Race Report: Around the Harbour Easter Egg Hunt, 19 April 2025
Webmaster
All sailors who remained in Sydney for Easter were treated to an adventure down at DBSC with our annual Around the Harbour Hunt Race with Easter Eggs! This pursuit race has a handicap start, with the rabbit starting on 0 min then the final harrier starting 27m10s later (each member receiving a start time based on their club handicap)
The race committee were challenged with setting a course through permanent Harbour marks - long enough for the rabbit to race for 90 minutes. The start line was set in front of Double Bay, the agreed course (reduced in length due to light winds) took the fleet around Shark Island to port, then over to Taylors Bay YA to Starboard, a long work up to the Eastern Wedding Cake in Watson’s Bay, before heading back to Shark Island and across the finish line off Double Bay.
The wind almost died mid race, which left the fleet bobbing up and down in the lumpy water between Taylors Bay and Watson’s Bay . Fortunately, with the arrival of Luke ‘That’s not a rib, This is a rib!’ Parker to say hello and egg on the drifters, a gentle Northerly breeze filled in across the Harbour which saw all 27 competitors make it around the Wedding Cake and back to the finish line bang on the 90 minute mark. ( …with the accuracy of the handicapping featuring in the results: where the First boat over the finish was the last boat to start, and the First boat to start was not too far behind! - thankyou Daryl Lawrence for running the numbers for us again this year.
Despite being Easter Saturday, the rabbit did not come away with the chocolates. Instead, Healy Ryan (who started some 27m behind) worked his way through the fleet to the finish and was first for the Standards, and we saw similar skills in the fickle wind displayed by Katie McHugh who took out the double winning both first Radial and first Woman.
Final results were:
First: Healy Ryan
First Radial: Katie McHugh
First Woman: Katie McHugh
Second Woman: Diana Chen
Encouragement Award (the “Rockley Road”): Jasper Kinsman
Huge thank you to the on water team of: Campbell Patton, Anna McKeon, Tim Heath and Nick Pellow, and we hope all sailors had a similarly enjoyable Easter break.
-by Nick Pellow PRO
(Photos on the water by Anna McKeon and Tim Heath)
