Is there something in a name?

by Ian Grant on 12 Aug 2003 Yacht names have a special affiliation with their proud owners and crews but is there something a tad sinister with names like Wobbly Boot, Sundowner, Deception, Outsider and Fallen Angels.

Personally I know some sailors who have been guilty of having Woobly Boots, following to many Sundowners, then featuring in telling tales of deception to become an outsider and then a fallen angel.

Strange as it may seem the fleet of Performance Handicap yachts including Craig Piccinelli’s Young 9m Wobbly Boot, Bill Webb’s Vanderstadt 15m sloop Sundowner and the former Southern Cross Cup winner Deception (Murray Sanders), Outsider (Bo Wharton) from Darwin and Fallen Angels (Damian Suckling) from Airlie Beach are poised to stage a head to head battle for their Hog’s Breath Race Week class championship.

Wobbly Boot leads the tight title struggle by four points with Sundowner, Deception, Outsider and Fallen Angles separated by two points leading into what promises to be a serious tactical race for the major points in crucial island passage race today.

Sure all of the owners, skippers and crews are proud of their yachts and are tactically prepared to defend their racing reputations which leads to an interesting race for all five title contenders when they search for the winning edge in handicap rated boat speed in the important final races today and tomorrow.

They all enjoy the spirit and the fun factor of being a Hog’s Breath Race Week competitor but the fun will be temporarily cast aside when all five crews duel for the class honours in a classic encounter between the radically different designed yachts.