Barnes Bay Regatta preview

by Peter Campbell on 8 Apr 2013 The Barnes Bay Regatta gets underway on 13th April 2013. The regatta is a combination of a passage race south from Hobart to Bruny Island, a round-the-buoys regatta race and a huge spit roast ashore, and will wind up one of Tasmania’s biggest summers of sail next Saturday.

Up to 60 yachts are expected to contest the popular regatta conducted by the Kingborough Boat Club, with the prizegiving later hosted ashore at the club’s facilities at the top end of Barnes Bay on Bruny Island.

Entries close this Wednesday, but already 25 prominent racing yachts from Hobart and Huon clubs have been entered, along with several new boats.

Interest will certainly centre on the racing debut superb looking cruiser/racer, Infinity, Richard Fader and Greg Prescott’s Buizen 52, which arrived in Hobart recently. Another new boat competing will be Sue Ellison-Rogers’ new Moody 45, Eenee.

The regatta will see the first encounter between the two Mumm 36s, Tas Paints (Ian Stewart) and the recently arrived Madness (Gavin Adamson). Sailing under a new name and with owners will be Jen Who, now named 50-50 and jointly owned by Adam Fisher and Adrian Brown.

Heading the fleet will be Gary Smith’s offshore racing champion The Fork in the Road.

The Cascade Barnes Bay Regatta comprises the passage race from Hobart to Bligh Point, starting from Castray Esplanade at 9am Saturday, with the regatta race in Barnes Bay getting under way at 2pm.

Derwent Sailing Squadron Commodore Ron Bugg noted the increase in club racing on the River Derwent at the Combined Club’s trophy presentation evening at the DSS last Friday evening when all but two prize-winning yachts were represented.

'Introduction of the Combined Clubs Series for harbour and long racing, in place of the individual clubs Saturday pennant racing has obviously been what the yachties want,' Commodore Bugg said.

'Numbers are way up in every form of racing on the river, not only the Combined Clubs racing but in the Twilights conducted by Bellerive Yacht Club on Wednesday evenings and the Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania and Derwent Sailing Squadron on Thursdays and for special events.

'What has really impressed me has been the spirit of co-operation between the major clubs in organising and running these combined events; it is something unique in Australia,' Commodore Bugg added.

He went on to express the appreciation of race competitors for the 'interclub engine room' working behind the scene to schedule and co-ordinate the programme, mentioning the sailing secretaries of the clubs, Mike Denney (DSS), Chris Sheehan and Tony Garrett (BYC) and Chris Oh (RYCT) and also the principal race officers Roger Martin and Gilbert Leitch.

Combined Clubs trophies were presented by the RYCT Commodore Graham Taplin, RYCT Vice Commodore Richard Batt, DSS Commodore Ron Bugg, BYC Vice Commodore Danny Cunningham and DSS Rear Commodore Terry Curtain. DSS Vice Commodore Steve Chau was MC for the evening.

Next season’s Combined Clubs Series will be co-ordinated by the Bellerive Yacht Club, with the RYCT and DSS each having organised the past two seasons.

The 'summer of sail’ on the River Derwent attracted hundreds of visiting sailors to Tasmania, arriving at the end of the long ocean races from Sydney, Melbourne and Launceston and also in Hobart for world and national championship for international dinghy classes, as well as contesting the Australian youth championships.

One day in early January, race officers estimated more than 400 dinghies racing on the Derwent, while other national championships were held on the Tamar River.