The Notice of Race for the 2018 Melbourne to Hobart “Westcoaster” Race has been published and entries are now open.

The race continues to evolve and this year the ORCV has amended the NOR to provide expanded support for short handed racing within the unrestricted monohull division.

Double handed racing is in many ways the ultimate ocean racing challenge and has had active support for a number of years. Double handed yachts will continue to be actively supported by ORCV,  racing in their own Division and also against the main fleet. Its worth noting that in 2017 second place in both IRC and AMS were taken out by two handed crews.

This year the ORCV has expanded the competitive envelope by amending the NOR to allow yachts to race "autohelm plus max 4 crew" as part of the unrestricted monohull fleet. There is no separate Division for "Autohelm plus 4". This decision reflects strong support for the concept in ORCV's 2018 research program. 

Satellite Phones for Yachts not equipped with HF radio

The dispensation for use of Sat Phones by yachts which are not equiped with HF radio remains in place. Details of the dispensation in terms of Cat 2 Safety compliance and ORCV's communications requirements are given in the NOR.

Request for Early Entries

Early entries are requested as part of out fleet building program and to assist with facilities planning. The on line system for this race will accept early applications for entry with payment deferred to 14 November 2018 when early bird race entry fees expire.