9:16 PM Sun 14 Mar 2010 GMT
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'Intrigue, with Don Calvert on the helm, racing in the recent Crown Series Bellerive Regatta - which Intrigue was also a winner'
Peter Campbell ©
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Veteran Hobart yachtsman Don Calvert has steered this equally veteran yacht Intrigue to yet another Pennant victory with The Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania, winning the final three races of the season on Saturday under both IRC and AMS ratings.
The Castro 40, in which Calvert represented Australia at the Admiral's Cup in England in 1985, has now won an amazing 58 Pennants on the Derwent, including 26 with the RYCT.
The Division 1 fleet sailed three races on Saturday: a re-sail of a race abandoned last October and two final Pennants for the IRC and AMS rating division - and Intrigue won all three on corrected time, excelling in the light to moderate seabreeze and flat water.
Hobart and the River Derwent turning on a magnificent day of sailing for the fleet, with the sea breeze filling in on a sparkling autumn afternoon. Competition was close in all divisions, with two Pennants having to be decided on countbacks.
Intrigue had a handy five point lead in AMS going into the final day, but was one point behind David Bean's Beneteau 44.7 Auch under IRC ratings going into today's races. The hat-trick of corrected time wins gave her the IRC Pennant on a countback from Auch, each boat finishing on 9 points. Roger Jackman's Doctor Who finished third overall on 20 points.
In the AMS handicap division, used for the first time in Hobart this season, Intrigue finished on 6 points, four points clear of Auch, with David Taylor's Sydney 36 Pisces finishing third on 19 points.
Don Calvert commissioned The Hamble (UK) based naval architect Tony Castro to design Intrigue to the then One Ton Rule, with three objectives in mind - to gain a place in the Australian team for the 1985 Admiral's Cup and also represent his country at the One Ton Cup the same year, and thirdly to design a yacht that would be a fast racing yacht on the River Derwent.
Intrigue was built in a disused apply packing shed down the historic d'Entrecasteaux Channel of diagonally-planked Tasmania King Billy pine, using the WEST epoxy resin system and sheathed with E glass and carbon fibres.
In 25 years, Calvert and Intrigue have now notched up 58 Pennant wins on the Derwent and could add more to that tally as the Derwent Sailing Squadron and the Bellerive Yacht Club have still to complete their seasons. Over the past
25 years she has also won the rating division of the Bruny Island Race six times and the long ocean Maria Island Race four times as well as many regatta victories.
Auch, which owner/skipper David Bean has put up for sale, got some compensation by winning the Division 1 Pennant under PHS handicaps, on a countback from Gary Smith's Bakewell-White 45 The Fork in the Road, with Intrigue a close third.
Casual Pennant entry, 2Unlimited, Greg Prescott's brand new Melges 32, was the star performer on a perfect sailing day on the Derwent, with Prescott being joined by his longtime ocean racing skipper Roger Hickman, the Sydney-based expat Tasmanian.
The Melges 32 finished first across the line in the light air morning race, also winning under both IRC and AMS ratings. She followed this with a second on AMS and a fourth on IRC in race two, and a win on AMS and a fourth on IRC
in the third race of the day.
'I was down here visiting my Mum and 'Enzo' (Greg Prescott) asked me to sail with him today.ten minutes later I had changed my Qantas flight and today I enjoyed a magnificent sail on the Derwent where I learned to sail many years
ago,' Hickman said.
'I reckon this is the first Royal's Pennant Race that I have sailed in since 1968 when I crewed on my father's yacht Bronzewing.and I was on a winner!' added the Sydney Hobart Race and Sailing South Race Week winner.
' 'Enzo' and I have sailed together in some ten Sydney Hobarts, while 'Mozo' (David Morris, another crew member of 2Unlimited) has sailed the last six Hobarts with me,' Hickman said, with Prescott interrupting, 'This time I was the boss!'
'This was the first time I had sailed on a Melges 32.they are a fantastic boat.we were clocking 18 knots downwind in 16 knots of breeze,' added Hickman, who sailed as mainsheet for Prescott.
In other RYCT Pennants decided on Saturday, Division 2 went to Nigel Johnston's Ingenue won the final race to finish the summer season with 8 points, beating Silver Mist (Andrew Sutherland) on 12 points and Miss Conduct (Robin Fleming) on 13 points.
Division 3 Pennant went to Firecrest (Peter Limb), winning the last race to end the summer series on 8 points, one point clear of Ragtime (Tom Kirkland) on 9 points and Edris (David Wynn) with 13 points.
Stephen Boyes took out the Farr 40 Pennant with Wired, finishing with a third and first on Saturday for a net score of 10 points, three points clear of War Games (Wayne Banks-Smith) on 13 points, with two points to Voodoo Chile (Lloyd Clark) on 15 points.
The 9 Metre division saw another close result, with Sunview Homes (Robert Woehler) scoring 11 points to win the Pennant by two points from Trouble (Dave Willans) on 13 points, third going to Just Jones (Peter Giblin) on 17 points.
In the International Dragon class, former world champion and many times Australian champion Nick Rogers finished the season with two wins on Saturday, winning all of the five races in which Karabos IX started over the season to finish with 13 points.
Because Karabos IX missed two early races, she won the Pennant by just only one point to Leander II (Stuart Job) on 14 points, with third place going to Freycinet (Steve Henley) on 25 points.
Hobart's newest Dragon, Michael Wilkinson's Xanthos, had her first races since being launched, with a fourth and second in an impressive debut.
The J24 Pennant saw Peter Bingham's Street Car continue her dominance, notching up two wins to end the summer with six wins and a net 6 points, taking the Pennant from Stormy Petrel (Nathan Males) and Drumbeat (John Lewis) both finishing on 19 points.
 on board the Greg Prescott&<hash>39;s Melges 32 2Unlimited.JPG)
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Roger Hickman (seated) on board the Greg Prescott's Melges 32 2Unlimited with David Morris (left) and Greg Prescott after their successful day of racing with the Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania - Peter Campbell ©
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by Peter Campbell
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 on board the Greg Prescott's Melges 32 2Unlimited.JPG)
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Manly, QLD
