The Lance Armstrong of sailing?

Nigel Cherrie talks to skiff turned Mumm 30 sailor Rob Greenhalgh about his plans for the Tour Voile

Taking a leaf out of Adrian Stead's book, he has assembled a core crew for the month long event, but some team members will float and others will fly in for specific legs.

The squad includes Olympic silver medallist Ian Barker, Mike Budd, Duncan McDonald, Mark Heeley and Mike Broughton as the afterguard.

For light and heavy weight trimmers he has called on Jerry Ephlett, Anthony Haines, Matt Alavardo and Alec Fraser with Joe I'Anson, Roddy Simpson and
James Grant alternating in the middle of the boat. Jeremy Elliot and Simon Nadin will run the bow.

Of these, half a dozen have sailed the event before, but this will be Greenhalgh's first time.

"You have got to have a good bunch of guys and then you have to rotate them so you so you don't kill anyone. It's also important that when people stop sailing they can walk away and not think about it, especially after an offshore.

"The weight limit is 525 kg, which is an average of 75kg per person [for seven crew] but if you sail with six people you have an average of 87kg which is a big person. You want to be right on the buzzer. I still get a lot of phone calls from guys wanting to join us but it's important to have continuity".

The tool of the trade for the Tour is the highly acclaimed Mumm 30. "It's possible to capsize it and put the masthead in the water and get the keel out," smiles Rob, explaining its dinghy like characteristics. "Whether it is the right boat to go offshore I don't know but everyone who sails one is captured by them."

Indeed, going offshore will be no picnic at all. Down below is where you store the thermos flask and sandwiches and resting in the cuddy would be like sleeping in the boot of a Mini as they were filming The Italian Job.

"They [the Mumm 30] are overpowered and as a result sail trimming is crucial. Upwind the boat speed is all about trimming whilst downwind they plane so it's about kinetics and working them. They really are a dinghy in that respect."

Such is the attention to detail, Sarsfield chartered a second Mumm 30 for two months until May for pre-event sail testing, tuning and crew training on the Solent.

Only one set of sails is allowed for the entire race and there is only one discard in the entire 34 race series (24 races inshore and ten offshore). "The rules on the tour are very tight on everything. To keep costs down they have restricted sails if not everyone would spend £100,000 on sails and have a new mainsail each week," continues Rob.

"You have one suit of sails, which is one mainsail, two full size jibs, a light and a medium, one number three and then a storm jib and one masthead and fractional spinnaker. If you tear a sail and have to replace it you get penalty points for every race you take part in without the original sail."

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