ICAP Leopard leads Rolex Middle Sea after night of attrition

9:23 AM Sun 18 Oct 2009 GMT

'Gavin Brady, Race Skipper for Beau Geste with Owner-Skipper Karl Kwok - Rolex Middle Sea Race' &copy Rolex/ Kurt Arrigo

After a fast passage across to Capo Passero and the southern tip of Sicily yesterday afternoon, so the Rolex Middle Sea Race launched first the sting from its tail as darkness closed last night. Whilst the leaders closed fast on the Strait of Messina, the smaller slower yachts experienced a night of squalls and rain as the front pushed through earlier than expected.

Currently, ICAP Leopard is the breakaway leader sitting pretty, thirty miles due east of the lonely outpost of Ustica, and on a line north of Palermo. She is now starting to fly with her boat speed creeping up on each polling of her tracker as she punches into 30-knot headwinds from the northwest.

Behind Leopard the war of attrition has begun. Bella Mente was the first to encounter equipment failure and at 08.30 this morning reported her retirement soon after rounding Stromboli in fourth place on the water. Next came the call from Rosebud/Team DYT, which just before 10.00 called in to advise she had lost her mast and was motoring to Milazzo. All crew were reported to be fine.

Beau Geste is comfortable second on the water at the moment, with R?n, Luna Rossa, the two Volvo 70s and Alegre in hot pursuit. According to the transit at Stromboli, Alegre is leading on handicap.

Further back, Strait Dealer was the first Maltese yacht through the Strait and looks to be doing well on handicap, keeping pace with the Swan 82 Nikata and the Cookson 50 Calipso, both bigger yachts. It is doubtful that mainly Maltese crew on Strait Dealer is having quite as nice a time as those on Nikata, who called in to tell us that the menu last night included, "Slow roasted Moroccan lamb tagine." Just to confirm that they are taking the race seriously, we were advised that, "we're sailing in 30 knots from northwest, making a direct course to Stromboli. The sea state is reasonable, and the biggest gusts we've seen are 37/38 knots.

23 yachts are through the Strait of Messina so far, with more due through shortly. Last boat in the fleet is the veteran Zizanie, which is abreast of Etna making 6 knots. In the battle of the double-handers, Nemesis Credal is ahead on the water, whilst the crews of Cymba and Cambo III are locked in a duel just approaching the beginning of the Strait.

The key for ICAP Leopard's assault on the course record, which is still on the cards, is how quickly she can reach the northwest corner of Sicily. The faster she gets there, the faster she meets the northwesterlies that will power her downwind and southwards to Pantelleria and Lampedusa. The afternoon review will take a closer look at her prospects for the second half of the race and how the remainder of the fleet have fared during the second day.

by Event Media

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ICAP Leopard leads Rolex Middle Sea after night of attrition

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