When the fleet of 65 yachts set off for the Gold Coast in the 2025 Noakes Sydney Gold Coast (NSGCYR) on 26 July, there will be a race within a race taking place. Of the 14 Double Handed yachts entered in the 384 nautical mile race, one yacht design will be out in force – J/99s, of which six are entered in the Double Handed Division.
These are Balancing Act (Tony Craner and Rick Plain), Blue Planet (Chris O’Neill and Jason Keg), Jupiter (Ian Smith and John Cross), Rum Rebellion (Shane Connelly and Tony Sutton), The Gaffer (Rob Frayne and Richard Dumas) and Verite (Paul Beath and Stephen Prince).
NSGCYR Media chatted to four J/99 competitors – Rob Frayne, Ian Smith, Tony Craner and Shane Connelly. “Quietly confident” on board The Gaffer.
As the Cabbage Tree Island Race fleet worked its way out of Sydney Harbour in December 2024, one yacht caused the commentators to scratch their heads – it wasn’t on the competitor list. The mystery yacht The Gaffer wasn’t eligible to enter as it hadn’t done a qualifying passage. But co-skippers Rob Frayne and Richard Dumas were determined to get some on-water time on board the four-month-old yacht.
Although they didn’t sail through the start or finish lines, they shadowed the fleet for most of the race. The Gaffer was the first J/99 to Cabbage Tree Island – not too shabby for Frayne and Dumas’ first ‘unofficial’ double-handed offshore race.
Their first successful foray into the world of double-handed offshore racing gave them the confidence to tackle the 2025/26 offshore sailing season. They plan to compete in every Audi Centre Sydney Blue Water Pointscore race, including the highly anticipated 80th Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race. Frayne and Dumas both competed in the 2019 edition of the iconic race on board Frayne’s former yacht – the Sydney 38 Mille Sabords.
“We’re quietly confident [about the upcoming season],” Frayne said. “We’ve just got to put the package together now. “I suppose that’s why we’re excited about this race [NSGCYR] to try and build on that experience in time for the Hobart.”
Jupiter spins into a busy season.
Earlier this year, Ian Smith put his J/99 Jupiter on the market, with the intention of focusing on other endeavours outside of sailing. “But the lure of offshore [sailing] grabbed me, so I’m back and will do everything [all the upcoming offshore races],” Smith said. “I like offshore racing. It’s extremely uncomfortable but when you get to the other end, it’s so rewarding.”
Images: CYCA | Andrea Francolini
