Thought I'd show you a little bit of what lies ahead for the next few years of maxi-cat yachts being designed in France.
It's well know that the true cutting edge of yacht design has been France or more importantly 'Sikkaflex Valley' in Brittany. If you sail offshore in any high end technology or race at the pointy end of the fleet all of your innovations have been tested and tried years in advance by designers and ocean racers from France. This is almost without exception. As ocean racing goes France leads the way by a country mile, all due to the French love for all things adventurous. To the French These ocean racing is on of the great adventure sports, unrivalled in scale and inspiration. Ocean racing attracts big sponsorship dollars and a consistant national audience. It's no wonder that so much development in speed and safety comes from this end of the world. We might think we have an edge when it comes to producing great sailors but all of them are utilising technology that is, in most cases, old hat to theses blokes.
The one example of this that I'd put forward is the canting keel. Think of any maxi monohull going around today without one. They've been on boats for the last 4 Vendee Globes. That's almost 2 decades of testing and racing before the western world even condsired it de rigeur. We have a lot to do to even consider ourselves amonsgt the avant garde when it comes to yacht design and above all else speed.
Here are a couple of snaps from the van Peteghem/Prevost team. This is a trimaran weighing in at 40 metres. Forget 100 ft maxis this is the real thing (that can even go to sea as well!).
In 2001 Club Med averaged something near 29 knots in a circumnavigation of just over 60 days. This thing (pictured) could quite easily see the Jules Verne Trophy go sub 50 days. This means we are building boats capable of going around the entire globe (from Europe south and do a lap of antarctica before heading north again) in under 50 days! The current record is something closer to 55. This is without expending any fuel to propel or assist in mechanising the boat's progress. The concept is mind blowing, the reality is something else again....
It's well know that the true cutting edge of yacht design has been France or more importantly 'Sikkaflex Valley' in Brittany. If you sail offshore in any high end technology or race at the pointy end of the fleet all of your innovations have been tested and tried years in advance by designers and ocean racers from France. This is almost without exception. As ocean racing goes France leads the way by a country mile, all due to the French love for all things adventurous. To the French These ocean racing is on of the great adventure sports, unrivalled in scale and inspiration. Ocean racing attracts big sponsorship dollars and a consistant national audience. It's no wonder that so much development in speed and safety comes from this end of the world. We might think we have an edge when it comes to producing great sailors but all of them are utilising technology that is, in most cases, old hat to theses blokes.
The one example of this that I'd put forward is the canting keel. Think of any maxi monohull going around today without one. They've been on boats for the last 4 Vendee Globes. That's almost 2 decades of testing and racing before the western world even condsired it de rigeur. We have a lot to do to even consider ourselves amonsgt the avant garde when it comes to yacht design and above all else speed.
Here are a couple of snaps from the van Peteghem/Prevost team. This is a trimaran weighing in at 40 metres. Forget 100 ft maxis this is the real thing (that can even go to sea as well!).
In 2001 Club Med averaged something near 29 knots in a circumnavigation of just over 60 days. This thing (pictured) could quite easily see the Jules Verne Trophy go sub 50 days. This means we are building boats capable of going around the entire globe (from Europe south and do a lap of antarctica before heading north again) in under 50 days! The current record is something closer to 55. This is without expending any fuel to propel or assist in mechanising the boat's progress. The concept is mind blowing, the reality is something else again....
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