Multiplast goes to New Zealand

______________________________________________________________________
Three technicians from the Multiplast yard flew off to Auckland on Sunday Oct. 24, 1999, to take part in the optimisation of 6e Sens, the French challenger in the America's Cup 2000, between two Round Robins of the qualification series.
Three technicians from the Multiplast yard flew off to Auckland on Sunday Oct. 24, 1999, to take part in the optimisation of 6e Sens, the French challenger in the America's Cup 2000. Built by Multiplast, 6e Sens is 80 feet long and has more than 2,150 square feet of sail downwind. On Wednesday Oct. 27

she finishes the first series of preliminary Round Robins of the Louis Vuitton Cup on in Auckland. From this date onwards through to Nov. 4, when she will be measured prior to the 2nd series of Round Robins, she will undergo many improvements.

The boat will first receive a new keel with a thinner cross-section and less wetted surface. While the old keel placed the onus on manoeuvrability during circling, the new one should increase the sheer speed of 6e Sens and thereby enable the Défi Français to achieve their stated goal: be among the first 6 boats and qualify to take part in the challengers semi-final.Although the keel was made in New Zealand, the Défi has preferred to call upon Multiplast to install it. Yann Penfornis, one of the three architects in the Gilles Ollier Design Team, the yard's design office : "We undertake all of the work that requires a high degree of precision. In this particular instance, the keel has to be exactly vertical and lie in the boat's centreline. Besides, removing the old keel is not that easy because it is held in place not only by boldts but also by watertight glues which may refuse to give way." Other alterations will be made : a new rudder is to be put on and the counter's trailing edges are to be softened down to keep pitching to a minimum. The latter task will be placed in the hands of a New-Zealand yard, but the Défi is also going to rely on the skill of the French technicians : "To be sure of what we are doing, we need to involve people who are familiar with the boat's background".