After trailing last for much of the second leg of the Around Alone Race, Bermuda's Alan Paris had the wind in his sails as he reached Cape Town.

In what turned out to be an amazing photo finish, Paris and BTC Velocity closed in on John Dennis and Bayer Ascensia yesterday afternoon.

Dennis, who had spent the night battling calm seas and fog saw his arch rival appear out of the gloom with the end in sight.

He was close inshore and could only watch as Paris kept the wind offshore and sailed right past him.

When the gun fired, Paris crossed the line in fifth place leaving Dennis a scant 200 metres behind. To add insult to injury the wind completely shut off moments after BTC Velocity finished, leaving Bayer Ascensia to drift silently across the line to take sixth in Class Two.

After stepping onto dry land Dennis was gracious about being overtaken. "After 55 days at sea it was nice to have company," he said. "That's what this race is all about. Close racing and close friends. I congratulate Alan on getting here before me."

Yesterday was not the only time the two skippers had seen each other since leaving England. They ran into each other just north of the equator and sailed in tandem for half a morning until Bayer Ascensia finally pulled away.

"I never expected to see John again until we were both in Cape Town," said Paris. "I was not even looking at my e-mails during the night. I had already congratulated John and resigned myself to finishing sixth until I suddenly saw Bayer early this morning."

Spurred on by the sight of his rival, Alan set his largest spinnaker and carried it all the way across the line.

He is now planning a few days rest before the start of leg three at the weekend - the 7,125 nautical mile trek from South Africa to Tauranga in New Zealand.

"I am glad to be here. The boat needs a bit of work, not much and then we are off to New Zealand on Saturday," he said.

The first boat is expected to arrive on January 11.