Sydney. ‘We were curious because she stood out. It was love at first sight,’ recalled Louise Baxter. ‘The brand is impeccable, no question, and the team is very talented,’ adds Baxter. ‘They’re all very passionate about what they are building.’ Commenting on their sponsorship of the race across the Tasman, Baxter notes: ‘It’s our goal to present Moonen Yachts to the world, to a larger audience. And of course, with Sydney harbour in our backyard and our connection to New Zealand, we’re proud to bring the brand to the South Pacific.’
Great anticipation surrounds this new blue water racing event. ‘A race between these two sailing meccas is incredibly exciting,’ says RPAYC commodore, Michael Lockley, a passionate offshore racer who was quick to commit about competing in the race. ‘The historic rivalry between us will help to draw more sailors from both sides of the Tasman Sea as well as internationally to compete.’ Aaron Young, vice commodore of the RNZYS and chairman of the 150th anniversary organising committee, says he is thrilled with the promising level of interest in the Moonen Yachts Sydney-Auckland Ocean Race. ‘The initial
announcement has generated more than 100 expressions of interest, out of which we already have 10 confirmed entries – eight from Australia and two from New Zealand. ‘The interest we have received also involves a couple of the 100ft super-maxis, which would be outstanding. Once you get one in, the others often pile in as well, and we would all be very keen to see
Above:
despite the Tasman Seaʼs fearsome reputation, a 10-year model by weather- man Roger Badham shows that statistically there is actually a greater
chance of the fleet getting held up by high pressure and fickle winds than encountering storms at that time of year. The cyclone risk is low and Badham reckons that the race is likely to
involve equal amounts of beating,
running and reaching
something like a Wild Oats vs Commanche battle.’
Nick Elliott, race director at the RPAYC, says Auckland and Sydney are two iconic sailing cities and the novelty of all that is happening in 2021 creates an opportunity too good to miss.
‘What we are trying to create is a circuit, which would justify the cost and logistics of committing to a campaign,’ he says.
This would include the 2020 Sydney Hobart Classic with its traditional Boxing Day start, giving the yachts sufficient time to return to Sydney to prepare for the 30 January start of the race to Auckland. Auckland will have a packed calendar of sailing events over the summer, including the America’s Cup, J-Class and superyacht regattas, international classic yacht racing and a number of events around the RNZYS Sesquicentennial celebration. Many visitors would no doubt also take the opportunity to cruise New Zealand waters and could then head back across the Tasman in the Auckland-Southport race in June. This would get Australian yachts back to home waters in time to compete in events like Hamilton Island Race Week before swinging into their domestic summer programme. Conversely, New Zealand
competitors could cross the Tasman in mid-2020, do a campaign including Hamilton Island and the Sydney-Hobart and then race back home in the Sydney-Auckland event. ‘We are trying to create excitement around the opportunity of putting our race in the middle of it all,’ says Elliott, who is hoping the level of interest will translate into 50 to 55
racing entries and a further 20 or so participating in the cruising rally. One of the large racing yachts already committed is Alive, the 22m Reichel-Pugh canting keeler owned by Phillip Turner, which won the 2018 Sydney-Hobart race and scored well again this year with victories in IRC Division O, as well as ORC Division 1. Alive navigator Wouter Verbraak from the Netherlands has been working closely with Elliott and is helping to coordinate shipping options for European yachts wishing to take part in proceedings. He is already in advanced stages of planning with three large yachts from Europe: a Maxi 72, a Southern Wind over 30m and a 24m performance yacht. Other options for shipping yachts across the Tasman in both directions before and after the race are also being investigated. The Moonen Yachts Sydney- Auckland Ocean Race will include a two-handed division, which is expected to draw considerable interest as well. The next Sydney- Hobart will admit a two-handed division for the first time and the combination provides an opportunity for crews to put together a significant summer campaign. Two-handed racing is one of the fastest growing forms of sailing in New Zealand, with events like the Round New Zealand and Round North Island races oversubscribed.
Elliott reports considerable interest in the rally division as well, with as many as a dozen yachts from RPAYC alone showing strong interest in rallying across the Tasman and then returning home via the Bay of Islands and the Pacific islands. ‘We
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