Hamilton Island 25th Anniversary Regatta by Patrick Bollen
  It was an extremely brisk morning. A biting, chill-tothe- bone westerly screamed down from North Sydney through Milson Park, even the tall palm trees seemed to shudder in a relentless breeze that was not a breeze at all but further frigid warning of what more was in store for the rest of the week.
  It surely was time to seriously consider warmer destinations. Somewhere north of the border line that separates the place proclaimed ‘beautiful one day and better the next’ and the rest of most of Australia.
  More than 170 entries has been received by regatta organisers for the 2008 Hamilton Island Race Week to be staged from 23-30 August. Of these 35 are from Melbourne, Hobart and Adelaide while nearly 70 have entered from Sydney, Port Stephens, Port Hacking and Coffs Harbour.
  The balance of the fleet coming from Queensland and Western Australia with international entries from New Zealand, London and Hong Kong.
  Organisers are over the moon with the state of the entry list and are expecting a new record for the number of yachts visiting the Island to celebrate the 25th anniversary of what today is widely regarded as the premier yacht racing regatta in the country.
  Twenty five years ago the Hamilton Island Regatta was pretty much just an idea shared by a bunch of blokes who discussed the prospect of a yachting series in and around the Whitsunday Islands.
  The blokes concerned, David ‘Chalky’ Hutchen and Warwick Hoban put a proposal to the island’s founder Keith Williams who agreed that in concept it really was a good idea. It was, and became a great marketing tool to promote the then new tourist island getaway and so began what has become the best sailing series in the best destination in Australia.
  Hutchen and Hoban approached the late Jack Rooklyn who owned the famous maxi yacht Apollo, Graeme Lambert who had built a new yacht called Too Impetuous and West Aussie Peter Briggs who owned a brilliant new 41 foot yacht Hitchhiker and who with Lambert had competed in the 1983 Admiral’s Cup.
  They all agreed to take their boats to Hamilton Island for the inaugural regatta.
  “It wasn’t a big fleet,” said Lambert. “As I recall there were about 25 boats in all, certainly nothing like the fleets we see today; but it was an opportunity to sail and race in our own tropical backyard and there weren’t a lot of regattas going around then so we all jumped at the idea.” “Hitchhiker was truly the new gun boat on the world stage then, backed by a big budget and sailed by a crack crew from Perth. Briggsie beat us by just one point to take the honours, even though we scored a top three finish in every race of the series. What sealed it for the boys from West Australia was their win in the long race.”
  “When Warwick Hoban presented Briggs with the trophy he announced, ‘Too Impetuous beaten by one point and one million dollars’. Hitchhiker was a top-shelf campaign and they sailed a great regatta. We had a terrific time,” said Lambert.
  The famous Frers design, Hitchhiker, winner of the 1981 World Two Ton Cup is returning to Hamilton Island this year to be a part of the regatta’s Silver Jubilee Celebrations.
  “It’s wonderful to be able to look back over 25 years and realize that Hitchhiker was the first winner of such a highly acclaimed and internationally recognized regatta.  You could see the seeds for a great event being sown that very first year. It was the regatta Australia needed and most importantly it was an ideal location for some excellent racing,” said Briggs.
  “Winning that first regatta did not come easy for us. We took the title by just one point in the final race.”  The highly competitive IRC Division has attracted a fleet of 26 of the country’s best ocean racers including former Race Week winner Bob Steel with his latest Quest, a TP52, Graeme Wood with his new JV52, Wot Now, Geoff Ross with his ever consistent Yendys and Ray Roberts with his Cookson 50 Quantum Racing.
  At the top end, the biggest boats entered for this year’s clash of the titans will be the Reichel Pugh design 60, Wild Joe (Stephen David), Hamilton Island owner Bob Oatley with his little Wild Oats a Reichel Pugh 66-footer and from Brisbane, Peter Hamburg with Black Jack also a Reichel Pugh 66.
  From across the ditch the Kiwis will contest the series with three excellent entries; Wired, a Bakewell-White 52 (Rob Bassett), Carrera, a Marten 49 (John Meadowcroft) and Anotole Masfen with his modified Cookson 50, Pussy Galore.
  The IRC Premier Passage Division has also attracted a competitive fleet including money man Paul Clitheroe with his Sydney 47, Balance which should enjoy some exciting racing with sistership Terra Firma owned and campaigned by Nicholas Bartels from Melbourne and three regular visitors to Race Week, the Beneteau 47.7s, Eagle Rock (Ross Wilson), Esprit (Garry Anderson) both from Melbourne and Imagination (Annette and Robin Hawthorn) from Sydney.
  From Sydney’s Middle Harbour Yacht Club, Ray Harris will ensure stiff competition in this division with his latest Honeysuckle a spritely, well-sailed Beneteau 45.
  Two Swan production yachts will race. Bernie Van Hoft’s 45-footer Tulip from Sydney and from the other side of the world Sir Geoffrey Mulcahy with his 56-footer Noonmark VI from London.
  CYCA sailor Dean Harrigan will be back again with his Beneteau 50, Playstation as will Tim Casey who after selling Will Vickers his previous vessel In The Mood has downsized, recently purchasing the famous Nelson Marek 46, Quest, a former Race Week winner. 
The Whitsunday Islands venue for Audi Hamilton Island Race Week – and there are few better places in the world to sail. / American yacht Van Diemen, owned by Robbie Vaughan.
  Casey is another regular visitor to Hamilton Island and a strong supporter of the event. He has been sailing the Whitsundays since the 1980s and his newest acquisition St Hilliers Quest could well upset in the classy IRC PP Division.
  “While I don’t have a gun crew I believe the boat is still very competitive when crew work and conditions come together. We are motivated to win but probably more so to have a good time which is exactly why I love this regatta. Where in the world can you be just a couple of hours on a plane from enjoying the tropical warmth, the camaraderie, the relaxed environment and sailing in such a beautiful place like the Whitsundays? A suit one minute – board shorts and a tee shirt the next. Hamilton Island is just so convenient,” an enthusiastic Casey said. Thirteen boats will make up the IRC Premier Division including the C&C Bear Necessity (Andrew and Pauline Dally), Real Yachting Adventures (Peter Franki and three of the very popular and exciting Sydney 36s, Brookwater Golf (Luke McGrath) from Brisbane, Onya (Andrew Hurt) and Equinox (Anthony Dunn) both from Sydney.
  Twelve boats have entered the PHS Grand Prix Division including CYCA immediate past Commodore Geoff Lavis with UBS Wild Thing and the amazing 9.6m Elliot design from Maroochydore, Wild Spirit (Kevin Horne).  Out of Shute Harbour the former glamour big boat of the world circuit, the 80-foot Ron Holland design Condor, today plying the Whitsundays as a charter boat is entered in the PHS Division along with 17 others vessels including Robert and Sue Segeart’s Beneteau 473 Shiralee, the Sydney 32 Wirrajurnd (Andy Kearman) and Peter Mosely’s BH36 Local Hero.  When first introduced to the event organizers had great hopes for the Classic Division, however, in the last few years this category has failed to attract entries. This year is no different with just one boat registering for the event. From Sydney Ian Ritchie will start with his 44 foot Mason design Inez. 
Hitchhiker – Peter Briggs’s famous Frers which won the inaugural series in 1984. / With a brisk south-east tradewind at their tail, the record fl eet at Audi Hamilton Island Race Week 2007 leaves the island in their wake as they surge across Whitsunday Passage.
  The biggest category as always is the Cruising Division and so far organizers report that the entry list is rapidly approaching the 100 mark with many more expected as Race Week nears. This division is widely regarded as the ‘real fun’ end of the regatta. However, competition in this class can be as fierce as the grand prix end of the fleet.
  A cruising boat is often a guise for highly competitive yachtsmen to chase another trophy or title for the many they have previously collected during their sailing careers mostly in younger years when bodies were sharper and more agile. As they say – once a competitor, always a competitor.
  This is true for the likes of such fellows as Ross Muir of Brisbane – of Muir Winch fame who will be racing a chartered Beneteau 43.7. In the 1980s and ’90s Ross along with brothers John and Greg were pretty successful sailors racing out of the Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania.
  The Muirs won’t have it all their own way though. They can expect some strong competition from old foes, the beautiful Oyster 68, In The Mood (Will Vickers), the Jeanneau 42, Mandala, (Gerard Webb), Perfect Match, a Bavaria Match 35 owned by Alun Lewis of Sydney and Andrew Johnson’s Northshore 380 Sports Overdrive which races out of Coffs Harbour.
  It’ll be a great time to be on Hamilton Island and the atmosphere will ensure that future Race Weeks will have much to live up to.