The Kodiak Express Racing

07/22/2026

After days of nothing but ocean, sky, and the steady rhythm of life offshore, Hawaii finally rose out of the horizon. The Pacific Cup tested us with everything from rough water and confused rollers to the trade wind runs, dark nights, squalls, and wild moments. Every mile demanded something from the crew, and every mile was worth it.

Crossing the finish line wasn’t just about getting to Hawaii - it was about the teamwork, resilience, and determination that carried us across the Pacific Ocean. It was not easy. It was quite far in fact. It was very tiring. The Pacific doesn’t give you anything for free. It makes you earn every mile. The only one in charge is the ocean.

There are moments in life that live up to every expectation, and then there are moments that completely surpass them. Making landfall in Hawaii after crossing the Pacific was one of those moments. That’s what makes the finish line so special.

3154.4 nautical miles sailed from West Vancouver to Kaneohe. 12 days, 19 hours, 39 minutes, 39 seconds racing. Sunrises, Sunsets. Dark nights, Starry nights. A few injuries. Lots of salty salty gear. Two ripped sails. Plenty of cold l***r and mai tai’s upon arrival in Kaneohe, Oahu.

BUT - WE DID IT! WE DID IT!!

Mahalo to everyone who followed along, sent messages, and cheered us on from home. Time to catch our breath, enjoy solid ground, and soak in this incredible place before the next adventure begins.

The ocean is very big, and so very very vast. And it has our full respect.

Aloha, Hawaii. We’ll never forget this one.

07/19/2026

One of our few visable sunrises of the crossing - finally breaking through over the Pacific as the ocean swells roll beneath us. After days of endless skies and horizons, lots of miles and being tossed around by confused seas, it feels like a sign that the end of this wild ride is getting close.

Hawaii is somewhere ahead, and we’re still charging. We’re down to 130 nautical miles to go and will arrive sometime… soon?! It’ll be dark. Let’s just say that.

The YB Tracker is actually working now, and it’s live for those who have crossed the 200 mile mark, so you can follow us by the minutes as we continue to roll on out here.

https://pro.yb.tl/paccup2026live200nm/team/14

07/17/2026

DAY 10!

Blasting towards Hawaii, brought to you by ‘The Flash’. Just over 550 nautical miles and a few days to go. Full send mode before dark.

07/15/2026

We marked a significant milestone last night, having reached the halfway point. Our journey so far has covered 1035 nautical miles on the rhumb line, with the total distance sailed exceeding 1200 nautical miles.

We celebrated with a cocktail at sunset and later, in the darkness, with a bottle of ch*****ne.

Now, ch*****ne sailing it is! We’re out here rippin along… accompanied by the beautiful blue A4 kite soaring out front, its reflection glistening on the blue sea under the sunshine.

07/13/2026

We are officially into the 7th day of this race! We are happy to report that with this mornings position report check in, we have officially crossed into the trade winds!!!! 🌊 💨

It feels like a line has been crossed - not just on the chart, but mentally too. The trades are carrying us now, and Hawaii suddenly feels a little less like a destination and a little more like a reality. It is absolutely gorgeous out here in the middle of the Pacific. We are all doing swell!!

Onward.
🌺🌊⛵️

07/10/2026

Day Four live from the Pacific Ocean!

Got a couple different spinnakers up today and making our way Southwest towards Hawaii! Full sunshine and hot already! Taking the day to enjoy the transition to mode two of this race, the downwind part!

Spent hours cleaning and drying out the boat, drying various bits of gear and clothing out, folding and repacking sails and reorganizing.

Everyone is getting into the rhythm now, today being the first day everyone isn’t just wanting to sleep for their off shift. The cockpit is full of T-shirts and shorts and the tunes are on!

07/07/2026

The countdown is over. The boat is ready. The crew is ready. HERE WE GO!!! Pacific Cup

See you on the tracker. Race tracker link below or add ‘Pacific Cup 2026’ to the YB Races app. Our other boat tracker link will still be live, and we will endeavour to keep you updated there and here as we go along!

https://pro.yb.tl/paccup2026/

07/07/2026

We made it to San Francisco.

The delivery south was anything but easy. Heavy weather, big seas, long nights, and enough green waves over the boat to remind us who’s really in charge out here. The ocean. Every mile was earned.

Those miles tested the boat, the gear, and us. They exposed the weak points, built confidence in the strong ones, and reminded us that offshore sailing doesn’t hand you anything - you earn it.

The last few days in San Francisco have been a different kind of challenge. Final boat work, provisioning, meal prep (getting really in touch with our vacuum sealer), cleaning, loading fuel, water and gear, checking systems, an unexpected trip to the Canadian consulate and going through every detail one last time. Hundreds and hundreds of minutes on scooters and in Ubers. The list seemed endless, but now it’s *almost* complete.

Tomorrow morning we leave the dock again. This time, we’re finally bound for the Pacific Cup. The months and miles to San Francisco were just the approach. The real journey begins when we cross the starting line, go back under the bridge and point the bow toward Hawaii.

To everyone who’s supported us, helped us prepare, and followed along on this journey - thank you. Your encouragement has helped carry us every step of the way. This has been a very long hard road until now, and we seem to be getting tested in every single way… but it’s finally time to cross the Pacific Ocean.

06/26/2026

And we’re off!! The adventure south officially begins.

Today we leave for San Francisco, marking the start of our Pacific Cup journey. The boat is ready and we are ready!! Three of us departing now to deliver the boat down and the other three will fly down next week and meet us there.

There are still plenty of miles ahead before the start line and even more between San Francisco and Hawaii, but that’s all part of the adventure. Time to start putting on the miles under this beautiful keel of ours. 😉

Follow along on our personal tracker for our real time location, weather along route and the occasional blog post during the delivery down. We’ll post the race tracker link when we get it!

Next stop: San Francisco. 🌉
Then, Hawaii. 🏝️

See your boat's position and route in real-time with PredictWind Tracker.

05/17/2026

Our first Pacific Northwest Offshore completed and in the logbook! We crossed the finish line at 1:10am, after a 36 hour and 10 minute very fast race up the Pacific Coast. The race delivered exactly what it’s known for — big wind, heavy seas and not a dry layer left on board by the end of it.

The wind was turned on for our journey North and we spent the afternoon and throughout the first night in some wild sea states. Confusing waves the size of automobiles that would pick up the stern quarter of the boat and wash over the crew, soaking us all. The rain was relentless, it came down hard and never ending with a vengeance. Some really cool squalls, a lot of awesome wind - to absolutely nothing coming into the Central Strait of Juan de Fuca. Bobbing around chasing wind and staying in positive tidal currents, we got the spinnaker up after a painful few hours and had a beautiful sail through Race Rocks and the Finish Line.

We placed 5th in our division and learned after a 600ish nautical mile journey, that preparation matters, but adaptability matters even more. Patience, resilience, humour, and trust in one another and the boat carried us through the roughest stretches.

Stay tuned for more. Thanks for following along!