Crackerjack V
A Dock Chat, a Swan 82, and the Best Seat in the Whitsundays
Crackerjack V isn’t a boat you say no to. An 82-foot Swan, drawn by German Frers and finished out below by Lazzarini Pickering, she’s a genuinely different scale of yacht to anything else at Airlie that week — five ensuite cabins, a crew of around twenty when she’s racing, and a fresh refit behind her after her Tasmanian owners brought her home from Hong Kong. Getting the chance to spend a day aboard her, rather than just admiring her from the dock, wasn’t something to turn down.
The run from Airlie Beach to Hamilton Island is short as deliveries go, but it’s a proper introduction to a boat of this size — threading out through the Whitsundays’ islands and passages rather than the open ocean legs Crackerjack V is really built for. Under Damien’s watch I was given the opportunity to helm her for most of the delivery, allowing me the opportunity to appreciate what an 82 footer feels like.
Watching Hamilton Island come up ahead, with Crackerjack V readying for her own campaign at Race Week, was a good reminder of why turning up to regattas and saying yes to conversations on the dock pays off. A week that started on Salt ended with a day on one of the most striking yachts on the east coast — and an invitation I wouldn’t have had without a bit of luck and a friendly presentation-night chat.
Blogs
Airlie Beach Race Week 2026
Solaris 50 Salt took on Airlie Beach Race Week 2026, leading Performance Cruising Division 1 into the final day. After six intense races through the Whitsundays, a tie-break countback handed victory to Eureka 11. Here is the story of a memorable campaign, stellar conditions, and racing decided by the narrowest of margins.
Ca Va — Hamilton Island Race Week
Filmed from aboard the Hanse 430 YKnot, Phil Dressler’s Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 440 Ca Va battles through the competitive Orange Division fleet at Hamilton Island Race Week 2026. Experience the close-quarters action, tactically tight racing, and stunning Whitsunday Islands scenery as these two fast-cruising yachts race side-by-side.
Racing 520 Miles North on Clockwork
Shaun McKenna joins the South Australian crew of the Sydney 38 Clockwork for the 520-nautical-mile 2026 Gold Coast to Mackay Yacht Race. Facing 30-knot southerlies, high-speed spinnaker runs, and a severe midnight broach that snapped their steering column, the team executed rapid mid-race repairs to reach Mackay Marina.
Celebrating Legacy and Grit at the 2026 ORCV Awards
Go behind the lens at Sandringham Yacht Club for the 2026 ORCV Annual Awards. This photo-driven retrospective captures the grit and triumphs of the offshore season, celebrating champions like Matt Setton and Nigel Jones while tracing the historic continuity and community defining Victorian ocean racing.
Brass Monkey Winter Pursuit
A thick winter fog at Safety Beach couldn’t stop the Shimmer campaign. With five of eight crew members aboard, the team used Race 4 of the Brass Monkey series to test a new TP52 staysail in light air. A second-place finish secured Shimmer the overall series lead, building critical momentum for the 2026 Rolex Sydney to Hobart.
Smoke, Sparks, and 25 Knots
Before racing the ORCV Winter Series opener, the crew aboard Shimmer stepped onto the swim platform for a spectacular, 25-year-old tradition: a live marine distress flare drill off Sandringham. From orange day smoke to high-altitude rockets and brilliant handheld red pyrotechnics, this vital safety training offered a rare, firsthand look at handling hot emergency ordnance on the water.
Time Out goes north
Follow the delivery of the stunning Hanse 458, Time Out X2, on her maiden winter passage under the new owner John Corrie as it leaves from Martha’s Cove to Bermagui. This coastal adventure captures everything from navigating the Rip and anchoring at Refuge Cove to spectacular encounters with breaching whales along the Australian coast.
Port Douglas Race Week 2026
Working the bow aboard Y Knot at Port Douglas Race Week 2026, racing for the iconic Clipper Cup on the Coral Sea. Five days of tropical sailing — from glassy Day One conditions to 25 knots of south-east trade wind. Shaun McKenna reports from one of Far North Queensland’s sailing events.
North by Northwest
Pinned in Nelly Bay by the south-east trades, we waited four days before heading north aboard YKnot, a Hanse 430. What followed was 199 nautical miles of downwind sailing — island anchorages, unexpected hospitality at Dunk, a sea turtle at Fitzroy, and a tide-dependent entry into Port Douglas. The difficult days are always worth it.
ORCV Coastal Sprint #3
Sam Backwell’s first ocean race. Six yachts crossing ahead of an inbound cargo ship. Ginan sweeping all three handicap divisions. The third ORCV Coastal Sprint packed a full season’s worth of sailing into 27 nautical miles off the Mornington Peninsula — and Shimmer was right in the thick of it.
Luxury cruising
Some boats are built for the marina. Others are built to move. Shooting Baruch — a 2019 Nautitech 542 — for Inspire Marine, it was clear from the first frame which one she is. Fast, refined, and strikingly photogenic, she’s a French multihull design that earns its reputation both offshore and at anchor.
Salt
On Salt, a 2021 Solaris 50, I sailed as bow person with James Marshall and Ian Fankhanel. Festival of Sails 2026 saw us win Division 1, thanks to a skilled team including tactician, navigator, and Peter Dowdney. Aaron Cole added sail expertise, highlighting how experience and teamwork make a high-performance yacht excel.