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It took Karyn Drummond three attempts to secure her first Young 88 national title, but in reality, it was more than 20 years in the making.
At the weekend, she made history - becoming the first female helm in over 30 years, and only the second ever, to lift the national trophy in the popular one-design keelboat class.
Sailing Flash Gordon, Drummond and her crew took out line honours at Bucklands Beach Yacht Club after a consistent performance in tough conditions.
They finished in the top four in six of the seven races, including two wins, edging out defending champion Harry Thurston (Dangerzone) by three points. William Mason (Young Magic) claimed third place, while Mark Tapper (Undercover) and Mike Leyland (War Machine) rounded out the top five.
Drummond also won the Tanaka Cup for top owner-driver and the Mixer Trophy for the highest-placed boat with a mixed-gender crew.
"We're absolutely rapt," Drummond said. "The conditions were so shifty, so light - just really mental. It was a real challenge. We’re thrilled with the win, especially given how strong the competition was. There were some absolute legends sailing this year."
Having finished second at the previous two nationals, Drummond was relieved to finally claim the top spot.
"Always the bridesmaid, never the bride," she laughed. "We were happy with our results in 2023 and 2024, but my dad always used to say, 'Karyn, no one ever remembers who was second, except the people who come second.'"
With the victory, Drummond became the first female helm to win the Young 88 nationals since Leslie Egnot and her all-female crew triumphed in Auckland aboard Bandicoot in the early 1990s.
"Yeah, it feels really good," Drummond said. "The Young 88 is such a competitive class, and it was awesome to also have another woman, Arabella Vennell, on board - all 5-foot-3 of her! That was really cool."
Karyn Drummond and her Flash Gordon crew. Photo / Supplied
Drummond and her husband, Dean, bought Flash Gordon three years ago after admiring the boat for years.
"Before our twins [Finn and Bree] were born, we used to own an SR 26 called Space Station. It was built by the same people who built Flash Gordon, and we would often see Flash down at the end of M pier [at Auckland's Westhaven Marina]," Drummond said.
"We always loved Flash and thought, ‘One day we'll own you.’ We would have liked to do it 20 years earlier, but we finally got it, and now winning the nationals with the boat is very special."
The winning crew included Dean Drummond (trimmer/tactics), Vennell (mainsheet trimmer), father-son duo Neil (pit) and Josh Hilder (bow), Mike Gibson (mast), and Marcus Everard (floater/entertainer).
"We don't swap crews for nationals like some teams do," Drummond said. "Our ethos has always been to sail with people we really like - people we can have a few beers with afterwards and a good yarn."
That's exactly how the best Young 88 team in the country celebrated their history-making feat on Sunday.
"Even though we're fiercely competitive, we always bring a dozen beers and a dozen ciders on the boat," Drummond laughed. "As soon as the day's over, we get into it. We usually need it too - 'cause we're always pretty stressed out!"
Full results from the 2025 Harken Young 88 national championships here.
