An interview with Peter Bresnan about OneSails and the 2017 ORC Worlds

by David Schmidt, Sail-World USA Editor on 3 Jul 2017 Spend enough time sailing, and you quickly learn that how a boat rates under a certain handicap system can have a massive impact on the boat’s overall performance and regatta success. Get this handicap formula right in terms of vessel preparation and sail selection, and the results can lead to a memorable regatta; get it wrong, and it can be an exercise in frustration. Even more exasperating is the fact that there are multiple handicap rules afloat, making it potentially challenging to go racing in different fleets and in different kinds of regattas without big changes and possibly even new rating certificates.

While the same boat can be rated under multiple rating rules, some rules encourage owners to buy certain types of sails, while other rating rules might influence different choices, thus adding significant expense to an already important set of decisions.

The Offshore Racing Congress (ORC) rule was born in 2007 to replace the IRC rating rule that became popular in the early 1990s. There are currently two kinds of ORC handicap rules, ORC-Club, which is intended for club-level racers, and the fully international ORCi rule, which is a rich and developed system capable of accommodating top-level campaigns and high-performance boats such as TP52s, fast 40s and sportboats such as Melges 32s and Farr 30s (as well as a heck of a lot of other contemporary and classic hardware that falls in between these examples).

The 2017 ORC Worlds (June 30 to July 8) are currently unfurling on the Gulf of Trieste (in the northeast pocket of the Adriatic Sea, near the Italian-Slovenian border) and have attracted some of Europe’s most sophisticated boats and fastest sailors. The event, which was organized by six different yacht clubs, is using Porto San Rocco as its official venue and is being scored via the international version of the ORC rule.

OneSails was named as the exclusive sailmaker for the 2017 ORC Worlds, so I caught up with naval architect Peter Bresnan, founder of ONE Palma and a member of OneSails Group’s Technical Team, via email to learn more about OneSails’ involvement with the 2017 ORC Worlds.

Can you tell me about how OneSails was chosen as the exclusive sailmaker for the ORC Worlds?
OneSails has been heavily involved in designing sails for boats competing in ORC regattas. In general, we study the rule to ensure the sails we produce are ORC-optimized. For example, here in Palma de Mallorca this is standard and something we do regularly as a complimentary service for any yacht of any size. In fact, we’ve just finished ORC optimizing an X35, a Brenta 42, and an SWS 100. Currently, we’re working on a new build; Brenta 80 hull #2 “Makai,” whose sails we’ve optimized for the ORC rule in case the owners decide to race.

Couple this with the fact that the first- and second-place winners at the ORC Worlds 2016 in Copenhagen were powered exclusively by OneSails and [the fact that] OneSails is the second-largest sail making group in the Mediterranean, we were the natural choice.

Has OneSails been involved with building sails for the ORC rating rule for a long time, or is this a new venture for the firm?

Yes we’ve been involved from the outset of the ORC rule. OneSails is celebrating its tenth anniversary, and we’ve been leaders in designing, producing and optimizing sails for the ORC rule-and One Design [classes], such as the Optimist class where we’re World Champions, and in the X35 class where we’re European Champions-for just as long.

Are ORC-specific sails built differently than sails for other rating rules, for example IRC?
Yes they are very differently designed. In ORC, the sails are custom-designed for the boat’s sweet spot whereas in IRC, the sails are designed for the rating sweet spot.

In IRC, you can request three trial certificates (per sail parameter) to determine the rating of the boat. In ORC, the trial certificates are unlimited for a cost, but if your sailmaker has the VPP [velocity prediction program] software, it’s totally unlimited.

Also, for IRC, if you fall outside of the rating sweet spot, your rating won’t be as good in relation to your actual boat speed. Whereas in ORC, you could have a Melges 32 or a TP52 or an X37 or Swan 45 or Dehler 36, all of which are extremely competitive boats in ORC and some more than 10 years old in terms of design. In other words, any boat will be fairly rated in ORC and the sweet spot is larger.

For example, let’s say you have a code zero. In ORC and IRC, the mid-girth measurement rule for this sail is different. As a result, the ORC code zero is a more efficient flying shape than the IRC code zero.

What does it mean to be the exclusive sailmaker for the ORC Worlds? Can competitors with sail inventories from other lofts (e.g., North, Quantum, et al) also participate in the ORC Worlds, or do competitors have to buy OneSails to race? Or, are you guys serving as the repair loft for the event?
First of all, for us ORC Worlds is an amazing opportunity to showcase all of our technical capabilities and services to the racing fraternity. In the past, we’ve been told we’re the best-kept secret in the Med. We want that secret to get out!

Competitors can have sails from any loft and we will be providing on site sails service and repair, as well as weather reporting. Our weather-reporting support will ensure competitors know what the wind will be like each day to enable crews to make smarter sail choices and tactical decisions.

OneSails will guarantee dedicated support to over 130 crews, regardless of [their] onboard sail brand, thanks to a 24-hour mobile sail loft in Porto San Rocco, which will be staffed with multilingual sailmakers, and the two closer lofts in Verona and Materija (Slovenia.) A RIB will be dedicated to the direct onboard pick-up and delivery of sails.

As the exclusive sailmaker, is OneSails also involved with measuring each competitor’s sail inventory to ensure that it complies with the boat’s rating, or is that a job for the race committee?
That’s a job for the race committee. However, this is all taken into consideration when OneSails designs and produces sails to begin with. Then, our in-house ORC measurers check to ensure each sail complies and will thereby secure the best ORC rating possible. This is all part of our ORC optimization standard and general quality control.

Has OneSails’ market presence grown a lot in Europe in the last year? What about the last three-to-five years? Can you give us an idea of where OneSails is coming from, and where the company aims to go in the future?
OneSails has seen steady growth over the last five years. We’ve grown to 43 lofts in 26 countries on three continents. We’re leaders in One Design (as the official sailmaker for the Deutsche Segel-Bundesliga,) we’re European Champions (in the X35 class,) World Champions in Optimist and ORC World Championships. In addition, the very first MC50 performance cruising catamaran from McConaghy Multihulls will be suited in our 4T FORTE Black high-performance cruising sails and hull #2 of the new Brenta 80 is being suited as we speak in custom sails. So, we’re growing across all segments.

OneSails is all about optimizing and I think this is part of the reason behind our success. These accolades and our dedicated service make us a choice sailmaker. Our end goal is always to provide the best service and the best on-the-water experience so our customers come back. I think this is what makes us different.

Anything else that you’d like to add, for the record?
In terms of ORC, it’s a great rule. It was chosen for the prestigious Rolex Swan Cup Porto Cervo for the 2016 regatta and it will be interesting to see if they maintain that in 2018 and beyond. This year, the Rolex Swan Cup Caribbean will also use the ORC rule.

As for OneSails International, we’re always looking ahead and innovating.
We started sailing with soft reefable wings in 2005 with the Onesails Omer wing sail, rigid wings then popped up in The America’s Cup in 2010; we worked with Teijin Corp. to develop the most high performance structural sailmaking fiber in the world, STR high modulus, with only 1.4 % elongation, which has been very successful for cruising and racing sails; we’re the only sailmaker to provide 100% recyclable sails, which we produce in house; and we’re one of few sailmakers that shares best practices and sail designs across our network.

We plan to open lofts in the U.S. soon, we’re already talking to several Vendee Globe participants impressed by OneSails’ shapeholding and longevity about using our sails. Other than that, we’ll continue to invest in the future while quietly trailblazing.