Rudder Cup fleet set to fight it out on tactics with light conditions forecast

by Jane Austin/ORCV media 28 Oct 2025 07:29 GMT From 31 October 2025

Some say a week is a long time in politics but spare a thought for the boats preparing for the 2025 Melbourne to Devonport Yacht Race with Australia's wild spring weather flicking around faster than a rubber band in a classroom, testing even the most seasoned navigators as they plan for this weekend's race.

What is guaranteed for the 27 race starters, however, is an intense battle not only to find the breeze but for the honour to hold aloft the prestigious Rudder Cup, the perpetual trophy of Australia's oldest yacht race.

The weather modelling has a high-pressure system over the Tasman Sea and another sitting in the Great Australian Bight, both working to block any weather coming from the west, with the next deep low likely to move through further south of Tasmania.

The race looks set to start in light north easterly breezes, possibly amidst a thunderstorm, before clocking around to the south around dusk and from there the breeze will oscillate between a north easterly and southerly direction, before coming generally from the east for the remainder of the race.

Rod Smallman, skipper of the double-handed entry Maverick, has been adjusting his routing for the race and is now predicting a relatively slow 36-hour crossing for the double-handers and the smaller boats.

"This year's race will be almost anything but a rhumbline race.

"The race could definitely favour the smaller boats at the back of the fleet who have, in effect, 26 'weather stations' in front of them in the other entries, letting them know what's going on.

"I think we could see the fleet split, with some going left and some going right looking for breeze, I don't think it will be a follow the leader race this year.

"In double-handed sailing, we prefer consistency, whether it's heavy or light, we don't like fronts coming through as that plays into the hands of the bigger boats who have more crew ready to respond and reset.

"We expect to see lots of holes in the breeze, and this won't just affect the smaller boats, the line honours contenders like Scarlet Runner, could easily fall into a hole, it will be a very tactical 'eyes out of the boat' race," said Smallman.

Smallman, winner of the double-handed division in the 2024 race, predicts The Jackal, skippered by Matt Setton, will be in the running for a handicap win, however he also tips that Kraken Sails Toecutter, the Hick 10 skippered by designer Robert Hick, will be quick.

"The Toecutter smokes along in the light breeze, as does the team from Faster Forward, and The Jackal could go well up the front," said Smallman.

Setton has been busy getting his boat and paperwork organised, with the skipper and his very experienced ocean-racing crew coming together for their first Cat 2 race before the 2025 Melbourne to Hobart 'Westcoaster' Yacht Race.

"This is our first serious offshore race and is our first serious foray into Bass Strait on the boat," said Setton.

While Setton isn't looking to set the world on fire in their first race, they are certainly a team to watch.

"The boat was previously Aikin from South Australia and came with a strong pedigree.

"We've extended the bow sprit and got a new A2 which will change the boat's performance, we have totally dropped our symmetrical spinnakers, we think we will be faster, but we will have to wait and see.

"The boat is very good reaching and running and is very light for its length with a quick and powerful rig.

"In the right conditions we can keep up with the 42-44 foot boats, we won't keep up with the modern 40-footers, but the Beneteau 40-footers we'll keep up with," said Setton.

Scott Robinson, skipper of the 2024 Rudder Cup winner Dasher+Fisher How Bizarre, has a few reasons to be excited about the upcoming race.

"We are excited to be honest because it's a great race and lots of fun, the Mersey Yacht Club (MYC) is so warm and accommodating, there's lots of boats, the whole thing is such a good package," said Robinson.

Robinson is also thrilled to have his old sailing mates Ralph White and James Russell, along with James's two sons, Campbell and Doug, onboard.

"Ralph, James and I sailed together for about ten years in our twenties; they are really great guys and both exceptional sailors.

"The three of us did the 50th Sydney Hobart [Yacht Race] and now they are back on board for this race, which is just fantastic, it feels like we are getting the band back together," said Robinson, who will be sailing in the 80th Sydney race alongside Ralph and James.

Jeremy Walton, Race Director from the Ocean Racing Club of Victoria, is looking forward to welcoming new competitors including boats from Tasmania and South Australia and seeing how the races within the race unfold.

"It's great to see Joan Lorraine, on the start line, and I'm excited to see how Clockwork, Faster Forward and Loch Sloidh 3 go in the battle of the Sydney 38s," said Walton.

Walton thinks Scarlet Runner is an obvious line honours contender but expects the competition to be tight in the double-handed division.

"It's going to be quite intriguing as to whether the Jeanneau Sunfast 3300, Unprecedented, skippered by Andrew McGrath who is sailing with Grant Chipperfield, will do better than Maverick, a 3600, in the lighter conditions," said Walton.

27 boats will be on the start line of this historic 195 nautical mile yacht race across Bass Strait from Melbourne to Devonport, which is conducted by the ORCV and the MYC.

Line honours contenders are likely to cross the line mid-afternoon on Saturday the 1st of November.

The Rudder Cup Perpetual Trophy will be awarded to the AMS measurement handicap winner of the 2025 race.

The race is part of the ORCV Offshore Championship and is open to yachts fully crewed, 4-plus autohelm, and double-handed.

The first race was sailed in 1907 from Queenscliff to Low Head and was open to 'cruising-sailing boats under 60-feet of any rig, from yacht clubs in the Commonwealth', with four boats on the start line.

The longstanding race record set by Prowler (Joe Westerlo) in 1998 of 19 hours, 32 minutes and 56 seconds is likely to remain unchallenged against the backdrop of the light breezes forecast.

While the destination has shifted from Low Head to Devonport, the race is a highly competitive event offering navigational and tactical challenges, a first Bass Strait crossing for newcomers, but above all, a race of mateship that has stood the test of time.

Keep up to date on race progress at: www.orcv.org.au/devonport