Race Info

Information on the Race  – See also Provisional Notice of Race and Rally

Overview of 2011 Around Australia Ocean Race and Rally

Overseas participants – click here for Australian Customs information.

‘2011 Around Australia Ocean Race’

Event Slot Reservation #1 Michael Keough - Adelaide

The 2011 Race event is for Category (1) monohull and multihull yachts. The event format is designed to allow yachts from all around Australia, and overseas, to compete.

In a nutshell:

There are 7 start and finish ports including Bunbury, Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney, Southport, Brisbane, and Hamilton Island.

Yachts choose the port they start/finish from. Yachts from Western Australia start first from the Port of Bunbury in early July 2011 racing anticlockwise (Australia to Port). Yachts from the next start/finish port start with boats that have arrived from the preceding port. Eventually all yachts will be racing together. Every yacht visits every port. Every yacht covers the same distance (+/- 7200 nm). The event is completed by early November. Crew changes at stop-over ports are permissible.

Port of Bunbury. The City of Bunbury is the second largest city in Western Australia and one of the fastest growing cities in Australia. Bunbury lies just north of the magnificent Geographe Bay sailing area.

Every leg of the Around Australia Ocean Race is a race. The Race event timing coincides with the reintroduction of the Melbourne to Sydney Race, the  iconic Sydney to Southport Yacht Race, races from Southport to Brisbane, Brisbane to Keppel Bay, Kepple Bay to Airlie Beach and on to Airlie Beach for  Airlie Beach Race Week, and Hamilton Island Race Week. There is a race from Hamilton Island to Townsville or Cairns. From Cairns to Darwin, Darwin to Broome, and so on.

DRAFT Race Event Timeline Diagram

Click here for Draft Race Event Timeline Diagram

Airlie Beach - Hamilton Island nearby

Meridein Marinas Airlie beach Race Week and Audi Hamilton Island Race Week.  Participants in the Around Australia Ocean race may take in these popular events during an extended stop-over in Queensland.

Yachts will compete for a number of handicap prizes and trophies and for the ‘Around Australia Ocean Race Cup’. The IRC handicap winner will not be known until the lowest point scoring boat has reached its Start/Finish Port and completed its circumnavigation.

There will be a strong committment from the event to ensure it delivers maximum media coverage and in maximising media opportunities for all the participating yachts. This is vital in ensuring yacht sponsors receive the best value possible.

The dynamics of event media production and distribution were very different two years back. They will be equally different in two years time. We know they will be more powerful, more instant, more effective in every respect. We will monitor and take advanyage of every new development.

Lighthouse at Cape Leeuwin

 Yachts choose their start/finish ‘home’ port. (7 ports to choose from).

• The event starts late June 2011. The course is counter clockwise – Australia to Port.
• Bunbury yachts start first. Each yacht determines its start time within a given window.
• As yachts reach a stop over port they are joined by yachts starting from that port. There will be a minimum stop over period for each port – some longer than others.
• The racing fleet builds progressively. Yachts from WA, SA, Victoria, Tasmania, NSW, and Queensland arrive at a port on the north coast of Queensland. As a fleet they sail over the ‘top end’ and stop over in Darwin. Asian yachts may choose to start on the Queensland Coast. New Zealand yachts in Sydney or Brisbane.
• From Darwin the fleet races west to Broome and from Broome to Geraldton, Geraldton to Bunbury, Bunbury to Esperance before heading east to Adelaide.
• Immediately the Bunbury yachts are home they have completed their circumnavigation establishing the benchmark cumulative elapsed time (and/or points) for the rest of the fleet to beat.
• As each yacht in the fleet enters its ‘home’ port and crosses the finish line in that port they complete the event. Port to port elapsed times are recorded for each yacht. The yacht with the least cumulative elapsed time (or points), home port to home port, wins.
• Crew changes are permissible.
• Participants from outside of Australia can choose a ‘home port’ of convenience and adopt that port as their start/finish port.
• The Race event will run separately to the rally event. Separate rules shall apply.
• Divisions for yacht classes and sizes will evolve as participant response is analysed and by consultation with yacht owners.
• A race “Leg Captain’ will be appointed for each leg selected from sailors with extensive knowledge of that leg.
• The duration of the Race event will be +/- 60 days in port, +/- 50 days at sea.

For more information or if you have questions please contact : info@sailaroundaustralia.com.au

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