Leading design office reveals how a top Volvo 70 can become a 'Ratings Bandit'
by Richard Gladwell 23 Dec 12:31 NZDT
Pyewacket 70 - 2023 Les Voiles de St Barth Richard Mille - Leeward Islands, April 17, 2023 © Sharon Green / ultimatesailing.com
Since yachts first raced, getting a favorable rating for your race-boat has been an indulgence, verging on obsession, for many owners, designers, and crew.
Using the Volvo Open 70 as an example, we talked with Philippe Oulhen of the Juan-K Design office.
The VO 70 was used for three Volvo Round the World Races from 2005 to 2012. Juan Kouyoumdjian designed the three winners in a row, ABN Amro 1, skippered by Mike Sanderson, won the 2005-2006 edition, then Ericsson 4 in 2007-2008 with Torben Grael, and Groupama IV skippered by Franck Camas for the 2011-2012 last edition.
Since then, VO70 have won all the major ocean races in the world and set race records. Five are still competing at the top level.
A big part of that dominance is the fact that the same design team at Juan K stayed with the three iterations of this design.
"When I joined the company 10 years ago, I looked at the server, and it was interesting to see that the same team and same crew, the big names we know today are still at the helm of the best VO 70 projects," says Philippe Oulhen of Juan-K Design.
"Juan started from a particularly good concept, introducing the first wider bow, in 2005 with the ABN Amro campaign and then kept it evolving with the same people involved in it. That is the key."
"Juan with his design team, in direct contact with the sailors and suppliers kept looking at any potential improvements. After each race there were pages of notes and debrief about improving the boat for the next race, and that is how the design kept evolving from the 2005 winning concept".
Over three Volvo Ocean Races the Juan-K design concept became very refined in terms of structures, deck layouts, rig, sail plan, and systems.
"They became a reference, a stable package that works well in offshore racing," Oulhen explains. "You do not have a surprise if you are buying a VO 70. You know about the IRC hull factor and rig, all the boats were measured often with high accuracy. You are left with some room to play with your rating around the sails set. In fact, you will find the same original sailors from previous Volvo campaign now with the major sail lofts. With a VO 70, you do not have a surprise. They were designed to withstand the toughest conditions, you have all the polars, the calibration tables and all the proven manual for the hydraulics or any maintenance. If you are not modifying the hull, your next IRC annual validation will not come with any surprise."
After the 2011-12 Volvo Ocean Race, Jim Delegat (NZL) purchased Groupama IV in 2013, and gave this VO 70; named Giacomo, an IRC optimized Sail wardrobe more suitable for her new career. He raced the major offshore races of the SW Pacific, finishing first, winning on rating and setting several course records, including overall honors in the 2016 Rolex Sydney Hobart. Under new ownership, and renamed Wizard, and now as Tschüss 2, this same VO70 has continued to win all the major offshore races around the world.
Tschüss 2 is still today getting fine-tuned, for speed and rating by Volvo Ocean race veterans, manager Neal McDonald, and sailmaker Stu Bannatyne from Doyle Sails, winning her class IRC Super Zero in this year's Rolex Fastnet Race.
Pyewacket 70, which was Telefonica, the fourth placed Volvo 70 in the 2011-12 Volvo Round the World Race was second in the Super Zero class, finishing 3 hours 24 minutes ahead of Tschüss, 1 hour behind in corrected time, and only 86 minutes behind the first monohull to finish - the 100ft super maxi Blackjack, an impressive performance given the 30ft length difference.
For the next owner of turbo-charged Pyewacket 70, the opportunity is to make a top performer even more competitive.
Oulhen says this can be achieved in two steps, which already has had a taller mast, main boom and sprit extended, and her keel lengthened with the weight of the keel bulb reduced. Pyewacket is now more than a Ton lighter than originally.
"The first step, I would call it an easy one," says Oulhen, "which is focusing mostly on the sails."
"The general the main goal for any VO70 is reducing the numbers of sails onboard. That means each sail, with all its combinations, should have a wide range of applications to reduce costly sails changes. The best example is the IRC Masthead 0, an evolution of the monster VOR Masthead genoa, now a little smaller and measured as Flying Head sails. This sail is used from 5 to 26 True Wind Speed, with angles from 50 to 140 degrees True Wind angle, combined with J4 or Genoa staysail.
Oulhen notes that under IRC, a boat can have two rating certificates and then choose the best one for a race based on a statistical analysis of the historical race conditions.
He says that in a race you expect to be mainly downwind, like the RORC Transat, you would use an IRC certificate with only a J4 jib, no J2 and just 1 spinnaker, as Tschüss 2 did last time to clearly win in corrected time.
The second step of optimization involves adjusting the keel tilt, the angle of the pin around which the canting keel rotates; inducing therefore an upward angle of attack of the keel while canted and creating lift. The Volvo rule did set this tilt at zero degrees, but you may want 2 to 3 degrees.
"The battle between Pyewacket and Tschüss during last Fastnet race, was interesting to watch," Oulhen says.
"Upwind, Tschüss was holding but downwind, Pyewacket, which at that moment was not fully optimized yet, was able to stretch on the VMG downwind toward the end of the race.
"So, I would suggest a new owner to focus with the first step and optimize the rated sails before looking at the second step."
"The major starting point is the original righting moment," Oulhen explains.
"In fact, on the Supermaxi Palm Beach XI, the former Wild Oats XI [on which Juan-K are the consultant designer], the limit of all this work, it's based on the original righting moment, because the mast compression limit, the chain plates, most of the structures of the hull, are based on this Rm.
The process of managing hull and rig strength is controlled by rig sensors, which in the case of Pyewacket 70 all come back to the cockpit, so the sailing crew are aware of the real-time strain limits and are adjusting the rig and trim of the boat accordingly.
"You must remember that with the VO 70, the team, the crew, the skippers, were very experienced professionals who put together the manual for themselves - sometimes starting with a year of campaigning before the race start.
Later, any upgrade and optimization process was conducted by the Juan-K Design office in close consultation with the sailors, spar maker, and sail makers.
When turbo-charging a race boat, Oulhen points out that the designers need to understand the owner's objectives. Within the constraints of the same VO 70 design, the boat may be optimized for rating like Groupama IV/ Tschüss, or for race records and line honors wins like Telefonica/Pyewacket 70.
With the two levels of optimization, and even only with just sail plan optimization, you can win both with the already turbocharged Pyewacket 70," says Oulhen.
"It all goes back to the crew, and they need to know when you can push the boat and when you need to slow down. It is for the crew to know the limits and how they can play within the limits. Our job, as designers, is to do the calculation and give the information and recommendations.
"Telefonica/Pyewacket was built by King Marine, in Valencia, one of the best yards in the world using the state-of-the-art Carbon pre-preg method and materials.
"But you must remember that these boats are still racing machines that were designed for one Round the World race, so you need to have a proper maintenance and check program.
"During the Volvo Ocean Race, in between each leg, the shore crew dismantled to check all the key components: keel, rig, rudders, winches, etc.... and that is still the way you should do it, every year.
"We are confident, if you follow the original rules and you do the checks on a regularly basis that VO 70 can still being pushed to win more races."
"The office design seven Volvo Open 70s and five are still racing: Willow (formerly Ericsson 3 / 2007-08) is preparing to race again this Rolex Sydney Hobart Race; L4 (ex: Ericsson 4 / 2007-08) is racing in the Med; Tschüss 2 has just been elected RORC boat of the year; Ailos is heading to the next Caribbean 600, and Pyewacket ready to be launched in the UK.
"It is remarkably interesting in sailing when you think that boats can have such a long life at the top level. It is a relevant story for any rating rule to see that older boats are staying competitive"
Oulhen's experience with the Volvo 70 extends beyond the confines of a design office. He currently sails on the ex-Puma Mar Mostro, which is now the Greek-owned Aiolos.
"The VO 70 are amazing boats, for offshore conditions, they are less difficult than you may think compared to more conventional design. I am not saying comfortable but designed to the task to sail fast in rough conditions, without worrying about breaking at the first wave. In fact, you know that previously very experienced sailors already pushed it more in the Southern oceans for longer periods of time. And the fact that you are covering a wide range of wind speed and angles with less sails make the boat handling more manageable. There are a lot of spray, speed, and bumps, but they are the boats you want to race in rough conditions.
"I did four time the Aegean600 (six hundred miles around the Greek Cyclades islands), always with wind peaks close to fifty knots, twice with "conventional" monohull and twice with the VO70 Ailolos. Onboard a VO70 you do not feel you are in survival mods in these kinds of conditions, you have the right sails, the right rig set-up, the canting keel and feel that you can push the boat, not the same feeling onboard the conventional monohull..."
"Some consider that after 25kt there are strong conditions. This is wrong. If you go offshore, you should not be stressing in thirty-five knots, between 25 and 45 knots, it should be normal to fully trust your boat, the limit becoming then only human."
Like to know more about Pyewacket 70? Contact McD Yachts or Juan Yacht Design
Contact: Paul MacDonald
Ph/WhatsApp: +64 27 5133 524
Email:
Web: www.mcdyachts.com/pyewacket
Or:
Philippe Oulhen
Ph/WhatsAPP: +34 668 119 999
Email: