There will be 5 Legs with 4 Stopovers in ports, and 2 Sprint Stages with 2 Pitstops. Legs and ports will be finalized in the formal Notice of Race, with Start-Finish times and arrangements in the Sailing Instructions.
The start date will be in August 2028 and will be announced in the Notice of Race. With weather contingencies for slow legs, adverse weather delays, and vessels below an average VMG of 7 knots, Entrants should be prepared for the event to conclude mid-late November. The aim is for crew and vessel to have time to rest and refit yachts in time to enter the doublehanded Rolex Sydney to Hobart Race 2028.
The Legs
Leg 1 – Sydney to Whitsundays
- 970 nm
- Course: Breaksea Spit to port, Lady Elliot Island to starboard
- Stopover port to be advise in Notice of Race.
Leg 2 – Whitsundays to Darwin
- 1481 nm
- Leg 2 restart 3 days after 90%* fleet finished.
- Sprint Stage, then a minimum 24 hour unsupported Pitstop at a location north of Port Douglas, south of Cape Melville: ~406 nm
- 24 hour Pitstop ensures fatigue not an issue on the inner route to Torres Strait. Publicity of stage finish times will allow ongoing interest and an opportunity to promote marine conservation messages.
- Then on to Darwin: ~1075 nm
- Leg times are the total of Stage 1 and Stage 2 of the Leg.
- At the Pitstop, other than a water taxi, and perhaps a meal or drinks ashore, no outside assistance is allowed.
- Course will not specify passages in Torress Strait nor Van Diemen Gulf, other than Cape York, Cape Don and Cape Hotham to port.
Leg 3 – Darwin to Fremantle
- 1950 nm
- Restart 3 days after 90%* of fleet finished
Leg 4 – Fremantle to Hobart
- 1825 nm
- Restart 3 days after 90%* of fleet finished.
- A Sprint Stage to Albany, then a Pitstop of 24-96 hours. After a stop of 24 hours, Yachts may restart the leg at any time up to 96 hours from their finish. This allows Yachts to time their departure across the Great Australian Bight to avoid adverse weather. Outside assistance during this Pitstop is permitted. A Yacht’s elapsed time for the leg commences when they cross the Start line for the Leg.
- A virtual mark of the course (“Kangaroo”) will be set south of Kangaroo Island/Adelaide with a southern most point about 150 nm due south of Cape Jervis, to keep Yachts within reasonable range of rescue services.
- After “Kangaroo”, Tasmania may be left to port or starboard (approximately 600 nm via West Coast and 720 nm via Bass Strait and East Coast).
- Cape Direction to Starboard to Finish off Battery Point.
Leg 5 – Hobart Sydney
- 620 nm
- Tasman Island to port.
- Restart 3 days after 90%* of fleet finished
Stopover Times
The 90% is a guide and subject to change. Prior to the event, we will consult the fleet on Stopover time. The Race Director will decide Restart times for each leg and this decision will not be appealable.
Gates
Gates with places calculated for media interest: off Gold Coast or Brisbane (latitude); Torres Strait (longitude); Cape Don (longitude); Cape Levique (latitude); NW Cape (latitude); Cape de Coudique or Cape Jervis (longitude, Kangaroo Island). Gates are compulsory but results are not part of Leg results (just media and bragging rights).
Exclusion Zones, Obstructions, and Boundaries
Boundaries will be set to the west of Western Australia, to the south of Western Australia and South Australia, and potentially in other areas. These will be included in the Notice of Race.
The Sailing Instructions may include exclusion zones, obstructions and additional boundaries.
Start and Finish Marks
There are likely to be rounding marks at Starts and Finishes to allow for spectators and media interest and ensure port safety.
Leg Starts
Leg Starts will be in daylight and generally after 10 am and before 3 pm. Leg Starts may be delayed by the Race Director in the event of severe weather, or for local port requirements (e.g. vessel traffic, tides).
Late Finishing a Leg, Late Start
The intention is to ensure that a Yacht that has temporarily ceased racing for medical assistance or repair or is otherwise delayed on a Leg (e.g. sheltering from adverse weather) can finish a Leg late, and start the next Leg “late”. This will minimise the reluctance of crews to seek medical attention or repairs, and allow delayed vessels to “catch up”. The intention is also to allow a Yacht that is delayed during a Stopover for medical attention or repairs a later Start.
- A Yacht must make at least a 24 hour Stopover .
- Where a Yacht finishes a Leg after the Start of the next Leg, their Finish Time will be recorded up to six days after the Leg Start.
- Where a Yacht starts a Leg after the Leg Start, their elapsed time for the next Leg will commence when the Leg Start occurs. Such Yachts must start a Leg within 7 days of the Start of the Leg.
The Hobart to Sydney Leg will have a time limit of 8 days after the Start of the Leg.
See also Aussie Adventure Class.
Stopover and Pitstop Logistics
Each Yacht is responsible for its own berthing and logistics at each Pitstop and Stopover.
It is hoped that negotiations with Start, Finish and Stopover ports will result in discounted or free berthing arrangements, however, these may involve moorings, stern to, or rafting up to accommodate Yachts. We cannot guarantee this, and entrants’ planning should reflect that minimal support may be all that is available at some/all stops.
Indicative Race Program
About 20 August – Sydney to Whitsundays
- 970nm
- 7 days (5.8 days @ 7 knots VMG, 4 days @10)
- 3+ days Whitsundays Stopover
~30 August – Whitsundays to “Lizard” – Sprint Stage
- Pitstop location to be confirmed
- ~410nm
- 3 days (2.4 days @ 7 knots VMG, 1.7 days @10)
- Island pitstop 24 hours
~6 September – “Lizard” to Darwin
- ~1075nm
- 7 days (6.4 days @ 7 knots VMG, 4.5 days @10)
- 3+ days Darwin Stopover
~16 September – Darwin to Freemantle
- 1950nm
- 13 days (11.6 days @ 7 knots VMG, 8.1 days @10)
- 3+ days Freemantle Stopover
~3 October – Freemantle to Albany – Sprint Stage
- 325 nm
- 3 days (1.9 days @ 7 knots VMG, 1.4 days @10)
- 24-96 hours Albany Pitstop
~9-12 October – Albany to Hobart
- ~945+ nm
- 7 days (5.6 days @ 7 knots VMG, 3.9 days @10)
- 3+ Days Hobart Stopover
~22-31 October – Hobart to Sydney
- 620+ nm
- 5 days (5.6 days @ 7 knots VMG, 3.9 days @10)
- Contingency 10 days