A windless night off the Tasmanian south-east coast meant there had been only 17 finishers in the Rolex Sydney Hobart as at 9am this morning.
The night also destroyed all prospects of Roger Hickman’s Wild Rose reaching Hobart in time to displace Stephen Ainsworth’s Loki as the overall winner of the 2011 Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race.
At sea, some turned to humour. Paul Clitheroe, the ‘Money Man’ best known for telling Australians how to make their fortunes, has a Rolex Sydney Hobart entrant named Balance, understandably.
But, after sitting in a millpond between Tasman Island and Cape Raoul off Tasmania’s south-east coast all of last night, Clitheroe applied his mind to the keyboard at his navigation station.
'Subject: Nothing. Now for something completely different. We enjoyed watching the sunset as we drifted next to Tasman Light. Roll forward some nine hours and we are enjoying sunrise at Cape Raoul. This represents a magnificent 9.8 nautical miles covered overnight.
'Storm Bay has been, in three of my Hobarts, a complete glass out. The other two, the waves so big you lost sight of the boats around you as you plunged down them.
'However, there is one benefit. I was telling my Hobart novices that they were lucky to see Tasman Island in the sunset, but I was sad they would miss the (Cape Raoul) organ pipes. Little did I expect they would see them at sunrise.
'Anyway, we have just started moving in the best breeze we have seen in 12 hours, a 3.5 knot northerly.
'Personally, I am really enjoying the views, but my navigator seems to be in need of a psychoanalyst upon arrival (we have hidden all sharp objects). Cheers, Paul.'
Meanwhile, on board Wasabi, Bruce McKay emailed: 'The big overnight event was the wind switching off. We have sailed the colour off the hull all night … What does that mean? I don’t know. I had no sleep all night so just typing what I am told.'
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