A fully refitted Translated 9 has set sail for the Southern Ocean
by Translated s.r.l. 28 Oct 2022 20:04 PDT
Translated 9 © Francesco Ferri
Translated 9, the Swan 65 owned by Translated and now completely refitted, has set sail for the Southern Ocean to finish selecting its crew (70% non-professionals) and start training for the Ocean Globe Race 2023.
The process of refitting the Swan 65 is complete after a year of hard work at a shipyard in Fano (Italy), led by the Malingri team with the support of architects, designers, engineers and - most importantly - some of the crew.
"We need the crew to know and understand every single detail of the boat," said Marco Trombetti, shipowner and co-skipper, "because in the middle of the ocean we won't have any external assistance".
Over the past 12 months, the boat has been completely restored with the purpose of making her safer and faster.
"A very important part of the refitting and race preparation process concerned the deck," explained Vittorio Malingri, co-skipper and technical manager of Translated 9. "Our boat is 50 years old, and she needed to be repaired, restored, and prepared for the race".
The team also had to fix corrosion and rust, reinforce the boat's structure, replace the electrical and hydraulic systems, and restore the rudder and the engine.
Trombetti explained: "We chose the Swan 65 because she was the strongest boat and, in refitting her, we wanted to return her to the same strength as when she was built".
Translated 9 will compete in the Ocean Globe Race 2023, a retro regatta to be undertaken without any modern technology onboard, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first Whitbread Round the World Race and the bravery of humans.
Last week, the boat was set in the water in Marina dei Cesari (Fano), the masts were assembled, and the last few details were refined.
Marco Veglia, Translated 9 architect and designer, said: "For me, the most interesting part of this whole adventure has been working with the amazing design conceived 50 years ago by Sparkman & Stephens, and having the opportunity to use modern technological tools to return the boat to her former glory and prepare her to tackle a round-the-world race again".
On Saturday, October 22nd, Translated 9 finally set sail for the Southern Ocean.
On the first few days of her journey, in the Mediterranean, the Malingri team will now have the opportunity to fine-tune the beautiful Swan 65, built in 1977, and first captained by Clare Francis in the second edition of the Whitbread Round the World Race.
To reach the ocean, Translated 9 will first stop in Bari, Reggio Calabria, Cagliari, Mahón and Alicante. During these legs, forty shortlisted applicants will take turns to try out for an official place in the Translated 9 crew.
"Sailing around the world is a dream that all of us have had at some point in our life," Trombetti said, "and we wanted to give the opportunity to make this dream come true for as many people as possible. Now we come to the final stage to choose who will be part of the official Translated 9 crew. It's a tough selection process. Out of over 1,000 applications from all over the world, 150 people took part in the first part of the process. 40 of them made it to the final stage. Every applicant onboard has proved themselves to be brave, optimistic, a wishful thinker, a hard worker, and a team player."
After a short stop in Alicante, Translated 9 will announce the crew and begin training in the Southern Ocean.