We'll be carrying a full review of the Irish in the Rolex Sydney Hobart Race 2023 in due course, but meanwhile, this sunny photo shows that the weather is on the mend down in Tasmania and that Kinsale YC members who came in the top ends of the fleet in both the Two-Handed Division (Cinnamon Girl, Cian McCarthy & Sam Hunt) and Division 3 (Calibre 12, Stephanie Lyons as bowman) naturally got together in Hobart to celebrate participation and success in one very tough race on the other side of the world.

And for now, a Happy and Prosperous New Year to Everyone.

With the Sydney Hobart Race home favourite Alive safely in port in Hobart and looking better by the hour to retain the overall IRC lead and thereby put another feather in navigator/tactician Adrienne Cahalane's sailing hat, Tasmanian sentiment is probably all in favour of the fact that the difficult weather looks set to make one great big divide between the big boats and the little 'uns.

However, with the new day already arrived in the race area, the pace may heat up with it, though as experienced navigator Stan Honey has pointed out, something you have to remember with the RSHR is that sailing south in the Southern hemisphere takes you into colder places quite quickly, making it the complete opposite of the Bermuda Race.

Be that as it may, the two leading TP52s Smuggler and Caro still have 77 and 80 miles respectively to sail, and the feeling is they won't disturb the Alive crew's peace of mind. On down the line, there's still a continuing ding-dong for the Two-handed Division between the two Sunfast 3300s, Kraken and Ireland's Cinnamon Girl, though Kraken has been staying stubbornly two miles ahead, but with 200 miles to sail before her crew can make their number at the Customs House in Hobart where clearing customs involves the ingesting of much celebratory beer, the Cinnamon team of Cian McCarthy and Sam Hunt from Kinsale have time to find extra speed.

Now this is what RSHR veterans think is real customs clearance

The fact is that after the slow motion high drama in the faintest of breezes for the line honours battle between the Super-Maxs Law Connect and Andoo Comanche, most folk observing have had enough excitement for a while. But it's already another day in Hobart, and it will be here in due course soon enough for the morning's re-appraisal of the state of play.

Race Tracker here

Early morning in summer with the sunshine gradually strengthening on the Hobart in Tasmania waterfront, and the Derwent Estuary off it, should be a time for gently wakening into the new day. But Thursday, December 28th 2023 has had bouts of high excitement from the off, with the greatest peak of tension building at the beginning as two closely-matched hundred-foot yachts did their best to stay ahead of the other as they approached the elusive finish line, with the first light tentacles pf the day's new breeze wafting them along, and the whirr and bustle of the large spectator feet around them belying the early time of day.

Back in the approaches to Hobart the previous evening off Cape Raul, John Winning's Andoo Comanche was comfortably ahead with Christian Beck's Law Connect visible astern, but at several miles distance. And so it stayed in the open approaches to Hobart, but as the land closed about them the breeze died up ahead within the estuary itself, and the lead steadily evaporated, but nevertheless, the new breeze of the new day gave hope of Andoo hanging in and taking the highly-prized Captain John B Illingworth Cup for first to finish.

But in those agonising final two or three miles, the difference between the sailing characteristics of the two boats became ever more apparent.

For in the lightest airs in a downwind tacking duel, the powerful Andoo seemed glued to the water, with the price of her power in a breeze being greater wetted area, a slowing feature in zephyrs.

GALLERY OF THE DUEL

The spectator fleet was almost a problem

Andoo had a good lead in hand at Cape Raul....

...and still had plenty to work with nearer the finish

...but this is how it ended with Law Connect getting just clear wth the final gybe when Ando was stalled

LAW CONNECT SPINS WHILE ANDOO TURNS MORE SLOWLY

Then, too, where Law Connect seemed to spin when she gybed, with the result that she gave the illusion of accelerating out of each sudden course change, there's no doubt that Andoo was turning more slowly and losing speed until she finally got all sail working on the new tack, when her speed could often match Law Connect so well that in the final half mile the lead changed three times, but it was Law Connect in the commanding position as she glided around the finish buoy after the final ultra-short port hand leg, with the stalled Andoo's crew s disheartened by this final reverse of fortune that they didn't seem to bother with re-activating the Code Zero for the final few yards, and drifted across 51 seconds astern.

ALIVE TAKES CT LEAD FROM URM GROUP

After that performance, subsequent finishings were m ore straightforward as the breeze built and the more widely-spaced boats could sail their own final legs without the extra strsses of an on-water duel.Anthony Johnston's 72ft URM Group was next in with a decent breze and good enough timing to move into the IRC overall lead for a while, but then the Tasmanian-owned 66ft Alive arrived to the expected triumph and the overall lead for navigator/tactician Adrienne Cahalane and her shipmates, though URM Group had done well enough to stay ahead on CT of Sean Langman's 69ft Moneypenny whose personnel lineup includes the National YC's Will Byrne as bowman, and at 0830 Irish Time that's the way it still is with Alive, URM Group and Moneypenny at 1,2,3 in the IRC figures.

URM Group had plenty of breeze when she came to the line

CINNAMON GIRL PREDICTED AMONG OVERALL LEADING GROUP

Out at sea meanwhile, one of the most closely-fought (and watched) battles is for the Two-Handed win, with a searing pace being currently set by the two Sunfast 3300s, with Kraken III (Rob Gough & John Saul) leading by 2.6 miles from Kinsale's Cian McCarthy and Sam Hunt in their second-in-class Cinnamon Girl, whIch is shown as being on 7.1 knots while Kraken is at 7.0. They're estimated at 5th and 8th overall in the RSHR's prediction system, but with both little boats still having 260 miles to race, we shouldn't let ourselves get too excited at this stage, even if they are also down as being currently first and second overall in the Corinthian Group.

At a modest 66ft, Alive has shown you don't need the biggest to lead overall

FRANTIC GETS LOOK IN AS TP 52s BATTLE ON

Among the TP 52s, Mickey Martin's "Irish boat" Frantic has had a burst of speed, and is currently in the frame at third, with Sebastien Bohm's Smuggler stil in first while thehot contenders, Max Klink's Caro with Gordon Maguire and Cian Gulfoyle, and Sam Haynes' Celestial with Sydney's finest in the crew lineup are shuttling around at 5th and 6th, with just under 200 miles still to be sailed for most of them.

CALIBRE 12 IN CONTENTION IN DIV 3

Division 3 is seeing some of the best racing, but although Richard Williams' Cookson 40 Calibre 12 with Steph Lyns (Kinsale) has been back in the frame at times recently, currently she's tenth in class but with 199 miles to go is well-placed overall, as she's within sihht of some TP 52s.

This race is going to continue for some well into the weekend. But now that Hobart is seeing the Finishers Enclosure and its Race Village coming to life, there's many pints to be had in the Customs House, and de-briefings therein will be central to proceedings.

Race Tracker here 

In what has been an epic race from start to finish, Christian Beck’s LawConnect has lost her bridesmaid tag of the last three years to claim line honours in the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia’s Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race this morning, crossing the Castray Esplanade finish line in Hobart at 08.03.58am in the time of 1 day 19 hours 03 minutes 58 seconds

The John Winning Jnr skippered Andoo Comanche held the upper hand for most of the 628 nautical mile race, but LawConnect was always there and overtook her at one point.

Christian Beck’s LawConnect and John Winning Jnr skippered Andoo Comanche cross the Castray Esplanade finish line in the Sydney Hobart Race Photo: Kurt Arrigo

Early this morning there was little between the two and once again the Derwent sealed both boats fates, as a light, light breeze, teased and cajoled concentrating crews in an absolute thriller to the finish line.

Arthur Lane, Commodore Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, Christian Beck, owner of LawConnect, Benoît Falletti, Managing Director Rolex Australia at the 2023 Sydney Hobart Yacht Race Line Honours Prizegiving Photo: Kurt Arrigo

Christian Beck’s yacht finished well outside the race record of 1 day 9hrs 15min 24 sec, ironically set by the boat they beat today, which sailed as LDV Comanche to line honours victory in 2017 by her then owners, Jim Cooney and Samantha Grant.

It did not matter though.

Only 51 seconds separated LawConnect and Andoo Comanche at the end, in the second closest finish in the history of the race. The closest was in 1982 when Condor beat Apollo over the line by seven seconds.

All 21 crew are celebrating their victory on board the yacht this morning at Kings Pier in Hobart.

Max Klink's "Super TP52", the Botin 52 Caro with Gordon Maguire (ex-Howth) and Cian Guilfoyle (Dun Laoghaire) on the strength, and racing for New Zeland where she was built - even though her sail number says Cayman Islands, while her owner is Swiss resident - has taken over the lead in the superhot Division 1 in the Sydney Hobart Race, after success has emerged from her tactic of holding to the east.

The multiple majors winner (she already has the overall win in the Fastnet Race 2023, and the Class win in the Middle Sea Race 2023 on her scorecard) had looked to be in the crab-grass on the figures as she trended to the east, while the fleet battled through thunderstorms and ultra-flukey winds after they'd cleared Sydney and made south.

But now, facing into their third night at sea with winds from the east in reasonably good reaching conditions with 280 miles to go before the sticky patch, which is the final 60 miles funnelling into the Derwent and upriver to finish at Hobart, Caro shows narrowly ahead in class with
arch-rival Celestial very hot on her heels, and France's Eric de Turckheim's NYMD 54 showing third.

Teasing Machine, Eric De Turckheim's NYMD 54 from France, currently lies third in class to Division 1 leader Caro

Overall, in line honours, the Super-Maxi Andoo Comanche has spent today (Wednesday) taking over and firming up the line honours lead by about five miles from fellow super-max Law Connect, though in their class of Division 1, the IRC leader is Sean Langman's RP69 Moneypenny with Ireland's Will Byrne (National YC) in the crew, while third overall is the Tasmanian RP66 Alive, where Adrienne Cahalane calls the shots as navigator.

Despite the slightly smaller craft in those prime placings, it's currently very much a big boats' race on this Wednesday evening in Australia, but Caro's cool tactics have her back in the overall picture too, as her top place in Div. 1 has her seventh overall.

Down the line in Div 3, the most consistent performer has been Richard Williams' Cookson 12 Calibre, with Kinsale YC's Stephanie Lyons in the bowman role for her fourth race to Hobart. Calibre shows second in class for now, but for much of the race she has been in first.

The Cookson 12 Calibre, with Steph Lyons as bowman, emerges ahead of the melee in the early stages to begin her successful progress towards Hobart

SIZE COUNTS IN TWO-HANDERS

In the two-handers, the hugely experienced team of Rupert Henry and Jack Boutell with the Lombard 34 Mistral have taken every advantage of their boat's slightly large size to steadily open out a lead on the water, and currently in IRC too, over the Kinsale duo of Cin McCarthy & Sam Hunt with the Sunfast 3300 Cinnamon Girl-Eden Capital. CG-EC had been in the top three until now, but the latest postulated figures show her as seventh in the Two-Handers. However, as the Caro performance has shown, the speculative rankings issued as the race progresses indicate the weakness of an admittedly primitive version of AI in stating placings.

As for the merry men from Ireland and everywhere in Mickey Martin's TP52 Frantic ex-Patches, they show as 7th in a depleted Division 1. For here as in other classes, the sudden squalls with ultra-heavy rain and sometimes non-existent visibility during the phase of very unsettled weather soon took its toll.

Race Tracker here

Here's a boat to jingle memory bells. The former Patches (the TP 52 first campaigned back in the day by Eamonn Conneely from Connemara) is now Mickey Martin's Frantic, seen her with a strong Irsh contingent of Trevor Smyth, Conor Cotterdell and Cillian Ballesty in her crew as she settles into the race to Hobart

The race for line honours in the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race is poised to provide two thrilling finales in one as the leading boats continue their charge towards Tasmania.

Up front in the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia’s race for first place over the line, Andoo Comanche was still leading LawConnect at 1620hrs (Tuesday), but only five nautical miles separated the two maxis.

The lead pair were 101 and 107 nautical miles east of Helen’s Point, respectively.

Andoo Comanche (above) and LawConnect below entering the Bass Straight in the 2023 Sydney Hobart Race Photo: Andrea Francolini

In the race for third place only 7.6nm separated URM Group, Moneypenny and Alive.

Anthony Johnston’s URM Group, an RP72, was third online, followed by Sean Langman’s RP69 Moneypenny, which had steadily moved up all day from fifth, followed by Phillip Turner’s RP66 Alive (Tas), which was in third position earlier. They were south of Gabo Island.

Meanwhile, Kathy Veel, owner and co-skipper with Bridget Canham of the Currawong 30, Currawong, which retired earlier this morning, is expected to arrive back at the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia (CYCA), at around 7 pm on Tuesday evening.

Currawong, a two-handed entry, was the sixth of 11 boats that have retired from the race to-date.

There are now 92 boats still racing, including 14 two-handed entries. Veel said they had retired due to “various issues with the boat that could not be resolved.” She added that she and Canham were OK.

“We're doing fine,” Veel said from aboard the yacht off Bondi Beach.

“Last night was quite difficult, and there was a lot more of that ahead of us in a long race.”

Told that Currawong supporters were disappointed for their retirement after their popular finish as the last to reach Hobart last year, Veel said: “We are too … but we made the right call.”

As Andoo Comanche and LawConnect continue their game of cat and mouse at the front end of the Rolex Sydney Hobart fleet, little more than four nautical miles separating the pair, two further retirements were reported overnight.

The Michael Spies skippered TP52, Maritimo 52 (Qld), sustained rig damage which ultimately caused other damage to the boat.

Crew member Peter Jones said, “The fitting on the deck for the forestay shredded, which ripped the No. 4 headsail and the mainsail. We tried to work a million ways around it, but we would have been sailing at 50 percent. We are shattered.

“The weather shocking overnight. We had as much lightning as I’ve ever seen. The sou-west front came through, we saw high 20s to early 30s (knots) and had solid rain for three hours.

“We were south of Jervis Bay, 115 miles down the course. Everyone on board is fine,” ended Jones, who expects the yacht to be back at the CYCA around mid-afternoon today.

Then came the news that Sticky, the Cookson 50 owned by Richard Harris, had suffered electrical damage, forcing her retirement.

Both yachts were expected to do well in the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia’s 628 nautical mile race.

The two retirements means there are 98 boats still in the race, inclusive of 17 two-handed entries.

This morning at 5.45am, the John Winning Jr skippered Andoo Comanche and Christian Beck’s LawConnect were respectively 100 and 104 nautical miles south-east of Green Cape, as they head into Bass Strait.

Andoo Comanche is 88nm behind the record she set in 2017 of 1 day 9 hours 15 minutes and 24 seconds. She was travelling at 18-19 knots, while LawConnect was moving along at 21 knots.

Behind them was the 2018 winner, Alive (Tas), the RP66 owned by Phillip Turner and skippered by Duncan Hine and race favourite, URM Group, the RP72 owned by Anthony Johnston and skippered by Marcus Ashley-Jones.

The two yachts were just 10 and 18nm respectively behind LawConnect.

Cian McCarthy and Sam Hunt of Kinsale, racing the Sun Fast 3300 Cinnamon Girl-Eden Capital, were leading the 628-mile Rolex Sydney Hobart Race's two-handed division of 15 starters after nine hours of racing, and are the top-placed small boat overall, as they're logging in the upper third of the fleet in conditions which have been favouring the bigger boats.

Super-Maxi Andoo Comanche is leading overall on the water and in IRC, with her near competitors already reduced with SHK Scallywag - Grattan Roberts Jnr on board - sustaining a broken bowsprit.

Aboard the Botin 52 Caro, Gordon Maguire and Cian Guilfoyle are currently leading the TP52s and associated boats, but it looks as though they have a real battle on their hands with Sam Haynes TP52 Celestial - which Maguire, then on Ichi Ban, frequently duelled with in the past, and usually with success - as the Haynes boat has a lower rating, and a crew very determined to reverse the outcome of a year ago.

Philip Turner's RP66 Alive from Tasmania is showing very well at 6th overall with Adrienne Cahalane calling the navigational shots in her 31st Hobart Race, while Sean Langman's RP69 Moneypenny - Wlll Byrne of the National YC as bowman - is just behind at 7th OA.

The other Irish bowman, Stephanie Lyons of Kinsale on Richard Williams' Cookson 12 Calibre 12, is currently having the race of her life as Calibre leads Division 3 overall on IRC, while the strong Irish representation on Mickey Martin's veteran TP52 Frantic (Trevor Smyth (Clontarf), Conor Totterdell (National) and Cillian Ballesty (Wicklow)) are currently tenth in Division 1.

Seng Huang Lee’s 100ft SHK Scallywag from Hong Kong, has become the first casualty of the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race, breaking her bow sprit early this evening Sydney time.

SHK Scallywag, skippered by David Witt, had recently undergone modifications and with some well-known crew added, seemed to be in great shape, but it was not to be. Without the bow sprit, flying spinnakers is impossible.

A short time later, Peter Davison’s Archambault 40 RC, Arcadia from Victoria, along with the two-handed entry of Shane Connolly/Tony Sutton on the J/99, Rum Rebellion, also reported they had retired from the 78th running of the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia’s 628 nautical mile race.

Arcadia has retired with a torn mainsail, but no reason has been given at this stage for Rum Rebellion from Sydney.

This leaves 100 boats racing, including 17 two-handed entries.

Just before 5pm this evening, both Christian Beck’s LawConnect and the John Winning Jnr skippered Andoo Comanche, reported they were sailing on a comfortable sea in nice 16-18 knot winds.

Ty Oxley reported from LawConnect: “We are neck-and-neck with Andoo and reaching at 20 knots in 18-20 knots of breeze. Wind is up and down on a comfortable sea.”

Sam Fay said from Andoo Comanche: “We are doing 26 knots and have just overtaken LawConnect.”

The three boats had been having a tight tussle until SHK Scallywag’s retirement.

Grant Wharington’s 100ft Wild Thing 100, with her shorter rig, is 13 nautical miles behind Law Connect at 7.30pm.

LawConnect made the best of its bid to break a hoodoo of three runner-up finishes in the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race by leading the fleet towards the Heads after this afternoon’s start.

The Christian Beck-owned maxi led off the start line on Sydney Harbour at 1 pm, then lost the lead to SHK Scallywag and Andoo Comanche due to a furling issue on a sail change.

SHK Scallywag led out of the Heads from Andoo Comanche, with the fleet of 103 strung out on four start lines. Grant Wharington’s Wild Thing 100 was the last of the maxis to clear the Heads, her smaller rig made it hard to keep up.

(Above and below) The start of the 2023 Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race before a larger than usual spectator fleet in light 5 to 10 knot east to north-easterly winds was not without drama Photos: Andrea Francolini

The last boat out was the Currawong 30, Currawong, one of 18 two-handed entries that is co-skippered by Kathy Veel and Bridget Canham and was last to reach Hobart last year. Just before them was Sylph VI, Bob Williams’ boat with cat Oli aboard, enjoying the ride.

As regular Afloat readers know, Ireland is represented in the fleet by the two-handed Cinnamon Girl sailed by Kinsale Yacht Club's Cian McCarthy and Sam Hunt, plus a host of Irish crew racing on some potent big boats. It's a scenario leading pundits to believe Irish-related podium places are expected.

Soon outside the Heads, LawConnect recovered from its furling issue and led the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia’s (CYCA) 628 nautical mile race.

Beck lauded his crew today, but he was at pain to modestly set himself apart from the praise, saying: “That’s not me … The rest of the crew is awesome. I think that's what will make or break us really.”

Beck also admitted that the label of being seen as a perennial Sydney Hobart bridesmaid has added fuel to the motivation of his crew. “Of course, it does. Yes,” he said.

Today’s start before a larger than usual spectator fleet in light 5 to 10 knot east to north-easterly winds was not without drama though.

Andoo Comanche, the defending Line Honours champion skippered by John Winning Jnr, raised a protest flag after a port and starboard incident with the David Witt skippered SHK Scallywag.

However, SHK Scallywag, owned by Seng Huang Lee, completed a 720-degree turn near Bondi, which exonerated the Hong Kong boat from the incident.

The forecast before the start was for east to north-east winds of 5 to 10 knots, with winds increasing to 20 knots offshore, with warnings of gusts. Winds were then expected to shift south-westerly by Wednesday as a series of troughs and cold front push through.

By the time the fleet was pushing south down the NSW Coast in lumpy offshore swells this afternoon, the signals of what is expected to come had already been seen.

Half an hour before the start, the humidity and heat made way for a fall in temperature as darkening skies, thunder and lightning in the horizon moved in from the north.

A shower of rain then swept over Sydney Harbour as crews underwent their final preparations before it headed south to leave the harbour again under a blaze of sunshine.

In the front line, the maxis, TP52s and other medium boats had a clean start. The four maxis were separated into two pods. HSK Scallywag and Wild Thing 100 set off close to the pin on the western side of the harbour, while LawConnect and Andoo Comanche favoured the east.

Andoo reaches the first harbour mark at the start of the 2023 Sydney Hobart Race on St. Stephen's Day Photo:  Andrea Francolini