Results: Monaco Solar & Energy Boat Challenge
UPDATE: FINAL RESULTS from Saturday July 6:
Slalom
Boats competed in a 2 timed run on a slalom race course (approx. 0.2 nautical miles). Fastest time (for one run) wins.
Energy Class
- Wave ESTACA Team 1:30.01
- HYDROVINCI 1:34.61
- HydroGadz 2:01.90
Solar A Class
- Sunflare Solarteam – 1:12.23
- VHL-Nordwin Solar Boat Team – 1:23.92
- AGH Solar Boat Team SOLAR – 1:33.24
Solar Open Class
- Dutch solar boat team – 1:07.52
- Solarboot Team Emden – 1:30.61
- New Nexus Solar Boat Racing Team – 1:31.52
Long Race
Monaco to Ventimiglia to Monaco to Ventimigilia to Monaco: 32 nautical miles.
All boats Offshore Class
- TU Delft Solar Boat Team – 04:13:56
- Anvera Elab – 05:13:48
- Vita Yachts – 05:17:20
Championship Race
Boats went head to head in a tournament format over the Match Race course set up by the international powerboating federation the UIM: Union Internationale Motonautique.
Energy Class
- WAVE Estaca
- HYDROVINCI
- Norbiskrug
- Hydros Universitas
Solar A Class
- Sunflare Solar Team
- Tecnico
- AGH Solar Team
- HEIG- VD-2
Solar Open Class
- New Nexus Solar
- DB20 Racing Team
- Solar Boat Twente
- Dutch Solar Boat
ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Today – Friday July 5 – is the day the Monaco Solar and Energy Boat Challenge gets very exciting.
Yesterday (Thursday) was the day for the Grand Parade and qualifying races.
As detailed on the MSEBC site, the Grand Parade “was an important occasion for participants, an opportunity to show off their project but also fine-tune their machines on water before the qualifying heats in the afternoon.”
It was quite a scene of pageantry (check out the video below) as the platoon of boats ventured through the harbour and turned in front of the spectacular cliffside home of the Oceanographic Museum.
The afternoon’s qualifying races help to determine the head to head matchups for the Championship Race, so for these competitors, who have been working on their boats for a year or longer, there was naturally some nervousness.
Friday: The races get underway
The day started at 9:00am with the Solar Fleet Race in Monaco Harbour: a competition to see how many laps of approximately a half nautical mile can be completed within 3 hours.
Also at 9:00 was the start of the open water race from Monaco to Ventimiglia, Italy and back (30km / 16 nm) with two classes of boats racing: Energy Class and Offshore Class.
Later in the day the excitement peaked with everyone watching the Speed Challenge. The time is taken over a course of 1/8th of a nautical mile, and boats are given a running start of 100 meters. Boats have two runs and the higher speed is taken. Boats from all classes compete – Offshore, Energy, Solar A and Solar Open.
The classes:
Energy Class
The challenge is to build a cockpit for the boat and design the most powerful and durable propulsion system possible from a given amount of energy. Bio Fuel, battery, hydrogen, compressed air, LNG, etc. – the choice is wide, but it must be a clean source.
YCM Offshore Class
The boat must be a power-driven vessel, a vessel powered by a machinery. The negative impact on the environment from the machinery must be significantly reduced compared to current standards for yachts.
Solar Class
The boats must powered by a battery that has been verified as having beeen charged by solar energy from the boat’s solar panels. There are restrictions on the Solar A Class that are not imposed on the Open Class.
The Friday results are in!
These are only the top results. Full placings can be found on the MSEBC website.
Solar Fleet Race
Solar A-Class
- Tecnico Solar Boat: 57 laps
- VHL-Nordwin Solar Boat Team: 48 laps
- Sunflare Solarteam : 47 laps
Solar Open Class
- New Nexus Solar Boat Racing Team: 54 laps
- Solarboot Team Emden : 53 laps
- Team Solar Amsterdam: 52 laps
This is an incredible achievement, for the Tecnico Solar Boat in A-Class to be the overall winner, beating all of the boats in the Open Class. Congratulations Tecnico!
Offshore Endurance Race
Offshore Class
- Vita Yachts 00:40:52
- Anvera Elab 00:42:44
- TU Delft Solar Boat Team 01:07:30
Congratulations go to all of these competitors. What a tight race to have only a difference of just less than 2 minutes between the top two finishers. The TU Delft Solar Boat Team, for their part, committed to a huge goal in entering a boat powered totally by solar power. They also overcame significant technical and structural boat problems in the weeks leading up to the race. Valiant competitors!
Energy Class
- Wave ESTACA Team 01:43:39
- HYDROVINCI 01:56:49
- Nobiskrug 01:58:52
Monaco Speed Challenge
- Anvera Elab (Offshore Class): 74. 49 kmh
- Vita Yachts (Offshore Class): 62.40 kmh
- Sunflare Solarteam (Solar A Class): 31.52 kmh
- Solarboot Team Emden (Solar Open Class): 29.29 kmh
- DB-20 Solar Boat Racing (Solar Open Class): 28.30 kmh
Again, congratulations to all competitors, especially Sunflare from the A Class.
Tomorrow: Final day of the Monaco Solar & Energy Boat Challenge
Events are:
Slalom: Energy and Solar Classes: 10:00am
Boats will complete a timed run on a slalom race course (approx. 0.2 nautical miles). Two (2) timed runs may be allowed depending on the weather conditions. Fastest time (for one run) wins.
Long Race: 10:00am
Monaco to Ventimiglia to Monaco to Ventimigilia to Monaco: 32 nautical miles.
Championship Race: Solar and Energy Classes: 2:00pm
Boats go head to head in a tournament format over the Match Race course set up by the international powerboating federation the UIM: Union Internationale Motonautique.
Félicitations et bonne chance à tous les compétiteurs!
Image: ©YCM Studio Borlenghi
