There is a thread that runs through all of the boats built by Andraz Mihelin’s Slovenian yard: lightweight, plenty of sail and plenty of stability – the age-old recipe for good sailing performance. But unlike the Minis that inspired the designs, these boats have useful, useable interiors along with wide, deep cockpits to make for a rather less ‘committed’ sailing experience
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project. Maybe it’s going to work, maybe not. But it’s something new, something interesting that’s happening. If it works, it will attract new people. And let’s remember that sailing as a whole is a niche. Globally, it’s a very small thing. At Seascape we sell around 100 boats a year. That’s great for a small yard like us, but 100 boats spread across the world… well, we don’t have to be concerned with pleas- ing everybody. It’s an extremely narrow niche anyway. It’s all about defining clearly what we are selling, communicat- ing it clearly, disseminating it and looking around the world for 100 people who have a need for which we have the solution. SH: Could you clarify what a true performance boat really is. AM: A good question to ask is this: at what wind speed does this boat exceed its theoretical hull speed? This should happen, I think, in 10, 12, maximum 15kt. And the next question is this: when that happens, can you control the boat by yourself?
Also, a number that I think should be a part of every boat test is stability. Not the stability curve, which nobody knows how
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to read, but stability at 20°, which is a normal sailing angle. Look at sail area, stability and weight. That would give you a good figure. Numbers can be a very effi- cient bullshit filter. They don’t lie. And they can be compared. Almost every boat today is sold as being family friendly, well fitted for shorthanded sailing and perfor- mance oriented. Most of the time, at least two of these points are bullshit. SH: So what you say is basically that the professionals, the designers and builders should lead the way? AM: Yes. To me it looks as if most of the yards that are big today, like X-Yachts and J-Boats, started out with one guy having a vision of a boat he really wanted to build. And he did it to enjoy sailing it, more than anything, like the J/24 or the X-79. Then someone else liked it, and wanted to buy one. And then another guy wanted to have one too. So this quickly became a com- pany. Soon money came into play, there was a director and a board was hired, and thereby pressure from a different direction. Now customers started to demand something. And the company began to adapt to it. Not the other way around, as it
was when this whole thing started out. That’s OK – but just partly. You have to service your customers. But you are the professional. You’re the one who actually created something that nobody demanded, but still wanted when they saw it. You should be confident enough and honest enough to tell the customers: listen, you have to try this. Or no, this is not going to work, because of this and that. And if the customer doesn’t want it, he’s not your customer. There are lots of other boats. And lots of other customers. SH: How do you see the future for a company like yours? AM: Well, I see the industry a little bit as a river… let’s call it the mainstream. There are fish living there, some of them big. But in a separate little eddy, there are some smaller fish. That’s us. And we are a different kind of fish. We like it in this eddy, we can grow and develop there. We don’t really want to leave, the other fish out in the mainstream are much bigger than us. If we enter the mainstream too early, chances are they will eat us, even if we are more agile, even if we are smarter than them. As it is in boxing, pure weight always has an impact. Well, at one point we will probably enter the mainstream. We just have to make sure we are strong enough to survive out there. In the meantime, we grow, get stronger and smarter. We’re getting ready. That’s how I see the future. Andraz Mihelin was talking to Øyvind Bordal
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