So you want to be an Ocean Racer?

by Jennifer McGuigan and Rob Kothe on 31 May 2006 Take one suitably category rated boat, sprinkle with crew members of varying experience, season with 406 EPIRBS, a mixture of flares, high tech radio equipment and the odd life raft. Knead through the Port Phillip heads and toss thoroughly in the Bass Strait.

Well, that assumes a start in Melbourne. which Victorian sailors claim is the Ocean Yacht racing capital of Australia.

Certainly for Melbourne sailors, to ensure some level of success then the missing ingredient in this sailing recipe is the Ocean Racing Club Victoria (ORCV).

The ORCV has no marina nor in fact a club house, yet they are focused on ocean yacht racing. Well known for being the force behind such important races as the Heemskirk Consolidated Melbourne to Hobart, or Westcoaster, and the Mariner Corporate Finance Melbourne to Launceston, they are also the instigators of the inaugural 2006 Melbourne to Vanuatu Races and the Port Vila to Mackay Queensland races, known in combination as the South Pacific Boomerang Yacht Races.

With 23 entries in the first Boomerang leg, the race from Melbourne to Vanuatu which starts on July 2nd promises to be an exciting battle for handicap honours and has attracted a significant field of entrants in the Double Handed division.

The second leg of the South Pacific Boomerang, is the 2006 Port Vila to Mackay Yacht Race.

This race starts in Port Vila on Tuesday 1st August 2006, leaving Swain Reefs Light to Starboard, thence to the finish at Mackay, a distance of approximately 1,150 nautical miles and only 50 miles from Airlie Beach, where the 16th annual Tropical Shirt regatta starts on August 11th.

Organisers are hoping that some of the New Zealand offshore fleet on their way to the Whitsundays for the Airlie Beach Race Week and Hahn Premium Race Week at Hamilton Island will use this race as part of their passage to the Queensland coast.

The NOR for this race is available at www.orcv.org.au

The Queensland Government is set to provide $50,000 in support of the inaugural South Pacific Boomerang Ocean Yacht race and a detailed announcement is expected this week.

The ORCV have focused on supporting and nurturing the ocean racers of today and the potential ocean racers for tomorrow and they have a very comprehensive program to do just that.

One of the effective tools they have used is the new Latitude Race. This race provides a unique tactical and navigation challenge for all levels and includes a mentoring program to support ocean racing beginners.

In the race in November of 2005, an unprecedented number of yachts competing in their first ever ocean race, ORCV support the preparation needed to transit Port Phillip Heads (the Rip) twice and racing in the notorious Bass Strait.

The popular Rip Tours they offer are conducted by experienced offshore navigators where they provide a practical on water tour identifying the major marks and lights used to navigate this important and often dangerous piece of water.

It is this lateral thinking that has led to a comprehensive competitor support program offered by the ORCV. Some programs such as the Safety and Sea Survival course (SSSC) are offered annually and have been tailored specifically to the needs of ORCV members.

The SSSC course as presented by the ORCV is also at a competitive price providing added value to their members. The wet session of the latest version of this program recently took place in the wave pool in Cheltenham and if putting theory into practice in a pool is not tough enough try it with the waves on. Some instructors were keen to also turn the lights out and add another new dimension to the experience.

The 2006 South Pacific Boomerang Yacht Races series have spawned a unique series of specific support programs. Most of these are provided to entrants free of charge or at a nominal cost covering fee.

Possibly the most unique and yet invaluable course was the sewing and suturing session. Held at the sail loft of UK Halsey the program took participants through the details of on board sail repair with master sail maker Mark Rimington.

In a more gruesome but supremely practical twist it also schooled them in the niceties of suturing, a possibly life saving skill when in the middle of the Coral Sea without medical support at the end of a helicopter line.

Dr Rosie Colahan, co-owner and co-skipper of Ingenue, one of the Melbourne to Vanuatu race entrants presented the segment along with several of her colleagues from her medical clinic.

Dr Colahan also presented in November at the Protocols and Health Issues session, she spoke to the topics of disease prevention, tropical hazards and obtaining medications. It was at this session that Mr Malcolm Keen of the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS) made the crews aware of Quarantine issues and Mr Richard McGarvie spoke to the salvage issues which everyone hopes won't arise.

The series of courses started back in August of 2005 with a convivial evening looking at the issue of provisioning for a long voyage. A presentation from various food experts was rounded out with wine tastings from Yarran Vineyards.

In September the nitty gritty of preparing a boat for Cat 1 was studied in detail with emphasis on how to move from Cat 2 to Cat 1. In this session Radios, Power, Charts and Water issues were discussed. October was an opportunity to find out more about Vanuatu as a destination with enough information to whet everyone's appetite.

In March of 2006, it was the unique Sewing and Suturing course and was followed in April with a very informative session on Search and Rescue. This session presented by John Rice, Senior Search and rescue Officer, Australian Search and Rescue (AusSAR) provided an insight into how the process works but also defined the limits of AusSAR's area. The ORCV version of SSSC is run later in the year but a second course was scheduled in May this year specifically to support the Vanuatu race.

Coming in June is the much anticipated Weather course conducted by Ken Batt of the Bureau of Meteorology in Canberra.

Indeed a comprehensive series of lectures and hands on sessions exhibiting the commitment of the ORCV to their racing initiatives but also showing the commitment to their members and competitors.

Most of the work in organising and presenting courses is done by experienced volunteers who show in everything they do their love for the sport of yachting and their desire to increase participation in a safe yet competitive environment.