Shorts & T-shirts for today's Rolex Fastnet Race finishers

Today's Rolex Fastnet Race fleet finishers enjoyed favourable conditions bringing 18 boats home, including the first Class 40 to complete the race.

The newly-launched Class 40 monohull, 40 degrees, co-skippered by British sailors Miranda Merron and Peter Harding with three crew onboard, crossed the finish line at 15:36:11 BST.

Merron and Harding will be racing in this November's Transat Jacques Vabre - Merron has raced it three times before -- and used the Rolex Fastnet as a competitive testing ground for the new boat.

As for the breeze and sea state during the first nights, Merron said "it was just very, deeply unpleasant, but we have a seaworthy boat and expect it to be able to handle the conditions and expect the crew to be able to as well."

After the launch in late June in South Africa, the boat was shipped to Spain before sailing a 450 mile passage from Vigo to La Rochelle in a "full Biscay blow, but downwind so that was all right. It was the first real test of the boat", then raced in the Class 40 Worlds and came in 2nd. Next Merron and Harding did their obligatory double-handed 1,000 mile qualifier for the the Transat Jacques Vabre straight off the back of that, before Skandia Cowes Week and the Rolex Fastnet Race

Crewmember Fraser Brown has sailed many ocean miles on 60+ footers and found the smaller boat physically testing. Referencing the 608-mile race just completed he said with a smile  "it's long way on a 40-footer" after logging 74 hours at sea in very testing conditions.

Brown continued, "For a 40-foot boat... it was very moguly and the boat is like a cork in the seaway. It's the first time I've been in a 40-foot boat in a very long time.  In a 60-foot boat you push through it much better. It's the difference of having 2 tons of ballast - and forward ballast - instead of 750kg. You have to really change your way of sailing to get through the seaway."

The crew looked a bit worn, but given the pounding not that bad.  "We were pretty knackered coming down last night. I must say the trip up to the rock was pretty hard, No one actually ate anything of substance for 48 hours.  We had a stew on the boat we managed to get down in the early hours of Monday night and Tuesday morning. After that no one got anything into them besides some fresh fruit and chocolate for 48 hours because the conditions were so horrible... I don't think you really sleep, you close your eyes, but you're not really sleeping, you're banging around. You get up on deck and you're pretty wiped out."

After rounding the rock and the turning mark, the crew got a reprieve with the northwest - westerly breeze, sailing downwind and lifting all the way into the Lizard.

Fraser said, "being downwind was a big bonus. Coming into Plymouth the breeze was 15-18 knots, the seas flattened out, it was actually really nice and we finished with the masthead spinnaker...it was actually a very nice ending. We needed that because it raises the spirits and the boat can dry out a bit, and you can dry out a bit and you can finish in shorts and a t-shirt...who would've thought."

The current weather on the racecourse is west - northwestly winds at 14 - 18 knots. For the remaining yachts running downwind from the Fastnet Rock to the Scillies, and from there to the finish in Plymouth, this has made for quite favourable conditions; but for four yachts still making their way to the Fastnet Rock it continues to be a long upwind slog. The relief of rounding the rock may be lessened if the wind does as forecast and backs to the southwest in the early hours of Friday - at least it will not be a beat.

At 1730 local time today, Jaguar Logic (GBR), a Reflex 38 was thirty-five miles from the finish line, sailing without instruments having lost their engine. The yacht went around the Rock first in class (IRC 1), and is currently lying second in class.  Skipper Andrew Greenwood is leading a crew of sailing school students who are honing their offshore racing skills - clearly they have received a tough induction to the Rolex Fastnet, but look set to have accomplished much by finishing a tough ocean race.

As of the latest OC Tracker position update at 1930 BST, leading on corrected time are Rambler (USA) in IRC Super Zero; Chieftain (IRL), confirmed in IRC SZ Canting Keel and IRC Overall; Courrier des Coeur (FRA) in IRC Zero; Scarlet Oyster (GBR) in IRC 1; Foggy Dew (FRA) in IRC 2; Persephone of London (GBR) in IRC 3, and PRB, confirmed in the Open 60 class.

As of Thursday at 1930 BST, 31 yachts had finished, 27 yachts are racing and 213 yachts have retired from the race.

The Rolex Fastnet Race prize giving will be held at 1700 at the Royal Citadel in Plymouth. Entry is strictly by ticket only and these are available at the Race Headquarters in Plymouth. Media wishing to attend must notify the Press Office. Crew wishing to attend must contact the Race Office.

Friends, family, press and supporters can visit http://fastnet.rorc.org and click the tracking page to follow the race and results. Boats automatically report every 30mins (on the hour and half hour), and results and tracking are updated shortly after the report is received.  The results will be overall and based on corrected time.