Go the Cone!!

by Rob Kothe on 16 Mar 2005 Wild Joe, AAPT and The Cone of Silence led the 2005 Sydney to Mooloolaba fleet out of Sydney Heads in a spectacular spinnaker start this afternoon.

With scudding cloud and 20-25 knot southerlies gusting towards 30 knots, the 39 boat Sydney to Mooloolaba fleet started under shy spinnakers off Shark Island at 1pm today.

The 60 foot canting keeler Wild Joe with Chris Links on the helm, was fast away. The 2003 Admirals Cup winner previously named Wild Oats, had Sean Langman’s 66 footer AAPT in her hip pocket.

On the eastern end of the long startline, Michael Spies positioned First National Real Estate for a good start ahead of Yendys and Ichi Ban.

Down the middle came James Neill’s radical lightweight filyer Reichel Pugh 30, The Cone of Silence, with a giant red asymmetric kite hiding the hull which was almost leaping out of the water.

It was edgy sailing, she nearly broached twice, but her Pittwater crew somehow kept her on her feet.

At the heads, David’s Wild Joe was a boat length ahead of Langman’s AAPT.

‘Go the Cone’ came the shouts from the spectator fleet as the 30 footer led the Farr 52 Ichi Ban coming off the western shore and the 50 footer Yendys, near South Head.

The Cone was the first boat under sixty feet in the 2005 Strathfield Pittwater to Coffs race and it seems Jamie Neill and his young crew are keen to repeat the feat.

Before the race he’d said, ‘if it blows hard enough we’ll do our best to stay with the 60 footers and ahead of the 50’s.’

Behind them it was a wild ride for Geoff Lavis’ Inglis 50 UBS Wild Thing. She held her kite long after the boats ahead had dropped theirs as the breeze shifted, but she had trouble hanging on and was forced to drop it.

Approaching North Head, Ichi Ban was still a minute behind The Cone, with Gunnar Tuisk’s Farr 50 Cadenza a further minute behind.

Michale Spies' Beneteau 44.7, First National Real Estate, came next, then Ed Psaltis Farr 40 AFR Midnight Rambler to leeward with the second 44.7, David Mason’s Prime Time in hot pursuit.

Over on the western shore, there was a tight packed scrum of 15 boats or so. Buried amongst them was Ray Robert’s DK 46 Hollywood Boulevard and the Mumm 30 Tow Truck.

The last two boats out of the Harbour were the two oldest and heaviest boats in the fleet, and the last to leave the dock; Phillip’s Foote Witchdoctor and Ray White Koomooloo.

Soon after the race start, at 1308, Peter Mosley's Local Hero reported she had broken her rudder and was retiring back to the CYCA.

More soon.