(Almost) a fresh start
A change of inventory and materials for the next Volvo, just a whole world of change for the Vendée Globe. Sailmaker Gautier Sergent talks long distance speed and long distance durability…
Gauging from the enduring strong interest from sponsors, competitors, the media and most of all the public, going around the world on a racing sailboat remains one of the great adventures, whether fully crewed or singlehanded. As the boats, rigs and sails have evolved, as well as the hardware and software to support them, the levels of performance and competitiveness have also increased to unprecedented levels, with no end in sight.
So when the Volvo Ocean Race decided 50 SEAHORSE
to adopt a one-design format in the last race, for both the boat and the sails, one might have been forgiven for thinking that those who got the contracts might just rest easy knowing they had no competitors in the process and that their products just had to fulfil their mission to get around the planet in one piece. Easy, right? No, not easy, says Gautier Sergent of North Sails, who oversaw the development, maintenance and repairs, and post-race evaluation of the sail programmes of the seven teams that participated in the 2014- 2015 contest. North’s brief from Volvo, but also from itself, was more than just to pro- duce seven suits of sails and see to their care, but also to compile all that was learnt in this first one-design cycle and apply it towards improvements in the next. Lessons include not just durability and which constructions delivered the best shape retention, but also design – which sails fit best in the sail selec- tion matrix based on observed performance – and durability.
And an added bonus was also to use this
knowledge to apply to building sails for other oceanic classes and events, such as the Imoca 60s in the forthcoming Vendée Globe.
‘One-design is brutal,’ summarised Ser- gent. ‘This project was a steep challenge for us since the sailors pressed hard on both the sails and the boats to gain any edge they could. But overall we were impressed at how well the sails held up over the course of the race. Our use of 3Di material customised for the race was a big help in preserving shapes and not just in keeping the sails in one piece; in fact at this level, to me shape retention is durability.’ ‘I’m continually amazed when I look at the mainsail, what great shape it is in,’ said Ian Walker, skipper of Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing, overall winners of the race. ‘I remember two races ago when we had a string mainsail. I remember arriving in India, which was the end of Leg Two, taking the mainsail down, and you literally couldn’t pull it down without putting your hands through the sail. It was falling apart
THIERRY MARTINEZ
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92