Red hot sailing for Scarlet Runner in Melbourne to Devonport Yacht Race

Scarlet Runner, skipper David Sturge holding trophy

When you’re hot you’re hot, and no boat was hotter in this year’s Melbourne to Devonport Yacht Race than Scarlet Runner with the Carkeek 44 from Sandringham Yacht Club winning on line honours and taking out the prestigious Rudder Cup.

Scarlet Runner was one of a handful of boats that not only got off the line well at Draper’s Reef near Queenscliff but kept the wind in their sails across what was one of the calmest Bass Strait crossings in recent history.

David Sturge, skipper of Scarlet Runner, was thrilled with the win, crossing the line in an elapsed time of 1 day, 7 hours, 14 minutes and 49 seconds, with Tasmanian boat AdvantEdge, skippered by Andrew Jones from the Port Dalrymple Yacht Club, finishing 1 hour and 40 minutes later, followed by Bruce Taylor’s Chutzpah just 10 minutes behind them.

Scarlet Runner won the prestigious Rudder Cup Perpetual Trophy awarded on AMS handicap, on a corrected time of 1 day, 9 hours, 33 seconds and 33 minutes, and was awarded the Margaret Holmes Kerr Perpetual Trophy for her line honours win.

Scarlet Runner’s owner Rob Date had been advised not to sail due to recent knee surgery giving David Sturge the honour of skippering his first offshore race.

“We have a great boat, and the crew is utterly amazing; we’ve had a good run in the recent series in Melbourne and did well last Christmas, but even so, as a first-time skipper, it’s been really incredible,” said Sturge.

So, what did Sturge think was the key to the success of Scarlet Runner in the light conditions?

“It’s a light boat, but I think that our fractional zero, that we flew high, ended up being a great sail to use in this particular race.

“Scarlet Runner works very well with the breeze just behind the beam and we had quite a lot of that in this race, and we even got to have our favourite triple-headed configuration in which the boat absolutely sends,” said Sturge.

Scarlet Runner had a tight tussle with AdvantEdge, which was full of Tassie locals, for line honours and AMS spoils, in the 195 nautical mile race to Devonport.

“Yeah, the local guys, we were looking at where they were going and thinking, they will know.

“There was a bit of yo-yoing going on, sometimes they were gaining on us at a fair clip, but sometimes we were pulling away, it was just nice to have a boat out there that we could see, it certainly spurs the trimmers on,” said Sturge.

Quixotic, skipper Andrew Middleton holding trophy

Quixotic, the X-41 skippered by Andrew Middleton was second on AMS overall and The Jackal, skippered by Matt Setton and sailing their first long-distance ocean race, finished in third.

Middleton, from the Royal Yacht Club of Victoria, and his crew were quietly proud of their spoils in the race winning the FH Stephens Perpetual Trophy for first on PHS and the Doc Bennell Perpetual Trophy for first on ORC after finishing fourth across the line.

“We are very pleased with our results, keeping the boat moving and staying out of the holes was important,” said Middleton.

Crew member Hester Freeman, no stranger to ocean racing having sailed a few Melbourne to King Island and Apollo Bay races over the last five years, and with a previous Rudder Cup under her belt, was kept busy during the race.

“We kept the boat moving, we did a few sail changes that worked well including a spinnaker peel,” said Freeman.

James Patterson was full of praise for his crewmates.

“It’s a very good crew, we all worked really well together and my role, well I just got up every ten or fifteen minutes and told them to go faster,” Patterson said laughing.

“We were all working together as a team, as a conglomerate, bouncing off each other, working as one unit with lots of thoughts going in - it’s really good on the boat as everyone can have a say,” said Patterson.

Highlights for skipper Middleton included being quick out of the [Port Phillip] Heads “and keeping Chutzpah and Scarlet Runner in our sight for a long, long time which was great, and also, I guess, realising sometimes that we missed a hole in the breeze that we could see the boats behind us fall into - it’s a bit cruel, but what it meant was that we had made the right choice.

“For us, we did more sail changes than we would normally do offshore and every time that we did one, it was the right choice, we were really pleased with that,” said Middleton.

The light forecast made it tough going for the fleet with one late withdrawal and nine retirements reducing the race to 17 yachts as boats fell into holes in the breeze, creating a virtual ‘parking lot’ on Bass Strait and making conditions more conducive to photography and whale watching than flat-out sailing.

Of the double-handed entries, Maverick, skippered by Rod Smallman with David Blake, was the last boat standing winning that Division and also achieving second place in Division 2 on AMS, PHS and ORC.

Race directors Jeremy Walton and Catherine North in the ORCV race van

Race Directors Jeremy Walton and Catherine North had a long night waiting for the boats to arrive.

“The start of the race was really good, they all got out well, but from then it just depended upon whether you fell into the hole in the middle of Bass Strait or not.

“The boats that were up the front got out and kept going hard - at one stage Scarlet Runner was doing over 10 knots, but there were boats that sat in the hole for six hours and they had 90 nautical miles to go, and it was closer to go home at that stage for them,” said Walton.

Walton reserved special praise for a few newcomers in the race.

“I think there are a couple of boats that have done really well in the race, The Jackal, in their first serious race out, I’m really impressed with, they’ve got a really good crew and have spent a lot of time on the boat, and Quixotic, an X-yacht, has done spectacularly well and won some silverware,” said Walton.

Faster Forward, skipper Matt Fahey in front on knee

Faster Forward crew members Sam Wines, John Bearsley, Drew Morgan and Kevin Dolan were all smiles after completing their first ocean race, all acknowledging the generosity of skipper Matt Fahey and mentor Simon Dryden, and the importance and practicality of the ORCV Beyond the Bay sailing program.

“Matt’s been really good at fostering new crew, it’s been something he has wanted to do the whole time, and he’s done it again this race,” said Walton.

Last year’s Rudder Cup winner Dasher+Fisher How Bizarre, skippered by Steve Robinson, took out Division 2 convincingly with a clean sweep of AMS, ORC and PHS handicaps.

A few of Mersey Yacht Club and ORCV volunteers; Far left Sam McGrath MYC Commodore and in the back grey shirt ORCV Vice Commodore Paul Roberts

The race was supported by a team of dedicated volunteers from the Mersey Yacht Club of Tasmania under the leadership of Commodore, Sam McGrath.

Full race results at https://www.orcv.org.au/results/2025-26/

Words and Photos by Jane Austin / ORCV media

Rudder Cup fleet set to fight it out on tactics with light conditions forecast

Some say a week is a long time in politics but spare a thought for the boats preparing for the 2025 Melbourne to Devonport Yacht Race with Australia’s wild spring weather flicking around faster than a rubber band in a classroom, testing even the most seasoned navigators as they plan for this weekend’s race.

What is guaranteed for the 27 race starters, however, is an intense battle not only to find the breeze but for the honour to hold aloft the prestigious Rudder Cup, the perpetual trophy of Australia’s oldest yacht race.

The weather modelling has a high-pressure system over the Tasman Sea and another sitting in the Great Australian Bight, both working to block any weather coming from the west, with the next deep low likely to move through further south of Tasmania.

The race looks set to start in light north easterly breezes, possibly amidst a thunderstorm, before clocking around to the south around dusk and from there the breeze will oscillate between a north easterly and southerly direction, before coming generally from the east for the remainder of the race.

 Maverick / Photo by Chris Furey

Rod Smallman, skipper of the double-handed entry Maverick, has been adjusting his routing for the race and is now predicting a relatively slow 36-hour crossing for the double-handers and the smaller boats.

“This year’s race will be almost anything but a rhumbline race.

“The race could definitely favour the smaller boats at the back of the fleet who have, in effect, 26 ‘weather stations’ in front of them in the other entries, letting them know what’s going on.

“I think we could see the fleet split, with some going left and some going right looking for breeze, I don’t think it will be a follow the leader race this year.

“In double-handed sailing, we prefer consistency, whether it’s heavy or light, we don’t like fronts coming through as that plays into the hands of the bigger boats who have more crew ready to respond and reset.

“We expect to see lots of holes in the breeze, and this won’t just affect the smaller boats, the line honours contenders like Scarlet Runner, could easily fall into a hole, it will be a very tactical ‘eyes out of the boat’ race,” said Smallman.

The Jackal / Photo by Michael Currie 

Smallman, winner of the double-handed division in the 2024 race, predicts The Jackal, skippered by Matt Setton, will be in the running for a handicap win, however he also tips that Kraken Sails Toecutter, the Hick 10 skippered by designer Robert Hick, will be quick.

“The Toecutter smokes along in the light breeze, as does the team from Faster Forward, and The Jackal could go well up the front,” said Smallman.

Setton has been busy getting his boat and paperwork organised, with the skipper and his very experienced ocean-racing crew coming together for their first Cat 2 race before the 2025 Melbourne to Hobart ‘Westcoaster’ Yacht Race.

“This is our first serious offshore race and is our first serious foray into Bass Strait on the boat,” said Setton.

While Setton isn’t looking to set the world on fire in their first race, they are certainly a team to watch.

“The boat was previously Aikin from South Australia and came with a strong pedigree.

“We’ve extended the bow sprit and got a new A2 which will change the boat’s performance, we have totally dropped our symmetrical spinnakers, we think we will be faster, but we will have to wait and see.

“The boat is very good reaching and running and is very light for its length with a quick and powerful rig.

“In the right conditions we can keep up with the 42-44 foot boats, we won’t keep up with the modern 40-footers, but the Beneteau 40-footers we’ll keep up with,” said Setton.

How Bizarre at the 2019 Rudder Cup / Photo by Bruno Cocozza

Scott Robinson, skipper of the 2024 Rudder Cup winner Dasher+Fisher How Bizarre, has a few reasons to be excited about the upcoming race.

“We are excited to be honest because it’s a great race and lots of fun, the Mersey Yacht Club (MYC) is so warm and accommodating, there’s lots of boats, the whole thing is such a good package,” said Robinson.

Robinson is also thrilled to have his old sailing mates Ralph White and James Russell, along with James’s two sons, Campbell and Doug, onboard.

“Ralph, James and I sailed together for about ten years in our twenties; they are really great guys and both exceptional sailors.

“The three of us did the 50th Sydney Hobart [Yacht Race] and now they are back on board for this race, which is just fantastic, it feels like we are getting the band back together,” said Robinson, who will be sailing in the 80th Sydney race alongside Ralph and James.

Jeremy Walton, Race Director from the Ocean Racing Club of Victoria, is looking forward to welcoming new competitors including boats from Tasmania and South Australia and seeing how the races within the race unfold.

“It’s great to see Joan Lorraine, on the start line, and I’m excited to see how Clockwork, Faster Forward and Loch Sloidh 3 go in the battle of the Sydney 38s,” said Walton.

Scarlet Runner keeps pace with multihulls at the 2024 Westcoaster / Photo by Michael Currie

Walton thinks Scarlet Runner is an obvious line honours contender but expects the competition to be tight in the double-handed division.

“It’s going to be quite intriguing as to whether the Jeanneau Sunfast 3300, Unprecedented, skippered by Andrew McGrath who is sailing with Grant Chipperfield, will do better than Maverick, a 3600, in the lighter conditions,” said Walton.

Unprecedented / Photo by Michael Currie

27 boats will be on the start line of this historic 195 nautical mile yacht race across Bass Strait from Melbourne to Devonport, which is conducted by the ORCV and the MYC.

Line honours contenders are likely to cross the line mid-afternoon on Saturday the 1st of November.

The Rudder Cup Perpetual Trophy will be awarded to the AMS measurement handicap winner of the 2025 race.

The race is part of the ORCV Offshore Championship and is open to yachts fully crewed, 4-plus autohelm, and double-handed.

The first race was sailed in 1907 from Queenscliff to Low Head and was open to ‘cruising-sailing boats under 60-feet of any rig, from yacht clubs in the Commonwealth’, with four boats on the start line.

Prowler in Port Phillip Bay / Photo provided by Prowler Crew

The longstanding race record set by Prowler (Joe Westerlo) in 1998 of 19 hours, 32 minutes and 56 seconds is likely to remain unchallenged against the backdrop of the light breezes forecast.

While the destination has shifted from Low Head to Devonport, the race is a highly competitive event offering navigational and tactical challenges, a first Bass Strait crossing for newcomers, but above all, a race of mateship that has stood the test of time. 

Keep up to date on race progress at: https://www.orcv.org.au/devonport 

By Jane Austin / ORCV Media

It’s all in the timing as Clockwork readies for first Melbourne to Devonport Yacht Race

Clockwork under sail in 2024 / Photo by Salty Dingo

It would be hard to find two more enthusiastic and committed offshore sailors than South Australians, Mary Ann Harvey and Andrew Lloyd, co-owners and “equal skippers” of the Sydney 38, Clockwork, from the Cruising Yacht Club of South Australia.

Harvey and Lloyd, relaxed and in the groove after a hectic eight-month sailing program last year which took in the major Australian regattas, will have Clockwork on the start line on Friday the 31^st of October for their first Melbourne to Devonport ‘Rudder Cup’ Yacht Race.

Harvey retrospectively described the Rudder Cup, run by the Ocean Racing Club of Victoria, as a bucket list race now that they know the history of the event as the oldest yacht race in Australia, and are definitely “in it to win it.”

“We are going to race as hard as we can to make the boat go.

“Andrew is a weapon on the start line, we make sure we don’t hit anybody, but if there’s a spot on the start line that he wants to be, even if it’s a TP52, he will just push through until he gets there.

Andrew and Mary Ann embracing after completing their Hobart race in 2024 / Photo by Salty Dingo

In 2024, Clockwork won the Sydney 38 Division of the Rolex Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race, a feat which they hope to repeat this year, and with the right weather, Harvey believes Clockwork might take home the win in the 2025 the Rudder Cup.

“A Sydney 38 is a bullet proof boat, a great all-rounder.

“We’ve never heard of a Sydney 38 ever losing its rig anywhere in the world, and while we know the boat is 25 years old, she’s fantastic upwind and downwind,” said Harvey.

Clockwork will be up against two other Sydney 38s from Victoria, Faster Forward, skippered by Matt Fahey, and Loch Sloidh 3, skippered by Peter McFarlane, which will make racing interesting.

Lloyd is hoping for a decent breeze for the sprint across Bass Strait to the finish line off the mouth of the Mersey River, the waterway of the Tasmanian coastal city of Devonport, and to the guaranteed warm welcome from the team at the Mersey Yacht Club.

“I haven’t done any weather modelling yet, but our preferred conditions would be reaching in 20 knots of breeze, or even right on the nose would suit us, while it’s not that comfortable, we know the boat will perform really well,” said Lloyd.

Talking with Harvey and Lloyd, it is easy to see why these great mates get on so well and are enjoying living what many would describe as their very best sailing life, competing successfully in some of Australia’s premier sailing regattas, while generously offering crewing opportunities to people from all walks of life through the ORCV’s Next Gen program and supporting community programs such as Orange Sky. 

“We both think it’s great to be supporting young sailors through the Next Gen program, giving them their first taste of ocean racing through a delivery, it’s a great time for training, they get time on the wheel,” said Harvey.

They each have enormous respect for the other’s strengths and personalities, and trip over themselves to heap praise on each other, while gently competing for bragging rights on boat speed.

“Andrew is amazing, he is so experienced in all areas of sailing.

“He does much more helming than I do, and he’s a terrific coach who runs the boat in fantastic condition,” said Harvey.

“Mary Ann is a legend, she’s an amazing person, a great sailor whose competence far exceeds her confidence.

“She’s able to find crew, which was tough in 2024 when we had 60 people on the boat in our eight-month campaign.

“But more than that, Mary Ann’s an inspiration to blokes and ladies alike, and she wants to sail with me!

“We completely trust her, we are just great mates,” said Lloyd.

Lloyd has been sailing all his life and has a special interest in sharing his knowledge with newcomers, and although Harvey came to yacht racing later in life, she has an innate understanding of the wind through 20 years as a windsurfer and prefers crewing ahead of steering.

“I was obsessive about the sailboarding, as a busy, working single mother, it was just a great way to get out and blow off the cobwebs.

“Andrew becomes my tactician when I’m steering which I think he finds a little bit frustrating at times, especially when I remind him that I have the Clockwork boat speed record of 20.7 knots,” said Harvey teasingly.

2025 has been a good year for Harvey, who recently won the 2025 Female Sailor of the Year category in the Australian Sailing South Australia Awards, recognising her achievements in ocean racing, her commitment to gender inclusivity, equality and opportunity, and her leadership in sailing as Chair of the South Australian Women’s Keelboat Regatta Committee.

Female Clockwork crew during the 2025 Australian Women's Keelboat Regatta. Mary Ann 3^rd from right / Photo provided by Clockwork team

Earlier in the year, Harvey also took her boat to Melbourne in June to compete in the Australian Women’s Keelboat Regatta at Royal Melbourne Yacht Squadron, racing with her all-female crew. A regular interstate competitor, Harvey continues to show her strong dedication to building connections and supporting the broader women’s keelboat community across Australia — strengthening ties between the South Australian and Melbourne chapters through shared experience, teamwork, and passion for the sport.

As they focus on the 2025 Rudder Cup, Lloyd and Harvey admit that neither of them has raced out of Port Phillip through The Rip, a narrow entrance at Port Phillip Heads where underwater reefs limit the navigable entrance to 0.6 of a nautical mile, and which can offer some difficult and precarious conditions to sailors.

“We will be very mindful of the conditions we are in, but we will also try to remind ourselves that it’s just another passage of water,” said Harvey.

There will certainly be plenty of guidance available from other fleet members and the ORCV.

Harvey and Lloyd note that the previous owner of the boat named her Clockwork as a nod to his work as a jeweller / watchmaker, and for those watching the race, Clockwork has a bright orange spinnaker and wheel, which features heavily in their marketing material and crew shirts.

Harvey and Lloyd will be sailing alongside Brendon Savage, Harvey’s nephew Rowan Edwards, Sam Wilksch, Michael Burvill, Laoise O’Beirn, Matt Stephens and Paul Hicks.

The 195 nautical mile 2025 Melbourne to Devonport ‘Rudder Cup’ starts at 2:30pm (AEDT) on Friday the 31st of October off Queenscliff, in Port Phillip.

The longstanding race record is 19 hours, 32 minutes and 56 seconds which was set in 1998 by Prowler, skippered by Joe Westerlo.

The Rudder Cup is part of the ORCV Offshore Championship and is open to yachts fully crewed, 4+autohelm, and double-handed.

Final entries closing on Monday the 20^th of October 2025.

For further details about the 2025 Melbourne to Devonport Yacht Race and to enter, go to: https://www.orcv.org.au/devonport

By Jane Austin/ORCV Media

Entries open for 2025 Melbourne to Devonport ‘Rudder Cup,’ Yacht Race, a qualifier for this season’s big ocean races

How Bizarre team during the 2024 Melbourne to Devonport Presentation / Photo by Melissa Warren

Entries are open for the prestigious Rudder Cup, the oldest ocean race in Australia and one of the most popular races on the Ocean Racing Club of Victoria’s (ORCV) sailing calendar.

The 195 nautical mile Category 2 ocean race starts near the entrance to Port Phillip in Victoria on Friday the 31st of October with the fleet making a dash across Bass Strait to Devonport, a seaside city on the rich and fertile farming belt of the North West Coast of the Apple Isle, Tasmania.

While the Rudder Cup is a relatively short race, sailors need to be prepared for tough and demanding conditions as they cross Bass Strait, with the event frequently used as a qualifying event for the 2025 Melbourne to Hobart ‘Westcoaster’ and the Rolex Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race.

With the images of the 2025 Fastnet Race fresh in people’s minds, few would be aware that the Rudder Cup holds significant historical sailing value as the fifth oldest ocean race in the world, predating the Fastnet by 18 years.

This year’s race will again be sailed in accordance with the ORCV’s Clean Regatta’s Framework established by Sailors for the Sea, demonstrating the commitment of ORCV members to upholding the principles of environmental stewardship in ocean racing.

Sailors will be strongly encouraged to eliminate single-use plastic bottles, provision and store food to reduce food and packaging waster, prevent oil, chemicals and microplastic pollution going to sea by inspecting and maintaining a clean bilge.

The ORCV has a longstanding partnership with the Mersey Yacht Club in Devonport, which generously hosts the finishing boats and the presentation of the Rudder Cup.

For sailors keen to stay on in Tasmania, Devonport provides the perfect gateway to the stunningly beautiful Dove Lake, a glacially carved lake directly beneath Cradle Mountain, in the heart of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area, all within 90 minutes of Devonport.

​​Other highlights within easy distance of the Mersey Yacht Club include the eclectic mural-filled country town of Sheffield and for the foodies, easy access to the Tasmanian Tasting Trail, a self-drive trail which showcase the best food and wine on offer on the North West Coast of Tasmania.

The Rudder Cup is part of the ORCV Offshore Championship and is open to yachts fully crewed, 4+ autohelm and double-handed.

David Schuller (ORCV Sail Captain and Rear Commodore) and Catherine North last year's race directors / Photo by Melissa Warren

Race Director David Schuller believes sailing in the Rudder Cup is a great way to shake off the cobwebs after the winter’s break from sailing.

“The race is a great opportunity for skippers to do their first Cat 2 race for the new racing season after a ‘break,’ completing the Winter Series and putting the first of the Coastal Sprints under their belt, and the race is also a pre-qualifier for the Melbourne to Hobart Westcoaster.

“Sailors can expect a strong fleet of competitors including double-handed entries and a very warm welcome at the Mersey Yacht Club.

“The race offers a good mix of day/night sailing experiences with a race start mid-afternoon and night sailing across Bass Strait,” said Schuller.

Sailors are encouraged to take advantage of the early bird entries which close on Thursday the 9th of October, with final entries closing on Monday the 20th of October 2025.

Dasher+Fisher How Bizarre (left) facing off Another Chapter in the 2024 Rudder Cup near the startline / Photo by Al Dillon

Scott Robinson, skipper of last year’s winner Dasher+Fisher How Bizarre from the Royal Melbourne Yacht Squadron, has already indicated his intention to defend last year’s title, with the boat an early bird entry for the race.

For race documents and online entry, go to: https://www.orcv.org.au/devonport 

By Jane Austin/ ORCV Media