SYDNEY HOBART: THE MOVIES 1

Comanche did not won, but I would say they had a bit of bad luck: What a boat!!!
The next movie, the start taken from a fast boat, a Lyons 60, a 10 year's old racer that was refitted to this race: and the last but not least, Wild Rose, the winner on compensated time, a 29 year's old Farr 43, doing an acrobatic figure: Yes, wild guys on wild rose: lots of wind, full main and a big spi??? Too wild LOL.

MAXI 1200

As you can see, it looks well, the new Maxi. For the ones who don't know Maxi Yacht was a Swedish company that made expensive performance cruisers, not really cruiser racers, but fast cruising boats with luxurious interiors, having Pelle Petterson as a designer .

The brand was bought by Najad and when Najad went down and was bought by other companies, Maxi yachts was left to die. When everybody thought that Maxi yacht was finished  an improbable savior appeared, the Polish Delphia.

Delphia is a relatively new company that started with a technological help of the Italian Comar (the ones that make the Comet) and soon it was making reliable quality sailboats even if the designs are a bit under average regarding other mass production builders (they insisted in having their boats designed by Polish NAs).

They had the good sense to ask for help to old Pelle Petterson to finish the model that Maxi was developing when it went down, a more sportive model and Pelle accepted the challenge of working with the "kids" from Delphia and it seems they got along together notwithstanding the age difference. I am very curious about the result that will be presented at the Dusseldorf boat show.

It is not only a difference of age but a difference of methods in designing a boat, being Pelle from the old school, designing by hand and applying intuition and the knowledge of a life designing fast sailboats, complemented with the work of the new Polish NAs that design with cad and use modern VPP and CFD to improve the design.

As I said the hull looks very nice, relatively narrow, with 3.75m for 11.56m of hull length, a considerable draft with a torpedo keel (2.32m) a light weight (6900kg), specially considering that 36% of it is ballast, mostly on that torpedo. Being a narrow boat allows it to have less sail area than a more beamier one and it carries upwind only 84m2 sail area.

In what regards design, a very interesting boat with a hull with chines, that will allow a considerably heeling angle before hitting the water and for what we can see of the building, a top boat that uses carbon to reinforce more stressed areas and a structural grid to distribute effort by the hull . The hull  is a cored one (with PVC as core) and laminated with vinylester resins, being the keel area  monolithic with reinforced lamination using carbon fibers.

The interior layout seems very good and I am very curious regarding the quality of the interior design, that contrary to other Maxi is a more modern one. The designs don't look great but they are just hand made designs and what matters is the real thing.

The rigging is adapted to solo sailing and makes a lot of sense regarding cruising but I don't understand two things: The fixed cockpit table and the absence of traveler. That is a big disadvantage in what regards club racing and even in what regards cruising, I like to have the sail properly trimmed with the help of a big traveler and I like to take the cockpit table away and have all the cockpit space available.

 Probably a small traveler can be mounted but only over the cockpit seats and that will make awkward the passage between the wheel and the forward winches. I really don't like the boat design in what regards that and I think it will not be easy to find an alternate solution, giving the cockpit design. Great for fast unconcerned cruising but not a polyvalent boat, able to cruise and race and that is just a shame since it seems a very fast hull.

 Maybe the boat is just meant to offer only that since I don't see also an adjustable backstay and it seems the boat is offered standard with a bowthruster, that seems dispensable to me in a boat with those dimensions and weight. Off course, another matter I am very curious about is the price. Will this boat have Maxi prices, that were really maxi or will be at mid way between Maxi and Delphia prices? Much of the success of this boat depends on that.

WILD OATS WON THE SYDNEY HOBART

For the 8th time and that is just incredible on these days were boat design evolves so quickly. That can only be explained by the very particular conditions that we find on this race that, contrary to most sea and wind conditions, favors narrow hulls and as we know that recent design hull developments favor beamier hulls. Also the use of the recent foil technology to increase dynamically righting moment (DSS) allowed just the bit extra performance to this already old hull to continue to be the fastest on this race on these conditions,

Comanche lost the race when he meat confused seas and light winds were the difference in speed for Wild Oats can be huge. Comanche, had found on the final part of the race stronger downwind winds and calm seas and started an impressive recovery but not in time to catch Wild Oats.

Regarding the rest of the fleet we assisted to several boats giving up with problems, among them some of the favorites, Giacomo with a broken mast, Perpetual Loyal making water after having hit something and a favorite of mine, Last Tango, the Salona 44 with bad luck having to head for port with a crew member with problems on his back and damaging the sails while trying to get back to the race. Other boats are making a great race too and I confess that besides the ones that win on real time I like to have a look at the smaller boats doing a great race and that's the case with Chutzpah, a Caprice 40 (Rachel&Pugh), Patrice, a Ker 46 (Ker), Simply Fun, a Chinese made HH42 (Judel&Vrolijk), Midnight Rumbler, a Ker 40 (Ker), Cadiparra 8 an older Jones 42 (Jones), After Midnight, a modified Farr 40 and the first "cheap" boat, Ariel, a First 40, all of them surrounded by much bigger boats.

WILD OATS LEADS THE SYDNEY HOBART

That was before, now Wild Oats leads with a comfortable 40nm lead, the biggest difference between the two boats and confirms my suspects that on Comanche they should have kept a low profile in what regards all those statements about their boat being the fastest sailing monohull on the planet. I don't think Comanche will be able to catch Wild Oats that sails for another of the many consecutive victories on this race. What happened? Easy, light wind and bad seas, the worst conditions for Comanche type of boat, put him sailing at about half the speed of Wild Oats. The weak wind was enough to allow the  low drag hull of Wild Oats to slice through the confused seas while not enough to allow enough power for Comanche to force the passage trough it.
http://www.rolexsydneyhobart.com/tracker/

A great race as usual, cheers to the Australians and New Zealanders whose sailing passion has only a parallel with the French. I wish more countries will follow them on the love of sailing  that is also ours.

Some great movies about the Sydney Hobart race:

SYDNEY HOBART : COMANCHE STILL LEADS BUT LITTLE BY LITTLE...

Wild Oats is coming closer and closer, on the upwind strong conditions...and if the conditions will prevail I bet we will see another leader, specially if the winds continue to fall of intensity. Great racing and great fight, so great that I have not have even looked conveniently to the smaller boat's race. Some more great movies, one taken already at open sea and two different ones from the start.

 Comanche is really impressive on a beam reach but I had noticed two things: It has to carry a lot more sail than Wild Oats, it takes much more time taking the sails out (rolling) and he makes a much bigger wake.... But what power and stability!!! It was to be expected the boat to be a rocket downwind and on a beam reach but I am amazed at how little it loses to Wild Oakes upwind on nasty conditions and on pointing ability. Truly outstanding: Verdier and VPLP have pulled out a boat that would be pretty much unbeatable on most conditions. I guess the most unfavorable will be here, with strong upwind winds and nasty seas and on the med with weak and variable winds.
http://www.rolexsydneyhobart.com/tracker/

SYDNEY HOBART 2013, COMANCHE LEADS

What a smocking start!!! With plenty wind and on a beam reach there is no faster boat than Comanche, that's for sure...but now they have plenty upwind ahead and some heavy seas...and Wild Oats is not far away. It is going to be very interesting :-)

A pity the stone age tracker :-(

http://www.rolexsydneyhobart.com/tracker/

BARCELONA WORLD RACE

It starts at 13.00, 31 December, a good way to start the year :-) a non stop circumnavigation race for duos on IMOCA racers (Open 60's). Unfortunately not many teams, only 8 and not all top teams. The good news is that Spaniards are really on the short crew/solo racing. Half of the teams are Spanish and that is a first: a duo circumnavigation race that has not a majority of French teams!!! Not yet favorites, but as Alex Pella showed on the Route du Rhum, it is a question of time.

The favorites are the usual, even if many top sailors are not racing this one. They are two: Stam/Le Cam and Alex/Ribes with an outsider on his first big circumnavigation race, Riechers, here teaming with Audigane. No favorites among the Spanish? I don't believe so...well, if Pella was on Neutragena maybe an outsider but it is Altadill that is the skipper, teaming with Muñoz. Great sailor but more of a team player than a solo/duo sailor, but maybe he proves me wrong.

VENDÉE GLOBE 2016, THE TEASER

Almost two years for the start of the big one, the more extreme of all sailing races, and there are already 4 pré entries:-) and as you can see, also a nice teaser. There will be new boats and the main decision in what regards design seems to be about to decide if foils are to be used. They can be used but will they be an advantage? will they not be two fragile and dificult or impossible to replace if broken? I guess that at least some will try them, there is time...and it will be fun, not to mention instructive, DSS and all. While we wait let's remember the best moments of the last edition: 

EUROPEAN YACHT OF THE YEAR: THE TEST MOVIES

and don't miss these two, from Yacht.de:
 http://www.yacht.de/yacht_tv/test_technik/endspurt-ii-europas-yacht-des-jahres/a94741.html
http://www.yacht.de/yacht_tv/test_technik/endspurt-europas-yachten-des-jahres-i/a94637.html

 So many beautiful sailboats gliding effortlessly in light wind, or bashing their way through difficult conditions, so many beautiful interiors that it is difficult not to be agreeably surprised with the overall quality. All types of boats seem to sail each year a little better than the last year and the interiors that were some years ago designed on the "house" are today designed by some of the best design cabinets.  More and more yachts are not designed by a single NA but by a team that he leads and includes many different specialists, from structural engineers, specialists in composites, specialists in VPP and CFD analysis rig and rigging specialists  and designers, and the added quality that team work brought to the boats looks and functionality is evident.

This year the testing took place in  Atlantic France (la Rochelle) and in Italy, in Santa Margherita. On most boats they had the chance to sail them in very light and medium wind, some even in strong wind.

POGO 36 / POGO 10.50

Let's compare dimensions and try to understand how different will the new boat be versus the old one. First dimensions for the 10.50, all the measures in m, t, m2.

LOA: 10.50/10.86. Beam: 3.90/4.00. Weight: 3.6/3.6. Draft : 2.80-1.05/2.93-1.10. SA u: 71/74

So what does this tell us? It tells that it is a more powerful and faster boat: Slightly bigger, more beam and more draft probably for an identical ballast, or slightly bigger. Also the chines will increase boat stiffness and will contribute to the bigger power. That extra power has a reflex on the sail area the boat can carry, about more 5%.

Regarding hull design that's the biggest difference and a remarkable one since the boat looks different viewed from behind and at the bow. Very curious the bow and the forward sections, designed to create lift and to drive the spray away.

It is amazing the difference that some few years can make on cutting edge boat design. I have no doubt this boat will be a rocket and I am very curious regarding the first test sails. I bet that before the first boat hits the water they will have at least 10 sold LOL.

SALONA 44, CRUISING WORLD BOAT OF THE YEAR

The ones that follow the blog knows that I don't give much importance to the Cruising Boat magazine boat of the year: the categories are too many, the boats are old news in what regards the European Market the number of testers are relatively small, not all professional and did not test a huge variety of boats each here because the boats available on the American market are not many.
So why I am talking about one of those boats that are old news elected has boat of the year? First of all because I like it:-) but mainly because what they said about the boat: it seemed that it had  strongly impressed more than one and instead of one of those bland test descriptions were you understand that the boat choose could be easily another one, this one is a strong one:

"In a building breeze ideal for sea trials, the Salona 44 performed sweetly on all points of sail

In the 22 years we’ve conducted our Boat of the Year contest, we’ve tested literally hundreds of boats, sailed thousands of miles and splashed across Chesapeake Bay in just about every condition imaginable. But we’ve never had a test drive as unusual as the one conducted for the 2015 competition on the Salona 44. When the judges boarded the boat, the water was glassy, the breeze nonexistent. But a front was coming; the western sky was dark and menacing, and closing in fast. A few minutes later, a solid 25 knots of wind, with higher gusts, lashed the bay: Breeze-wise, we’d gone from zero to 30 in record time.

The Salona 44, with its tall triple-spreader rig and feathery twin wheels, handled it with aplomb. Upwind and down, the boat was stiff and fast, ultimately topping off in double-digit boat speeds that etched a smile on the faces of everyone aboard. 

On a power reach heading back to Annapolis, closing in quickly on the U.S. Naval Academy, one of the company reps asked, “Should I run the sheets?” He was ready to set the spinnaker, and no one doubted the boat could handle it. “Um, no thanks, mate,” we replied. We’d already found what we came looking for. A few days later, at the conclusion of our sea trials, the judges named the Salona 44 the year’s best Cruiser/Racer. Coincidence? Perhaps not....

But the Salona is built with a steel grid, so a lot of that weight is down low. It allows for a stiff structure with a light skin around it.. it’s vacuum infused. Moving around the boat was very nice; it had a solid motion. And it sailed beautifully.”

The judges were also impressed by the boat’s innovative transom — which swings up and out to reveal an incorporated boarding passerelle — the abundant handholds and the comfortable accommodations. Taken together, the sum of these many parts made the Salona 44 a winning design."
 http://www.cruisingworld.com/2015-cruiser-racer-nominees?src=SOC&dom=fb

One Australian Salona 44 has done several Sydney Hobart races with good results, particularly on the last one that was a particularly nasty edition.

ITALIA 15.98 (movie)

What a beautiful boat!!! It looks better than on the drawings and it looked very well on the drawings. This is one of the boats that makes me sorry for not being rich, at least rich enough for having one LOL. The boat was tested by Toby Hodges for Yachtingworld magazine on a good breeze and I don't resist to post some of his comments: "This is a yacht you want to take for a drive on all conditions...she fells fast and yet purposeful, a really sailing boat...This is a sexy design that sails as beautifully as she looks...the 15.98 is designed to encourage yachtsmen to pass more time at the wheel when sailing offshore...this yacht is... about how it makes you feel"

2014 SYDNEY HOBART AND COMANCHE

Last year was like this:


2013 Rolex Sydney Hobart Race Final Wrap Video from On The Water Anarchy on Vimeo.

This year will be better :-), the 70th anniversary of the race will have the biggest number of entries over a decade and with more candidates to the victory in real time: Not less than five maxi yachts and among them Comanche, the new American maxi designed by Verdier and VPLP, the main contender on the next race. The boat announced as the fastest sailboat in the world has just bit the dust on its first race, the "Solas Big Boat Challenge being beaten precisely by the chronic winner of Sydney Hobart race, Wild Oats XI.

When I posted about Comanche, sometime ago, I said that I doubted the boat being the fastest sailing boat in all conditions and expressed many doubts about light wind sailing and upwind sailing with considerable sized waves, even with strong winds. Well, regarding light wind conditions Wild Oats showed who is the Boss and regarding the Sydney Hobart much will depend on the conditions they will encounter, but with the right conditions of light winds and muscled upwind sailing I will bet on Wild Oats. The boats are as different as they can be, being Comanche maximized for downwind racing in muscular conditions and Wild Oats maximized for upwind sailing and sailing in light winds. It will be interesting, as it is interesting this movie showing the two hulls. It's fantastic how two different sail concepts can have such a close sailing performance :-)

REVOLUTION 29

David Raison revolutionized  the sailboat  bow concept with the famous victory on the 2011 Mini Transat showing to all that his strange boat with an odd looking "bathtub" bow was faster than the other mini racers. The concept was rapidly forbidden on the other racing open classes (40class and Open 60) as a way of not making the existing fleet obsolete.

 David Raison, a sail racer and a NA, surprised everybody with an association with an aluminium boat builder, proposing the concept on a small 22ft aluminium cruising boat with a lifting keel. The boat denominated Revolution 22 is interesting but a bit strange and not only on the bow concept (that allows a huge interior space), but on the use of aluminium for such a small boat. Hard to understand for what type of cruising that boat is pointing at and perhaps that's the reason it has not been a success.

They did not give up and will be presenting on the Paris boat show another boat with the same concept, a 29ft boat. I would say that one makes a lot more sense: with that bow the boat will not only have a great interior for two living aboard as it will have a very interesting performance as a coastal cruiser with some potential offshore. The bigger length allows a proportionally less higher freeboard and makes the boat less strange and more elegant. This one seems a lot more interesting than the previous one, not only revolutionary but kind of making sense in what regards a 29ft cruising boat with good sailing performance and a maximized interior space. It has also a much nicer looking interior:  While the 22 has a Spartan interior, this one looks nice and cozy.

On the first movie the previous model, on the second one we can see a match between that bow concept and a traditional one trough the performance of  two mini racers, side by side.

MORE ABOUT THE POGO 36

Well, not much, only images but as they say "images are worth more than a thousand words" and through them we can see a very modern sailboat, kind of a cruiser on a 36ft solo open racer hull, a bit as it was already with the 10.50, but the hull is more modern now with chines, a huge form stability and designed to sail with little heel.

The boat looks even better than on the model I had posted the photo and we have now a look at the interior, that seems to have doors :-) What we can see a modern interior not very different from the one of the 10.50 but with a lot more light, coming from those frontal "windows", that will allow a good forward view, and from bigger port hulls.

The saloon is probably smaller since the boat has now 3 cabins and the head is now between the front cabin and the saloon. An interesting detail allows the galley to be bigger, with the use of a bench aft the saloon table.

It seems a worse distribution than on the previous model since a storage space will be needed anyway. Regarding that, the front cabin can be transformed on a storage space. Better to fly a spinnaker but worse in what regards cruising. The design is from Finot/Conq that just used the same type of frontal "windows" used first by Valer on the JPK 10.80

GUNBOAT G4 FOR 2015

When I saw the first designs of the G4 I thought that it looked great but that it was just one of those dream boats that are never built. I was wrong. The first one is already being built and will be delivered on the Caribbean next year. What a boat!!!!

I don't think this boat was possible if the America's cup was not raced on those extreme flying cats. Many thought that a performance cruising boat would never be built according with those principles. Well, they were wrong too :-).

The honors of producing the first flying cruising boat belongs to Gunboat, the American cat brand that this time is not using Morrelli& Melvin as designers but the Dutch DNA design team. The first boat is also being built in Holland by Holland composites, all in carbon.

The boat will weight only 2400kg, a max load of only 600kg, and 12.14m of length for 6.78m of beam. As auxiliary engine it will have a 20hp center line rectratable outboard engine and will only carry 75L of water. Not a great autonomy with that water. It surely will have a maker otherwise it will be strictly a daysailer....and to fly will have foils, on the daggerboards and on the rudder. They say about the boat:

A NEW MULTIPURPOSE COASTAL CRUISER-RACER 

1ST TO FINISH: Stomp on maxis, superyachts, and any grand prix race-boat in sight. The GUNBOAT G4 offers Formula 40 speeds in an easy to handle and forgiving weekender. Unless your fleet includes an AC72, an ORMA 60 or a MOD70, your competition will only see your transoms, which is why your G4 comes clearly marked.

LARGE COMFORTABLE COCKPIT & MAIN SALON: Upon return, you will have time to shower, nap, and plan the post-race gathering. Your friends will be drawn to the spacious and comfortable cockpit. The salon offers comfortable seating with ample headroom when seated. The galley island, complete with two burner stove top, 100 litre fridge drawer, and sink, is centrally located to entertain. The slide-out coffee tables atop the galley are provided to display your new trophies.

CRUISE HOME IN COMFORT & SPEED: The GUNBOAT G4 features two queen berths located outboard in the main salon. With panoramic top-deck views, abundant ventilation, and a generous sense of space, these may be the best berths shy of the GUNBOAT 90. With guests aboard, deploy the dual privacy curtains. Kids will love the single berths in their own private hulls. Everyone will appreciate the enclosed head with standing headroom. At GUNBOAT G4 speeds, covering longer distances in daylight is easy.

DAY-SAILING WITH FRIENDS: The GUNBOAT G4 is simple and easy to sail. At only 2.4 tons, the G4 has light loads. Sails can be hoisted by hand with no need for complex powered equipment. Friends will find their perfect space whether on the helm, on the spacious cockpit seats, or in the protected salon with unobstructed views. Ample storage space in the bows allows for easy access to all your toys. With room for kite boarding, surfing, snorkeling, and SUP gear, you'll be able to keep everyone onboard entertained.

Well, no doubt, a cruiser-racer and one that looks like a lot of fun...will not cone cheap though.

I cannot wait for the first test sails. Certainly one of the more interesting boats to touch the water next year.

Gunboat G4 design preview from Holland Composites BV on Vimeo.

OLD WAYS TO BUILD A BOAT

Yes, this one is about Nostalgia. I saw on the net an old movie about boat building in England 70 years ago, a movie that contrary to the usual had a good image. I found it interesting and it made me remember the times where that type of boat building was one of the main activities on the fishing town of Peniche (Portugal), the port near my house. Here on the 70's the traditional wood boat building was still a florescent business and almost all fishing boats were made locally.
On the 80's I bought my first sailboat, an old and traditional Canoa do Tejo and with the help of naval carpenters I modified it for coastal cruising, closing the boat with a full deck and increasing the size of the keel with a steel structure with 200kg of lead inside. It worked, the stability was increased and I sailed the west coast of Portugal with it. Great memories. I hope you enjoy the movie and if not, forgive this sentimental journey :-)

WOW!!! THE NEW POGO 36

One of the more waited sailboats, the substitute of the "old" Pogo 10.50: What a look ;-). Some posts back I was just saying that I loved the look of The JPK 1080 with those "windows" that allow a forward view and now the new Pogo has them!!!. This would mean by any chance that the boat is also a Jacques Valer design? The boat will be presented at the Paris boat show and they are keep secret about it. Very curious about it since it appears that the interior is also innovative.

SIRIUS 40DS

Finally and after 5 years of  development, the new Sirius 40DS on the water. Unfortunately it does not look as nice as on the above design. A bit fat for my taste...but to have that interior, one that makes you feel you are on a 44ft boat, some elegance has to be lost. The boat was tested by Yacht. de and you can see it sailing and the interior on their movie:

http://www.yacht.de/yacht_tv/test_technik/sirius-40-ds-exklusives-flaggschiff/a94385.html

So what is this boat worth as a sailing boat? I would say that it is a lot better than what it looks. The Sirius 40 has a weight similar to an Halberg Rassy 412 (11.6T to 11.1T) it has just about the same beam(4.0 8m to 4.10m) and is just a bit smaller (11.99m to 12.61) it has standard more draft (2.10m to 1.99m) a similar keel and a similar D/B ratio (0.37 to 0.36). 

The bigger draft will make the ratio more efficient on the Sirius. Two boats with a similar overall stability and that should be reflected on the sail areas that are not very different (88.5m2 to 90m2). The hull and rig were designed by Marc-Oliver v. Ahlen and that means it is a fast and well designed one.

The Sirius we see on the test comes with an interesting sail set up, not really a cutter  but with three different sails on furlers, a jib, a big Genoa and a removable light furler with a geenaker. The advantage of the system is that it will not need to have additional back stays since both stays go to the top of the mast and it can have a bigger jib. The disadvantage would be the need to furl the big Genoa for taking, but I would say that it would be a small inconvenience regarding the advantages. The boat can have a lot of different keels including a modern swing keel.

It seems to me a much better boat than the old 38 and certainly a much faster one, it will give a great live-aboard boat and also a boat that could be sailed pretty much anywhere. If I would live permanently on a boat I would be looking for something like that....well, less fatter and faster, but certainly a true deck saloon boat to be able to enjoy sailing on the cold weather and to be anchored in nice places, being inside, warm and with a great view. 

Unfortunately the Sirius 40 (made in Germany) is  a very expensive yacht and with all that money I don't know if I could not have a better solution...a faster and more elegant boat. I guess I would prefer the "old" Luffe 43DS that probably would not be very far away in price...and that one is not only way faster but much more elegant...but that is just me, I really find the interior of the Sirius 40 gorgeous and even nicer than the one on the Luffe 43 and probably with more space, almost a condo...and that is a good thing, not a bad one :- )

RM 1070, THE REAL THING

I am posting too much about this boat...that means that I am truly impressed and that's funny since this boat is only an improvement of the previous versions, but when you keep improving a very good boat, and that was made twice now, you reach almost perfection and that is what this boat looks to me: Perfect, more now that I could have a good look at the hull, on the movie and at the interior, on the photos. Can't wait to see the real thing at  Dusseldorf.

My wife, that loves the RM interiors, will want this one  and even if it is a slower boat than our Comet 41s, the boat is so cute that I will be tempted too (with a swing keel). Not very rational since the Comet is bigger, faster, has a bigger loading charge and has a bigger and better quality interior, but even so, the boat is so gorgeous that it is easy to fall in love and that means .... irrationality ;-)

RM 10.70 au salon nautique de Paris from Festival du Film Lycéen on Vimeo.