New maxi trimaran Cap Gemini Schneider goes sailing
by Katrina Kelshall 7 Aug 2001 16:51 BST
Photo ©: Benoit Stichelbaut/DPPI
There was not much wind for the 'premiere sortir' of Cap Gemini Schneider but even so, the trimaran designed by Van Peteghem Lauriot Prévost for Olivier de Kersauson shows signs of being a prodigy.
“She was very responsive” says Didier Ragot who was aboard, “in just 3 knots of wind she reached 7 knots of speed”. Despite the diminutive figures, this is promising performance as compared to the Maxi Cats who have indirectly set the benchmark for racing multihulls .
The crew were very happy with the trim of the yacht on the water. Already it is evident that the Cap Gemini Schneider will be able to take a lot of load. The wind was too light to really gage the set of the sails last Thursday, more pressure might reveal the need for some fine tuning but the mast it true to its technology and is fervently stiff. The sole piece of rigging to deviate from the classical sloop design is a retractable baby stay, and according to Mr Ragot, this works to perfection.
Although the team are very happy with the interior layout, the cavernous main passageway might be dangerous for crew working below deck during rough seas. A suggestion has been made to add harnesses down below so that if the yacht nose-dives the crew are not flung across the whole length of the yacht.
The twin parallel wheels work sweetly in tandem with the rudder but there seems to be some friction in the steering cable which will have to be attended to.
Over the next couple of weeks Olivier de Kersauson will work on training up his crew and breaking in the yacht – marking optimum points on the dagger board and running rigging for best performance. In two weeks time they intend to sail in search of low pressure looking for the strong winds and waves that will exercise both yacht and crew.