Able to find his way to O'ahu, Hank McGregor was able to win the Epic Moloka'i World Championships for the first time yesterday.

McGregor, who is from South Africa, relied on stamina — and the local knowledge of his escort boat crew — to prevail on a day that featured grueling conditions.

He completed the 32-mile course from Kaluako'i, Moloka'i, to Koko Marina, O'ahu, in 3 hours, 54 minutes, 39 seconds. The event is considered the world championship of long-distance ocean racing for solo surfskis.

"I had an escort boat this year, that's what the difference was," said McGregor, 31. "They made it happen for me. They guided me here."

McGregor said he could not afford the cost (around $1,000) of an escort boat the last two years, but still finished second both times. Last year, he was in the lead halfway through the race, but started paddling off course and got passed.

"Coming from South Africa, we don't have a lot of funds," he said. "If I didn't get the help, I probably would have to go without an escort again this year."

Hawai'i paddler Mark Sandvold offered to escort McGregor for free this year. Sandvold is usually a contender in the race, but he took this year off. Yesterday, he was both boat driver and course navigator for McGregor.

"Hank's dad took care of me when I went to South Africa years ago for a race," Sandvold said. "I'll never forget that. But Hank was the man out there today."

McGregor led practically from start to finish and ended up winning by a fairly significant margin.

Australia's Tim Jacobs placed second in 3:57:20, about a half-mile behind McGregor.

"I could never close the gap," Jacobs said. "Every time I got a little close, he'd pull away again. He never let up."

Another Australian, Clint Robinson, stayed with McGregor for the first half of the race, but eventually fell off the pace.

"From the start, it was just Clint and myself, with Tim pushing us behind," McGregor said. "About two-and-a-half hours into it, Clint dropped back and I knew it was now or never. I made a move and didn't look back after that, and just let Mark Sandvold tell me where the finish was."

The Kaiwi Channel was frustratingly flat, and the paddlers had to battle a light headwind. The winning time was more than 33 minutes off the course record.

"I think it was the toughest race I've ever been in," Jacobs said. "Last year was tough, but at least we had a tailwind."

More than 90 paddlers entered the race, but several dropped out because of the conditions.

"It was horrible," Jacobs said. "The closer we got to O'ahu, the tougher it got. When you're tired like that, it just feels like you're in a washing machine."

Tahiti's Lewis Laughlin, who was the two-time defending champion, finished third in 4:04:21.

"There was not even a (wave) bump to let you recover," he said. "And then the level of these guys ... they're so fast. I had a hard time just to get third."

Zsolt Svadovski of Kailua came in eighth overall and was the first Hawai'i finisher in 4:12:10.

In the women's division, Katie Pocock scored a breakthrough victory for herself and her country.

She became the first paddler from New Zealand — male or female — to win the Moloka'i World Championships. She finished an impressive 23rd overall and was the first female in 4:28:32.

"Conditions suited me, definitely," said Pocock, 30. "This is very similar to what we get when we paddle in the harbors in Auckland."

The rest of the women's field was way behind.

Australia's Naomi Flood placed second in 4:36:38.

Maui's Lauren Bartlett, who was the defending champion, placed third in 4:46:34. Bartlett won the women's OC-1 (one-person canoe) world championship last month.

Pocock and McGregor each received $2,000 for their victories.

TOP FINISHERS

MEN OVERALL

1, Hank McGregor, 3:54:39. 2, Tim Jacobs, 3:57:20. 3, Lewis Laughlin, 4:04:21. 4, David Kissane, 4:09:02. 5, Travis Mitchell, 4:10:12. 6, Dan McCabe, 4:11:15. 7, David Tudor-Jones, 4:11:37. 8, Zsolt Svadovski, 4:12:10. 9, Paul Green, 4:14:07. 10, Mark Anderson, 4:14:40. 11, Toby Barbour, 4:15:38. 12, Paul Wilford, 4:15:58. 13, Michael Clues, 4:19:20. 14, Steve Kelly, 4:19:46. 15, Steve Coulter, 4:19:52. 16, Ash Nesbit, 4:20:44. 17, Tim Grammer, 4:21:10. 18, Clint Robinson, 4:23:18. 19, Chris Ball, 4:23:59. 20, Patrick Hemmens, 4:24:27. 21, Glen Lawrence, 4:26:00. 22, Dane Sloss, 4:27:45. 23, Clifford Hall, 4:31:26. 24, Danny Topfer, 4:33:05. 25, Gary David, 4:34:45. 26, Daniel Jenkin, 4:35:43. 27, Benjamin Hewitt, 4:36:36. 28, Jason Cunningham, 4:37:16. 29, Ian Parmenter, 4:39:46. 30, Noah Hawk, 4:39:55. 31, Cliff Meidl, 4:40:35. 32, Richard Eadie, 4:41:10. 33, Stuart Innes, 4:41:57. 34, John Hoogsteden, 4:42:12. 35, Tony King, 4:44:00. 36, Kenneth Denton, 4:44:31. 37, Pat Cody, 4:44:37. 38, Michael McGrath, 4:45:13. 39, Nathan Day, 4:45:51. 40, Robert Doherty, 4:46:39.

JUNIORS (17-YOUNGER)

1, Taylor Hopkins, 5:30:11.

MASTERS 40-OLDER

1, David Kissane, 4:09:02. 2, Paul Wilford, 4:15:58. 3, Steve Coulter, 4:19:52. 4, Tim Grammer, 4:21:10. 5, Patrick Hemmens, 4:24:27.

MASTERS 50-OLDER

1, Gary David, 4:34:45. 2, Tony King, 4:44:00. 3, Kenneth Denton, 4:44:31. 4, Timothy Hookins, 5:05:42. 5, Murray Saul, 5:06:27.

WOMEN

1, Katherine Pocock, 4:28:32. 2, Naomi Flood, 4:36:38. 3, Lauren Bartlett, 4:46:34. 4, Kim Chappel, 4:55:34. 5, Maggie Twigg Smith, 5:10:54. 6, Julie Stanton, 5:20:35

OC-1

Men: 1, Taku Araki, 5:10:09. Women: 1, Kiyomi Makino, 6:47:02.