Fast self-righting test for Campagne de France
by Oliver Dewar 14 Jul 2011 18:28 BST
Campagne de France's self-righting test © Global Ocean Race
On Monday, nine and one-half months after the Franco-English entry in the double-handed, Class40 Global Ocean Race 2011-12 (GOR), Halvard Mabire and Miranda Merron, took delivery of their Finot-Conq-designed Pogo 40S² Campagne de France hull and deck, the team successfully completed the GOR’s mandatory 180 degree self-righting test.
At 12:15 on Monday, Campagne de France was launched for the first time and all ballast and plumbing systems were checked before the Class40 was towed into the DCNS facility amid tight security required due to the shipyard’s involvement with the construction of nuclear submarines. Joining the duo were GOR Race Directors, Josh Hall and Sylvie Viant, who ensured the correct procedure was followed for the self-righting test. Just three hours later, with assistance from French Navy personnel, the boat was inverted.
Once Campagne de France was inverted, the two co-skippers opted to attempt self-righting using water ballast only and remained static inside the boat, while the seven GOR teams to undertake the test so far have used their body weight and movement to assist bringing the boat upright. “We knew that on paper the boat would self-right,” explained Miranda Merron shortly after the test. “But it’s unlikely that in a real inversion situation, we would be in flat water,” she continued. “So, staying still and not moving about inside the boat and helping with our weight took the test inversion a little bit closer to reality.” With the waterballast-only technique, the yacht self-righted in 14 minutes and 40 seconds.
Read the complete update on the event website.