Organised by the Royal Malta Yacht Club, the traditional Coastal Race was held on Wednesday 16th October, marking the start of sailing action for the club’s flagship event, the Rolex Middle Sea Race. The offshore race will kick off on Saturday 19th October, but the Coastal Race serves as excellent practice for the main event.
Arthur Podesta's Maltese First 45 Yacht Elusive II - Image credit to RMYC/Kurt Arrigo
A strong northwesterly breeze of 25 knots and an agitated sea state produced some fantastic racing. Race officer, Peter Dimech chose a 28-mile course rounding the island of Camino. The ten mile beat was a true test of both boat and machine and the downwind leg back to the Royal Malta Yacht Club produced some thrilling speeds for the 23 yachts participating.
Tim Thubron’s British Reflex 38, Lion Logic won the race overall winning The Malta Rolex Cup Trophy. “We are a new team that has hardly sailed together and time on the water is a valuable commodity.” commented Tim. “We went out today with the mind set of sailing in the big offshore race to come and took the coastal race very seriously. We did put a small tear in the main sail but used the incident to our advantage by finishing the race with the storm trysail hoisted, which was excellent practice. Winning today has been a great boost to the team’s confidence but we are not about to get carried away with the success, the Rolex Middle Sea Race is why we have come here.”
First home was Andy Budgen’s Volvo 70, Monster project. The British canting keel flyer was full up to speed, hitting a top speed of 25 knots on the run back to the Royal Malta Yacht Club to take Line Honours. It was nearly an hour before Gerhard Henssen’s Lutra 52, Aquis Granus crossed the line to win IRC 2.
Arthur Podesta’s Maltese First 45, Elusive II enjoyed an excellent race, coming second overall and winning Class 3. “Today, we were trying to nurse the boat and not try to push the boat too hard, we broke a couple of things but nothing to worry about. We were careful not to damage anything before the big race. It was a fantastic race, great competition.”
Today will mark the start of the social event programme for the Rolex Middle Sea Race with the legendary Crew Party at the Royal Malta Yacht Club. Invitations are in high demand and well over a thousand are expected.
