Please select your home edition
Edition
Rooster 2023 - Aquafleece - LEADERBOARD

Quadruple treat for winner in 70th Anniversary Race to Apollo Bay at Ocean Racing Club of Victoria

by Di Pearson/ORCV media 29 May 01:58 PDT
Damien King at the helm of Margaret Rintoul V - 70th Anniversary Race to Apollo Bay © Steb Fisher

A quadruple treat for Damien King on Margaret Rintoul V (MRV), who took line and overall honours under AMS and ORC while celebrating his 50th birthday in the Ocean Racing Club of Victoria's (ORCV) 70th anniversary Apollo Bay Race on the weekend, with Ginan and Arcadia filling out the top three.

King's yacht finished in 5 hours 57mins 35secs, falling short of the 5h 24m 04s race record set by Peter Blake's Kaos way back in 1999, but MRV won overall by a resounding 42 minutes.

Because of the tide, it was a very early start for the 39 boats in the 52 nautical mile race, which started at 6am from Queenscliff. The fleet was blanketed by a dark sky, the only light visible emanating from lights on the yachts.

South-westerly winds of 10 to 20 knots gave the fleet a fast reaching 'drag race' from the start and along the Great Ocean Road to the finish.

Pods of smiling dolphins raced alongside numerous boats - and kept up - while a rainbow stretched across the course area. What a way to celebrate the 70th race!

"We had a very good run, but a very cold early start," King said. Heaps of dolphins put a smile on everyone's faces. We didn't do any tacks. We started on starboard and stayed that way. The only thing we did was put up a Code Zero till the wind went forward and down it came.

"It was my 50th birthday, so a great way to celebrate and we all enjoyed it," commented King, who said he and the crew prepared the boat well beforehand.

"We had an outstanding crew with lots of experience: America's Cup, Volvo Ocean race sailors and Olympians. We usually sail with 10, but sailed with 13, for the fact that everyone was there celebrating my birthday."

King ended by saying, "I'm a big fan of what the ORCV does. They are great organisers and do what they do with passion and style. They couldn't be more helpful, making it an effortless process for competitors to race."

The race is also a great race for those trying ocean racing for the first time, as it is an enjoyable shorter destination race. The ORCV works to inspire others to come try ocean racing whether that be their partner clubs or newcomers from various programs. Among them this year were three from Apollo Bay Sailing Club, including Anton Tibbits who began sailing 10 years ago.

Tibbits, who raced on Cyrus Allen's White Spirit said is attraction "was to gain more experience. I'd watched the race finish over many years and had always wanted to sail in it."

The race also attracted graduates from ORCVs 2022 Beyond the Bay program. Serendipity (Dean Davenport) and French Bred (Tim Hosking), proving the program has the desired effect.

ORCV's newly commissioned Race Van undertook skeds along the way and ensured a welcoming home out of the conditions for race officials. As part of the Club's latest initiatives in offshore races, crews took part in water sampling along the race track, which will be tested.

The Apollo Bay Race also decides the ORCVs champions for the season. Ryujin (Alex Toomey) won the Offshore Championship, while Ginan (Nigel Jones and Cam McKenzie) won the Coastal Championship.

"We're overjoyed to be the Offshore champions," Toomey said of winning the Perry Fletcher trophy.

"Our main focus was the double-handed component of offshore races, but we've also done a few races fully crewed, including the Apollo Bay Race. Three of our crew had never done an offshore race, so it's good to introduce a few new people who enjoyed it and will continue to race.

"We sailed five up, which was a bit of a challenge. Sudsy (well-known yachtie David Sudano) sailed with us. He also helped us a lot with boat preparation for the Melbourne to Hobart. He's a good sailor.

"It's been a fantastic year being able to do 50th Melbourne to Hobart, the 70th Apollo Bay and the 51st King Island Race. It's a milestone year for the ORCV. I always enjoy their events, they put so much energy into their races," Toomey finished.

Apollo Bay Race Results

AMS Overall

1st MRV (Damien King)
2nd Ginan (Nigel Jones Cam Mckenzie)
3rd Arcadia (Peter Davison)

Division 1:

1st MRV (Damien King)
2nd Ginan (Nigel Jones Cam Mckenzie)
3rd Arcadia (Peter Davison)

Division 2

1st Valiant (Jason Farnell)
2nd How Bizarre (Scott Robinson)
3rd Vertigo R935 (Timothy Olding)

ORC Overall

1st MRV,
2nd Ginan
3rd Carrera S (Gerry Cantwell)

Division 1

1st MRV
2nd Ginan
3rd Carrera S

Division 2

1st How Bizarre
2nd Aileron (Leo Cantwell)
3rd Alien (Justin Brenan)

PHS Overall

1st Hot Chipps (John Chipp)
2nd MRV (also won the Sam Ferrier Perpetual Trophy)
3rd Soiree Bleu (Douglas Lithgow)

Division 1

1st MRV
2nd Soiree Bleu
3rd Arcadia

Division 2

1st Hot Chipps
2nd Weekend Option (Michael Culhane)
3rd Valiant (Jason Farnell)

Double Handed overall

1st Blue Water Tracks (Grant Dunoon/Neville Rose)
2nd Maverick (Anthony Hammond)
3rd Alex Team MacAdie (Jock MacAdie)

Multihull

1st Peccadillo (Charles Meredith)

Line Honours: Monohull - MRV; Multihull - Peccadillo

Full results available here.

Related Articles

30 yachts now entered for Melbourne Osaka Cup
Entries include internationals, veterans and all Australian states With 18 months preparation time until the start on March 9, 2025, 30 yachts (60 sailors) are now entered for the Melbourne Osaka Cup. Posted on 16 Jul
ORCV announces annual Awards recipients
The 2023 Ocean Racer of the Year is Paul Buchholz The Ocean Racing Club of Victoria (ORCV) takes great pleasure in announcing the recipients of its annual Ocean Racing Awards for the 2022/2023 season, which were held at a gala dinner at Royal Yacht Club of Victoria on the weekend. Posted on 19 Jun
West Offshore Products Coastal Sprint
Ginan takes Line Honours and wins AMS, ORC & PHS divisions Nigel Jones and Cam McKenzies J111, Ginan has taken Line Honours and won AMS, ORC and PHS divisions of the 3rd and final West Offshore Product Coastal Sprint race of the season in fickle light winds. Posted on 23 Apr
Joker on Tourer wins Port Fairy Ocean Race
Joker on Tourer won the tough Melbourne to Port Fairy yacht race Double-handed 'Joker on Tourer', Grant Chipperfield's Elliott 1250 Tourer, has won the Ocean Racing Club of Victoria (ORCV) tough and gruelling 2023 Melbourne to Port Fairy yacht race, while Andrew Neeson's 'Jaffa' took line honours. Posted on 9 Apr
2025 Melbourne Osaka Cup - Launched, ready to race
The longest longitudinal short-handed crewed race in the world The 9th Melbourne Osaka Cup, the longest longitudinal short-handed crewed race in the world, is open for entry. Posted on 21 Mar
Another Chapter wins Melbourne to King Island Race
While Extasea took line honours in a slow and fluctuating race Another Chapter, Neil Sargeant's Beneteau 44.7, has won the Ocean Racing Club of Victoria's slow and fluctuating Melbourne to King Island Yacht Race, while Paul Buchholz's Extasea took line honours. Posted on 13 Mar
Challenges fuel interest in 51st King Island Race
More than 30 boats are set to start the 114 nautical mile King Island Race More than 30 boats are set to start the Ocean Racing Club of Victoria's 114 nautical mile King Island Race, starting at 5pm on Friday 10 March off Queenscliff Posted on 7 Mar
J/Teams take podium in Melbourne to Hobart Race
Skippers and crews face diversed sea state conditions The 435.0nm "Melbourne to Hobart Westcoaster" organized by Ocean Racing Club of Victoria (ORCV) is a legendary blue water ocean racing classic of unusual challenges in which seamanship, navigation, and tactical skills drive the race outcome. Posted on 16 Jan
Maritimo 11 wins Heemskerk Perpetual Trophy
Capping off 2022 perfectly by winning line honours Maritimo 11 has been through the highs and lows of racing over the last few weeks, but capped 2022 off perfectly by winning line honours and every handicap category in which they were entered, in the 50th anniversary Melbourne to Hobart Yacht Race. Posted on 31 Dec 2022
Skipper of Maritimo anoints M2H Race
One of the world's great ocean races As the 50th anniversary race, hosted by the ORCV, draws to a close and the handful of boats still to finish creep up the River Derwent, sailors are already discussing the success of the anniversary race and the global standing of the race. Posted on 31 Dec 2022
Henri-Lloyd 2022 December - SW FOOTERHellamarine-Apelo-A3-@2x_1456x180px BOTTOMRooster 2023 - Aquafleece - FOOTER