The Heemskirk Consolidated Melbourne to Hobart.

Plenty of Larry.

There would have been plenty of Larry (Load) when Gusto came down or what? Brian Pattinson said to me that he sent Simon Blake below to report on the damage after their departure from Port Phillip, not to see if there was any. He was that convinced there would be and thought it was just a case of how much... The Kevlar girl that started life as an Open 60 and was Magna Data at one point (when she held the Around Australia record), stood up and kept going - no damage. Jeremy Pearce, Kanga Birtles and John Bankart set the reccord aboard her in 1999 of 43 days 19 hours, 29 minute 55 seconds. The current fully crewed monohull record is held by Kaz from 2003 - 37d:1h:23m:7s. Brindabella is having a go in May of 2011, with 18 on board. Their aim is to go under the 30 day mark. I think she is still the holder the fastest time for the Syd-Hobart in a conventional maxi. The overall record is held by the 110 foot trimaran, Geronimo at 17d;12h;57m;5s. 

At any rate, we're lucky to have Andrew Brice's pictures from the offshore start on December 27. He was on the pier at Point Lonsdale. We saw the one of the top of the wave earlier, but here are some additional ones.

We've seen the image, but here's a higher res version... Bet the folk in the Point Nepean National Park loved this display...

Nice breakers. The old wind against water thing....

Buzz Lightyear (to infinity and beyond)

Still working our way through it all...

© John Curnow, ORCV Media

Please contact me for re-issue rights.

	Our truly marvellous sponsors, the global miners whose name is that of both Abel Tasman's flagship and a mountain in Tasmania.
	Below is what is now known as the Red Wine Cup, for first in to Hobart via either coast.... In 2008 it went to the West and in 2009 it was the East. 2010????!!	With many thanks to our friends at 3AW for providing us with great coverage - listen in for all the fun.