Sydney to Hobart heavyweight barely avoids disaster as chaos hits the start of the famous yacht race

Reigning line honours champion LawConnect has led the Sydney to Hobart fleet out of the Sydney Heads as the 79th running of the bluewater classic began on Boxing Day.

But a furling issue meant her lead was short-lived, with rival supermaxi Master Lock Comanche powering ahead and heading down the NSW coast in a blustery north-easterly.

The pair of 100-footers, the leading contenders for line honours, exited picturesque Sydney Harbour well ahead of the chasing pack around 1.15pm local time – 15 minutes after the starting gun on Boxing Day.

LawConnect recovered from her sail issue, having suffered a similar issue early in the race last year, but not before Comanche opened up a sizeable gap.

Drama unfolded elsewhere as fellow supermaxi Wild Thing 100 narrowly avoided a collision with Celestial and capsize before recapturing her speed out of the Heads.

Racing her second Hobart as a 100 footer, Wild Thing will need to make the best of reaching conditions – when wind blows across the boat – to challenge Comanche and LawConnect for line honours.

Wild Thing 100 (foreground) is seen at the moment she almost collided with Celestial

Sydneysiders flocked to the best vantage points to witness the yachts get underway

URM Group and Celestial V70, two leading contenders for overall honours, enjoyed fast starts – the former taking a different tactical approach by sticking close to the eastern shore early on.

But Anthony Johnston’s 72-footer URM Group completed a penalty turn for an incident that apparently occurred in the harbour, with details still emerging.

The turn may have been as a precaution.

Penalty turns for incidents that take place in the harbour must be completed early in the race, or else the offender risks a time penalty on arrival in Hobart.

Salt Lines was last of the 104 starters out of the Heads around 1.50pm local time.

A west south-westerly change is expected to hit the Bass Strait overnight, bringing strong winds and possible showers that will be particularly challenging for the smaller boats in the fleet.

The race record could be under threat if Comanche or LawConnect is able to capitalise on those conditions, but boats risk damage in the wild weather.