Kerisma spellbounds the rest

"Sailing early in the morning and finishing at night was more than a challenge. This was a fantastic set-up for us. Topping 11 knots flying downwind compensated for the slow upwind although the boat was still picking 4.3k when the wind was only 3.7k... moving faster than the wind was our secret weapon. That way we beat them all."

So claimed Sonke Steine, who has all the making of an outstanding skipper, thrilling his lively crew on board Kerisma for the Vega Offshore Race last weekend.

This was a new race organised by Royal Malta Yacht Club, starting from Marsamxett, sailing offshore out to the Vega Oilfield platform structures, rounding them first, before finishing in Malta again for a 90nm non-stop race.

Kerisma had the better of the whole fleet by almost two hours on corrected time, even though it had the highest handicap rating of 1.159.

Amazingly, the rest of the fleet found speed problems as soon as the wind almost died down before high noon for a good six to seven hours.

This was the end for boats like Flying Colours, Spirit of the Wind, Tui and Time Out. They all called it a day and retired straightaway.

Primadonna, Maltese Falcon and Aziza preferred to sail way up north off the rum-line, as they got out into the open sea.

In fact, this manoeuvre paid its dividends, particularly for Commodore Georges Bonello du Puis whose smart tactics with regards to weather forecasts awarded him with a podium gamble.

Primadonna somehow kept moving at a slow pace until it zoomed downwind as soon as it rounded the Vega Platform.

Maltese Falcon 2, the Beneteau 40.7, also made its mark felt once more with skipper Martin Scicluna's performances improving all the time.

His attentive crew is also a telling factor that instigates the challenges which lie ahead. Finishing just 15 minutes behind Primadonna is regarded as a good feat in the circumstances.

Maybe the surprise of the race was Elusive's feeble showing.

Short-crewed to the tune of just three pairs of hands on board, Arthur Podesta's Elusive got stuck in the hole that killed many a boat with no winds around.

Both Elusive and Bordeaux made it to port relatively late considering their equal handicap was a favourable one of 1.060 each.

Once more, I was a guest on board Escape, the second biggest handicap rated boat with 1.104.

When the wind died down, it was clear that skipper Jost Merten's 47.7 Beneteau couldn't cope with covering just five nautical miles in seven hours. They found the going tough after an initially good run which had Escape with the leaders up to 35 miles out.

Kerisma's record of 13 hours 45 minutes and 36 seconds will be all there to beat next year as the race will certainly be an annual event for the club with sponsors Oilfield Tanking supporting it again.

Final placings: 1. Kerisma; 2. Primadonna; 3. Maltese Falcon 2.