| |
  Barge
 | | Mini 6.50 Arkema 3 – Innovation at the service of performance © Vincent Olivaud / Team Lalou Multi |
So if we had Plumb not that long ago, then this has to be about the barge bow. It's not the pram, and we will not pause there any longer than to say I have no idea why we put kids out in those in this modern era, other than it has to be political.
Looking for all the world like a barge from a European river, or something from yesteryear when they used to fell forests in order to make ships, is Arkema 3. Incredible use of the grooviest technology such as wingsail, articulating foils, canting, telescopic and rotating keel, yet along with the fact that she looks more than a bit awkward, she is beautiful. You can check her out here. In the Mini Transat from October 1, 2017, we will certainly see how well this amalgam of all the cool bits goes in such a tiny package. Notwithstanding the lead in events, of course...
 | | A successful 2016 season for Team Arkema Lalou Multi © Vincent Olivaud / Team Lalou Multi |
However, even all of those whizz-bang bits of kit is not really the point here. With a couple of Eastern States nowhere near banning the single use plastic bag, and Queensland soon to do so, she represents a very special purpose. Arkema 3 can stand as proud and forthright as the Statue of Liberty. It is almost as if she is made from a zillion discarded single use water bottles, or a section of the great plastic waste heap in the Pacific, for she is, in essence, recyclable.
Most of that is due to Arkema Chemical Group creating Elium. The styrene-free, liquid thermoplastic acrylic resin allows for the composite structure to be ground down and reused again in another structure. In and of itself that is not entirely new, but it appears that this will not require virgin material to also be a part of the new structure, and that is pretty awesome.
Now if the great Pacific plastic wasteland has material from the 60s in it, which we know because we do not make plastic like that anymore, then it really is monumental. FRP boats came along in the 60s, and many have since been cut up to raise the height of the land above sea level even more. We now have more and more boats of over 40 years of age coming to the end of their use by date. Yep, even plastic has the magic stamp on it. Many have indicated that the resins in those craft cannot be recycled, but ground up they can be used in new structures, mostly as sandwich filler.
 | | Mini 6.50 Arkema 3 – Innovation at the service of performance © Vincent Olivaud / Team Lalou Multi |
There of course is the issue. The old virgin material required as the outer and inner layers thing... So if Elium can do without, then it should be mandated by the industry now, for all the old boats are going to come thundering in to their use by dates with a critical mass akin to meteor strike, and we need a plan in place, yesterday!
This is as crucial to us as humans as all the old Soviet era nuclear submarines tied up in the Arctic Circle that had reactors still on board decaying hulls. The cost of rectification is enormous. The cost of doing nothing will be even larger and felt for far longer. So a barge is a craft with blunt bow and a real purpose in life. It can also mean application of brute force to carve a way through, and that seems terribly apt after all we have just reviewed.
So given we started all this with the Mini Transat, and that not that long ago it was International Women's Day, we need to point out that there are 10 women competing in the event. They follow in the footsteps of women like Isabelle Autissier, Catherine Chabaud, Samantha Davies, Dame Ellen MacArthur and Justine Mettraux. That of course opens the door to Class40, Vendée Globe, Figaro Beneteau with their production foiler, VOR and RTW records, into which our own Lisa Blair will soon arrive, should it all go to plan. She will absolutely hate me for mentioning records, but it is likely, and for that Lisa, take a well-earned bow once you get back over the line at Albany.
 | | Lisa Blair celebrates Earth Hour from the Southern Ocean Lisa Blair |
Smile of the week came from Scuttlebutt's Craig Leweck, who in piece about AC35 said, “...The acrimonious environment had been part of the event's attraction... I miss the cats and dogs. All we have now is cats.” OK. Just as Tim Shaw said, “But wait! There's more.” Now you will have to go to the website for other news, where you'll find plenty of things like articles on AC35, WMRT, The AUS Yachting Championship, the Clipper RTW Race, the VOR, RC44, OK Dinghies, Class 40, racing in the Caribbean, MYC Women's Challenge, Hammo, the Harken sponsored Kurnell Catamaran Club Youth regatta, ESS, buying the Black Jack, and much, much more. Importantly, if you ar win the area, pay very close attention to TC Debbie!
Finally, well done to all the associations and events for all the news you have been supplying. Keep it up. Readers await you! So please ensure you have your club or class do the same via the submit function, just up in the top right of the Sail-World home page. In the meantime, go for a wander to review the proverbial plethora of material for you to explore on the site, from all over the globe. Also, do keep a weather eye on Sail-World. We are here to bring you the whole story...
John Curnow
 |
 |
|