04 Apr
With the remnants of an East Coast Low generating 4.5-metre monster swells barring the entrance to Port Stephens, rain squalls packing 30 knots gusts, strong tidal flows, and shifting sandbars the 2025 Sail Port Stephens Passage Series has delivered excitement, trepidation, and a fair share of thrills for competitors.
The first two days of big winds and big currents saw the Dehler 46 YKnot owned by Graeme Amey post two very respectable results; a 4th and a 1st respectively on PHS in Division 2. On Day 3 the YKnot crew tried to keep the cruiser-racer rolling in a dying breeze on the final downwind leg to the finish of the Nelson Bay break wall.
While they managed to drift across the line in just under three hours, their time meant the YKnot crew experienced the full roller-coaster of yacht racing – first to last in two races.
But on the same leg, the crew of Sean Gartner’s Dehler 38SQ Seremisa managed to claw their way in front of a clutch of close rivals.
“We were in a battle with a Grand Soleil 40, a Sydney 38, a Sydney 36, an Adams 10 and other things and we got them all,” Sean recounts with a justified degree of satisfaction.
The near-glass-out was a major contrast to the previous days that featured round-ups, ripped spinnakers, and bruised egos as the winds gods pummelled the fleet.
“The boat handled so well,” he says of the fresh conditions. “As well, the crew that we’ve got up here this week have now been sailing together for over a year and that’s probably key to how we’re going,” Sean says.
The skipper praised his crew who have stepped up to meet the multiple challenges the tight racing on the Bay courses has thrown up.
“The two guys on the bow have only been sailing for a couple of years and they’re killing it,” Sean says proudly. “When were we getting hit with 25 knot gusts the guy on the kite did it great job, we didn’t round-up when everyone else was. We just controlled it between the helm and the sheet.”
After three days racing the Dehler 38SQ lies in 5th with two more days left in the popular regatta.
Tacticians earn their pay the hard way at Sail Port Stephens. If the race committee sets a course within the huge waterway, there are very powerful tidal flows, rocks, shoals, and sandbars to contend with. Outside the Heads, threading around Port Stephens spectacular offshore islands there are wind shadows, more currents and difficult choices about sail selections.
For Sean the process of melding a crew into a cohesive team and building skill levels is one of the most satisfying and enjoyable aspects of sailing.
“The boat goes amazingly well and it’s going better and better all the time,” he says. “We don’t have any pros onboard, we don’t have any locals who know the tides, currents and things like that. It’s just all mates from Pittwater, and it just shows what the boat can do.”
With the forecast for Friday and Saturday promising a return to sunny skies Seremisa’s crew will be looking to make the most of every shift on one of the most scenic racecourses in yachting.
More information on the Dehler range:
