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TAPE-DRIVE TAKING THE ULTIMATE PUNISHMENT IN THE VENDEE GLOBE |
The Vendee Globe is one of the toughest ocean races in the world. This is singlehanded, non-stop, 23,000-mile race that is sailed in 60-foot rocket ships. All the sails, rigging and gear on the boats are pushed to their limits as the sole sailor tries to keep these machines under control while. One can only imagine sailing a 60-footer at speeds over 20-knots while surfing down Southern Ocean waves. Many times sails get abused because the singlehanders are unable or too tired to control the flogging acres of cloth. ALGIMOUSS-SPIRIT OF CANADA is being sailed by retired Royal Canadian Mounted Policeman Derek Hatfield. He is the only Canadian in the race and he is the only boat sailing with all Tape-Drive upwind sails. Not only is his Spectra/Carbon Tape-Drive mainsail lighter than the paneled Spectra main that it replaced, but it is more durable. The solent jib and Code Echo roller furling genoa are all Tape-Drive as well. Derek will be holding us to our word that our Tape-Drive sails are guaranteed not to fail catastrophically. UK-Halsey Toronto’s Brian Chapman designed the sails and made sure that not only would the sails be light, but that they would be strong enough to finish the race. “No matter how good a sail is, it’s not good enough if it does not make it to the finish line.” Derek is 1500 miles behind the leaders because his boat – not sails – suffered damage in the severe weather that hit the fleet in the Bay of Biscay just after the start. Repairs that included pulling the rig, took four days, but he is quickly making up time since restarting. The following is from Derek’s December 3rd posting on the Vendee Globe website http://www.vendeeglobe.org/en/. |