Seven knots of true wind and a few quick pumps on the mainsheet was all it took to have the 8m cat rise up onto her foils and slip downwind…
Matthew Sheahan
Monofoil: The pocket rocket that can foil in just 8 knots of breeze
The spectacle of a flying catamaran, be it an Olympic Nacra 17, a GC32, the recent America’s Cup 50-footers, or anything in between, has become almost normal in today’s racing…
Eagle Class 53: The foiling cruiser inspired by the America’s Cup
Not everything that flies is destined to scorch around an America’s Cup course. The future for sailing hydrofoils is surely about more than just racing. At least, that was the…
What’s the optimum Fastnet route? Navigator Ian Moore crunches the weather data to find out
With tricky tides, imposing headlands and the vagaries of the British summer weather to contend with, the Rolex Fastnet Race is as much about tactics as it is about boat…
Fastnet Race 1979: Life and death decision – Matthew Sheahan’s story
At 0830 Tuesday 14 August 1979, aged 17, five minutes changed my life. Five minutes that, despite the stress of the previous six hours, would encapsulate the most extreme emotional…
Could the wonderfully weird Inflated Wing Sail make sailing easier?
As the mist rose off the water’s surface in the picturesque harbour of Morges on the north bank of Lake Geneva, only the gentle buzz of a small air compressor…
36th America’s Cup New Zealand: the Challenges that face the new host nation this time around
As the saying goes, when you win the Cup you make the rules. The champagne was still running down the outside of the Auld Mug and the sailors still drenched…
Could holograms become virtual crew members in the futuristic world of sailing?
From instructions on how to set the timer on your central heating to replacing a light bulb on your car, there was a time when keeping the manuals for everything…
Cleaning up the Pacific Garbage Patch: Dutch foundation tests new system off coast of Holland
During the build-up to this summer’s Olympic regatta in Rio, water quality and in particular the fear of debris and pollution affecting racing outcomes and racers’ health, hit the headlines.…
Waszp – the new one-design foiling Moth that could make learning to fly a little less painful
If there is one class of boat that has turned more heads around the world in the last decade than any other, it must surely be the foiling Moth. Having…
5 tips: faster foils – make sure your keel and rudder are in tip top condition
If you want to go faster, which would you choose: a new headsail or a fully faired and professionally finished set of foils? If you currently have a silky smooth…
5 tips: why spring weather should be treated differently from summer
The boat is sorted, the sails back on board and the crew lists are taking shape, but how much thought have you put into early season spring weather? Why should…
What will foiling do for you? Why foils will change sailing forever
“There’s nothing new in what we’re trying to do with foiling America’s Cup boats,” says Land Rover BAR’s head of engineering, Dirk Kramers. “The Wright brothers would have understood the…
America’s Cup: uncovering secrets at the Land Rover BAR mission control
Deep in the carbon hollows of the internal structure of Land Rover BAR’s new boat banks of red, yellow and green LEDs wink away like a spaceship on standby. Underneath…
M32 catamaran – a high-speed cat for the World Match Racing Tour
America’s Cup foiling cats look spectacular and turn plenty of heads, but the rate at which the demands of the new technology have been accelerating is leaving many of us…
Formula Whisper, the exciting new boat that anyone can learn to foil
As I stepped off the Formula Whisper, our cameraman and photographer Richard Langdon was full of praise for my first attempt at flying. “How polite,” I thought. I had been…
GC32: A profile of the cat that learned to fly at 30 knots
First published February 2015. “Hike her down, guys, and we’ll get her up,” called our helmsman Paul Campbell-James to the five crew of the GC32 Richard Mille. As our backsides…
The story of Yes! How a racer and innovative designer breathed new life into this classic 36ft racer
Adam Gosling and designer John Corby breathed new life into the classic 36ft racer Mustang Sally to turn her into the 12th Yes!
The foiling phenomenon – how sailing boats got up on foils to go ever-faster
Here’s a challenge. Design a way to support the weight of five saloon cars on a plate the size of your desk on the water. That was the task that…
How to win at Cowes Week: some people seem to ‘get lucky’ every year! How do they do it?
Lone Star – XOD Name of boat: Lone Star – built 1960 Type of boat: XOD – 119 Owner: Stuart Jardine First Cowes Week: 1956 (won in Persephone XOD 92)…