Silverline boat to undergo changes prior to Turkish Grand Prix

by Powerboat P1 media on 6 Jun 2009 Drew Langdon has revealed that the #47 Silverline boat will undergo some changes prior to the Turkish Grand Prix of the Sea in Istanbul.

Following the team’s winter switch from SuperSport, Silverline currently occupy third spot in the Evolution class World Championship standings after a solid debut performance in Malta. Langdon believes the team’s latest alterations could improve the boat’s speed by up to five miles per hour.

'The team is on a two-stage strategy, the first being to prove that the Silverline boat is reliable,' says the full-time British property developer.

'The second is to improve our speed. We have parts coming from Norway, the United States and from here in the United Kingdom. Therefore, we will be making a few changes to the boat which we hope will improve our PowerPole qualifying time. We should be quicker to be honest.

'The significant changes to the set-up should give us another 5 mph. This will result in improved positions as the season goes on.

'The boat modification parts which are being sent to Istanbul will improve our overall performance. We are in pretty good shape at the moment. The boat is on its way to Istanbul at the moment having left Genoa on Monday.

Langdon is slightly concerned that there will be limited opportunity to test the Silverline hull before qualifying in Istanbul, but is expecting an improved performance.

'Unfortunately, once we get to Turkey there is not too much time for testing, but I am sure it is an obstacle we can overcome and it won’t be too much of a problem.

'All of the teams have capable crews and boats. I don’t see anyone who particularly stands out, or anyone who will be left behind. The competition should be fierce. We are just hoping to improve at every Grand Prix of the Sea.'

Langdon also stated that both he and team-mate Jan Falkowski had few concerns over their switch to the Evolution class for the 2009 season.

'It has not been too bad switching from open-canopy racing to closed-canopy as it is not something alien to either of us Jan or myself as we raced our other boat for three years in the Pro-Vee series in the early 2000s.'

If reliability was achieved in Malta, then a quicker Silverline should be a genuine threat to the Outerlimits boats in Istanbul and for the remainder of the P1 season.

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