Race to the tropics cut short

PLANS to sail for nearly three months in the tropical waters of the South Pacific to escape Tasmania’s winter chills have ended prematurely for Marcus McKay, four members of his family and several friends from Kettering Yacht Club, south of Hobart.

Their yacht, She’s Apples Two, was dismasted just four hours into the 1064-nautical mile race from Sydney to Noumea in New Caledonia.

No-one was injured when the rig crashed to the deck after an involuntary gybe and the boat motored back safely to the Cruising Yacht Club in Sydney Harbour.

“We had a bit on . . . running under spinnaker before a 25 to 30 knot southerly breeze when we gybed, unintentionally, and the mast snapped at the first spreaders,” Mr McKay, the owner and skipper, said yesterday.

“We had to cut away the rig, losing the mast and rigging, spinnaker and mainsail, but there was no other damage to the boat . . . a battery-powered grinder did the job.”

The revived ocean-racing classic started on Sunday, postponed for a day because of gale-force winds and huge seas off the NSW coast.

The crew included Mr McKay’s 19-year-old son Jai and his mates Fletcher McCormack and Patrick Eberhard, both also 19. Mr McKay’s brother, Brent, his sons Gus, 27, and Ollie, 23, and racing veteran David Graney were also in the crew.