Three Kings Offshore Race announced for 2021

TP52 V5 - Coastal Classic 2019 - October 2019 - Waitemata Harbour, Auckland © Richard Gladwell / Sail-World.com

The Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron are excited to announce an offshore race for 2021 - the RNZYS Three Kings Race to be held in November this year. This 500nm race will be open to 40 yachts only, with up to 20 of those being shorthanded with just two skippers. The Race will be Cat 2 with Advanced Sea Survival and First Aid Certifications recommended.

RNZYS has a long and extensive history hosting offshore races and is excited to be able to include an offshore race in its 150th year. RNZYS Three Kings Offshore Race Director Scott Wilson said - “We are really looking forward to this race, it’s less than 6 months away and is a good chance for our fleet to stretch their legs over 500nm in an exciting race that will pose many challenges for the fleet, especially with the unpredictable November conditions”.

With the continued growth in two-handed racing the RNZYS are pleased to have the support of the Short Handed Sailing Association of New Zealand (SSANZ) for this race. The Three Kings Race acts as a great lead-in to the SSANZ 2022 Northern Triangle, and the 2023 Round North Island, and could be used to qualify for the RNI. Two-handed racing is quickly growing in popularity in New Zealand due to the challenging nature of the racing, managing not only the boat, but the endurance element for each skipper and ensuring you're getting the best speeds possible in any conditions. Seeing how the two-handed entrants go against the fully crewed fleet will be fascinating.

The last Three Kings Race was hosted by the Royal Akarana Yacht Club in February of 2013 in mostly light conditions, with RNZYS Member Quintin Fowler’s Outrageous Fortune taking the line honours in the Monohull Division in 3 days and 17 hours, with Vodafone owned by Simon Hull taking line in the Multihull Division finishing in 1 day 19 hours.

Starting at Westhaven on Thursday 18th November and heading North, the yachts will sail up past Cape Reinga and on to the Three Kings through the challenging strip of water where the Pacific Ocean and Tasman Sea converge. The fleet will then battle it out to see who can be first around the group of islands traditionally known for their diving and excellent fishing, before turning the corner and hoping for a quick blast home, rather than a long up-hill slog to the finish.

Entry is open to keelers 8.4m and longer, and multihulls 10m and longer who meet the entry criteria. Entry will open at 7:00pm on July 4th and the RNZYS expects strong support for this race. In the event that it is a sell-out - a waitlist system will be applied.

The race will use the YellowBrick tracking system, giving followers live position tracking reports, and many of the yachts intending to enter will provide onboard updates that will be shared with our followers via the RNZYS Auckland to Three Kings Offshore Race Facebook page.

More details via the event website page HERE.

RNZYS Three Kings Offshore Race Facebook Page HERE.