Wild Oats XI tightens grip on Sydney to Hobart

Wild Oats XI was just off record pace Thursday bidding for a sixth line honours win in the Sydney to Hobart yacht race as controversy raged over the expulsion of supermaxi Wild Thing. The favourite led the 76-vessel fleet out of Sydney Harbour on Wednesday in the annual 628-nautical mile bluewater classic, boosted by a strong southerly wind. A lighter breeze during the night saw second placed Ragamuffin-Loyal close in, but as northeasterly breezes kicked in Wild Oats XI pulled away again in near-perfect downwind conditions. "Wild Oats XI leads Ragamuffin-Loyal by 15 nautical miles. Just behind record, but NE'ers are setting in," the race's official Twitter site said at 2300 GMT Wednesday. Fellow maxi Lahana was running third, ahead of Black Jack and Loki, with no retirements so far. The leaders were preparing to enter the treacherous Bass Strait towards Tasmania with freshening winds after what Wild Oats navigator Adrienne Cahalan said was a busy night constantly changing sails. "We are currently doing 15 knots in 15 knots of wind," Cahalan said. "We've got a little bit of current too." She expects the wind to build to around 20 knots, making for a fast ride across the Strait with the record of one day, 18 hours, 40 minutes and 10 seconds, set by the boat in 2005, within sight. About 30 miles behind, Geoff Cropley, on board Lahana, said the leading boats were now under their spinnaker sails. "It feels like we're in a washing machine though -- the leftovers of the southeasterly swell have made it bumpy," he said. While the big boats are picking up speed, life remains frustrating for the smaller, slower boats further up the coast. The fleet is now stretched across 140 miles with some stuck in soft winds and making little headway, organisers said. As the race continued, so did the fallout over the disqualification of Wild Thing, the 2003 line honours winner which was among the top three race favourites. Officials scratched it just three hours before the start citing incomplete documentation of major modifications which extended the vessel to 100 feet. Veteran skipper Grant Wharington said he was "dumbfounded" at the decision and told ABC television Thursday he believed he had the right documentation. "I think they are trying to manipulate the words around to make it difficult to comply with their particular wording," he said. Cruising Yacht Club of Australia commodore Howard Piggott insisted it was Wharington's fault. "There is no conspiracy, this club has done everything to assist Mr Wharington," he told the ABC. "That document was not given to us in an acceptable form within the time limit."