HETAIROS GAINS PERFORMANCE BOOST WITH NEW SAILS

Perfect Set Up From The Start in St Barths

The 218-foot ketch Hetairos is a longtime client of North Sails and was an early adopter of 3Di sails within the superyacht crowd. Their recent success and final-day push in securing Overall Winner at the St Barths Bucket is a testament to great teamwork, both onboard and with their sailmaker.

“Hetairos has a long-standing relationship with North Sails and is very happy with the sail performance that we have onboard,” explained Captain Graham Newton. “The main and mizzen have been halfway around the world and seen plenty of action, yet the shape still looks like it did on day one. We sailed with a new North race blade and J4 in St Barths. They set up perfectly right out of the bags. The performance increase was clear to see, and no doubt helped us in claiming a hard-fought win in a very competitive class.”

Though familiar with stories of Hetairos’s sailing adventures, both racing and cruising this was North Sails President Ken Read’s first time sailing on the boat. He was quick to note a few points upon hitting the dock. “I was amazed at the sheer size and power of this boat. And with all their around the world cruising stories, I was surprised by how agile she was while racing. The race crew and permanent onboard crew has really dialed in that boat and sails Hetairos extremely efficiently.”

“We sailed with a new North race blade and J4 in St Barths. They set up perfectly right out of the bags. The performance increase was clear to see and no doubt helped us in claiming a hard-fought win in a very competitive class.”

Read was onboard Hetairos as a guest for the practice day and Race 1 of the Bucket weekend. “Being an observer is a new experience for me, and it allowed me the opportunity to take a really good look and evaluate the sail plan North has developed with the team,” explained Read. “I really want to make sure that the North 3Di sails are living up to our lofty promises, and I’m thrilled to say yes. A lot of the sails being used in the Bucket have sailed around the World and experienced extreme Southern Ocean conditions. I stand in awe of how the team pushed the boat, and by our company’s capabilities and the sails that we make.”