KZ Racefurl

Race Furler

A look at products chosen by leading race boats, by Roger McMillan.

Jib furlers have been around for more than 70 years, but it is only with the relatively recent move from symmetrical to asymmetrical downwind sails that they have become an integral feature on top race boats. Every leading supermaxi, Volvo, IRC or TP52 boat now features a prodder from which are flown a variety of asymmetrical sails such as gennakers, reachers, screachers, Code Zeros and Solents.

Prior to the 2009 Sydney-Hobart, there was much discussion about the new R1, a huge (647sq m) reaching sail carried by both Alfa Romeo and Wild Oats XI that runs from the end of the prod to the masthead and which is measured as a headsail, not a spinnaker, under IRC rules. Michael Coxon, managing director of North Sails Australia and a member of the victorious Alfa Romeo crew, credited Alfa’s first use of the R1, when Wild Oats XI was still flying a Code Zero reacher, with Alfa’s winning break off Green Cape.

With each new generation of boats over the past 10 to 15 years, the prods have became longer and the sails have become bigger. This has lead to new techniques on the foredeck and new hardware to facilitate quick sail changes. Central to these changes has been the development of the race furler, first seen in the Volvo Ocean Race
of 2002/03.

The furling system consists of a head swivel at the masthead and a furling drum at deck level, connected by a stay. The sail is tightly wound onto the stay by spinning the furling drum, allowing the sail to be handed with ease by the foredeck crew. To achieve a tight roll, the halyard and stay must be extremely tight and the head swivel must rotate at the same rate as the furling drum. The line between the headfurler and drum is usually a Future Fibres torsional cable which will take the load and torsional twist needed to furl correctly.

A quick check of the leading race boats showed that most favoured one particular brand of furler, the KZ Racefurl. While in New Zealand recently for the Bay of Islands regatta, I visited the factory to find out why.

According to KZ Marine’s Group Sales Manager, Richard Mackay, the secret lies in hand-production. Instead of churning out thousands of products at a time, meaning they all have to be sold before an improvement can be made, KZ have always hand-made the furlers in small numbers in their Auckland factory.

“We have worked with the world’s best sailors, listening to what they want and incorporating their ideas into our designs. In a nutshell, three Volvo races have taught us what’s required to get huge sails on and off the foredeck in the worst possible conditions,” he said.

According to Richard, the two key elements of an effective furler are reliability and weight. Making a very light product that won’t fail at a critical moment was the major challenge, which he believes KZ Marine has met.

KZ’s client list affirms that statement. As well as Alfa Romeo, Wild Oats XI and ICAP Leopard (the first three boats across the line in the 2009 Hobart), KZ Racefurlers were fitted to the first five boats in the 2008/09 Volvo Ocean Race, to Matador, Artemis and Team Origin, three of the leading boats in the TP 52 series, and to most of the super yachts taking part in the Mediterranean series in 2009.

The KZ furlers come in seven sizes – 0.6, 4, 6, 10, 12, 15 and 20 tonne working loads. Sails can be attached to the furlers in a number of ways, and the furler can be permanent or removable.

Priced from $1300 to around $10,000 the furlers aren’t cheap. But as Richard Mackay says, if you rip a Code Zero trying to drop it without a furler, it will cost you a lot more.

Most rigging companies in Australia can supply the KZ Racefurlers and more information can be obtained from www.kzmarine.co.nz.