Talk about being a bit crazy try this- Kerli Corlette and Rod Waterhouse sailing to Hobart on a Hobie Tiger.

The team left Pittwater on Tuesday and by late Thursday morning were ghosting out of Batemans Bay after a bit of shut eye.

On Friday and Friday night they made the Bass Strait crossing in what was supposed to be ideal winds from a northly direction. Friday night was very lonely as they encountered 35 knots from the south with 5m seas. They pulled in to St Helens on the NE of Tasmania late Saturday morning looking for a long sleep.

They are off again with a change of crew. Rod and Jason Waterhouse are now on board 10 nm north of Maria Island (at 9pm) Sunday night on the last leg to Hobart on Sunday evening. They have 8 kts of wind dropping through the night but still from a northerly direction- that’s what the weather forecasts say but it will be different out there and bloody dark.

Stay posted

Rod is tough as nails and I can believe he'd do something insane like this. Hope he's ok.

He could have picked a better weather window as there is a huge depression south of Tasmania. Its quite noteable to the rest of the sailing world because its knocked out our favorite Carbon Transport Unit Vessel Tracking Unit MET595...

Salty old bastard.

Wasn't there a guy who did it on a Laser a few years back?

35 knots and 15m seas? Yeeouch! How did they keep it together through that? <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" />

Wasn't there a Syndney Hobart race a few years back in which the majority of the racing yachts competing needed assistance, with some of them sinking, with crew missing, etc? <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" />

1998, ref: http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0BQK/is_3_6/ai_74699537

Callenging piece of water that.

Arie, there are several great books written about that race. I have one called Proving Ground, I think there's another called Fatal Storm. Great reads.

Step up into the lift raft!!!!

Thanks Tim! Added them to my must read list!

How many miles is each of the legs and total trip? Rod's done many a distance race, so I'm sure he's up for the challenge.

I've read a few books on sailing disasters and mostly got the impression that if this or that had been done lives would have been saved.

At the end of the "Fatal Storm" the feeling is quite opposite. It is amazing they only lost 6 lives in that race.

A good comparison would be to read "Fastnet Force 10" first. Written about the 79 Fastnet race where 15 lives were lost.

The laser sailor (can't remember who it was exactly, but may've been Michael Blackburn) "only" sailed across Bass Strait, something like Melbourne to Stanley I think.

There was talk of Rohan Veal foiling across Bass Strait, and another laser sailor, one of the female Olympians. Don't know what happened with those.

Rod's the man, he don't even need rudders. (unless there's a HLS clearance bouy) Good on 'em, I hope there's some video or somethin'.I bet Hoop's waitin' to pull 'em in at the finish.

It was Michael Blackburn. He did it in just over 13 hours.

I suspect this is only accessible from the US, but if you download the Joost video player (http://www.joost.com/), there is a pretty good documentary on the '98 race available online in the "Boats on TV" channel. Look in the "Sports and Games" category.

BTW, forgot to mention the title - "Into the Eye of the Storm."

On a slight different note on saturday or sunday (i heard on sunday). two sailors were lost off san francisco. in 25 kts and 15 ft seas. during a race. I don't know all the facts but goes to show when it picks up things can wrong in a big hurry.

They made it.
http://www.pbsc.org.au/SubPages/SYD-HOBART.html
I look foward to asking Rod about it at the club in the next few weeks.
Cheers

Sydney Hobart on a Tiger, amazing feat. Inspirational

MICHELLE PAINE
March 18, 2008 12:00am
THEY just spent six days in a tiny boat and it may as well have leaked, because Rod Waterhouse was never dry during a dramatic trip from Sydney.

Last night Mr Waterhouse, 49, and his son Jason, 16, sailed into Hobart on their 18-foot Hobie Tiger catamaran.

Mr Waterhouse and Kerli Corlette left Sydney Harbour last Tuesday.

Mr Corlette made way for Jason, a world champion sailor, at St Helens.

Mr Waterhouse said it was probably the first time Bass Strait had been crossed in such a vessel.

"I tried to do this in the mid-80s, we had a back-up power boat but that didn't work and we called the trip off half-way. It was always a regret," Mr Waterhouse said.

"This time we had our own backup, we had our own security, a satellite phone and back-up system."

Mr Waterhouse and his family have done many years of offshore and long-distance racing but it all paled next to Bass Strait.

"Bass Strait is very difficult. It's intimidating on a small boat. It's cold, there's no escape, you can't get out of

the cold. And we kept trying to lose speed," he said.

"We were very careful not to put it over."

One of the biggest challenges was slowing down the quick Hobie as it soared down the huge waves of Bass Strait.

The cat is capable of 25 knots.

"The first leg was close to 400 miles without a break; four days without a break. You get tired, there's no respite, but that's part of the challenge," Mr Waterhouse said.

The only stop before St Helens was Batemans Bay.

That is pretty amazing stuff, just goes to show how tuff hobie tiger /f18's really are.

After the last 3 days at sea, not something I would want to take on in a hurry!