Guy Chester sailed his trimaran across the Southport finish line at 19:34 NZST on Friday evening, claiming Overall Line Honours in the 2026 Solo Trans-Tasman Yacht Challenge. His elapsed time of 6 days 7 hours 34 minutes and 36 seconds was recorded as the tide ran out beneath him, the finish coming after six days of hard racing that left him exhausted, soaked, and cold. The Crowther Design 93 trimaran Oceans Tribute had put her name in the results a second time, the same hull having set the race record in 2014 under the name Shark Angels.
The morning after his arrival brought unwelcome news from further back in the fleet. Kevin Le Poideven's Lutra BOC Open 40 Roaring Forty had become the fourth retirement from the race. Le Poideven had fought hard to claw his way back through the fleet after furler trouble and 50-knot squalls with their Crazy Ivan wind shifts, but metal fatigue ended his campaign. A high-load rigging shackle, probably carrying 8 to 10 tonnes of load, sheared, dropping the structural forestay neatly onto the deck. He took shelter in the lee of Lord Howe Island, motoring back and forth in gusts reaching 46 knots while Roaring Forty drifted at 6 knots under bare poles, waiting for a trough to pass. His plan was to anchor at Neds Bay once conditions allowed, rest, and then prepare for the return passage to Port Stephens. "Gutted to retire from my third Solo Trans-Tasman Challenge," he said. "Brutal race full of extremes."
While Le Poideven waited out the weather, Sharon Ferris-Choat was charging hard toward the line. Just 40 nautical miles separated Vixen Racing from Southport, and a 24-hour run of 215 nautical miles sat behind her, the best daily distance posted by anyone in the fleet. She was projected to dock around 13:54 NZST, making her the first monohull to finish and bringing her in during full daylight. The crossing had thrown everything at her, including hail the size of golf balls, 40-knot squalls, and at least one alien sighting on the back of the boat. Every one of those final 40 miles had been well and truly earned.
| Pos | Boat | Class | DTF | Dist Sailed | VMG | 24h DMG | Est Finish | Est Elapsed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oceans Tribute ✓ FINISHED | Trimaran | — | 1462 NM | — | 118 NM | 5 Jun 19:34 | 6d 7h 34m 36s |
| 2 | Vixen Racing | Monohull | 40 NM | 1370 NM | 6.8 kts | 215 NM | 6 Jun 13:54 | 7d 1h 48m 0s |
| 3 | Electron | Catamaran | 151 NM | 1258 NM | 6.1 kts | 183 NM | 7 Jun 08:41 | 7d 20h 41m 59s |
| 4 | Pacman | Monohull | 208 NM | 1109 NM | 5.8 kts | 161 NM | 7 Jun 20:00 | 8d 7h 54m 22s |
| 5 | Sarau | Monohull | 219 NM | 1105 NM | 5.7 kts | 146 NM | 7 Jun 22:22 | 8d 10h 22m 35s |
| — | Roaring Forty (retired — Lord Howe Island) | Monohull | Skipper safe, repairs underway | |||||
| 6 | Camellia | Monohull | 382 NM | 892 NM | 4.7 kts | 102 NM | 9 Jun 16:37 | 10d 4h 31m 3s |
| 7 | Catnip | Monohull | 442 NM | 854 NM | 4.4 kts | 74 NM | 10 Jun 13:09 | 11d 1h 3m 48s |
| 8 | Nautilass | Monohull | 479 NM | 860 NM | 4.1 kts | 51 NM | 11 Jun 03:46 | 11d 15h 40m 40s |
| 9 | Diablo | Monohull | 530 NM | 751 NM | 3.8 kts | 59 NM | 12 Jun 02:15 | 12d 14h 9m 55s |
| 10 | Smoko | Monohull | 571 NM | 674 NM | 3.6 kts | 24 NM | 12 Jun 23:38 | 13d 11h 32m 29s |
| 11 | Fair Seasons | Monohull | 638 NM | 684 NM | 3.2 kts | 19 NM | 14 Jun 17:31 | 15d 5h 25m 15s |
| — | Wave (retired — returned to Opua) | Monohull | — | |||||
| — | Pretty Boy Floyd (retired — safely back in Opua) | Monohull | — | |||||
| — | Robbery (retired — safely in Mangōnui) | Monohull | — | |||||
Provisional results. Last position update: 6 Jun 08:00 NZST. All times NZST. Multihulls shaded blue.
James Foster's Mumby 48 catamaran Electron was sitting 151 nautical miles from the finish, with an expected arrival the following morning at 08:41. The NZ Multihull Handicap standings were close to settled. Oceans Tribute held a 4-hour 48-minute lead over Electron on corrected elapsed time, Chester's time of 6 days 1 hour 58 minutes stacked against Foster's 6 days 6 hours 46 minutes. Overturning that margin would require something extraordinary from Electron over the miles remaining. Chester's multihull handicap position was looking secure.
In the line honours contest among the remaining fleet, Peter Elkington's Young 11 Pacman had moved ahead of Malcolm Dickson's 55-foot Sarau, with distances to finish of 208 nautical miles and 219 nautical miles respectively. Both were tracking toward an arrival on 8 June, separated by two to three hours on elapsed time. On PHRF corrected time the picture was reversed: Sarau led on 6 days 17 hours 29 minutes against Pacman's 6 days 23 hours 55 minutes. Once Vixen Racing completed her finish, she would lock in the top PHRF position regardless, her corrected elapsed of 6 days 15 hours 46 minutes placing her comfortably clear of both. There was still a lot of racing to go.
| Pos | Boat | Handicap | DTF | Dist Sailed | VMG | 24h DMG | Est Finish | Corrected Elapsed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vixen Racing | 0.941 | 40 NM | 1370 NM | 6.8 kts | 215 NM | 6 Jun 13:54 | 6d 15h 46m 54s |
| 2 | Sarau | 0.798 | 219 NM | 1105 NM | 5.7 kts | 146 NM | 7 Jun 22:22 | 6d 17h 29m 47s |
| 3 | Pacman | 0.840 | 208 NM | 1109 NM | 5.8 kts | 161 NM | 7 Jun 20:00 | 6d 23h 55m 16s |
| 4 | Camellia | 0.706 | 382 NM | 892 NM | 4.7 kts | 102 NM | 9 Jun 16:37 | 7d 4h 37m 46s |
| 5 | Diablo | 0.660 | 530 NM | 751 NM | 3.8 kts | 59 NM | 12 Jun 02:15 | 8d 7h 25m 45s |
| 6 | Roaring Forty (retired) | 0.919 | Retired — Lord Howe Island | |||||
| 7 | Smoko | 0.685 | 571 NM | 674 NM | 3.6 kts | 24 NM | 12 Jun 23:38 | 9d 5h 37m 33s |
| 8 | Catnip | 0.851 | 442 NM | 854 NM | 4.4 kts | 74 NM | 10 Jun 13:09 | 9d 9h 34m 8s |
| 9 | Nautilass | 0.824 | 479 NM | 860 NM | 4.1 kts | 51 NM | 11 Jun 03:46 | 9d 14h 27m 16s |
| 10 | Fair Seasons | 0.696 | 638 NM | 684 NM | 3.2 kts | 19 NM | 14 Jun 17:31 | 10d 14h 19m 58s |
Provisional results. Last position update: 6 Jun 08:00 NZST. All times NZST.
Ben Ball's Cavalier 36 Camellia had slipped to fourth on PHRF handicap, Pacman's stronger recent pace having made the difference. Ball had checked in two days earlier with a characteristically candid report: "Shit fight last night. Camellia is going well. Everything is soaked. Skipper is a bit beaten up. 450 miles to Southport but still can't point in the right direction." Fourth on handicap from seventh on the water, he was still putting the miles in.
The boats approaching Southport were sailing into south-south-westerly winds of 19 to 24 knots, with a front pushing stronger conditions in behind. PredictWind was warning of thunderstorms and high seas for the second and third groups of finishers: Electron, Sarau, Pacman, and the cluster comprising Camellia, Geoff Thorn's Beneteau First 45 Catnip, Terry Dunn's Nautilass, Peter Bourke's S&S 8.7m Diablo, and Peter Nobbs' B&G 36 Smoko. Further back, Doug Esterman's Cavalier 39 Fair Seasons, which had crossed the halfway mark overnight, was experiencing calmer conditions for now, some consolation given the miles still to cover.
Among the PHRF sub-battles worth following, Catnip and Nautilass remained locked in a tight contest. After more than 850 nautical miles at sea, fewer than five hours separated them on corrected time, with Catnip on 9 days 9 hours 34 minutes and Nautilass on 9 days 14 hours 27 minutes.
