Less Joy in Joy Ride

So, as Joy Ride‘s Sydney Hobart comes to a conclusion, the results continue to be up in the air. As they make their way up the Derwent River to Hobart, their position is 10th in ORCi Division 4, a far cry from the first they held for a short time.

Leading their class are a couple of Cookson 12s, but the other J/122 is safely tucked behind them. For what it’s worth, a safe Hobart is a good Hobart. And it must be noted, the corrected times are all very close and there’s a lot of racing (80 or so miles) yet to go.

Also of note, while Wild Oats XI finished first, they’re under protest by the race committee for perhaps turning off their AIS transponder during the race. It would be out of turn to say anything judgmental before the protest hearing. But I’ll do it anyway. Really, guys? In the old days people did that when reporting in their position, and it was rinky dink then. But if you indeed thought you could do it without anybody noticing nowadays, that’s just (putting it politely) unsharp. It would be yet another lost first to finish by protest.

Hopefully Joy Ride will glide up the Derwent and finish in the money. Regardless, I’ll try to get some comments from the Joy Ride team. They have certainly done the PNW proud!

While we should all be rooting for Joy Ride, I definitely have a place in my heart for the old S&S One Tonner Mark Twain. Owner/Skipper Michael Spies has resurrected the old girl and is currently lying 6th in class. Let’s just say that an early-70s vintage One Tonner drags around a lot of the Tasman Sea while going downwind at hull speed. Anyway, here’s a nice interview by the charming Olivia Price.

Kurt Hoehne

Kurt grew up racing and cruising in the Midwest, and has raced Lasers since the late 1970s. Currently he is a broker at Swiftsure Yachts. He has been Assistant Editor at Sailing Magazine and a short stint as Editor of Northwest Yachting. Through Meadow Point Publishing he handles various marketing duties for smaller local companies. He currently is partners on a C&C 36 which he cruises throughout the Northwest. He’s married to the amazing Abby and is father to Ian and Gabe.