Equilibrium leads the Doyle Sails Gold Cup into Saturday’s Bean Rock Race, but last year’s results offer plenty of encouragement for the smaller yachts chasing handicap honours.
Equilibrium sets early pace
Graham Matthews’ Equilibrium has made a habit of leading the Gold Cup fleet home. The Botin Carkeek 55 captured last season’s line honours title and has quickly established itself as the boat to beat in the 2026/27 series.
On Saturday 7 November, the fleet returns to the Hauraki Gulf for the Bean Rock Race. Hosted by Royal Akarana Yacht Club, the primary course stretches approximately 44 nautical miles from the start line off Ōrākei Wharf. Depending on the committee’s choice of circuit, the fleet will head north towards Mahurangi before turning back toward the Waitematā Harbour.
Matthews and crew arrive in commanding form. Equilibrium took line honours in both opening events and sits atop the provisional PHRF standings with three points, pairing a handicap victory at the Roy McDell Memorial with a second-place finish in the Spring Regatta.
Nigel Hendy’s Dufour 45e Nirvana holds second place on six points, closely followed by Quintin Fowler’s More 55 Rum Bucket on seven. While these three have shown remarkable consistency, the smaller division has already proven it can disrupt the leaderboard.
| Pos | Yacht | Design / Model | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Equilibrium | Botin Carkeek 55 | 3 |
| 2 | Nirvana | Dufour 45e | 6 |
| 3 | Rum Bucket | More 55 | 7 |
| 4 | Clockwork | Shaw 12 | 11 |
At Richmond Yacht Club’s Spring Regatta in September, Equilibrium crossed the line first in the Gold Cup fleet with a time of 5:14:13, with Steve Mair’s Shaw 12 Clockwork just 5 minutes 50 seconds behind. On PHRF corrected time, however, Clockwork turned the tables to win by 3 minutes 6 seconds over Equilibrium, with Rum Bucket taking third just 1 minute 15 seconds further back.
Although Clockwork missed the Roy McDell Memorial – leaving them fourth overall on 11 points – their raw water speed in that race keeps them squarely in the picture. The Roy McDell Memorial also brought John Meadowcroft’s MC31 Carrera 3 into the frame with a third on PHRF, while Luke Judge’s Ross 930 Wasted Away finished fifth.
Despite Equilibrium‘s current cushion, early November leads guarantee little. Series rules mandate that all scores count until the fifth and final race, when a single discard is permitted. With the grueling 90th Balokovic Cup looming in February 2027, every point on Saturday matters.
Hauraki Gulf course layouts
The published race paths extend well beyond the immediate shadow of Bean Rock:
Course 1: Sends the fleet past Rangitoto Beacon (to starboard), heading north around Orarapa Island (Haystack) and Saddle Island off Mahurangi (both to port), returning via the Eastern Navy Buoy off Whangaparāoa (to starboard).
Course 2: Reverses the circuit, sending yachts past the Eastern Navy Buoy first before rounding Saddle Island, Haystack, and Rangitoto Beacon on the return leg.
2025 lessons: small boats clean up on handicap
Last year’s Bean Rock Race delivered a classic contrast between elapsed speed and corrected handicap victory. Vaughn Clark’s Soto 40 Alegre took 2025 monohull line honours on 1 November, setting the mark at 7:31:15. Equilibrium finished second 17 minutes 44 seconds later (7:48:59), while David Wade’s E 30 S Liquid Luck crossed third in 7:57:08.
Once handicaps were computed, Liquid Luck seized the overall PHRF win with a corrected time of 6:53:12. Carrera 3 finished second (+10m 47s corrected), and Marcel Vroege’s Ross 35 Apparition claimed third. Alegre, despite beating the fleet around the track, dropped to fifth on PHRF.
| Category | Yacht | Design | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Line Honours Winner | Alegre | Soto 40 | 7:31:15 |
| PHRF Winner | Liquid Luck | E 30 S | 6:53:12 (Corr.) |
| PHRF 2nd Place | Carrera 3 | MC31 | 7:03:59 (Corr.) |
| PHRF 3rd Place | Apparition | Ross 35 | 7:08:18 (Corr.) |
Tight pack racing extended throughout the lower fleet: Fulcrum, Nirvana, and Flying Boat engaged in a thrilling race, all three crossing the finish line within a tiny 72-second window after more than eight hours at sea.
The 155-year guard at the harbour mouth
While the race bears its name, Bean Rock Lighthouse is not a rounding mark is not one of the course’s rounding marks. First lit on 24 July 1871, the Category 1 Heritage New Zealand landmark marks its 155th year in 2026. As New Zealand’s oldest surviving timber lighthouse and its sole remaining wave-washed light, its unique architecture features a hexagonal three-room kauri cottage perched on open iron piles above the reef.
Resident keepers maintained the original kerosene light until automation in 1912. Saved from demolition by public outcry in the early 1980s, the superstructure was lifted ashore for full structural restoration in 1985 before being re-anchored on replacement legs (for a deeper look, see Alex and Lesley Stone’s retrospective, “Bean Rock 150 years“, Boating NZ, Nov 2021).
With the Bean Rock Race signaling the midpoint of the Gold Cup season – ahead of December’s Percy Jones Memorial and February’s historic 90th Balokovic Cup – Equilibrium holds the upper hand, but the handicap crown remains up for grabs across the Gulf.
