Trans-Tasman Yacht Race - One man's ambition to race alone

11:23 AM Sat 13 Jun 2009 GMT

'Scott Cavanough (Skippy Challenge) - Trans-Tasman Yacht Race' Ian Grant Click Here to view large photo

Scott Cavanough will make the supreme sacrifice of human comfort when he helms his 6.5 m sloop Skippy Challenge in the Trans-Tasman Yacht Race.

This classic event the only race of its type in the Southern Hemisphere will start from New Plymouth, New Zealand on April 4 2010 and finish off Pt Cartwright Mooloolaba some 12 days later.

He will sail alone in what is described as a test of torture and mind games to weather nature's elements over the 1283 nautical mile race across the storm tormented Tasman Sea.

It is fair to assume that the International sailor who hails from the Brisbane bay side suburb of Manly has been planning this adventure from his childhood when he contested Sabot dinghy championship racing over the sloppy sea surface on Brisbane's Waterloo Bay.

Normally Scott the bosun on the replica of the 1937 Americas Cup winning 135ft (41.15m) J class yacht Ranger races with some of the world's high profile sailors in an environment that can only be described as the ultimate in comfort and blue water racing history.

However the qualified Royal Yachting Association Yacht Master has chosen the option to step away from the comfort zone to add another important entry in his personal log book.

His spartan ocean racing dinghy cleverly formulated by the New Zealand design team headed by Brett Bakewell-White and built with super strong Carbon-fibre technology will be fitted with a canting keel- twin foil and water ballast but will not have an engine or a comfortable bunk.

'She is essentially a mini ocean racer and weight saving is paramount to reaching her boat speed targets'.

'There are just the bare essentials on board with even the water and the freeze dried meals and energy bars stowed so they can be used as moveable ballast.'

'Really it's all about racing and sailing fast'. Scott Cavanough said.

When queried about where the bunk would be located in the small cabin - He replied 'There is no bunk I'll buy a cheap bean bag from Target and sleep in that besides a bean bag is not heavy and there is the convenience of moving it on each tack'.

Resting in a bean bag is in complete contrast to sleeping with warm and dry bed linen in a cosy crew cabin on Ranger however Scott Cavanough is determined to accept his 'black hole' type living quarters in a bid to steer the smallest in the 28 yacht fleet to a major result next April.

by Ian Grant