Sydney to Hobart 2018: Wild Oats XI celebrates famous win
She’s sports most extraordinary senior citizen — a grand dame once cut in half then put back together in a technological Houdini act which helped deliver Wild Oats XI an extraordinary ninth Sydney to Hobart win on Friday.
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She’s sports most extraordinary senior citizen — a grand dame once cut in half then put back together in a technological Houdini act which helped deliver Wild Oats XI an extraordinary ninth Sydney to Hobart win on Friday.
The result avenged her loss a year ago when a protest over a close call with Comanche was upheld. A time penalty was applied which saw her drop to second place and Comanche declared the winner. The result of the protest clearly still stings.
“It was a day of redemption for us, that’s for sure,’’ skipper Mark Richards said after a traditional dunking on arrival at Constitution Dock.
“After last year’s result it was so disappointing. Today, whether people like it or not, it was Wild Oats’ 10th time over the line first regardless of what anyone says.
“We are just so happy with the result.
“It was an amazing contest all the way to the end.’’
The veteran yacht has fought off the signs of ageing with multiple surgeries, high-tech sails and reinventions and was sailed to victory by a loyal crew of Australian and international guns.
And a yacht Richards and his crew firmly believe is still being guided to success by the man who created her 14 years ago, the late wine maker and businessman Bob Oatley.
“He sent us that wind on the Derwent for sure,’’ said Richards. “To have a boat this old still showing the way is pretty impressive. She is a remarkable machine.”
On a stunning morning finish, Wild Oats raced across the finish line at 8.07am to complete her race in one day, 19 hours, seven minutes and 21 seconds.
Dan Oatley, the grandson of Bob, was handed the helm for the honour of steering Wild Oats across the line for her historic win.
“It was definitely an experience I will hold dear for the rest of my life,’’ Dan Oatley said.
Richards, followed over the line by the Mark Bradford skippered Black Jack, Jim Cooney’s defending champion Comanche and Christian Beck’s InfoTrack.
All finished within 42 minutes of each other with all four supermaxis on the Derwent River at the same time on Friday.
The quartet had rarely been out of each other’s sight the entire 628 nautical mile race,
“I take my hat off to all of the supermaxi boats. They all did an awesome job,’’ he said.
“We all came into the Derwent together and what more could you ask for.
“It’s a very proud day for myself and the whole Wild Oats XI team and the Oatley family
“We’re just so happy to be here.”
The Sydney-based 100-footer has been kept up to speed by constant changes, extensions and modifications.
Wild Oats XI, then a 98-footer, was launched in 2005 and became only the third canting keel yacht in history to claim line honours. She also took the overall victory and set a new race record.
A year later she became just the sixth yacht to claim back-to-back wins after surviving gale force winds and massive seas.
In 2007, Wild Oats continued to rewrite the record books when she became the first yacht in nearly 60 years to claim three successive line honours wins.
A year later she made it four in a row, with her first defeat in 2009 at the hands of Neville Crichton’s 100-footer Alfa Romeo.
A fifth line honours came in 2010 before her second defeat to Investec Loyal in 2011.
She then won in 2012, 2013 and 2014 before a run of bad luck saw her forced to retire with mainsail damage in 2015 and rudder damage in 2016.
A year ago she finished first across the line again before being
penalised into second place for an infringement soon after the start.
This saw Comanche declared the official victor and race record holder.
WILD OATS XI’S LINE HONOURS WINS
2018 - 1d19h7m21s
2014 - 2d2h3m26s
2013 - 2d6h7m27s
2012 - 1d18h23m12s
2010 - 2d7h37m20s
2008 – 1d20h34m14s
2007 – 1d21h24m32s
2006 – 2d8h52m33s
2005 – 1d18h40m10s
Wild Oats X1 set a race record in 2005 and 2012.
Wild Oats X1 won the race overall in 2005 and 2010.
In 2016 and 2017 she retired with race damage.
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Originally published as Sydney to Hobart 2018: Wild Oats XI celebrates famous win
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