Blue skies with a cool breeze were the order of the day and although it chopped up a bit around the island during the men's race, things had settled down by the time the women's crews hit the water later in the afternoon.

Team Goodyear managed to break the 1 hour 17 min barrier, completing the 15 km course in 1 hour and 12 minutes.

The new extended racecourse made the race much more spectator friendly with the waka visible from the shore for a considerable part of the race.

The positive side to the low paddler attendance was that nearly everyone at the after function was the recipient of a paddler or club prize from our generous sponsors, a great day was had by all.

Pictures are available from Picture NZ Website