Lahana takes the win and the record

At 18:11:22 hours this evening, Saturday 7 August, Peter Millard and his crew sailed the 98′ maxi Lahana across the finish line at Keppel Bay just 22 seconds ahead of the Mark Richards skippered Wild Oats X to claim Line Honours victory in the fourth Club Marine Brisbane to Keppel Tropical Yacht Race.

The spectatular finish happened just on sunset and after 348 nautical miles the two big boats of the fleet provided exactly what the locals wanted – a photo finish.

“It doesn’t get much closer than that!” said an excited Peter Millard just after the finish.

“We had to fight hard to get back in front of Oats when they crept past us today but the crew was so determinded to do so and it really did pay off.

“It’s such a great acheivement. This is the first race I’ve done with Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron in about seven years as the boat and the crew are based in Sydney. As a member it’s just fantastic to be here, to win the race and to take the record.

“You can guarentee that we will be celebrating this evening!” said Millard.

Lahana managed to hold their Code O and keep the boat moving after Wild Oats X opted to furl up and two sail reach to the finish.

“We were nervous coming into the finish but when we heard that finishing sound we all had a huge sigh of relief,” continued Millard.

This is the first time these boats have competed in the Club Marine Brisbane to Keppel Tropical Yacht Race which is the signature offshore race of the Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron.

Mark Richards said that although they didn’t hold their lead that it was a perfect but intense race the whole way from Manly in Brisbane to Keppel Bay Marina.

“We thought we could hold them but they just got away. We were thinking how great it would have been to have Black Jack here as well,” said Richards.

“We’ll be back next year and look forward to taking on Lahana again to steal the record from them,” continued Richards.

Now that the Line Honours result has been secured the focus will turn to the remaining 31 boats in the fleet. The races within races between the Farr 40 Types, Mumm 36′s, Farr 30′s and Beneteaus continues this evening and the next boat is expected to finish after sunrise on Sunday 8 August.

The Lahana and Wild Oats X crew are now enjoying a famous Keppel Bay Marina Banana Station steak overlooking the harbour.

More to come.

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The Club Marine Brisbane to Keppel Tropical Yacht Race is part of Queensland Tourism’s Season of Sailing calendar and is proudly sponsored by O’Reilly’s Real Estate, Angove Wines, Morgan’s Seafood, Capricorn Tourism, Rockhampton Regional Council and of course Club Marine.

The race is hosted by Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron with the support of Keppel Bay Marina, Keppel Bay Sailing Club, Yeppon Coast Guard and Bundaberg VMR.