12 yachts celebrated New Year at sea

by Peter Campbell on 1 Jan 2001 The crews of 12 yachts in the 2000 Telstra Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race celebrated the New Year at sea - and ten of them were still racing at 8am today.

Two boats were in the River Derwent at that stage, struggling to make way in very light conditions and some of the tailenders may not even finish until late tonight.

However, they are enjoying pleasant off-the-wind sailing conditions with freshening north-easterly breezes in contrast to the days of pounding into headwinds and rough seas across Bass Strait and down the East Coast of Tasmania.

Since midnight two yachts have crossed the finish line, the veteran sloop Mark Twain (Hugh O'Neill) from Sydney finishing her 23rd Sydney to Hobart Race at 04.13.32 and the Lake Macquare yacht Santana (Mike Kelaher) at 05.48.44.

Mark Twain's 23 races is a record for the Sydney to Hobart Race.

Another remarkable achievement in this race has been Tasmanian yachtsman John Bennetto's 40th Sydney to Hobart, equalling the record of Richard 'Sightie' Hammond from Sydney, who did not compete this year. Bennetto skippered his 50-footer Mirrabooka.

Victorian yachtsman Lou Abrahams, skippering Another Challenge, completed his 38th race, 35 of them as skipper of his own yachts, believed to be a world record.


· Update: The Victorian yacht Amaya (David Bingham) finished at 08.52.44, leaving nine yachts still racing.