Six yachts finished Sunlover Holidays Sydney - Mooloolaba Yacht Race

by Lisa Ratcliffe on 18 Apr 2000 First Queensland yacht finished Sunlover Holidays Sydney - Mooloolaba Yacht Race
One of five Queensland yachts in the Sunlover Holidays Sydney - Mooloolaba Yacht Race, the Inglis 50 Nortruss G-Wizz, skippered by Mooloolaba Yacht
Club's Sailing Administrator Phil Gray, has just crossed the finish line off Alexandra Headland.

The next Queensland yacht to finish is Great Escape, skippered by Duncan Mackeller, due this afternoon.

After 65 hours of racing over the 469 nautical mile course, just under seven minutes separated the lead boats Wild Thing and Brindabella when they crossed the
finish line this morning. Wild Thing, skippered by Melbourne developer Grant Wharington from Mornington Yacht Club, finished at 6:10:56 and Sydney maxi
Brindabella, skippered by George Snow, finished at 6.17:35.

'It was cat and mouse all the way,' said Grant when he arrived at Mooloolaba Yacht Club. 'This is the first time we have beaten Brindabella in an offshore race
and we are really pleased with the result.'

Twenty-one-year-old Casey Smith, the boat manager on Wild Thing, grew up in Mooloolaba and was welcomed on the dock by his parents. 'Grant let me steer
over the finish line which was a real buzz,' said Casey.

George Snow heartily congratulated the crew of Wild Thing on their line honours win and thanked his own crew for their efforts during the difficult conditions.

'The Sydney to Mooloolaba Race is always hard tactically but this time we were faced with light airs, lots of running currents and the fact that the smaller boats
were bearing down on us with the southerly behind them,' said George.

Six yachts have now finished, including A99, skippered by Sean Langman, Sydney maxi Marchioness (John Markos) and Martin James' Infinity III. The
remaining yachts are expected to finish throughout the day and night with the last yacht in the fleet, Komatsu Blue Lady (Shane Kearns), due tomorrow
afternoon.

On handicap, Fruit Machine (Neill Whiston), the Beneteau 40.7 which has led the IMS Division since the start, is still the IMS overall leader, followed by Atara
(Roger Hickman) and AFR Midnight Rambler (Ed Psaltis/Bob Thomas).

The three Farr 40s, Buon Giorno (Stephen Ellis), Corinthian Doors (Richard Perini) and Leroy Brown (Warren Wieckmann) have clawed their way back to be the
top placegetters in the IRC Division and Galatea (Bill Shields) is leading PHS Division.

For a full set of results, go to http://www.sailing-online.com.au

The forecast for today is for a 10-15 knot breeze from the sou'west.

Tomorrow many of the Sydney - Mooloolaba Yacht Race entries will take part in the inaugural Mooloolaba Harbour Sprint, sponsored by Maroochy Shire
Council.

The exact start time will be determined tomorrow morning for the 12 nautical mile course, once finish times for the remaining Sydney - Mooloolaba yachts have
been established. The handicap winner will take home a $2,000 cash prize and prizes will also be awarded to 2nd and 3rd handicap placegetters and the line
honours winner.