Latest press release just sent out, plus a photo of Carey Hire's Adrian and Ian heading off from the jetty.

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5/04/2010 10:04 AM

The race to Hobart is well and truly on after a shake-up of the leading boats overnight. Southern Tasmanian catamaran Deguello has maintained a narrow lead but racing monohull and Tilman trophy entrant Team Whistler has used its oars to move into second place during the night’s windless conditions.
The order of their arrival in Hobart will depend on the outcome of a major tactical decision that has seen Deguello opt to sail outside Maria Island and Team Whistler choose to navigate the channel between Maria Island and Orford.
The western side of the island is considered the rhumb line, or most direct route, but is more sheltered from the current south-westerly breeze other leading boats are heading into and has seen Team Whistler’s speed drop to five and-a-half knots (10kmh).
Meanwhile Deguello is moving at nine knots (16.5kmh) and holding a three-mile lead over third-placed Haphazard, also sailing outside Maria Island.
Haphazard arrived in Coles Bay in a close second place, but its runners battled injury throughout the Freycinet run, setting the team back about an hour.
As a fully-crewed entrant it will have to round Tasman Island while its two main competitors are eligible to use the Dunalley Canal as a short-cut to Hobart.
Recent forecasts show that the fleet can expect light south-westerlies for the rest of the day, but current observations at Maria Island show a stronger 10 to 15 knot breeze from that direction. These headwind conditions should favour the monohulls, which often perform better upwind than their multi-hulled counterparts.
With 90 nautical miles still to sail, the top boats are not expected to arrive in Hobart until late this afternoon. Their runners will then wrap up the 22nd annual Hydro Tasmania Three Peaks Race with a 33-kilometre run up and down Mt Wellington, the race’s tallest peak at 1270m.