Editorial Andrew Hurst Pay attention at the back


There’s been some hard offshore racing since the last issue. Very rough in the case of the Rolex Middle Sea Race and marginally less so in the case of the Route du Rhum. Very tough in the case of the Volvo Ocean Race where the success - ful introduction of a one-design has prompted predictably nail-biting competition. As a veteran of the IOR One Ton era I am fully aware of the stresses of racing side by side with competitors over hundreds of miles… to be conducting the same exercise on a pitch as large as the Volvo exhausts me just thinking about it.


Meanwhile, the month has been instructive. The Middle Sea Race fleet saw a retirement rate of 80 per cent among the smaller entries, which demonstrated prudence and responsibility rather than obvious equipment flaws. The Mediterranean is a particularly vicious place when the wind kicks up, the challenge magnified in the vicinity of land where the water depth can rise very rapidly, prompting some of the steepest seas to be found anywhere on the planet. In spite of the large fleet taking part, including boats as small as 9.5m, and winds that towards the end of the race hit 60kt, those who did retire made it to port with little or no outside assistance. A good and sensible result all round. One for sailing to be proud of.


The lessons from the latest Route du Rhum were more mixed. Another edition of a great ocean race, which like the 2014 Middle Sea Race celebrated a record entry, delivered some unexpected outcomes. One thing not entirely unexpected was the magnificent victory of Loïck Peyron on the mighty 100ft Banque Populaire. On paper Peyron’s craft is slower than rival Yann Guichard’s Spindrift 2; but, as no less a name than Franck Cammas predicted in these pages, in solo mode Banque Pophas the edge… she is more manageable and capable of being pushed at a higher level of efficiency compared with her ultimate potential. That’s a bit of good news from the Rhum. Less good was the rate of attrition early in a blue-water ocean race that encountered rough but not extreme weather within 36 hours of the start. Where to begin? The Class 40 was to some extent paying the price of both a large 43-strong entry and the increasing competi- tiveness that follows its unadulterated success. Most serious was two sisterships losing their keels within hours of each other on the first night (fortunately before the breeze increased); one was abandoned, the other made it back ‘Mike Golding-style’ by filling all the ballast tanks to sink the boat and creep cautiously back to land. The coincidence of these ‘de-keelings’ implies a design flaw that the recovery of one boat will doubtless uncover. Elsewhere in the Class 40 a retirement rate of around 25 per cent was brought about by dismasting, sail damage, electronic failures and so forth. In essence, this class is probably pushing the technical envelope harder than before and, rather like the 2008 Vendée Globe fleet of ‘newly’ fragile Imoca 60s, now needs to take a step backwards to reaffirm its blue-water credentials.


‘ OH DEAR


Another day in disasterland


– Route du Rhum headline


Today I feel like a victim in a car accident… actually, like a truck hit me at


night on a motorcycle – Thomas Coville, Sodebo


This is far from simple! – François Gabart, Macif


WELL EARNED I never imagined I would get to win a Route du Rhum on a


boat like this – Loïck Peyron


Such high speeds are very stressful. Yes, I was able to sail the boat well but often I was scared. One night I fell asleep at the helm


and nearly capsized… – Peyron


GOOD CALL (KNUT) If we had kept the old boats there would have


been no race – Brunel skipper Bouwe Bekking


The VO70s were different, more


The steering gear on the 100-footer Comanche can be normally sited aft (left) or can be moved forward to the protection of the coachroof – slotting it in after removing this rubber plug (right)


powerful but in many ways easier to drive. There’s more to discover about the VO65s in strong winds – some of our testing suggests a pitchpole is


not impossible… – Bekking


Moving on, and the still nascent Multi50 fleet suffered very badly indeed with less than half the 11 starters likely to finish – this is probably a case of not enough racing for a technically aggressive fleet, during which to sort out weaknesses. Potentially a great class, but somehow they do need to agree on a regular programme so that such issues can be shaken out in advance. Finally, the Imoca 60s, enjoying their first major event under their revised class rules, fared well, although the retirement of PRBafter a ballast tank collapse indicates a fleet that is still quite close to the edge structurally in spite of years of evolution. So, all in all, a month to celebrate… especially for the sheer majesty of the seaman that is Loïck Peyron. But also one from which to absorb important lessons. Onwards.


GRAND SCALE


The bows fly 15m into the air off the waves. It’s impressive but you constantly have this feeling that it is all


q


going to break apart – Yann Guichard, Spindrift 2


BRUTAL We’ve renamed this the


Volvo Inshore Race – Francisco Vignale, Mapfre HMM


I’ve not wasted my time. Mapfre is a great team with some really good guys


– Michel Desjoyeaux steps down


NOT QUITE SHACKLETON Yes, we’re running short… let’s just say we’ll have to wait until Cape Town to enjoy a


truly great dinner – Yann Riou, Dongfeng


AIMING HIGH We need a full Chinese crew on a Chinese- manufactured


America’s Cup boat – Far East Boats chairman Demolar Du Yingying


INSIGHT


I have knowledge of what he [Ben Ainslie] likes and what he doesn’t like, so teaming up can only be a


positive thing – Giles Scott joins BAR


Seahorse magazine and our associate raceboatsonlybrokerage site are both at: seahorsemagazine.com The editor is contactable by email at: andrew@seahorse.co.uk


SEAHORSE 7


PETE MCGOWAN


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