Racing kicked off at the 38th edition of Airlie Beach Race Week, with organisers taking advantage of favourable conditions to run the Double Cones race. A mass start off two lines on Pioneer Bay sent the fleet out on courses of 27 to 30 nautical miles through the Whitsundays, taking in Double Cone Island and a variety of marks depending on division.
Ray Roberts' Botin 40, Team Hollywood (NSW), won IRC Division 1 by nearly 15 minutes from Grant Pocklington's Bakewell-White 40, Anarchy (NSW). New Zealander Brian Petersen skippered his TP52, V5, into third.
Division 2 was a tighter affair. Paul Heyes' Thompson 920, Road Runner (NSW), edged out Kate Leeson and Garth Riley's Adams 10, Wazza Red Boat, by little more than a minute. Bruce McCraken's Beneteau First 45, Ikon, rounded out the podium.
Heyes, a Lake Macquarie sailor, put the result down to hard-won experience. "It was just another fun day at Airlie Beach," he said. "It's like we're locals now because we've raced here so many times. Using our experience from years gone by, we put the boat in the right spots, from previous mistakes. We've learned what to do, it's one of the benefits of getting old!"
He added that conditions were good throughout. "It was enjoyable race, we had between 12 and 18 knots. Nice to start the week this way. We're pacing ourselves with Dirty Deeds DC (Daniel Taylor). We had a good race against them today."
In Multihull Division 0, Joel Berg's Extreme 40, Hooligan (Qld), pipped Paul Mitchell's local Extreme 40, Ullman Sails, by just 23 seconds. Mike Peberdys' Irens Trimaran, Rare Groove (Qld), filled out the podium.
Multihull Division 1 went to Stuart Cox's Stealth 12.7, Cut Snake (Qld), from Troy Forrest's Grainger Raku 48, Mint. Steven Humphris' Stealth 13.2c, Stealth Mode (Qld), completed the top three.
Cox was modest about the win. "We were just lucky! It was a nice run down to the Cones, we gybed, went across the bottom and had a nice upwind leg. We saw 15 to 18 knots. We didn't make any mistakes, didn't break anything, so all went well."
In Multihull Division 3, Peter Hackett's Corsair F28r, Intrigue (Qld), took the win. Less than a minute back was G'Nome, the Grainger 075 skippered by ABRW Chairman and WSC President Terry Archer, who is also a new Life Member of the Club. Third went to Darren Simmonds' Corsair 28r, Trojan, from the host club.
In the Trailable and Sports Boat Division 1, the Bethwaite 89er Don't Panic, now owned by David Davenport and Ken Stevenson (WA), took the win with designer Julian Bethwaite himself aboard. Jesse Frisch's Sports 8 Xx, Kiss, finished second, with John Rae and Gary Smith's 79er, Vivace (Qld), in third.
Davenport said of having Bethwaite on board: "We love the boat and it's lovely to have Julian here with us for the day."
Stevenson skippered Don't Panic to the line and had a clear eye on the competition. "Kiss is going to be tough competition for us. We beat him by three minutes in the end. I repeat, he will be tough to beat. We loved the course, Double Cones, great racing for us from Western Australia. The water was flat till about 3 miles in and it got windier and windier and we surfed down a few waves. Great fun."
Principal Race Officer Kevin Wilson had read the day well from the outset. "The forecast is pretty perfect for a round the Cones race, averaging 15-18 knots, with a bit of rain at some stage." It proved accurate, with overcast skies giving way to sunshine after 12.30pm.
With the Brisbane 2032 Olympic Games six years away and some sailing competition scheduled for the Whitsundays, there was plenty of talk among the fleet before racing. The Games will also mark the return of Paralympic Sailing, absent since 2016.
Racing continues tomorrow, starting on Pioneer Bay at 10am.
