On 16 June 2018, 50 years after Sir Robin Knox-Johnston set off on his non-stop circumnavigation of the globe, the Golden Globe Race will start from Falmouth. This race is intended to follow in the footsteps of the first race organised by Sunday Time in 1968.
Endurance 35
For this reason, the boats authorised to take part and the means used by the sailors are far removed from what can be found in today's ocean racing. No foils, no carbon, no sails on furlers or weather maps received on board by satellite?
- Long keel sailing boats
- In order to participate in the race, boats must :
- Being a polyester construction
- Be designed before 1988 and be mass-produced with a minimum of 20 units
- Have a hull length of between 32 and 36 feet
- Having a long keel with a rudder attached to the trailing edge
- Have a light displacement of at least 6200 kg
Rustler 36
There are more than twenty boats that meet these criteria (complete list at the end of this article). A few skippers pre-registered for the race have already bought their boat. Thus in the list of declared boats you will find :
- Baba 35 (x2)
- Biscay 36 (x2)
- Endurance 35 (x3)
- Lello 34 (x3)
- Nicholson 32
- OE 32
- Rustler 36 (x5)
- Tradewind 35 (x3)
The allowed modifications are quite basic. The boat must be as close as possible to the production boat. Only modifications to ensure greater safety are accepted.
Sails and rigging
- The rigging cannot be higher than the original.
- Sails must be made of Dacron, Polyester or Nylon. High-tech weaves are prohibited.
- The number of sails is limited to 11 for sloops or coters (one mast) and 13 for ketches (2 masts).
- All the sails of the boat will be counted at the start of the race. Each sail missing at the finish will result in a full day penalty.
- The sock for the spinnaker is forbidden.
- Elastics for fastening the spinnaker are forbidden. Only woollen strands are allowed.
- Genoa furling systems are allowed. Not the furler for code zero.
- Facilities
The boat cannot be lightened by removing fittings. Only minor modifications are allowed such as deleting the central table for example. On the contrary, it is advisable to reinforce it and add watertight bulkheads.
Baba 35
Security
That's the only point on which the race has evolved to be more in tune with today's tastes. Thus the yachts will be equipped with position tracking beacons, distress beacons and an iridium telephone to have weekly contact with the race committee.
List of yachts authorized to take the start of the Golden Globe Race :
- Aries 32
- Baba 35
- Biscay 36
- Bowman 36
- Cabo Rico 34
- Cape Dory 36
- Endurance 35
- Eric (sister ship to Suhaili)
- Gaia 36
- Scabies Force 34
- Hans Christian 33T
- Hinckley Pilot 35
- Lello 34
- Nicholson 32 MKX-XI
- OE 32
- Rustler 36
- Saga 34
- Saltram 36
- Tashiba 36
- Tradewind 35
- Vancouver 32 & 34
- Westsail 32
