“I tell you how to win in small crew”: tips from Stefano Chiarotti

Stefano Chiarotti, 38 from Rome, is the winner of the last two editions of the Italian Offshore in the X2 classification. Also for this season, with the Sun Fast 3600 Lunatika NTT Data Italia (photo above Antonio Latini), will participate in the main stages of the offshore calendar to try to confirm the title while also challenging the overall ranking. For the new regatta program Lunatika will boast a partnership with Porto Turistico Riva di Traiano or Ocean Rodeo for technical clothing.

We interviewed him to learn more about boat preparation for racing and solutions to use when racing two (photo above Iacopo Boccalari).

Lunatika’s preparation: how does a series design become a winning boat? What kind of optimization work have you done?

In the technical work, Antonio Latini gave me a great hand, along with lots of advice. Antony helped me trim the appendages. We then improved the exit profile of the drift blade: by applying a fiberglass template about 5 centimeters wide, with an exit profile cut at 30 degrees, we thinned the aft exit of the blade, decreasing turbulence. We also worked on the rudders and always on the trailing edge, which was originally quite thick. We refined it a lot, then applied a carbon blade inside it to strengthen the thinner part of the blade. When the boat is dry, attention must be paid to Lunatika’s rudders; they are like two knives. As for the sea intakes, however, they were already coming out flush with the shipyard hull.

What solutions have you adopted to best maneuver in doubles?

For gennaker lowering, I do not use the stocking, but I have adopted a solution for conveniently lowering from the cockpit. The tack’s quick-release carabiner is connected to a strop tied to the deck: as soon as I let go of the tack, the carabiner opens, shooting the sail bailing. I lay to cover it with the mainsail and begin the lowering. Previously I spun the halyard, making sure there is no entanglement. The gybe I do with the pilot. I postpone the gennaker sheets on the deckhouse, put the mainsail carriage in the middle and give the command: it is important to calibrate the pilot’s speed well according to the wind and our capabilities. With little wind it is necessary to be faster so as not to collapse the sail. In high winds I pass the sheets outside the tack to avoid annoying candy if we get the timing of the maneuver wrong. In both lowering and gybing, it is essential to carefully spin the sheets and halyard , to make sure there are no snags in the delicate stages of maneuvering.

What set of sails will you tackle the 2017 season with?

Lunatika’s sail program has always been overseen by Francesco Cruciani of 3FL Sailing. With him this year we studied some solutions to improve performance at critical points on the boat. Lunatika suffers from light wind and action needed to be taken accordingly. The first outfit included a medium-light jib, with a crossover from medium at about 15 knots. Instead, the new plan calls for a pure light jib, up to 10 knots, then there will be a true medium jib. On this it will be possible to apply a coat of reefing, so that it can be a sail to be used in a fairly wide range. This is followed by a bow 3 and tormentin.

The new mainsail, again in pursuit of performance in light wind, will be made fatter and more powerful. For the carriers, the choice fell on an A0 (in ORC you pay less than Code), laminated, and on blender. Then we will have an A2 for deep sailing and an A3 for more sustained air or close-hauled gaits.

Weights on board: what you carry in your boat and how you manage weights in racing

It’s something I look after obsessively, and on a boat like the Sun Fast 3600 it’s crucial, all the more so when there are two of you and so you don’t have the help of crew weight to improve trim. On board during regattas there are only the essentials to run the boat at its best, nothing superfluous is taken on board. I also changed the raft model to have a lighter one that is easier to move from edge to edge.

On this, the advice of Pietro D’Alì (photo above Antonio Latini), with whom I was fortunate enough to sail, was very helpful. In regattas we do extreme “matossage,” which is to move everything to according to the heading, from right to left or from bow to stern: sails, raft, fire extinguishers, water, equipment-everything on board is placed in bags and moved with each change of tack or change in wind intensity. I installed anti-roll sheets to help me safely place all the weights from edge to edge. It may sound crazy, but it is critically important to be able to get the highest performance out of the boat in any condition or gait.

Do you rely on classic electronic tools or do you also use navigation software?

In addition to the classic instruments, on the onboard pc I use Expedition software, it is a professional navigation program that gives you the ability to do a good routage and on which you can upload the boat’s polars to get data that is as accurate as possible. There are other simpler software, but Expedition, and even Adrena, are really detailed as functions and very accurate. Information technology then for me, besides being a passion is also a job. Now the instruments at the mast I have interfaced them with Expedition in such a way that I also have data from the software externally and never lose useful references to the performance of the boat in relation to the course to be taken.

How do you manage the shifts?

We have a general rule of two-hour shifts, but we approach it with a lot of flexibility depending on the regatta. There is one person on duty and one on standby. Those in the cockpit manage the adjustments, helm, lead the boat. Those on standby can work on the software or rest, but they must always be ready to maneuver if needed. For example, if I sleep, at every turn I move from one edge to the other.

I feel the adrenaline a lot and in races of less than 48 hours I often go non-stop or get very little sleep. After the third day I feel fatigue and take a regular rhythm of 30-45 minutes of sleep every two hours. When I can’t get to sleep in the standby shift I stay at the PC, study the weather, the strategy, the opponents.

One important thing is to track shift changes or sail changes on the software: Expedition analyzes the boat’s performance and it becomes apparent when the helmsman is dropping in performance and needs to rest or rely on the pilot, same thing for evaluating the effectiveness of sail changes.

What do you think is the toughest regatta on the Italian Offshore calendar?

They are all difficult in different ways. Rome certainly by time of year and length is a tough race both physically and psychologically because of the complex strategic passage of the Aeolian Islands. Tactically, the regatta that has engaged me the most during these seasons has been the 3 Golfi, it has several very delicate moments strategically. This year the level will be very high, I have heard that there will be two more Sun Fast 3600s racing at the Offshore.

Mauro Giuffrè