APHRODITE, 3/4 Ton Racing Yacht

Designer’s Notes

Design 201 is a direct spin off from successful One Tons like BRAVURA and the French Admiral's Cup hopeful XERYUS. Our design team recognizes that a 3/4 Tonner has fewer crew thus less movable weight. A wide beam amidships that is carried well aft makes the rail an efficient hiking platform. A narrow waterline beam means low wetted surface for low resistance on down wind legs. This design maximizes heavy air performance with a long fair sailing length and light displacement. We have paid special attention to removing unrated displacement in the hull and keel. In Farr One Tonners our highly optimized keel design has proven fast upwind both on the water in in velocity prediction programs (VPP). This keel promises the same efficiency and speed on the 3/4 design. Even though small in plan form - to reduce resistance off the wind - the shape is maximized for upwind lift and will drive exceptionally well to weather. The rudder is as highly optimized as the keel since we know that much speed may be gained by reducing drag Rudder area and shape are carefully balanced with keel and sail plan for good all around performance. Both keel and rudder design have benefited from extensive tank testing programs recently concluded. The IOR and resulting hull shapes have been fairly constant for several years, so to make gains in rating vs. performance this design focuses on the unrated advantages of centralizing weight low and amidships. The boat will be built of extremely strong and light carbon fiber laminate. Every possible item has been eliminated from the deck and interior. Pounds saved from hull, deck and rig become internal ballast over the keel. Stability is increased so the keel becomes more of a pure, narrow foil rather than ballast. The ballast ratio is 57%. Weight moved out of the keel, hull and mast concentrated low and in the middle of the boat is more effective than weight moved out of the bow and stern. The result is a narrow keel for low drag, high inside ballast ratio for low pitching effect, and a fast, stiff boat. Down below, the forward engine position over the keel allows for even more centralization of weight. It's housing provides a movable navigator's desk. Storage and stove are on either side of the engine. Four pipe berths accommodate the crew. A portable cooler allows food to be brought aboard cold and saves unnecessary structural weight. On deck, refinements in off the shelf gear. We use many pieces for multi-purposes. So deck gear weight is down to a mere 135 kilograms. Major fabricated fittings are designed and specified to be titanium. This 3/4 Tonner has the same size crew work area as Farr One Tonners. Construction is of Carbon Fiber, Kevlar and S-glass over PVC and Nomex coring. The first boat is being built for a Japanese customer by Ian Franklin in Christchurch, New Zealand.