The Yachts

Silver Fern

Silver Fern

 

David Hows did two Sydney Hobarts with his former yacht, Ocean Gem, before buying Silver Fern, a robust 30-ton steel yacht. She was originally built as a Birdsall 60 in 1981, before being redesigned by Brett Bakewell-White, extended to 72ft and relaunched in 2004 and spent 2005-2016 circumnavigating the globe, visiting over 70 countries. Buying the yacht in 2020, Hows is prepared for her next chapter as a comfortable but competitive and strong ocean racing and expedition yacht. Similar to Salt Lines in many respects, the two will likely keep each other company throughout the race.

 

Competitor Details

Yacht Name Silver Fern
Sail Number NZL6702
Owner David Hows
Skipper David Hows (2)
Crew Simon Alexander, Kester Crellin, John Geange, Sergej Gratchev, Taku Hewitt, Rob Holdsworth, Kris Hook, Alex Lomakin, Kenton Shaw, Mark Stevens, John Tisdell, Lena Wilderang, Timothy Wolff
State QLD
Club SYC
Type Birdsall 72
LOA 21.3
Beam 5.0
Draft 2.2