The performance cruiser-racer was bought by Nick Roberts in 2020, and she has increasingly been developed for offshore racing since. Raced extensively in New Zealand’s highly competitive short-handed scene, Ākonga is crewed by deeply experienced New Zealand double-handed sailors, including Roberts and his long-standing two-handed sailing partner Max Livingstone. Together they won the 2024 Two-Handed Three Kings Race, a demanding 500-nautical-mile offshore course from Auckland to the Three Kings Islands at the northern tip of New Zealand and back. While Ākonga will be fully crewed for its Hobart debut, the crew will arrive on the start line with 22 previous RSHYRs between them.