Hot racer lines up for Pipe Opener
TASMANIA’S newest and fastest ocean racing yacht, Michael Pritchard’s state- ofthe-art Cookson 50 Oskana, is due to make its racing debut in Tasmanian waters this evening.
Oskana, which won the 2013 Rolex Sydney-Hobart Yacht Race when named Victoire, is among a strong fleet entered for the Pipe Opener Series.
The Derwent Sailing Squadron and Huon Yacht Cub traditionally kickstarts Hobart’s spring/summer sailing season with the Pipe Opener and Cock of the Huon race.
The series starts at 7pm this evening off Castray Esplanade, with a night race from Hobart down the River Derwent and the D’Entrecasteaux Channel to a finish line off Gordon.
On Saturday afternoon, the fleet from Hobart will be joined by local yachts for the Huon Aquaculture Cock of the Huon, starting and finishing off Shipwrights Point.
A return race from Port Huon to Gordon will be held on Sunday morning.
Pritchard, also known as a leading Targa Tasmania driver, bought the Cookson 50 this year.
He and his crew have been training extensively to contest this year’s Sydney-Hobart but this will be their first race with Oskana.
The DSS is expecting between 20 and 30 entries for the Pipe Opener, with boats from Hobart clubs being joined boats from Kettering Yacht Club and Huon Yacht Club.
Having its first race in southern Tasmania is the former Tamar Yacht Club boat Haphazard, now owned by Andrew Sinclair.
Haphazard, a Radford 14, is noted for her past performances in the Three Peaks Race.
Other entries include Philosopher (Shaun Tiedemann) and Wild West (Michael and Michelle Denney) which could see an on-the-water duel between two DSS senior staff as Shaun Tiedemann is the club’s general manager and Michael Denney the sailing manager.
The fleet includes last year’s Cock of the Huon winner, Michael Hutchinson’s Hobie 33, and several potential entries in this year’s Launceston to Hobart Race, also a DSS event.
They include Frontline (Ian Snape), Groove (Will Justo), Helsal V (Robert Smith), Rad (Brent McKay), Zephyr (Ian Johnston) and possible L2H entrants Haphazard and Whistler, now owned by David Aplin.