12-28-2010 10:06 BJT
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Weather threatened to impact a sporting classic Down Under. Rain drenched Sydney on Sunday, before the match which experts predicted would be one of the toughest Rolex Sydney-Hobart yacht races in years.
The Mark Richards-skippered 100 footer, Wild Oats XI, shrugged off a challenge from Grant Wharington's Melbourne 98-footer, Wild Thing. Wild Oats stamped its mark early on the battle for top honors off Australia. Both start lines reported clean launches as nearly 1000 competitors began the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia's yachting classic under overcast skies in a light wind.
The 100-foot Wild Oats XI, and Sean Langman and Anthony Bell's Investec Loyal, squared off on the western side. Stephen Ainsworth's Loki timed things perfectly about a third of the way down the tightly congested line. As Wild Oats XI and Investec Loyal sprinted down the western harbor shore, Wild Thing steamed along the eastern shore past Vaucluse and Watsons Bay.
Wild Oats XI won the sprint to the sea mark. Wild Thing and Investec Loyal converged on the harbor mark two boat-lengths back, with Wild Thing squeezing her rival out at the end.
Mark Richards said, "Look, it's definitely our preparation, it's always our preparation and if we had have put the effort in last year as this year which is easy to say. I'm sure it could have been a different story. C'est la vie, here we are and let's hope we can do it this time."
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