Tasmania’s Richard and Megan Grant have sailed Magellan to a double-handed victory

Magellan, the Knoop 39 skippered by father/daughter combination Richard and Megan Grant from the Bellerive Yacht Club, are provisional winners of the double-handed division on performance handicap in the 52^nd Melbourne to Hobart Yacht Race.

The passionate sailors, who are preparing for the 2025 Melbourne to Osaka Race which starts in March, took on the West Coast twice in ten days, delivering the boat to Melbourne before the sail back to Hobart.

“In a moment of holiday madness, we double-handed up the West Coast to Melbourne only a few days before, which was a non-stop three-day effort.

The Grants have been doing a lot of work on the boat in preparation for their offshore sailing challenges, which were put to the test in the 435 nautical mile race to Hobart.

“Putting an autohelm on was a great decision – there’s no way that the two of us could steer this boat 100 per cent of the time, it would just be too hard.

“With the new dodger (that looks a bit like a caravan), we could get out of the weather and stay dry most of the time.

“The new instruments and the work we’ve done on the systems over the last year have made everything easier to do from back in the cockpit,” said Richard.

Father and Daughter double handed sailors Richard and Megan Grant Photo Jane Austen.

Megan grew up sailing dinghies but relished her time on the helm reaching her highest speeds in the big seas of the Southern Ocean.

“We were halfway between Maatsuyker and South East Cape and there was a quite a lot of swell – we had 35 to 40 knots - I was helming at the time and we hit 18.2 knots which was our top speed, it was pretty quick.

“It was lots of fun…when you’re going that fast in swells that big, you’ve got to pay attention all the time, because you can easily go up the face of a wave and get the speed wobbles, which can be a bit terrifying.

“Overall, I’m feeling pretty good after the race…I’m definitely more confident in my own abilities now.

“What this and other races have shown us is that Dad and I work really well together – we make a good team, we both understand how each other works and I think we’ll do really well in the Melbourne to Osaka Race,” said Megan.

Sailed double handed Magellan set to win from the start Photo Michael Currie

All boats have now finished the race.

Presentations will be held at the Elizabeth Street Pier Race Village at 5pm tomorrow, 31^st December 2024.

Seamanship, respect, preparation and a love of sailing – the spirit of double-handed sailing

Six yachts sailed double-handed down the West Coast of Tasmania in the 52^nd Melbourne to Hobart Yacht Race in a magnificent display of mateship and skillful seamanship alongside a deep love and respect for the sport of sailing.

Quest, the blue-hulled Atlantic 48 skippered by Peter Tardrew and Rod Gunther from the Royal Yacht Club of Victoria, was the first double -hander to cross the line in the 435 nautical mile race.

Experience shows with Peter left and Rod on Quest

Tardrew was proud of Quest’s performance in the tough conditions that the West Coast is renowned for and was in good spirits after experiencing a blow to the head in the later stages of the race.

Gunther and Tardrew have only been sailing two-handed together for a couple of years but have decades of sailing experience between them with the trust and respect for each other quite palpable.

“We pushed as hard as we could and were first two-hander in - we are absolutely rapt with our performance,” said Tardrew.

Sailing around Maatsuyker Island was a big moment in the race for Quest.

“The boat was fine, modern auto-pilots are just amazing things, and going around Maatsuyker – we had to granny round, we weren’t going to gybe, we’ve got an inline rig with runners so gybing for us is a bit more complicated…and at that point we had over 35 [knots] – we were probably a little bit late but that was OK,” said Tardrew.

Tardrew reflected on the race and his on-board injury, with the highest praise reserved for his co-skipper in what was an intense and difficult moment for the skipper.  

“I flew across the cabin, breaking the window with my face and came tumbling down on the nav’ table.

“I just lay there and there was a lot of blood.

“Rod was busy, there was a lot on, it was dark, blowing a gale with wind and rain, it wasn’t a good time for anyone to be solo on a boat…every box you could tick for bad news was there, but he did what he had to do to look after the boat once he knew I was conscious,” said Tardrew.

With age comes experience and it’s clear that these two skippers ooze enormous respect for each other’s abilities, which were put to the test in this year’s race.

“You have to be able to rely on each other…you need confidence in that reliance… I’m 100 per cent confident that Rod can do anything I can do and he’s stronger than me, he’s such a capable human.

“I think if you are going to go to the South Pole, Rod would say that he could do it and would do it superbly well having never done it before - he’s such a competent, resilient and resourceful man, he’s got come amazing characteristics for this sort of stuff.

“I’m not sure I do…I think I do it because I want to be like that rather than I am like that” said Tardrew.

A modest and reluctant hero, Gunther played down his heroic performance when Tardrew was injured, instead coming back to the co-skippering responsibilities that they shared throughout the race.

“It was a pretty hard race...Pete got pretty hurt out there but really, we both looked after each other well.

“Pete is a damn good sailor!

Quest with experience onboard Photo Al Dillon

“We have loads of sailing experience between us...we do all the work on the boat ourselves, so you get to know the boat and get to know each other.

“Pete’s got great practical skills, he’s always thinking about things, and he’s reasonably handy on the mechanical side with good boatbuilding skills which all works well for us,” said Gunther.

Sandringham Yacht Club’s Dave Kenny and Paul Schulz co-skippered the J44, The Secretary and were pleased to be in Hobart after a tough race.

“You hear stories of it being brutal and it was, we had some challenging conditions, the whole fleet did, it was tough but I’m glad we’ve done it, said Schulz.

Kenny reflected on the race overall including the strategic challenges the course presents.

“It’s a race of several parts, getting out of the rip at Port Phillip Heads which is always a challenge, then there’s a decent length of ocean race, and then you restart your challenge coming up Storm Bay and into the River [Derwent],” said Kenny.

Schulz and Kenny did not have the ideal lead up to the race with the boat sitting at the SYC for eight months waiting for new rigging to come from New Zealand, which set back their preparations, meaning this year’s Westcoaster was the first long race on the boat for the duo.

Kenny was quick to note, however, that their lack of preparation and on water time was offset by their knowledge of each other.

“Paul and I grew up sailing together, we’ve sailed against each other for decades, and with each other ocean racing for quite a while now – we read each other very well.

The Secretary Dave Kenny L and Paul Schulz R Image Jane Austin

“We have established routines onboard which make you settle in quickly which helps,” said Kenny.

In relation to preparing to sail double-handed, Kenny was keen to point out the importance of understanding themselves as individuals and understanding each other.

“In 2017, we took some advice from a psychologist which was to sit down and write down your triggers, like how do you react when you get tired, what makes you angry, what things can’t you deal with…so we both did that and we cross-referenced the list and now, we know I can be finicky and Paul can be casual, and we don’t make a thing out of it because we know that’s our trigger.

“If you want to go double-handed sailing, everyone has to be able to do every job on the boat competently, and you have to understand each other,” said Kenny.

And if offered a chance to sail double-handed Schulz and Kenny agree, “grab it with both hands.”

“When you sit for long times on the rail, you get a very narrow view of ocean racing…there’s something quite special about being the only one there, being up on deck at 2am doing 20 knots, that’s a thrill,” said Kenny.

Fatigue management is a challenge faced by all sailors and one that was a particular challenge for the double-handed division.

“I love sleep, but you can put your body through a lot, and it will cope with a lot, and when you’re tired, you need to really think about your decisions,” said Schulz.

Kenny and Schulz run a standard naval watch routine, with flexibility important as well as tactical use of coffee.

Overall, the skippers were impressed with the race but stressed the need for a focus on safety and preparation for all sailors.

“You’ve got to monitor your style, you’ve got to be more conservative, without a doubt, in a race like this, with few ports of refuge and when you know big weather is coming.

“We both had a healthy appreciation of travelling around the bottom [of Tasmania] and Maatsuyker Island and the weird currents and the standing up swells, and it was certainly big and busy down there, but nowhere near as big as it could have been,” said Kenny.   

Scarlet Runner, the Carkeek 43 skippered by Rob Date from the Sandringham Yacht Club is the provisional winner of this year’s race on AMS handicap while Rushour, the multihull skippered by Drew Carruthers from the Multihull Yacht Club of Queensland set a new record in the multihull division.   

All boats have now finished the race.

Presentations will be held at the Elizabeth Street Pier Race Village at 5pm tomorrow, 31^st December 2024.

For Entry, Notice of Race and List of Entries, please visit: https://www.orcv.org.au/hobart/m2hyachts

Scarlet Runner and Rushour dominate 52^nd Melbourne to Hobart Yacht Race

Scarlet Runner, the Carkeek 43 skippered by Rob Date from the Sandringham Yacht Club, has dominated the 52^nd Melbourne to Hobart Yacht Race, winning line honours for monohulls and is the provisional handicap winner of the 52^nd Melbourne to Hobart Yacht Race. 

Date had set his sight on the line honours win, and for most of the race was looking good to set a new race record, but a slower run across Bass Strait and a quiet River Derwent put paid to that.

While weary Date, was far from disappointed though knowing that his crew gave it everything they had in what were tough and wet conditions.

“It’s a tough race…I’ve been in a lot of ocean races, and I’ve never been as wet as we were.

“The seas were disorientated and big and wet, I don’t know how else to describe it, I’ve never been so wet in my life.

“Every single part of our boat is wet from backside to topside.

“We’ve had a good race, it was windy, it was good fun.

“When we knew the record was in reach we talked about it, but it’s all really about the weather.

“We had a slow trip across Bass Strait and so that’s where we dropped the time I suspect, it was too much on the nose and too much of a beat across Bass Strait, and then a slow beat up the River [Derwent].

“And the bit in the middle all the way around from the top of Tasmania to Bruny Island was quick, but the bits before and after were not quick.

And while not competing directly against Rushour, Date was still hoping to beat the multihull home.

“The bottom line is we are 43 [feet] and they are 52 feet – it’s hard to beat a 52-foot race boat with a 43-foot race boat, it’s as simple as that.

“We weren’t too upset, we gave it a shake…we had a quick race and we tried pretty hard,” said Date.

A key highlight of the race for Date was the speed of the Carkeek 43 and the intense efforts of his helms and his team’s crew work to push the boat hard and fast to Hobart.

“James Sly from the Sandringham Yacht Club was a super-human driving the boat…we already had a 23 and a half knot scorecard from about a week ago, then someone got to 23.9, then someone got 25, but James eventually got 26.84 knots yesterday afternoon,” said Date.  

Scarlet Runner crew soon after finishing Photo Samantha Chandler

Rushour, the Drew 15 catamaran designed, built and skippered by Queenslander Drew Carruthers, dominated the multihull division winning on line hours and smashed the 2023 race record for that division by close to 30 hours. 

In his first Westcoaster, Carruthers was tired but relieved to be in Hobart and is now settling in for some summer cruising around the State.

“We are happy – we got here without any major dramas and looked after the boat, said Carruthers.

Crew member Becky Moloney was excited to have ticked this race of her bucket list and to put the catamaran through its paces down the West Coast of Tasmania.

“We’ve done a lot of offshore sailing and were really looking forward to sailing down the West Coast and experiencing the Southern Ocean swell and just seeing how the boat would handle it.

“We also wanted a new challenge because we’ve done all the major races, so we really wanted to test the boat in these conditions,” said Moloney.

While the boat passed the West Coast test, it offered other challenges for the team including the water temperature and the strength of the wind gusts.

“It was cold, the water was cold, we had rough and reaching conditions and a sloppy sea state,” said Carruthers. 

“We were a bit worried about the gusts and how strong they would be, so we were always on high alert ready for the gusts, said Moloney.

“I’ve been through a lot of low pressure storms in the Southern Ocean and I know how bad it can get, but the boat handled it beautifully,” said Carruthers.

“I’m very pleased I’ve done the race, I mean sailing around the bottom of Tasmania is very enjoyable, its beautiful big swells, it’s not really about the sailing, it it a wild and unique place,” said Carruthers.

Drew Carruthers skipper of Rushour Photo Jane Austen

In a history making race for multihulls, the three multihull entries including Rushour, Peccadillo, skippered by Charles Meredith, and Resolute II skippered by Ken Gibson, all beat the 2023 multihull race record.

More boats are expected to arrive into Hobart from early afternoon on Sunday 29 December 2024.

Rushour clears race traffic in 2024 Melbourne to Hobart Yacht Race

Rushour, the Drew 15 catamaran designed, built and skippered by Queenslander Drew Carruthers, has set a cracking pace down the West Coast of Tasmania and currently lead’s last year’s multihull winner, Peccadillo, by over 35 nautical miles. 

Rushour clears the traffic on their way to Hobart Photo Michael Currie

In his first Westcoaster, Carruthers is on track to set a new race record in this division and could arrive in Hobart on Saturday evening, especially if the wind strengthens behind her as she runs along the bottom of Tasmania.

While new to this race, Carruthers and his seasoned crew boast plenty of sailing experience having circumnavigated New Caledonia twice in the Cat-2 Groupama Race and competed in several Brisbane to Gladstone and Brisbane to Hamilton Island races.

“We do a lot of ocean sailing, but this is something different,” said Carruthers, who is also using this race as quick delivery to Tasmania where they will stay for a summer cruising break.

Peccadillo, the Chris White 46, skippered by Charles Meredith and race newcomer, Resolute II, the Atlantic 48 skippered by Ken Gibson, are also on track to beat the multihull race record set by Peccadillo in 2023.

Rushour is well past the halfway mark with just over 150 nautical miles to travel of the 435 nautical mile race and leads the multihull handicap division on OMR.  

In a race with two line honours winners, Scarlet Runner, the Carkeek 43 skippered by Rob Date has just over 208 nautical miles left to sail and is the leading monohull on line honours, but on current predictions is just outside the race record.

Scarlet Runner keeps pace with multihulls as they race down the Westcoast Photo Michael Currie

There is no clear handicap leader and predictions are difficult, Kioni, the Beneteau 47.7 skippered by Dennis Ward from the Royal Melbourne Yacht Squadron, is having a great race, clearly benefiting from a strong and steady build up to this year’s Westcoaster.

Ward has taken a methodical approach to his preparation for the race, gaining invaluable expertise from mentor and experienced ocean racer and helm, Ron Brown who has sailed with him in previous races, while also offering opportunities to his crew to enhance their sailing skills.

“The whole experience of preparation and learning from the experience within the Ocean Racing Club of Victoria (ORCV) has been totally invaluable – even doing the Cat-2 audits, I continue to learn about things I can do to make the boat safer.

“I see ocean racing as a way to gain experience, seamanship in controlled conditions as my longer term plan is to go cruising and this is all good experience,” said Ward.

Kioni enjoying their first Westcoaster race Photo Al Dillon

Kioni also encourages diversity onboard and is sailing in this year’s race with the 2024 ORCV Crew Development winner Irama Navarro Ruiz onboard, while Belinda Duivenroorden has been building her skills in radio and communications.

Lillian Stewart, co-skipper of the First 50 Beneteau, White Spirit, is tired but enjoying the race down the West Coast alongside co-skipper and ORCV Commodore, Cyrus Allen, noting the rain has come in and there are squalls on the horizon.

Stewart thrives on ocean racing and will be taking in all that the majestic West Coast has to offer as she makes her way to Hobart.

“The feeling of being out on the water in the open ocean is like nothing else.

“Some of the experiences I’ve had include seeing the Southern Lights in the sky above me painting everything purple and green.

“There’s something to be said about being at sea and having ten Albatross just gliding across the water around you as if you don’t even exist to them, it is just unreal,” said Stewart.

The fleet is experiencing relatively good but wet conditions down the West Coast of Tasmania in what is currently a reaching race with winds of around 24 knots, moderating during the day, but building again into Sunday morning to speeds of 25 to 30 knots.

One thing is for sure, Tasmania’s rugged and remote west coast, with its lee shore and spectacular birdlife, will be a breathtaking sight for all competitors.

Lillian Stewart and ORCV Commodore Cyrus Allen double handed sailors on White Spirit Photo Cyrus Allen

The monohull fleet is competing for the prestigious Heemskerk Perpetual trophy which will go to the handicap winner on AMS.

Other prizes on offer include the Zeehan Trophy for the Navigator of the boat that wins the Heemskerk Trophy, the Wrest Point Abel Tasman Trophy for the winner on line honours, and the City of Melbourne Perpetual Trophy for first on corrected time on performance handicap.

The fleet is carrying trackers enabling race followers to track the action from start to finish.

To follow the fleet, go to https://race.bluewatertracks.com/2024-melbourne-hobart-westcoaster.

The monohull race record of 1 day 17 hours 28 minutes 59 seconds was set by Shortwave in 2008, winning the race with an average speed over the course of 10.49 knots.

The multihull race record of 2 days 18 hours, 4 minutes and 1 second was set by Peccadillo in 2023.

For Entry, Notice of Race and List of Entries, please visit: https://www.orcv.org.au/hobart/m2hyachts