Extreme 40s at the Skandia Cowes Week
The public at the Skandia Cowes Week and other centres are being caught up in the excitement of watching ‘speed ticket’ speeds, ‘stomach flattening’ high g-force turns, and alternate exhilaration then ‘hairs breadth from loss of control’ tension on the faces of the extreme 40 sailors as they perform on a course that may bring action only ten metres from spectators.
Such is the speed of these multi-hulls that any problem may instantly be magnified into a disaster. For example, equipment failure (lost rudder), crew mistake (snagged spinnaker), or one of the crew overboard may require instant action forfeiting of the race – a race may be over in twenty minutes - by hitting the built-in panic button to automatically release the sails.
“These things are just awesome,” says Carolijn Brouwer, a double world champion and the only female skipper in the fleet. “I mean look at today, eight boats on the line, boats moored in the middle of the course, tides ripping through the fleet, everyone pushing hard. The racing’s so intense you reach the finish line and go, ‘Whoa, what happened there?’”
Extreme 40s enthusiasts have ambitious plans for a six-event European season and, if possible, a global circuit rather than a sideshow during stopovers in the Volvo Ocean Race or at Cowes.
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