Edouard Kessi is a well-known figure in the sailing world. He recently sailed from Cape Town, South Africa, to Antarctica, transporting the explorer Mike Horn to the start of . Along the way, Kessi had to deal with ice flows, the notorious Roaring Forties, and the unpredictable conditions of the Southern Ocean. Kessi has so many stories to tell. We recently interviewed him aboard Race for Water. But as he answered our questions, Kessi’s eyes, and his thoughts, were focused on the yacht’s innovative kite drive system. Kessi spoke with us during Race for Water’s maiden voyage, from Lorient, France, to Madeira, off the coast of Portugal.
“This yacht is an incredible piece of technology; it’s crossing the oceans to raise environmental awareness and spread the word about what is possible,” says Kessi, just after landing in Madeira. During the first five days the catamaran was at sea, engineers from the German firm SkySails worked with Race for Water’s crew to make some final adjustments to the kite, test onboard systems, and fine-tune the mechanisms that control the kite when it is deployed.
Kite plus solar panels: a successful hybrid system
“On Wednesday, we had the kite up for 14 hours, and we even managed to take it down at night with no problems,” says Kessi, clearly pleased with the results. “The kite propelled the yacht at an average speed of five knots with zero engine power. That allows the solar panels to fully recharge the yacht’s batteries.” The kite flies at an altitude of 150 meters, a level where the wind currents are strong and stable. “The key to this kite drive system is that it moves in a figure-eight pattern. That kind of dynamic motion generates so much force that it can propel a yacht that weighs over 100 tons,” reports Kessi. Depending on the wind speed, more than one kite can be deployed at once; Race for Water has five kites on board.
During the first leg of Race for Water’s journey, the crew finalized most of the important details that will allow the yacht to travel safely across the oceans. This was a huge task, and the crew worked on the kite drive system while sailing nearly 24 hours a day. “Race for Water’s entire crew and the SkySails team worked tirelessly; we accomplished everything we set out to do in terms of the kite system,” Kessi told us. “But kite propulsion systems for yachts are still evolving. Every time we launch the kite, we get new data and new results; it really keeps us motivated.” During this process, Race for Water’s technical manager Jean-Marc Normant keeps the whole team energized and working together.
Race for Water’s maiden voyage proved that these two propulsion systems—kite and solar, wind and sun—can work together to power a 100-ton yacht around the world, producing zero emissions and operating safely and efficiently.