Limiting
Ongoing testing with different foil configurations is confirming that ultimately righting moment will determine top speed. The diagram below nicely illustrates what happens as speed builds. The plot takes a constant true wind angle (heading relative to true wind direction). As boatspeed increases, the component of apparent wind from dead-ahead gets bigger, while the true […]
Critical Mass
Interest in our L foil kits has been overwhelming. We are at full capacity fulfilling orders and have additional tooling in the pipeline to shorten lead times. Will be sure to publish more images and detailed specs as soon as we get a chance. Market demand speaks clearly and people are ‘voting with their […]
Insight
Some thoughts following some recent on-the-water testing with a focus on handling. Specifically, we worked to gain data on how different foil configurations affect dynamic behaviour during turns in strong wind. The results confirmed observations we hear regularly from experienced Moth sailors, as well as those who race foiling multihulls such as the NACRA F20 […]
Imagineering Part 2
In Part 1 we looked at straight line sailing.We concluded that foils will always be a hindrance at very low speeds, but will give an advantage at higher speeds. More aggressive setups (read more foil area) are even worse at low speed but, since they allow earlier take-off, become superior ‘sooner’ (at a lower windspeed […]
Bravo
Congratulations to Sergio Vela, who placed third at the European Spring Championship, using retrofitted Paradox 2014 steering system.
Imagineering Part 1
In response to questions about where catamaran foil design may go in the future, especially if rule constraints are relaxed, here are some thoughts on the incentives driving design choices. If our goal is fastest time around a windward/leeward course, then the considerations are: – VMG upwind. – VMG downwind. – Control at low speed, […]
Golden Rule
One final reflection about recent events in the A Class, before resuming normal programming. Future posts will focus on hopefully interesting technical commentary, and updates on our projects…“The golden rule is that the words of a statute must prima facie be given their ordinary meaning.” Viscount Simon, in Nokes v. Doncaster Amalgamated Collieries, [1940] A.C. […]
Declaration of Independence
North American A Class sailors recently voted to Remove Rule 8 as a constraint during their events. The title of this blog post, and the parallels drawn below, are of course hyperbolic. But the moral is real: We would do well to remember that a small group with specific interests trying to impose their will on […]
Growing
We now have an opening for a composite fabricator/shipwright. Our workload is growing so we would like to take on another team member.Projects include UAV airframes, customer parts, RC yachts, and our A Class catamaran.A good mix of one-off prototypes for R&D, and production items. If you possess skills in carbon fiber pre-peg […]
2015 Paradox
First Public Introduction of our All New Version 3 A Class Catamaran Concept – Speed, stability, easy to tune for different conditions, value, elegant engineering. – Benefiting from three years of structured testing, data collection and validation. – Developed in close collaboration with Glenn Ashby. – Built in Australia to aerospace standards. Hull Shape […]