Flying under the Aboriginal flag, the nine Tribal Warrior crew members were ready to sail into history in this year's Rolex Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race, but missed the entry deadline.
Now, they will still set sail on Boxing Day, and do their best to make it to Hobart.
SBS spoke with the Tribal Warrior crew during their preparations for the journey.
Tribal Warrior CEO, Shane Phillips, told SBS the crew felt they had a point to prove.
"We wanna make history, no doubt, we wanna do it for the sake of testimony for blackfullas but it's all really just about challenging ourselves," he told SBS.
For many of the nine crew members, it will be their first time on the high seas.
"[I've got] no experience at all. I've only been on one boat and that was a ferry. I've been training for the crew for about 11 weeks," Athol Boney said.
One of the youngest and less-experienced crew members, 22-year-old Isaiah Dawe, said he saw the opportunity to participate as a once in a lifetime experience.
Isaiah Dawe (left), and Athol Boney are part of the nine-member Indigenous crew set to sail in the Sydney to Hobart Source: Supplied
"We're gonna be making history you know the first Aboriginal people to ever go into the Sydney to Hobart, and I want to be part of the history," he said in anticipation of the team being able to qualify for the following year.
Mr Dawe grew up living in 17 different foster homes, and he said it was hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
His journey has taken him through the Tribal Warrior program, a non-for-profit community organisation offering disadvantaged youth training and mentoring. Isaiah said the association has helped him grow and now he's looking forward to a brighter future.
"I'm feeling a sense of worth from that and also becoming the first team, Aboriginal team, to sail the Sydney to Hobart. So I'd say you know mentally, physically put in all your hard work and you'll definitely reap the rewards," he said.
For Mr Boney, forming part of the crew is an opportunity to help break down barriers.
"Just to show a lot of the young fullas, especially my age down, young boys and that, just to say like don't be afraid to try anything, give it a go. You never know what you're gonna like until you have a go at it," he said.
The Tribal Warrior crew will be flying a massive Aboriginal flag, unfurled across the Southern Excellence II, and they're hoping to bring some First Nations culture to the yacht race.
"People are lighting fires as we come past, doing some controlled fires, doing some smoking ceremonies all the way down," Shane said.
The Tribal Warrior crew will become the first ever Indigenous team to compete Source: Supplied
The team has been preparing for more than a year, but even the best laid plans can come undone. When their original boat, Kayle, was found not be in safe condition for the race, there was an urgent appeal to raise $60,000 to hire a yacht.
"We felt bruised at the end of that last month but amazingly this opportunity come and it's happening again. So this time we know there are a lot of naysayers, we have to prove a point, we have to cross that line. We'd be happy if we did not come last, that's all," Shane said.
