Double Down
by John Curnow, Sail-World.com AUS Editor 10 Aug 23:00 BST
Leon sails across the finish line to overall victory © Armel Vrac
Firstly, many thanks to all of the readers of Double Double. Next, still blown away by the incredible efforts of Charles-Etienne Devanneaux and Fred Courouble in the Transpac, aboard the modified Beneteau First 36, Rahan. Like, wow! Since then, Alexis Loison and Jean-Pierre Kelbert have been crowned the overall winner of the Fastnet aboard the JPK 1050, Léon. Wow, wow!
To say there is a lot going on in the short-handed space would be the classic understatement. Closer to home there was the Sydney to Gold Coast race, and then from September 22 to October 1, the Jeanneau Sun Fast 30 ODs take to the Solent for the 2025 Offshore Double Handed World Championship. Now there's a place where you need to know the local conditions, so it would help if you had some recent experience there, such as with the Admiral's Cup - cue Stacey Jackson and Lincoln Dews.
As it turns out, the team that prepare the Figaro Beneteau 3s, also prepare the Jeanneaus, so OD reigns supreme. 22 teams competed last year, and this year 28 teams for the mixed crew event are booked in for the Round Robin (utilising 20 boats). GBR won last time. Well done to Maggie Adamson and Cal Finlayson for that. This year, AUS is represented by two teams. Stacey Jackson is racing with James Whelan, and Liz Wardley has teamed up with Lincoln Dews.
Just a little bit of experience going on with that lot... (Hobart to Volvo to Figaro to Transat for starters.)
It is also great that the recent time on the Solent is split between the two crews. Now, Whelan has raced with Lee Condell from Performance Boating aboard the Sun Fast 3300, Toucan, and Dews has raced to Hobart with Condell on another 3300, Sun Fast Racing. Condell also made another 3300, Sunfish, available for Dews and Jackson to do Sydney to Southport a couple of years back, so there is a real nexus around both Jeanneau and Condell.
If you did not happen to see the semaphore there, what the busy signalman said was we're going to have a chat with Condell about the local, and international short-handed scene.
"It'll have sharpened them up for sure, as it's so different to what we race here in Australia. It's just a whole different dynamic and how you sail, because your angles, particularly downwind, can make a significant difference if you've got four knots of tide either with you or against you. A different mindset."
"I did a Round the Island race one year where we had to sail away from the line up to about 40 seconds to go, then spin the boat around and then you shot off at 11 knots across the ground," added Condell.
"Obviously the strict OD nature means it all comes down to crew work. Wardley and Dews have done a fair bit together out of Royal Queensland. The Sun Fast 30OD is a different to the 3300, in that is more powerful, with more sail area for its size and displacement. So changing gears and taking and shaking slabs in the main happens more often."
Equally, all short-handed is a test of soul and mind, but given the championship is all short course (no overnighters) to rotate through the crews, it is one big test on the body, too. One race a day with lots of corners. One bad drop and you'll wish you were eating snakes, not sliding down the leaderboard swiftly on them. Every inch is a mile when it is OD, every opportunity a chicken dinner...
"Very few of these teams will have spent any time on the Sun Fast 30, and they're going to have to learn the boats very quickly, to find the all-important fast modes, which is a challenge in itself, and the opportunities for water time prior to racing are pretty limited," said Condell.
I'm also pretty sure you won't get too much sharing of the 11 secret herbs and spices of the Sun Fast 30OD from those that have had time aboard previously. Also, doing well on the Solent one day does not give you a leave pass for the next. Stop. Rest. Go again...
Think global - Act local
So, the Syndey Southport race had quite the mix in the double handed fleet. Beneteau First 40, J/99, Sun Fast 3300 and Class 40. The 3300, Toucan, got up. Interestingly, a couple of weeks later, another 3300 (albeit this time it was fully crewed), Sunfish, grabbed overall under IRC and ORC in the Gold Coast to Mackay event. Nice one, team.
In Toucan, with owner Edward Curry-Hyde and co-Skipper Billy Sykes from North Sails, you had a wonderful display of finesse. "You know, no one was dominant. Anybody, anybody could have won. Curry-Hyde bought the most recent 33 into the country. He grew up racing offshore in South Africa. He is doing the 2025 Hobart double handed with Lincoln Dews. What is great for them is that they won their division, also finished fourth overall, and were one of just two sub-40-footers in the top ten.
"They elected to stay inside the rhumbline, did get a favourable starboard tack early in the new northerly, and got through the confused sea state really well. It was flatter than outside, and also they played the ever-changing shifts and strengths superbly, increasing their lead as time went on. Those outside had taken it all much harder, and not have been as fresh when they had to come back in across tide and in a stronger blow."
Remember all of that, especially when it was close reaching, with a lot of water on the deck and small boats do love being wet...
"What is interesting is that the Sun Fast 3300 would have revelled in those conditions, more so than some of the other craft, so they would have done well, either way. When Lincoln and I did the Hobart, we never buried the bow on the 3300, which inspires confidence. We were absolutely amazed at what you can get away with down the waves, even in 33-knot gusts with a full sail plan aloft. It's unbelievable," added Condell.
The scow bow, that concave profile ahead of the keel, and the sheer volume up for'ard speak utter volumes here. The pundits at the bar will ponder that they were the first boat home in the top ten that had gone inside, and would they have finished on the overall podium if they had gone outside? Power reaching, twin rudders, chines all come into play, but in order to finish first, first you have to finish.
Toucan did spend a lot of time at around 65 degrees AWA with J0, Genoa staysail and one slab in the main. Bear away 10 or 15 in the puffs, and do 10 to 14 knots for hours. Nice. One thing remains however, they secured a blinder! Lock it in. Also remember, this is a 33-footer. Quite the deal, I would say.
"When you're racing shorthanded, there's the game of strategy and then there's crew preservation, and then there's sail selection and sail changes," offered Condell.
Paperwork
Taking in all of that, Condell also pointed out how the JPK 1050, Léon, had just the one headsail on its certificate for the Fastnet. "The all-purpose, reefable (horizontally luff to leech) headsail makes a lot of sense, and I've gone down the path on my own boats for a few years now. Taking a new sail onto the bow, and trying to get the old one off is slow, tiring, and you end up with even more water down below. Being on hanks makes it so easy, and there is no discernible drop in pointing or performance, but a terrific gain in versatility."
"Let's face it, Mr JPK knows what he's doing! Also, if you're not having to open the hanks, you just removed the problem, and you're not going to rip the bottom of the track out, either...
"The Fastnet was not overly brutal for the slower craft, and as usual, the tidal gates played their role. Of the top boats in the shorthanded division, apart from being all French and faster, they managed to get through the first tidal gate and get a break, which ended being absolutely critical. In the top five boats they were all pros and a lot are ex-Figaro, so you could say they race at a different level."
Also, there were some new boats at the top of the board, as well, with Léon being a standout. Apart from Alexis Loison and Jean-Pierre Kelbert possessing immense talent, what can we see from things to come? Certainly, there has been a shift in IRC for smaller boats, which is leading to lighter more powerful that are treated more favourably.
The Hobart is technically a long windward-leeward, and often you point straight downhill from the Rock to Cherbourg, and obviously a pole will take you deeper. Cue the new boats. Lighter, and more powerful, and equipped with A-Bags. Take that apparent forward, right? JPK 1050, Pogo RC, Lann Ael 3 are maybe 200 to 400 kilos lighter, and whereas a 3300 might have 100m2 aloft, these have A-Bags at nigh on 130m2. Take it on, huh. Giddy up!
Small boats are getting very popular, and they are also getting really fast. Deeper keels (2.2m) and even bulbs (JPK and Pogo) coming back into favour here. Lower centre of effort, more righting moment, and more power, and of course, absolutely no shortage of skill to harness it.
Lost in translation?
Back in the 80s, some cars that were marvellous in Europe just didn't inspire once they made the trip over the Equator. Nowhere was this more prevalent than in the hot hatches. Today, and in terms of boats, JPKs feature in Europe and the UK, whereas here it is Jeanneau Sun Fast and J/99. Different conditions for sure, and 11-knot king tides in spring, and cold Atlantic water are noticeable, but LnV and busters exist everywhere! So, what's the deal?
Well, just like the cars, there is an element of mystery. Condell offers, "One thing's for sure. No matter what boat you're sailing, It's the skill of the crew that makes the difference. As the interest in smaller craft continues to rise as costs and effort to organise increase dramatically, we are going to get even more interesting craft arrive into the space."
Sun Fast 3200, 3600 and 3300 have been very good, and the 30OD is more of a regatta boat than anything else. Does this mean there will be a new Jeanneau soon? "They tend to keep these things close to their chest, but I'd hope so. It'll be interesting. 80 double handed entries in the Fastnet says a lot."
It sure does... No need for translation. It is the same in every language.
Please enjoy your yachting, stay safe, and thanks for tuning into Sail-World.com
John Curnow
Sail-World.com AUS Editor