Winner of One Ton Cup with a 1-2-3 glorious defeat Carkeek will deliver for Ràn Racing

After Carkeek Design boats took all three podium places in the HYS One Ton Cup Fast40+ in Cowes at the weekend, both the designer and class were further buoyed by the announcement today (Tuesday) that Rán Racing have commissioned a Carkeek boat that will be delivered in 2018.

The Fast40+ high-performance planing monohulls have stormed onto the scene since debuting as a class in Europe in the Solent in 2016. The arrival of owners like Rán Racing, the champion Swedish-flagged team run by Niklas and Catherine Zennström, will take it to the next level. Owner-driver Niklas Zennström is one of the founders of the 52 SUPER SERIES and is President of the TP52 Class.

“Having established owners like Niklas on board is exciting news for us and the class,” Shaun Carkeek, founder of Carkeek Design Partners said. “I’m sure all the other teams will be looking forward to competing against Rán and that others will follow. I’m particularly pleased he chose us as these boats are a labour or love for me - I’ve been designing them for eight years.”

If Zennström needed any confirmation that his boat will have a keen edge in a competitive fleet, the HYS One Ton Cup will have provided it.
After a dramatic penultimate race 7, when they were OCS after being out-manoeuvred, Peter Morton’s CF40+ Girls on Film won a thrilling regatta to become the first team to retain the One Ton Cup since 1993.

“What really impresses me with both my Carkeek boats is their ability to ‘light up’ downwind whilst still being super fast upwind,” Morton said. “We never feel weak with Girls on Film and the boat is easy to drop into the high-speed groove. It's simply a beautifully-balanced boat and a joy to sail. I think our results are testament to how fast she is.”
Stewart Whitehead’s British Carkeek Mk3, Rebellion, finished second overall with Bastiaan de Voogd’s Dutch Carkeek Mk3, Hitchhiker, third.

Hervé Godest, The President of the Cercle de la Voile de Paris (CVP–Paris Yacht Club), who created the cup in 1899, presented Girls on Film with the One Ton Cup. “Modernity and Tradition – The One Ton Cup is in good hands, the FAST40+ yachts are highly technical, and very powerful,” he said.

Carkeek, who has been designing successfully for every high-performance circuit on the globe, right up to the America’s Cup and the Volvo Ocean Race, for over two decades, introduced this class of high-performance 40-footers in the USA eight years ago. After discussion with clients and the New York Yacht Club, Carkeek Design developed the HPR (High Performance Racing) rule and won every major regatta in the USA. Gradually other design offices came round to it and that led to the Fast40+.