Estate Master competes in SSORC (hosted by MHYC). Picture by Craig Greenhill/SALTWATERIMAGES

Middle Harbour Yacht Club are willing to host a separate Farr 40 division if there are a minimum of 6 Farr 40 entries. If fewer than six have entered by close of entries (24 February), competing Farr 40s may join either the PHS or IRC division.

Regatta information:
Farr 40 regatta website
Notice of Race
Online Entry

Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron - hosts of the 2012 Championship | Photo Rolex / Kurt Arrigo

The 2012 Farr 40 Australian Championship will be held on 3 and 4 March 2012, on the waters of Sydney Harbour. The event is set to attract a world-class line up, with competitors representing both interstate and local yacht clubs hoping to claim victory in this prestigious yachting event. The Notice of Race has been released and entries are now open.

The regatta will be hosted by the Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron – hosts of the hugely successful 2011 Australian and World Championships, which were well attended and the pinnacle events of the International sailing calendar last year. Rob Ridley (IRO) will be the Principle Race Officer for the 2012 Australian Championship, bringing a wealth of experience in leading the race management team.

Interest has been shown by many top contenders of the Farr 40 circuit, including current F40 World Champion Guido Belgiorno-Nettis (Transfusion) and former F40 World Champion Neville Crichton who will be steering Kokomo on behalf of Lang Walker. Queenslanders Howard and David Lambourne plan to bring their Queensland based Farr 40 Lambourdini to compete against various other interstate Farr 40 enthusiasts all scrambling to charter yachts for the event.

The Notice of Race is now available, and entries are due by Friday 3 February 2012. Further information can be found on the event website.

Farr 40 fleet on the start line 2011 Farr 40 Australian Championship | Andrea Francolini

The Farr 40 Australian Championships will be held on 3 – 4 March 2012, hosted by Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron. The regatta has been moved forward by two weeks (due to an event clash) and will now be held on the first weekend in March 2012. The Nationals will be a two day event on Sydney Harbour – entries will be open in January.

There will not be a Farr 40 Australian Circuit pointscore to culminate results for all regattas held this season. The major trophy for the season will be awarded to the winner of the Australian Championship.

Transfusion began the day ahead on overall points, and dominated the first race with a clear start to lead the fleet around the track. However at the bottom mark rounding, Kokomo and Estate Master approached on starboard and with a series of quick gybes in the softening breeze, made fast gains on the leader. After some tight manoeuvres Transfusion came away cleanly, whilst Estate Master and Kokomo had a close tousle for second place. Kokomo picked a shift on the right of the course to steal second place from Estate Master before the finish line.

The second race was sailed in a more disturbed air, with dark thunderstorms brewing to the south. Principle Race Officer Denis Thompson managed to get the fleet away to a clear start, hoping to finish the race before the pending southerly buster. Again, the three boats were closely matched, having to dip transoms and jostle for position. Estate Master looked strong during the first beat, until the breeze shifted and gave Kokomo the advantage. Kokomo surged into the lead to win the race, crossing the finish line just as the weather turned and racing was abandoned for the day. Their win in the second race of the day meant that Kokomo was awarded Boat of the Day for the second time this regatta – however Transfusion managed to hold onto their overall regatta lead to win the Rolex Trophy for 2011.

The event was sailed in predominantly 7-9 knots of breeze, which meant long days on the water outside Sydney Heads. “It was tiring out there and I have definitely slept well the last couple of nights” said Estate Master’s owner, Lisa Hill. Meanwhile, there will be no rest for Transfusion’s Guido Belgiorno-Nettis, who jumped straight off his Farr 40 and onto maxi yacht Wild Oats, to head out for some night-time training.

Belgiorno-Nettis will be competing in the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race aboard Wild Oats, and is committed to a vigorous training regime during the lead-up to the Boxing Day start. Apart from aiming to win the Sydney Hobart Race, Belgiorno-Nettis plans to head to Chicago in September 2012 to defend his Farr 40 World Championship title. “We are also hoping to do the North American Farr 40 Championship in Newport as a warm-up before the Worlds” said Belgiorno-Nettis ”…. I just need to convince my wife!”

The Australian Farr 40 Circuit continues in March 2012. Full results of the Rolex Trophy One Design Series are available here.

Kokomo started the day in good form, striking a win in the light conditions. Tactician Adrian Stead commented “it was very lumpy with only 6 – 9 knots of breeze, but we made a good improvement on our performance from yesterday. The win put us in a good frame of mind and we just kept going from there”.

The second race of the day saw Transfusion take command of the fleet with a big lead. However a shift in the breeze meant that Estate Master and Kokomo slipped past, with Estate Master winning the race and clinching the overall regatta lead. Estate Master and Transfusion were now tied for first place overall at the conclusion of race five, with Kokomo hot on their heels.

“We were strongly in command in the second race today” said Transfusion’s Guido Belgiorno-Nettis. “We just gave it away in the last leg, we didn’t cover Estate Master and they got a big lift and won the race. It was tough racing – not just the fact that those guys are good, but the light conditions are very tough.”

Another win for Kokomo in the third race secured them the Boat of the Day title, and brought the fleet even closer on overall points. After six races, each boat has won two races each, meaning that there will be a lot of pressure on all crews tomorrow. Transfusion are just managing to hang on to first place overall “by the skin of our teeth” with 11 points, ahead of Estate Master on 12 points and Kokomo on 13 points. Three races are scheduled tomorrow to complete the nine race series.

Series results to date are available here.

With Easterly breezes of 8 – 11 knots, the Farr 40 fleet made solid use of their light air sails. “It was a difficult day out there today, very shifty in the first race with the breeze swinging around, but it settled down a little later in the day” said Adrian Stead, tactician aboard Lang Walker’s Kokomo. Stead brings a wealth of experience to the Kokomo crew, sailing regularly with the team in overseas Farr 40 events, and having flown from Southampton in the UK specifically to compete in this regatta.

A handful of International talent is scattered throughout the Farr 40 fleet, with Estate Master (Martin and Lisa Hill) also flying in a tactician from overseas. Cameron Appleton (NZ) will be calling tactics aboard Estate Master for the remainder of the regatta; stepping into the shoes of Grant Simmer (of Americas Cup fame) who called the shots today.

However despite the International competition, local knowledge aboard Guido Belgiorno-Nettis’ Transfusion reigned supreme today, with Transfusion being awarded Boat Of The Day. Two bullets in the second and third races propelled the current Farr 40 World Champion into first position overall, and showed they are the boat to beat for the series.

Estate Master sits in second place, with Kokomo third; tactician Stead commenting “We need to be a bit more ….precise tomorrow.” A further six races are scheduled over the weekend, with a similar weather forecast boding across the next two days.

In the Sydney 38 fleet, Mark Griffith’s Old School leads ahead of Zen and Calibre. Series results to date for the Farr 40 and Sydney 38 fleets are available here.

Estate Master competes in SSORC. Picture by Craig Greenhill/SALTWATERIMAGES

The Estate Master team demonstrated their finely tuned skills in a mixed bag of weather conditions from light airs to gusty 25 knot winds. Day One of the Championship was comprised of the Seven Islands Race, which took the fleet from Middle Harbour to Spectacle Island (off Birkenhead Point) and back again. The race commenced with a handicap start, leaving Estate Master already miles behind the fleet as the scratch boat.

“We started dead last in really light air and caught the entire fleet up by about the halfway mark – jut after rounding the seventh Island” said Estate Master’s mainsheet hand, Darren Jones. In the strengthening breeze the yacht went on to claim victory in the race, finishing ahead of all other 36 competing yachts.

The Farr 40 continued their winning form on Day Two of the Championship, taking a bullet in the first windward-leeward race conducted for the PHS division. Two more races later, finishing sixth and fourth on PHS consecutively, the Farr 40 placed seventh overall for the Championship.

“We had to carry a ‘did not compete’ in the overall PHS results, as we chose to do the Seven Islands Race rather than the PHS passage race on Day One” said Darren Jones. “But we had a great time, there were a lot of other boats around the same size and speed as Estate Master, so it was a fairly competitive event for us.”

Full results from the SSORC can be found here: http://www.topyacht.net.au/results/2011/ssorc/phs/SGrp2.htm

The next event on the Farr 40 calendar will be the Rolex Trophy One Design Series being hosted by the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia from 9 – 11 December. This event will count towards the Farr 40 Australian Circuit point-score. Further information is available on the Farr 40 website: http://www.farr40.asn.au/calendar/rolex-trophy

Nerone competes in Rolex Trophy 2011. Photo: Howard Wright, Image Professional Photography

Entries for the Rolex Trophy One Design Series are due by Wednesday 7 December. This regatta will count towards season point-scores for the Australian Farr 40 Circuit. To enter, view Notice of Race and other information click here .

This regatta will count towards season point-scores for the Australian Farr 40 Circuit. To enter, view Notice of Race and other information click here .

Transfusion at 2011 European Championship - photo Osman Ugar

The regatta, held in Istanbul, Turkey was plagued with light winds and difficult wave conditions early on, until days three and four saw some exhilarating racing in fresh 20 knot Nor-Easterlies. Top teams representing Europe, USA and Australia competed in the event, with the Championship being the crown of the European Farr 40 Circuit.

Current Farr 40 World Champion Guido Belgiorno-Nettis and his crew aboard Transfusion peaked early, leading the regatta on equal points on day one with Enfant Terrible (ITA). However the light winds on day two took their toll on the Aussies, with Enfant Terrible consolidating their lead on the fleet, and Struntje Light (GER) propelling into second place. By day four, consistency paid off for Barking Mad who had averaged third place in most of the eight races, and finished with the lowest overall score to claim victory.

Of the conditions early in the series, Belgiorno-Nettis said “The wave conditions were particularly tricky both upwind, on the starboard tack, and on the downwind run on port in terms of steering, so it was quite a challenge at the helm just to keep the boat moving the whole time. I personally like the challenge of stronger conditions…. but whatever is served up here we are going to enjoy it because we are in Istanbul which is a wonderful part of the world.”

Belgiorno-Nettis was recently announced as a finalist for Male Sailor of the Year, to be awarded later this month at the Australian Yachting Awards. He is joined by fellow Farr 40 sailors Malcolm Page, Nathan Outteridge and Tom Slingsby, who are also finalists for the Award, and Michael Blackburn who is nominated in the Sports Professional category. Nathan Outteridge has also been announced as a finalist for ISAF World Sailor of the Year.

The strength of competition within the Australian Farr 40 fleet is demonstrated by the high calibre of sailors currently involved in Farr 40 class racing. The friendly rivalry within the fleet will be put on display when the Australian Farr 40 season begins in two weeks, with the Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron Farr 40 Mini Regatta on 29 October.