The life of LOVE & WAR
This is the third in a series of articles in which SWS collaborates with
NANNI AUSTRALIA to showcase a commitment to wooden boats.
There are not many boats that can sail competitively in the Sydney-Hobart one month, and then show up at the Australian Wooden Boat Festival the next, and outshine many of the other more pampered exhibitors.
Image-Andrea Francolini
You could make a good case that LOVE & WAR is Australia’s most successful ocean racing yacht. Fifty two years ago she was drawn by Olin Stephens when he was at the peak of his extraordinary powers. Since then she has won the Sydney-Hobart on three occasions, and is rarely in the bottom two thirds of the fleet. In the the recent 2024 event, she again won her division, and came 14th overall, in conditions that were not always her forte. It would be a brave pundit who definitively predicts that, given the right weather, she couldn’t win the event a fourth time!
So what better way to learn a little of the history and philosophy of this seminal craft than to chat with the legendary Peter Shipway, who sailed aboard her in every one of the early races and is involved with the program to this very day.
Recorded before the recent Sydney Hobart, it’s thirty minutes of fascinating insights, reminiscences, and gentle advice about how to get the most out of a genuinely corinthian ocean racing program.
Put your phone on silent…make a cup of tea…sit back and enjoy!
And if you are wondering what the connection between LOVE & WAR and Nanni is … Nowadays, this irreplaceable yacht is powered by a Nanni N4.50 (47.5hp). This is not surprising. If you are looking to be the best in your field, you are going to need the best equipment!
