ORCV Melbourne to Vanuatu (M2V)

The Dark Horse.

Garisenda have been my Dark Horse (handicap) from day one and are now second in IRC and third in PHS (performance). Climbing that scoreboard - well done team. Now the other Dark Horse has to be the 51st Project. For ages they have been waxing on lyrically about how it's 'just a cruising boat, John', but this crew of some very good and truly seasoned ocean racers, now lie in second overall, only some 25nm astern of the race leader. (There's a zillion Hobarts in their crew, the last M2V and an M2O, as well). So to Phil, Cheryl, PeeWee, Lexxie and he of the loud shorts (Smithy), I say 'Phewy'. Cruising - my left foot!!! We have a race again. Yippeeeeeeee.

So we move to Steb's shots, who certainly had both of his fleet planted when he shot these and the wave motion seemed to fix his back, which was shod before the event and cactus afterwards. (He must have read Andrew's article on fitness, which you also can HERE.) We have © Steb Fisher's pics of Garisenda (go team), Mirrabooka, Slinky Malinky and the 51st Project to look at - let's do that now.

Garisenda, outside the heads and making preparations for the kite.

Back inside, pre-start and after just swinging by the pier to say farewell.

Racing now and Ingenue (Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 40) in the background, returns for another go at it all.

Outside the Heads again and prep continues.

Off Cheviot Beach (think Harold Holt).

Our Seamanship Poster Shot - Slinky Malinky, who showed wonderful adherence to the rules of the sea, with standing by to render assistance to their fellow racer, Ingenue.

Ok. Contents of this bag, up there. Got it...

Eric Marsh spots Steb.

Cheers guys.

Pole goes in.

Everything takes a while when the deck's moving, your hands are frozen and you're tied to a fence... Funny about that.

Trainspotters will be able to see the McConaghy Melbourne Offshore Championship boom sticker from here. So yes, that makes me a trainspotter...

David Bingham concentrating whilst behind the helm of his Jeanneau, Mirrabooka.

Working hard to get the kite set for a launch.

Bag's in place, time to look at the pole end.

Hhhmmmm. Did I clip it all correctly? I'll go back and check.

Last few details...

Pole set here, so any moment now...

As mentioned before, the Jeanneau known as Mirrabooka may well have been the first kite to be launched, once outside the Heads and into Bass Strait.

Loud shorts replaced by loud beannie - lime green, I mean, really?

I think this is Zoe Freeman - looking very sailorish, I must say. Anyone confirm it is her??

Just in the corner of Fisherman's cove, to the East of the start line and the M2V flag flies mightily from the courtesy halyard.

Coming to get ya.

Cheryl Coombs behind the wheel.

Sprung team. I found the comment I was looking for. Nothing cruisy about this sentence "Cocktail hour was a raging success and Smithy and Timmy are still trying to get their heads around racing in luxury!!!"

The swell did not seem that big when we were out there...

When size matters!

A true 'Steb' - (bow wave shot).

They should buy this pic from Steb for the brochure!

Lovely little crest there, Steb.

He of the hairdo, Lexxie, is under the dodger.

He's got the specs on here, so it must be serious...

See ya - thanks for making a race of it!!!

The two Jeanneaus. The one in the foreground is Rosie and David with Ingenue and Mirrabooka in the background. Mirrabooka is faster and Rosie is bearing down to ultimately duck their transom and head back for their re-start.

A puff of smoke and an 1885nm epic begins.

Garisenda gets underway.

Conservative start for the other two-handed entrant - The Secretary.

Gordon Hyde of Southern Peninsula Rescue waving (they take Steb out on one of their boats - thank you) and HBYC Commodore, David Judge, to the right of the mainsheet.

The Brass - ORCV Rear Commodore Simon Dryden and Vice Commodore, Donald Fraser with the camera...

Team Southern Peninsula Rescue and yes, the Bell Long Ranger is yours for one and half large - that's all...

She's all fitted out for rescue ops, the team you'll have to do enterprise bargaining with...

 

To see where the fleet are located after the latest sked, please go HERE.

 

 

By John Curnow

 

 

ORCV Melbourne to Vanuatu (M2V)

It's a Wrap from Ingénue. Thai chicken, no?

Ingenue are now heading to North Queensland and some sun, fun and a chill (as in, out). Yesterday, Rosie Colahan even found time to tell a tale and so, we now have an onboard assessment of what had gone wrong with their kite, but certainly not in the galley.

"In the early hours of Wednesday morning, a lively 15kn W to NW wind sprung up and kept us moving well, as we headed towards Gabo Island. Approaching the corner at Little Rame Head, we passed to the West of the New Zealand Star Banks, which had ever-so-thoughtfully been illuminated by the blinding lights of a fishing vessel at work and were shot along by the outflow from Bass Strait", Rosie comments.

"Arriving at Gabo soon after daybreak, with following SW winds and sunshine, our rival, Slinky Malinky, was spotted charging up from behind under spinnaker and so, the challenge was on again. Up went our Yachting Port Phillip kite, as we chased them up the coast towards Eden and then Eastwards to hitch a ride on the North going eddies of the East Australian Current. By early afternoon, the wind had built to 20kn, whipping up 3-4 metre seas, making for an exhilarating, roller coaster ride. Even Ingenue (a Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 40), at 9.5 tonnes, was achieving over 12 knots in the rushes!"

"At 1615hrs, we noticed that the mast end of the spinnaker pole was slowly migrating down the mast, despite it being located in the jammers and this was causing the kite to pendulum from side to side, setting off those awful death rolls. So it was a case of 'All hands on deck', and yes, that is both of us! Now as we depowered the kite, it took off, viciously wrapping itself, along with the retrieval line of its snuffing sock (a sausage like cover used to encase the sail when hoisting and lowering it), in a tight, ten-wrap stranglehold around the furled #1 headsail and subsequently, into an impossible 'wineglass'", said Rosie. (A wineglass is where part of the spinnaker [kite] has been wrapped around the forestay or itself, in a tight twist and where the top section is actually open and catching the breeze. More often than not, the lower section is also open, hence the appearance of and term used - wineglass).

"The wind was now 25knots and manouevring under sail was not possible. Down with the mainsail, on with the mighty 48hp Yanmar Diesel and a few wheelies (propellor coming out of the water) amongst the rolling waves did nothing to unwrap the mess. Having witnessed our struggle, Slinky Malinky turned back to stand by us, which was very valiant of them. Eventually, the lower end of the wineglass flogged itself so thoroughly, that it ripped sizeable horizontal tears above each clew (the bottom corners of the spinnaker) leaving the tape edges intact and a weary battle flag streaming from the top of the mast. Mark Rimington always joked that he had made the kite 'Rosie proof' and we were impressed that it took so long to give in", she said.

"Faced with the fact that our only hope of distentangling the mess was to find shelter from the building maelstrom, we planned to return to the coast 50nm away. The need to keep our new 'battle flag' flying away from the rigging and radar, significantly limited our possible destinations and parking opportunities. Twofold Bay at Eden provided the best option, with a good angle to the prevailing SW wind, a wide open entrance and the opportunity to drop anchor in the bay, without having to manouevre to tie up or avoid other vessels."

"Decision made! We turned towards Eden with that SW wind now at 25-30kn and the added bonus of a rain squall! Just terrific. The effects of wind opposing the East Aust Current, resulted in a bumpy ride and speed limited to just 3kn over the ground. We reached Twofold Bay at 0600hrs Thursday and anchored stern to the wind, in order to keep the kite flying away from the rigging until daylight, when we were able to 'wring' the kite into a tight wrap and by a process of reverse macramé, unravel it from both the furled #1 Headsail and the sock's retrieval line. We could then snuffle it into its sock, drop it to the deck and banish it to its spinnaker bag! Naughty kite!!! Time for bed."

"As we reflect on events, our disappointment at not being able to complete the race, was replaced by the relief that we were safe, with no injuries to boat or crew and the redeeming feature was that the kite probably was repairable!"

Rosie went on to say, "At the 2115 radio sched, we were overwhelmed by the heartfelt wishes from our fellow competitors, ORCV and radio relay stations. Slinky Malinky’s actions in turning back to stand by, without any request from us for assistance, exhibited true sportsmanship and was most appreciated, especially in the event that our situation had deteriorated. The prompt actions of the ORCV Race Director, Bob Tanner, in notifying police, family and others and sorting out Customs issues was also much appreciated. Now of course, Aunt Sally’s lasagne was there as the perfect comfort food to warm our bodies and our spirits, as we headed to Eden. So even the ORCV office staff are in on the culinary tests, so we are delighted that the Masterchef challenge goes on!"

"At other times and in other events, you hear of other competitors’ misfortune and you are always filled with one of those 'heartsink' emotions. When it happens to you, you will be amazed the way the yachting fraternity rallies to your support. Thank you everybody - you are amazing", Rosie finished on behalf of her and David James.

Now I think we'll make Slinky Malinky our new Seamanship poster shot and join Team Audacious (HCOTW), Gabrielle Beattie (Women in Sailing) and Patricia Laverty (FDU), as the faces of sailing. What do you think David Judge? (He's the Commodore of Slinky's home, Hobson's Bay Yacht Club.) Steb - your thoughts?

Slinky Malinky showed great seamanship and sportsmanship, turning back to see if assistance was required. Nice one, Eric Marsh and crew. Pic © Steb Fisher.

 

To see where the fleet are located after the latest sked, please go HERE.

 

 

By John Curnow

 

 

ORCV Melbourne to Vanuatu (M2V)

Race within a race.

Yesterday, Thursday, was a big day all around. One thing that we're happy to note is that the real race, the Masterchef one, is still alive and kicking, despite the loss of one of the original combatants, Ingenue. From onboard the other original combatant, Robyn Brooke informs us of the menu and yeah, those winds, waves and sail changes that interfere with galley time.

All jokes aside, The Secretary are doing well, currently holding down second in both IRC and the performance handicap sections of the race. Nice work, especially when you consider they are the only two-handed yacht out there!

Robyn elaborates on the day for us, "The fleet expressed their sadness at the news on Wednseday night that Ingenue has had to retire with spinnaker problems, potentially effecting their rigging (the mast only went back in last week). It is a huge task to get a yacht to the start line for an ocean race and we can only guess how devastated Rosie and David must be. We feel for them and miss them already!"

"Rosie mentioned that the Master Sea-chef cook-off must continue. We had Coq au vin last night for dinner (delicious and thanks Sue), followed by lemon & raspberry steamed pudding with custard and the most succulent fresh strawberries. Today we'll have a Greek salad for lunch and later George's favourite, Steak, mushrooms and mash."

"On Thursday morning the sea came up lumpy after a smooth and fast overnight reach in 15-25 knot winds. The clouds are bringing some strong squirts and we've had a couple of rain bursts, too. In fact, before this morning, that's the only water we've had on deck since the start of the race! And it was fresh to boot!!! Hard to imagine, really, when you think about the waters we sail... Anyway, we are quite comfortable with the staysail out and full main, which we reduce with a reef when she gets a bit tough to manage. I sense things might change as we head into the stronger conditions being experienced further up the track."

"Gotta go - need to sort out some radio frequencies in prep for tonight."

We are delighted to see then, that stomachs rule. As we all sleep in warm, non-rolling beds and take a warm shower, we can only imagine just how nice these culinary delights must be when you're tired and cold. Love your racing guys - seems you're doing well in both events!!!

Note to self - check how our "Cruisers" are doing with their food, aboard the 51st Project...

George Shaw and Robyn Brooke have kept The Secretary moving along well (after George's small transgression on the second night). Pic © Steb Fisher.

 

To see where the fleet are located after the latest sked, please go HERE.

 

 

By John Curnow

 

 

ORCV Melbourne to Vanuatu (M2V)

Fountain of knowledge.

As at 5amEST on Friday July 9, the new race leader, TevakeII, was 155nm East of Port Macquarie on the NSW Mid-North coast doing about 8.5knots and heading 038degrees. and having covered around 50% of the 1885nm course.

I got to converse with Graham Radford (TevakeII's designer) again yesteday, who was full of good intel and insights, yet again. Thank you, Graham. "I am very pleased with the progress of Tevake II and the efforts of Angus (Fletcher) and crew. Angus has put a lot of effort into getting the best from the yacht, as shown by the recent addition of a carbon fibre rig", Graham said.

"Turbo is an Adams 11.9, but with a newer keel, which I designed about 15 years ago. The 11.9m was designed in 1979/80 with the first yacht launched in 80. The Adams 12m was designed in 1975/6. Interestingly, Tevake I was an Adams 11.9 too, which started out with a centreboard keel and masthead rig. I modified Tevake with a lifting bulb keel, spade rudder, extended transom and fractional rig. A significant improvement in performance was achieved", he added.

Now Turbo is doing very well and you might even say 'punching above her weight', which I'll use as a segue into results. She leads IRC over The Secretary and Tevake II, but as a mark of her crew's great efforts, she is also leading in the Performance Handicap System. Second in PHS is The Secretary and third is Mirrabooka.

Well done Turbo!

Turbo, then Garisenda, with Samskara closer to shore, head over from Portsea to the turning mark off Shortland Bluff at the start of the 2010 M2V.

 

To see where the fleet are located after the latest sked, please go HERE.

 

 

By John Curnow