lot but it is forbidden by the Ultim rule because of concerns that such systems would generate a substantial increase in costs – which are already quite high! It was noted that the launch of BP IX last year was delayed by


several months. Ronan explains, ‘The reason was simple: instead of saying that we could change or add this or that new idea on the boat later when we return to the shipyard, we preferred to delay and have everything finished before we first launched.’ The plan paid off because Banque Populaire IX flew on her first voyage. The skipper also did not want to rush into the water before every-


thing was ready… ‘I have never flown a boat before, except a small Flying Phantom,’ explains Armel Le Cléac’h. ‘It is a new world for me. I also know well that I am very fortunate to find myself at the helm of such a boat and I did not see the point of taking risks by sailing before everything was working correctly…’ ‘We are the new “grand brother” of Macif (30m by 22.50m,


launched in 2015 and also drawn by VPLP),’ says Ronan. ‘The concept is quite similar: a wide boat, rather light but not extreme. But we are a grand brother because we’ve learnt a lot from the technology that evolved in the America’s Cup. ‘We have bigger foils than Macif which allowed us to fly at our


first sail. But I think Macif V2 will fly too this summer. The challenge is to make foils and appendages stiff enough to fly correctly – but development during the AC saw the engineers and the foil builders take a big step forward so now we know we can create the foils needed to support a trimaran weighing 14 tonnes.’ Compared with the longer and heavier (20-tonne) Spindrift 2,


ex-Banque Populaire V, Ronan said that the new BP IX sails faster in light winds and is much easier to handle… ‘after our bigger boat we now have a small bicycle!’ Xavier Guilbaud from VPLP gave us his opinion: ‘Macif would


certainly have been a little different had she launched three years later. However, Gabart always wanted a boat that would be lighter and less powerful than BP IX. ‘The weight difference between the two boats is significant,


between 1 and 1.5 tonnes. Lighter and less powerful, Macif is easier to manage by a singlehanded sailor. Her shorter length of 30m was decided before the Ultim class later set the maximum length at 32m [to accommodate Idec Sport at 31.5m, by the way], but even so I do not know if Gabart would have gone to 32m because his priority was always lightness.’ Do BP IX’s foils tell us about the V2 configuration of Macif? The


answer is yes. ‘Our knowledge evolves every day and we made another jump forward working with Artemis in the Cup. ‘The new V2 foil designs for Macif came six months after the


profiles for BP IX were fixed. They benefit from a new round of R&D. The next step will be the V2 foils for BP IX scheduled for 18 months’ time’, adds Xavier. The goal is always to fly earlier. Actually BP IX already reaches


21-22kt upwind sailing in Archimedean mode. As soon as you bear away slightly the speed jumps to 27kt and when you start flying you reach 35kt rather quickly! A nice way to cross the oceans. ‘On Idec Sport (another VPLP design) before the Jules Verne for


reasons of time and budget we just added some little “baby tips” to the end of the existing foils to add some lift. We also equipped the rudders with fixed foils – but not elevators. The boat now “lightens up” a little but it will not fly. ‘To find the best setting for the trim of these boats using the


elevators and foils will need a great deal of testing. The whole story in the next few years will be playing with the geometry of the foils so they are as stable as possible but causing the least drag. It is the same problem as the AC50: speed = instability. ‘How far can we go on oceanic sailboats? To begin with we have


to get comfortable using more V-shaped foils in spite of the greater drag. But after that… ‘BP IX still flies quite close to the water. It is the length of the


shaft that controls your altitude as well as the weight of the foils themselves. They are a big part of the weight of the boat: 400kg each. That’s heavy, but they are (very) expensive to build and very complicated to make. So we have to go carefully. ‘Defining the weight of your foils is something you do early in the design of such a boat. For the new Edmond de Rothschild Guillaume


Jean-Pierre Kelbert (green chute) starts the 2018 Transquadra in Lorient onboard one of his own JPK 1080 designs. This year’s race for solo and double-handed crews sets a new record with 88 entries starting from either Barcelona or Lorient before the fleets converge in Madeira for the start of the second leg to Martinique. Eligible only to amateur sailors aged 40 or more the Transquadra was an immediate success when launched a few years ago. The race prompted a new era of amateur shorthanded ocean racing and is now thriving further on the back of the continued growth


Verdier and the Gitana design team set a higher foil weight. So they cannot fly earlier than us because the boat is heavier but they fly a little higher which will doubtless let them escape the waves a little more. ‘The holy grail is to fly offshore. On a flat sea in the bay of Quiberon


it is easy! But if the boat hammers into a big wave and falls off the foils the speed collapses. In the future we can imagine a lighter Ultim with a length of perhaps just 20m able to lift out in 9kt of wind. The question is how will it work in the Southern Ocean; where to put the cursor for optimal efficiency between flying and Archimedean mode?’ There is also the matter of money. ‘We have to be cautious not


to give too much latitude for much larger budgets, otherwise the sponsors will fly also... to a different sport! Offshore racing is not the America’s Cup.’ We have some famous racing programmes in France, especially


in the Vendée Globe, but unlike some countries where the sponsor may hire a skipper French skippers must find the money themselves.


No one wants a crew (any more) Nine months before the start of the 40th anniversary edition, the Route du Rhum, the event invented by Michel Etevenon, is already setting records. The entry was initially limited to 100 participants but some categories are already sold out and waiting lists are length- ening. A new situation that has prompted the organiser OC Sport Pen Duick to open the game to more players, especially in two categories. So Class40 is going to grow from 40 to 50 and Multi- Rum from 10 to 20 – including some famous vintage vessels. ‘There will be a massive Class40 turnout – again we are the


biggest and most competitive fleet, as is the case in all the major ocean races where our Class40s are present,’ says Halvard Mabire, president and skipper in the Class40. ‘This huge fleet of Class40s is not just due to the affordability


of the boats (five new boats will be launched in 2018 and many used boats find a new owner each year), but also because of the combination of a high level of competition on the water and the wonderful camaraderie that prevails within our fleet. Our tagline “friendly class, fierce racing” suits us well. ‘Part of what makes Class40 so vibrant is the variety of


characters, nationalities and the possibility for a good amateur to compete successfully against well-known professionals.’ The stable class rules have maintained the balance between


making it interesting to build a new Class40, without the guarantee of outclassing the fleet, and the possibility of buying a good secondhand boat with which to aim for the podium, even victory. Phil Sharp, deserving winner of the 2017 Class40 championship on his third-hand Mach40 V2 Imerys, is a good example. Halvard is also promising some big news during May… ‘Then we


SEAHORSE 19


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FRANCOIS VAN MALLEGHEM/DPPI


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