Ten Boats For Tasman Race

Chronicle (Levin), 19 January 1948, Page 5

Ten Boats For Tasman Race

AUdKLAXD, Jan. 18. A last minute outram in tlio Tasman yacat rtice next Saturday wiil be the Americau 20ft double-ended cutter Pagan which arrived at Auckland froni Tahiti on Christnias llve. The smalJe.st compet itor in the race, the vessel will probablv be sailed by a erew of two, the owner, Air. William ('. Weld, oi .Maine. ITiited States, and a young1 Auckland yaehtnian, Albert Porter, of Remuera. There is now a total of 10 likely starters in the race. * Fourteen and a half days after lehvi n !4 Ifobart, the Pdift -Sydney cutter 1'eer dy n t arrived at Auckland this morning to compet e in the race. The Peer Gynt, which ga i n ed third plac,e in the recent Sydfiey-IIobart contest, has a crew of seven and is the second of three Australian competitors to reacli : Xew Zealand, the MH't yaw I Wavfarer i-ompletin^ the voyaye from Sydney to Auckland last week. Tlie kielbourne i ketch Kurrewa I TI is expected to ar rivc from Hobart on Tucsday. The Peer (rynt is skippered by kla^nus and Trvffve Halversen. jiarlners in • thc Sydney boat buildin^' tirin of Lars 1 Halversen and Sons Pty. Idd. Slie left •' Hobart for Auckland on Jauuarv 4 but ] bad weather forced li'er to shelter for a day at Port Art,hur 011 the Derwent I'Xtuary, hefore clearin"' the Tasmanian coast. ''After that we liad a very (food niu," said Mr. -M. Halversen. "'We did not see a living tliintf exeept sharks and birds until Saturday when we were on the east coast of Xew 2ealand. " Favnurable winds were eneounter1 ed t'nr more than half the voyage, the lirst 1000 miles being conqileted in seven days. Winds tlien liecame nortli- ! erlv and we liad to pinch a ' bit," he ^ cont'uued. "We niade a landfajj. about ® ■^0 miles ilown t h 0 west coast of N ew - Zcalnnd and sailed into a .naslv north- 1 easter rounding the top of the island. " ' His brother liad be.en knocked 1111- t conscious when ha- was thrown from his t 1m 11k oue uijrht ;'i.s the eutter was doiny f se.ven knots with oiilv tlie stavsaiJ up, h: in 11 south westerly gale in tlie middie n of ihe Tasman. Is