Wipeout

[CaptRon28]

Check out this video of the new 40 foot Gunboat G4 catamaran, hull #1, racing at St. Barths. The background music, "Wipeout" is appropriate. Looks like it was doing over 30 knots.

https://vimeo.com/125378004

[Vectordirector]

Hi Ron,

Sell me your Telstar and buy one of these.  Just kidding.

They seem to be marketing it as a (wealthy) gentlemen's racer/cruiser/weekender.  I'm thinking of it more of a Formula racing car, or offshore racing power boat, with support crew and all the costs involved in racing.  It is a healthy, albeit expensive, quest for speed, and I expect the boat to get much better at foiling as they test/push/improve the foils, not only in speed, but in stability foiling and in bringing costs down.  Just one look at everyone's experience in the last America's Cup shows how quick they were able to improve the foiling of the boats.  I hope they can get it sorted and sell a dozen or more of them.  Can you imagine a dozen of these racing head to head?     

Foiling is the future, trickling down from AC and up from the Moth.  It will be confined to racing boats for now, but the concept will be tweaked and someday will be the norm.  Foiling solar/wind powered robotic crewed container ships anyone?  How about a foiling aircraft carrier with hundreds of drone aircraft on board, all robotically controlled?  30 knot capable cruise ships?  The mind boggles.  Technology is advancing at an exponential rate.  Hold on tight, it will be a wild ride the next 30 years. 

I much enjoyed the video and the music.  Gunboat seems to have a sense of humour and I admire them pushing the envelope, someone has to do it.   There is an interesting discussion thread on Sailing Anarchy about this boat, one of the Gunboat insiders even posts about the capsize and the development of the boat.  Seems they had problems dumping the main and are working on improving that system.  Pictures of the recovery too.  Rig seems OK and I heard they were back out the next day. Best news was that no one was seriously injured, those falls from the high side looked painful.  Mr. Clean, the editor of Sailing Anarchy, is scheduled to take a ride on it soon.  I can't wait to see what he thinks.   I'd take a ride on one if invited.  How about you guys? 

So, the big question.  Are you buying one?  Even if I could afford it, I would not.  Too extreme for me.  I hope there are enough sailors out there that can afford one and the piles of money it will take to race it. Why else would you buy it?  It is a bragging rights boat, just like a 100 MPH offshore power boat, or a $2 million/year race car, with all the recurring expenses involved in maintaining cutting edge technology expensive racing things.   Or the world's most expensive day sailor.   This is not a traditional $1M "turnkey" cruising boat. It will need an owner who understands the constant investment needed to continually update to the latest foils and sails to stay competitive in racing, not to mention the sailing skills needed to drive this thing at the limit without killing someone requires a pro crew.   Not any different than any other racing machine, just a lot more expensive than a Moth or foiling Nacra, which are much less expensive and probably just as much fun and no pro crew needed.  Most who could afford the G4 probably have a larger, more comfortable sailing yacht for cruising, perhaps a larger Gunboat, maybe a motoryacht too. The G4 is, for these wealthy individuals, a toy, like a Ferrari or Porsche they take to the track and play with and maybe even race.   The interior, while nice, is still "camping" on the water.  The "ladies" aren't going cruising on this boat.  The G4 is a racer and development test mule that also would work well as a fast day sailor.  No way anyone is cruising on one of these.  Dock in after a day racing or day sailing, and have a party on board, sure.  Cruise overnight?  no.  Compac might want to take another look at that Catamaran they only made 2 of and get it foiling.  That would be a cruising boat, the G4 is not.

I'd prefer a 55, fast enough, easier to sail, and much more comfortable and "lady friend" friendly.  If they don't sell any G4s, and I'm not convinced they will, it is still a great development mule for the next step in foiling boating.  Sign me up for their next one, a foiling in 10kts of wind, Gunboat 55.  That would be epic.  It should be ready in 5 years or so.  Oh, I'd need to win the lottery too, $5M or so should cover it for a few years cruising.   I hope Gunboat has some deep pocket investors.  They are going to need a "boatload" of cash to bring this all together.  Many boat builders have run out of money building their dream. 

I wish Gunboat nothing but success.  If one of you ever buys one, can I get a ride?

Vectordirector

[rbh1515]

This is such an amazing video...it has shown up on every sailing site that I visit!
Rob

[Shawn]

Does look like quite the ride. Would love to go for a sail on one.

"Foiling solar/wind powered robotic crewed container ships anyone?  How about a foiling aircraft carrier with hundreds of drone aircraft on board, all robotically controlled?  30 knot capable cruise ships?  The mind boggles. "

Weight is the enemy for foiling though. That Gunboat is 40' long, 22' wide and weighs less than a Compac 27.

Shawn

[skip1930]

Our nuclear powered U.S. Aircraft Carriers have a non-disclosed flank speed ... however a Navy Times magazine slip-up may have occurred. Vessels and crew names were not disclosed.

It was confirmed that when testing an aircraft carrier that was at one nautical mile distance from a submerged U.S. submarine she had passed over the submarine in less then 60 seconds ... hummm.

skip.

[Vectordirector]

One of my atc friends and fellow ORD controller did a couple of tours as a controller on the "IKE".   The controllers knew how fast she was going through the air and the water.  And what the apparent wind was on the flight deck.  The airboss had the same information in the tower and actually had control of the ship's heading and speed during air operations.  They could "make their own wind" no matter what the real wind was.  I'm hot sure what tech they were using.  Pre GPS, I believe.  Late 70's, Indian Ocean, during the hostage crisis in Iran.  He would only tell me she would do "well over 30 knots".  How fast for how long I would guess would depend on how much you want to stress the reactor to run from a threat.  We may not know the real number but I bet Russia and China do.  They can track the battle groups with satellite and know how fast they go.  I'm sure they are watching when one of these monsters gets tested.    Ike is pretty old, maybe the newer ones are faster.  60+ knots?  Wow. 

Think how fast it would go if it foiled!!!  Just kidding, enjoying the foiling hype being produced on some sailing web sites.  I guess my sarcasm was lost.  Sarcasm, sadly, often gets lost somewhere on forums.  I must remember that. 

Just came in after another perfect day on the Eclipse.  10kts of NW wind, no chop, partly sunny, 80ish.  4-5 knots of very comfortable sailing.  The boat is perfect for day sailing down here, fast enough and easy to sail.  Right now, I can't see any boat I'd rather have.  The 24'-31' trimarans are calling my name though.  I need to sell my house first.  Then?  Who knows. 

Back to the G4, I think that if they can get it sorted and stable at flying, and they sell enough to break even, they will do it with one of the bigger ones.  If they can't, it will just go down as another failed design.  Plenty of those out there.  Most less expensive than this.  Does anyone know if they have orders booked for the G4?

Vectordirector

[CaptRon28]

Another good video of the G4. Before the wipeout, and possibly it's first time on the water. A 3rd video, when they added a scan of the instruments,  seems to show it doing around 24 knots in about 10 knots of wind. A fantastic boat, but I'm not sure if it will ever give you a relaxing day out on the water.


https://vimeo.com/124676763

[Vectordirector]

Ron,
I hadn't seen the 3rd one.  Wild.  Not my idea of relaxing, anyway.  You were heading in yesterday as we were heading out.  Hope you had a good day too.  See ya on he harbor.  When are you heading north?

Vectordirector

[CaptRon28]

When are you heading north?

In about 10 days, weather permitting. I hope to get out again on Thursday. The sails will be coming off on Friday or Saturday. Mast down on Saturday or Sunday. This is all based on weather forecasts which about 25% reliable. You ever see a Telstar fold itself like a Transformer?

[Vectordirector]

No, I hadn't seen a Telstar until I saw yours.  I'd love to see it fold up sometime.  Let me know if you need a hand getting it put away.  I hear you on the weather forecasts.  24-48 hours is about all I trust.  That being said, right now,next week looks iffy for sailing.   

Vectordirector