Zenith has set sail on a nautical partnership that sees the Swiss watch manufacture become official timekeeper of a racing stable that includes the world’s largest ocean racing trimaran.
Manufacture Zenith, which has a long tradition of supporting extreme feats of exploration and human achievement such as Felix Baumgartner’s Red Bull Stratos skydive from the outer edge of the atmosphere in 2012, has signed a three year deal with Spindrift racing, a French racing venture founded in 2011, in the hope of being part of record breaking endeavours.
"This partnership with the Spindrift racing team is a natural step forward in Zenith’s development, which has encountered growing success in the past five years.”
“At Zenith, we like to gamble on forward-looking personalities and projects. Dona, Yann and their crew members have the stuff of modern heroes who spark off dreams and make the world move forward. We are proud to associate our watches with their future endeavors." Commented Zenith CEO Jean-Frederique Dufour.
Spindrift’s maxi trimaran, the Spindrift 2, was designed to beat the major ocean-racing records for crewed boats and is the current holder of nine circumnavigation records – including the Jules Verne trophy. In 2014 it will also be entering the solitary Route du Rhum race.
This boat, designed for high performance wins, is the bold gamble of experienced sailor Yann Guichard and Dona Bertarelli, a businesswoman and accomplished athlete, who said: “Spindrift racing is a young stable that brings together a team of professionals whose work has quickly paid off, our project has grown and already enjoys a good international reputation. With Yann, we have all the assets to successfully rise to new challenges."
Spindrift’s D35 Ladycat has a full racing calendar between May and September while the Spindrift 2 will set out to break the North Atlantic (New York to Lizard Point) and 24 Hours records in July and August before launching into the Route du Rhum (St Malo to Point-á-Pitre) in November.
