With rainbows, sunshine and a breeze built to please, the 2026 Sail Port Stephens Performance Series opened in memorable style yesterday on picture-perfect Port Stephens backdrop.
Racing was initially paused for an hour while a pesky westerly gradually relented to an incoming south-easterly that filled in at 10–12 knots and delivered three enthralling races across the key performance divisions.
As if that wasn’t good enough, an 18-knot squall accompanied a brilliant rainbow which the planing boats relished – as did the onlookers.
Consistency proved critical from the outset as crews looked for clear wind lanes to establish momentum for the weekend ahead.
Among the standout performers of the day was Matador, owned and skippered by David Doherty, which stamped its authority on the TP52 fleet, taking three from three bullets on scratch and IRC, while posting two 1sts and a 2nd on TPR. It won most of the starts and looked settled at all times.
Seb Bohm’s Smuggler was best of the rest, sitting on 8pts overall on TPR and 10 on IRC. The RP52 Virago, racing in the division despite not being a true TP, at one stage led the fleet at the final top mark but narrowly lost out to Matador on the final run. The blue-hulled CYCA entry sits 3rd on IRC and equal 3rd with Gordon Ketelby’s Zen on TPR.
Equally commanding, in Division 2, was Beau Ideal (Karl Kwok) as it posted three firsts in Division 2 and the Super 40 division respectively – on line honours, IRC and ORC. The Botin-designed flyer, representing Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club, found the conditions ideal and was also unbeatable on scratch, although pressed at times by John Bacon’s sleek Dunning 44 Edge.
Surprise packet of the day was Don’t Panic, the trailable Bethwaite 89er, that sits in 2nd overall. From Fremantle WA, skipper David Davenport is up against the Goliaths, giving away many metres of boat length, but he consistently owned the leeward end of the start line to find fresh air when needed.
In Division 3, which includes the Cape 31 Nationals, it was Sam Haynes on Celestial C31 that continued the storyline – three wins setting the CYCA entry up well ahead of today’s passage race. Next in line are Trex (Robert Engwirda), Game On (Julian Newton) and Dirty Deeds (Alan Stein).
Sadly, the C31 Kukukerchu is a scratching after striking trouble on the delivery. Two crew members were safely winched to safety but the yacht remains stuck on rocks off Fingal Bay.
Lighter winds are predicted for the Passage Race on Day 2.
Second on IRC and ORC is the Farr 40 Bluetack, Brent Lawson’s Middle Harbour Yacht Club entry.
Sail Port Stephens is supported by the NSW Government tourism agency Destination NSW and Port Stephens Council.
