New Zealander Stanley Paris, 80, intends to become the oldest person to sail solo around the world non-stop on a sailboat. In addition, he wants to set a record by sailing from Bermuda to Bermuda in less than 150 days.
Despite his age, Paris is very active and has completed the Ironman Triathlon and 4,828 kilometres cycled in 30 days. The latter achievement is only a year old.
Paris intends to make his third attempt on the Finot-Conq 53 Kiwi Spirit II, a yacht very similar to the IMOCA 60 participating in the Vendee Globe.
She is built at Germany's Knierim shipyard. Kiwi Spirit II is 17.33 meters long and 5.26 meters wide. The hull of this racing cruiser was built using carbon fiber prepreg and Corecell sandwich filler. Nomex honeycomb core was used for decks and internal structures to achieve maximum stiffness with minimum weight. The weight of the 17 meters boat is only 10 tons.
The cockpit roof, equipped with solar panels, has been lengthened at the rear to provide additional splash protection. There is no diesel generator on the boat. Instead of a diesel generator four small propellers located on the transom generate the electricity.
An unusual feature for this type of boat, Kiwi Spirit II features a dagger-type lifting keel with a length ranging from the usual 1.60 to 3.75 metres. The 23.3m long mast is offset quite a bit towards the stern. The automatic jib and mainsail on the long boom are controlled by a runner on the transom. « I can sail at full sail, even in high winds, without having to worry about corrugation»," says the owner.
Stanley Paris intends to set sail around the world on November 14, 2017. He is already in Bermuda and is currently trying his hand at the Bermuda One-Two regatta. You can follow his progress on his blog.
