KEY POINTS:
Huge waves, squally winds and torrential rain played havoc with the country's biggest coastal yacht race yesterday.
A full 28 hours after the start, only 31 of 229 starters had finished the HSBC Premier Coastal Classic Yacht Race from Auckland to Russell and 141 had called it quits.
One vessel, Space Station, was forced to make a mayday call late on Friday night after it ran aground at Mangawhai Heads while seeking shelter from the weather. The crew was picked up by the coastguard and the vessel was retrieved by early yesterday morning.
Whangarei Coastguard shift officer Mark Fletcher said the boat withdrew from the race and had advised it would be heading to Whangarei Harbour, but the crew became "disoriented" and ran aground.
"They activated an EPIRB [emergency position indicating radio beacon] and made contact with the fire department via cellphone. A co-ordinated effort between the local surf club and coastguard ensured that they were recovered quickly and safely."
Race spokesman Jon Vincent said yesterday afternoon that crews deserved to be commended for braving such "awful" and "trying" conditions, which included swells of up to 2.5 metres and several "torrential downpours."
The race began in Auckland at 10am on Friday, with the winner Taeping - skippered by Greg Roak - crossing the finish line just after midnight.
By Saturday morning, more than half of the 229 starters had pulled out.
As well as the grounding, organisers said one sailor had suffered broken ribs, several others had received treatment for sea sickness, and there were reports of ripped sails and broken booms.
Meanwhile the wet and windy weather is forecast to clear up today and tomorrow, but sunseekers hoping for a day at the beach will probably be out of luck.
Temperatures throughout the country will remain low.
