'FLOATING HOME' TAKES OVERALL LEAD IN TELSTRA SYDNEY TO HOBART YACHT RACE

by Peter Campbell on 29 Dec 2000 Around the world cruiser/racer Sunstone has taken the overall handicap lead in the Telstra Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race as she sails down the Tasmanian east coast into the teeth of a gale force southwesterly.

Skippered by Tom and Vicky Jackson, the comfortable Sparkman and Stephens 38 was in a pack of yachts off the Tasmanian east coast this morning bound for Tasman Island.

Corrected time results issued by the Race Committee place Sunstone was leading from Ninety Seven (Graham Gibson) and the Tasmanian yacht Interum (Craig King).

Yendys, the state of the art Farr 49 skippered by Geoff Ross, has dropped to 13th in amended results for the IMS Division.

With a crew of six, the 35-year-old varnished timber Sunstone has been a floating home for the Jacksons for the past 20 years, setting out three years ago on an around-the-world cruise with a desire to race when the opportunity arose.

Competing for the first time in the Hobart race, the Jacksons have won numerous honours, including representing Britain in the Commodore's Cup, the international IMS teams event for cruiser/racers.

Ironically, before they bought Sunstone in 1981, Vicky and Tom 'weren't looking for a racing boat particularly'.

'We hadn't thought we would be able to do very much racing and live aboard as well,' Tom said before the Boxing Day race start.

'Our view was that the only way that amateurs can be seriously competitive with professionals who who can spend loads of time on the water is by sticking with one boat.

'Unless you're really gifted (and I make no claims to that) the way to be competitive is to really get to know one boat' Tom said.

The Swedish maxi, Nicorette (Ludde Ingvall) which took line honours early this morning with an elapsed time of 2 days 14 hours 2 minutes 9 seconds, continues to hold first place on corrected time in the IRC handicap category.

Provisionally second placed in the IRC division was illbruck, the German Volvo 60 skippered by American John Kostecki, which crossed the finish line in third place at 9.03.47am this morning.

Provisionally third this morning in IRC was the Melbourne maxi Wild Thing (Grant Wharington) which finished second to Nicorette when it crossed the finish line at 8.23.41am.

Leading the PHS handicap category this morning was the veteran yacht Hogsbreath Witchdoctor, owned by the Rum Consortium, with Berrimilla (Alex Whitworth) in second place, Delta Wing (Bill Koppe) dropping back to third position overnight.

'It has been a very wet night sea, but we are battling our way south,' Whitworth said in a satellite phone call late this morning to the Telstra Sydney to Hobart website sydneytohobart.telstra.com.