Banque Populaire maxi-tri finds a new owner

The Spindrift Racing stable grows

The world's largest racing trimaran, Maxi Banque Populaire V has been acquired by Dona Bertarelli and is now gearing up for a new campaign, to break records and to compete in other exceptional events. The trimaran will begin its new career within Dona Bertarelli’s and Yann Guichard‘s racing stable, Spindrift racing, during the Rolex Fastnet Race starting on 11 August this year.

Dona Bertarelli has shown her form on Lake Léman with her Ladycat D35 catamaran campaign, finishing last year’s season on the podium of the Vulcain Trophy 2012. She is also the only woman skipper to have won the Bol d’Or Mirabaud in 74 editions of Lake Geneva's most famous race. Dona is now setting herself the goal of breaking records on the biggest racing trimaran in the world.

“I am proud and happy to be able to sail on this legendary boat; it will be a great and difficult challenge to improve on the records already achieved by this trimaran,” Dona Bertarelli explains. “I have thus called upon the experience of my life partner, Yann Guichard, and on all the team of the Spindrift racing stable to manage this campaign successfully.”

Yann Guichard signed an excellent 2012 sports season, winning the Krys Ocean Race and the Multi One Championship at the helm of his MOD70 trimaran, Spindrift.

From 2013 onwards, the couple has defined a joint challenge with this project of creating new records and breaking old ones. They have therefore reorganised their teams to manage the racing season as a single entity. The 40m trimaran, to be relaunched as Spindrift 2, will join the MOD70 Spindrift and the D35 Ladycat under the Spindrift racing banner.

The Spindrift 2 maxitrimaran will now be put in dry dock to be repainted in her new livery. She will be returned to the water in the spring, for training, before being on the start line of the Rolex Fastnet Race 2013 race

Name: Spindrift 2
Stable: Spindrift racing
Skippers: Dona Bertarelli / Yann Guichard

Type: Maxi ocean trimaran
Central hull: 40 m
Floaters: 37 m
Width: 23 m
Weight: 23 tonnes
Depth: 5,80 m
Height: 47 m
Mainsail: 450 m2
Gennaker: 610 m2
Solent: 270 m2