Rounding the ‘Rock’

(August 12, 2013) – At 14:03 BST Dona Bertarelli and Yann Guichard’s 131-ft Maxi Trimaran Spindrift 2 was the first boat to round the Fastnet Rock, the symbolic halfway point of the 611-nautical mile Rolex Fastnet Race. Spindrift 2 rounded the Rock on the south-western tip of Ireland mere seconds ahead of the Armel le Cleac’h-skippered Banque Populaire. At 17:00 BST Spindrift 2 retained a narrow lead, travelling at a consistent 30 knots some 200-nm from the finish. The arrival of the first multihull is expected in the early hours of Tuesday morning. – Full report