Two start lines for next Sydney-Hobart

Press, 22 October 1986, Page 72

Two start lines for next Sydney-Hobart

NZPA staff correspondent Sydney The 1986 Sydney to Hobart yacht race will feature a big change from previous years with the use of two start lines. The race organiser, the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, said yesterday that it would make the change because of what happened at the start of the race last year. Because of the congested start line, there were incidents involving Drake’s Prayer, Ragamuffin, Sagacious and other yachts, resulting in controversial protests. A last-minute protest by the second-placegetter, Sagacious, cost Drake’s Prayer first place, and left the race without a winner.

gamuffin at the start of the race, and the skipper, Peter Kurts, at one stage threatened to take the matter to court. The race director, Mr Gordon Marshall, said the fleet would now be divided when, it left Sydney Harbour, on Boxing Day. The sailing committee had examined many alternatives to the single start line before settling on the twin-line plan, he said. The fleet for the .1986 race was expected to be a record for a non-Southern Cross Cup year, with a large contingent of maxis heading the list, but there have been no New Zealand entries to date. Ten New Zealand yachts, including the six in the two Southern Cross Cup teams, entered last year’s race.

Drake’s Prayer was penalised for an incident involving contact with Ra-