Sharon Ferris-Choat moved quickly to secure her place in one of offshore sailing's most prestigious events. When registrations opened for the 2026 Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race last week, her yacht Vixen Racing claimed a notable set of firsts: second overall on the entry list, first among international entrants, and first among female-skippered yachts in next year's fleet.
Getting Vixen Racing to Australian waters was no small undertaking. The Tasman crossing presented a genuine navigational challenge, with two low-pressure systems forecast along the route and gusts ahead of rain squalls potentially reaching 50 knots. Route selection relative to those systems was the central concern for Ferris-Choat. A longer northern option, one that added miles to the passage but reduced exposure to the worst of the forecast conditions, was a serious possibility under active consideration.
Sharon is completing the Tasman passage solo, with her crew joining Vixen Racing on arrival at Southport. The team will then wait for a favourable weather window before continuing south to Sydney along the coast. That coastal leg doubles as a development opportunity, with scholarship berths open to one New Zealand and one Australian youth sailor. A Kiwi candidate has already put her hand up.
The Sydney Hobart campaign sits within a full season of offshore competition on the Audi Centre Sydney Blue Water Pointscore circuit. Vixen Racing opens that season with the Noakes Sydney Gold Coast Yacht Race, a 384-nautical-mile passage north to the Gold Coast. The programme then continues with the GCCM Gold Coast Mackay Yacht Race, a 520-nautical-mile run through tropical waters to the Whitsundays, timed to arrive ahead of Hamilton Island Race Week. From there, the crew works back south through the remaining Blue Water Pointscore events, with the 172-nautical-mile Cabbage Tree Island Race the targeted qualifying passage for the Rolex Sydney Hobart itself.
Cat 1 certification is scheduled for completion in Sydney before the December 26 start. Between August and that start date, Vixen Racing will not return to New Zealand.
