Geoff Herd looks as if there is a big load on his shoulders. He is about to begin the skippers’ briefing for leg 2 of the 2019 Two-handed Round NZ Race in the picturesque Mangonui Yacht Club, and is acutely aware of media hype regarding Cyclone Oma hovering in the North Tasman Sea. Like all the crews and followers gathered here, he has been following various weather models closely during recent days, and has just handed out copies of the Met Office’s latest 3 day MSL maps for scrutiny. In his capacity as race officer of SSANZ (Short-handed Sailing Association of NZ), Geoff knows only too well how much is riding on the successful outcome of this event.
“As long as you’re all south of Manukau by Thursday, the official position is that you should be well clear of Oma,” he states. “It’s the mess that might be in store near Puysegur that actually concerns me more.” Murmurings and nods around the room confirm that everyone present has seen the purple-red wind-maps denoting storm-force winds which may be raking the lower West Coast within the next four days.
The massive amount of preparation that race officials have poured into this event during the past six months is evidenced in the fat folder lying on the table as Geoff speaks. Considering the legal ramifications of any race-related tragedy which could be attributed to organisational inadequacies, the paperwork has been enormous. The risk analysis even includes seemingly trivial scenarios such as a race official falling overboard from a committee vessel. “We have to dot all i’s and cross all t’s,” comments Geoff as he gathers his folder while the crews disperse for final preparations. By ‘we’ he is referring particularly to Jon Henry and Steve Ashley, along with other committee members who have been planning this event for months.
The spirit of camaraderie is clearly stronger than the rivalry as the crews return to their vessels with parting hand-shakes and words of encouragement. Within minutes, Josh Tucker and Damon Jolliffe aboard Motorboat II are rummaging in lockers for a strip of velcro to send to their arch-rivals aboard Titanium where Shane Bellingham also has a huge amount of preparation riding on this race. His crew Chris Skinner – a veteran of the 2012 Round NZ – is recovering from a seriously broken neck, so these two have plenty on their minds. Around the harbour, joviality becomes pensiveness, as all crews make final preparations for a leg which will see them covering more miles than a Tasman crossing – doubling Cape Reinga and Puysegur and sailing the entire exposed West Coast from a subtropical 33°S to Stewart Island’s 47°S, deep in the Roaring Forties.
For the seven yachts in this fleet, there are mixed expectations. Aboard the 38 ft Farr Arbitare, Dave Ormandy signed on to crew for owner Murray Hartley, and will be competing against his son Ken who has entered his so-called ‘family cruiser’ Gale Force in the race. Ken Ormandy with his crew Sam Tucker won the 2018 SSANZ Triple series, and has been down-playing the potential speed of his Elliott 1050 with its race-competitive modifications. There is family rivalry too between the pair of Tucker brothers on the two 35 ft Elliotts, although this will be Sam and Ken’s first long distance race aboard Gale Force.
In contention for a strong handicap placing is another Farr 38, Coppelia, with Rob Croft and Sally Garrett having their second crack at this gruelling race. Rob and Sally have also raced Coppelia together in two Round North Island events and nine Coastal Classics, but definitely rate their 2012 Round NZ as their toughest challenge so far.
Nigel Garland’s 11 metre Katana certainly looks the part in this race, with her twin rudders and sport-boat styling. Under her former name Sunfast 3600, she scooped a heap of trophies in the 2017 Round North Island race in the hands of the current wily Motorboat II team, and Nigel has since bought her with the solo-Tasman race in mind. His crew Corey McLennan competed in the solo Tasman in 2014 at age 19, and is by far the youngest competitor in this fleet.
Krakatoa II is the biggest boat in the fleet, a French designed water-ballasted Pogo with a classic Open 40 wedge shape and twin rudders. Matthew Flynn has raced and cruised all around the world for some fifty years, and has recruited 35 year-old Scott Wilson with his wealth of big-name racing experience. However Matthew will be handing over the reins to Logan Fraser for the two east coast legs while he returns to his university commitments, lecturing in Maritime law.
Many pundits have their money on the thoroughbred Thompson 38 Titanium – an impressive sportboat-styled silver beast with an enormous 3 metre prod. However Titanium was pipped to the post by Motorboat II for first leg double honours, and the second leg will see the rivalry between these two yachts ramped up. Wooden hulled Motorboat II has undergone some radical transformations since she was first launched as the Elliott 10.5 The Butcher thirty years ago. She had already been significantly altered (‘turbo’ed in Josh’s words) when Damon and Josh bought her as Squealer only a few months ago, with a carbon mast and torpedo bulb, and the pair had immediately set to work with further upgrades including a state-of-the-art sail wardrobe.
The rapidly growing interest in this race is evidenced by the thousands of hits on the SSANZ tracker and social media sites as the fleet restarts and continues north from Mangonui around Cape Reinga, sailing straight into a stationary high dominating the west coast. Titanium and Motorboat II sail wide of the rhumb, well into the Tasman, opening up a significant lead. By the time the yachts have closed the South Island, it becomes clear that the sea-state is taking its toll. Huge Southern Ocean swells coupled with unpredictable wind-strengths are creating massive shock loads on rigging and sails. Before long Gale Force is forced to revert to a cruising main after her square-top self-destructs, and Krakatoa II diverts into the shelter of Jackson’s Bay to repair several batten cars. Meanwhile Katana reports that she will be completing the leg under trysail after most of her sail-track has carried away. Out in front, Titanium’s 4 ton breaking-strain halliard clips begin snapping in the violent motion ahead of an approaching front off Cape Puysegur, and a block failure aloft leaves an open slot in the mast. Twenty miles behind her, Motorboat II sends a devastating report – her 3 metre carbon prod has snapped and is threatening to bash a hole in her wooden bow. The urgency of this damage shows up almost immediately on the tracker, as Damon and Josh put the helm down, heading straight into Dusky Sound to clear away the mess.
At this stage of the race, the nail-biting for arm-chair race-followers has stepped up another notch. While Titanium manages to round Cape Puysegur ahead of the 40 knot cold front, securing an overall race lead which will be difficult to challenge, it is a different story for Motorboat II. Sailing out of Dusky Sound straight into a turmoil of white water, a series of near-knockdowns forces the pair to suspend racing and dive for cover in Chalky Inlet as battery acid swills across the cabin-sole. Further back, the rest of the fleet have their own battles. Certainly Katana and Gale Force are happy to already be under reduced canvas. Aboard Arbitare an unexpected drama is developing, although nobody is yet aware of its potential seriousness. Murray Hartley’s left leg has begun to swell, but the veteran sailors are too busy to notice. It now appears that Coppelia is the only yacht to have come through this leg unscathed.
Stewart Island is well primed to receive the tired but exhilarated crews as each yacht charges through Fouveaux Strait and rounds up into Oban’s Halfmoon Bay, thanks to local hosts Gwen and Gary Neave and their committee of volunteers. Around NZ and beyond, even late into the night, viewers tune into the familiar sound of photographer/commentator Deb Williams’ voice in the SSANZ live stream for each finish. It is to be a memorable three day stopover full of Stewart Island hospitality and a well-earned rest for the crews who have already sailed a distance equivalent to a trans-Tasman. Between sleeping, boat repairs and social activities, most crews take the opportunity to explore Paterson Inlet despite the freezing conditions. Some become involved with the Oban schoolchildren, showing them aboard and helping in a ‘cardboard boatbuilding’ activity.
Meanwhile, Murray Hartley’s hugely swollen leg has become a cause for concern. On SSANZ Doctor Dave’s advice he is admitted to Invercargill hospital for antibiotic IV treatment. Meanwhile the story behind Motorboat II’s replacement prod has become a well-covered news item. Social media has played a big part in this epic tale, and a video has gone viral, showing how Bart and Luke at NZ Rigging had responded instantly, working through a Sunday to build a new 3 metre prod. Back-up supporter ‘AJ’ Reid had promptly jumped onto a Queenstown-bound flight (the only plane capable of carrying such a long piece of luggage south) and then hired the only vehicle with a roof-rack for the drive to the Strait ferry at Bluff – crossing just in time to greet Motorboat II at the finish line.
Deb Williams’ live podcast of the third leg start announces to everyone’s relief that Arbitare’s skipper has just been released from hospital, and will be able to play catch-up to the other yachts within a few hours. And catch-up it becomes, with Arbitare picking up a good breeze to make up much of the deficit while the fleet languishes in fickle winds as they exit Fouveaux Strait. The anticyclone that had frustrated crews on the west coast leg has now drifted eastward, and turned this leg into another guessing game. Titanium and Coppelia opt to hug the coast while the others fan out offshore. This time it is Motorboat II and Gale Force that pick the best shifts, sailing into Napier four nights later at the front of the fleet. Despite the darkness Ray Hudson and Geoff Herd are – as always – at the ready to leap aboard and help with the tidy-up as each yacht enters Ahuriri channel.
The Napier Sailing Club has laid out a welcome mat for all fourteen crew-members, with Commodore Paul ‘Red’ Redman pulling out all stops to receive and berth the yachts as close as possible to facilities. Several key SSANZ committee members have arrived in advance (including chairman Neil Hilder who is determined to keep the social interaction lively) and the atmosphere among crews is one of exhausted relief to be within striking distance of the Westhaven finish line. Wives and children of several bleary-eyed sailors are there in support too, some having driven through the night to be on time for the finish. A wine-tasting trip and some blowcart racing has been arranged by Vanessa Ashley, although some family-oriented participants opt out in favour of spending time with their eager youngsters.
Sunday’s departure is accompanied by a fair-sized spectator fleet. But despite now being on the home straight, another drama unfolds within two hours of the fresh start. Aboard Krakatoa II Scott Wilson has banged his head, and Logan Fraser has suspended racing until his concussion has been properly assessed. Geoff Herd takes the call and springs into action, contacting the local Coastguard as the club scrambles to re-launch its big RIB and send a couple of the SSANZ team out to assist. A doctor also takes a bone-jarring 45 minute Coastguard ride out into Hawke Bay and quickly confirms the need for hospitalisation and assessment. Logan is philosophical as he sees any chance of an overall place dissolve away. Like every participant in this marathon race, crew safety is number one, and he hovers near his phone during the two hour wait for tide at the heads after Scott is transferred to safety.
Meanwhile for the thousands of supporters following this final leg, the regular tracker updates are punctuating many waking hours. News next day that Scott has been cleared for a restart is great news for all. Meanwhile East Cape and the Bay of Plenty are delivering another game of snakes and ladders for the fleet. With the 11 hour overall lead that Titanium has accrued by evading the Puysegur gale, Shane and Chris have only to avoid damage to cruise home to overall victory. With Motorboat II snapping at their heels into the Hauraki Gulf, and the wind dying completely as they enter Waitemata harbour, Titanium is just in time for the last of the flood tide to carry her over the line off Westhaven, while barely three miles behind them Motorboat II begins drifting backward as the midnight current turns against them. Late night viewers can hear the anguish in Damon’s video post, as the lead that he and Josh have worked so hard to build steadily evaporates while behind them in the Gulf, first Coppelia,then Gale Force and Katana all have sufficient breeze to close the gap to within a few miles before an early morning zephyr clinches Motorboat II’s second place. Such is the nature of yacht racing.
There is a rousing welcome for the two oldest participants aboard Arbitare as they sail in later that day – Murray’s leg still slightly swollen – and an equally big welcome for Krakatoa II a day later.
For each of the participants the past three weeks have been enormously significant. To have simply finished such a gruelling event is a triumph of willpower and skill. Rob Croft, Sally Garrett and Chris Skinner have sailed into history as the first participants ever to successfully complete two of these extreme events. SSANZ already has plans for another Round NZ, perhaps at more frequent intervals.
Geoff Herd has the last word on the subject : “If this had been a fully crewed event there almost certainly would’ve been fewer entries. These short-handed events are becoming far more significant and attainable for 21st century Kiwi sailors.”
Now there’s a challenge for us all.
TEXT: Jon Tucker
PHOTOS : Deb Williams, Barbara Tucker and supplied.
| OVERALL RESULTS: | ||
| PHRF | ELAPSED | |
| 1 Titanium | 1 Titanium | |
| 2 Motorboat II | 2 Motorboat II | |
| 3 Coppelia | 3 Gale Force | |
| 4 Gale Force | 4 Katana | |
| 5 Arbitare | 5 Coppelia | |
| 6 Katana | 6 Arbitare | |
| 7 Krakatoa II | 7 Krakatoa II | |
| Auckland – Mangonui Leg results | ||
| PHRF | ELAPSED | |
| 1 Motorboat II | 1 Motorboat II | |
| 2 Titanium | 2 Titanium | |
| 3 Gale Force | 3 Krakatoa II | |
| Mangonui – Stewart Is. Leg Results | ||
| PHRF | ELAPSED | |
| 1 Titanium | 1 Titanium | |
| 2 Motorboat II | 2 Motorboat II | |
| 3 Coppelia | 3 Krakatoa II | |
| Stewart Is. – Napier Leg Results | ||
| PHRF | ELAPSED | |
| 1 Motorboat II | 1 Motorboat II | |
| 2 Gale Force | 2 Gale Force | |
| 3 Katana | 3 Titanium | |
| Napier – Auckland Leg Results | ||
| PHRF | ELAPSED | |
| 1 Coppelia | 1 Titanium | |
| 2 Arbitare | 2 Motorboat II | |
| 3 Titanium | 3 Coppelia |