Next Big Thing They’D Logged Fewer Than10hoursofsailinginnewport Over New Carbon-Fiber Machine and No One Was Sure What to Expect

SW 014 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015 ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ BY SEAN M CARBON FIBER. ONLY RESULTS WILL JUSTIFY ITS WEIGHT IN LINE HONORS AND RECORD-BREAKING ATTEMPTS. COMANCHE ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ IS A STRIKING NEW YACHT, DESIGNED FOR ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ C ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ NEILL ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ Next Big Thing They’d logged fewer than10hoursofsailinginNewport over new carbon-fiber machine and no one was sure what to expect. port, R.I. It was the team’s first venture offshore in the spanking performance in lateOctober 2014during adelivery from New bility is a huge part of what these boats do.” “This boat is made to break records and be first to finish. Sta says one of the key mandates to its designers. unlike anything seeninamonohullbefore. Afterall,thatwas to thatofa100-foot trimaran insinglehandedconfiguration, is able weather conditions,butthepower ofComanche,similar Sure, breaking ocean-passage records isallabouthaving favor stop around theworld? Thatbenchmarkisfree for thetaking. problem. Five days from Los Angeles to Honolulu? Easy. Non- ate them. Six days across the North Atlantic? Shouldn’t be a it’s going to shatter crewed monohull records. Flat out obliter be clearaboutonething:Whenthisboatgets fully wicked up, When itcomestoJimClark’snew super-maxi Comanche,let’s ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ the nickname“aircraft dueto itscommanding26-footbeam. carrier” Comanche, during initialsea Newport, trialsoff R.I., quicklyearned Comanche’s 20 professional sailors got a taste of the boat’s “No boathasever had a worse rating than this one willhave,” ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ Comanche’s skipperKen Read, president ofNorthSails. ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ Photo: Onnevan der Wal ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■

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■ SW 016 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015 ure itoutandrefine it, buttobeable feel a new boat.There’s alotof work todofig creaks andgroans, butnothingunusualfor wind and everyone had grins. There were some reaching doing26to27knotsin25 of che’s rigger andpitassist.“We were power boat doesn’t do that.” makes ithard tosteer. This over thebow digsinand Sometimes whenyou heel boat withawidetransom. which isimportantfor a to liftoutofthewater, 2009-’10. “Thebow seems Groupama 3 to a 48-day circumnavigation in Stan Honey, whonavigated themaxi-trimaran Sydney-Hobart (14.82) and Fastnet (14.23). pac (16.46knots),Newport-Bermuda (16.00), run betterthanthatoftherecords for theTrans Comanche’s average speedinthatfirst,anxious A quickcheckoffour majoroceanraces shows for 10to15minutesinspectthehullandrig. age of 18 knots, despite regularly slowing down in thefirst24hours,atan nautical miles aver down thecoast.Andthatthey did,logging436 ing freighter in Charleston, S.C., they had to get three days before heading south. With an await “She’s alively girl,” says Keats Keeley, Coman “It’s awell-mannered well,” boat. It sails says The big trickle down - - - - - tom drive shafts and gear boxes for Comanche.” we neededsomethingthatwasn’t available,” says Williams. “SoIundertooktodesign andbuildcus “We tooka lookattheequipmentthatwas commercially available off theshelfandquickly figured knew a more robust system would be required. Comanche and assuming the crew could generate 1,215 to 1,250 foot pounds of torque, Williams 13, whenitwon the2010America’sCup.Afterreviewing theproposal for the winchpackage for liams is apast America’s Cup sailor who worked with Oracle Team USA’s mammoth trimaran, USA The winch package is the brainchild of Jon Williams and his start-up, Stayinphase, of England. Wil record attempts. The main pit winch, however, can be hydraulical when certain races permit. men togrindonedrumwithoutturningextra drums. Manually driven winchesare required for ratified Comanche ismanually driven: Sixpedestalspower winches, andagear-and-clutch system allows 12 winch system, which trickled down from the America’s Cup, seems a likely element. Ken Read. Sowhatequipmentonthesuper-maxi islikely tofindits way intogrand-prix sailing? The “A lot of systems on boats like this eventually make their way into everyday sailing,” says skipper comfortable our first night out in a breeze is a kick-ass yacht with a high-profile owner gener tified. It’s a superb public relations machine, a theboat,investmentsail neednotbejus preneur JimClark,whoisphysically unableto pundits to debate, but for billionaire and entre lion boatisworth itsweight is incarbonfiber for forget the rating rules.” Whether the $15-mil design briefof“make itfast andpowerful and stretches the from stemtostern,itfulfills its overall planthatliterally length, andasail a beam measuring more than one-quarter of team.”testament to the build Comanche isfast, thatmuchwe know. With - - - - Maine, in the span of a little more than one sport, andexcitement for thesporthopefully says Read. “Thatmeansexcitement for the They want thisboattomake itsown history,” Clark’s wife, anAustralian andformer model). ating great international interest in sailing. fleck ofdustfrom themany crevices where Giantportablevacuumsbuild. sucked every good ol’Aussies,oversaw theimmaculate don LintonandboatcaptainCasey Smith,all year. Master craftsmen TimHacket andBran means more people involved.” Comanche was atHodgdon built Yachts in “That’s abigonefor JimandKristy(Hinze, - - - The M-class gearboxes feature creative thinking to reduce friction and have adistinctive appear time.” —S.M. tic we can save up to aton and a half of fuel and won’t have to keep the engine running all the with twelve guys grinding than with push buttons. With manual winches, if we do aTransatlan Read. “We didastudy andfound thatwe can produce asmuchormore power to thewinches percent more righting moment, and the same size rig as this boat and one less pedestal,” says “Keep inmindthatBanquePopulaire Vwent around theworld withnopushbuttons,aboutfifty- the transmission design, machining, assembly, and fitting. of the drum by four times. An estimated 4,500-man hours were required, including all aspects of the surface hardness of hard anodized aluminum and can extend the “grip texture” on the surface The Harken-supplied winchdrumswere coatedwithaceramic thatoffersclosetofifteentimes designed andsuppliedby Stayinphase orbuiltonsiteinconjunctionwithComanche’s build team. bonded titaniumconnectionsandcouplings.Structural carbon-fibermountings were either ance derived directly from helicoptertechnology. High-capacitycarbon-fiberdriveshafts have especially onboard. ing outparty. partyitmay Andwhatawild be, anniversary editionwould betheboat’s com but Hinze, an Australian, was adamant the 70th tive outing,especially given Comanche’spower, claimed lives. Read agrees it’sariskycompeti classic hasdestroyed boatsoflessersize and is ambitious.Weather duringthisDecember Rolex Sydney HobartYacht Race asitsdebut ity inoneyear isimpressive, buttoselect the man hours into it. hull. Hacket estimateshisteamput130,000- bulkheads andstringers are laminatedtothe To aboatofsuchscale build and complex - - - the 35th America’s Cup. re-signed withEmirates Team New Zealand for monohulls inthe40-to60-foot range andhas has concentrated primarily with shorthanded mentioned outright round-the-world record) andtheafore hulls none. Theirdesignsincludethegiantmulti designing ocean-going issecondto multihulls Verdier.star Guillaume VPLP’s track record cent Lauriot-Prévost (VPLP), along with new firms, thatof Marc Van Peteghem andVin Comanche isfrom two topFrench design The two firmsjoined forces in2007totake Banque Populaire V Groupama 3. Verdier, meanwhile, (current holder of the - - - - - lot of sub-contractors to consult with designing to twelve people working on the project, plus a two firms,” says Verdier. “Altogether we hadten plans and structural engineering. ing and safety rules. Verdier designed the lines plan, stability, andadherence to extensive rat- Comanche, VPLP oversaw plan, deck the sail the circumnavigation inlessthan80days. With of 22knots.Thefirsttwo yachts completed at an averagenautical miles speed in excess 24-hour singlehandeddistancerecord of534 were fast. Therace-winner, Macif, setaratified took three of the top four overall. And they the world. VPLP-Verdier designsplaced 1-2and dée Globesinglehandednon-stoprace around by stunningperformances inthe2012-’13Ven they’ve hadgreat successever since,capped for singlehandersin 50- and 60-footers, and on the highly competitive IMOCA racing circuit, hull forstiffness andweightsavings. Co-designer Guillaume Verdier hasemphasizedthat theideal heel angleis25to30degrees, whichplacesit on thechineandreduces wetted surfacearea. internal bulkheads and12stringersalongthe “It’s avery collaborative effortbetween the The boat’s immaculate interior(left) has15 Photo: Onnevander Wal -

JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015 SW 017 SW 018 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015 Numbers By the Dyneema SK99 cordage. are two 21-gallon hydraulic tanks oil and 15,912 feet of of water, and the aft water ballast tank holds 3tons. There and starboard longitudinal ballast tanks each hold 7 tons mated at 10.5 tons and the mainsheet at 15 tons. The port 750 tons. The maximum sheets is esti- load on the headsail canting keel mechanism has a designed working load of righting moment of 286 tons). The forward bearing for the comparison, the maxi trimaran Banque Populaire IV had a Comanche Canting-keel draft 24 feet has arighting moment of 154 to 176 tons (by (off thedeck) 148 feet Mast height (est.)

Beam 26 feet 15.75 inches Hull draft (static) 33 tons Weight

LOA LOA 100 feet Capable ofcarryingupto J1: gennaker: Mainsail: Masthead gennaker: 3,767-4,305 The Sail Inventory Largest fractional square feet total 4,305 square feet 5,381 square feet square feet square feet 7,534 11,840

JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015 SW 019 SW 020 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015 pushing thebow down on the wave. We don’t promote planing.ComanchehaswhatVer the keel. planning isaboutfive orsixmeters forward of place water early,” says Verdier. want to design it bow down, but we want to dis attempts and to increase waterline length. add volume for on hardrecord off-windsailing dier describes asabulbousbow, meantto ference is the longitudinal center of gravity.” the stern(from maximum beam).Themaindif stern,” says Verdier. “We are quitestraight to 70, where max beamissometimesatthe mum beam was carried to the transom. for example, theVolvo Ocean70,where maxi ever, isn’tconsidered as“triangular”aboatas, how it carriesafttothetransom. Comanche, of amidships,andthatwidthtapersslightly as Maximum beamandtheshroud baseare aft of 26feet andaballastbulbdraft of23feet. design work alone.” spent aboutfifteenthousandmanhoursonthe forthe mastandsails, example. I’destimatewe “We have quiteabitofvolume inthebow, Verdier saidthe pressure pointonthehull for “We’re trying toincrease dynamiclengthby Verdier hastriedtomove thatpointaftto toanIMOCA“The shapeissimilar 60orVolvo Comanche’s power comesfrom awidebeam skipper Ken Read, North alsothepresident Sails. of Cus- immaculate.right, At sage records callforhumanpower, andforthis, custom winch packages were developed. Owner Jim Clarkand (Clockwise): The shore crew stepsthe148-footrig. Pas- tom jib-carleads are robust tohandlesubstantialsheet loads. Even thedetailedcarbonworkonbobstayis - - - - - than 250,000 feet of supporting carbon-fiberstays. than 250,000feetof the water inlightairs,” says Verdier. “Because shape, you canget stuckin the daggerboard perfectly withtherudder 30 degrees toplaceitonthechine andalign emphasizes theboatshouldbeheeledto25 timeters of hull draft. Verdier But when sailing, apparent wind. You don’t accelerate.” area, you speedanddon’tbuild don’tbuild 50 percent ofdrag, ifyou don’tget ridofthis friction of the wetted surface area represents wetted surface whenheeling. shape inaneffortto reduce a Ushapetomore ofaV helps thehulltransition from to thetransom. Thechine become achinethatcarries Moving aft,thestrakes flow of water ontothe deck. line. Verdier says thisfeature the istoinhibit the use of strakes a few feet above the water too fat.” up that pressureto build the boat can’t be lots ofpressure onthehullfor planing,and be reasonably skinny,” says Verdier. “You need the planingpressurized zone. There we tryto but we tendnottohave toomuchvolume in In a static state, Comanche “If you have anextreme U A noticeablefeature ofthebow sectionis Photo: Onnevander Wal Comanche’s toweringrighasmore has only 40 cen the limits the trick in pushing isn’t too rough, to achieve, if the going shouldn’t be too hard A 14.8-knot average in the first place. where those limits are

- - is to know for great and control. stability At that point, very different,” says Read. “Incomputersimu and the helm is light. I was surprised there Keeley. “She feels comfortable, the bow is up and the mainsail hangs off the transom.”and the mainsail But it’s very noticeable. There are big headsails, finally got toapoint where it was slower upwind. it farther aft, and the boat kept speeding up. It designer,lating, our sail JB Braun, kept moving after extensive computer modeling. rigging. The mast ended up so bon-fiber far aft wasn’t a lot of water over the bow.” hydrofoils. appears towant tofly outofthe water, asifon beam is greatly reduced, and at times the boat 250,000 feet ofSouthernSpars’T800x1 car “Where plansitsover thesail theplatform is recognizedAnother easily feature isthe “She’s notahandfulinstraight line,” says but but 148 feet off the deck, mak deck-stepped maststands amidships. Thetowering mast position well aft of is heldaloftwithmore than does nothave jumpersand Spars, thefour-spreader rig marans. by Built Southern oftheAC72wing sails cata ing ittallerthanthe130-foot - - - - weight savings of 441 pounds on this boat to stiffen it,” says Chenais. “We estimate a more structure—bulkheads andstringers— skin isobviously asoftershell,thus itneeds skin delamination. avoid the potential of core shear failure and tance to slamming and impact, and you also structure and stringers offers the best resis VPLP. “Thecombinationofthemonolithic says Chenais, a naval Philibert architect for option for andweight reliability savings,” hull, some as long as 52 feet. plus thetransom, and12stringers alongthe 15 internal(theforward two are watertight) Comanche isstrengthened with16bulkheads, yachts—numerous bulkheads andhullstringers. feature usually applied in IMOCA offshore ing hullstrength, designers incorporated a thick. suring up to 7millimeters This area oftheboatismonolithiccarbon,mea it’s absentinthesectionsforward ofthekeel. thickness between but 30and40millimeters, of carbonfiber. Kevlar core inthehull varies in The keel bulkheadaloneis10,763square feet weighs in at8tons of the stated 30-ton weight. “Being thinnerthanasandwich, thesingle “The monolithic bow sections are the best In anefforttosave maximizweight while The combinedhullanddeckofComanche - - -

compared toasolutionwithsandwichhull in thetwo weeks leadinguptothestarton shakedown sessionwas plannedinSydney the freighter bound for Australia. A holiday refined before the yacht was loadedaboard Hobart Race, don’tbetComanche’sfuture thought that would betruefor us.Theboat as muchthey thoughtthey would, andhe 60s found they don’tusethedaggerboards fast-flowing ocean current. produced from strong winds blowing against a the Hobart,arace thatcanhave square waves Comanche race, simply bevictoryenough. finishingwill results based on one race result. If it’s a rough not a ton of leeway without the boards.” thing was thatthedesignerwas right;there’s becomes atiny bitpositive. Theinteresting using thedaggerboards, leeway decreases and would whennotusingthedaggerboards. When doesn’t make as much leeway as we thought it boards, which measure 20 feet deep. an interesting observation aboutthedagger After thetriptoCharleston,Honey had and less structure.” The complete sail inventoryThe completesail hadn’t been Whatever happensintheRolex Sydney- “The designermentionedthattheIMOCA ’s long, wide form isn’t conducive to - all well andgood, except whenthere are four Hobart,” says Smith,theboat captain.“That’s Sean Clarkson, Ryan Godfrey, JulienCres Kelvin Harrap, Tony Mutter, Warwick Fleury, Read, Honey, SmithandKeeley are joinedby to make sure the yacht arrives in one piece. is doing it.” but you can’thelpyourself. Theguynext toyou it’s like the Volvo, you know you shouldn’t do it, other 100-footers by your side going hard. Then the first place. the limitsistoknow where thoselimitsare in going isn’ttoorough, but thetrick in pushing average shouldn’tbetoohard toachieve ifthe record of 42 hours and change. A 14.8-knot They’ll want linehonors.They’ll want therace ply finishingthe race won’t be good enough. a Hall of to fill Fame. from theAmerica’s CupandVolvo OceanRace David Rolfe. There’s enoughexperience inthere Von Schwartz, ChrisMaxted, Greg Gendell,and MacInnes, Joe Faneli, Morgan Trubovich, John sant, Kimo Worthington, Richard Clarke, Brian to-do list. crew maneuvers were to be checked off the Boxing Day where itemssuchasmappingout “We have to be careful how we itto sail With such a cast of talent, however, sim The hand-picked crew hastheexperience - -

JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015 SW 021