SAILING: Joint race favourite, Eamon Conneely's Transpac 52 Patches had to accept second overall in its class as the 608-mile Rolex Fastnet Race drew to a close in Plymouth last night.
The giant New Zealand entry ICAP Maximus capitalised on the almost windless conditions that has dominated the 285-strong fleet since the start from Cowes on Sunday. But it was the conditions in the closing stage that cost the Galway boat victory.
But late last night, a new weather system bringing 15 knots of ideal westerly breeze had compressed the fleet still at sea and effectively restarted the race in favour of the smaller entries.
Having started out the day with Maximus in the overall win position with Patches second, as more and more mid-sized boats reached Plymouth on the new breeze last night, the Kiwis dropped to second while Patches was ousted to seventh place.
Among those in the new hunt for the overall handicap win was Eamon Crosbie's Teng Tools, the Jason Kerr 32 footer that won last year's BMW Round Ireland Race as Voodoo Chile.
As the National YC crew made their final approach to the finishing line just before nightfall, race pundits were tipping the Irish boat as a new favourite for the overall win.
Other Irish boats still at sea include Aodhan Fitzgerald and Yannick Monnier competing two-handed in Southbound and Kieran Jameson's Sigma 38 Changeling.
Former Round Ireland winner Eric Lisson on Cavatina from the Royal Cork was also faring well and being swept in towards Plymouth with the new wind.
The sudden change in fortunes for both the Kiwi leader and Irish runner-up will be classed as part of ocean racing.
The new breeze was something that Patches skipper Ian Walker had expected and was relying but was denied in the closing stages.
In the final analysis, it would have been unlikely to have made a crucial difference but the result belies the match race enjoyed by both boats.
At 100 feet overall length, the Kiwi entry made a fast getaway from the starting line with the remainder of the Class Super Zero in hot pursuit.
Patches held her own until the exit from the Solent when they sailed into a windless patch off The Needles.
But Walker staged a recovery on Monday when a southerly approach to the Fastnet Rock paid dividends, keeping pace with the highly-rated Open 60 footers.
The 52-footer also managed to keep close to the brand new Spanish Volvo Ocean Race 70-footer Movistar.
The return stage from the famous lighthouse off the West Cork coastline was marked by continuing light airs. But for Maximus, her considerable size meant she was racing in completely different wind.
"We sailed a very good race. We made good gains on the Sunday night early on, Ian was really focused and we made loads of sail changes," commented Conneely.
"That first night was probably the highlight. As for winning the race, well, we knew ICAP Maximus were going well when we saw them coming south from the Fastnet Rock.
"But you can only sail with the wind you're in."
Astern of the Irish boat were more than half the Open 60 class, several high-profile boats including the Round Ireland record holder CityJet Solune.
The Irish TP52 has also beaten all the other super-maxis including Wild Thing, Movistar and Leopard of London on corrected handicap time.
