'A real dogfight': Wild weather set to shake up fleet's quest for race record
Updated . First published at
Wild weather is set to change the tone of many strategies of those in the Sydney to Hobart as the fleet prepares to challenge the race record.
Sailors were warned of the challenging conditions they are forecasted to incur, with gale-force winds of up to 75km/h and thunderstorms expected to cause serious damage.
Race directors expect the winds to strike the four supermaxi yachts contesting for the honours as they enter the always difficult task of the Bass Strait.
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LawConnect during the 2023 Sydney to Hobart. Getty
Many crews will inevitably pull out of the race — this happens each year — but reigning champions LawConnect are confident they will not be one of them.
LawConnect claimed victory in a thriller finale last year, crossing just 51 seconds in front of runners-up Andoo Comanche.
"These conditions are probably the worst forecast I've ever had to go through," skipper of LawConnect Christian Beck said.
"The odds of boat damage are obviously very high so I would expect boat breakage.
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"It's going to be a real dogfight."
Comanche set the record for the race in 2017, crossing the line in one day, nine hours, 15 minutes and 24 seconds.
But with two new co-skippers set to take over the ropes this year, the priority of a race record is far lower than expected.
"The conditions look like [breaking the record] could be a possibility. But for us, we don't focus on that," co-skipper James Mayo said.
"In 60 seconds you can virtually cover a kilometre so there are significant speeds... so first thing is obviously the safety of the crew.
"Our job is to get there in one piece, get the boat there in one piece and hopefully get there first.
Master Lock Comanche skippered by Mayo and Allen at the 2024 Big Boat Challenge in December. Corbis via Getty Images
"Focusing on [the record] is not a priority for us."
Mayo's focus on crew safety was rightly supported by his co-skipper Matt Allen, who noted his team's boat would provide greater challenges in different ways to their rivals.
"The bigger boats are more complex and the loads are bigger," Allen said.
"Our boat is the most powerful boat out there so the loads are higher. We just need to make sure that things don't break or that we can control.
"Often when you do get breakage on the boat, it sort of multiplies.
"People don't sail in these conditions very regularly so you're just not quite sure which bit's going to hang together and which bit's not and the speeds are going to be pretty fast.
"It's going to be challenging."
The Sydney to Hobart will set sail at 1pm AEDT on Thursday, December 26.
