Voici un résumé de John Casey concernant le choix du prochain catamaran pour représenter le multi-coque aux Olympiques de 2016 au Brazil, un apperçu des candidats et de leurs potentiels :

John Casey gives us his breakdown on what multihull we’re gonna see for the 2016 Olympics in Brazil. Keep an eye on his site for more, and check back here for his reports from the 2011 US Multihull Championship next week.

The first chasm has been crossed. The multihull is back in the Olympics. The next step is an equipment evaluation in to select the 2016 Olympic catamaran. But what designs are leading the charge for selection? With the only current prescribed criteria as ‘twin trapeze high performance multihull,’ let’s take a look at a few classes and one-designs that have a shot at Olympic glory.
Tornado: This 20’ x 10’ cat was a staple in the Olympics for many years and deserves to be the first mentioned. After being exiled just a short time ago, there has been a huge push by the class president, Roland Gaebler, to get the ‘T’ back in the Games on the basis that he, with his wife as crew, won the last world championships. During its run in the Olympics this class was plagued by very fast sail development, the fight for the latest sail materials, and the ‘Chupacabra’ upwind gennaker, which ended with many teams, the ISAF and fans alike scratching their heads. Can the IOC wipe off the egg and go back to the boat they once rejected? Probably not. Maybe issued sails and boats for the Olympics might help the viability of this class to once again make it to the dance.

Hobie 16: Yep, this boat started it all for cat sailing. Many advocates of the Hobie 16 feel it’s the closest to pure catamaran sailing. I will give it this; it’s the hardest beach cat to sail well. But it doesn’t live up to the prescribed parameter of ‘high performance.’ It’s faster than a lot of monos upwind, but with today’s leap in technology above and below the water, the Hobie 16 falls far short of being an Olympic contender. The International Hobie Class Association isn’t excited to have it submitted as equipment either, so its future in the Games is suspect to say the least.

Formula 18: If this box-rule class wasn’t so strong around the world it would be the perfect selection. F18s are fast, and at only 8’6” wide the loads aren’t as high as say, the Tornado, so it is actually a good candidate for selection as a mixed team boat. There were recent waves in the class when some members felt that any F18 design selected as the Olympic boat should be banned entirely as an F18. It’s pretty hard to outlaw a platform that fits in the rule, so that discussion was squashed quickly, but it shows the members of the class would rather keep this development class out of the O. Most F18 manufacturers will likely submit designs for evaluation, unable to pass on the potential jack they can pocket. The class might not be as reticent if a past design that has been left behind, such as the Hobie Tiger, is selected.

F20c: The latest beach cat off the drawing board of Morelli and Melvin is the Nacra F20c, a carbon hulled 10 1/2’ wide curved foil machine that has the look of a modern multihull. If the IOC wants a catamaran that is actually an America’s Cup trainer, this is it. For a mixed team, its size and power is interesting. It will take a strong sailor in the crew position to get it around the course fast, which I don’t think is a bad thing, but it might not be the equipment of choice for female crews. Time will tell if this new design is ready for prime time.

Marstrom 20: Probably the stiffest and best built beach cat out there, the Marstrom 20 has been a dominant racer for years, winning many distance races but it hasn’t seen much action around the cans. This 20’ curved foil all carbon rocket tips in at only 250 lbs. all up. However, it’s been Frankensteined by owners who have made so many changes that the true one design aspect has been lost. If it is submitted, Marstrom needs to be sure to optimize it for buoy racing and hope for the best.

Drummond Winged Cat Design: Although wings are the present of what is now the top multihull event in the world, the AC, a smaller version of the 45 for the Olympics might not be such a good idea right now. First, the costs associated with maintaining a wing during a regatta and training are very high, including logistics, spare carbon and the tools and know how needed to repair wing sections. There would need to be a dedicated team to maintain the Olympic fleet, and as we’ve seen with the infamous Clark elbow drop, one wrong move during a flip and a wing can be totally destroyed; that’s big dollars right there. Righting is also difficult if water gets through the outer laminate into the wing, which often leads to damage. One good aspect is the working loads for a wing are less, so for a mixed team it’s not so bad. I’m not saying it isn’t viable at some point, it just has quite a few hurdles to jump before it can be taken seriously.

Formula 16: The F16 class isn’t as far along as the F18, so an Olympic selection could actually help the class more than hurt it. For mixed crews the F16 could be a good choice as some women would be able to handle the crew position. It’s been raced by all women crews and mixed crews alike with great success. As F16 is a box-rule class, different manufacturers have builds in everything from all carbon to the most popular design, the Viper, which is e-glass with aluminium crossbars and spar. The AHPC Viper is a front runner right now because of its sturdy construction, wide distribution and versatility in different conditions. With no minimum weight limit, if it is selected it could end up that teams try to be as light as possible, although some in the class feel the boats are so powered up that being around 300 lbs. combined isn’t a hindrance.

Left Field: The mice are surely clicking on designer’s desks to produce a catamaran to be tested as official equipment for the Olympic Games. There is no real parameter that states the class has to be ISAF approved or raced on x-number of continents around the world. Will a design come out of the shadows that is light, exciting, uses today’s technology, and can be reliable enough to make it through training and the Olympics unscathed? Look out. Just as ISAF selected the SL16 out of nowhere as the youth championship boat, the same can happen for the 2016 games. It might not be a bad thing. At least everyone would start from scratch.
It will still be quite some time before potential teams, including me, know what platform will be chosen. There is quite a buzz around right now with current Olympians interested in making the switch. The only thing we can do now is train and sail multi, any multi, to get ready.

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source : http://www.sailinganarchy.com/