| Pos | Boat | Skipper | Handicap | Dist sailed | 24h DMG | Finish time | Elapsed time | Corrected elapsed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Motorboat III | Damon Jolliffe | 0.931 | 531 NM | 62 NM | 18 Apr 16:58 | 2d 5h 58m 20s | 2d 2h 14m 53s |
| 2 | Mr Kite II | Nathan Williams | 0.995 | 535 NM | 65 NM | 18 Apr 16:00 | 2d 5h 0m 43s | 2d 4h 44m 49s |
| 3 | Clockwork | Steve Mair | 1.030 | 546 NM | 230 NM | 18 Apr 14:38 | 2d 3h 38m 17s | 2d 5h 11m 14s |
| 4 | Equilibrium | Graham Matthews | 1.059 | 532 NM | 3 NM | 18 Apr 16:10 | 2d 5h 10m 56s | 2d 8h 19m 12s |
| 5 | Higher Ground | John Seely | 0.888 | 536 NM | 139 NM | 19 Apr 03:25 | 2d 16h 25m 20s | 2d 9h 12m 25s |
| 6 | Carpe Diem | Rowan Smith | 0.778 | 491 NM | 177 NM | 19 Apr 15:16 | 3d 4h 16m 2s | 2d 11h 20m 9s |
| 7 | Akonga | Nick Roberts | 0.833 | 517 NM | 151 NM | 19 Apr 14:52 | 3d 3h 52m 4s | 2d 15h 11m 52s |
| All times NZST. Results — refer to RNZYS for official results. Corrected elapsed = elapsed time × handicap factor. | ||||||||
| Pos | Boat | Skipper | Dist sailed | 24h DMG | Finish time | Elapsed time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Clockwork | Steve Mair | 546 NM | 230 NM | 18 Apr 14:38 | 2d 3h 38m 17s |
| 2 | Mr Kite II | Nathan Williams | 535 NM | 65 NM | 18 Apr 16:00 | 2d 5h 0m 43s |
| 3 | Equilibrium | Graham Matthews | 532 NM | 3 NM | 18 Apr 16:10 | 2d 5h 10m 56s |
| 4 | Motorboat III | Damon Jolliffe | 531 NM | 62 NM | 18 Apr 16:58 | 2d 5h 58m 20s |
| 5 | Higher Ground | John Seely | 536 NM | 139 NM | 19 Apr 03:25 | 2d 16h 25m 20s |
| 6 | Akonga | Nick Roberts | 517 NM | 151 NM | 19 Apr 14:52 | 3d 3h 52m 4s |
| 7 | Carpe Diem | Rowan Smith | 491 NM | 177 NM | 19 Apr 15:16 | 3d 4h 16m 2s |
| All times NZST. Results — refer to RNZYS for official results. Clockwork set a new course record of 2d 3h 38m 17s, breaking the previous record set by Wired in 2022 by 4 minutes and 22 seconds. | ||||||
Carpe Diem crossed the finish line at 15:16 on Sunday 19 April, last on line honours with an elapsed time of 3 days, 4 hours and 16 minutes and 491 nautical miles covered. Rowan Smith's Elliott 1060 finished just 24 minutes behind Ākonga after more than 76 hours of racing, the pair having match raced through the closing miles in a contest that stayed tight to the end.
On PHRF handicap, the picture changes markedly. Carpe Diem's rating of 0.778, the lowest in the fleet, pulled her corrected elapsed down to 2d 11h 20m 9s, placing her sixth on handicap and ahead of Ākonga. Last to the finish line, sixth on the corrected sheet. The great equaliser doing its work one final time.
The race brought its share of complications for Carpe Diem. Her YB Tracker proved unreliable throughout, leaving the fleet and those following from shore reliant on AIS for position data. On corrected time, the gap to fifth-placed Higher Ground was just over two hours, to fourth-placed Equilibrium nearly three hours, and to PHRF winner Motorboat III just under nine hours.
Rowan Smith's crew started, sailed every mile, and finished. In a race that tested every boat across more than three days and north of 490 nautical miles, that counts for a great deal. Every boat home. Every crew standing. That is the Three Kings Offshore.
Ākonga crossed the finish line at 14:52 on Sunday 19 April, sixth on line honours with an elapsed time of 3 days, 3 hours and 52 minutes, covering 517 nautical miles. Nick Roberts' Dehler 41 came in nearly 11 hours after Higher Ground and just under 24 minutes ahead of Carpe Diem. On PHRF handicap, Ākonga's 0.833 rating placed them seventh on corrected time with 2d 15h 11m 52s, and the rating was always going to make the handicap sheet a tough read for this crew.
Numbers only go so far with the Ākonga story. From the knockdown near Kawau Island on the second night, to the roller furler failure five miles from the Three Kings, to the beef and mozzarella pies, the dolphin escort and the shooting stars, Nick Roberts' crew sailed every nautical mile of this race with good humour and genuine grit. Sixth home. Every mile earned.
At midday on Sunday 19 April, Ākonga had been 25 nautical miles from the finish, passing Little Barrier Island and Kawau and heading for the Tiritiri Matangi gap, moving at 6.3 knots with an estimated finish of 15:41 and a projected race time of just over 3 days and 4 hours. Carpe Diem was close behind, and the Ākonga crew reported they had been match racing with Carpe Diem all the way home.
Damon Jolliffe and the Motorboat III crew crossed the finish line at 16:58 on Saturday 18 April, fourth on line honours and first on PHRF handicap.
Graham Matthews and the Equilibrium crew crossed at 16:10 on Saturday 18 April, third on line honours, just 10 minutes behind Mr Kite II after more than 53 hours of racing and 532 nautical miles.
Higher Ground crossed the line at 03:27 on Sunday 19 April, fifth on line honours with an elapsed time of 2d 16h 27m 23s. John Seely's Ross 1066 sailed 530 nautical miles, completing the course nearly 11 hours after Motorboat III, 11 hours and 16 minutes after Equilibrium, 11 hours and 26 minutes after Mr Kite II, and just under 13 hours after record-breaker Clockwork. On PHRF handicap, Higher Ground's 0.888 rating brought their corrected elapsed down to 2d 9h 14m 14s, placing them fifth on handicap, 7 hours behind Motorboat III's winning corrected time of 2d 2h 14m 53s, 4 hours and 29 minutes behind Mr Kite II, and just under 4 hours behind Clockwork. A smaller boat taking on a big fleet over 500 nautical miles. Higher Ground delivered.
At 21:30 on Saturday evening, Higher Ground had been 47 nautical miles from the finish, making good progress at 7.5 knots with an estimated crossing around 3:18am. Ākonga was 102 nautical miles out, tracking at 6.6 knots and expected around 12:30pm Sunday. Carpe Diem was a further 18 nautical miles back at 120 nautical miles from the line, moving at 6.3 knots, with Rowan Smith's Elliott 1060 projected to cross around 4:06pm and well into a third day of racing. The gaps between the back three were meaningful but not insurmountable. Higher Ground had a clear run to the line, while Ākonga and Carpe Diem faced a longer night with the finish still in sight.
Nathan Williams and the Mr Kite II crew crossed the finish line just west of the Auckland Harbour Bridge, completing the 500 nautical mile course in 2 days, 5 hours and 43 seconds. Second on line honours. Coming in hot, just as they had promised.
Steve Mair and the Clockwork crew crossed the finish line just east of the Auckland Harbour Bridge and into the record books.
Roger Mills was at the finish line, just east of the Auckland Harbour Bridge, waiting patiently as the four leading boats came home one by one.
Motorboat III finished fourth on line honours at 16:58, crossing 58 minutes after Clockwork's record-breaking run, 58 minutes after Mr Kite II, and 48 minutes after Equilibrium, last of the front four to cross the line. On PHRF handicap, Damon Jolliffe's Thompson 1150 turned that entirely around. A corrected elapsed of 2d 2h 15m 26s put Motorboat III first on handicap, ahead of Mr Kite II by 2 hours and 29 minutes, ahead of Clockwork by 2 hours and 56 minutes, and ahead of Equilibrium by over 6 hours. Last of the front four across the line. First on handicap. The mast climb paid off.
Equilibrium finished third on line honours at 16:10, just 10 minutes and 13 seconds behind Mr Kite II and 1 hour and 32 minutes after Clockwork, with an elapsed time of 2d 5h 10m 56s. On PHRF handicap, their 1.059 rating, the heaviest in the fleet, placed them fourth on corrected time at 2d 8h 19m 12s, over 3 hours behind Mr Kite II and nearly 3 hours behind Clockwork. At the time Equilibrium crossed, Motorboat III was still 5.2 nautical miles from the line.
Mr Kite II crossed the line at 16:00, finishing 1 hour and 22 minutes behind Clockwork on line honours with an elapsed time of 2d 5h 0m 43s. On PHRF handicap the result flipped. A corrected elapsed of 2d 4h 44m 49s put Mr Kite II ahead of Clockwork's 2d 5h 21m 32s by 36 minutes and 43 seconds. Nearly an hour and a half behind on the water, comfortably ahead on the handicap sheet. Equilibrium, which had hunted Mr Kite II for most of the race, was very close behind.
By 15:30, both boats were parallel with Rangitoto Island and the gap between Mr Kite II and Equilibrium was widening with every mile. Mr Kite II held a lead of just over 2 nautical miles and was pulling away at 13.7 knots, while Equilibrium gave chase at 11.1 knots. Mr Kite II looked to have about 15 minutes on them to the line.
Fifteen minutes earlier the two boats had been separated by just 2 nautical miles, with Mr Kite II carrying a 0.5 knot speed advantage. Equilibrium needed something special to win that race within a race.
Clockwork crossed the line at 14:38 on Saturday 18 April with a race time of 2 days, 3 hours, 38 minutes and 17 seconds, taking line honours in the 2026 Three Kings Offshore Yacht Race. The question on everyone's mind was whether the record had fallen. Wired's record stood at 2d 3h 42m 39s. Clockwork's time of 2d 3h 38m 17s told the story clearly.
Clockwork broke the record by 4 minutes and 22 seconds.
Clockwork sailed north, rounded, and came straight back south. No detours, no offshore gambles, just a clean direct course and the pace to back it up. That is how records fall. On corrected time she sits at 2d 5h 21m 32s (TBC).
At 14:15, with 1.63 nautical miles remaining and just 0.13 nautical miles separating her from the record, Clockwork had been right on the edge of history. Shortly before that, she had been clawing back the deficit against Wired's 2022 benchmark, with approximately 0.68 nautical miles between the two courses at that point.
At 13:50, Steve Mair's Shaw 12 had been approaching Rangitoto, 11 nautical miles from the line and expected to cross just before 3pm, nearly 52 hours of offshore racing from the Waitematā to the Three Kings Islands and back. It was never just about being first home. At the same point in 2022, Rob Bassett's TP52 Wired was already halfway past Rangitoto. Clockwork was racing the clock as much as the fleet.
Twenty nautical miles back at that point, Mr Kite II and Equilibrium were locked in their own battle, both sitting on 31 nautical miles to the finish. Mr Kite II was running the western line while Equilibrium tracked approximately 3.6 nautical miles off the Kawau Island coastline. Two boats, the same distance to run, very different routes. One would cross first. Neither was giving an inch.
At 15:40, Clockwork had rounded Ōhau Island and was heading towards North East Island, beginning her journey south back to the Waitematā Harbour. Mr Kite II had rounded Ōhau Island at 16:50, the westernmost point of the Three Kings group, and was sitting north of the islands, from where Nathan Williams' crew would round the north-eastern side of North East Island before turning south for the long run home. Clockwork, then 12.8 nautical miles back, had taken a south-westerly line rather than heading directly for North Cape, tracking at around 7.1 knots and slightly slower than the three boats immediately behind her. Mr Kite II, Equilibrium and Motorboat III were all moving with more pace at that stage. Whether Mair's route would pay off on the approach to the rounding remained to be seen, but the gap was narrowing. Further south, Ākonga and Carpe Diem had chosen to sail slightly wider and west, hunting extra pace.
Equilibrium had rounded Ōhau Island at 17:40, with Motorboat III right on their tail, while Mr Kite II had still to round North East Island at that point. Motorboat III followed forty minutes later at 18:20, with the gap back to Higher Ground sitting at around 52 nautical miles. Higher Ground rounded the top of Ōhau Island at 02:00 on Saturday 18 April, with Ākonga around 20 nautical miles behind. Ākonga rounded at 05:22, with Carpe Diem approximately 28 nautical miles back. Carpe Diem rounded at 07:40.
The approach to the Three Kings had not been straightforward for everyone. Nick Roberts reported from Ākonga:
"Was a tough night with a headsail swivel shackle failing 5 miles from North Cape. Meant we had to get no 1 on deck and go to storm jib for rounding Three Kings. Will need to go aloft today to retrieve headsail halyard and fix shackle. Once around Three Kings we had A2 up and then Code Zero. Expect to get a kite back up after North Cape. Spirits are high on board. Enjoyed breakfast together in the cockpit surging down waves and being warmed in the sun. Breakfast was muesli, yoghurt and berries again washed down with coffee. More Reuben sandwiches for lunch and beef rendang for dinner."
By 09:00 on Friday 17 April, the entire fleet had rounded the north-west corner of North East Island and turned south towards the finish line, with Ākonga a little further ahead and Clockwork approximately 165 nautical miles away.
During the approach to the Three Kings, the PHRF leaderboard was in constant motion. At around 15:25 on 17 April, Carpe Diem moved into first place overall on PHRF handicap, with Motorboat III second and only seconds separating them, and Clockwork holding third. Ten minutes earlier Motorboat III had still led, with Carpe Diem having just moved into second and Clockwork third, the estimated corrected elapsed times showing roughly a five-minute gap between first and third.
PHRF LEADERBOARD — 17 April 2026, approx 15:00 (28h elapsed) — paste into WordPress classic editor HTML/Text tab
| Pos | Boat | Skipper | Handicap | DTF | Dist sailed | VMG | 24h DMG | Est. finish | Est. elapsed | Corrected elapsed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Motorboat III | Damon Jolliffe | 0.931 | 266 NM | 229 NM | 7.8 kts | 170 NM | 19 Apr 00:49 | 2d 13h 49m | 2d 9h 33m |
| 2 | Carpe Diem | Rowan Smith | 0.778 | 338 NM | 145 NM | 6.5 kts | 146 NM | 19 Apr 13:05 | 3d 2h 5m | 2d 9h 38m |
| 3 | Clockwork | Steve Mair | 1.030 | 242 NM | 256 NM | 8.6 kts | 181 NM | 18 Apr 18:56 | 2d 7h 56m | 2d 9h 37m |
| 4 | Mr Kite II | Nathan Williams | 0.995 | 256 NM | 237 NM | 8.2 kts | 172 NM | 18 Apr 22:21 | 2d 11h 21m | 2d 11h 3m |
| 5 | Equilibrium | Graham Matthews | 1.059 | 264 NM | 229 NM | 7.9 kts | 172 NM | 19 Apr 00:30 | 2d 13h 30m | 2d 17h 8m |
| 6 | Higher Ground | John Seely | 0.888 | 311 NM | 188 NM | 6.2 kts | 133 NM | 19 Apr 17:10 | 3d 6h 10m | 2d 21h 24m |
| 7 | Akonga | Nick Roberts | 0.833 | 323 NM | 177 NM | 5.7 kts | 124 NM | 19 Apr 23:26 | 3d 12h 26m | 2d 22h 20m |
| DTF = Distance to Finish. VMG = Velocity Made Good. 24h DMG = Distance Made Good in 24 hours. Corrected elapsed = estimated elapsed time × handicap factor. All times NZST. Provisional results — refer to race website for official results. | ||||||||||
At 14:55, Motorboat III had retaken the lead on PHRF, with Carpe Diem keeping the pressure on and Mr Kite II also picking up pace. Four minutes earlier Clockwork had returned to the front of the PHRF fleet, with only minutes separating her from Motorboat III. By 13:50, Motorboat III had moved from second into first on PHRF handicap, passing Clockwork as race leader by thirteen minutes on corrected time, while remaining fourth on line honours.
At 14:00, Clockwork had passed the halfway point, having sailed 249 nautical miles with 247 remaining to the finish, still leading on line honours.
If the first night of the Three Kings Offshore had a theme, it was a particular kind of glamour. Not the red carpet variety, but the sort that only comes offshore at night, when the stars are out, the boat is moving, and the only thing on your mind is what is for breakfast.
At the 24-hour mark, all seven boats were still racing. Clockwork led on line honours, the handicap contest was tightening, and the fleet pressed on through wet, fast sailing as they closed on the Three Kings Islands.
From Cape Rodney at 14:00 on 16 April, Motorboat III reported in: one reef in, furled headsail, with Clockwork, Equilibrium and Mr Kite II having pulled away. "We are on our bike — happy days."
By 09:15 on Friday 17 April, Carpe Diem's YB Tracker had been flagged as likely suffering from water ingress with a fried battery, leaving no fix available. YB advised they would update positions using AIS data as often as possible.
At 10:30 on Thursday 16 April, all seven boats were on the water. Ākonga was last to arrive, right on the 10:30 deadline. Conditions were windy as expected, a nor'easterly pushing with intent and swells nudging a metre at the start line.
When the gun fired, the race was away on time. Motorboat III was first off the line with a stunning start, Clockwork flying behind and moving through quickly. The fleet split into two groups within minutes. Ten minutes before the start, an orca fin had broken the surface less than 100 metres from the start line, right in the path of the fleet. It drew plenty of attention but proved no obstacle.
The evening before, on Wednesday 15 April, the fleet had gathered at the RNZYS for the skippers' briefing, seven crews thinking through what lay ahead: from Auckland to the top of New Zealand and back, 500 nautical miles of open ocean organised by the RNZYS. From offshore thoroughbreds to proven bluewater cruisers, every boat in the fleet had earned its place at the start.
