Winter Series Race 3 - Hobart winter sailors made of stern stuff

by Peter Campbell on 24 Jul 2011 When David Taylor stepped aboard his boat Pisces at the Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania about 8am today, the temperature in Hobart was just 1º C, the grass near the club was white with frost. A chilling 11 knot NNW breeze was sweeping down from the snow covered mountain overlooking Hobart and the River Derwent.

David may well have had to chip, or at least hose, some frost off the deck of Pisces and the wind chill fact was certainly below zero. But it was a bright sunny morning and the forecast was for the breeze to last all morning.

Taylor was one of 27 skippers and their crews who donned their thermals, beanies and gloves (and more) to compete in the Club’s third race of the Winter Series on the Derwent. For the former CYCA-based ocean racing yachtsman and his crew, it was certainly worth the effort.

The sun shone brightly all day, the breeze remained steady and freshened to 18 knots in late morning, the best weather so far enjoyed for winter sailing in Hobart this year.

Pisces, a modified Sydney 36, scored a comfortable Division 1 win in the handicap-start race and, with a first and third in earlier winter races, leads the division pointscore with five points, two points clear of Whistler (David Rees) which placed second today.

Third in the pointscore is Wayne Banks-Smith’s Farr 40, War Games, although Wayne was not aboard. He is sailing a chartered yacht north from Sydney to Airlie Beach for the coming race weeks there and at Hamilton Island. However, another Farr 40, Stephen Shield’s Wired placed third place today, also taking fastest time.

Two boats are sharing the pointscore lead in Division 2. On 15 points each are Neil Share’s Jigsaw and Graham Hill’s Serenity, after they placed second and third today to Justin Barr’s Rumbeat. Rouseabout (Grahame Inglis) and Miss Conduct (Brian Fleming) are equal third in the pointscore on 20 points.

In Division 3, Tom Kirkland’s Ragtime and Greg Rowling’s Another Joy are both on 12 points. Third in standings is King Billy (Steve Brown).

Ragtime took fastest time and won today’s race from Another Joy, third going to Riverdance (Wayne McNeice).