Passage Races define Hamilton Island Race Week

'With a brisk south-east tradewind at their tail, the record fleet at Audi Hamilton Island Race Week 2007 leaves the island in their wake as they surge across the Whitsunday Passage' Jack Atley&copy

Since the inaugural Hamilton Island Race Week, in Easter of 1984, the difference between this event and the southern regattas has always been the passage races.

Rather easy really, there are 76 islands in the Whitsundays group and its course management made easy, with such a scatter of marks of the course laid out in these azure blue waters.

As Denis Thompson, Regatta Director and PRO commented yesterday 'The feed back we get every year reminds us that the island passage races are the most popular races we run, they really define the racing in the Whitsundays. Skippers say time and time again, send us round islands, we love the sight seeing.

On a cautionary note Thompson continued 'There are navigational as well as tactical decisions to be made when racing in the Whitsundays. For 25 years navigators have had to thread their way around outlying reefs and rocks. Attempting to cut corners comes at a cost as boats have found here again this week. 222 boats rounded Surprise Rock safely on Wednesday, three went too close.'

While the IRC Grand Prix divisions one and two will race windward leeward on Catseye Bay today, the second last day of the 2008 Audi Hamilton Island Race Week, it is one of the most popular short island courses today.

The IRC Premier Passage, IRC Passage, Cruising 1, 2 and 3, Cruising Non spinnaker, Performance GP, Performance Passage 1 and 2 divisions that is the other 199 boats in the 225 boat 2008 race week fleet.

The 21.3 nautical mile race starts in Dent Passage heading north, round the top of Dent, down round Pine Island, then four nautical miles up beside Long Island, around White Rock and back to the finish line in Dent Passage.

The Long Island Race - Click Here to view large photo

Tomorrow the regatta will close with the traditional Molle Island race, that along with the Lindeman Race bookends this regatta, depending on the tides, which is first or last.

It's another glorious day in paradise as one of the big boat divisions sets off to race around the islands at Audi Hamilton Island Race Week 2007 - Jack Atley&copy

by Rob Kothe