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  • 'Ordinary' first day cramps Wedgetail’s style.

'Ordinary' first day cramps Wedgetail’s style.

'Ordinary' first day cramps Wedgetail’s style.
Bill Wild's Wedgetail

'Ordinary' first day cramps Wedgetail’s style.

Queenslander Bill Wild arrived in Hobart excited by what his new Welbourn 40 had shown on the last two days of the race, but disappointed that a slow first day for the smaller boats in the fleet had probably cost them a chance to threaten Wild Oats XI for the handicap win.

Queenslander Bill Wild arrived in Hobart excited by what his new Welbourn 40 had shown on the last two days of the race, but disappointed that a slow first day for the smaller boats in the fleet had probably cost them a chance to threaten Wild Oats XI for the handicap win.

Wedgetail crossed the line late Thursday morning in 19th place overall, well ahead of the other 40-footers, just minutes behind the 56-footer Pale Ale Rager and more than 20 minutes ahead of the highly fancied DK 46 Quantum Racing.    

“It was a bit frustrating, there wasn’t much breeze for thirty hours, chewing our nails, waiting for it to happen.  But the next 30 hours were great and that’s where we did well.

“We had a heap of wind yesterday and the boat loves that, 45 knots (wind), reaching, hard running. The boat was built for those sorts of conditions.  It wasn’t built for the slow, sloppy stuff.

“The boat goes like a rocket when it gets the breeze.  It’s a dream.”

“The second night we had some hard running and this boat just lights up,” said helmsman Vanessa Dudley, the former world champion dinghy sailor who has returned to Rolex Sydney Hobart competition after reporting on it as a journalist for the past few years. “As soon as you can sit up and plane it’s a phenomenal boat.  That’s where we thought we could really push hard because that’s where we could make some miles.”

Two broken halyards during the night cost Wedgetail some time when she couldn’t raise a spinnaker until daylight, when they could safely get up the mast to replace the halyards.  By that time the wind had shifted to a two-sail reach anyway.  As the wind built the boat revelled in 40 knot plus winds under reduced sail.

Dudley was amazed at how manageable the new designs like Wedgetail are when they are going very fast downwind, but says that the crew gets thrown about a lot.  “That’s when you think it’s a sport for young people.  But then you get to Hobart and you forget.”

But while Wedgetail was passing her immediate rivals the maxi’s were already all but home, having opened a huge gap when they got the freshening wind on day two hours before the back of the fleet. Dudley is philosophical.  “The Maxi’s sail in different weather.  You can’t do anything about that.  We beat Quantum Racing and they are a really good crew and boat so we are very happy about that.”

Still, now that Bill Wild has seen what his boat can do he will be back for another shot at outright next year.