Overview

THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER Just before 1pm Boxing Day 1998, many thousands of Australians gathered - on and around Sydney Harbour, or in front of their televisions - to watch the start of an annual summer sporting tradition: the 628 nautical mile Sydney to Hobart yacht race. It was the 54th staging of one of the world's three classic offshore races, and the harbour was laden with excitement and colour as the 115 competing yachts jostled their way towards the start line while the countdown was in its final seconds. The moment the cannon boomed its signal, the fleet began the short dash towards the heads, before turning south and onto the waters of the Tasman Sea. It was an adrenaline-charged time for all competitors, but little did they know an unpredicted major storm cell was developing offshore and lying directly in their path. The fleet and the storm were destined to intersect. In little more than 24 hours, the majority of yachts were being hammered by hurricane-force winds and gigantic swells, some the height of 10 storey buildings. The Sydney to Hobart had become a race for survival. What ensued was the largest peacetime search and rescue mission Australia has ever known. Six sailors perished, five yachts sank, 55 sailors were winched to safety. Only 44 yachts reached the finish. PRAISE FOR ROB MUNDLE 'Whatever else Rob Mundle may write, this is likely to be his master work' - Mike Power, The Mercury 'Rob Mundle is a master of the maritime narrative' - Sunday Age

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ROB MUNDLE OAM is a journalist, broadcaster and bestselling author who grew up on Sydney's northside, initially in Cremorne, then on the northern beaches. His sailing career started as a four-year-old in a tiny sandpit sailboat he shared with his younger brothers, Dennis and Bruce, and the family cat. A veteran media commentator and competitive sailor, widely regarded as Australia's 'voice of sailing', Rob was awarded an Order of Australia Medal for in recognition of his services to sailing and journalism, in 2013. Rob is the author of 18 books including his maritime history bestsellers - Bligh, Flinders, Cook, The First Fleet, Great South Land and Under Full Sail. His book on the tragic 54th Sydney Hobart Yacht Race, Fatal Storm, became an international bestseller and was published in six languages. A competitive sailor since the age of 11, Rob has reported on seven America's Cup matches (including the live international television coverage of Australia's historic victory in 1983), four Olympics and numerous other major events, including the Sydney-Hobart classic for 50 years. He has competed in the Sydney-Hobart on three occasions and won local, state and Australian sailing championships, as well as contested many major international offshore events. Beyond his media and racing activities he was responsible for the introduction of the international Laser and J/24 sailboat classes to Australia Currently, the media manager for the supermaxi Sydney-Hobart racer, Wild Oats XI, Rob is also on the organising committee of Hamilton Island Race Week, Australia's largest keelboat regatta, and a Director of the Australian National Maritime Museum's Maritime Foundation. Rob was a founder of the Hayman Island Big Boat Series and a past Commodore of Southport Yacht Club on the Gold Coast. He is also the only Australian member of the America's Cup Hall of Fame Selection Committee. Rob's on-going love of the sea and sailing sees him living at Main Beach on the edge of the Gold Coast Broadwater.

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