Race 4 of the 2026/27 Audi Centre Sydney Blue Water Pointscore, the 83-nautical-mile Bird Island Race to Norah Head and return, finally got away after a 50-minute postponement as the fleet waited for a breath of wind down the harbour.
Racing started at 1050 hours in a light 8-knot nor'easter. Karl Kwok's Fast 40 Beau Ideal nailed the best of the start, pointing towards Bradleys Head alongside Rob Appleyard's Moneypenny. Across the harbour, Anthony and David Johnston's URM Group led the other half of the fleet towards Point Piper.
Sean Langman's Back 2 Black joined the charge for the northern shore and quickly latched onto Beau Ideal at the front. Ten minutes in, the two Sporty Forties were locked in a tight duel with Moneypenny and URM Group for the lead.
Anthony Bell's Tribeca LOYAL, formerly Comanche and the sole 100-footer in the fleet, took a while to find breeze in her sails.
By halfway up the harbour, URM Group had asserted herself over the rest of the field. After a tough slog, the Reichel Pugh 72-footer was first out of the Heads, clocking 23 minutes 50 seconds, about 25 seconds ahead of Moneypenny.
Tribeca LOYAL was next into open water, with Beau Ideal close behind.
Once clear of North Head, the four leaders turned east hunting for wind, before URM Group became the first to make the left-hand turn north.
Tribeca LOYAL's size counted for little once the breeze dropped out. A clutch of overall contenders sailed underneath her closer to shore, among them Beau Ideal, Back 2 Black, Smuggler and KD5.
The double-handed fleet emerged from the Heads in a tight bunch. Crowded Haus (Jason Neuhaus/Graeme Dunlop) held a slender edge over First Light (Elizabeth Tucker/Angus Clarke) and Ben Tucker's Employment Hero Alliance (Annie Stevenson/Peter Winter).
Sebastian Hultin's Cookson 50 Porco Rosso was the first retirement of the day, pulling out just over an hour into the race with hydraulic issues.
