Please select your home edition
Edition
Stoneways Marine 2021 - LEADERBOARD

Apivia - stand-out IMOCA performance in the Rolex Fastnet Race

by Andy Rice / RORC 11 Aug 2021 10:36 BST 8-14 August 2021

An exceptional example of an extraordinary boat paired up with a hugely talented crew has been the combination of Apivia with doublehanders Charlie Dalin and Paul Meilhat competing in this 49th Rolex Fastnet Race.

They arrived in Cherbourg early this morning scoring a resounding win in the 13-strong IMOCA fleet. This came as some small vindication after Dalin suffered victory slipping through his fingers in this year's Vendée Globe after he was first home only to lose the top prize when Yannick Bestaven and Maître CoQ were awarded a time compensation.

Dalin, an anglophile having studied at Southampton University, enjoyed the Rolex Fastnet Race start, seeing old friends as his IMOCA milled around the Solent before the start. Once the gun had gone on Sunday, the foil-born Apivia leapt into action, and compared to her other 60ft IMOCA rivals looked like an 80 footer.

Part of this was down to development work since the solo round the world race: "We have new foils and some new sails. You have to keep these boats evolving to stay at the top of your game," Dalin explained. Passing the Needles, sailing upwind so fast they were flying, Apivia had already pulled out a two mile lead in the IMOCA class.

While the Ultimes led the charge south across the Channel, Apivia led the IMOCAs but went even further towards France before tacking. This was because, uniquely, they managed to link up a series of benefits - positive tide at the Alderney Race, then a wind shift and then more positive tide off Brehat. "There was a very small window to get the combination exactly right. Our timing was perfect," said Dalin. Their tack north was timed so that not only did they lay the west side of the TSS at Land's End, but could stay on course to lay the Fastnet Rock.

Amazingly, at the TSS Apivia converged with the ClubSwan 125 Skorpios, a boat more than twice her length. The two boats then match raced across the Celtic Sea to the Fastnet Rock, Apivia doing an impressive job to keep up. "That was good," said Dalin. "It was a shame because if the wind had been maybe 15 degrees left and 2-3 knots more we would have overtaken them for sure. At 60 degrees TWA we were faster." Such are the performance gains of the new generation foilers.

However this was not to last. After rounding the Fastnet Rock 49 minutes astern of Skorpios and cracking sheets, the big boat sped away. The remainder of the race for Apivia was a complex case of playing tides and staying in the best breeze. This involved initially hugging the Cornish coast before ducking south of the Casquets TSS.

The trickiness of the situation in the Channel, from Bishop Rock on, was best demonstrated by the boats astern. When second placed IMOCA Jérémie Beyou and Christopher Pratt on Charal passed Bishop Rock at 1340 BST yesterday they held a 125 mile advantage over 10th placed HUGO BOSS. By 0500 this morning huge compression in the fleet had occurred and HUGO BOSS had closed to 28 miles of them. As a result, a busy morning is expected in Cherbourg with the bulk of the IMOCAs, the multihull leader under the MOCRA rule, Adrian Keller's Irens 84 performance cruising catamaran Allegra, and some of the IRC Zero frontrunners all due.

Generally this morning, the Celtic Sea resembles the M25 with bulk of the IRC fleet either approaching or exiting the Fastnet Rock.

Overnight suffering in the same compression in the Channel, the compatriots, the VO70 I Love Poland and VO65 Sailing Poland, lost their grip on IRC Zero. In their place this morning is David Collins' Botin 52 Tala ahead of Jens Kellinghusen's Ker 56 Varuna and Richard Matthews' new speedster, the CF520 Oystercatcher XXXV also featuring. This morning the bulk of IRC Zero is past Bishop Rock and back into the Channel where the leaders are mid-Channel passing Start Point, and currently laying the Cherbourg finish where they are due later this afternoon.

In IRC One, RORC Commodore James Neville and his HH42 INO XXX have consolidated their position as leader both on the water and under corrected time. But surprisingly moving into second place overnight has been the classic 73ft van de Stadt design Stormvogel. Her Italian owner has entered his classic ketch this year to mark the 60th anniversary of Stormvogel's Fastnet Race line honours title. Currently the only IRC One boat to round Bishop Rock, INO XXX is now south of the Land's End TSS making 14 knots as Stormvogel is approaching the TSS due west of the Scilly Isles making 10.

As with INO XXX, so in IRC Two Tom Kneen's JPK 11.80 Sunrise, sailed by a RORC youth crew, is building up a solid advantage on corrected time over Dutchwoman Astrid de Vin's sistership Il Corvo. However, the other 11.80s, Eric Fries' Fastwave 6 and Richard Fromentin's Leclerc Hennebont / Cocody and Ross Applebey's Lightwave 48 Scarlet Oyster are still nipping at their heels. Sunrise still had 70 miles to go to reach Bishop Rock, but most impressive was that only six boats in IRC One remain ahead of her.

The first quarter of IRC Three is now around the Fastnet Rock. The four-way fight on the water continues between the Sun Fast 3600 Fujitsu British Soldier, Louis-Marie Dussere's JPK 1080 Raging-bee", Philippe Girardin's J/120 Hey Jude and class favourites and defending champions, Alexis Loison and Guillaume Pirouelle's JPK 1030 Léon. Raging-bee" led around the Fastnet Rock shortly after 0100 this morning.

Under corrected time, Léon holds a small lead but Raging-bee" is gunning hard as are the high profile British two-handed duo Volvo Ocean Race sailor Henry Bomby and double Olympic gold medallist Shirley Robertson on the Sun Fast 3300 Swell, who are now also threatening Léon for the first time in the IRC Two-Handed class.

Runaway leader on the water in IRC Four is David le Goff's JPK 10.10 Raphael, flying the flag for France in place of regular winner Noel Racine. Significantly Raphael is also leading under IRC Four corrected time, having rounded the Fastnet Rock at 0400 this morning. The Pinteaux family's JPK 10.10 Gioia is in the mix as is Vincent and Jacques Rigalleau's Sun Fast 3200 Enedis and Harry J. Heijst's S&S 41 Winsome as they head out for their return journey back across the Celtic Sea.

The door is set to close on the next Fastnet Rock roundings as a NNE-SSW orientated front moves across the fleet causing the wind to back into the northwest and lighten behind the front, creating slow spinnaker conditions for those returning from the Rock. It does however mean a faster leg for those already in the Channel who are boosted by 25 knots of reaching conditions.

Related Articles

Rolex Fastnet Race gets underway with record fleet
Spectators in their thousands swarmed Cowes Green and the shores of the western Solent Spectators in their thousands swarmed Cowes Green and the shores of the western Solent to witness the starts of the 51st Rolex Fastnet Race from 1120 until 1320 BST today. Posted on 26 Jul
100th edition Rolex Fastnet Race begins
Ahead lie 696 nautical miles of technically challenging, resilience testing waters. The 100th anniversary edition of the Rolex Fastnet Race underlined its position as the world's largest offshore race as 444 yachts set off from Cowes, England. Posted on 26 Jul
Rolex Fastnet Race Start - Tom Hicks Photo Gallery
Stuunning shots from as 444 yachts start the centenary edition of the race! Tom Hicks is out on the Solent for all the major events and has captured some stunning moments from today's start of the Centenary Rolex Fastnet Race. Take a look at the shots below and far more in the gallery above! Posted on 26 Jul
Rolex Fastnet Race Start - view from Hurst Castle
A video montage as the fleet went out of the Solent I went out to Hurst Castle with his camera and drone to capture the action as the boats, ranging from the mighty Ultim trimarans, through to the IMOCAs and grand prix yachts competing in the 2025 Admiral's Cup went through the narrrows out of the Solent. Posted on 26 Jul
Centenary Rolex Fastnet Race start tomorrow
Coundown to blast off for the 444 yachts entered For the 444 yachts entered in the Royal Ocean Racing Club's centennial Rolex Fastnet Race all eyes remain on the weather going into the last hours before the start tomorrow (Saturday 26 July). Posted on 25 Jul
Less than 48 hours to Rolex Fastnet Race
Battle lines are being drawn up Battle lines are being drawn up for the RORC's centenary Rolex Fastnet Race. As the final day of Admiral's Cup inshore racing took place in the Solent, so several yachts due to take part in Saturday's main event were out training. Posted on 24 Jul
How to follow RORC Centenary Rolex Fastnet Race
At present 451 yachts are entered, which, if all start on Saturday, will break the previous record. This year's centennial edition of the Rolex Fastnet Race will set sail this Saturday, 26 July from the Royal Yacht Squadron line off Cowes, Isle of Wight, bound for Cherbourg-en-Cotentin, France. Posted on 24 Jul
Rolex Fastnet Race: Upwind to the Fastnet Rock
The long range forecast for this year's race shows more benign conditions Teams that competed in the last two Rolex Fastnet Races and are returning for this Saturday's special centenary edition will be breathing a sigh of relief looking at the long term forecast. Posted on 23 Jul
Record MOCRA turn-out for the Rolex Fastnet Race
This year there are 20 multihulls racing for the Crystal Trophy While the four Ultims maxi-trimarans and nine Ocean Fiftys have their own classes in this Saturday's centenary Rolex Fastnet Race, the remaining multihulls convene in the MOCRA class. Posted on 21 Jul
Grand turn-out of Ocean 50s in Rolex Fastnet Race
This trimaran class was given its own start in the Royal Ocean Racing Club's premier event The least well-known of the French offshore classes competing in this year's Rolex Fastnet Race is perhaps the Ocean Fifty. Posted on 20 Jul