Fleet away in wintery start to Noakes Sydney Gold Coast Yacht Race
by Cruising Yacht Club of Australia 25 Jul 06:26 UTC
25 July 2026
The fleet is racing north after a breathtaking start to the Noakes Sydney Gold Coast Yacht Race, sending competitors on a 386 nautical mile course to Main Beach.
Smuggler, last year's overall winner, was first through Sydney Heads, ahead of V5, Koa, Caol Ila and Gusto. Caol Ila's crew posted one of the cleanest starts of the fleet, keeping the heavy Maarten 67 moving through patchy conditions inside the Harbour.
The largest boat in the fleet, Antipodes, was flanked out of the harbour by 40 footers Ambition and Back 2 Black, both racing well above their rating. Disco Trooper was the first double-hander and first 30 footer through the Heads, with Mistral close alongside and Annie Stevenson's Dehler 30 not far behind. Marguerite was last to clear the Heads.
Conditions for the start were sunny with winds of eight to thirteen knots. Forecast winds are set to ease and turn light and shifty over the coming days, leaving it unclear whether the run to the Gold Coast will favour the bigger boats reaching for pressure or the smaller boats picking through the gaps.
Find out more at goldcoast.cycaracing.com