John John Florence Set To Race In Sydney To Hobart!

Two days ago, video was unveiled of John John cruising upon a few Rainbow Bay walls as the CT season drew to a close at Pipe. He was looking spritely. Not quite able enough to wrangle well-overhead Pipe bombs, but nimble enough to link turns and flick a few hops along the forgiving and warm Gold Coast walls.

The following day, a hot tip landed on our ears that John was in fact here to compete in the Sydney to Hobart yacht race. A rumour which despite its appeal, seemed too good, and somewhat unfathomable to be true. Today we faced the pitfalls of being cynical. John John Florence will be racing in the Sydney to Hobart come Boxing Day next Wednesday.

As reported by the Illawarra this morning, John had a random encounter with the Olympian and SailGP Australia skipper, Tom Slingsby. He managed to impress Slingsby to such an extent that he earned a last minute entrance onto the yacht, Winning Appliances. 

John is currently amidst a two day offshore safety and training course to ensure he’s fit to race. As of the announcement, John is still not listed as an official crew member of Winning Appliances, nor is he listed to race. But as the Illawarra continued, his fellow crewmates will be filing paperwork to ensure his inclusion come Boxing Day next week. 

“He proved pretty handy actually,’’ John Winning jnr, the yacht’s skipper said. “He will be doing mid bow and the other day he was shifting spinnakers and even did a little driving.

“He loves sailing and he was great on the boat.’’

After completion – and Wild Oats XI inevitable win – John Florence will join the list of sailing surfers like Sally Fitzgibbons, Layne Beachley, and Mark Occhilupo who have all taken part in the world’s most renowned yacht race.