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Irish Offshore Sailor Barry Hurley Reviews A Fourth Sydney–Hobart Performance

30th December 2014
Irish Offshore Sailor Barry Hurley Reviews A Fourth Sydney–Hobart Performance

#rshyr – 11th overall (moving up two places from yesterday's provisional results) Is the best result yet for Irish sailor Barry Hurley in the Sydney Hobart Race. Here, Hurley reviews his performance for Afloat.ie readers

 Well, another Sydney Hobart Race successfully finished. That's my fourth time finishing the race, and the third in a row on Breakthrough now.  

[Read yesterday's Breakthrough race update  here]

On the good side we had a really great race, the boat and sails held up well, and the crew dynamic made for a great atmosphere on board even through the tougher conditions.

Eleventh overall is my best result to date, but I have to admit that seventh in class is slightly disappointing.

It's obvious from the regular position reports when we lost time on the race course, but honestly I'm not sure yet exactly why we lost so much when we did. We did drop down to a slightly smaller kite for a while in the bigger seas, but I wouldn't have expected to lose so much ground. I'm not sure if we were just slow for a while, or we missed a shift, or perhaps we picked up some adverse current. There are certainly some learnings to be taken but there will be plenty time for that.

Over the next few weeks I'll study the tracker logs to figure out exactly what happened. It's somewhat comforting to see that over the last 24hrs of the race we were able to pull back places. The crew really dug deep to push hard in big wind when boats around us were throttling back. Perhaps we shouldn't be disappointed and should be content with a solid overall result against some of the best offshore sailors in the world.

Having just woken up the morning after a late finish last night we've just started to prepare the boat for the return trip. Next week back in Sydney we'll have time to relax sore muscles and review the race properly with all the facts to hand. In the meantime we'll enjoy the atmosphere and New Years celebrations here in Hobart.

It's a fantastic race which is always challenging. Our crew performed brilliantly, and the boat held up well. We all really enjoyed the race and hopefully we'll have an opportunity to come back and try again soon. I'm privileged to be part of such campaigns and to spend so much time offshore with some of my best friends.

We're all extremely proud to fly the flag for Ireland in these events and grateful for all the support from back home.

Breakthrough_irish_sailors_web.jpg

Read all Afloat's Sydney Hobart race updates here in one handy link plus WM Nixon's 2014 Race preview here

Published in Sydney to Hobart
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The Sydney Hobart Yacht Race

The Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race is an annual offshore yacht racing event with an increasingly international exposure attracting super maxi yachts and entries from around tne world. It is hosted by the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, starting in Sydney, New South Wales on Boxing Day and finishing in Hobart, Tasmania. The race distance is approximately 630 nautical miles (1,170 km).

The 2022 Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race starts in Sydney Harbour at 1pm (AEDT) on Monday 26 December.

This is the 77th edition of the Rolex Sydney Hobart. The inaugural race was conducted in 1945 and has run every year since, apart from 2020, which was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

88 boats started the 2021 Rolex Sydney Hobart, with 50 finishing.

The Sydney Hobart Yacht Race - FAQs

The number of Sydney Hobart Yacht Races held by the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia since 1945 is 75

6,257 completed the Sydney Hobart Yacht race, 1036 retired or were disqualified)

About 60,061 sailors have competed in the Sydney Hobart Race between 1945 and 2019

Largest fleets: 371 starters in the 50th race in 1994 (309 finished); 154 starters in 1987 (146 finished); 179 starters in 1985 (145 finished); 151 starters in 1984 (46 finished); 173 started in 1983 (128 finished); 159 started in 1981 (143 finished); 147 started in 1979 (142 finished); 157 started in 2019 (154 finished)

116 in 2004 (59 finished); 117 in 2014 (103 finished); 157 in 2019 (154 finished)

Nine starters in the inaugural Sydney Hobart Yacht Race in 1945

In 2015 and 2017 there were 27, including the 12 Clipper yachts (11 in 2017). In the record entry of 371 yachts in the 50th in 1994, there were 24 internationals

Rani, Captain John Illingworth RN (UK). Design: Barber 35’ cutter. Line and handicap winner

157 starters, 154 finishers (3 retirements)

IRC Overall: Ichi Ban, a TP52 owned by Matt Allen, NSW. Last year’s line honours winner: Comanche, Verdier Yacht Design and VPLP (FRA) owned by Jim Cooney and Samantha Grant, in 1 day 18 hours, 30 minutes, 24 seconds. Just 1hour 58min 32secs separated the five super maxis at the finish 

1 day 9 hours 15 minutes and 24 seconds, set in 2017 by LDV Comanche after Wild Oats XI was penalised one hour in port/starboard incident for a finish time of 1d 9h 48m 50s

The oldest ever sailor was Syd Fischer (88 years, 2015).

As a baby, Raud O'Brien did his first of some six Sydney Hobarts on his parent's Wraith of Odin (sic). As a veteran at three, Raud broke his arm when he fell off the companionway steps whilst feeding biscuits to the crew on watch Sophie Tasker sailed the 1978 race as a four-year-old on her father’s yacht Siska, which was not an official starter due to not meeting requirements of the CYCA. Sophie raced to Hobart in 1979, 1982 and 1983.

Quite a number of teenage boys and girls have sailed with their fathers and mothers, including Tasmanian Ken Gourlay’s 14-year-old son who sailed on Kismet in 1957. A 12-year-old boy, Travis Foley, sailed in the fatal 1998 race aboard Aspect Computing, which won PHS overall.

In 1978, the Brooker family sailed aboard their yacht Touchwood – parents Doug and Val and their children, Peter (13), Jacqueline (10), Kathryne (8) and Donald (6). Since 1999, the CYCA has set an age limit of 18 for competitors

Jane (‘Jenny’) Tate, from Hobart, sailed with her husband Horrie aboard Active in the 1946 Race, as did Dagmar O’Brien with her husband, Dr Brian (‘Mick’) O’Brien aboard Connella. Unfortunately, Connella was forced to retire in Bass Strait, but Active made it to the finish. The Jane Tate Memorial Trophy is presented each year to the first female skipper to finish the race

In 2019, Bill Barry-Cotter brought Katwinchar, built in 1904, back to the start line. She had competed with a previous owner in 1951. It is believed she is the oldest yacht to compete. According to CYCA life member and historian Alan Campbell, more than 31 yachts built before 1938 have competed in the race, including line honours winners Morna/Kurrewa IV (the same boat, renamed) and Astor, which were built in the 1920s.

Bruce Farr/Farr Yacht Design (NZL/USA) – can claim 20 overall wins from 1976 (with Piccolo) up to and including 2015 (with Balance)

Screw Loose (1979) – LOA 9.2m (30ft); Zeus II (1981) LOA 9.2m

TKlinger, NSW (1978) – LOA 8.23m (27ft)

Wild Oats XI (2012) – LOA 30.48m (100ft). Wild Oats XI had previously held the record in 2005 when she was 30m (98ft)

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