Racing catamaran Apache guns towards the finishing line in the all-comers division, passing yachts still heading to the first mark. Photo / Peter de Graaf
More than 70 vessels — from a tiny junk-rigged boat to giant racing catamarans — completed Saturday's Tall Ships and Classic Invitational Race in the Bay of Islands in near-perfect conditions.
This year's results were notable for Zindabar, an 18m schooner owned by Tony Browne and Nicky McCaig-Browne, pulling off
the rare feat of winning both handicap and line honours in the tall ships division (defined as having two or more masts and at least 30 feet on deck).
Still conditions in the morning gave way to a 10-knot northerly with the odd squall by the time the starting signal sounded at noon though fading wind later in the day saw some boats struggle to finish, including the only square rigger, Northland's own R Tucker Thompson.
Racing was followed by a prizegiving ceremony at the club's Matauwhi Bay headquarters, a party and one of New Zealand's biggest hāngī, catering this year to 900 famished sailors.
Though the trophies are hotly contested the event, which has been organised for the past 46 years by the Russell Boating Club, is more a celebration of sail than a serious race.
