FRIENDLY rivalry will surely emerge when the tropical sailors racing under the Whitsunday Sailing Club and the Abel Point Yacht Club burgees duel for the 2009 Rolex Sydney to Hobart Race Performance handicap trophy.

Former Tasmanian Damien Suckling achieved his career best result when he skippered the Jutson 42 Another Fiasco to win the trophy for the Abel Point Yacht Club in 2006 while Leo Rodriguez steered the former Volvo Globe race sloop Telecoinabox Merit to win class honours under the Whitsunday Sailing Club ‘battle flag’ in 2008.

Their entries have yet to be officially ratified by the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia while the crews prepare to accept a change of sailing environment, casting aside the tropical shirts for thermals and storm jackets as the clock ticks towards the Boxing Day start time.

Naturally some traditional ‘Rum Bucket Bets’ have been placed privately on the result with the smaller and lower handicapped Another Fiasco hoping for a similar forecast to 2006 when skipper Damien Suckling outsailed a strong fleet to win the title with a 3 day 20 hour 33 minute 12 second corrected handicap.

Predictably Telecoinabox Merit with the longer waterline advantage should log the faster time over the 628 nautical mile course but they will be hard pressed to keep the handicap time in their favour to finish with the faster corrected course result over the equally experienced crew on Another Fiasco.

Both crews realise that previous results and their successful navigation notes are now history and they will be forced to familiarise their race strategy with what promises to be another challenging forecast with some real grunt in the breeze.

Making any pre-race tactical plans is always useful but the result of the Whitsunday match race on the storm tormented waters of the Tasman Sea will be determined by the crew who rates the higher boat speed to outpace their respective handicap ratings.

Their handicap ratings are yet to be confirmed however Leo Rodriguez will be hoping for a high percentage of moderate to fresh reaching and spinnaker sailing winds to blow for Telecoinabox Merit to outpace Another Fiasco.

In fact the difference between the two crews could very well be decided on the applied strategy when they weather Green Cape for the generally demanding east of the rhumbline course across Bass Strait.

Local interest will also focus on Robert Oatley’s super maxi Wild Oats Xl when she races under the new Hamilton Island Yacht Club burgee.

Wild Oats Xl, winner of the past four Rolex Sydney Hobart line honours trophies and the current race record holder when she logged the amazing 14.7 knot average speed in a course time of 1 day 18 hours 40 minutes 10 seconds in 2005, has the remarkable four race aggregate of 13.4 knots which suggests if the wind blows solidly at a reaching and running angle her 2005 record could reach a new time zone.

This is based on the expected three way match race when Wild Oats XI will be hard pressed by the World’s fastest maxis including the English challenger Leopard, Neville Crichton’s Shockwave and Grant Warrington’s modified Wild Thing to retain her undefeated record in the world’s toughest blue water classic.