Retractable Y-shaped foils, adjustable in three dimensions

Inspired by the appendages of the America's Cup foiling monohulls, these Y-shaped foils have a wingspan of over 5 metres. They are designed to generate powerful lift, increase power and offer a wide range of adjustments to optimise flight at every point of sail and in all conditions. Beyond their impressive size, these foils feature many unique innovations.

Revolutionary U-shaped rudders

These are probably the most visually striking innovations on the new Maxi Edmond de Rothschild. To fly high above rough seas while maintaining control, the team wanted very long rudders that would remain in contact with the water. The challenge is that longer rudders tend to flex under load, severely affecting steering and the efficiency of their lifting surfaces. A new geometry was needed to give these appendages maximum stiffness, resist cavitation and ultimately improve control of the boat and make better use of its power. The result is a set of U-shaped rudders over 4 metres long, a metre longer than those on Gitana 17. Their shape, reminiscent of a tripod or an inverted π, is only the visible part of what makes them so distinctive.

A daggerboard optimised to stabilise the boat and limit cavitation

With its wide span, the daggerboard resembles an aircraft tail assembly, with two adjustable flaps: one on the vertical section and the other on the horizontal section, the distinctive “manta-ray wing”. On Gitana 18, the innovation is to position this wing behind the vertical part of the appendage, rather than directly beneath it, to minimise flow disturbance and cavitation.

Rig: adjustable spreaders to control mainsail power while sailing

Gitana 18’s mast is 1.50 metres taller than its predecessor’s. The boom is also shorter, creating a more slender sail plan. The major innovation is a set of spreaders that can be adjusted while sailing to bend the mast fore and aft. Actuated by hydraulic rams, these spreaders can pivot through 35 degrees to adjust the bend in the middle of the mast. This unprecedented system allows the sailor to control mainsail power: adding depth in light winds to take off sooner, or flattening the sail to reduce power at high speed or in strong winds. Adjusting the depth, and therefore the power, of the mainsail can also save a solo sailor time and energy by reducing the need for risky manoeuvres or headsail changes.

Central hull:
an integrated, structural coachroof

The naval architects and Gitana design team wanted an exceptionally stiff, structurally robust platform. This applies both to the floats, which must withstand heavy loads from the foils and rudders, and to the central hull, which is subject to torsion. The enclosed coachroof is integrated into the hull and contributes to its structural strength. Inside, the cockpit brings all sail-handling controls together, with ergonomics shaped by many hours of design and development. The coachroof also stands out for the number and size of its windows. This configuration meets the visibility requirements of the Ultim class rules and gives sailors the best possible view to keep a visual watch.

26.10.2016

AWAKENING THE SENSES SERIES, SMELL.

par Gitana

It is just eleven days until the start of the 8th edition of the Vendée Globe. In Port Olona, the public is out in force, the village and the pontoons are always full and the pressure mounts a little more each day for the twenty-nine solo sailors, who will set sail on 6 November 2016. This week, Sébastien Josse has left the Vendée to hook up with his Breton way of life, at home, not far from Lorient. The skipper of Edmond de Rothschild made the most of these few days off’ to finish packing his bags, take his mind off things with a few good surfing sessions and quietly prepare himself with family. Tomorrow, Thursday 27 October, the sailor will be in Paris for a series of media appointments before he heads back to Les Sables d’Olonne at the tail end of the week.

#4 SMELL

Today, we’re continuing our series with the fourth and penultimate chapter in our immersion into Sébastien Josse’s five senses with the focus on smell, which appears to be the least used of all of them according to the skipper of Gitana.

A SEA OF CONTRASTS

This is surely the least used of the senses, given how little odour there is at sea… “In reality, the very fact that there is little to smell means that the slightest little odour is accentuated,” the skipper admits. “As soon as you approach a coastline, you can smell it. If it rains, you can smell wet grass. Once, some 20 miles offshore of New York, we could smell the city. A fishing boat or a cargo ship is the same. You can’t actually see it but if the wind carries the odour, you know it’s there. On a round the world, another magical element of rounding Cape Horn is coming close to land again after more than a month and a half at sea and you rediscover these odours that really add to the power of that moment.”

ODOUR WITH EVERY PASSING HOUR!

“In fact, your own odour is something you’re the last to smell. At sea, I pay attention. I prefer to undress before manoeuvring so as to keep every possible item of clothing fit for purpose for as long as possible as there is a limited stock. When, I go up on deck, I put on my foulies, directly onto my skin even, and I get changed when it’s over. That’s the aim anyway, as I don’t necessarily always have the time for that!” Indeed, everything is accounted for aboard. The waste, limited as much as possible, is all stowed up forward in a watertight compartment. You can’t smell a thing. The smell of food is important too. “At sea, if it’s overly pronounced, that can become troublesome and even make you ill, whilst you wouldn’t even notice it on land. When I prepare the supplies, that’s something I think about because ultimately in our journey, everything has its role in the overall balance.”

RECONNECTING WITH THE FRAGRANCES

Being deprived of something for several weeks gives it a special flavour. At the finish of the Vendée Globe, when you’ve completed tens of thousands of kilometres, alone, you dig deep to finish it and you can’t put a price on rediscovering land. “When you make landfall in Les Sables d’Olonne, you smell the land, then the boats that come out to meet you and, then, little by little you rediscover all the familiar odours and you realise the extent to which aromas are tied in with our lives, our memories and our nearest and dearest.”

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