Three Peaks Race fleet off Freycinet Peninsula

9:56 PM Sat 11 Apr 2009 GMT

'Mount Freycinet' Sail-World.com /AUS &copy

Australia's sailing- mountain running race is held every Easter in Tasmania. The 21st annual race started at 2pm on Good Friday, 10th April 2009, when the 2009 Three Peaks fleet sailed from Launceston.

Westbury-Mersey Pharmacy was the first yacht to arrive at Lady Barron on Flinders Island, just before Friday midnight and only a couple of hours outside record time and their runs were first up and down Mt Strzelecki.

By Saturday afternoon the entire Hydro Tasmania Three Peaks Race fleet yesterday had left Flinders Island on the race's second sailing leg heading for Coles Bay, where the running teams would head for Mt Freycinet.

At yesterday's 4pm sked, two multihulls were leading the fleet; Westbury-Mersey Pharmacy was just ahead of Neil Buckby Motors Subaru.

The Sydney 38 Sullivans Cove Whisky, was the leading monohull

The wind off the east coast overnight was mostly light, with St Helen's reporting 6-8 knots from the northwest. There was slightly more wind off Bicheno and Friendly Beaches, up to 10 knots from the north east around 4am.

A few minutes ago race control reported that a private tracker aboard Tas Marine Construction has the boat positioned almost east of Coles Bay, abeam Wineglass Bay, so the leaders must be well down off the Freycinet Peninsula.

It will still take them a few hours to round the bottom of the Peninsula, pass through Schouten Passage and head back up to Coles Bay.

The latest report from Nick Edmunds Radford 14 Haphazard. 'Its a cold morning. we are currently experiencing 8 to 10 knots from the south and we are on port tack headed toward Wineglass Bay.

'We are still 24nm from Schouten Passage, making six knots. If the wind holds in, we should make Coles Bay in six to seven hours. Last night we went further to sea than most of the fleet and can now see two boats closer to the coast west, most likely Diane Barkas' Sullivans Cove Whisky (Asylum) and Pisces

'We were passed by Rob Gourlay's Thompson 12 Tas Marine Construction during the night (their tracker showing them abeam of Coles Bay).

'We struggled in a light north-easterly during the night, had to shy reach toward New Zealand to get any boat speed!'

Observers at Cape Tourville (near Coles Bay) report the the leading boats are about seven miles ahead of the fleet. Probably within five miles of Schouten Passage. Its light up ahead with virtually no wind in Coles Bay at the moment.

by Sail-world.com

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Three Peaks Race fleet off Freycinet Peninsula

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