VANNES, FRANCE — Work continues on the 110-foot maxi-catamaran Club Med as Grant Dalton and his team prepare for the no-design limit round-the-world adventure known simply as The Race, which starts off in Barcelona on December 31, 2000. A shroud of secrecy now surrounds the final stages of construction as the paint goes on the carbon fiber hulls and the huge sails and spars take shape. The vessel should be completely finished within a month as the team works feverishly toward an April launch date.
Club Med is one of three Gilles Ollier designed catamarans the Multiplast yard is building for the event. And even though the project is winding up, there is still plenty to do. The small task of finishing the interior remains on the list (although ocean-going accommodations will be less than luxurious) as does the installation of the electronics system that will keep the team in contact with shore-side support. The team is hoping the changes in details between the sisterships and Club Med will spell the difference on the high seas. Winches and blocks are going on as Grant Dalton and technical manager Frenchman Jean Maurel use the final stages to implement other design options to set their craft apart from the other high performing Multiplast products. Among those revealed are a special halyard and a trap door at the bottom of the mast allowing a man to be hoisted from the inside of the mast to the top if necessary. Another peculiarity of the mast is that its construction, like that of Club Med itself, integrates all fittings from the outset. Instead of being add-on titanium hounds like in the past, these parts are now made from unidirectional carbon fiber and are part and parcel of the mast. Dalton who will co-skipper the boat has five round-the-world races behind him, and has won The Whitbread Race twice.