The 1995 IMX 38 BRAVEHEART sailing with an X-Drive No. 1 genoa and older Tape-Drive main.
During every sailing season it seems like there was always one regatta or race that sticks out in your mind. For UK Norway’s Mehmet Taylan, that regatta was the 2018 Nesodden Høstcup. Taylan was aboard Kim Knudsen’s 1995 IMX 38 BRAVEHEART, clearly a “vintage” yacht amidst a fleet of newer, hotshot racers. Although BRAVEHEART finished second and not first, it was a moral victory that made the Nesodden Høstcup so memorable.
The only boat that beat BRAVEHEART in the two-day event was a right out of the box Club Swan 50, a 2-million Euro 50-footer with a competitor’s top-of-the-line sails flying. That was quite an investment to beat the 23-year-old, 50,000 Euro 38-footer with X-Drive and Tape-Drive sails from UK Sailmakers. Third was an X46 and fourth was a new Grand Soleil 42R.
2018 Nesodden Høstcup results for half of the fleet.
The regatta consisted of two distance races. On the windy first day, the Swan 50 PROXFLYER legged out on the fleet and BRAVEHEART was fourth. Sunday the wind was light and shifty and BRAVEHEART beat the Swan. It appeared that the Swan’s sails were too rigid and couldn’t be adjusted to fly in the light air while BRAVEHEART’s UK sails were easily trimmed and adjusted to excel in the lighter conditions. BRAVEHEART was truly the warrior that could slay giants.
After the regatta, Kim Knudsen said, “Team BRAVEHEART finished her 2018 season in style with this second place in this Nesodden Høstcup. I want to thank our sponsor, UK Sailmakers Norway, for designing and building some truly amazing sails. There is no doubt in my mind that UK Sailmakers is the technology leaders for sails produced in Norway. We look forward to next year’s season and continued great results.”
