Sam Goodchild and Henri-Lloyd strive for perfection together
by Mark Jardine 3 Mar 00:30 PST
Sam Goodchild has spent nearly as much time sailing as he has ashore in the past few years. His rise in the IMOCA class has made him one of the most highly respected stars of offshore sailing.
As he showed us during the last Vendée Globe, he can ride through adversity, taking on all challenges with courage, confidence and determination. Once ashore, he knows how to give feedback to the technical and design teams, a crucial element in developing the next generation of racing yachts. These are ever faster, but also more ergonomic, so that the incredible power of a modern offshore yacht is controllable.
Feedback is key to improving the next generation of technical sailing clothing, so when Henri-Lloyd were looking to once again push the boundaries, they turned to Sam, using his knowledge and experience to help us all perform on the water in comfort.
With the changes that we've seen in the IMOCA, and many other offshore classes, much of the sailing is done inside the boat, but whenever you need to make a sail change, or something has to happen on deck, you've got to change quickly into your offshore gear. A smock or drysuit top generally gives you the most protection, and Henri-Lloyd's Ocean PRO range brings the features of a smock to a jacket, which is the ideal Sam has been yearning for:
"A smock which you can zip up and stay dry in is the dream piece of equipment for when you're sitting around in the cockpit with the doors closed, waiting for something to happen, to when you've got to jump on the foredeck, get a new sail out or get a manoeuvre done as quickly as possible, and then you're grinding for 20 minutes, winding the handle, so you're sweating. You need it to be waterproof, breathable, and you don't want to change in and out of it every five minutes, otherwise you're losing time unnecessarily.
"Having a jacket that can do everything, adapt to everything, especially when you're sailing short handed, is the ideal. It is comfortable when you're still, and ready when you need to react quickly. It's what you need in sailing, and that's what we've worked really hard with Henri-Lloyd to make - it's simply a better jacket."
A cruising sailor isn't going to be hitting the 30+ knots of boatspeed that Sam reaches in an IMOCA (he actually hit 39 knots recently), but knowing that their technical sailing clothing has been tested to the extreme provides the knowledge that it will perform when needed, as Sam explained:
"We put the kit through its paces, putting a lot of miles on it really quickly. Whether you're being hit by waves going over 30 knots or just running around the boat, we're putting in a lot of hours, a lot of sailing days. This means, in a short period, you see how the kit will last over time, and how it lives through the wear and tear. So even if it's not exactly what you'll be doing when you're cruising on your boat, our testing is a fast track way of seeing how the kit is going to work."
The part of the Vendée Globe we all see is the race itself, but for the sailors the work begins as soon as the previous edition ends, and Sam has been sailing the MACIF IMOCA which won the last edition, and is arguably the best design currently sailing; in April construction starts on Sam's new yacht for the Vendée Globe 2027/28, which makes it a hugely exciting time for him:
"I'm really lucky. I pinch myself regularly to see if it's real, thinking of where I've come from, dreaming as a nipper on Mike Golding's boat to now sailing one of the best boats on the circuit and having a new boat designed and in build soon for the next Vendée Globe. It's just incredible how I've got here, and the number of people who have helped me along the way is huge. I'm just trying to enjoy the moment as long as it lasts, as who knows when it will stop; it's pretty incredible."
Knut Frostad, Executive Chairman at Henri-Lloyd, added, "Ocean PRO represents a major leap forward in offshore protection. It's not just built to withstand the ocean - it's built to empower sailors to perform at their peak, sustainably and comfortably, for longer than ever before."
Sam's determination as he works towards the next goal is exciting to watch, and the feedback he has given already has helped Henri-Lloyd evolve, refine and elevate technical sailing clothing. Sam Goodchild is in many ways the perfect Ambassador for Henri-Lloyd.
Find out more about Ocean PRO at www.henrilloyd.com/pages/introducing-the-ocean-pro