Crews of more than 100 yachts set sail Thursday on a "boat-breaking" Sydney-Hobart yacht race, with gale-force winds and high seas forecast for the gruelling bluewater classic.

LawConnect, which won line honours last year, was first past the turning mark in Australia’s premier yachting event but ran into sail issues.

Silas Nolan is another professional with a foredeck specialty and a résumé that covers racing worldwide. He worked his way up from small boats to the glory wagons, then sailed enough Hobart races to “almost get sick of it” and turn his sights elsewhere.

There have been plenty of “firsts” in the history of the Sydney to Hobart yacht race which was first held in 1945.

The annual Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race, which starts on Thursday, takes sailors on a 628-nautical mile race that exits Sydney Harbor and plunges south along the New South Wales coastline before crossing Bass Strait, rounding Tasman Island, crossing Tasmania’s Storm Bay and pushing up the River Derwent to Hobart.

LawConnect was first out of the Heads, but a furling issue allowed line honours rival Comanche to grab the lead, while last year’s overall winner, Alive, was forced to retire just three hours into the race.