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Patriot Wins Ocean Racing Club of Victoria’s Melbourne to Devonport Yacht Race

Key points:

• Patriot, skippered by Jason Close, won the Ocean Racing Club of Victoria's 195 nautical mile Melbourne to Devonport Yacht Race for the Rudder Cup in the challenging race.
• Ginan, owned by Nigel Jones and Cam McKenzie, finished in second place, with a good tactical performance.
• Joker X2, owned by Grant Chipperfield and Peter Downdey, won the Double-Handed division of the race.

Read more at www.sail-world.com

www.sail-world.com • Di Pearson/ORCV media

Patriot pulls out all stops to win Rudder Cup

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3 December 2023

CONGRATULATIONS Patrick70119 !!! CONGRATULAZIONI Sax747 !! CONGRATULAZIONI AL53_SSIta !

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A month has passed since Sailonline had the pleasure of partnering the Ocean Racing Club of Victoria , by way of hosting a virtual Melbourne to Devonport “Rudder Cup” Race 2023 in parallel with the in-real-life event. The Rudder Cup is Australia's oldest ocean race and the 5th oldest organised ocean yacht race in the world, pre-dating The Fastnet by nearly 20 years and the Sydney Hobart by nearly 40 years, and 2023 was the 10th year SOLers raced the race online. This year, Beneteau's redoubtable First 40 was the online boat of choice. Redoubtable indeed, as of the 97 First 40's that presented on the line off Melbourne, 78 completed the c 200nm crossing to Devonport within the time limit with the fastest racers getting across in less than 30 hours. Excellent going and on this occasion the most excellent go-er was a South African. Bakgat, Patrick70119!

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J/133 Patriot pulls out all stops to win Melbourne to Devonport Rudder Cup

From orcv.org.au

Patriot, Jason Close’s J/133 has won the Ocean Racing Club of Victoria’s (ORCV) 195 nautical mile Melbourne to Devonport Yacht Race for the Rudder Cup in which ’J’ boats were successful across the board.

The 195 nautical mile race, which started off Queenscliff at the mouth of Bass Strait on Friday night at 6 p.m, provided tactical and navigation challenges for all.

Close agreed: “It was a challenging race mentally and tactically. The start was fine, but we fell into a hole around Wilsons Promontory for around four hours and had to battle from there. “We didn’t fully stop, but waiting for the breeze to fill in from the east was hard… There were lots of transition zones, especially leading into Devonport, with light patches thrown it. We sailed well though and we all enjoyed it. We have a good crew of dinghy sailors who kept their heads out of the boat.”

Close acknowledged, “This is the first time we’ve won the Rudder Cup – we’ve finished runner-up a couple of times. It was our qualifier for the Sydney Hobart, so a good result going to that.”

To finish, he said, “I’d like to thank the ORCV and their volunteers. They’re a great organisation that works hard to put on a great event. They also do a lot to promote sailing, which I am also passionate about. They just won the Sports Promotion award (Australian Sailing Awards) again.”

“We’re pretty happy the way we went and had a good crew, said Jones, runner-up in the 2022 Westcoaster race. “Unfortunately we had a little incident on the start line with Patriot, which cost us. It was our fault, we take responsibility,” Jones said.

Explaining their tactics, he shared, “We take time to study the weather and tracking. We followed what the tracker said and made full use of the race course, chasing wind angles etc, so we’re happy with how we tactically sailed the race.

“We did the Sydney Gold Coast Race in July, which was also busy with sail changes – the Rudder Cup was a mini version of that. You had to put in the hard work to achieve.

“We used the Code Zero, jib top, staysail and No 2 jib, plus three spinnakers. We used them all! We have an extensive wardrobe for small boat because we’re keen to experiment with sails,” said Jones, whose boat will continue the season with ORCV races, including defending their 2022 Sprint Series title.

A second J/133, Joker X2, owned by Grant Chipperfield and Peter Downdey, won the Double-Handed division. They were uncontactable for comment as they were sailing back to Melbourne.

On arrival Devonport, competitors from the fleet once again enjoyed the hospitality Mersey Yacht Club, which also hosted the prizegiving.

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Melbourne to Devonport “Rudder Cup” (ORCV)

3 November, 2023 @ 11:00 PM

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Race record predicted for Melbourne to Devonport "Rudder Cup" Yacht Race

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Tevake II. Pic - Steb Fisher

Melbourne to Hobart and Devonport yachts ready to race

Yachts will set sail from Portsea on the afternoon of December 27 to Hobart and Devonport.

Preparation for long distance ocean races, particularly those that start in Bass Strait, is onerous in any year. In 2021, with multiple lockdowns and travel restrictions, it has been nearly impossible for many. However, some have managed to maintain and prepare their yachts and crew and eager to meet the challenges of sailing in Bass Strait.

Race officials are closely watching two high pressure systems that are set to dominate the early part of the races.  As the fleets enter Bass Strait, the predicted wind will be strengthening to 22 knots and then as the sun sets the fleet will be experiencing light winds.  Skippers and tacticians’ skills will be tested as the route plotted at this point will determine where you finish.

Brian Pattinson is a veteran of ocean racing, having completed multiple Tasmanian Melbourne to Osaka, Melbourne to Vanuatu and Melbourne to Mackay races.  He is in the early days sailing his new boat Gusto Solo, a Don Jones 42, and will be sailing double handed with his son Tristan. 

Pattinson said, “It is a very exciting boat nothing like the previous two Gusto’s. We haven’t had much sailing time together between COVID restrictions and, when we have tried to hit the water, we have had some big blows that have stopped us.” He continued, “Unlike the other two boats it is lighter and comes up to speed more quickly.”

It is hard to see Pattinson and son Tristan not being the first yacht across the line in Devonport.  If they have a challenger, Alex Toomey in his Sayer 12 Ryujin would be it.  Toomey is sailing Ryujin fully crewed, but this boat was designed to be sailed short-handed on long ocean races and in the light air can be ‘driven’ with minimal crew movement.

Weather for the Hobart race is a little harder to predict this far out from the start. Naturally, they will benefit from the good starting conditions and, as they track closer to King Island, the prediction is that the wind will stay in for them longer.

Race Director Jeremy Walton even quipped, “Maybe this is the year to go to the west of King Island,’ a course that has been pursued in the past without good results.

“At the moment, the weather on the North part of the West Coast shows some good promise but with a lighter ‘hole’ towards the middle of the Coast around Strahan. Always a very tactical race the lighter breezes will challenge the crews, questions of whether to stay in and ‘rock hop’ the coast versus head out and hope for the change to push you back across to make the turn at Maatsuyker Island.”

Looking at the Line Honours possibilities, the Double Handed yacht, Alex-Team Macadie, a Jones/Hart 14 is one of the front runners. Jock Macadie is not just an experienced double handed sailor but indeed one of its pioneers and greatest proponents. For many years, his crew was his son and the two were a formidable force in every race they entered.Jock’s son has been in the USA for some years now and a new crew was not always easy to find.

Lord Jiminy, an Open 40 which is sailing shorthanded as ‘Four crew plus Auto Helm’, will be quick and dangerous. Skipper Guillaume Leroux is a wily competitor, and nobody can afford to let them out of their sight.

As much a sentimental favourite as beautifully sailed by an efficient team is Tevake ll. Both Tevake l and Tevake ll were fixtures of the ocean racing and club racing scene for decades.  Fletcher was the Commodore of the ORCV from 2004 – 2006 and was Ocean Racer of the Year in 2020.  Unfortunately, we lost Angus early in the year. Fletcher’s wife Holly has always been a fixture of the essential ‘ground crew’ supporting Tevake and she has supported this tight knot crew to continue in Angus’s memory.

Skipper Paul Neilson said, “It’s weird to be sailing without him. We now know how much paperwork is involved in Ocean Racing.  We have been so well supported by Holly.  She has had new rigging put in. She wants the boat raced and campaigned properly.

“We will be racing in Angus’ honour but it’s never going to be the same. We don’t really like the light weather that’s showing.  We would prefer the heavy stuff, but we will be giving it everything.”

No matter who is first across the line, all crews are grateful to have the opportunity once again to do what they love – ocean sail.

By ORCV media

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