KD4 and Midnight Rambler Share the Spoils in the Lexus of Tasmania Maria Island Race
by Nick Hutton 10 Nov 18:45 NZDT
9-11 November 2024
It took Joe De Kock's Dehler 44 KD4 just 26 hours to sail the 180-mile racecourse in the Lexus of Tasmania Maria Island Race conducted by The Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania on the weekend.
From Friday evening's start, apart from a few calm patches in the River Derwent, competitors enjoyed a dream run to the top of Maria and back to Tasman Island. Then, as is often the case at Tasman, things got interesting.
Slowed to less than a knot at times, the front three contenders, John Lawrie's Tenacity, skippered by Vaughan Lynch, Ed Psaltis' Midnight Rambler, and KD4 battled it out for the lead on the water. Midnight Rambler had by this stage established a healthy lead in the IRC and ORC rating divisions, never to be headed taking both gongs in the final washup.
After Cape Raoul the larger KD4 and Tenacity skipped away from Midnight Rambler with KD4 eventually gaining a lead in the River of nearly two hours over Tenacity at the finishing line off Castray Esplanade.
KD4 gained enough to take the PHS handicap division as well as line hours, in an even split of the prize pool with Midnight Rambler.
The smaller and slower boats found the going very tough on the leg from Tasman Island to Cape Raoul with a number taking sometimes unproductive tacks out to sea looking for breeze and some assistance from the conditions.
KD4, Tenacity and Midnight Rambler shared the podium places in PHS and IRC with Tony Williams' X43 Scaramouche joining Rambler and Tenacity in ORC.
Despite stiff conditions on Friday evening there were no reports of significant damage with only Young 88 Footloose reporting a stripped main halyard at the starting line, expertly replaced at sea by offshore veteran skipper Stewart Geeves.
The next offshore event is Hobart if the DSS Two Capes Race starting on 23 November.