Sailing: The Flying Monster Gitana 17

2017-11-172017-11-17 QUIBERON 24

On 17 July 2017, after a twenty-month build and over 35,000 hours of studies, Ariane and Benjamin de Rothschild launched the latest addition to their offshore racing stable. The Maxi Edmond de Rothschild, a large oceanic trimaran measuring 32 metres long and 23 metres wide is now part of the long and rather illustrious line of Gitanas. This Sunday in Le Havre, Gitana 17 will be the first multihull designed to fly offshore to set sail on a transatlantic race. On-board will be two oceanic pioneers, Sébastien Josse and Thomas Rouxel.

Featuring an aggressive and sleek outline with smooth lines, the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild forces admiration. Indeed, this flying fighter plane’ is a one-off in the looks department thanks to her unique floats and central hull and to the underwater sections of her beams, which are reminiscent of a plane wing. With flat hull bottoms for the maximum lift, a very high freeboard to thwart the torsion stresses of the float foils and rectangular beams for optimum stiffness, her streamlined wing-style sail plan and boat profile blend into one. Hydrodynamics and aerodynamics have been the key points in the development of this two in one’ craft according to her architect Guillaume Verdier. From the design to the construction, the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild is the result of a mastery of innovation and new technologies, shaped by the strictest quality control. A precursor, this giant of the seas is paving the way forward for a new generation of large multihulls, designed to negotiate heavy seas in the open ocean.

Since the launch of the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild, the timing has been tight and every session on the water has been carefully optimised by the members of the Gitana Team to enable the Edmond de Rothschild duo to set sail from Le Havre with the optimum amount of preparation under their belts. The estimated eight to ten days for the crossing and the numerous associated miles in race configuration are an accelerated learning experience that greatly appeals to Sébastien Josse: Gitana 17 is a highly specialised prototype, which brings together a series of innovative technologies where there is no shortcut to the discovery and fine-tuning phase! Naturally I’m thinking here about the foils and the various appendages and systems necessary for flight, but that’s not all. Innovation has a place all over the boat. In fact, we’re developing some unique solutions with Pixel sur Mer regarding all the on-board intelligence. With Gitana Team we’re pioneers, we’re preparing the way forward and what we learn from these miles in race configuration is extremely precious for the next stage of the programme and particularly for the single-handed racing in 2018 and 2019.

Report HD ©EDR Edmond De Rothschild, November 2017

The Transat Jacques Vabre 2017 delivered its verdict this Monday 13 November in the early hours of the morning (local time) in All Saints’ Bay. The top-flight duel, which saw the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild do battle with Sodebo Ultim’, resulted in victory for the black and orange trimaran helmed by Thomas Coville and Jean-Luc Nélias. For their first official race at the helm of Gitana 17, Sébastien Josse and Thomas Rouxel certainly put up a creditable performance! Indeed, they finished just 1hr 47 minutes and 57 seconds behind the winners of this 2017 edition, having headed the fleet during the first three days of racing. It is often said that victory is everything, but for Gitana Team, for whom this is only the start of an ambitious programme spanning several years, this 2nd place comes as a fantastic reward. This is true for her owners – Ariane and Benjamin de Rothschild who through their commitment and their daring enable such projects to exist, as well as for the whole of Gitana Team, who did a remarkable job to make the start of this first race within such a short space of time. Sébastien Josse and Thomas Rouxel have just penned the first lines in the story of the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild, a giant of definitively noble birth…