Please select your home edition
Edition
Leaderboard brokerage

J/111 wins wild West Coaster Race - Melbourne to Hobart Race!

by J-Boats 9 Jan 21:23 GMT
J/111 GINAN - Melbourne to Hobart Race! © Steb Fisher

If the sailors participating in the Rolex Sydney Hobart Race thought they had a rough go of it getting around the famous "Organ Pipes" formation on the northeast corner of Tasman Island, then the racers in what is known as "the West Coaster" certainly had it as bad, if not worse.

The Westcoaster, as the race is known, is one of the world's great ocean races, covering 435.0 nm from the start in Port Philip Bay in Melbourne, Australia to the finish line in the River Derwent in Hobart, Tasmania. The race is organized by the Ocean Racing Club of Victoria (ORCV), with cooperation from Derwent Sailing Squadron.

The race starts with a 125.0 nm passage across the Bass Strait before the fleet sails 200.0 nm south down the west Coast of Tasmania, past Maatsuyker Island, east to South East Cape then turning left (northeast) towards the more sheltered, but equally challenging waters of Storm Bay and the River Derwent.

This year's fleet had a quick, but intense race to Hobart, battling wind gusts of up to 50 knots, and five to six-meter seas, with close rivalry on the race course. Nevertheless, the overall winner of the event was sailing itself, with exhaustion, smiles, relief, and enormous satisfaction etched on the faces of this close-knit group.

This year, as yachts crossed the start line off Portsea Pier, a thick sea fog rolled in over Point Nepean National Park. After rounding the first mark, visibility was reduced to 100.0m, and crews lost sight of each other. As a result, the navigators had to rely on their GPS chart plotter (hopefully!) to navigate the exit of Port Phillip Heads.

After racing 2.0 days and 15.0 hours, the Edward Henty Perpetual Trophy was awarded to the J/111 GINAN, skippered by Cameron McKenzie and Nigel Jones from the Mornington Yacht Club, for winning the ORC Handicap division. Notably, they also took 2nd overall in the AMS handicap division.

The J/133 JOKER X2 sailed by Grant Chipperfield and Pete Dowdney finished 5th overall in the ORC Handicap Division and, remarkably took 2nd in the ORC Doublehanded Division! Amazing! Two J/133s, two separate races, two remarkable performances in one of the toughest and wildest Sydney Hobart and Melbourne Hobart Races ever in the history of those events!

Related Articles

Hamble Winter Series 2024 Race Week 8
Miserable weather to finish the series At last, some normal winter series weather came to the Solent, for the final Race Week of the 2024 Hamble Winter Series, sponsored by Greene King. Posted on 4 Dec
Hamble Winter Series 2024 Race Week 6
Just like London buses, two IRC 1 boats came along at the same time Robert Hillman's Exuberant was the Committee Vessel for Race Week 6 of the Hamble Winter Series, sponsored by Key Yachting. Indeed, exuberant was how everyone was feeling, with the prospect of two races for the second week running. Posted on 20 Nov
Hamble Winter Series 2024 Race Week 5
Dunkelflaute sums it up "Dunkelflaute. The German word for the miserable, grey non-weather that's been draining the life out of everyone in Britain." wrote Quentin Letts in the Mail on Sunday, on 10th November 2024. Posted on 12 Nov
Hamble Winter Series 2024 Race Week 3
"This is Hamble Race Control, the race is not live, we have exceeded the wind limit!" "This is Hamble Race Control, the race is not live, we have exceeded the wind limit!" Well, that's what the PRO would have said if the CV, WetWheels, had gone out on Sunday morning for the third week of the Hamble Winter Series. Posted on 22 Oct
Hamble Winter Series 2024 Race Week 2
A weekend of one half Race Week 2 of the Hamble Winter Series comprises two days of racing for the Hamble IRC Autumn Championship, sponsored by Key Yachting. Early weather forecasts showed that once again we may have weekend of two halves. Posted on 16 Oct
Hamble Winter Series 2024 Race Week 1
Two completely contrasting days of weather The 43rd running on the Hamble Winter Series started with two completely contrasting days of weather. Posted on 9 Oct
Less than two weeks to the Hamble Winter Series
A good number of the usual suspects have already entered With just under two weeks to go to the 43rd Hamble Winter Series a good number of the usual suspects have lined up to make battle with their friends and competitors. Posted on 25 Sep
J/111s & J/109s enjoy racing at Vice Admiral's Cup
Five superb races were run for all classes in up to 15 knots of wind The Royal Ocean Racing Club's Solent racing season came to a conclusion with the Vice Admiral's Cup with two days of windward-leeward and tight round-the-can races. Posted on 22 Sep
2024 RORC Vice Admiral's Cup shines
Racing was incredibly close, especially in the Performance 40 and J/111 One Design Classes The Royal Ocean Racing Club's Solent racing season came to a conclusion with the Vice Admiral's Cup with two days of windward leeward and tight round the cans races. Posted on 16 Sep
J/99 Agent 99 crushes PHRF in Ida Lewis Race
Forty-five teams, including both world-class and recreational racers The 19th Ida Lewis Distance Race hosted forty-five teams, including both world-class and recreational racers. Posted on 25 Aug