On Easter Monday, Boris Herrmann wants to be on board for the first time after the refit and relaunch, when the “Malizia – Seaexplorer” leaves Lorient’s La Base for tests and further optimization. The team went on their first short trip on Saturday without their skipper. “Some electronics don’t work yet, which is always a bit annoying when everything is already there.” These and other “construction sites” should be finally resolved in the coming weeks.
The complex heeling tests had already taken place last week. “They are always done when you change something structurally on the ship,” explained Boris Herrmann. And further: “In our case we added weight in the keel bomb and integrated the new foils, which have a slightly different shape and are also slightly heavier.” Regarding the heavier bomb, Herrmann said: “I was always one of the few who wanted to try out a lighter bomb. ‘Hugo Boss’ was like that too. But others have the heaviest possible bomb, so the opposite.”
A perfect pair of new wings
In the case of the “Malizia – Seaexplorer” the bomb was “a little too light to right the boat”. The center of gravity of the new foils would also be slightly higher. “So some weight had to be added,” says Herrmann, explaining the refit measure for his boat. The new foils replace the foils used as replacements in the Ocean Race, which Team Malizia – a blessing in disguise at the time – were able to buy from Phil Sharp’s team shortly after the start of the race after their own foils broke. They weren’t perfect, but they fit pretty well in the emergency situation and were a godsend. Now, however, “Malizia – Seaexplorer” has gotten a few new wings that were built especially for her.
The Imoca class has a maximum size for the foils: eight cubic meters. This is more of a calculated value than a real size, explains Herrmann. “It’s basically the projected area multiplied by the distance from the amidships line. The rule is already cleverly written. This allows different foil shapes that can ultimately absorb a similar amount of force and generate righting moment. Our last foils were 7.2 cubic meters. Now we are at the class limit for the first time,” says Boris Herrmann about the latest development for “Malizia – Seaexplorer”.
The crew has already experienced this “more power”, which is also intended to counteract the boat’s slight weakness in light winds. Co-skipper Will Harris was there for the first outing on Saturday and reported to his skipper that they “clearly felt the extra power”. The new foils can be assigned to the same foil family as the previous wings of the German Imoca, but make better use of the class rules and also fit the boat better than those that were spontaneously adopted before the Ocean Race.
New sails for “Malizia – Seaexplorer”
“The old foils couldn’t be pulled all the way into the boat. “That wasn’t a real disadvantage, but it sometimes meant that the windward foil created quite a lot of spray when the boat was pushing slightly,” said Boris Herrmann. That didn’t really slow down “Malizia – Seaexplorer”, but the new foils were easier to pull in. A layman would hardly be able to tell the difference between the old and the new foils, says Herrmann. There is a difference of a few centimeters in the width of the foil sheet (“chord length”). With the new foils, new matching bearings were also installed.
Also new on board the “Malizia – Seaexplorer” is the seat for the skipper, which is suspended like a mountain bike shock absorber and can be taken from one side of the boat to the other. Plus a spring-loaded bunk. In addition, the boat of choice, co-developed by Boris Herrmanns, has been given new sails for its second participation in the Vendée Globe from November 10th. “We have tweaked the sails a bit and have a new J2, a little smaller and a little different. We didn’t have a jib top before. A sail that starts from the bow. I used this successfully on the old ship in the last Vendée Globe. I would like to have it back now. “It’s all just getting ready so that I can test it on the two Transat races.”
The timetable for Transat preparation
For the last month until the start of the Transat CIC in Lorient, Boris Herrmann wants to use his time on the water wisely: “It would be better to have fewer, but good sessions on the water.” The fact that this first of the two Transats scheduled for the spring starts in Lorient, where his team and many others are based, is of course a gift, says Herrmann. Preparations for this are underway. The North Atlantic race, organized by OC Sport Pen Duick, will test its challengers over around 3,000 nautical miles between Europe and the USA. The motto: A man or a woman, a boat, an ocean.
From Sir Francis Chichester to Eric Tabarly to François Gabart, Alain Colas, Philippe Poupon, Michel Desjoyeaux, Loïck Peyron and Francis Joyon, the greatest sailors on the North Atlantic have distinguished themselves over the decades and entered their names in the Transat CIC winners’ list . This year’s edition also celebrates the 60th anniversary of Éric Tabarly’s victory aboard the “Pen-Duick II”, which marked both the history of the race and that of French maritime sailing. Tabarly won again in 1976, this time on the “Pen-Duick VI”. The record for most wins is held by Loïck Peyron, who won in 1992, 1996 and 2008.
The Imoca greats are stepping on the gas again
Boris Herrmann wants to get “back into racing mode” in the coming weeks. “I want to find my routine, my sea legs again and see that everything works 100 percent again. The week after April 8th is training in Port-La-Forêt. I want to be there at full speed. We also do a long offshore trip overnight.” The grandees of Imoca sport are there: Charlie Dalin, Thomas Ruyant, Jérémie Beyou, Yoann Richomme, Sam Davies, Justine Mettraux and more ambitious candidates.
The third week of April is reserved for further testing, should it be necessary. In addition, there is the physical and mental preparation for the races. “When everything is running smoothly, you don’t have to sail so much anymore. Maybe there will be time to discuss things for the Vendée Globe with the team,” muses Boris Herrmann. According to Herrmann, the feeling for his boat in terms of durability and strength is still “great”. “I can let it rip and not have to worry too much unnecessarily. I’m really excited about these two Transats and this season.”