Comanche sails off into sunset

Successful Sydney to Hobart campaigner Jim Cooney misses his supermaxi Comanche but expects his other boat can challenge for a top three line honours finish in this year’s race.

In three campaigns under Cooney, Comanche earned line honours wins in 2017 and 19 and was third to Hobart in 2018 – establishing the greatest modern rivalry of the race with Wild Oats XI.

Cooney sold Comanche to a Russian shortly after last year’s race. He will contest the 2020 event in his renamed Volvo 70 Willow, which finished 12th across the line as Maserati last year, when it was chartered by a group of Polish sailors.

Both Cooney and his wife, Samantha Grant, who were co-owners of Comanche, stressed it was time to move on from that boat, which he described as ‘‘an extraordinary piece of naval architecture’’.

‘‘It was very difficult, even the last day we signed it over we were second guessing ourselves – ‘are we doing the right thing?’,’’ Cooney said yesterday.

‘‘Because you really do miss it.

‘‘It’s an exhilarating boat and not just fun to sail but it’s a marvel of engineering, and it’s just so impressive to have been a part of it. Happywe did the three years with it, it was a great experience.’’

Willow, named after an Australian technology company whose board Cooney joined in 2019, is one of the boats expected to vie for a top-three line honours finish this year – behind the two supermaxis Black Jack and Infotrack.