The next generation of boat is part of a series of major announcements on 18 May which will take the Volvo Ocean Race into the next, exciting phase of its history. Do you feel a pressure or responsibility on your shoulders?\u00a0I feel pressure in that there is always huge risk in designing new boats. It\u2019s a big challenge to design a machine that is extraordinary to sail but safe at the same time. It\u2019s always a fine line, and at the end of the day, we always have pressure when we send someone to sea, racing around the world. But it\u2019s a feeling that I\u2019m used to. In the last Vend\u00e9e Globe, I had 12 boats and you want to see everyone come back, so yes, in that way, there is pressure, and you feel it.\u00a0The sailing world is desperate to know whether we\u2019re going to see a monohull or multihull design in the next race. What are you considering right now?For sure, there are benefits to both designs. In Europe we have a lot of experience with offshore multihulls, and they\u2019ve been proven to be durable. But there\u2019s always a risk of capsizing, and the boats are always on the edge of safety, structure and performance, and that\u2019s a big decision to make. But I must say, from a technical and design point of view, a multihull would be extremely interesting. We have the technology, but it\u2019s never really been done yet in the way that we might do it.Do you think that the Volvo Ocean Race has a monohull identity? In a recent fan poll, the popular vote was overwhelmingly for a monohull\u2026\u00a0I don\u2019t think so. I think actually that it doesn\u2019t make that much difference \u2013 one hull, two hulls or three hulls, it doesn\u2019t change the identity of the race. The object of the race is that a group of people race around the planet, fighting hard all the way. There are ups and downs \u2013 there are extreme periods and slow periods with no wind, and that\u2019s the same in either a monohull or multihull. Whether the boat is a monohull or multi doesn\u2019t change the identity of the Volvo Ocean Race for me, I think it\u2019s all about the people that race it.How about foils? Are you considering adding these to the next generation boat?It\u2019s a challenge because you\u2019d have to explore the possibility of a foil that is capable of lifting you off the water, and to be able to sail with it over a long distance and many days and nights. It would also require a boat which is much stronger and stiffer. We know it\u2019s doable, we know we have the technology, but it\u2019s never really been done yet. The key with foil assistance in the Volvo Ocean Race is that we know that the sailors in this race would never retract them, whatever happens. Where the single-handed guys might slow down, they won\u2019t \u2013 the Volvo Ocean Racers will never retract the foils. They\u2019re much more relentless.But it\u2019s an illusion to think that an offshore boat can foil all the time. If we do make foil assistance, it would need to be able to be safe, and it\u2019s important that the sailors can disengage the foil. You have to make a boat that\u2019s good enough that even if you break the foil, or in case of an impact, lose the foil, you can always get back home safe. When you have the foil on, you have to show that the foil doesn\u2019t harm you when going through bad weather. That\u2019s no different on either monohull or multihull.Persico Marine has been announced as the lead boatbuilder on the next generation of boats \u2013 have you worked with them before?Yes, I\u2019ve worked with Persico twice before. Once was with Team New Zealand, and Persico Marine built the sister boat of the AC72, so that\u2019s when I first met them. The second time was a boat that did the Vend\u00e9e Globe called \u2018No Way Back\u2019, which is the sister boat of the eventual winner, \u2018Banque Populaire\u2019. That boat is one of the most beautiful constructions I\u2019ve seen. I really appreciate the work that Persico do, and they\u2019ve built some beautiful machines, so I have no doubt about their capabilities.<\/p>\n
via Meet the man behind the next generation One Design| Volvo Ocean Race<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The next generation of boat is part of a series of major announcements on 18 May which will take the Volvo Ocean Race into the next, exciting phase of its history. Do you feel a pressure or responsibility on your … Continue reading