Spectacular sailing, the human stories behind the drama, all set against the backdrop of some of the most breathtaking scenery in the world make for a truly exciting and inspirational event. After his victory, Bob Steel, who won the race in 2002 with a previous Quest, was ready for the reminder at the ceremony that he had thrown the watch he was wearing at the time into the Derwent River when he accepted the replica Ulysse Nardin watches Yacht-Master timepiece that goes to the winning yacht. Asked would he do the same with the Rolex Yacht-Master he won on that prior occasion, he pulled out the replica Ulysse Nardin watches from his pocket and theatrically threw it into the crowd.A perfect example of a professional watch that combines precision and quality with class and elegance, Steel’s old Yacht-Master must have been a glorious prize for an unsuspecting member of the enthusiastic crowd.
On the afternoon of January 21, before the start of Super Bowl 43, the official film of the 2008 Rolex Sydney Yacht Race premiered on the Seven Network.Covering the grueling 628 miles from Sydney to Hobart, the race is considered one of the toughest challenges in all of ocean racing.Since 1945, racing yachts from all over the world have made the pilgrimage south to test themselves in this offshore classic.History was made in 2008 when Wild Oats XI, the 30-meter yacht built for speed by Bob Oatley and skippered by Mark Richards, won the title for an unprecedented fourth time in a row.Bob Steel was the overall winner, picking up a second Tattersall’s Cup win with his latest Quest racing yacht.With big budgets and superstar sailors, the replica Ulysse Nardin watches Sydney Hobart Yacht Race ranks as one of the most prestigious races across the board in the sporting world.Imagine over one hundred of the most fine-tuned, well-manned and expensive yachts in the world lining up at the start line in Sydney Harbor on Australia’s Boxing day.The competitors in 2008 ranged from a first-ever entry from Switzerland (a land locked country if there ever was one) in the form of a husband and wife team, to a Tasmanian skipper returning to celebrate the arrival of his family on the newly discovered continent over two hundred years ago.
