Sydney Hobart - Rockall reaches port after retiring

RKO leads div 1 on day 5 at Sail Port Stephens © Salty Dingo

Three New Zealanders are on board the German entry Rockall which has retired from the Rolex Sydney Hobart Race.

Update: Rockall arrived in the Victorian fishing port of Lakes Entrance, Gippsland just after dawn this morning. It has not been possible to contact the crew. As Lakes Entrance is a large fishing vessel service facility, it is assumed there will be facilities to effect some repairs before she returns to Sydney, or she may be transported by road. Lakes Entrance is about a four and a half hour drive from Melbourne.

Several New Zealanders are aboard another yacht which has retired from the race. Imalizard reported this morning that she had broken her mast and would be motoring to the finish. The navigator aboard Imalizard is Sally Garrett of Royal Akarana Yacht Club.

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Ben Gladwell and Mike Boyd have previously competed in three Sydney Hobart races and the third Sam Pearson is on his first race. They are part of the crew of crack Auckland offshore racer V5, and joined the crew of Rockall after the German owner, had looked seriously at buying the champion TP52 in Auckland.

Rockall TP52 broke a rudder off Eden on the SE coast of Australia and after they had entered Bass Strait.

Bruce Montgomery from the Rolex Sydney Hobart Race media told Sail-World that everyone on board was safe. A police launch left Eden at 9.00am soon after Race Control was advised of the incident. It is expected that they will arrive back in Eden in 5hours after the rendezvous - about 11.15am local time.

At the time the yacht was heading SW direction ahead of the rendezvous - a direction away from their rescuers. However, she is since believed to have been taken in tow.

Rockall was first commissioned as Bribon for the King of Spain. She raced in Australia as RKO after the previous owner Aaron Rowe purchased her from the USA. The 2008 Judel/Vrolijk design is now owned by Christopher Opielok (GER) a shipping company owner.

She was renamed on the morning of a race. One of the sailing superstitions of sailing is that it is bad luck to rename a boat and this adage would appear to have gained more credibility with Rockall being the first retiree from the race.

Rockall is entered in the TransAtlantic Race in 2018 - sailing to Bermuda on the first leg, and then from Bermuda to Germany on the second.