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Bill Tripp On Creating A New Breed Of Sailing Yacht
While Bill Tripp may still be under a nondisclosure agreement for the 85m Y711 Oceanco and Vitters superyacht - which emerged from the yard in May 2015 - the designer of the incredibly graceful, yet powerfully built, project unveiled the drive behind the boat.
“Now that the boat is public, we launched the boat in the end of May and went through the commissioning process, we’ve done the powering trials successfully which are ticked off at a top speed of 18 knots, we’ve been out in 2 metre waves and we managed to keep the glasses upright … It looks like it’s going to be a very exciting and interesting boat to sail.”
The design and execution of all components of this 85.9 metre yacht ensure that guests and crew alike will sail in safety and comfort. Given her design characteristics, she will be as nimble and as easy to handle as a yacht of smaller dimensions, proving that a super sailing yacht can have competitive sailing capabilities with relative ease of handling.
“A boat like this, working with Vitters and Oceanco, we really have two charges here. One is to make a great sailing boat, but it also has to be an excellent power boat because it’s going to click off some miles … and occasionally, you can turn off the engines put out the sails and go 20 knots, I think we’ll be going 25 knots in the boat in easy conditions. When you’re on a boat and it’s blowing 30 knots, you don’t feel like you’re out in a lot of breeze and you’ll just feel the connection of the sky, the water and the wind.”
As can be expected from both naval architects and builders, this is a true sailing yacht, performing well at all points of sail and benefitting from exhaustive engineering and superior craftsmanship. For more information on this incredible project, listen to Naval Architect & Designer Bill Tripp for an exclusive insight into Oceanco’s first sailing yacht.