ANARCHY
| Design | YD40 |
| Sail Number | 37001 |
| Length overall | 12.2m |
| Length waterline | 10.5m |
| Beam | 3.75m |
| Draft | 3.2m |
| About the boat: | Anarchy was designed by Brett Bakewell-White and built by Yachting Developments in 2015 as a YD37, however she is just out of the shed and is now officially a YD40 thanks to some awesome design tweaks by Bakewell-White. With an extra 3 feet, this carbon fiber beauty means serious business. The Coastal Classic was a great chance for the #RNI2020 fleet to get a feel for how the “growth spurt” will translate into racing performance!
In the 2020 RNI Anarchy will be skippered by AJ Reid and Will Reid and you can expect this father & son combination to be keen to keep up the winning form we have seen from Anarchy since her launch! |
| Home base | Westhaven |
| Anarchy Racing |
AJ REID
| Name | AJ Reid |
| Age | 54 |
| From | Auckland |
| Relationship to Co – Skipper | Father |
| Yacht Club | Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron & SSANZ |
| Have you done an RNI before? | I did the race with Andy Pilcher in 2014 on our J/111 Django. |
| Tell us a little about your sailing history/ background | I grew up sailing around the South Pacific on my parent’s boat, “Vendetta”, an NZ built kauri Moody 44 with a mast made of spruce. Also did a bit of dinghy sailing, with our best result a Canterbury Championship in Flying Ants – although there were only 5 boats…. After a long break from sailing due to work getting in the way, I got back into it in earnest racing a Beneteau 34.7, “First by Farr” back in 2007, for a few seasons, then upgrading (considerably) to “Django”. A sweet boat, she was sadly lost (with the only injury a broken fingernail) at sea, with the crew being heroically rescued by the NZ Navy in tough conditions 170nms north-east of North Cape. That was after racing up to Fiji in the 2014 race to Denerau. I then commissioned “Anarchy” from the drawing board of NZ designer Brett Bakewell-White, and after seriously enjoying the last 4 years of racing, the boat has been slightly modified this year to hopefully go a bit faster. My wife, Atka, and I also regularly cruise around the South Pacific Islands on our Beneteau 50, “Hawkeye”, with one of the highlights of over 6 seasons up there being a swim with the Humpback’s near Vava’u. |
| What appeals most about doing the RNI? | It is an epic challenge, with a camaraderie like no other yachting contest I’ve ever been involved in! |
| What will your meals be like during the race? Deluxe roasts or Military rations? | Subsistence eating only for us. It will be a miserable culinery experience hunkered down in a carbon hell-hole with no, repeat no, creature comforts. The Oaty bars will be good though. |
| What’s your favourite point of sail and why? | Blast reaching three-headed – it is fast, easy, and always exciting. |
| What do you like most about the boat you are sailing on? | It is fast and balanced. Most of the time. Nice colours too. |
| Describe your skipper/co-skipper in 5 words | Relentless, focused, committed, smart, funny. |
| What’s your favourite drink and why? | Red wine from Hawke’s Bay. Or Bordeaux. Or Burgundy. Or Otago. Angostura Spiced Rum from Trinidad is good too. |
| Will you be taking any luxury items on the race? – If so, what is it and why? | A neck warmer. |
| What’s your biggest fear when you think about the RNI? | MOB. And gear failure due to poor prior preparation. |
| Who’s your biggest opposition and why? | Ourselves. Managing fatigue on this event is the key ingredient. Tired can mean dumb. |
| Tell us about your biggest supporters | My incredible wife, Atka. Nothing stops her. Ever. |
| What sound system do you have on board? What’s likely to be playing? | We both sing a bit. |
| It’s the night before the big race – how do you get your head in the game? | Go through the checklist for the umpteenth time, then get some sleep. |
WILL REID
| Name | William Reid |
| Age | 25 |
| From | Auckland |
| Relationship to Co – Skipper | AJ is my dad. We have been growing up together since I was born. |
| Yacht Club | Royal Akarana Yacht Club, SSANZ & RNZYS. |
| Tell us a little about your sailing history/ background | Most of my early sailing involved getting taken out of school to go cruising – I think that I learned more on a boat than I did in a classroom and I am sure that most of the people doing this race will say the same thing. In terms of racing, I learned to sail in the Christchurch Estuary but I never really got into the dinghy scene. Although I did manage to be the crew member on a Phase II for victories in the Canterbury and South Island Championships. I am not too sure how good of a crew I was, to this day I have no clue what I was doing and I think I just enjoyed being out on the water with my dad, AJ. As AJ is a bit of an enthusiast, I have been lucky enough to sail on the boats with which he has fed his sailing addiction, starting with my first Tauranga Race on “First By Farr” when I was 13, moving through to “Django”, and most recently the exceedingly comfortable “Anarchy”. I moved up to Auckland not too long after finishing school, joined the RNZYS YTP, and ended up meeting a great group of people. I’ve been sailing on Anarchy since it was launched and been enjoying the ride since. |
| What appeals most about doing the RNI? | The mental and physical challenge of short-handed sailing is immense, and getting to do it with my dad is pretty cool. |
| What is your essential food item on board for during the race? | Jet planes. They are like crack but more addictive. |
| What will your meals be like during the race? Deluxe roasts or Military rations? | Traditionally I’ve tried not to think about the freeze dried options, and I’d think of the legs as a dieting experience, book ended by slightly excessive rum consumption. But I’m looking forward to the Radix meals as a bit of a step up on traditional freeze dried foods. |
| What’s your favourite point of sail and why? | When you have paid postage and just send it. |
| What do you like most about the boat you are sailing on? | Please see the above answer. |
| Describe your skipper/co-skipper in 5 words | Extreme enthusiast. Energizer bunny. Weapon. |
| Tell us about the training and buildup that you have been doing for this race both on and off the water? | We did the SSANZ series last year and some of the series this year. We did the Enduro this year, which was tough because it was such an extremely slow race, I think our average VMG was a touch over 4 knots. It took us most of the day to get from Couvier to Channel, it was a great day for wakeboarding but not so much for sailing. Most recently we had some great sends (fully-crewed, admittedly) up to Russell and down to White Island, hopefully a sign of things to come! |
| What’s your favourite drink and why? | Water. But flavoured. With some red grapes. Or sugarcane. I like wine and rum. |
| Will you be taking any luxury items on the race? – If so, what is it and why? | Some comfortable but extremely good life jackets. AJ has always run a pretty good programme with respect to safety and I’m grateful for that. |
| What’s your biggest fear when you think about the RNI? | MOB or serious injury. Not just on Anarchy but on any boat in the fleet. |
| Who’s your biggest opposition and why? | Ourselves. Well, our tired, fatigued, jaded, frazzled, sleep-deprived selves. Mistakes can compound when you’re tired and it’s even harder to tidy up when there’s just two of you on the boat, and the other guy might be trying to grab some quick shut eye. |
| Tell us about your biggest supporters | Alex and Atka. Alex is a fizzer, although she still doesn’t fully understand why we’d do a form of racing where we have to sleep on the boat. Atka has been a very loyal supporter for a very long time and is basically in charge of the onshore programme. Big shout out to Suellen too actually, LiveSailDie is a huge supporter of SSANZ racing in general and it’s great to see such compelling racing get so much great coverage. |
| What’s the most exciting/challenging about this race for you? | Challenging? Convincing my Masters supervisor that I can take the time off and still finish my thesis. |
| What sound system do you have on board? What’s likely to be playing? | Although Anarchy is known for its comfort, it lacks a sound system. But AJ and I can harmonise as bad as anyone. |
| It’s the night before the big race – how do you get your head in the game? | Read a book or watch a movie, try and relax and get as much sleep as possible. |