L2H race leaders break away from the fleet

9:43 PM Sat 27 Dec 2008 GMT
A race record may be off the cards but a game of cat and mouse for line honors glory has heated up in the 2008 Clive Peeters' Launceston to Hobart Yacht Race overnight.

A leader pack has broken away from the fleet with five leading yachts almost inseparable, situated within three nautical miles of each other.

Line honors favorite Crotty Legal and Dental, which owners Garry Smith and Jeff White tipped would complete the 280 nautical mile race in 30 hours, leads the fleet.

The 45-footer was just one nautical mile ahead of sports-boat Tas Marine Construction at 6am, positioned abeam of Long Point about 10 nautical miles north of Cape Lodi.

Tas Marine Construction, skippered by Rob Gourlay, mounted a challenge from off-shore, working big angles while powered by spinnaker to gain more than two nautical miles on Crotty Legal and Dental over night, securing second place.

Port Cygnet Sailing Club's Redback skippered by David O'Neill held firm, sticking close to shore to hold third position.

Launceston challenger Haphazard, skippered by Nick Edmunds was neck and neck with Sydney 38 Asylum, skippered by the one of two female skippers in the fleet, Dianne Barkas.

Race director Peter Geeves said the tight race conditions would spur competitors on, fuelling a sailing dual down the coast.

'It's great to see a tight pack forming at the front of the fleet with a range of yachts performing well in this group,'' Geeves said.

'The yachts have covered more than half the course so the tight pack will make for good close racing all the way to the finish.

'There's nothing like being able to see your competition in front of you to spur you on and get the very best out of your boat.''

Frank Chatterton's Kamehameha is the best of the 30 footers, with a massive seven mile lead over second 30-footer Beach Inspector.

Yachts fell off the pace overnight, averaging 7 knots boat speed, compared to 11 knots in the first 8-hours since the start at 2pm yesterday as the north-west breeze eased to about 15 knots.

Ron Bugg's Bugg Bear suffered at the hands of the weakened breeze, dropping off the pace and falling about 35 miles behind race leaders.

The handicap charge is a small boat race with Signrite Twice Five, Kaiulani and Kamehameha ranked one, two and three on PHS.

The race for IRC is tight with only nine minutes separating leader Archie and second place Asylum, Creese Property is third.

Geeves said Roy and Dianne Barks' Asylum was worth watching, with the experienced crew's knowledge of the coast expected to pay dividends.

Competitors are tipped to have an increasingly fast run home, with north-west winds tipped to build over coming days, increasing up to 30 knots.

by Danielle McKay

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