Outfitting a boat, no matter if it is a J/24 or a super yacht, is all about balancing priorities. The owner of this super yacht chose dacron for the massive sails on his 154-footer (47 Meters). Woven polyester, commonly know by DuPont’s trademark “Dacron,” is still the most used material for making sailboat sails. These photos were taken during VENTUS’s her maiden voyage with her new sails made by the UK Sailmakers loft in Marmaris, Turkey. These sails are enormous! The total sail area for the genoa, staysail, main and mizzen is 11,108 square feet. For reference, the schooner AMERICA’s upwind sail area was less than half that at 5,300 sq/ft and the J Boat RANGER’s upwind sail area was 7,546 sq/ft. VENTUS was built for luxury cruising with one big master cabin and four guest cabins. The 11-person crew share six crew cabins. Her hull is a wood/epoxy composite, which is a specialty of her Turkish super yacht builder Mengi Yay Yachts. The detail photo shows Baris Celik of UK Sailmakers Turkey standing next to the huge hydraulic furler for the 2,088 sq/ft staysail. The genoa is a massive 3886 sq/ft. While most owners would choose a lighter and less stretchy material to make sails for their super yacht, remember the saying of, “He who writes the checks calls the shots.”
SUPER YACHT CHOSE DACRON
