A Hard Chance: The Sydney-Hobart Race Disaster

by Kim Leighton

Book Overview

When 114 sailing yachts set out from Australia's Sydney Harbor on Boxing Day, December 26, 1998, for the 43rd Annual Sydney-to-Hobart ocean classic the mood was festive. Crowds jammed the harbor and headlands in the midsummer heat to watch the yachts tack east to the Sydney Heads, set colorful spinnakers and run with the wind, south, for the finish line 630 miles distant in Hobart, Tasmania. None knew they were being stalked by a deadly storm. In...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 157223282X
• ISBN13: 9781572232822
• Release Date: October 1999
• Publisher: Willow Creek Press
• Length: 287 Pages
• Weight: 1.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.3" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

Loved It!

You are there - Leighton's descriptions make you feel every bump and thud. The author's choice of words and descriptions show a true story teller at work. What a story! I have no desire to sail - ever..

A Hard Chance-And the Race to Y2K

Just finised Kim Leighton's A Hard Chance: The Sydney-Hobart Race Disaster this past weekend as we moved into the new millenium. The book provided just enough of the factual details to excite in any sailor's imagination a picture of what it must have been like to be on each of the ill-fated yachts during the brunt of the storm. Just as watching a movie derived from a Stephen King novel is never quite as scary as reading the book, there is nothing more bone-chilling than what those of us can imagine who have rode out a bad storm aboard a sailboat. I found the book also to be fortified with enough descriptions and definitions so as to be understood by nonsailors as well. In particular, I identified with David Cook, one of the rescued crewmembers of Solo Globe Challenger, who said that he was willing to attempt the race again but only if accompanied by the same crew. As I awaited whatever disaster Y2K might bring, I noticed an interesting similarity. Here I was surrounded by the same crew with which I had weathered storms racing on Lake Erie aboard the yacht "Moonshadow". As we watched the millenium change in Australia, we breathed a sigh of relief and went back to talking about our times together on the water and shared Kim's book.

excellent and concise,gripping story,well written,good det

Kim Leighton has a nice way of weaving together the multiple details,gives appropriate attention to the the overall story and those behind the scenes. One gains/reaffirms a deep appreciation for all involved;sailing crews, families, rescue teams.

made me never want to leave the sight of land again

I'm not a sailor, so I really liked that I could understand all the techno-jargon. Even people who don't sail will really get what happened out there. I felt the force of that storm. There were times I put the book down and realized I was holding my breath against the sea and hoping I wasn't bruised or broken. I never want to leave land again. Finally, I appreciated the US slant of a book about a distinctly non-American race. This book is worth the read.

An excellent read; crisp, informative and enjoyable.

"A Hard Chance" was a great read. It put me there, aboard the boats that took a terrific pounding in Bass Strait during the Sydney to Hobart ocean race. If you enjoyed Sebasatian Junger's "The Perfect Storm," you'll love Kim Leighton's "A Hard Chance."