While we here in the US muddle around the rules and regulations of sailing, overseas, as in France especially, they are getting on with the business of actual sailing. For those that haven’t been following closely, let me introduce Gitana 18, the first fully flying trimaran, a 32-meter (okay 105-feet for us still that haven’t converted to the metric system yet) beast that will most definitely break all sailing speed records and hopefully awaken a nation, this nation, that has been asleep at the switch for far too long.
Designed by the Gitana/Verdier team this newest generation of sailboats will likely smash any existing sailing records out of existence including the fastest around-the-world non-stop record which is currently set at 40 days, 10 hours, 45 minutes, and 50 seconds set by the legendary Tomas Coville on his Sodebo Ultim 3.
Using some America’s Cup technology, including winglets on the rudders and the next generation foils, it’s clear that there is little need for the boat to stay in the water no matter the conditions, if there is wind of course. All sailboats need wind to get on a head of steam.
The foils on Gitana 18 can reach out further than most foils which gives the boat more righting moment which allows that boat to carry more power; power equals speed. Each foil can be operated independently to provide lift and some stability.
There is also a central T-foil that provides lift, but here we get to the tricky bit. Once you are up in the air, what goes up, must come down, but not when you want it to. We all know that feeling on a hot summer night with a girl we just met, and all things in moderation.
Let’s talk about winglets on the rudder. They serve many purposes. Once a boat gets up on its foils and is flying, it gets a little bit tipsy like your old uncle at a Christmas party. You need something in the water and something to steady the whole situation once the boat is flying. The winglets serve two purposes. They initially provide lift because they are wings after all, but it’s important to keep the rudder in the water so at some point they get the money that they deserve by providing stability and direction. The clever thing about these foils is that they can be canted to provide more stability in flight. Yes those are really the words that they use these days when talking about a sailboat. – Brian Hancock.
