1998 Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race

The 1998 Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race was the 54th annual running of the "blue water classic" Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race. It was hosted by the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia based in Sydney, New South Wales. It was the most disastrous in the race's history, with the loss of six lives and five yachts in an unexpectedly severe storm on 27–28 December.

Background

The Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race is an annual event hosted by the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, starting in Sydney, New South Wales on Boxing Day then heading south through the Tasman Sea, past Bass Strait, into Storm Bay and up the Derwent River, to cross the finish line in Hobart, Tasmania. The race distance is approximately .

The race is run in co-operation with the Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania, and is widely considered to be one of the most difficult yacht races in the world.

1998 race

The 1998 race, like every other edition, began on Sydney Harbour, at noon on Boxing Day (26 December 1998), with 115 starters heading south. The yachts ranged in size from the Sayonara to the Berrimilla.

A favourable current running south at with strengthening north-to-northeasterly winds of generally prevailing off the New South Wales southern coast allowed a record-breaking dash south down the Australian East Coast. By early morning on 27 December, the lead yachts entered Bass Strait and began to encounter winds in excess of . Of the 115 boats which started, 71 retired and 44 yachts completed the race. The AFR Midnight Rambler, skippered by Ed Psaltis, won on handicap. Never before had a boat of its size reached the entry to Bass Strait in less than a day.

Storm and rescue

On the second day of the race (27 December), unexpectedly severe weather conditions struck the fleet off the coast of south-eastern Australia. An unusually intense low-pressure depression developed, which resulted in unseasonal mid-summer snow across parts of south-eastern Australia. The weather system built into an exceptionally strong storm with sustained winds in excess of 65 knots (+33 m/s, +118 km/h, +73 mph, Force 12), gusts to 80 knots, and maximum wave heights of . The rising storm caused the abandonment of seven boats, five of which sank; 55 sailors had to be rescued from their yachts or life-rafts by ships and helicopters. Overall, the rescue efforts involved 35 military and civilian aircraft and 27 Royal Australian Navy vessels. It proved to be Australia's largest-ever peacetime rescue operation.

Aftermath

CYCA report

On 1 June 1999, the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia released the Report, Findings and Recommendations of the 1998 Sydney to Hobart Race Review Committee. The report listed a multitude of safety recommendations and resulted in changes both for future Sydney to Hobart races and for yachting events worldwide.

Coroner's inquest

A coroner's inquest into the deaths was critical of both the race management at the time and the Bureau of Meteorology.

The results of the inquest were released on 12 December 2000, NSW coroner John Abernethy finding that the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia had "abdicated its responsibility to manage the race". He wrote: "From what I have read and heard, it is clear to me that during this crucial time the race management team played the role of observers rather than managers and that was simply not good enough." But he acknowledged the club's actions to upgrade safety precautions and sailor qualifications.

Abernethy also criticised the Bureau for making insufficient efforts to inform race officials of a dramatically worsened weather forecast about the severe storm developing south of Eden, when it was common public knowledge the race was scheduled to begin. As a remedial measure, he required the Bureau to add maximum wind gust speed and wave height to its forecasts.

The day after the coroner's findings,  the club's race director, Phil Thompson, resigned his position.

{| class="wikitable sortable"

! Yacht Name

! Nation

! Owner / Skipper

! Yacht Design

! Launch Year

! Result / Details

| ABN AMRO Challenge

|Ray Roberts

|Iain Murray IMS Racer

|1997

| RETIRED (lost rudder, towed to Batemans Bay)

| Adiago

|Peter Williams

|S&S 36

|1989

| RETIRED Bermagui, prudent seamanship

| Aera

|Nick Lykiardopulo

|Swan 46

|1985

| FINISHED 12 across the line, 1st CHS

| AFR Midnight Rambler

|Edward Psaltis / Bob Thomas

| Hick 35

|1994

| FINISHED 10th across the line, 1st overall IMS & Division D

| Alexander of Creswell

| Royal Australian Navy / W. Hellwig

|Swarbrick 111

|1984

| RETIRED sail damage

| Antipodes Sydney

| Geoff Hill

| Taswell 56

|1991

| RETIRED Eden, prudent seamanship

| Antuka

| Raymond Semmens

| Adams 13

|1983

| RETIRED prudent seamanship

| Aspect Computing

|D. Pescud

| Radford 54

|1989

| FINISHED 9th across the line, 1st PMS Div A

| Assassin

|R. Crawford

| Farr 40

|1992

| RETIRED, prudent seamanship

| Atara

|H. Cudmore / J. Storey

| Lyons 43

|1994

| FINISHED 12th across the line, 4th IMS Division B

| Aurora

|Jim Holly

| Farr 40

| FINISHED 25th across the line, 2nd IMS Div C

| Ausmaid

| G. Gjergja

| Farr 47

|1994

| FINISHED 3rd over the line, 1st IMS Div B

| Avanti

|Chris Mooney / John Mooney

|First 38

|1986

| FINISHED 27th across the line, 2nd PHS Div A

| B52

| Wayne Miller

| Bashford Howison 41

|1995

| RETIRED (rolled, lost mast, structural damage, motored to Eden)

| Bacardi

|P. Cole

| Peterson 44

| 1978

| FINISHED 19th across the line, 2nd IMS Div E

| Berrimilla

| Alex Whitworth

| Brolga 33

| 1977

| FINISHED 31st across the line, 1st PHS & Div B

| Bin Rouge

| D Hodgkinson / Christopher Bowling

| Farr 31

|1993

| RETIRED (Eden, prudent seamanship)

| Bobsled

| P. White / G. Bush / N. Feros

|Steinman

| RETIRED sail damage

| Maglieri Wines

|Jutson 43

|1994

| RETIRED rig damage

| Miintinta

|Brian Emerson

|Swanson 42

|1975

| RETIRED (hull damage, abandoned, sunk)

| Mirrabooka

| Frers 46

|1987

| FINISHED 21st across the line

| Misty

|Brian Clague

|S&S 34

|1975

|FINISHED last boat in fleet of 44, 1st IMS Division F

| Morning Tide

|A Fenwick / J Davern

|S&S 34

|1974

| RETIRED prudent seamanship

| Nattel Adrenalin

|David Bennett

|Peterson 38

| RETIRED prudent seamanship

| New Horizons

| Cavalier 37

|1985

| RETIRED equipment failure & rig damage

| Polaris

|Cole 43

|1970

| FINISHED 30th across the line

| Quest

| Nelson / Marek 46

|1997

| FINISHED 7th across the line

| Ragamuffin

| Farr 50

|1995

| FINISHED 4th across the line, 2nd IMS Div B

| Rapscallion Team Syntegra

| Dick Voorderhake

|Lyons 40

|1993

| FINISHED 28th across the line

| Red Jacket

|Radford 12.2

|1995

| RETIRED rig damage

| Tenacious

|Defiance / S&S 30

|1979

| RETIRED equipment failure (engine)

| Veto

| Max Crisp, Mike Crisp, Graham Brown

| Robert Salthouse

| 1979

| RETIRED, returned to Sydney, equipment failure & rig damage

| 2

| C1

| Brindabella

| New South Wales

| Jutson 75

| 22.85

| George Snow

| 2:21:55:06