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Comanche – the 31.5m sailing superyacht built to win

Sailing superyacht Comanche is a boat that belongs at the front of the racing pack. Comanche _surprised everyone watching the Sydney Hobart race in December 2014 when the brand new 30.5 metre Hodgdon Yachts-built speed machine was pictured tearing along ahead of Sydney Hobart legend Wild Oats XI. It was an advantage that _Comanche was able to maintain all the way to the Bass Strait during the 2014 Rolex Sydney Hobart. But when 30-knot winds failed to materialise, the more slender Wild Oats XI slipped past Comanche and into the lead, a position she held all the way to Hobart for victory and her eighth line honours. Second place is never going to be good enough for Comanche ’s owner, software mogul Jim Clark, but it was a minor miracle his yacht was there at all. She was only launched in September 2014, so the famously brutal race represented a kind of masochistic shakedown for a yacht designed for just one thing – to win.

Comanche : built to win

Think Laser dinghy or 49er morphed with rocket ship and you’ll get some idea of the qualities of_ Comanche_. At the yard, the racer was partially hidden behind two larger yachts with immaculate pedigrees, _Meteor_ and Artemis , but Comanche ’s square bow and carbon sprit jutted out beyond them, drawing the eye away from the varnished teak of her neighbours to a lean sailing machine intended to go as fast as possible powered only by the wind.

Sailing legend Ken Read, who also happens to be the president of North Sails, managed the project from day one for Jim Clark. Built at Hodgdon Yachts in Maine, US, Comanche had a hand-picked design and engineering team of international experts. It also had a construction schedule that raised eyebrows from the first day Jim Clark talked to Boat International about the radical project during the America’s Cup Superyacht Regatta in San Francisco, September 2013.

Comanche launched one year later and after stepping the mast in Newport, Rhode Island, and just two weeks of sailing trials, including a 600-mile qualifying sail to Charleston, South Carolina, the boat was packed aboard a cargo ship and sent to Australia to compete in the Sydney Hobart, which starts each year on Boxing Day.

Jim Clark and his Australian wife, Kristy Hinze-Clark, met the boat in Sydney for its short re-commissioning, Hinze-Clark racing aboard Comanche in a harbour tune-up event on 9 December 2014, where the yacht placed second despite poor conditions. The tabloids had a field-day, captioning photos with, “The supermodel and the supermaxi” and “She’s got legs” in reference to Kristy Hinze-Clark’s modelling career. These days she is a businesswoman, director for the Australian Nature Conservancy and the mother of two girls.

Boat International speaks exclusively with Comanche ‘s owner, Jim Clark

In our exclusive interview with Jim Clark, shortly before the race begins, we ask simply: “Why?”

“It’s a hobby,” he says, “I like the supermaxis, they are like Volvo 60s on steroids.” Jim Clark appears to be done with the J Class and is not a huge fan of what he calls the “multihull phase” of the America’s Cup with its reduced crew numbers. “The old sailing community is in monohulls and it’s nice to keep the guys engaged – there are lots of good sailors in the supermaxis and the guys are a lot of fun.”

When Jim Clark decided on a supermaxi, his plan was to go for line honours rather than wins on corrected time, and speed/distance records that could be set for yachts with human powered winches. “I don’t want any of that record stuff with an asterisk that says push-button winches,” Jim Clark scoffs. With this target, Jim Clark and Ken Read embarked on a “design experiment” for a yacht that could sail 30 knots or more on a broad reach. The experiment pushed them to some extreme stats, which Jim Clark says were run through CFD tests and simulations time and again.

“The 25-foot (7.6 metre) beam saves weight,” Ken Read says. “By going wider, we can have less weight in the keel to keep the same righting moment, thus we will go faster.” This thinking is carried over into the keel itself, which is solid stainless steel and not welded. With a 6.7 metre draught, the keel can be two tonnes lighter than a comparable keel on a boat with half the draught. The governing factor was the depth of Rhode Island’s Newport harbour where the boat will be based when not chasing records. “With the keel canted to one side we can just get to our berth,” Read says.

The downside to beam is increased surface drag when sailing flat in light air. “Being considerably wider than other boats, we need to be heeling at 11 to 13 degrees to present the same beam,” says Jim Clark. “In light air, we are at a disadvantage. When the wind cooperates, there is no question the boat is explosive.”

Hodgdon, the oldest boatbuilding business in the US, might seem like an odd choice if you don’t know that part of the yard’s annual output is high-tech military vessels and another part is carbon fibre limo tenders. In fact, Hodgdon is quite skilled at innovative construction techniques and when Tim Hodgdon agreed to build an oven to cook Comanche ’s carbon fibre hull, the deal was struck. The yard’s location also made it a good gathering stop for its far-flung team.

Is_ Comanche_ too powerful to handle?

Some critics have said Comanche is too extreme and too powerful to handle, but Jim Clark just laughs at this and suggests we “ask Kenny”.

“Yeah, it’s still an unknown but I’m not overly concerned,” he adds. “The hull is well baked and it’s been ultrasounded and X-rayed. There is a fuse in some of the loads so that nothing super bad can happen. But you can’t have a fuse in the rigging… Some of those termination points on the rig are kind of scary,” Jim Clark says.

That rig, which rises 47 metres above the waterline, is more than 50 per cent of the length aft from the bow, a surprising configuration but based on model testing for best all-around performance with the foil and appendages.

Innovation through design

Also innovative on _Comanche _are the daggerboards outboard of the mast and slightly forward of it. By canting the keel and putting the lee side daggerboard fully down, the boat generates enough lift to keep the angle of leeway to a minimum or crab up to a mark.

Comanche ‘s wide cockpit, full of grinder pedestals, hydraulic sail controls and sophisticated LED panels, gives the impression of a workhouse with modern instruments of torture. In a way, that is what they are. Grinders will work these six pedestals to turn the Harken winches. The only push-button winch on board is used to raise the mainsail. Once that sail is up the halyard is locked off and the winch isn’t used.

The winch pedestals are set slightly inboard and Read explains that when sailing on other 30 metre yachts he found that waves coming inboard at 30 knots or so would sweep the helmsman or winch grinders off their feet. “I have fetched up in the corner of the cockpit with pieces of steering wheel in my hands,” he says. Thus, by having 10 feet more beam than other 30 metre boats, there is space to put people and gear in a safer location with the added benefit of space for sails to be temporarily stored outboard of the pedestals on the high side.

Another interesting option is set right into the deck. Small black plugs cover screw holes that allow a dodger to cover both hatches. “On long distance races, we wanted the option to erect a dodger to keep the crew safe when on deck,” Read says. A slot in the cockpit sole just aft of the dodger allows the steering wheel to be moved forward, allowing the helmsman to stand behind the dodger for more protection.

Step below and you can see how much weight has been saved on Comanche . The single-skin carbon fibre hull and foam cored framing is fully exposed. It is mostly black with white non-skid patches. The forward end of the vessel is totally open, to store sails. Directly under the cockpit on either side are the crew berths, which keep the crew centre of gravity aft, close to the position they would be in when on deck; thus the trim of the yacht is not affected by off-watch crew moving around.

Directly under the cockpit sole is the navigator’s area with barely space to sit up. “The only requirement that navigator Stan Honey had was that we made the navigator’s seat 1.8 metres long so that he didn’t have to fight the crew for a berth,” Read says.

Talking to Read one gets a sense he is completely at ease with a project of this magnitude and the commitment it will take to sail Comanche to her potential. He has sailed around the world with several of his present crew and all had input into the new yacht’s design. That counts for a lot of experience, in addition to the French design team of Guillaume Verdier and VPLP (Marc Van Peteghem and Vincent Lauriot-Prévost). “Without the designers we would probably have built a far more conservative boat,” Read says, “but with their help we have taken a leap forward.”

On deck, Comanche is also radically different. All halyards go to the masthead, where they are locked off in the same style that was pioneered in the 12 Metre Class. But on Comanche , tension is applied on the sail luff by hydraulic rams mounted on the foredeck and by pulling on the sail at the tack. “It reduces weight aloft,” Read explains, “and allows complete sail adjustment from the [safety of the] cockpit.”

Another advanced feature not often seen on smaller craft is that the jib tracks run transversely instead of fore and aft. “The clews for each headsail are in the same place and we might use the same sail for going hard to windward and when easing off onto a reach. With this arrangement all we need do is ease the track car to leeward when coming onto a reach. This enables us to keep power on without altering the shape of the sail when changing course relative to the wind,” Read notes.

The deck-stepped carbon fibre mast has swept spreaders to eliminate the need for adjustable running backstays. In some ways this is a disadvantage in that the masthead cannot be moved fore and aft when sailing up and downwind, but it eliminates the need for checkstays and runners. The masthead position is controlled with backstays to each corner of the transom and lines that are led into the mast from the backstays to control the rig bend.

“I started this boat thinking I could race it,” says Jim Clark wistfully. A degenerative condition in his ankles that makes standing uncomfortable has recently cropped up in his wrists as well. “They made a seat for me where I can drive it,” he says, but he opted out of the Sydney Hobart to make room for America’s Cup-winning skipper Jimmy Spithill to assist Read on the helm.

“I feel confident we’ll start getting line honours and next summer we’ll do the transatlantic race and see how that goes,” promises Jim Clark. “I’m optimistic.”

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S/Y Comanche succeeds with new Doyle sails

The 30.48-metre (100-foot) VPLP Design/Verdier Maxi Comanche, skippered by Mitch Booth, has taken Monohull Line Honours in the 2022 RORC Transatlantic Race, winning the magnificent IMA Trophy.

Comanche has set a new race record for the 3,000nm race from Lanzarote to Grenada of 7 days 22 hours 1 minute 4 seconds. Comanche’s new Monohull Race Record has beaten the previous race record by over two days.

S/Y Comanche recently installed new sails manufactured by Doyle .

Andrew McIrvine, secretary general of the International Maxi Association (IMA), witnessed Comanche crossing the line and later presented the IMA Trophy at Camper & Nicholsons Port Louis Marina Grenada . Comanche’s record result in the RORC Transatlantic Race is the latest accolade in a phenomenal list of achievements, which includes the Monohull West-East Transatlantic record and race records and line honours for the Rolex Fastnet Race, the RORC Caribbean 600, the Rolex Sydney Hobart, the Transpac and the Rolex Middle Sea Race.

Jim Cooney, owner of Comanche, said, “Comanche has been able to realise more of her potential with the addition of Doyle’s Cableless Sails. I highly recommend this exciting technology for any size boat. The big jibs and the A3 are very powerful, yet significantly lighter than I expected, increasing acceleration with greater righting moment.

“The sails’ ability to hold their shape at all angles with virtually no luff sag is astounding on such big sails. We have reduced rig load dramatically with these sails and our performance improved in all conditions, particularly light air. Our new Doyle mainsail is exceptionally high quality and the reduction in permanent weight aloft gives immediate gains in all wind strengths.”

For more information, visit Doyle Sails .

For more news and yachting tips, connect with us on Facebook , Twitter , Instagram and LinkedIn .

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Comanche sets a new RORC Transatlantic Race record and win the IMA Trophy

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Comanche Story: Across the Ocean in a Work Week

Shattering the transatlantic sailing record.

Even the most daunting world records are meant to be broken … eventually. For elite navigator Stan Honey and a crew of sailing all-stars, beating the prestigious monohull transatlantic sailing record was the ultimate accomplishment. And it was no easy feat. On July 22, 2016, the Comanche — a custom-built, 100-foot racing yacht — set sail from New York to the southern tip of England.

Precisely five days, 14 hours, 21 minutes and 25 seconds later, the Comanche’s crew shattered the world record … by more than a day.

Brave the high seas as we set sail on one of the most amazing and inspiring journeys ever to take place on film.

A Great Big Film dedicated to Comanche, made in partnership with Land Rover ( http://www.landroverusa.com/vehicles/… ).

About Comanche

Comanche is a 100 ft (33 m) maxi yacht. She was designed in France by VPLP and Guillaume Verdier and built in the United States by Hodgdon Yachts for Dr. James H. Clark and christened as  Comanche . 

Comanche  holds the 24-hour sailing record for monohulls, covering 618 nm, for an average of 25.75 knots or 47.69 kmh/h. The boat won line honours in the 2015 Fastnet race and the 2015 Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race, under the leadership of skipper Ken Read. In 2017,  Comanche  set a new Transpac record, covering 484.1 nmi in 24 hours, for an average speed of 20.2 knots (37.4 km/h). In 2019, under navigator Stan Honey, the yacht won the 2225-mile 50th Transpacific Yacht Race, with a time of 5 days 11 hours 14 minutes 05 seconds.  Comanche  won the 2017 Sydney to Hobart yacht race, with a time of 1 day 9 hours 15 minutes 24 seconds, a record that still stands today.

At 5 days 14 hours 21 minutes 25 seconds, the sailing yacht holds the Monohull Transatlantic sailing record for the fastest crossing of the Atlantic Ocean, which they achieved on July 28, 2016.

In December 2017, was sold to Australian Jim Cooney, and was renamed to LDV Comanche, as part of a one-time sponsorship from SAIC Maxus Automotive Co’s  LDV  brand. The yacht later returned to its original, unsponsored title of Comanche. Under this name it won the Sydney-Hobart race again in 2019 in 1 day 18 hours and 30 minutes.

Soon after the completion of the 2019 Sydney-Hobart race, Comanche was reportedly sold to a Russian interest group. [7]  Details of the sale have not been disclosed as of yet.

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The John Winning Jr-skippered maxi yacht, Andoo Comanche, produced a masterclass of high-speed sailing to win Line Honours in the SOLAS Big Boat Challenge on Sydney Harbour today. Meanwhile, the Jim Cooney-skippered and owned Volvo 70 Willow was declared the overall winner.

Under glorious sun and in southerly 15 knot winds that suited perfectly, Andoo Comanche was first to finish the two-lap harbor course.

See LIVE: 2022 SOLAS Big Boat Challenge

After reaching a maximum speed of 27 knots, she crossed the finish line off Rushcutters Bay in 53 minutes 58 seconds. In Andoo Comanche’s wake and in order were the three other maxis – Christian Beck’s LawConnect in 55 minutes 18 seconds, Peter Harburg’s Black Jack (skippered by Mark Bradford) in 56 minutes 35 seconds and the Oatley family-owned Hamilton Island Wild Oats, skippered by Mark Richards, in 59 minutes 27 seconds.

“We had a good day. We started where we wanted to start,” said Winning Jr.

“We just want wind. We were lucky that we had a nice reach off the start to be able to be first at the bottom mark. We are thankful to the weather Gods for giving us that wind.”

First to finish behind the maxis was Willow, fifth in 1 hour 4 minutes 8 seconds, followed by the Grant Wharington-skippered Botin 80 Stefan Racing, 10 seconds further behind, then Anthony and David Johnston’s Reichel/Pugh 72 URM Group, skippered by Marcus Ashley-Jones, in 1 hour 7 minutes 39 seconds. The Duncan Hine-skippered Reichel/Pugh 66 Alive, owned by Phillip Turner, was just another 2 seconds behind, followed by Whisper (David Griffith), No Limit (David Gotze) and Moneypenny (Sean Langman) in that order.

“It was a really exciting race… We had a solid start. We were quite happy with our position,” said Cooney afterwards, adding that while “everything went to plan” in the race overall, the crew “recovered well” after one hiccup – a furling issue relatively early in the race.

The SOLAS Big Boat Challenge is one of the final lead-up events to the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race. While the Rolex Sydney Hobart is a vastly different race, the SOLAS Big Boat Challenge was still witnessed by a strong spectator fleet that provided a superb taste of what to expect for the Boxing Day start.

After some exciting jostling for position, the fleet of 11 boats set off from Point Piper, with bows virtually aligned towards the first mark at Cannae Point.

LawConnect was the fastest off the start, but soon Andoo Comanche picked up pace to sweep by and take a commanding lead. Andoo Comanche reached the first mark after about 11 minutes.

On the upwind leg to Shark Island, Andoo Comanche extended her lead to 43 seconds over LawConnect, followed by Black Jack. Hamilton Island Wild Oats fell off the pace to turn at Shark Island a little more than two minutes down.

Over the last lap of the race, Andoo Comanche consolidated her lead for a trouble-free run to the finish after passing the Cannae Point and Shark Island marks once more.

LawConnect was the Maxi Division’s overall winner on 8 points, followed by Hamilton Island Wild Oats on 10 points, Black Jack on 10.5 points and Andoo Comanche on 12.5 points.

In the Mini Maxi Division, URM Group was crowned champion on 6 points, ahead of Willow, Alive, Whisper, Moneypenny and No Limit.

“The boat is well prepared. We’ve been working on it for a couple of years now,” said URM Group owner Anthony Johnston afterwards.

“We sailed pretty conservatively. We thought we would take a cautious approach. We had a few points up our sleeves. We’re happy with where the boat is. The crew is going really well. We are quite confident [ahead of the 2022 Rolex Sydney Hobart].”

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Yacht Racing for Fun and Profit — Schooner America and Maxi Comanche

International yacht racing has traditionally been a sport for the rich. The cliche that a yacht is a hole in the water into which the owner pours money, is often repeated because it is, more often than not, highly accurate.

In rare cases, however, there are exceptions. One such example was the syndicated formed by John Cox Stevens , the founder and first commodore of the New York Yacht Club. The idea was to build a racing yacht to show off U.S. shipbuilding skill and to make money through competing in yachting regattas. 

The design of the schooner America was based on George Steers’ pilot boat designs, whose concave waterlines were influenced by the designs of American clipper ships. On August 22, 1851,  America won the Royal Yacht Squadron’s 53-mile (85 km) regatta around the Isle of Wight by 18 minutes and was awarded the squadron’s “One Hundred Sovereign Cup.” 

What does this have to do with the sale of Comanche ? Just as Comanche was sold shortly after her recent Sydney Hobart race, so too was the schooner yacht America sold within weeks of winning the One Hundred Sovereign Cup to John de Blaquiere, 2nd Baron de Blaquiere. I am not aware of any record of the transaction, but it was rumored that Stevens and his investors netted a tidy profit in the deal. Stevens and his team sailed home with the cup which would subsequently be known as the America’s Cup . 

In the first America’s Cup challenge race of 1870, the famous schooner was one of the competitors. After passing through several owners, including a short career as a Confederate blockade runner during the Civil War, schooner America was owned by the US Navy in the first America’s Cup race.  The schooner came in 6th overall.

Yacht Racing for Fun and Profit — Schooner America and Maxi Comanche — 5 Comments

Boat is a accronym. Bring On Another Thousand

I get so pissed off with “the rich man sport” bit. The sport employs tens of thousands of people worldwide in an industry which is nothing short of philanthropy.

This is a quote from my soon to be published book:

“Often associated with privilege and class, the reality could not be further from the truth. In it we participate in a dangerous sport in a confined space working with all creeds, colours, religions, ages, backgrounds and any other box that one might be put into and who you may or may not like. Regardless you must perform physically and mentally demanding choreographed manoeuvres, problem solve, work as a team and as an individual. More importantly, of an evening, you must socialise with your crew of all creeds, colours, religions, ages, backgrounds and who you may or may not like. As a sport, sailing creates young people with sound team working, man management and social skills of the highest level.”

It is the guys low down that the generosity of the guys at the top makes possible creates some of the best sport in the world.

The Comanche cost a reported $15 million to build. That doesn’t include outfitting, upkeep or crew costs. I have no doubt that the other four maxis in race cost more. To my mind, that is a rich man’s sport. This doesn’t mean that anyone with a boat is rich or that the thousands of those employed in the industry are rich either. This is also the case in all other “rich men’s sports” from horse racing to grand prix racing.

You can have a boat or you can have money. You cannot have both.P

I only wish sailboat racers knew to follow rules of the road. Or at least, not traipse back and forth across harbor entrances (pet peeve of Squalicum Harbor).

As to the rest, if some fraction of things that racers commission to design and build trickle down to reproducible technology the rest of us can employ, terrific. Fin keel with a hefty bulb? Antiquated in the elite racing world but at my level, I like . Buying one attached to a boat at an affordable price? Even better. And somebody else paid to cut all of that brush. 🙂

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The (Really) Big Boats Have Arrived

Those enormous, pricey Maxi yachts have joined the Caribbean racing season and will be at Les Voiles de St. Barth.

By John Clarke

It has taken a few years, delayed by the pandemic, but formal Maxi yacht racing is coming to the Caribbean, considerably increasing the competitive opportunities sailors have to race their sleek monohull behemoths that can reach 100 feet long.

Les Voiles de St. Barth Richard Mille, which begins on Sunday, will join the inaugural I.M.A. Caribbean Maxi Challenge, a four-stop event created to increase the participation of Maxis in those regattas and draw more Maxis to the Caribbean sailing circuit.

“Maxi sailors are really excited because this increases the standards and quality, and the number of regattas they can sail,” said Benoît de Froidmont, president of the International Maxi Association . “Now we will have proper starts and courses.”

And more opportunities to sail their boats, which are expensive to maintain and cost as much as $10 million — owners want to get as much out of their boats as possible. “The biggest sin is to let these boats just sit,” said Ken Keefe, a former America’s Cup sailor who manages and sails on Vesper, a Maxi 72.

After a two-year pause for many regattas around the world because of the pandemic, sailors are excited about the new series, Keefe said. But many are also practicing a degree of restraint because of Covid and the war in Ukraine.

“Everyone is still a little shellshocked coming out of Covid,” he said. “We are all counting our blessings, but are more reserved this year — we won’t be dancing on tables. But the overall feeling is: Let’s get back to sailing, let’s get the band back together.”

Modeled after the races in the Mediterranean Maxi circuits, the Caribbean challenge invites Maxis over 60 feet long to compete February through May at the Caribbean 600 in Antigua, the St. Maarten Heineken Regatta, Les Voiles de St. Barth, and at Antigua Sailing Week.

To qualify for the series, sailors must compete in a minimum of two of the events, though this may eventually be increased to three once the circuit is better established, said James Boyd, an I.M.A. spokesman. Teams that compete in more than two events get to discard their worst result.

Technically, the addition of the Caribbean Maxi Challenge adds to I.M.A.-sanctioned Maxi events, but not all Maxi sailors were planning on sailing all four of the Caribbean events. Many will sail in just two or three and win on cumulative performance points, de Froidmont said.

Keefe, who manages logistics for Vesper, which includes transporting the boat around the world, said it would be possible to do all four of the Caribbean regattas and still take part in the Mediterranean sailing seasons.

“It can work out to move these boats around and boat in nice places and do it in a safe manner,” Keefe said. “The trick is to get the boat out of the Caribbean as soon as the series ends to avoid the hurricane season.”

The first stop of the series was the Caribbean 600 in Antigua. Comanche, a 100-foot Verdier design, won the regatta, followed by the VO65 Sailing Poland and the VO70 I Love Poland.

Conditions were challenging. One sailor told the I.M.A website that the race was one of the hardest in the world.

“It is like a heavyweight boxing match — the lefts and the rights just keep coming at you and you wait for that knockout punch,” said Richard Clarke, a tactician for Warrior Won. “No lead is safe until the very end.”

The Russian-owned Comanche, a recent trans-Atlantic ocean race winner and a dominating presence in regattas, withdrew from the Caribbean Maxi Challenge after World Sailing, the sports’ governing body, banned Russian participation because of the war in Ukraine. Skorpios, a ClubSwan 125 Maxi yacht, also withdrew under similar circumstances.

“There’s an awareness of what’s going on in Ukraine,” Keefe said. “The Russians have touched our sport in a strange way.”

The second stop, the St. Maarten Heineken Regatta, held in early March, was four days of racing. Sailing Poland took first, Janssen de Jong-DutchSail second and I Love Poland third.

The third stop is the Les Voiles de St. Barth, and the fourth and final is Antigua Sailing Week, which starts April 30.

The winners of Maxi racing receive only a trophy and bragging rights. “It remains an ancient sport,” de Froidmont said. “There is no prize money, just very passionate people who enjoy the challenge.”

The number of Maxis competing has increased over the past several years, he said, and should continue to rise.

Boyd, the I.M.A. spokesman, said it might take a few years to build a deep fleet for the Caribbean Maxi Challenge.

“This is the first year,’’ he said, “so we imagine it will take a few years for this to gain traction fully. Nonetheless, we are pleased with the Maxi turnout.

“The Maxi participation in Les Voiles de St. Barth is also looking strong with I.M.A. members participating from both sides of the Atlantic,” Boyd added. Twelve Maxis are scheduled to race.

Currently leading the series is the VO70 I Love Poland ahead of the Farr 100 Leopard 3.

“But neither is competing in St. Barth, so it could be that we will see some new teams move into the lead after St Barth and Antigua,” Boyd said.

“We have some incredible competition this year,” said Keefe, who has won the Voiles de St. Barth four times. “I can’t wait.”

Jim Cooney buys Comanche – the super maxi will now call Australia home

One of the favourites to take line honours in the 2017 Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race, LDV Comanche, was purchased today (14 December 2017) by Sydney’s Jim Cooney from its American owner Jim Clark, making the super maxi yacht an Australian owned and skippered entry when it starts the Boxing Day classic.

“LDV Comanche is a truly awe-inspiring yacht, and the chance to race to Hobart, alongside my children Julia and James with a world class crew, is a once in a lifetime opportunity too good to pass up. I started ocean racing 30 years ago and we have raced as a family in many parts of the world for 12 years, but this is an incredible opportunity for us to challenge for the world’s toughest blue water classic,” says Jim Cooney, who finished sixth on line in last year’s race at the helm of his Volvo 70 ‘Maserati’ and campaigned his iconic maxi Brindabella for seven years before that.

“This year competition is fierce, with the strongest line up of super maxis ever seen in one race. Depending on conditions, any of the 100 footers could take line honours, it threatens be one of the best races in the history of the event,” Cooney stated today.

Jim Cooney is the Chairman and majority shareholder of TCI Renewables, a professional wind energy development company headquartered in Oxford, UK. Jim is a Chartered Engineer who co-founded TCI in Australia in 1996 and successfully developed the business to span the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada and the United States. He is an accomplished industry leader in renewable energy, specialising in wind energy, and under his direction TCI Renewables has developed some of the largest wind farms in the UK.  In 2005 Jim was honoured with the prestigious Ernst & Young Australian Entrepreneur of the Year.  He holds degrees from the University of Sydney, University of London and Imperial College, London.

LDV Comanche will continue to carry the colours of the Chinese vehicle manufacturer LDV, which is using the yacht and the race as part of the launch of  its new LDV T60 Ute.

The crew on LDV Comanche reads like a who’s who of the sailing world and following the change in ownership, will gain some new names. As well as Jim Cooney, the crew will now include Jim’s son and daughter Julia and James Cooney alongside Waratah Jeremy Tilse.

The stellar crew includes three time America’s cup winner and 2015 Rolex Sydney Hobart Winner Jimmy Spithill (Australia); eleven time winner of the Transpac race and round the world race winner Stan Honey (USA); round the world race winner Brad Jackson (New Zealand); Olympic and round the world sailor Dirk de Ridder (Netherlands); multiple America’s Cup sailor and Rolex Sydney Hobart winner Warwick Fleury (New Zealand); America’s Cup sailor, Nick Burridge (New Zealand); Olympic, America’s Cup and round the world sailor Shannon Falcone (UK); Rolex Sydney Hobart race winner on Comanche, John Von Schwarz (USA); six time round the world racer and seven time America’s Cup competitor, Tony ‘Trae’ Rae (New Zealand); Sydney Hobart winner on board Comanche and the sport’s world renowned ‘Mr Fixit’, Casey Smith (Australia); Extreme sailing expert Stuart Pollard (Australia); round the world sailor Justin Slattery (Ireland); Rolex Sydney Hobart winner on Comanche Keats Keeley (USA); round the world sailor David Rolfe (Australia); and project manager Tim Hackett who has managed some of the leading teams around the world.

Launched as ‘Comanche’, and now called ‘LDV Comanche’ for the 2017 Rolex Sydney Hobart Race, the 100 foot maxi racing yacht holds a remarkable list of records, all of which show her to be the ideal yacht for the Rolex Sydney Hobart Race. The yacht holds the 24 hour sailing distance record for monohulls and the trans-Atlantic crossing record of 5 days, 14 hours, 21 minutes and 25 seconds. In addition to the 2015 Rolex Sydney Hobart Race, she won the no less tough Fastnet Race. This year she smashed the monohull record in the Transpac race with an average speed of 20.2 knots.

‘LDV Comanche’s nickname, “the aircraft carrier”, gives away what sets her apart from two of her rivals, Black Jack and Wild Oats XI. Indeed, her beam at the stern is so great it could accommodate both Black Jack and Wild Oats XI. Her optimum heel angle is anything over 20 degrees and she has the same wetted surface as Wild Oats XI at 25 degrees. The 46 metre/150 feet high mast sits directly above the canting keel and she designed deliberately to be able to – just – slip under Sydney Harbour Bridge. The mast has a static load of 75 tonnes and 150 tonnes under sail, or, to put it another way, the same weight as 80 LDV T60 Utes hanging from the mast.

Suspended from the mast is a 410 square metre mainsail, which will carry a massive picture of an LDV T60 Ute for the race. In downwind configuration, this expands to a massive 1022 square metres and the largest spinnaker is 1100 square metres. Under the yacht is a canting keel that may be swung out 35 degrees in either direction in as little as 25 seconds, while there is space on either side of the hull for 6.5 tonnes of water in the ballast tanks.

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Comanche and Powerplay lead stellar fleet in RORC Transatlantic Race

• Helen Fretter
• January 9, 2022

RORC Transatlantic Race sees a 30-boat fleet race from Lanzarote to Grenada ranging from 32ft double-handers to 100-footer Maxis

The eighth running of the RORC Transatlantic Race has attracted its strongest ever fleet, with a varied line up ranging from the 100ft canting keel Maxi Comanche to a double-handed team on the 32ft JPK 10.10 Jangada . Thirty teams, with crew from 27 nations, set off from Lanzarote to Grenada yesterday, Saturday 8 January, 2022.

Contesting for RORC Transatlantic Race line honours are three 70ft trimarans. Peter Cunningham’s MOD70 PowerPlay  made an impressive start, ripping off the line at speeds of over 30 knots, with a crew that includes America’s Cup sailor and double Olympic Gold Medallist Giles Scott on board. PowerPlay was first to clear the passage between Lanzarote and Fuerteventura and after 24 hours of racing had a 40-mile lead over Jason Carroll’s MOD70 Argo (USA) and Giovanni Soldini’s Multi70 Maserati (ITA).

Before the start British multihull supremo Brian Thompson, who is tactician on Argo , commented: “It’s going to be a fantastic competition between four boats for Multihull Line Honours. The winner will be the team that manages these powerful boats, especially in the rough conditions, and the one that takes the best route. This year the trade winds are not as normal as they should be, so for the record we will have to wait and see. It is always exciting to race across the Atlantic; it hasn’t got any smaller or any easier!”

The 2022 RORC Transatlantic Race features three 70ft trimarans. Photo: James Mitchell/RORC

Also racing in the MOCRA fleet are Alex Thomson and Neal McDonald. Thomson, making his first competitive outing since announcing his retirement from IMOCA 60 racing , is sailing aboard Ken Howery’s Gunboat 68 Tosca . Tosca is one of many yachts still heading north-east as complex weather patterns sent many of the fleet north of the rhumbline, rather than the conventional ‘south ‘til the butter melts’ tradewind route.

Onboard photographer and crew member Patrick Condy reported: “Settling in well and speeding along. Ken Howery leads the max speed score – 26.1 knots! Not super warm onboard and only getting colder further north.”

Alex Thomson and Neal McDonald are aboard the Gunboat 68 Tosca in the 2022 RORC Transatantic Race. Photo James Mitchell/RORC

RORC Transatlantic tactics

Whilst there is a high pressure system north of the Cape Verde islands, a low-pressure system tracking from Nova Scotia is forecast to disrupt the north-easterly trade winds in the next 24 hours for the RORC Transatlantic fleet.

The key decision for the leading boats is when to gybe west; Go too early and the wind will decrease, go later and there is the possibility of 40-knot headwinds and big waves. This morning the 100ft Maxi yacht Comanche was first to turn their nose south-west towards Grenada.

Comanche is the largest yacht in the 2022 RORC Transatlantic Race. Photo James Mitchell/RORC

Comanche , skippered by Mitch Booth for its new owners, has an all-star cast onboard and will be eyeing the transatlantic record as well as monohull line honours. The giant monohull, often nicknamed the ‘aircraft carrier’ for its exceptional beam, is the current holder of the monohull west-east transatlantic time to beat (Ambrose Light – Lizard Point) at 5d 14h 21m 25s.

Also competing in IRC Super Zero are a number of former Volvo Ocean Race yachts, including the Volvo 70 L4 Trifork , with ocean racing legend Bouwe Bekking aboard as principal helmsman and strategist.

Some of the closest racing could be in the IRC Zero class, with the Botin 52s Caro and Tala going head to head, along with the Botin 56 Black Pearl . After 24 hours of racing the three had made equal ground to the west, Tala some 18 miles north of class leader Caro , with Black Pearl a similar margin further south.

Photo: James Mitchell/RORC Transatlantic Race

Within IRC 1 there has been a split in tactics, with some boats opting to take rougher sea conditions in favour of good breeze by heading north early, while boats that stayed further south are slowed in the wind shadow west of Tenerife island.

However, a long-term strategy may yet pan out for the southerly boats, as Chris Jackson explains from on board Pata Negra : “Looking at the extreme north track, it seems to us to be very uncomfortable and also risky on getting a route south later in the race, of course this could change. We are sticking closer to the rhumb line, which will hopefully give us a better route south later.”

Double-handed transat

Meanwhile the lowest rated yacht in the RORC Transatlantic Race could yet be one of the most competitively sailed. Jeremy Waitt and Richard Palmer are co-skippers of the JPK 10.10 Jangada , one of the most successful and experienced double-handed teams around.

Jangada is competing in the 2022 RORC Transatlantic Race double-handed. Photo James Mitchell/RORC

Richard Palmer commented before the start: “We are a small boat in a big ocean and looking at the weather we’re going to be in big waves, and our light boat gets rocked around much more than the larger entries. The biggest challenge for us is fatigue. With only two of us on board, staying awake is one of the biggest tests.”

Jeremy Waitt added: “Our biggest strength is that we have raced thousands of miles together, including this race, and in light winds we think we could take an advantage compared to the big boats. The bigger boats will tend to get much faster into new weather systems and that can be a disadvantage. For Jangada , the weather tends to come to us, so keeping out of rough weather is much harder.”

Follow the RORC Transatlantic Race tracker

Published on December 14th, 2017 | by Editor

Comanche finds new owner Down Under

Published on December 14th, 2017 by Editor -->

Comanche, the innovative record-breaking 100 foot maxi yacht designed by VPLP and Guillaume Verdier and launched in 2014 for Jim and Kristy Clark, has been sold to Australian Jim Cooney.

The yacht was to compete in the 628 nm Sydney Hobart Race as LDV Comanche under partnership between Clark and two-time race winner Neville Crichton, but the last-minute sale now will have Sydney skipper Cooney at the helm.

“I have stepped down as skipper, we still have sponsorship for the boat, and if for any reason he can’t do it, I will step back into this shoes,” Crichton said.

Crichton had assembled a world-class crew for the race – including America’s Cup skipper James Spithill and many of the men who raced her to victory in the 2015 Hobart race. The crew will stay aboard while Cooney, daughter Julia, son James and Waratah Jeremy Tilse join the crew.

“We are all just so excited about doing the race on her, she is one not the most remarkable yachts in the world. I’ve actually never sailed it before. We are all going sailing on Tuesday (Dec. 19) to understand what sort of beast she is.’’

The new ownership means every supermaxi on the start line of the Sydney to Hobart will be racing for an Australian victory. The other three are Black Jack (previously Alfa Romeo), Infotrack (previously Perpetual Loyal), and Wild Oats XI.

“How amazing that pretty much the four fastest boats in the world are now all Australian owned,” said Cooney, chairman and major shareholder of TCI Renewables, a wind energy development company.

“This year competition is fierce, with the strongest line up of super maxis ever seen in one race. Depending on conditions, any of the 100 footers could take line honours, it threatens be one of the best races in the history of the event.”

The race starts on Boxing Day at 1300hrs AEDT and will be broadcast live on the Seven Network throughout Australia.

Event details – Entry list – Facebook

Source: perthnow.com

Tags: Comanche , Jim Clark , Neville Crichton , Sydney Hobart

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