Gitana 80 Handbook

Guide/Book Page

Gitana 80 Handbook

Gitana 80 - Open 60 Sailboat: A 60-foot monohull (Imoca class).
Skipper: Loïck Peyron
Designed by Farr Yacht Design and put together at New Zealand's Southern Ocean Marine boatyard during the winter of 2006-2007, Gitana Eighty's arrival marked the return of a monohull to the Gitana fleet. Courtesy of its cutting-edge design, this new monuhull is ideal for its prime objective: solo sailing.

Gitana 80 major technical innovations:

• A satellite within the vessel was imagined, designed and then made a reality. Positioned on a track, it allows the half a ton of equipment (sails, food, safety gear) to be slid along with every change of tack or when gybing without any special effort.
• Gitana Eighty also benefits from a variable-geometry hull bottom, known as a trim tab. Situated on the monohull's extreme stern, it facilitates the regulation of the boat's fore-and-aft trim and its adaptation to sea and wind conditions or the vessel's speed.
• The final important innovation is the sliders, a pair of panels which slide between the mast and the rear platform. They permit aerodynamic savings and reduce the amount of water entering the cockpit, thereby offering the skipper increased comfort and allowing the latter to adjust his sails more often and more precisely. This ergonomic optimisation helps conserve energy and maintain physical condition.

Gitana 80 Video

Gitana 80

Skipper : Loïck Peyron
Architects: Farr Yacht Design (USA)
Constructor: Southern Ocean Marine (New Zealand)
No. of sails: 80
First launched: July 2007
Overall length: 20 m
Hull length: 18.28 m (60 feet)
Width: 5.80 m
Clearage: 30.50 m
Draught: 4.50 m
Weight: 8.7 t
Structure: Nomex-carbon sandwich
Rudders: carbon
Mast height: 29 m
Maximum sail area: 600 m2
Construction time: 26,500 hours

Photos: Yvan Zedda Gitana S.A.

The Gitana name is steeped in history, and it is by way of homage to his father, Baron Edmond, who would have turned 80 in 2007, that Baron Benjamin de Rothschild decided to christen this new boat Gitana Eighty.