![]() ![]() However, as windsurfers and other craft that could be sailed in shallower water came to the fore in speed sailing other venues were found, or created, which took the flat water and high wind concept a step further. With its sheltered harbour and regular strong winds – particularly in the autumn – it was a great venue. In the early days, Portland near Weymouth in the UK (the sailing venue for the 2012 Olympic Games) was the effective home of speed sailing and saw the first seven records all set there. Weymouth & Portland, UK was the home of early speed records Typically these venues would feature a stretch of water that was flat enough that waves would not be an issue and was also likely to have some decent wind at the time of the event. Initially speed sailing records were set at events run in conjunction with the WSSRC where any number of vessels designed for outright speed would compete over a predetermined 500m course. The current 24-hour record was set at an average speed of 37.83 knots, covering a distance of 907.9 nautical miles in the 24 hour period. The 1 nautical mile can often be competed in a craft designed for the outright record, whereas the 24 hour record is the preserve of ocean-going yachts and multihulls. But there are many other sailing speed records now, all ratified by the WSSRC.Īside from the outright sailing speed record, the one nautical mile record and the 24-hour record are two more highly sought after records. Referring to the sailing speed record and world’s fastest boat, commonly means referencing the World Sailing Speed Record Council’s (WSSRC) 500m record – often called the ‘outright’ speed record and the first to be ratified by then newly formed WSSRC in 1972. Speed for a sailing boat was traditionally focussed – and largely remains so today – on maintaining high average speeds over long distances, rather than trying to create a sail-powered vessel or sailboat that could attain a single high peak speed. Partly it is down to the difficulty of accurately recording speed in the water, and partly due to the fact that because sailboats and sailing craft had long been used for transportation, the tradition of record setting by yacht was all about covering significant distances (crossing oceans, or moving cargo over long stretches of water) in a time that was measured in hours and days, if not weeks. Although the motor car is a newer invention than the sailboat (by many thousands of years!) it was not until 1972 that the first official sailing speed record was set, a full 94 years after the first land speed record was set in a motor vehicle. Speed sailing records are a relatively new concept.
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