2023 Noakes Sydney Gold Coast opens for entries
by Cruising Yacht Club of Australia 31 May 2023 18:55 AEST
29 July 2023
Moneypenny finishes the 2022 Noakes Sydney Gold Coast Yacht Race © Cruising Yacht Club of Australia
Entries have now opened for the 37th Noakes Sydney Gold Coast Yacht Race, hosted by the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia (CYCA). Competitors will start the challenging 384NM offshore race on Sydney Harbour at 1pm (AEST) Saturday 29 July, before heading up the NSW coast to finish off Main Beach on the Gold Coast, Queensland.
Since it first launched in 1986, the Sydney Gold Coast Yacht Race has continued to grow in prestige. It is a key race in Australia's offshore calendar and has become an important test bed for boats and crews in the lead up to the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race.
Early entrants to this year's race include Geoffrey Hill's Santa Cruz 72 Antipodes, Daniel Edwards' M.A.T 1245 White Noise, Michael Smith's Super40 Tempo and Richard Harris' Cookson 50 Sticky. The first three TP52s entered have been Sebastian Bohm's Smuggler, Andy Kearnan and Peter Wrigley's KOA and Michael Spies' Maritimo.
Early entrants in the two-handed division include Rupert Henry and Greg O'Shea on the Lombard 34 Mistral, and two J/99s - Shane Connelly and Andrew Downing on Rum Rebellion and Peter Franki and Drew Jones on Salt Shaker. The 2022 race featured 13 two-handed entries and the fleet is expected to have strong representation again this year.
The Overall Winner of the 2022 Noakes Sydney Gold Coast Yacht Race was Sean Langman's Reichel/Pugh 69 Moneypenny. This year, Langman, Managing Director of race sponsor Noakes Group, will not be competing due to being in the UK to race to race in the Rolex Fastnet Race with his son Peter on his 30-foot Maluka.
The 2022 Line Honours victor, Andoo Comanche, is expected to return to lead a strong fleet of maxi and mini maxis teams.