In 1962 he and his KIALOA I crew won the San Diego-Acapulco race in record time.
[2] KIALOA III, a maxi yacht, was the dominant sibling, winning the 1975 Sydney-Hobart race with a record time that stood for 21 years.
In his memoir about racing, business and life,[7] Kilroy described being born in Ruby, Alaska, on May 1, 1922, and then growing up in Southern California during the Great Depression.
In 1940 he was hired at Douglas Aircraft, where he started off as an inspector and quickly studied manufacturing processes.
After serving in the US Army Air Corps Reserve (1944–46) and no longer with Douglas, he began to realize the potential of commercial real estate.