Flying Boats

When Pip Hare was looking to enter the Vendée Globe of 2020, her struggles were very reminiscent of an earlier yachtswoman and sailing icon, Tracy Edwards MBE, when competing in the Whitbread Round the World Yacht Race three decades earlier. Money was tight, and the draw of a main sponsor alluded her.

Much like Tracy, Pip leased from a fellow sailor a boat in need of repair, and was relying on friends, family, and the generosity of a handful of businesses to support her. One of those businesses was AkzoNobel who stepped in not only with the paints, but also the technical support required to help keep her dream physically and metaphorically ‘afloat’.

Tim Bannister, Technical Specialist at AkzoNobel’s Yacht coatings business, takes up the story: “We met Pip at the 2020 Instructors’ Conference, heard about her campaign to raise money and what she was looking to achieve, and decided to help.

“In many ways it was a ‘win win’ for both of us. While we have plenty of data about how our products perform on recreational boats, it’s not often we get the chance to test them on high-speed craft averaging 30 knots. It was a golden opportunity. In helping Pip, we were also helping ourselves and our future customers.”

Pip’s success in her inaugural race meant that a major sponsor, Medallia stepped in shortly before the start of the last race as her title sponsor and provided a new boat. It was soon clear, however, that the yacht was in need of some significant structural alterations to increase the performance. 

Again, AkzoNobel raised its hands to help with various fillers, primers and topcoats from its proven range of yacht coating systems to protect and enhance the boat and ‘beautify’ its appearance. It also leaned into the wider AkzoNobel family, not only reaching out to colleagues in its industrial coatings division, but also contacting the team within its Aerospace Coatings business.

“One of the problems Pip encountered was abrasion caused by the ropes rubbing against the surfaces of the yacht. In a global race, the yacht is exposed to extremes of weather which results in dry and wet salt crystals forming on the deck and on the ropes themselves. This combination, along with the usual detritus picked up from the sea, can be a real challenge for a yacht’s coating.”

Tim and Martin Carter within the Aerospace Coatings’ team collaborated with Joff Brown, one of the most experienced Technical Directors in Vendée Globe history. As the man responsible for ensuring Pip’s boat is ‘fast and strong’, he was keen to learn more.

“We figured that the expertise within AkzoNobel that could protect an aircraft flying in extremes of temperature at 40,000ft might be valuable in solving our problem,” Tim continues.

And so it proved. Sample products were sent and applied to the yacht and the results were precisely what the team was looking for: “So far the performance has been excellent, but by the end of March 2025 when the 24,000-mile race is over, we’ll finally get to see how successful it has been!”