#MOD70 - The Irish Times' Simon Tierney goes for the ride of his life on board one of the super-fast yachts sailing in Dun Laoghaire this weekend on the MOD70 European Tour.
Tierney reports from Brest in France on his "hair-raising" taster trip on the Spindrift, winner of July's Krys Ocean Race across the North Atlantic - completing the 2,950-mile route in just over four days 21 hours.
As he signs a disclaimer and straps on his helmet, he knows he's "not on an ordinary sailing boat. We will be going fast. Very fast."
The Spindrift is one of a five-boat fleet in Dublin on the first stop-over of the four-leg MOD70 European Tour that will later take in Cascais, Marseille and Genoa.
And even in the confines of Dublin Bay racing today, these multi-hull trimarans will be treating the spectators to some incredible feats of speed.
Tierney writes of his experience: "The water is furious in our wake, kicking enormous fountains into the air. I glance at the speed gauge. We are doing 35 knots. This is an extraordinary velocity for a sailing boat. It would be difficult for a speed boat to keep up with us."
As crew member Léo Lucet tells him: "Multihulls can go faster than the wind... [we can] create our own wind. That’s why we can say that the MOD 70’s are in the range of the fastest boats in the world.”
Make sure to catch the fleet in action yourself in Dun Laoghaire before they depart on the next leg to Cascais tomorrow afternoon.
The Irish Times has much more on the story HERE.