Alfa Romeo returns for showdown

After cleaning up all opposition in Europe for the past three years, Neville Crichton's maxi yacht Alfa Romeo is returning to Australia to take on arch-rival Wild Oats in the 2009 Rolex Sydney-Hobart Race.

The yachts last clashed in the 2005 race when Bob Oatley's Wild Oats began her record-breaking string of consecutive line honours victories.

But the New Zealand-born but Sydney-based "Crokey" Crichton isn't just sailing his 30 metre yacht home -- he is racing half the way in the historic TransPac race from Los Angeles to Hawaii.

The incorrectly named TransPacific Yacht Race is the United States' oldest and longest yacht race and Crichton is determined to smash the existing line honours record of 6 days, 19 hours, 4 minutes and 11 seconds for the 2225 mile (4120km) trip.

The TransPac has long been the home of California's famous down-wind "sleds", yachts designed to reach over 20 knots running before the Pacific Ocean trade winds. The race rarely has much work to windward.

Crichton's arrival in California is timed to coincide with the reintroduction of Alfa Romeo cars to the US west coast market for the first time in years.

The TransPac starts on June 29 but Crichton and Alfa Romeo will not be eligible for the famous Barn Door trophy for the fastest elapsed time as, like Wild Oats, the yacht relies on powered winches to sail and will be relegated to a special class for the race.

He is, however, determined to beat the line honours record set by German sailor Hasso Plattner in his maxi Morning Glory in 2005.

Alfa Romeo won the Sydney-Hobart race in 2002 and Britain's Fastnet Race in 2003. For the past three seasons in Europe she has won line honours in over 100 events.