ALL ABOARD FOR THE RIDE

IMOCA 60S ARE DESIGNED FOR SOLO RACING, SO WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU PUT A FULL CREW ON BOARD TO RACE 2,000 MILES? MATTHEW SHEAHAN REPORTS

- MATTHEW SHEAHAN

How much faster could an IMOCA 60 go if it were really pressed? Not in bursts, not for brief peak speeds, but at a sustained average pace over days or more. In other words, how much faster would they go if they could be pushed harder, for longer, than a single-handed sailor could cope with at one stretch?

It’s a question that has been discussed for some time, even more so since the 60-footers started to fly five years ago. Vendée Globe sailors frequently comment that they’re often sailing their boats at well below 100%, because they simply cannot keep up the intensity of going full-bore when they’re sailing alone. But if you could keep your foot hard to the floor, day in, day out – just as a full crew would be able to – how much faster would one of these globe scorching monohulls go? And would their notoriously fragile structures be able to stand the pace?