Fastest Sailboat on the Planet!

It has been awhile since we've had a laminar flow debate ...

BL didn't bite on the ground effects bait either ...

R

 

Did you miss this post

I conceded the point on the ditch.

I've been sailing for almost 50 years and been capable of civil debate or discussion for most of that time. Does it matter?

R

 

Civil, level headed, avoiding conjecture and not twisting facts are all good.

Missing something in this long chain of back and forth could be easy, but it would be nice to stick with the issues rather than...

 

Civil debate or discussion... Please! Kiters were called cheaters and elitists after setting a new outright. U said hydroptere the superior craft would soon defeat the mortal human kitesurfer???? Then you thought about how much 4 knots is and said oh my god we can't do it.....let's go write some letters it's our only hope! Good luck to you gentlemen.

 

I am pretty sure the land (Diaz point and surrounding stuff) is messing with the air flow a bunch and may be boosting the speed. I just dont think that the berm was making for faster air at the kites. Since sand on a beach in high winds does not hold up to well, I will admit that talk of betting was just a Bluff. Neither of us would admit anything without better proof than we are going to get.

 

Surfing a speedsailing blog http://www.sailblogs.com/member/speedtech/ identified another potential competitor, V-39 Albatross http://verneyyachts.com/index.htm. This gets back to a more traditional outright boat attempt, i.e. small, light and nothing like a "real boat". They envision operation with the main hull out of the water using an actual airfoil instead of a hydrofoil. Although a foil in air may be slightly less efficient than a foil in water, I am betting it would be worth it to avoid dealing with surface issues (chop) or cavitation. They indicate that Weymouth would be their preferred venue, but I would bet maximum performance could only be attained with the higher wind speeds available elsewhere. In context with recent discussions, the flying hull makes a little chop tolerable such that getting the right wind is more of a premium than really flat water.

The project looks like it is currently only a virtual effort. Lets hope they push on. Active competition make it more fun & new layouts add spice.

 

I hope they figure it out ... but ... this thing has instability written all over it. The combination of forward sweep and aft CG look scary too me.

I can't wait to hear what Tom Speer has to say about it.

I have to give them credit for thinking way out of the box!

R

 

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There is a thread about the V39 right here: http://www.boatdesign.net/forums/multihulls/v-39-albatross-world-speed-sailing-contender-34872.html

 

BL not sure if I mentioned it but yes I've sailed quite a bit in the past, although for the moment I'm stuck inland. My comments concerning the Luderitz berm and chop killer would seem perfectly reasonable given the number or records coming out of that location. Its entirely possible that some situational dynamic has been artificially created that is enhancing these speeds when the rules specify clearly "natural wind" "comparable conditions" and no extraneous devices that might enhance speed although that last is a bit more ambiguous in the rules but 7 and 9 seem to cover it

What makes me question this particular venue is that with no comparable improvements in technology on the kiters part what is it thats driving speeds to record breaking levels? Seems reasonable to take a look at the dynamics of this location and scrutinize its various unique characteristics. If its improvements in technique on the riders part then why do so many of the records seem to be being made at this one venue. Is the venue optimized within the boundaries of the rules seems like a reasonable question.

several possible effects that the berm might be having are substantially beneficial to the kiters and obviously the effects of the chop killer are as well, which begs the question, are these extraneous devices legal if they are so dramatically improving speeds?

I'm merely looking at what alterations have been made and looking into how they might effect performance and why.

ps
There is nothing so unsightly as a poor looser than an even poorer winner. You forget years ago I was as equally as interested in seeing the kites participate. For me a non participant in the game its not an issue of winning or loosing. My primary interest is not to exclude anyone but to fairly include all. Which has been the gist of my argument throughout the conversation. I believe early on in this thread you will find several posts of mine suggesting a head to head competition and that from a year or two ago. I find it kinda sad that some would boil down a few honest questions to some petty attempt to "win" when in fact what I've argued for is the realization that the ditch venues so favor certain types of vessels in certain very unique conditions that it seems unreasonable to include them in an all inclusive category that specifies "similar conditions" be available for all

 

Someone mentioned the response letter. I've written a more detailed request concerning the issues we have been discussing and although the initial response came shortly after our first correspondence it was just a short polite acceptance of a possible need for further review. Which I took as meaning they would be willing to listen to a more detailed list of issues, which I then sent off to them as well as an invite to come and read through our more recent dialog here. I suspect that there next response will take a while, but I"ll be sure to keep you guys informed.

Oh I thought the invite to read our last few pages would be a pleasantly neutral way to express both sides of the issue to the reviewing committee member

cheers
B

 

I dont think that the records are all that big of a stretch, there are lots of GPS results in the high 40s to mid 50s

http://gpsspeedkiting.wordpress.com/500m/

http://www.gps-kitesurfing.com/default.aspx?mnu=rankings

 

interesting links

that second link lists the 8 out of 10 of the fastest speeds coming out of Luderitz which is exactly what raises my curiosity about this venue and why having found a few possible reasons I thought the ruling body might want to review this a bit closer.

there's only 7 runs over 50 knots and ole Sebastian's at 56+ is simply spectacular, five of which occurred at Luderitz

so it seems perfectly reasonable to want to ask whats up with this particular site

the ruling body has made it clear that the ditch venues are legal however I'm curious to see how they rule on these extraneous speed enhancing constructs

 

Add the cost of setting up the WSSRC required recording equipment and it makes sense to pick and chose your location carefully. The location must not only provide the sailing conditions you need, it must also accomodate the timing system. Not to mention the scout jamboree social aspect of a bunch of people with shared interests going to an exotic location to play.

WSSRC acceptance of a small GPS unit for records might see some geographic diversity also.

R

 

True a lot of the runs are from there, they are probably from the speed events there... in addition to the conditions it may be that it is because the fastest riders were there as well.

However the number of people within striking distance (if GPS was allowed) is massive compared to any other speed sailing group, and not just in Luderitz

 

Exactly