A French kiteboat team has broken the 100km/h speed barrier.
The team behind the SP80 kiteboat is aiming to to break the world speed sailing record set by Paul Larsen aboard Vestas Sailrocket II, with an average of 65.45 knots over 500 meters.
In testing the SP80 kiteboat reached a top speed of over 58 knots, or 108km/h which the team says confirms the boat’s potential and makes it faster than the most advanced sailboats in the world, from the AC75s of the America’s Cup to the F50s on the SailGP circuit.
“This is a major milestone for the entire team,” said Mayeul van den Broek, SP80 pilot.
This is a major milestone for the entire team.
Mayeul van den Broek
“Very few sailboats in history have broken the 100km/h barrier, and we’re now tangibly closing in on our ultimate goal.
“What’s especially encouraging is being able to repeat those speeds multiple times throughout the week.
“It confirms not only the boat’s reliability, but also its capacity to go even faster. From here, the work continues: analyzing the data on land, and refining our handling on the water as soon as the wind allows.”
500 meter distance
The short-term objective for SP80 is to hold the speeds that have been achieved over a distance of 500 meters, as only the average speed over this distance is eligible for official world record certification.
“We know the boat has the potential—now it’s up to us to become more precise in our handling,” explained Benoît Gaudiot, kite pilot.
“We’re discovering how the boat behaves beyond 100km/h and learning to control it. This week, we came close several times to averaging 50 knots over 500 meters.
Further trials are planned to take place throughout June, off the coast of France.
