Queenslander sets new Melbourne to Hobart yacht race record on his ‘summer holiday’

A Queenslander builder has broken the Melbourne to Hobart yacht race record on his “summer cruise” despite missing the start. Here’s how it happened.

Skipper of Rushour Drew Carruthers after the Melbourne to Hobart Yacht Race on Sunday 29th December 2024. Picture: Linda Higginson

A Queenslander on a “summer cruise” has inadvertently shattered the race record for the Melbourne to Hobart yacht race.

Rushour, skippered by Drew Carruthers, a 62-year-old builder from Toowoomba, took line honours and set a new multi-hull record of 1 day, 13 hours, 31 minutes and 50 seconds.

That was nearly 30 hours ahead of the previous record, and Carruthers was stunned by the unexpected domination.

“We came down here just to go for a sail, and we thought we’d do the Melbourne to Hobart as part of our summer cruise,” Carruthers said.

“The goal of this whole trip was really just to do a lap of Tasmania.

“Sailing around the bottom of Tasmania is very enjoyable, its beautiful big swells, it’s not really about the sailing, it is a wild and unique place.”

Skipper of Rushour Drew Carruthers after the Melbourne to Hobart Yacht Race. Picture: Linda Higginson

Carruthers’ race time could have been faster, had Rushour, from the Multihull Yacht Club of Queensland, not missed the start.

“We thought they were going to delay the start because they were changing the start line, so we were going in the way direction when the gun went,” Carruthers said.

“We saw off these boats charging toward the start so we thought we’d better get going.

“It took us a while to get past the fleet but we had a nice reach right across to the coast of

Rushour clears the traffic on their way to Hobart. Picture: Michael Currie

Tassie and pushed the boat all the way.”

Carruthers was happy just to take part in the Wild West Coaster, let alone set the standard for others to chase.

“It’s great to break the record,” he said.

“We are not really record-chasers, though we broke it by about a day.

“We are more like cruisers who like sailing around.”

Tasmania’s West Coast gave Rushour a rhumbline reach.

“We had really nice big rollers [waves] and plenty of pressure, I think the 100 nautical miles from the top of Tassie to Bruny Island wasn’t long, it only took us about five or six hours.”

With a top speed of 27 knots, Carruthers felt the record was always in play.

“Right from the start, as long as we didn’t tip the boat over or do something stupid, like break it, we were always going to break a record,” he said.

“We pushed for the first five hours but then we backed it off because we were not sure about this Southern Ocean and heavy wind.

“The wind has got a lot more pressure here than it does up in Queensland.

“So you’ve got to be a bit more careful, there’s plenty of big waves floating around out there.”

Originally published as Queenslander sets new Melbourne to Hobart yacht race record on his ‘summer holiday’