The Ronin 140 is the ultimate design for the ultimate race, "The Race", a fully crewed, non-stop, circumnavigation of our planet. This ship is a full-blooded 140 foot (43 meter) multihull; no parameter has been compromised to get to this size. The mast is a 200 foot (61 meter) tall rotating carbon wingmast. To generate the stability required to carry a rig this large, and to provide stability in the Southern Ocean, she is 92 feet (28 meters) wide. The most noticeable characteristic is the central Pod, a long tubular structure running nearly the length of the boat. This serves a number of important functions. It carries the enormous fore-aft loads of the rig. It provides torsional stiffness for the entire structure, accepting loads from the crossbeams as they flare out to meet the Pod. The crew lives and works in the Pod. It provides a more comfortable environment out of the cold and noisy water. This is important to reduce crew fatigue and to allow the crew to produce maximum effort continually during the expected 65 day duration of "The Race" onboard the Ronin140. Velocity predictions indicate that the Ronin 140 is capable of best average speeds of over 36 knots during a 24 hour period. There are many technical challenges in designing a racing multihull of this size. Some have expressed concern over issues ranging from mast size to structural stresses to sail handling. We feel that we have solid technical solutions and look forward to demonstrating these. |
