One of the unique elements of the One Design era is that all major maintenance is done by a central Boatyard facility, run by Volvo Ocean Race staff, instead of by the teams themselves. Just like dropping your Volvo car off at the dealer for a 50,000-mile service, the Boatyard takes charge.
Instead of getting a coffee and waiting in the customer lounge, the teams will use their time in the pre-Race period to head to Newcastle for a rigorous sea survival course.
With nearly 9,000 nautical miles until the next big service in Cape Town, the Boatyard will do a lot more than just kick the tires. The masts will all come out to be scanned by non-destructive testing specialists to confirm that the challenging Leg Zero racing didn’t leave any lasting effects.
To guarantee the best level of service the Boatyard uses the original manufacturers to maintain the equipment on the Volvo Ocean 65s. This means that, for example, Harken will work alongside the Boatyard hardware specialists to service the winches, Dutch Mastervolt electricians will check the Lithium Ion batteries, Italian hydraulics specialists will service the Cariboni keel system and British electronics experts from B&G will calibrate the instruments. In short, the Boatyard becomes a dusty, oily version of the United Nations and staff jumps from 20 to 55 during the intensive maintenance periods.
We’re confident they’re in great shape and by the time we’re done with them the boats will be fit to go the distance, all the way to Cape Town
Neil Cox, Head of the Boatyard
The Volvo Ocean Race crews are able to push their boats mercilessly, safe in the knowledge that there is this high level of care waiting for them in the next port. Different legs will put different levels of wear and tear on the boats, and their crews, and the level of service waiting in port reflects that. Major overhauls where the boats will be taken out of the water, and the boats given a full service are reserved for Cape Town, Hong Kong, Auckland, Itajaí and Cardiff. Lighter touch ups are reserved for Melbourne, Newport and Gothenburg where the boats must stay in the water during the stopover.
Beyond carefully checking over the boats after an estimated 12,000 miles of pre-race testing, the Boatyard is charged with confirming that the boats are perfectly identical and will issue the measurement certificates that allow them to race as a one design fleet. This involves adding corrector weights to individual components like the boom and the mast so that the boats weigh exactly the same, piece by piece and as a whole boat.
Come 30 September, the closest One Design fleet on the open ocean will be shiny clean and street legal, ready to race!
