze and parking lots everywhere.

“We just resorted to a round of chocolate biscuits to console ourselves after downloading the latest GFC weather forecast,” Wild Rose navigator Jenifer Wells emailed this morning.

“The high system is predicted to slow, adding an extra 25 hours to our ETA.Even the crew who were challenged by sea sickness in the big seas and 30 knot plus winds are not sure which conditions they prefer.”

This is what the Hobart specializes in. Bashing you about the ears for hours on end and then boring you to death. It is the cruelest of races at times.

The wind is expected to pick up around Tasmania today, pushing the mid-sized boats home at long last. The drifter has dissolved any chance Rambler had of winning on handicap, but a host of boats, of all sizes, remain in contention.

The French Archambault 13 Teasing Machine is in the lead. She’s been up around the top of the ladder for 12 hours. Then there are a couple of TP52s, Ragamuffin 52 and Balance, Rush, a Farr 45, Imagination, a Beneteau 47 cruiser racer and the 60 foot grand prix yachts, Chinese Whisper and Ichi Ban – locked into a battle of their own since early in the race.

What happens off Tasmania today will most likely decide the winner of the 2015 Rolex Sydney Hobart. Almost certainly the victor will be tied up in Hobart well before sunset, because this evening the wind will die again, and stay comatose throughout tomorrow.

Jim Gale, RSHYR media

[Photoboy]

Ragamuffin 100 has claimed second place after a drifting duel with Rambler down the Derwent. Congrats Syd Fischer and crew!
Update: Rambler rounds out the podium, in third place.