How to boost an IMOCA60

Offshore sailor Sam Davies explains the leap in performance with the new generation foils to PlanetSail's Matt Sheahan. Davies and her co-skipper Paul Meilhat were the first to fit the new blades last season and had thousands of miles under their belts as they started this year's Transat Jacques Vabre. They are also well ahead of the curve when it comes to understanding how to work with intelligent autopilots. Sam's fascinating explanation of how iot all works is matched by some mesmerising images of the boat at full chat along with what life's like on board.

[@floodo1]

Wow so much information thanks to good questions and a great interviewee!

[@HenryAyrestheoriginal]

Superb content. Tons of real information. Brilliant.

[@thomaselliott573]

yes. it is really really real as there was thousands and billions of tons of brilliant things

[@williammaguire4871]

great interview

[@mikelurban892]

Fascinating these boats and i'm very excited to see at least some of these inventions downgraded to smaller, cruising boats 😻😻😻

[@BigDaddyLee666]

The heel angle 😱😱😱😱

[@ignominius3111]

I want one.

[@VoilierFuligule]

Son Michaud intéressons infos for sailors, thanks

[@j121212100]

those boats spill so much wind. the ballast must be tunsten. when is this going to change to trimaran

[@Cranston0]

What kind or brand of autopilot is she talking about?

[@MrBlacknass]

@cranston Garmin... Hahahaha Definately not that one.. Probably NKE or B&G.. I was trying to see the AP control unit, but I didn't manage.. They have both brands on board. Because she talked about French guys it's more towards NKE. I am B&G dealer and I have the same question as you. H5000 and WTP are not easy instrument pilot systems to work with when performance boats is the case. It is very different from cruising boats autopilots with very few settings available. H5000 and wtp may be essencial for a fast boat but requires a lot of time on sea trials in order to get what you paid for.

[@thomaselliott573]

who f'ing cares? she is just a passenger

[@javiercifrian2787]

@@thomaselliott573 Sure. A passenger that finished 4th on the 2008 Vendee Globe with an 8 year old boat

[@thomaselliott573]

@@javiercifrian2787 you are so stupid you could not understand

[@spikeypineapple552]

@@javiercifrian2787 THANKYOU

[@tm502010]

There are scuba divers drier than this! How do they intend to stay thermally safe in colder parts of round the world racing? Also, living 60+ degrees heeled over has got to wear on you too...

[@ross82]

Some sailors stay safe by staying at home.

[@StuffThatBurns]

usually the autopilot steers

[@DuffyNightingale]

They are nowhere near 60 degrees of heel.

[@petergrundy8081]

Good interview but I don’t believe these boats can survive too many appendages too much risk of breakage and stress on the hull

[@j121212100]

imoca60 aren't safer. might as well move to full foiling.

[@thomaselliott573]

"Most successful offshore racing class of all time". This guy really is a total nobody wannabee talk fest. Throw in as many superlatives as possible as long as they are totally meaningless. Then we get some bird giving a sales spiel about a boat she knows very little about. In actual fact, she is just a passenger. "Most successful offshore racing class of all time"?????? Glad he did not include the word "sailing" in that phrase. These people are just marketing bs. Sailing has always suffered from this, but it has now become intolerable as it is not longer connected to the sport.

[@spikeypineapple552]

You know what? This is one of the most ignorant, disrespectful, hateful things I've seen in the sailing community for a long time. "Most successful offshore racing class of all time". I mean it just is. Nothing comes close to the IMOCA in terms of $ of investment, number of boats or skill of sailor. ' some bird '- are you kidding me? If you knew dick all about sailing, you'd know who she is. Honestly it's embarrassing you don't. Lets just rattle off some of the races shes finished - vendee x2, tjv x4, tsx2, fiaro x2, mini transit x2, skipper of SCA in the VOR. I bet you've never set sail past the needles. I don't get why boomers think these sailors don't know anything about their boats. She, and all the vendee competitors are REAL SAILORS. They know how to fix every part of their boat. Did you see that clip from last time around when someones engine starter broke, so they wrapped the main sheet around the flywheel and gybed the main? Honestly your post just reeks of jealously. Go get a life.

[@thomaselliott573]

@@spikeypineapple552 You know what? You know what? You know what? hahahaha

[@spikeypineapple552]

@@thomaselliott573 haha yeah!

[@thomaselliott573]

@@spikeypineapple552 If you ever go sailing you'll sink like a stone hahaha

[@spikeypineapple552]

@@thomaselliott573 haha!!