Not up for 24 hours on Lake Macquarie? How about 12 hours then?

by HCW Media on 7 Sep 2012 This year's Heaven Can Wait Charity Regatta on Lake Macquarie, starting in just three weeks, will include for the first time a 12-hour 'Challenge'.

The Heaven Can Wait 12 Hour Challenge is designed for those boats and crew who may not wish to do a full overnight 24-hour race, but are up for the extra challenge of some serious night-time racing.

Run in conjunction with the Royal Motor Yacht Club Toronto, the 2012 Heaven Can Wait Regatta will be held on September 29-30, commencing at 11 am.

This year, the Heaven Can Wait (HCW) Regatta includes three events, with participants able to compete in one, two or all three. They are:

1. The full HCW 24 Hour Classic race from 11 am on September 29 to 11 am on September 30

2. The HCW One Lap Dash around the entire course, and also starting at 11 am on September 29, and finishing back at Royal Motor Yacht Club Toronto during the afternoon

3. The new HCW 12 Hour Challenge, starting at 11 am on September 29, and finishing at 11 pm that night.

All three events are over the same course (although there is a shorter version of the One Lap Dash for trailer-sailers who are not doing the 12 hour or 24 hour races.

As with the 24-hour Classic, the 12-hour Challenge is a 'distance over time' event, with competitors logging their positions using their on-board GPS as of 11 pm, and reporting it to the race committee.

Both the 24-hour and 12-hour races will require boats to comply with YA Cat 5N safety standards, while the One Lap Dash is a Cat 7 event.

The 12-hour race around the lake has been designed to appeal to skippers and crews of sports boats, trailerables, trailer-sailers, smaller yachts, and anyone who doesn't feel up to the full 24-hour overnight race -- or wants more of a challenge than the daylight-only One Lap Dash.

As in past years, it raises funds for men's cancer research and support programs, with all monies raised through entries going to the Cancer Council of NSW, plus an amount to Marine Rescue NSW.

The Royal Motor Yacht Club Toronto, which is hosting the event, can arrange moorings for boats coming from outside of the lake. Further information on this is available from the event's website.

For further information on the 2012 Heaven Can Wait charity regatta, please go to www.heavencanwait.com.au. To enter, simply click on the ENTER HERE button.