28/06/2026
Iconic Young 88 Racing for Round 1 of the SSANZ Lewmar 2 Handed Triple Gold Cup Series
THE BREAKDOWN
The perfect forecast turned into a better day with a light to moderate Southerly and clear blue skies. The fleet was led off the line by Grey Goose with everyone in a slow-mo with shy kites trying to minimise the damage from the bigger boats sailing through to weather.
The breeze filled as the fleet squared away through the Motuihe channel, making a left turn at Motutapu, heading across the North side of Rangitoto to Torbay Buoy
The whole race featured the usual close sailing, evidenced by the finishes only minutes apart after 8 hours of sailing and the woulda/shoulda/coulda conversations back at the dock. Babe's Gavin Haslip showed off his camera skills to highlight four boats running line abreast within metres of each other.
Grey Goose, Flash Gordon and War Machine swapped the lead, ducking and diving down the east side of Motutapu, with Skitzo making the most of the antics to catch up. The park up on the corner in the lee of the island saw War Machine do a "Buffalo Girls" round the outside to start the long reach in front to leeward.
Flash Gordon put the afterburners on, closely followed by Skitzo, to sail over the top and were first to hoist for the almost square run down to Navy Buoy off Tiri.
RESULTS:
That is how it stayed at the front for the duration of the race, with Karyn and Dean first on Flash, followed by Bicky and Tom on Skitzo in second and Paul and Mike on War Machine in third.
Johnny had done a great job on Satellite to stay in touch all the way around the track. They put the frighteners on the boys on War Machine with an amazing burst of speed in the light air on the way to the finish. Satellite ended up "nailing their number" with a well-deserved first on corrected time, followed by Time Out and Smokey.
See attached screenshot or the results link on The Young 88 event page for all the numbers https://www.young88.org.nz/events/351801
DEBRIEF:
Racing was followed by after-match "rum 'n' dogs" at the various marinas. The specially designed and built open-air "88 Bar Lima" on L Pier at Westhaven lived up to its brief as a central hub for the city racing fleet. Thanks to Young 88 Secretary Nick for his catering skills in setting up the BBQ at the last minute when the stars aligned.
Special thanks also to the volunteers and organisers at The Shorthanded Sailing Association of New Zealand, plus our divisions' sponsors Lewmar and Musto.
Next up, race 2, in four weeks. Grab yourself an 88 and get to the start line to join the fun. More info, entry links etc here
https://www.young88.org.nz/events/351801
and
https://www.ssanz.co.nz/triple-series-2026/
