New boat for the Volvo pt2

In part two of our interview with him Bruce Farr looks at Open 60s and one designs

If Bruce Farr was given a blank sheet of paper to draw a Volvo Ocean 60 of the 21st century, what would come up with now? "I'd probably start with a canting keel, more water ballast, a bigger rig, some carbon structure, deeper draught - all those things would make the boat significantly faster. It would make it more exciting for its size, but would that make it better?"

Ross Field has put forward the suggestion that the event should be raced in Open 60 which he feels would allow entry level boats coming in with budgets of around $3 million. Farr disagrees. "I don't know how you can do a campaign with a $3 million budget. I suppose you could take a boat from a previous race. If you are going to count small budget efforts in a large budget arena, then the boats aren't going to be fully competitive no matter how you approach it. We didn't see it this time. If there is going to be a low budget deal, you need to build a class around that concept."

An entry level class, he says, would require a smallish boat with tight restriction on sails, total sail expenditure, number of crew, crew salaries and time on the water.

Having recently been commissioned to come up with an Open 60 design for Jean-Pierre Dick to race in the next Vendee Globe, Farr is also aware that the idea that Open 60s are by definition cheaper boats is a complete misnoma. "I hear this argument a lot - that Open 60s are cheaper. I think those boats are cheaper, because that's all they've got to spend! I don't see where it is cheaper to have an open design, unless you throw away all your safety rules, which I don't think Volvo are about to do."

Continued on page two...