Yachts locked in tactical battle

Press, 19 December 1985, Page 52

Yachts locked in tactical battle

NZPA staff correspondent Sydney

New Zealand’s yachts were last night locked in what promises to be a 24hour battle of tactics, skill and luck, as they claw their way up and down the New South Wales coast in the vital third race of the Southern Cross

Cup. The conditions are light, and forecast to get lighter, and it won’t be until this afternoon that tlfe New

Zealanders can look forward to the sort of rough weather they have shown they excel in for their defence of the cup they won two years ago. It’s the sort of weather the highly-fancied British team has shown it is best in, and the two New Zealand teams will be hoping that either the forecasters have got it wrong, or they find the winds the others miss.

The 180-nautical mile race with its triple points

began yesterday afternoon in very light winds, wafting around 8-10 knots inside Sydney Harbour, and the 35boat fleet had its work cut out for it until the yachts got out through the heads and into a 15-knot northeasterly. The Australian Farr 43footer Drake’s Prayer picked up the breeze first and skipped off to a threeminute lead, followed by the twoi newer New Zealand Farr 43s Switchblade and Thri&derbird.

The only consolation for the New Zealand boats was that the British failed to get the best of the start, with only Panda showing early, but there is a long way to go for the other two, Cifraline 3 and Highland Fling, to make amends. At the late evening radio call, Switchblade and Thunderbird were locked together behind Drake’s Prayer, a fellow Australian boat Marloo 11, and the Farr 40 Paladin from New South Wales. «

Well back in the fleet were Bam Storm, Exador, Mad Max and Swuzzlebubble, all racing in a bunch seven groups back and officially all equal fourteenth on the water. The organisers of the AWA Southern Cross picked a two-islands course that takes the fleet 45 nautical miles south of Sydney to Flinders Islet, then north for 90 miles past Sydney to Bird Islet off Newcastle, before turning south again for the 45-mile run home.