So much to do, so little time, and no excuse to lose!

Quantum Big Cheese Larry Leonard gives you a great look inside the new Quantum Racing TP 52 program. Enjoy.

Anyone that has participated in the design and construction of a new boat will tell you there is never enough time and rarely does the team sail in its first scheduled event. Incredibly though, without the deadline of a regatta, some boats would never get finished. With this in mind, Doug Devos commissioned a new TP52 last fall providing an incredible opportunity for Quantum and the Lexus team that would be assembled to compete. Added to this anomaly, was the hard fact that we were getting a late start, as we planned to join the TP52 Class in Europe and the 2005 circuit. Tough decisions with regard to design and builder would need to be made and made in a hurry if we were to have any chance of joining the fleet in Punta Ala for the first event of the series.

In developing a winning strategy for our program we elected to be less conservative in our approach and based our selection of designer, boat builder and spar builder on their ability to provide us with a proprietary opportunity for development and creativity. Given this opportunity we investigated every inch of the TP52 box rule in an attempt to provide small speed advantages in each of the critical areas of design, which included hull, appendage, and spar design, deck layout, and sail development. As a result we have many unique features and systems that we hope will provide the edge we need to be successful.

We also new time was short, so one of the critical factors in selecting a builder would be delivery schedule. This eventually led us to Europe where shipping could be eliminated and the potential for a 30 day savings could be realized. With this decided, our team, was complete, Reichel/Pugh – Yacht Design, Carbon Tech – Spar Builder, and Barcos Deportivos (Trimarine) – Yacht Builder.

Now we turned our attention to the sailing team and the potential for sponsorship based on their credibility. This led to conversations with several of our sport’s top sailors, some of which had prior commitments to AC campaigns. Much to our delight, and good fortune, Russell Coutts became available, and joined the team soon thereafter, which then led to the Lexus sponsorship and the addition of Mark Reynolds, Peter Isler, and Jes Gram-Hansen in the afterguard. By anybody’s standards, a dream team of talent which ultimately would create an expectation that there would be no excuse to loose.

As our excitement mounted and the scheduled delivery drew near, it quickly became apparent that the boat would be late. Quickly, we realized that not only would we miss our first practice event in Barcelona, but we would be lucky if we made the first scoring event in Punta Ala at all. To even make this event it would take a Herculean effort on the part of the builders and crew, requiring a 400 mile delivery from Tarragona, Spain, to Punta Ala, Italy, and air transport of the mast from Australia. So with little or no time left the boat and crew posted on Saturday prior to the event start on Monday, with less then 2 hours of sailing used for checking sails and structural integrity of the build.

The next two days were consumed by boat building and very little crew training as we hurried to prepare the boat for racing. Not the best situation but better then the alternative. To do well on the circuit and have any chance of winning the summer long event we needed to at least participate, not a situation any of the team would have chosen, but a set of circumstances we would need to do our best to overcome. Adding to our problems, we discovered a rudder bearing problem on Sunday that could not be fixed until the completion of racing on Monday. Essentially, as the rudder loaded, the lower bearing was unable to align itself, as it contacted the outer skin of the hull laminate. As a result, the more we heeled, the more the rudder loaded, and the less we could steer. I guess that’s why Russell gets the big bucks.

At the completion of racing on Monday we received permission to get hauled and were able to fix the rudder. This was a welcome relief and allowed us to prepare for an offshore race which was scheduled to start Tuesday, the next day.

Our results continued to go up and down for the remainder of the regatta, with a high point on Thursday when we won our first race going away in a 30 mile medium distance course.

Now the real work begins for the next event. The good news is the boat shows very good speed and has the potential to be one of the top boats. The bad news is we only have 3 weeks to get ready for the next event in Valencia. We now have some measure of our competition and must respond with improvements in sails, crew work, and systems. For those of us who have been here since the beginning and recognize the opportunity, we fully understand that there will be no excuse to lose in Valencia.

Larry Leonard

15-Jun-2005