FEVER fight to the finish in the Rolex Middle Sea Race

21 October 2009

Klaus Diederichs’ and Grant Gordon’s Swan 45 Fever (GBR) crept into Grand Harbour to finish the grueling Rolex Middle Sea Race earlier today as Malta woke to a windless, clear sky with some mild humidity. A nice start to the day for a tourist, but not a good situation if you are clawing your way along the northern coast of Malta rather hoping to wrap a class victory with a fast finish. Klaus Diederichs’ and Grant Gordon’s Swan 45 Fever (GBR) found itself in just this situation at sunrise this morning. The international crew including notables such as Andy Beadsworth, Gary Barron, Wouter Verbraak and Tony Rey really had to work to squeeze their steed over the line. In the end, the effort was not enough and currently Arthur Podesta and Elusive II Medbank (MLT) sit atop Class 3.

Co-owners Gordon and Diederichs had enjoyed the race, as Diederichs remarked, “the reach up to Messina was a fantastic experience. We were absolutely flying, touching 22 knots, it is the fastest we have ever been in the boat.” Gordon was in full agreement, “there are few Swan 45s that venture offshore but we love it. You get a totally different atmosphere to short course racing. The scenery for this race is also spectacular which adds to a great experience.”

After rounding Stromboli, Fever had encountered severe weather conditions as Olympic medalist and America’s Cup skipper, Andy Beadsworth explained, “the sail plan of a Swan 45 is not really designed for offshore racing, let alone 40 knots of wind, and we were forced to drop the main and deploy the storm try-sail. During the race, we used every sail on the boat, except for the storm jib.”

‘We built up a significant lead around the top of Sicily," commented Volvo Ocean Race navigator, Wouter Verbraak. “But we completely ran out of breeze at Pantelleria and could only watch as the competition came from behind. However, after passing Lampedusa, we made a move to the left of the course and probably made a gain bigger than the loss at Pantelleria.”

The big noise of the morning, after the name of Alegre was stamped on the Rolex Middle Sea Race trophy, was the arrival of Strait Dealer. Another epic adventure that ended with a patience-sapping finish. One that was worth it though for owner David Franks, who was probably on his last lap of the racecourse. Franks was delighted to be back and to secure the prize of first Maltese boat home on the water, despite enduring some difficult times, "we had a good crew and I enjoyed the race very much. There were some very tough points, but we didn’t break too many things and we didn’t lose too many things. We got tangled up in a lobster pot and went through an ice storm. I’ve never had such a cold Rolex Middle Sea Race and this is my seventh."

69 yachts representing twenty nations started the race.

FEVER fight to the finish in the Rolex Middle Sea Race

2010