Mark Richards on Wild Oats XI and North Sails

Wild Oats XI, under the leadership of skipper Mark Richards, is an undeniable success story. The program has collected Sydney to Hobart line honors on nine separate occasions and was the first boat to claim the “Treble:” race record, line honors, and overall winner. First launched in 2005, this 100’ SuperMaxi will sail the 2019 Sydney to Hobart Race 1300 kilos lighter than a year ago. And North Sails is proud to be their sailmaker of choice. “The sail evolution over those 15 years has been phenomenal,” Richards says. “We're a lot faster than we have been in the past with the reaching tight luff sails, so that's all pretty exciting stuff. We've got a brand new mainsail, which is 40 kilos lighter than last year's.” Richards credits the strong relationship with North Sails as a key factor in helping the team get to where they are today. “I'm really excited about this year's race, because I think we've got the best sail inventory that we've ever had in the history of the boat.”