Sydney 38 Creese Property wins Maria Island Race

by Peter Campbell on 23 Nov 2008 Line honours and provisional first place on IRC corrected time in the Tasports 61st Maria Island Yacht Race has gone to Bellerive Yacht Club member David Creese with his recently acquired Sydney 38 Creese Property.

The 190 nautical mile ocean race from Hobart around the Tasmanian East Coast to Maria Island and return was Creese's first major event with his new boat, the former Sydney-based Sydney 38 champion Transfusion.

Provisional results posted by the Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania have Creese Property winning the IRC division from Todd Leary's Jones 36 She's the Culprit, also from Bellerive Yacht Club. Third place has gone to the modified Sydney 36 Pisces (David Taylor & Graham McKibben) from the RYCT.

Provisional winner of the PHS division is the Dubois 40 Black Magic (Graham Mansfield), also from the Bellerive Yacht Club, with Creese Property second and Hot Prospect (Ian Marshall third).

Just over six minutes separated the first three yachts to finish the Tasports Maria Island Yacht Race back in Hobart last night, with Creese Property crossing the Castray Esplanade line at 20:06:15 (8.06pm) to take line honours from She's the Culprit and Tony Lyall's Elliott 13 Valheru.

Fourth to finish was the sports boat Tasmanian Marine Constructions, Robert Gourlay's Thompson 920 which had led the fleet around Maria Island early yesterday, but earlier had been reported as a retirement.

Dianne Barkas, one of three women skippers in the fleet, steered her Sydney 38 Asylum across the Castray line, finishing in fifth place at 20:59:08 (8.59pm),

The first 12 boats had crossed the line off Castray Esplanade before 2300 hours (11pm) after a fast downwind dash across Storm Bay in rough seas and southerly winds gusting to 35 knots before reaching the calmer waters of the
Derwent River.

The final legs across Storm Bay and up the Derwent came after the fleet had bashed to windward in strong winds all the way back down the Tasmanian East Coast from Maria Island to Tasman Island, causing several retirements.

All but two yachts have now finished the race, described this morning by Malcolm Cooper, skipper of Kaiulan,i as 'tough...35 knots on the nose most of the way back to Tasman (Island)' after he berthed the half tonner at the
Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania this morning. Kaiulani finished just before 0700 (7am).

The Tasports Maria Island Race has been the qualifying race for the Rolex Sydney Hobart for She's the Culprit, Pisces and Valheru and other competitors Helsal IV and Nest Property.

Only one boat has yet to finish, Nest Property which at 0800 this morning was sailing up the Derwent. Three yachts have retired: Liberte Express, Twice Five and Sarina.

Sponsorship of the 2008 Tasports Maria Island Yacht Race has extended the role of the Tasmanian Ports Corporation (Tasports) in hosting and supporting the race end for the Sydney Hobart, Melbourne Hobart and Launceston Hobart
ocean races and the recent Bass Strait Race from Melbourne to Stanley.