| Despite the long commute, a second owner-driver team from ‘down under’ will be joining the GC32 Racing Tour when it gets underway at the end of May on Lake Garda, Italy.
New Zealander Simon Hull and his Frank Racing are no strangers to high performance multihulls, nor even the GC32 flying catamaran. For the last nine years they have been enthusiastically campaigning what was originally a top French ORMA 60 trimaran – Michel Desjoyeaux’ Route du Rhum and The Transat winner, Géant. Since acquiring his three float flier, the Hull trophy cabinet expended rapidly, as he snapped up repeated line honours in events such as New Zealand’s Coastal Classic, set records in races to Fiji and Noumea and even competed in Australia’s ‘glamour’ regattas at Airlie Beach and Hamilton Island.
Lift off on Frank Racing. Photo ©: Suellen Hurling | LiveSailDie.com
Hull says he closely followed the transformation of the America’s Cup catamarans into full foilers and, as someone enthusiastic about pioneering boat technology, was keen to experience airborne sailing for himself: “I enjoy speed and I saw foiling at the next way forward; a good discipline to learn.”
Designed by Martin Fischer, now Design Co-ordinator of the 36th America’s Cup Challenger of Record Luna Rossa, the GC32 fitted the bill perfectly: Tailored for owner-drivers, with a conventional softsail rig instead of a wing, no hydraulics, no Cyclors, the ability for the boat to be packed up and road trailed and yet capable of 30+ knot speeds and flying in less than 10 knots of wind. “These little boats are wonderful – you get back to seat of the pants sailing,” enthuses Hull. “I hadn’t done anything apart from keelboats and big multis for a long time - they’re not dry, but for this you have to put a wet suit on…”
For Hull and Frank Racing, the GC32 Racing Tour starts strongly with the first ever GC32 World Championship over 23-27th May. With a fleet size in the mid-teens, the biggest ever gathering of the one design foiling catamarans, Hull admits he is uneasy about the challenge: “The Worlds will be fairly daunting given the number of foilers and the reaching starts…”
Hull is also joining the GC32 Racing Tour as it will allow him to compete on some bucket-list sailing venues. The World Championship for example is being held in renowned Italian sailing mecca, Lake Garda. “It sounds like a wonderful venue with lots of wind and flat water - it is going to be fun,” he says.
Given that New Zealand won the America’s Cup last year in foiling catamarans, there is no shortage of talented crew to join Frank Racing. One is his son Harry who trims, plus Guy Endean, Stu Dodson and Josh Salthouse, all by coincidence from New Zealand’s most famous sailing dynasties.
Dodson will not be with them at the Worlds as he is already competing aboard Oman Air. He is being replaced by Kiwi match racing skipper, Will Tiller. |
