At 17:00 CEST on Wednesday, 23 October, the winner of the 45th edition of the Rolex Middle Sea Race was announced as the German TP52 Red Bandit, skippered by Carl-Peter Forster.
The Royal Malta Yacht Club has confirmed that none of the remaining yachts still racing is able to better Red Bandit’s IRC corrected time. “It's almost unbelievable, it would be very satisfying if it comes through,” said Forster ahead of the formal confirmation. “I'm particularly proud of these young people most of whom did not sail a big boat four years ago. They have learned to sail this machine so well, which is pretty, pretty amazing. I'm proud of this group, and how they gel together as a team.”
"This was my seventh race. It was the usual amazing, multifaceted Rolex Middle Sea Race. Wind up to 60 knots in a thunderstorm, the fastest Messina Strait crossing thanks to six knots of current with us, the usual light winds, and good boats all around us. Good fighting and competition all the time,” continued Forster.
Red Bandit Crew: Carl-Peter Forster, Bouwe Van Der Weiden, Christian Buck, Frederick Eichhorst, Jacob Meggendorfer, Jesper Radich, Joshua Weber, Max Wentzel, Moritz Troll, Moriz Forster, Nico Jansen, Niklas Schubert, Oliver Oczycz, Sophie von Waldow
The Red Bandit campaign provides a pathway programme for young athletes, under the Forstar Offshore Foundation set up by Forster. The foundation enables highly-competitive dinghy sailors and other youth talent to experience and develop as ‘big boat’ offshore racers. With the principal exception of Forster and the highly experienced tactician, Jesper Radich, the crew is under the age of 30.
Following a winning performance at the 2023 Giraglia, the crew suffered the disappointment of retiring with equipment damage from the same year’s Rolex Middle Sea Race. Faced with strong winds and a big sea on the first night of this year’s race, Forster’s thoughts turned to that moment. “On the first night I was thinking, hopefully the boat would hold,” he explained. “These are delicate boats and in this boat in 43 knots of wind any mistake can break something, the mast or a sail ... anything. But no breakage and I think the boat was better prepared."
The team’s success owes much to a passion for the sport, a desire to improve and a dynamic team spirit. This impressive character allowed Red Bandit to stay on the pace throughout a testing race that mixed light winds with strong, and rough seas with flat.
“The light wind might have looked easy from the outside, but it was not,” said Radich. “It was all about making the right calls because the wind was so shifty. Whenever we got a forecast, it was only 50% correct. We really had to interpret which part was correct. We had a bit of a hiccup just at Favignana and had to claw our way back. But, overall, I think we came out really well from the light. The upwind is not our strength, I would say that's our weakness in 20 knots, especially not having a heavy weather jib. We were struggling, and the guys did an amazing job hiking the boat down for 16 hours a day.”
Red Bandit is the third German yacht to have won the Rolex Middle Sea Race following in the footsteps of Saudade (1983) and Morning Glory (2006).
Class Action – 16:00 CEST, Wednesday, 23 October
With the confirmation that Red Bandit cannot be beaten by those left on the race course, attention turns to the class standings and the respective podiums. No class has a full complement of finishers in the clubhouse and so, for the boats still racing, there is plenty to play for.
As at 16:00 CEST, 15 yachts racing under IRC Time Correction for the Rolex Middle Sea Race Trophy have completed the course. 34 boats have officially retired mostly due to breakages on the first night. 51 boats are still racing under IRC. The sole multihull in the fleet is just approaching the South Comino Channel.
IRC 1 – ALL BAR ONE
Only the Volvo 70 Dinzer Doo from United States is left to finish and, even though just through the South Comino Channel, is already well outside the time set by the Maxi 72 Balthasar. The other podium places are held by Bryon Ehrhart’s Juan K designed Lucky, some 13.5 hours behind on time correction such was the potency of Balthasar’s performance.
IRC 2 – NINE HOME
Red Bandit was in a highly competitive group of yachts and the crew had its work cut out, not just to win overall, but to stay in touch, especially in the stronger winds. Off the podium at Capo Passero, the German yacht was less than an hour behind Kuka 3 the early leader. At Messina, the team were up to third. Dropping off at Stromboli, the gap to Black Pearl was well over an hour. Threading through the light airs, across the top of Sicily, the Bandit was up to second, only three minutes behind Teasing Machine at Favignana. Converting this to a 1.5 hour lead by Pantelleria set the team up well for Lampedusa, where it extended still further. By the finish the corrected time lead was two hours and three minutes over the 2022 winner, Teasing Machine.
IRC 3 – LEADER IN SOUTH COMINO CHANNEL
Géry Trentesaux’s Sydney 43 Long Courrier from France has been sitting on the top rung of the ladder since establish a 3 hour 40 minute the lead at the Messina Strait. Sagola Sportivento, the Italian Farr 45, had cut an hour back by Stromboli. However, despite the elastic appearing to contract for much of the time along the north of Sicily, by Favignana, Long Courrier’s lead on time correction was 6.5 hours over the Swan 42 BeWild. By Lampedusa the lead was out to a soul-crushing 11 hours. Long Courrier is within touching distance of Comino, and should finish within two hours or so. The GP42 X-Day is next on the water 10nm behind, with the first Maltese entry, Lee Satariano’s HH42 Artie III 18nm further back.
Aaron Gatt Floridia, owner of the ICE 52 Otra Vez called in from Lampedusa. “We have about 25 knots of wind from the south east with reasonably big seas and a very confused sea state. It’s looking like solid breeze all the way to Comino. Most of the boats around us are in our class, so it’s a speed race really. We had a hard night with it blowing hard on the nose, so we have had very little rest, but we are going to give it a 100% until the finish.”
A second ICE 52, Goose, also reported in from the southernmost point on the course. Navigator Steve Hayles had this to say: “The last 100 miles could well be the easiest It's been a slow race so far. 0 to 55 knots have been our range. The fleet got split into three distinct groups based on weather and tidal windows, We haven't quite had the legs at times against the lighter boats that can get up and plane but for sure it's been memorable. There's been a lot of thunderstorm activity so keeping a close eye on cloud activity is probably our biggest focus.”
IRC 4 – LEADERS AROUND LAMPEDUSA
Maltese First 45 Elusive II sailed by Aaron, Maya, and Christoph Podesta was just over 70 miles from the finish with a 6.45 hour lead after IRC time correction from First 53 Yagiza skippered by Nikki Henderson, which was 17 miles behind Elusive at Lampedusa. The leg to the South Comino Channel is a fast, tight reach with little in the way of tactical options, Yagiza’s water-line length advantage may reduce the miles between them, but is unlikely to match Elusive’s IRC corrected time. Marco & Isacco Cohen’s French MAT 12 Dajenu was still in third with 91 miles to go. However, six miles ahead of Dajenu, Andrew and Sam Hall’s J/125 Jackknife poses a serious threat to the podium. Nikki Henderson, the skipper of the First 53 Yagiza messaged to say: “The wind hole before Favignana was brutal- but be careful what you wish for! Last night sailing south we had wind into the high 30s, which was pretty full on, that definitely woke us up. We are determined to keep going as hard we can. In all senses of the word this team has come together, but we are so excited about getting to the finish.”
IRC 5 – CALYPSO APPROACHING LAMPEDUSA.
Seb Ripard and Dan Calascione’s Maltese Farr 30 Calypso still had a 7.5 hour lead in the class after IRC time correction at Pantelleria, but their lead on the water has been reduced to just ten miles. It has been a hard, upwind slog since rounding Favignana, and the heavy displacement Swan 53 Bedouin has chomped away at Calypso’s advantage. Calypso’s lead is likely to be all but eroded on the tight reach to the Maltese archipelago. The Stefan Debattista and Sam O’Byrne skippered Maltese IMX 40 Geisha is ranked third, just an hour ahead of Slovenian Elan 450 Karpo skippered by Maks Vrečko. Alex Turnbull on Calypso reported: “We are rounding Lampedusa, it has been tough going, upwind since Favignana, especially last night when we had to reduce sail to reefed main and jib. We are managing to average 7 knots of boat speed. Calypso is going well, and the crew are in good spirits.”
IRC 6 – BIG BUNCH AROUND PANTELLERIA
The pace has seriously picked up in the small boat class with the majority of the fleet having doubled the miles covered in respect of the previous 24 hours. The bulk of the fleet was rounding Pantelleria to harden up for the fetch to Lampedusa. The upwind conditions have played right into the sweet spot of the oldest boat in the race. The Australian 68ft ketch El Ora skippered by Kent King is revelling in big conditions and leads the class after IRC time correction. However, two youth teams are the biggest challenge for the old girl. The Maltese youth team skippered by Claudio Bugeja racing J/109 JYS Jan is second by just 18 minutes from J/109 Jarhead skippered by Gary Mercieca. El Ora, JYS Jan and Jarhead are barely a mile apart on the water at Pantelleria.
IRC Double Handed
Marina 21’s exceptional shift on the passage from Stromboli, to convert a near two hour deficit on corrected time to the Swan 47 Lazy Duck into a 40 minute lead at Favignana, has put Milan Kolacek & Milan Tomek in pole position currently. Racing in IRC 5, Marina 21 should be faster on the water and while Lazy Duck from Malta and Alquimia from Italy are just passing Pantelleria, the Greek entry is over halfway to Lampedusa. John Ripard, co-skipper of Lazy Duck, called in earlier: “We don’t know what the wind speed is because we lost our wind instruments on the first day, but we are close reaching south past Pantelleria with one reef and the number 4. It’s not so relaxing anymore!” At Pantelleria, Marina 21 held a 1.5 hour corrected time lead over Lazy Duck.
Class 40
A fabulous competition is ongoing at the head of the Class 40 fleet. At Lampedusa, three yachts were within 10 minutes of each other. Mikael Mergui’s Centrakor held a 7 minute lead over Matteo Sericano’s Lucente, with Aurelien Ducroz’s Marvic 40 2 minutes behind. The three are currently line abreast, 20nm from the South Comino Channel, with Marvic 40 to the north and Lucente to the south.