Rolex Sydney Hobart Race - Incredible crew onboard Wild Oats XI

by Rob Mundle on 22 Dec 2010 Wild Oats XI, the Rolex Sydney Hobart race record holder and winner of four consecutive line honours in five starts, will be crewed by one of the most talented teams imaginable when the big race starts on Sydney Harbour on Boxing Day.

Owner Bob Oatley, in conjunction with skipper Mark Richards, has assembled some of the best ocean racing talent from Australia and New Zealand – 17 men and two women – for the 30-metre long supermaxi’s bid for top honours in the 628 nautical mile classic. Between them they have a total of 201 Hobart races to their credit, and their background takes in almost every major event on the international sailing calendar – the Olympics, the America’s Cup, the Volvo Ocean Race round the world, world championships and world records.

Chances are that every ounce of this accumulated experience will be called on this year if the race forecast from yachting meteorologist Roger Badham holds true. His latest prognosis for what Wild Oats XI and other frontrunners can expect in Bass Strait predicts headwinds from the southwest of up to 40 knots and punishing seas. Such conditions will provide the ultimate test for yacht and crew and will almost certainly erase any chance of the race record – which was set at 1 day, 18 hours, 40 minutes and 10 seconds by Wild Oats XI in 2005 – being lowered.

Of the crew aboard Wild Oats XI this year Steve Jarvin and Sven Runow claim the highest number of starts: 22 and 21 respectively. Navigator Adrienne Cahalan has 18 races behind her – a record for women who have contested the classic – Iain Murray 16 and co-navigator Ian ‘Fresh’ Burns 15. It will be skipper Mark Richards’ seventh race south.
Here is a potted profile of some of the Wild Oats XI crew:

Iain Murray (Aus): Probably the best-known name in yachting in Australia. Winner of six consecutive 18ft skiff world championships; competed in the Star class in the last Olympics; winner of world keelboat championships and America’s Cup competitor.

Adrienne Cahalan (Aus): Internationally acclaimed ocean racing navigator (and mother of two young children). Australian Yachtswoman of the Year 2004-2005; four Sydney Hobart race line honours; navigator, Volvo Ocean Race round the world; Navigator aboard 125ft maxi catamaran ‘Cheyenne’ which broke the Round the World non-stop speed record in 2004 - 58 days, 9 hours, 32 minutes and 45 seconds.

Ian ‘Fresh’ Burns (Aus): An outstanding navigator, sailor and yacht designer/engineer. Was the internationally acclaimed design coordinator for BMW ORACLE Racing, the revolutionary trimaran that won the America’s Cup this year.

Stu Bannatyne (NZ): Has raced around the world five times and is the only person to have won the Volvo Ocean race (previously the Whitbread Race) on three different classes of yacht – maxi ketch (New Zealand Endeavour), Volvo 60 (Illbruck) and VO70 (Ericsson). Recently named a watch captain for kiwi entry, Camper, for the next Volvo race.
Tactician aboard Alfa Romeo when she took line honours in last year’s Hobart race.

Robbie Naismith (NZ): Known as ‘Battler’. Considered to be one of the best sail trimmers in the world. He has sailed in five America’s Cups, four Volvo Ocean Races and contested almost every major offshore event in the world. Raced more than 250 days during the past 12 months.

Matthew Mason (NZ): A highly experienced offshore sailor, boat builder and shore team manager with six America’s Cups to his credit.

Wild Oats XI vital statistics:
- LENGTH: 30 METRES or 98 FEET - ABOUT THE HEIGHT OF A TEN STOREY BUILDING

- BEAM: 5.1 METRES

- DEPTH OF THE KEEL: 5.5 METRES

- WEIGHT OF THE KEEL AND BULB: 12 TONNES/12,000 KILOGRAMS - ROUGHLY THE SAME WEIGHT AS A DOZEN AUDI S5 SEDANS

- LENGTH OF THE MAST: 45 METRES - THAT IS JUST FOUR METRES LESS THAN THE WIDTH OF THE SYDNEY HARBOUR BRIDGE SPAN. THE MAST SQUEEZES UNDER THE BRIDGE WITH ONLY 3 TO 4 METRES TO SPARE AT HIGH TIDE

- LENGTH OF THE BOOM: 14 METRES

- OVERALL WEIGHT EMPTY: 27 TONNES/27,000 KG - APPROXIMATELY THE SAME WEIGHT AS SIX MALE AFRICAN ELEPHANTS

- WEIGHT FULLY LADEN WITH CREW, SAILS, FOOD, WATER, & FUEL: 31,000 KG - JUST ADD ONE MORE ELEPHANT

- MAXIMUM SPEED TO DATE: 35 KNOTS – THAT IS 64.82 KILOMETRES P/H

- CREW SIZE: 19 - THE EQUIVALENT OF AN AUSTRALIAN RULES FOOTBALL TEAM PLUS ONE.

- TOTAL AREA OF ALL SAILS CARRIED ABOARD FOR THE ROLEX SYDNEY HOBART RACE: APPROXIMATELY FOUR SQUARE KILOMETRES!

- LARGEST SPINNAKER AREA: 900 SQUARE METRES – THE EQUIVALENT OF FOUR TENNIS COURTS, OR CLOSE TO THE SIZE OF THE AVERAGE AUSTRALIAN HOUSE BLOCK.