Sunday, October 19, 2008

Rosebud battles it out


© ROLEX/Kurt Arrigo
Rolex Middle Sea Race 2008 - STP65 ROSEBUD/TEAM DYT passing through the Strait of Messina with Capo Peloro lighthouse in the background.

SLOW PROGRESS IS BETTER THAN NO PROGRESS
Given the unpromising start to the day, the three frontrunners in the Rolex Middle Sea Race are probably delighted to be fast approaching Stromboli, and expecting to round by 1900 this evening. Rosebud (USA), Moneypenny (USA) and Alegre (GBR) have been locked together for much of the race so far and it looks as though this pattern is set to continue. Behind them, the much smaller Ran (GBR) is chasing hard, with a deficit of only 4.5 nm. Then comes Whisper (IRL), all on her own, with a chasing pack of ten yachts also through the Strait that are 4 miles away from Michael Cotter's 78-foot mini maxi and 14 miles off the pace of the leaders. It all looked very different first thing this morning and both the competitors and organizers, the Royal Malta Yacht Club, will be relieved at the way the day has panned out.

At 0800 this morning, Jim Swartz's STP65 Moneypenny and Andres Soriano's Mills 68 Alegre got themselves stuck in a wind hole just off the coast of Sicily and some way short of Messina. Meanwhile, Roger Sturgeon's Rosebud, with Maltese sailor Christian Ripard onboard started the day in third place on the water. She was positioned further offshore, never stopped moving and effectively sailing round the other two yachts. It must have been galling to watch a hard earned lead slip away in such a fashion, but the day was not over and the next twist was yet to come. Full Report...