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A young Auckland team has etched its name in the country’s sailing history, with Ship Happens claiming a landmark victory at the 2025 open team racing national championships.
The crew - Beau Utting, Sasha White, Blake McKinnon, Hugh Webber, Sam Clarke and James Davies - secured the national title in style at Royal Akarana Yacht Club yesterday, becoming the youngest team ever to win the event.
Their path to victory was anything but straightforward - the three-day regatta began in light airs on Friday, testing the patience and precision of all nine competing teams. A breeze-filled Sunday set the stage for a tense knockout series after a patchy Saturday, and from there, Ship Happens simply rose to the occasion.
After placing third in the round robins with 11 wins, Ship Happens came alive in the elimination stages. They edged past Wanakans in a sudden-death quarter-final before pulling off a major upset in the semis - knocking out top-ranked Kiwi Team Racing 2-1, with a decisive penalty at the finish line sealing their place in the final.
Kiwi Team Racing last month stunned the fleet by picking up a second placing at the 2025 team racing world championship in Newport, Rhode Island.
In the decider Ship Happens met Thievery, a team that had found form late and swept past RNZYS in their semifinal. Thievery struck first in the final, but Ship Happens responded with relentless composure, claiming the next three races in clinical fashion to seal the series 3–1 and with it, the national crown.
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