I wasn’t kidding when I mentioned the other day about learning a lot about yachting from reading The Sydney Morning Herald. Man, these folks love their yacht races. I haven’t read this much about sailing since I read Moby Dick in college. Unlike Melville’s gripping tale of monomaniacal revenge, much of today’s story about the Sydney to Hobart yacht race is going straight over my head. I did, however, pick up a few interesting tidbits. For instance, the race isn’t officially over until the competitors clear Customs—-Customs in this case being Hobart’s Customs House pub, where the sailors have their first drink after finishing the race. That first drink is typically a rum and Coke, which seems like a pretty trashy cocktail to reach for when you saunter off of your 90+ million dollar yacht, but hey, whatever it takes to keep it real, I guess. I think this race, which began on Boxing Day (so many new customs to absorb!), is scheduled to conclude tomorrow, so there might be a yacht triptych in the works here.
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