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An interesting look at the new VPLP Gunboat 80 full-race version
Launched in early June for Irvine Laidlaw, a Scottish baron, the first Gunboat 80 made her regatta debut in the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup (3–9 September, Porto Cervo). Xavier Guilbaud, Partner Naval Architect at VPLP Design, and Benoît Lebizay, Managing Partner at Gunboat, were aboard to present this exceptional catamaran.
She’s the eighth Gunboat to be launched since the brand was picked up in 2016 by Grand Large Yachting, and she’s also the biggest. While seven Gunboats ranging in size from the Gunboat 68 to the Gunboat 72 flybridge have already gone into the water since last spring, the new Gunboat 80 represents another step forward for the range of ocean cruising catamarans built by the yard based in La Grande Motte (France).
“We honoured the brand’s DNA, notably with the inclusion of a cockpit forward and a helm station inside,” says Xavier Guilbaud. “But we also managed to move the mast further aft, stepping it on the coachroof, which results in a more balanced sail plan and a better centre of gravity.” Unlike her predecessors whose carbon cored layup was infused in-house, the 80 was built entirely with pre-impregnated carbon fibre, a construction process also used on the big racing boats (Ultim, IMOCA).
Because of this, Gunboat decided to outsource the manufacture of the hulls, superstructure and bulkheads to Multiplast (Vannes) and Fibre Mechanics (Lymington). It took two years to build the first boat. “On this model we are assemblers, in the best sense of the word. More than ever our expertise lies in our capacity to manage the integration of complex systems in a body whose weight estimate is strictly controlled. Weight estimates are, by the way, a contractual obligation at Gunboat,” says CEO Benoit Lebizay.
This focus on weight began way back in the concept stage, because the boat’s lines and structure were designed for the most unfavourable loading scenario, in this instance 29 tonnes light displacement. The second Gunboat 80, which was commissioned by the American Jason Caroll (owner and skipper of the MOD70 Argo) for fast cruising with his family, should be close to this maximum displacement…
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