RESOLUTE
“Resolute boats have a magic about them. A passion that extends past mere carbon, fabric, plastic and bolts. It’s about the heart and passion that goes into designing, building and supporting the developments of this equipment.”
RYAN DEMAINE DIRECTOR OF ROWING, HEADINGTON SCHOOL I 64
n 1994, legendary coach Steve Gladstone partnered with Misha Joukowsky, president and CEO of Crawford High- Performance Composites, to combine their passion and knowledge of the science of designing fast boats to create
Resolute Racing Shells. Their boats are developed with an eye towards providing crews with the hulls and equipment that will optimize their potential for peak performance, using cutting-edge technology. But for the engineers at Resolute, the product’s aim is not simply to create a technologically superior shell; it is to create a shell artfully crafted with the crew’s needs in mind. Jeff Sturges, Resolute president and CEO describes their mission as “optimizing equipment for racing, to give crews every fair advantage possible.” Not only are they refining known advantages, they are catalyzing a shift in how these advantages are imagined. And imagination is the key; they challenge and test the norms of design and production, in addition to trying to change the dialogue and
perception of boat production. As a boutique company, the company produces fewer boats than many competitors, but they are made of the highest quality aerospace grade materials, with innovative designs and the finest hand craftsmanship.
Technical design A shorter, thinner boat is the optimal response to reducing drag by reducing wetted surface. Based on simple mathematics, the builders claim the design of Resolute boats is as much as six seconds faster than competitors. Most of the other boat manufacturers opt for longer boats, using a different balance between width and stability. However, a longer boat has a greater wetted surface, inevitably creating more drag. The production of winning shell designs rests on the ability to reduce friction, increase durability, and provide optimal stability. Resolute tackles this challenge through design and a strategic choice of materials. The trademark Resolute monocoque
construction technique creates the stiffest frame by supporting the structural load with a sandwich design of carbon fiber inner and outer
skins surrounding a tapered Nomex honeycomb core, rather than relying on an interior frame – a divergence from the traditional need for ribs in the internal frame of the hull which breakdown over time. This innovative design decreases weight and increases stiffness. The founders framed the question
of material selection in the following manner: would you rather go into battle wearing carbon fibre or Kevlar? In the case of battle, you would naturally select Kevlar, based on its ability to absorb energy at the point of impact. But do you want to absorb the rowers’ energy? Conversely, carbon fibre conducts the energy. Now, they asked, what materials are used for speed? Kevlar is not used in America’s Cup
racing hulls, F1 cars, or Indy race cars. Rather than layering carbon fibre over Kevlar, as do some rowing competitors, the Resolute team utilizes aerospace- grade unidirectional prepreg carbon fibre. Carbon fibre as a material is stronger than steel and lighter than aluminum. The design of the material is as important as the selection of the material. Rather than the common decision to weave the carbon fibre, unidirectional carbon fibre directs
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