17:00 Monday 28 July 2025
Both these classes are enjoying extremely close racing, with many positions decided by less than 100 seconds after 48 hours at sea. Competitors also faced what may prove to be their biggest tactical decision in the race overnight and this morning.
Heading west after Land’s End on a long starboard tack would see them initially slip down the leaderboard, but with the potential reward of being perfectly positioned for a predicted wind shift that would then speed their way north towards the Fastnet Rock after tacking onto port.
IRC Three
This decision split the leaders, with the northernmost group passing to the north of the Scilly Isles late last night. This group was consistently led by Fujitsu British Soldier, a Sun Fast 3600 skippered by Maj Philip Caswell, sistership Bellino, sailed doublehanded by Rob Craigie and RORC Commodore Deb Fish, plus Sam White and Sam North on the JPK 1080 Mzungu!
Meanwhile Denis and Annamarie Murphy’s Irish Grand Soleil 40 Nieulargo held a clear lead on the water ahead of those pushing to the west and tacked towards the Rock later than most. Further back in the fleet, Gareth Edmondson’s JPK 1030 Insert Coin was more than 60 miles west-southwest of the Isles of Scilly, and almost the most southwesterly boat when she eventually tacked on to port mid-morning today.
IRC Three includes Fujitsu British Soldier, the Sun Fast 3600 skippered by serving officer Maj Phil Caswell © ROLEX/Carlo Borlenghi
“We have been slowed on the first night, so were too late to go east of the Isles of Scilly, because the tide had already turned,” explains navigator Charles Darbyshire. “So we are with our slightly slower friends who are also heading out in this direction.”
Next he is expecting a full beat to the Rock on port tack, with the wind progressively increasing. “As we close on the Rock, we might have 18 to 19 knots of true wind, which for us means changing down to a J3 headsail by choice,” adds Darbyshire. “But if we’re within a few miles then we'll probably just hang onto the J2.”
He says the sea state had been “really bouncy, with an underlying swell and wind chop on top of it, passing the Isles of Scilly and for 30 miles to the west.” This caused an unusual amount of slamming, but not enough to prevent the crew getting decent sleep.
Blue skies for Gareth Edmondson's Insert Coin in IRC Three which took a very southwesterly course until tacking this morning © Paul Wyeth/www.pwpictures.com/RORC
In the early afternoon the leaderboard continued to shuffle, with Insert Coin, for instance, gaining a dozen places in a few hours. Equally, one of the most experienced teams in this fleet, Ian Hoddle and Nikki Curwen on the Sun Fast 3300 GameOn! moved up to 16th. Curwen, a veteran of the Mini Transat race, is on her seventh race around the Fastnet and took victory in the Figaro 2 class in 2013, racing two-handed with Charlie Dalin, winner of the last Vendée Globe.
IRC Four
All the leaders in this class were in no doubt that going west was the right choice, with the result that the leaderboard progressively turned almost upside down overnight and into this morning. Christoph Friedrich’s X332 Felix topped the rankings in the 94-strong class for several hours, as he led a charge towards the north, ahead of sistership Ferdinand Muth and Sönke Mühlfeld’s Peggy, and the Royal Engineer Yacht Club’s J/109 Trojan.
One of the lowest rated boats in the fleet, Andy Etherington’s Sigma 33 Magic Moments was following this group in 10th place and to the east of the Isles of Scilly when he reported in this morning.
“We’re here a bit later than expected, so we’re fighting a shed load of tide now, even though we thought it would be favourable and pop us quickly out to the north of the islands,” says Etherington. He’s competing in his third Rolex Fastnet Race, sailing doublehanded with fellow Sigma 33 owner Alex Thomas, who’s usually an adversary racing in the EAORA series on the UK’s east coast.
“That's what happens when you sail a smallish and oldish boat,” Etherington adds, “but overall it's been fine and you just have to work that bit harder.”
Jack Meredith’s classic 1969 Swan 43 Reindeer tacked north immediately after the islands. “It's absolutely beautiful today, with just enough wind to keep going - about 12 knots mostly out of the north west and blue skies – the nicest day so far,” Meredith said when checking in via Starlink.
Reindeer’s youngest crewmember is 14-year-old Orla Fergusson, who’s already competing in her second Rolex Fastnet Race and has been enjoying the weather, the sailing and spotting dolphins.
“I think the outlook for us is reasonable,” Meredith adds, “the big question is whether this wind will stay in for longer, but there’s a chance it will strengthen tomorrow. For now we’re just happy to be sailing in a decent breeze and under a blue sky - it’s like a holiday compared to the last race.”
Ludovic Menahes’ JPK 1010 Raphael, which had topped the leaderboard for a good chunk of the first 200 miles of the race, was down to 90th place this morning, while many other pre-race favourites, including Ad Hoc, Papillion 4 and Cora were all languishing in the 80s.
Tim Goodhew's Cora in IRC Two-Handed has struggled to replicate their strong performance in 2023 this year © Paul Wyeth/www.pwpictures.com/RORC
These boats were all pushing west, with Raphael leading the charge in that direction and delaying her tack north longer than others. Jean Francois Nouel Sun Fast 3200’s Hakuna Matata was one of the first of the leading western group to commit to going north. In doing so, she quickly jumped up the leaderboard, knocking Felix into second place after little more than a couple of hours.
By mid-afternoon veteran professional sailor Simeon Tienpont’s J/35 was leading ahead of Pierrick Penven’s Sun Fast 3200 Zephyrin, with Hakuna Matata third. By this time Raphael had climbed an impressive 66 places and the scene looks set for many more shake-ups in the next 18 hours as the fleet continues to beat northwest across the Celtic Sea towards the Fastnet Rock.
IRC Two-Handed
Robin Verhoef and John Van Der Starre’s new XR41 X-Esteem has successfully maintained first place on the water in this 80-strong fleet, however is currently lying in 26th place after IRC time correction.
For much of today the odds favoured competitors in IRC Three, with Rob Craigie and RORC Commodore Deb Fish on the Sun Fast 3600 Bellino moving up to the top of the leaderboard for much of today, ahead of second-placed Mzungu!, the JPK 1080 sailed by Sam White and Sam North.
Didier Gaudoux and Erwan Tabarly's MN35 Lann Ael 3 is sitting in third place in IRC Two-Handed © Paul Wyeth/www.pwpictures.com/RORC
However, by mid-afternoon three more recent and faster designs racing in IRC Two had retaken the podium spots, led by Jean-Pierre Kelbert and Alexis Loison’s JPK 1050 Léon, with Ludovic Gerard and Eliott Coville (whose father Thomas arrived in Cherbourg this morning aboard his giant trimaran Sodebo Ultim 3) on sistership Solenn for Pure Ocean second and Didier Gaudoux and Erwan Tabarly’s MN35 Lann Ael 3 in third.
Bellino and Mzungu! remain the best-placed doublehanders in IRC Three, while Pierrick Penven’s Sun Fast 3200 Zephryin is leading this category in IRC Four. However, the faster boats that already top the leaderboard will be handed a further advantage and have potential to significantly stretch their lead when they turn downwind after rounding the Fastnet.
By Rupert Holmes
