Assa Abloy Beats Nicorette in Spectacular Sydney Hobart

by Peter Campbell on 29 Dec 2001 Swedish Volvo 60 Assa Abloy today won line honours in the 630 nautical mile 57th CYCA Sydney Hobart Race, beating short priced favourite Nicorette by a mere 15 minutes in a
spectacular final sail up the Derwent River to the historic port city of Hobart, capital of Australia’s island state, Tasmania.

In a dramatic race which saw the fleet shrouded in smoke from the disastrous New South Wales bushfires, then enduring a spectacular water spout and stormy conditions off the NSW
south coast, and finally today the leaders being virtually becalmed in Tasmania’s Storm Bay,

Assa Abloy, a Swedish yacht skippered by British yachtsman Neal McDonald, held out Nicorette in a fierce tacking duel up to the River to the finish.

Assa Abloy crossed at 9.46.43am ahead of Nicorette, another Swedish boat, skippered by Ludde Ingvall, to win in an elapsed time of two days, 20 hours and 46
minutes and 43 seconds - a day outside Nokia’s 1999 record.

On a perfect summer’s day in Hobart, thousands of local and tourists lined the foreshores of Sullivan’s Cove to welcome the yachts and their crews in what was the
closest contest for line honours in the 57 year history of the bluewater classic.

Nicorette crossed the line 14 minutes and 34 seconds behind Assa Abloy, with five Volvo 60’s crossing in the next 23 minutes - Amer Sports One (Grant Dalton) which
crossed at 10.10.31, Tyco (Kevin Shoebridge) at 10.13.23, Djuice (Knut Frostad) at 10.27.55, Team News Corp (Jez Fanstone) at 10.32.26, and illbruck (John
Kostecki) at 10.33.31.

Assa Abloy led the race fleet leaders across a tranquil Storm Bay in which yachts were jockeying for what little breeze was about on this notoriously rough stretch of
water leading to the Derwent River.

Shortly after coming alongside, McDonald said the race leaders had been in sight of each other. “It was on for young and old,” McDonald said.

He described the situation at the head of the fleet near Cape Raoul in Storm Bay as intense. “We stayed offshore and it turned out to be a good move”.

McDonald steered Assa Abloy around the Iron Pot at the entrance to the Derwent at 8.10 am, 12 minutes ahead of Nicorette, with Amer Sports One six minutes further back to begin a tacking duel to
the finish.

Media interviews with Ludde Ingvall and his crew centred on the extraordinary waterspout that struck Nicorette on the first evening of the race, off Jervis Bay in the NSW South Coast.

“Even the fastest sailors in the world couldn’t get out of the twister’s day,” he said. “It seemed to be chasing us across the ocean,” he recalled.

“I could see the water vapour circulating within the twister and then the yacht sailed straight into it.”

Ingvall said the yacht was knocked flat on its beam ends, with another crewman describing seeing a couple of large lightning strikes - ”it was like a thousand people screaming.”

Behind Assa Abloy and Nicorette came five Volvo 60’s – Amer Sports One (Italy) at 10.10.31, Tyco (Bermuda) 10.13.23, Djuice (Norway) at 10.27.55, Team News Corp
(Australia) 10.32.26 and illbruck (Germany) at 10.33.31 – after leading the fleet almost to Tasman Island early today.

All had a chance at line honours as breezes filled in on the Derwent River, with north to northeasterly winds of five to 10 knots, setting up the race to the finish as boats
sought the strongest winds, beating up the river.

Assa Abloy, with its spectacular blue mainsail and colourful hull, made a magnificent sight as she heeled to leeward, making nearly 10 knots in the 10-5 knot breeze to
open up a gap over Nicorette midway over the 11 nautical mile sail from the Iron Pot to the finish.

Built for this year’s Volvo Ocean Race, she is one of eight Volvo 60’s which left Sydney on Boxing Day including the Sydney Hobart Race as part of the third leg of the
round-the-world- event.

Assa Abloy then had only three and a half hours to undertake media interviews, accept trophies and return to the mouth of the Derwent River to resume the third leg
race to Auckland, New Zealand.

Any repairs are limited to those that can be carried out by the crew of each yacht, without outside assistance and within the short “pit stop”.

Further information: Peter Campbell 03 62349183, 03 62349238

Website: s2h@tas.gov.au