Bank Syz Sponsors New Sailing Craft

Paul A Adams

21 September 2007

Continuing its long association with sailing, Geneva based Banque Syz is joining forces with Alex Schneiter, Patrick Firmenich and Jean Psarofaghis – three of Lake Geneva’s most successful sailors – in a cutting-edge project on the lake: the construction of a revolutionary hydrofoil catamaran. The three initiators of the project have started work on building what should become the fastest multi-hull yacht on Lake Geneva with a view to both beating Lake Geneva speed records and winning its main races (most notably the Bol d’Or). Although the hydrofoil is a shorter boat, the main aim is to compete with the Decision 35s – currently the fastest yachts on the lake. The Syz & Co will be a hydrofoil catamaran (with lifting foils under the hulls). The principle behind the hydrofoil yacht is to raise the boat’s hulls so that only the foils remain in contact with the water. This decreases the friction and substantially reduces the drag in the water, allowing the yacht to achieve far greater speeds than traditional boats. As Alex Schneiter explained: “we want to build a boat that is capable of taking off from a speed of 10 knots. In order to rise up out of the water, the boat needs to be powerful. But once stabilized on its foils it does not need to maintain the same degree of power, as this will almost certainly capsize the boat. We have therefore developed solutions aimed at reducing the boat’s power almost immediately on take-off.” The boat will be built entirely of carbon, thus keeping weight to a minimum while maintaining high levels of rigidity. It will have a tipping mast and the boat length will be between twenty-eight and thirty-five feet. It will have a complex system of orientable foils, allowing it to perform well at all speeds. The goal is to reach twice the true wind speed, with a maximum speed of 35-38 knots. Construction will commence in October, with the launch scheduled for the end of the first quarter of 2008, leaving time for refinements before the regatta season gets underway.