Richard Hewson the campaigned in 2012 and 2013 for the Mini Transat race sailing the RG650 AUS 816 nicknamed “Taz” after the Tasmanian Devil, the only carnivorous marsupial remaining in Tasmania, more commonly known for its appearance in the Warner Bros luny tunes cartoon Taz!
Richard hopes to one day race in the Mini Transat class again one day, but to achieve this goal full sponsorship is required. Solo sailing has always been a great interest to Richard, and he has raced and cruised single handedly around Australia and European waters since 1997.
Richards dedication and obsession to win the Mini Transat was noticed by press world wide and numerous articles were published around the world attracting unprecedented and invaluable press. The lessons learnt in the 2013 edition of the Mini Transat have only made Richard better, smarter and more determined to win the next edition of the Mini Transat. “The AUS 816 “Taz” is one of the first RG650’s and we have used her as a test bed to improve all the RG650’s in the future. When I started the 2013 Mini Transat AUS 816 Zhik was in fine form and we had made some awesome modifications to enhance the boats speed and performance. As we raced in conditions I have never faced in the RG650 I continued to fine tune the boat and record data from the experience, and If I was not forced to abandon the race, or we re-started from Lanzarote as planned I think I would have won the Mini Transat… If I can start my next campaign where I left off in 2013 I have an brilliant chance of winning the next edition of the Mini Transat”.
To race and win the Mini Transat Richard needs to raise over 80,000 euro in sponsorship and donations. “The financial milestone is my biggest challenge, to raise 80,000 euro in twelve months in todays economic climate will be hard, however for anybody who can invest in this campaign they are guaranteed to be well rewarded with publicity around the globe!”
What is a Mini Transat 650
A mini 650 is a 6.5 meter sailing boat that is sailed shorthanded by one or two people. It is a very fast, exciting and progressive fleet that can attract over 100 boats on the start line at any given time. It is dominated by the French as is most of the shorthanded scene. The mini is regarded as the stepping stone for legends in our sport and attracts the best of the young talent today.
What is the Mini Transat Race
The Mini Transat is considered to be one of the most extreme single handed events in the world due to the race length and the boat’s small size. These high performance 6.5m single handed yachts will race 4000nm across the Atlantic, starting on the 13th of October 2013.
The Mini Transat race is a hosts the best single handed sailors in the world including the majority of the skippers in this years Vendee Globe Yacht race.
“A demanding race and a true test for the best sailors as the route covers difficult and adverse weather conditions”
The Mini Transat is an extremely demanding race and a true test for a sailors ability to not only sail the boat to the best of its ability but also manage sleep deprivation in a variety of extreme conditions.
The 2013 Mini Transat race starts from Douarnenez in France, racing 1250nm down the west coast of France, across the Bay of Biscay and down to Arrecife in the Canary Islands where the fleet will regroup, before starting the second race of the Mini Transat where they will race 2770 nm across the Atlantic to Point Pitre in Guadeloupe”.
In total the Mini transat race will be over 4000nm in rumbline sailing, and could possibly take over 35 days of racing solo across one of the largest oceans in the world – Alone!
Richard Hewson and Mini 650
Richard commenced training for the 2008 Mini Transat race back in 2006 however was unable to compete in the 2008 race. “It has always been a dream of mine to race in the Mini Transat and be involved in Mini 650 racing. After Richard completed the Clipper RTW race, Katabatic gave him an opportunity to race their RG650 in the Mini Transat qualification races the Mini Valencia and the Barcelona race providing some fantastic results in a new and untested series class boat.
The boat
The RG-650 One Design ocean racing boat is the newest member of the Mini 6.50 production class family and is the first one to be built in the southern hemisphere. Designed by Argentinean Nicolas Goldenburg, commissioned by Katabatic Sailing in Spain, and built in Argentina this is the latest generation in Class Mini sailing.
The RG-650 features all the latest’s’ high performance design trends: a high performance chine hull. high aspect ratio appendages, big sail area and asymmetric spinnakers; the result is a very stable and powerful boat.
C0 25 m2
Campaign Schedule
Richard only has to compete in one race in 2015 to enable him to qualify for the 2015 Mini Transat and already he has sailed over 15,000nm in his RG650 Aus 816. Richard has a number or races planned for the 2014/15 season, but first he must find the 40,000 euro required to purchase 816 from his previous sponsors.
1 Apr – 1 May Preparation and 1000nm Atlantic Qualifier 5 May – 10 May La Trinatte to Plymouth Race 12 May – 18 May Plymouth, Eddystone, Fastnet Plymouth 18 May – 12 Jun Maintenance, Corporate, UK and France 13 Jun – 18 Jun Trophe Marie Anges 24 Jun – 28 Jun Mini Fastnet Race 28 Jul – 31 Jul Transcogne Race Port Bourgenay 13 Oct Mini Transat Race Start 22 - 28 Oct Mini Transat Leg 1 finish window 9 Nov Mini Transat Re-start 22 - 27 Nov Mini Transat Finish Window Media Opportunities
Demographic
Mini Transat racing is about as close to being completely environmentally freiendly as possible. Richard Hewson is a
strong campaigner for a sustainable environment and all of his campaigns focus on being as environmentally friendly as possible. Richard plans to sail his the Mini Transat with a carbon footprint as close to zero as possible and is an affiliate partner of Mission Blue to support them with public awareness and research whilst racing around the world.
If you would like to get involved in sponsoring Richard Hewson in Mini 650 racing please do not hesitate to contact Richard Hewson at hewsonracing@gmail.com.
Links:
RG 650: http://rg650.com/
Katabatic: http://www.katabatic-sailing.com/
The unofficial Mini Transat site: http://www.minitransat650.com/wordpress/
Air 2012 facebook: http://www.facebook.com/miniair2012
Hi Rich. Great job