Left: as well as designing very fast Stars and Finns – Juan K’s Fantastica Finn has dominated the class since 2015 – Juan is himself a passionate Star sailor. Seen nearest the camera at the 2019 Worlds with Lucas Altolaguirre, two years later in 2021 Juan K had his best season finishing fourth at the Europeans and 10th at the World Championships in Kiel. The Argentinian designer made his name with radical new ideas, while never ducking a chance to give the established order a little shake. But when the Volvo Open 70 rule came out Juan K demonstrated he could work just as well within a rule framework and quickly made the class his own. While his design rivals pursued powerful but traditional hull shapes Juan K went straight for a wind-driven oceanic powerboat, eschewing little design refinements in favour of power, power and more power. When Juan K’s brutal 2006 Volvo winner ABN 1 (above) finished last in a light in-port race before the start proper, to a man skipper Mike Sanderson’s rivals looked at each other with quiet confidence. Expressions changed quickly on first contact with breeze; metaphorically speaking that was the last time they saw their Dutch rival
proposed adding a genuine Open class where any type of boat could compete. That would allow in the current Maxis and other new large yachts that are already being built, or will be built soon. Boats that pri- marily chase records, competing in real time without rating. Think here about Comanche and Skorpios. I think it would be very interesting for fans and very good for this industry. I see it as an event for owners who are interested in being a part of The Ocean Race environment but sailing on their own types of bigger, faster yachts. SH: Going back to the Swan 80, do you think it could compete in The Ocean Race in its existing form? JK: It would have to be carefully reviewed and probably modified. The first Swan 80, My Song, is an inshore racing boat that can be transformed into a cruising yacht. For The Ocean Race I would make a lighter racing version, in particular modifying the foils with a view to oceanic navigation along the lines of the current Imocas. SH: Reading between the lines, I am pick- ing up an interest in a real record-breaker. JK: Ha! You know me well… It is more than an idea. We have a very interesting project for a flying monohull already under- way, designed for the around-the-world record. Construction will begin in May and it will go into the water in September 2024.
I cannot say too much, but it will be a boat totally set up for long distances with autonomous systems. Thinking about the Jules Verne Trophy, the challenge is that you cannot fly all the time, our concept is that this boat can fly 40 per cent of the route and the other 60 per cent sailing with- out flying, but very fast and in foil-assisted mode. The enormous challenge here is to power the systems, because unlike a Cup foiler you have to navigate for a month or more instead of three to four hours. SH: Perhaps just a few more details with- out compromising the project… JK: It is 90ft, and the rudders will also act as foils to share the lift. We have not yet 100 per cent defined the rudders and the different movement axes, because when the boat is not flying we need an efficient immersed steering foil. I’m not convinced by a lifting rudder because of complexity. The Ultim trimarans employ lifting rudders but that is mainly because they are not allowed automated trimming systems; and since they cannot use flaps they have to resort to other ways of adjusting the rudder, and raising it is one of them. SH: Are we talking about a canting keel? JK: No. The concept becomes more inter- esting because we are going to do it with- out a keel… I can’t talk more about this aspect because we are in the middle of
defining our solutions. Sorry! For the 40 per cent of flight time the boat doesn’t need a keel – as we see in the Cup foilers. But when it doesn’t fly it needs some kind of mechanical righting moment… which you’ll see later. Don’t ask me for more. SH:What about the current Ocean Race? JK: On the whole I believe the Imocas are getting more reliable but they are not there yet as we have unfortunately seen. Since 2017 their foils have evolved a lot, all the boats have broken foils and foil structures but they have been learning and now the boats are improving. For the remainder of The Ocean Race there will be more breaks and breakdowns, but I don’t think they will be catastrophic. In the Great South they will slow down… I hope. The key with these boats is to have a high average speed and avoid risks, and this is what the new scow-type designs are focused on. One way or another I think all five
Imocas will eventually get round, though for sure some with outside assistance! It must be taken into account that the crew factor is decisive in breakages, if you go full throttle you will break it easily. It is directly proportional to how the crew manages it. That’s why I don’t like the Vendée as a
designer, because the management of the yacht depends on a single person and sail- ing alone the skippers find themselves in
SEAHORSE 51
ALAMY
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