The Cruising Yacht Club of Australia officially opens its spring/summer offshore racing season for 2007-2008 this weekend, with the first Short Ocean Pointscore (SOPS) and Ocean Pointscore (OPS) race on Saturday and the Monica Geddes Memorial Trophy Islands Race on Sydney Harbour for the Short Haul division on Sunday.

The Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron will conduct Saturday’s race for SOPS and OPS, combined with its own Offshore Division 3, with a strong fleet expected for both SOPS and OPS.

Sunday’s Islands Race is designated at the CYCA’s Official Opening Day and whilst the Monica Geddes Memorial Trophy goes to the winner of the Short Haul PHS division, the race is open to all CYCA boats, including an IRC division.

Trophies will be presented at the club after this popular race around the many island on the Harbour.

The SOPS this season is an eight race series, with the best six to count, with divisions for IRC and PHS.  All racing will be off Sydney Heads.

The OPS is a seven race series including races to Lion Island, Port Hacking and Newcastle as well as several short races sailed with the SOPS fleet.

One newcomer to CYCA racing this summer will be the well-performed former Tasmanian yacht Quetzalcoatl,  a 40-footer designed by Don Jones (designer of the maxi yacht Skandia).

Quetzalcoatl was built in Hobart by its original owner, Tasmanian fine furniture maker Josh Ey, with the hull of King Billy pine.  She has scored two wins in the West Coaster Melbourne to Hobart Race, one on line honours and one on handicap.

New owners are a syndicate comprising Anthony Sweetapple, Robert Hampshire, James Lee Warner and Anthony Bruce.

Anthony Sweetapple, is the son of wellknown yachtsman Bill Sweetapple who raced the Farr 37 Pippin for many years with the CYCA. Now retired from yacht racing,  Bill lives at Robertson on the Southern Highlands.

“I did a lot of sailing with Dad, but have been working in the UK for some time, sailing on The Solent and in cross Channel Races,” Anthony Sweetapple said today.  “Now I am back in Sydney and thrilled to own my own boat.”

Sweetapple said Quetzalcoatl would not be ready for racing this weekend, “but we hope to be out for the second SOPS race and compete in the long offshore races in a lead-up to competing in this year’s Rolex Sydney Hobart,” he added.

Quetzalcoatl has a bright yellow hull with a distinctive logo on the bow.  “We are not changing the colour – yellow is a winning colour,” said Sweetapple. – Peter Campbell