Darwin Dili Yacht Rally will celebrate 10 years Independence
by Nancy Knudsen on 5 Dec 2011
Darwin Rallies have always been shown a great welcome by hosts SW
There are now three rallies to choose from for yachts wanting to leave Darwin to explore Asia in 2012.
There is the Darwin Dili Rally (first run 1973), departing Darwin on the 14th July, the Darwin Kupang Rally (started 2011 and 107 yacht participants in 2011) departing on 28th July, and if you are too late for those there's the Darwin to Ambon Rally (first run in 1974), departing next year on the 25th August.
This new Darwin-Dili date, however, will make it more than merely another yacht rally. The 2012 Darwin Dili Yacht Rally will be a major event in Timor-Leste's celebration of the 10th Anniversary of the Restoration of Independence.
Political unrest has played a large part in the on-again off-again nature of the rallies that have been run over the years, but the concept of yachts commencing as a rally from Darwin and then splitting off to enjoy Asia separately after a time has always been a good one.
This year the Timor-Leste Government has announced a prize pool of US$15,000 for the Rally and hopes that yachts will join in the anniversary celebrations.
Some of the bureaucratic difficulties of yachts on their way to Indonesia have been alleviated by changes in the rules. The Indonesian Customs Yacht Import Duty Bond has now been cancelled. However, there are still hurdles to cross. For the new regulations and information please http://www.sailindonesia.net/news/importduty.php!click_here to see Sail Indonesia's information.
The website, http://www.sailtimorleste.org , has been updated with full details of the 2012 Rally, and further updates will be posted as they come to hand. However, if you have an interest in the event, please email the organisers on mail@sailtimorleste.org .
Because the start for the Dili Rally is two weeks prior to the start of the Sail Indonesia Rally, it gives yachts which wish to participate in both events enough time to get to Dili and do some cruising/touring, before proceeding to Kupang in West Timor to meet up with the Sail Indonesia Rally. Registration of Interest in the 2012 event is now open and should also be emailed to mail@sailtimorleste.org
The course will be from the Start Line in Darwin Harbour, Australia, leaving Jaco Island to port, to the Finish Line off the city of Dili, Timor-Leste, a distance of around 426 NM.
The Sail Timor-Leste Darwin Dili Yacht Rally is a web based event, organised and managed using the internet and email only; they do not use telephone, mail or fascimile. Please always include the name of your yacht in the subject line of all emails.
For information about the other two rallies, below are their websites:
http://www.sailindonesia.net!Darwin_to_Kupang
http://www.darwinambonrace.com.au!Darwin_to_Ambon
If you want to link to this article then please use this URL: www.sail-world.com/91473
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