The Boat - Artemis Ocean Racing

ARTEMIS OPEN 60

BOAT DESIGN

The new generation of IMOCA Open 60s are pushing the boundaries of technology, speed and performance.

In 2006, Artemis Ocean Racing announced they had chosen Simon Rogers to design their new boat and Neville Hutton Boat Builders to build it, both of whom are based in Lymington (UK). Following extensive tank testing and computer simulations, Simon presented the final design to Neville.

As one of the last of the new generation IMOCA Open 60s to hit the water ahead of Jonny Malbon’s solo debut in the Artemis Transat, it is expected to confirm Artemis Ocean Racing as a serious contender for the Vendée Globe in November 2008.

EQUIPMENT AND TECHNICAL DETAILS

Name:: Artemis Ocean Racing II
Designer:: Rogers Yacht Design Ltd
Builder:: Neville Hutton boatbuilders
Launch date:: March 2008
Beam:: 6m
Displacement:: 8.8 tonnes
Mast height:: 28m
Draft:: 4.5m
Construction:: Carbon & Nomex
Sail area (upwind):: 350 sq.m
Max sail area (downwind):: 600 sq.m
Keel type (fixed/canting):: Canting
Rig description:: Rotating rig/outriggers
Mast maker:: Formula Spars
Sail maker:: North UK

INNOVATIVE DESIGN

Rogers Yacht Design (RYD) has designed the new Artemis Ocean Racing II with a strong British design theme, style and influence throughout. She is powerful with an elegant styling.

What is immediately apparent when you look at the boat is that the hull is noticeably wider. It has been designed specifically with the Vendée Globe in mind to create greater stability without compromising performance.

The deck-stepped rig has been engineered to accommodate the North/South and South/North sections of the Vendée Globe. It has a big wing rig of outriggers - the RYD team has been working with aeronautical engineers and computational fluid dynamics specialist, Dave Egan, to optimise the performance of the rig.

The rotating rig is big and wide, with redundancy built into it. It has an internal mast track and 2 main halyards sheaves. The mast is unique in the world of IMOCA Open 60s and was developed in partnership with global experts.

The keel has been designed with the Vendée Globe in mind. It has been moulded out of stainless steel due to the number of failures with hi-tensile steel fins. Because of unreliable welding in the hi-tensile steel the team has opted for a more ductile material which has more reliable welding properties. Attached to the keel is a race faired stainless steel fin, with a low drag, low centre of gravity hydro-dynamic lead bulb optimised for performance.

GLOSSARY

To see more details about the boat, rollover the numbers.

Mast

At 90ft above the deck, the mast is made of carbon fibre. During an offshore race, the skipper will typically have to scale the mast once a week if the weather allows, to ensure there is no chafing to the halyards (ropes) that go through the top. Climbing the mast in port is hard enough, while tied to the dock, but climbing it on your own with a rolling swell is the worst part of offshore sailing for many solo sailors.

Main sail

Made from carbon and kevlar, the fabric used to make bullet proof vests. This sail weighs approx 80 kgs.

Bunks

Whilst racing, sailors will typically sleep for no longer than 6 hours in total, in any 24 hour period. Most sleeping is done in quick naps of a maximum of about 20 minutes whilst fully clothed and often they will not even make it to their bunks but instead have a power nap at the navigation station. There are bunks on both sides of the boat so that even while sleeping the crew ensures that they are sleeping on the windward (or high) side to help the boat go faster.

Navigation station

This is where the skipper will spend most of his time. From here, they monitor the weather information and check the performance of the boat using the onboard computers. They can also talk to the outside world using the satellite phones and vhf radio.

The galley

Below decks, the ‘kitchen’ is in fact just a place to heat up water for tea and coffee and to re-hydrate freeze dried food. Jonny will usually eat three meals a day whilst racing, supplemented by power bars and high energy snacks.

Life raft

As well as a life raft, Jonny will also carry a survival suit, harnesses and lifejackets – all required safety equipment. He will also take a limited amount of technical clothing including thermals, underwear, socks and a set of wet weather gear.

Communications dome

All communication - email, audio, video, photos and data - is sent and received through this dome.

The keel

The canting, or swinging keel suspended from the hull is used to balance the boat, to keep it upright whilst sailing. The Open 60 uses an advanced system of hydraulic rams to move the keel from one side to another in order to increase the boat’s performance. By angling the keel towards the wind, the skipper is able to counterbalance the yacht’s heeling angle much more effectively than with traditional keels.