22 October, Valletta, Malta. With only 15 yachts home and hosed, the 46th Rolex Middle Sea Race is far from over. Some 85 of the 96 yachts still at sea are competing for the main trophy determined under IRC time correction. Balthasar, which finished on Tuesday morning, remains in pole position. The crew has endured two heart in mouth moments already, and there may well be more to come. Few of those still racing will give up the quest to be first overall until the combination of distance to finish and time to beat make it mathematically impossible.

The first gulp for the seasoned crew on the Mills 72 led by Louis Balcaen, came some eight hours after they crossed the finish line at the entrance to Marsamxett Harbour. French yacht Daguet 5, the Carkeek 54 entered by Frédéric Puzin, was first to probe Balthasar’s defences. The green machine had established its credentials early on it the race, leaving its IRC 2 classmates standing just abeam of Capo Porco di Murro. Making short work of the trip north through the Messina Strait and onto Stromboli, Daguet was third on the water ahead of most the IRC 1 fleet. “This is the sixth time we have done the Rolex Middle Sea Race, in three different boats, so we have a lot of experience. The crew love the race, and we are very committed to do our best,” explained Puzin. "Just before the strait during the night, it was rainy, not so windy, but we found a good way to get out of the pack and to enter the Strait of Messina ahead. We were really happy with that.” Sailing their own race from then on, the team were almost tripped up coming into the turn at Favignana where those behind could learn from Daguet’s experience and find a better way through the maze of windless zones. Puzin admitted they got away with it, saying “it could have be much trickier for us.”

  Pushing on south, Whisper in IRC 1 used her greater waterline length to catch Daguet, while Django Deer also succeeded in closing the gauge. Reaching Lampedusa at 11.30 AM on Tuesday, Daguet switched on the turbo and hared off to the South Comino Channel at an average of 18 knots. “Lampedusa is usually a trap,” explained Puzin. “This time, though, it was a very good part of the race for us. We start to have strong wind between 18 and 20 knots downwind. This is very good for the boat.” Reaching the narrow channel at around 1700 CEST with 10nm still to run, Daguet was in with a slim chance of overhauling Balthasar but were seemingly unaware. “We really just follow what our class is doing, we are not in the same weather as the boats ahead so need to focus on what we have,” said Puzin. In the end, it was too much. The north shore of Malta has been a thorn in the side of many crews, and this year was no exception. Daguet 5 crossed the line 20 minutes in arrears on corrected time. Puzin, though, was content: “The crew is more than just a crew, it is a real team. We created this new boat with Rolex Middle Sea Race and other 600 milers in mind. We have had great satisfaction racing her this year, achieving good results with a boat we enjoy. So, all in all we’re very satisfied, very happy with our performance.”

  Since these remarkable finishes, the monohull battle has raged far from the Maltese archipelago. The bulk of the fleet has spent the past day fighting its way from Favignana to Lampedusa. A massive parking lot at the southernmost point has effectively led to a restart. A few, including Chenapan 4 from France and Artie III, the first Maltese boat on the water, have wriggled clear and are on the leg home in a fresh breeze. For the remainder, prayers are being said to the wind gods to have pity and stay in play long enough for the pack to benefit. This is a key moment in the race and could well decide if Balthasar takes home the trophy or not.

  In the Multihull Class, long-time leader Allegra from Switzerland forged a path home in the same breeze as Daguet 5 and Django Deer, crossing the finish line at 1723 CEST on Tuesday to secure Multihull Line Honours and in all probability the MOCRA trophy too. Their nearest competitor on the water is Falcon, which is currently 15nm shy of the South Comino Channel. Adrian Keller, the owner, had this to say: “This race was unfinished business for us, so to finally cross the line in Malta feels incredibly rewarding. We had a good start, but then came the rain — far more than expected — and for hours north of Sicily there was simply no wind. Even the birds came to rest on board! But once we rounded the corner, the breeze filled in, and Allegra came alive again. Finishing off Valletta is always something special. After 600 miles at sea, to sail through that historic entrance surrounded by those ancient walls really feels like coming home. It’s a privilege to be part of this race and to see multihulls gaining more recognition each year.” Paul Larsen, the Racing Skipper, added: “This race is always a love-hate affair, beautiful one moment, maddening the next, but that’s what makes it so special. We had everything: rain, calms, and then a spectacular, fast finish. For Allegra, this was a milestone. We’ve raced every major 600-mile event in the world, but this was the one we hadn’t finished — so it mattered. The crew has been together since the beginning, and the bond shows when things get tough. We’re a performance cruiser, but once we’re on the racecourse, we’re here to race anyone, monohull or multihull, it doesn’t matter. Good races are where you find them, and this was one of the best.” The floodgate at Lampedusa must surely break soon, and tomorrow should hopefully see a flood of finishers, once again filling the dock and terrace of the Royal Malta Yacht Club with yachts, crew and stories of derring-do. We might also have an overall winner to declare.

DAY 5 IRC FORM REPORTS @ 1600 CEST

IRC 1 Balthasar was virtually locked in as provisional winner of IRC 1 yesterday afternoon. Since then, the other podium places have filled with the J/V62 Whisper from Australia capping a successful season in Europe for owner, David Griffith. Navigator Clare Costanza can be proud of her debut effort at this most complex of courses. Black Jack 100 takes third place, to add to the Line Honours victory. Kranendonk becomes the first Chinese entry to complete the course, while four others remain on the course with Christophe Bachmann skippered Gilles Vaton designed sloop Adrien (FRA) still at Lampedusa.

IRC 2 Some 10 IRC 2 yachts have finished, with Chris Hemans’ Cookson 50 Varuna from the United States the last to cross the line at 1016 CEST this morning. The Baltic 78 Lupa of the Sea (ITA) owned by Fabio Cannavale will be the next to finish. In the meantime, the podium places are provisionally filled as follows: Django Deer in first, Daguet 5 in second and the PAC 52 Final Final owned by Jon Desmond from the United States takes the last spot after finishing at 0016 this morning.  Last year’s winners, the young German crew Red Bandit, racing on Stefan Jentzsch’s Botin 56 Black Pearl, could not repeat but put in a creditable performance on their replacement.

IRC 3 The entire IRC 3 class has finally reached Lampedusa, and are on the long stretch back to Malta. The ICE 53 Soleag (FRA) entered by Jean Yves Thomas was first to reach the isolated Italian outpost at 0739 CEST this morning. Gilles Camonade’s Ker 40 Chenapan IV (FRA) came through almost an hour later with Lee Satariano’s Maltese entry, the HH42 Artie III, passing just before 1000. The next boat, Beymetal Team LR – Tok Sailing from Turkey and skippered by Berkay Dim and Onur Tok, arrived at 1500 with the remainder in close order behind as Lampedusa sucked the wind out of the course. Under IRC time correction Chenapan IV led Artie III by over three hours, with Soleag a further two hours behind. Soleag is currently 45nm from the finish sailing at 8 knots.

IRC 4  All 18 boats racing in IRC 4 have passed Pantelleria. With the leading pack stalling at Lampedusa due to lack of wind, the fleet has compressed dramatically. Giulio Cafaro’s Italian Adria 49 Ars Una was the first to round Lampedusa at 1500 CEST, but has now dropped off the podium for the IRC ranking. Nicola Pirani & Lorenzo Pujatti’s Italian Swan 56 Elle is top of the leaderboard. Ranked second by just three minutes is Jonathan Gambin’s Maltese Dufour 44 Ton Ton Laferla. Third is Patroklos Tottas’ Greek XP-44 Antelope. Andrew and Sam Hall’s British J/125 Jackknife is in fourth.   IRC 5 The Podesta family’s Maltese First 45 Elusive 2 has retained the lead on the water and was round Lampedusa at 1500. However, the park up at Lampedusa has wreaked havoc on their aspirations to win the class, dropping the Maltese team to ninth in the ranking. Nikki Henderson’s British J/122 Noisy Oyster, which was 30 miles behind Elusive 2 at Pantelleria, is now 10 miles astern and ranked first. Matic & Maks Vrecko’s Slovenian Elan 450 Karpo is another beneficiary of the breeze shutdown, moving up to second in class.  Ranked third is Marco Paolucci’s Italian JPK 1180 Libertine racing double-handed.   IRC 6 The magic carpet ride continues for Zephyr, Simon Toms’ British Sun Fast 3300, which is approaching Lampedusa. The calm wind that has enveloped the fleet, seems to be piping up some breeze right on time for Zephyr. Leading the class by nearly four hours after IRC time correction from Andrew Agius Delicata and Matthew Gabriele’s Maltese Reflex 38 Vivace. Michele Puggioni’s Italian JPK 1030 Diavolina is now ranked third.   IRC Double-Handed In the two-handed category, a real fight has developed for the winner. Some 24 hours ago, Marco Paolucci’s Italian JPK 1180 Libertine (ITA), racing with Niccolò Bertola, was 13 hours ahead after time correction. However, the massive lead has evaporated in the shutdown. Guido Baroni’s Italian Sun Fast 3600 Lunatika (ITA), co-skippered by Alessandro Miglietti, is now first by a paper-thin margin after time correction. Eric Muller’s Polish J/99 K’Mena is ranked third after time correction.   Multihull The maxi catamaran Allegra finished yesterday afternoon and is alone among the Multihulls to have finished. Matteo Uliassi’s Italian DNA F4 Falcon, skippered by Shannon Falcone, will be next to finish. Picomole, Aldo Fumagalli’s Italian Rapido 53, has struggled to round Lampedusa and faces being caught by Gilles Bocabeille’s Alibi 54 Eleven (FRA). he Royal Malta Yacht Club thanks Visit Malta and Yachting Malta for their support.