Sydney to Hobart yacht race: Two words sailors say after finishing, race preview, favourites, history
It’s tough, rough and at times revolting. So why do people from all walks and stages of life return time and time again to contest the famous Sydney to Hobart yacht race?
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They are perhaps the two most heard words every year at the end of a Sydney to Hobart. Never again.
Two words uttered by shell shocked sailors arriving in Hobart after numerous days at sea, crews weak with fatigue, others barely able to stand thanks to debilitating bouts of sea sickness.
A heartfelt sentiment expressed by the battered and bruised, those with stories of frightening conditions and terrifying storms, of sleepless nights and bruising days.
Two words, a few hours later, completely forgotten as competitors from all walks of life share stories of the good, bad and downright ugly of the famous ocean race along with a special camaraderie and sense of satisfaction - usually with a rum and cola in hand.
The Sydney to Hobart is a famous - often infamous - world recognised Australian sporting event which attracts the elite of sailing along with everyday people with a love of the sea and a desire to test their limits.
“Despite saying I wouldn’t do it again last year, here I am,” said solo round the world sailor Jessica Watson, back for her fourth race aboard Oroton Drumbeat.
“It’s irresistible. And it never seems as bad as it was afterwards.”
It’s a journey stepped in history with incredible stories of violent storms, deadly races, enthralling battles and as in 2023, extraordinarily close finishes.
“I love the start and the finish but the middle of the race, no,’’ said LawConnect winner Christian Beck, who describes himself as a passenger in the race, leaving the steering and sailing decision to a team of pro sailors.
“It’s hard work to do nothing, very hard work.
“Hard work to sit there as ballast and do nothing for 20 hours, or sleeping on top of a sail bag because all the bunks are filled.
“But the start is special. So is the finish.”
Part of the allure of the race is it is one of the few sporting events where a lawyer can compete side-by-side with a landscaper, a taxation officer with a teacher and a salesman or woman with a sail maker.
“What else would I do between Christmas and New Year,” the late America’s Cup campaigner and famous ocean race Syd Fischer would say when asked why he was still competing late into his 80s.
Katwinchar co skipper Michael Spies, one of the competitors in the two-handed division in the oldest yacht, simply can’t help himself. He has to return to the sea.
“It’s a corny line, it’s not about the boat, it’s the people,” said the 45 year race veteran heading south in a 32-foot ketch built in 1904 and lovingly restored by Maritimo boss Bill Barry-Cotter after being rediscovered in a dilapidated state some years ago.
“They become a part of your life.
“This is like a ritual for me. I got two telegrams from my family when I arrived after doing my first race when I was 16 saying how proud they were. It just got into my blood.”
The Sydney to Hobart celebrates its 79th edition in 2024 with international numbers down but one of the most interesting and colours fleets in recent years.
There are four super maxis in the defending champion LawConnect, former winner and race record holder Master Lock Comanche, Wild Thing 100 and the new cruiser Maritimo 100 which Barry-Cotter will race on this year.
The largest fleet of double handers adds interest with 23 set to be on the starting line in one of the most exciting divisions of the Sydney to Hobart and where two person crews have the opportunity to outperform the rocks stars of world sailing on the supermaxis in the race for the overall victory.
Last year Sydney skipper Rupert Henry’s yacht Mistral was sixth overall on corrected time in a sign the two-handers could be a real threat in the Sydney to Hobart if not this year, sooner rather than later.
“It can win, for sure. That’s our goal,” Henry said after winning the two-handed division last year.
Sean Langman’s entry Kismet, built in 1951, is the second oldest in the fleet with Wendy Tuck and Meg Niblett one of three all female crew in the double handed division.
The race for the line honours win has extra spice in 2024 after Beck’s LawConnect beat Comanche, under a different team than this year, by less than a minute after 628 nautical miles of racing.
Beck famously said he always found his super maxi did better when he was asleep, leaving the running of the boat to a team of highly professional sailors including America’s Cup champions, Olympians and round the world racers
“The less I do the better the boat goes,’’ Beck said.
Working together to thwart Beck and his team winning a second consecutive race is multiple Sydney to Hobart overall winner Matt Allen and world Etchells champion James Mayo.
The pair have teamed as co skippers of the record-breaking Master Lock Comanche.
Alan is returning after a short break from the race while Mayo last competed more than 30 years ago aboard Sovereign when the yacht took the line honours and overall double,
“It’s such an iconic boat. It’s such an iconic race. To give it another run is just a terrific feeling,” Allen said.
This year’s event also has plenty of sub plots.
While his father Simon has the honour of firing the starting canon, third generation Love & War skipper Philip Kurts will be racing on the family glamour which has won the race overall on three occasions
Other previous winners of the prestigious Tattersall Cup include defending champion Alive, Centennial 7 (previously Celestial) and Unicoin, which won as Assassin.
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Originally published as Sydney to Hobart yacht race: Two words sailors say after finishing, race preview, favourites, history
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