After a more than ten year hiatus, the Fremantle Sailing Club and the Indonesian Government Ministry of Culture and Tourism have gotten together to schedule the Visit Indonesia Fremantle to Bali 2011 sailing race. Part of a five event partnership, this marks the return of competitive international yachting to Western Australia, after going fourteen years without organized events.
Course
The race is scheduled to depart from Fremantle, Australia bound for Bali, Indonesia over a 1440 nautical mile course. The course for this race is nearly two and a half times longer than Australia’s more popular Sydney to Hobart sailing event. The revival of this annual competition will likely help encourage positive relations between Indonesians and their neighbors in Australia.
The Fremantle to Bali race is not unprecedented. In fact this upcoming event will mark the 30th anniversary of this course being undertaken as an international competition, and the first since 1997. The best time for this course was sailed on the inaugural event back in 1981, when the Rolly Tasker led yacht “Siska” raced to Bali in a time of six days, 15 hours and 39 minutes.
For Bali, this will likely bring a huge swell of attention as water sports are one of the island’s better known specialties. Crowds from around the world are likely to flock to Bali in late April in time to catch the culmination of this impressive event. If you are planning a holiday, this might be a great time to visit Bali, as the activity and excitement associated with this event is sure to provide a boost to your already exciting vacation.
The Visit Indonesia Fremantle to Bali 2011 Race will kick off on April the 23rd with the start of an ocean rally, followed three days later with the launch of the official yacht race. A Visit Indonesia Festival will honor the revival of this great tradition on the 25th to the 26th with various celebrations. Book your Bali vacation soon and make sure you don’t miss out on all the excitement.