Matthew Sheahan
HOW MUCH FLY-BY-WIRE TECHNOLOGY SHOULD BE ALLOWED IN GRAND PRIX SAILING? THE SPORT IS AT A CROSSROADS...
As the black carbon cockpit slid silently away from its docking station I became aware of how vulnerable I felt. Perched 3m up in the air, in the dark, wearing a crash helmet complete with audio comms and a Spinlock deck harness that had me strapped on a short leash to the cockpit floor, the giant wraparound Imax-style screen lit up to immerse me in my new virtual world.
The experience was already alien, but so too was the physical reality of the replica cockpit of a F50 foiling cat – and the test sail hadn’t even started.
Aside from recognising the wheel and understanding what the ‘rudder differential’ buttons were supposed to do, the rest of the complex layout with its coloured buttons and switches was completely unfamiliar to me.
Artemis Technologies’ fully articulating simulator is an impressive piece of kit, unique in the sailing world. And as Helen Fretter reported in last month’s issue, the simulator, which is based in an industrial unit in Slough just a stone’s throw from London's Heathrow airport, is being used to train crews for the new Sailgp circuit that kicks off in February.
Once under way the ride is alarmingly real as sound, vision and motion create what Artemis’ former helmsman Nathan Outteridge claims is incredibly close to the real thing.
The sim controller, sitting at his desk at the back of the room, can dial in various levels of automated assistance ranging from automated flight control to fully manual.
As I tried to get to grips with the beast he gradually eased me towards more manual control. As he did so, the full and sometimes violent motion started to kick in.
Although I’ve seen and understood how Cup helmsmen use the throttle-like twist grip on their wheels to control the boat’s ride height, when it comes to doing so yourself it’s extremely hard. For starters, the ride height control provides another dimension to deal with and when your natural tendency to control heel is by bearing away or heading up, it’s difficult to feel how ride height factors into the mix.
Indeed, getting to grips with how much or little, how fast or how slow you should wind the angle of attack on the main foil on and off is a task in itself.
Of the three things I enjoy most, sailing, flying and motorcycling, a lifetime afloat was the least useful skill at this moment –while the other two proved to be far more relevant. Even so, while I can pat my head and rub my belly in a circular motion, this was the equivalent of juggling and solving the Rubik’s cube at the same time.
And all the while the cockpit is rearing like a bucking horse, threatening to eject you. No wonder Pete Burling sat down for most of the Cup.
This is most likely the closest I’ll ever get to helming an F50 and it was quite an experience. But this simulator represents far more than simply a training device for foiling cat sailors.
The whole concept of fly-by-wire in sailing and the ability to make things possible that simply weren’t before, delivers the sport to an interesting crossroads.
How much, if any, computer assistance should we allow in our sport? We are now on the brink of a performance breakthrough that could affect more than just the grand prix racing end of the sport. The F50 is said to be capable of exceeding 50 knots, possible because of skinny ‘unstable’ foils that need to be controlled like a computer controls a Eurofighter Typhoon’s jet’s wing to allow the plane to be devastatingly nimble.
In the sailing world, a similar principle could, for instance, allow smart autopilots connected to more efficient rudder blades that minimise roll and increase performance beyond what is reasonably achievable by the average helmsman.
Aside from speed, this could make sailing safer for all just as ABS and traction control has done in our cars.
At the grand prix end of the scale, the technology could allow foiling to be a far safer and yet faster affair. At least one new manufacturer I know of has already adopted such systems for a new one-design boat in the interests of both safety and speed.
So should the rules be opened up to allow control systems or should we make a special category as was done for powered winch systems and canting keels?
I know where I stand on this – it’s time for the tech.
‘UNDER WAY, THE RIDE IS ALARMINGLY REAL’