No 'back seat' for veteran skipper Robertson

11:45 PM Tue 4 Aug 2009 GMT

'Bob Robertson right(Cracklin Rosie) - Club Marine Brisbane to Keppel Tropical Yacht Race' Suellen Hurling &copy

Bob Robertson recently elected Commodore of the Mooloolaba Yacht Club showed he is not yet prepared to accept a back seat in Queensland ocean racing.

The veteran skipper respectfully taunted by his younger rivals to be past his best sent them back to rethink their individual technique and blue water racing tactical strategy when he steered Cracklin Rosie to an impressive third place in the 348 n/ml Club Marine Brisbane to Keppel race last Monday.

Cracklin Rosie a modified Farr 40 one-design proved she was on the pace in a private class match race after the line honours favourite Peter Harburg's Black Jack skippered by Mark Bradford established a race record chase after clearing the Caloundra Fairway Buoy before dusk last Saturday.

Black Jack continued to master the ideal coastal sailing conditions to set a new 1 day 5 hour 24 minute 11 second record with her 5 hour 4 minute 49 second win over the 2009 Brisbane to Gladstone race champion Quantum Racing now competing under the Evolution Sails 'battle-flag'.

As expected the duel for fastest corrected handicap proved to be close in fact Black Jack completed a rare (line honours-record-corrected time) result with her 49 second or .14 second per nautical mile win over Evolution Sails.
This was a deserved reward for the Black Jack crew who are poised to stage an Americas Cup style match race against the Bob Oatley owned and Mark Richards skippered Wild Oats X when they defend their 2008 line honours title during the Audi Hamilton Island Race Week from August 22-29.

Both the Black Jack and Evolution Sails crews continued to monitor the progress of the fleet and remained interested in the boat on boat tactical dog-fight between the almost identical Farr 40 class sloops Bribie Star and Cracklin Rosie who remained as a possible threat to challenge the provisional handicap places.

They had almost shared the same sea space when they approached the finish line off the Keppel Bay Marina with Bribie Star winning the class line honours by 10 seconds from the equally well sailed Cracklin Rosie after 40 hours 23 minutes 51 seconds of intense match racing.

Naturally the Bribie Star crew were relieved with their .029 second per mile victory but that failed to alter the post race celebration for the Cracklin Rosie crew who claimed the 'bragging rights' over Bribie Star with their 11 minute 55 second faster corrected handicap.

Bob Robertson and his crew of long term blue water racing mates also won the Performance Handicap class scoring a 55 second win over the Sunshine Coast sloop Cadibarra 8 (David Netherton) and the Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron Farr 30 GOA skippered by former Brisbane to Gladstone race winner Colin Loel.

Cracklin Rosie has continued on a casual cruise to the warm waters of the Whitsunday Islands and the challenge of retaining her form by adding more trophies to her skipper's impressive career during the Meridien Marinas Airlie Beach Race Week from August 14-20 and the Audi Hamilton Island Race Week from August 22-29.

by Ian Grant

Newsfeed supplied by

#News #Sailing

No 'back seat' for veteran skipper Robertson

Sports/News

Weather Forecasts & Live Reports

Buy & Sell/Classifieds