Showcasing the boat at the Extreme Sailing Series is just step one in an ambitious plan to develop a fleet of boats to race as an Opening Act in the Series. We plan to field at least four boats in the European venues of the ESS in 2014, and a full fleet of eight boats to race the entire international circuit in 2015.
Istanbul is also where our technology partner Yandex has a large presence and their local representatives are planning a huge media push inviting local celebrities and sailors to come out for a sail.
Below is the full press announcement:
SpeedDream to be publicly exhibited for the first time at the
Extreme Sailing Series™ Act 4 in Istanbul, June 2013.
SpeedDream, the quest to build the world’s fastest monohull, has formed two strategic alliances to achieve this ambitious goal. First, recognizing that record setting is as much about radical design ideas as it is about pushing technology barriers, the SpeedDream team have strengthened their technological partnership with the Russian hi-tech giant Yandex and will be utilizing their enormous computing power to further refine the design concept.
Record setting is also about attracting the very best sailors and many of them compete at the highest levels of international competition in the Extreme Sailing Series, the original and global stadium racing circuit. To bring all forces together Yandex- SpeedDream will be exhibiting as part of Act 4 of the 2013 Extreme Sailing Series in Istanbul, Turkey from June 20-23, 2013.
Having expanded its presence to Turkey in 2011, Yandex is Russia’s leading internet company whose search portal alone attracts over 55 million unique users. “As a company on the leading edge of technology we look forward to associating with innovative projects that push the boundaries and hosting SpeedDream here in Istanbul” said Yandex. Turkey Chairman Mehmet Ali Yalçındağ. “We will all benefit from an exchange of ideas with the common goal of being the best and fastest in the world; SpeedDream on the water, Yandex in search and browsing the web.”
Last October the SpeedDream team launched and tested a 27-foot prototype of what will form the basis of a larger record setter. While continuing to test the first prototype, the SpeedDream team have already started research and development for a second stage 50–footer that will enable them to test their design ideas in real ocean conditions. A core of this program is Computative Fluid Dynamics (CFD) Research and Finite Element Analysis, which will be performed as a cooperative effort between SpeedDream designers and Yandex engineers.
“This is a giant step forward for the project,” said Vlad Murnikov, Lead Designer and project coordinator. “There is nothing like being able to simulate a design in a multitude of conditions and our team plans extensive CFD and FEA analysis using the incredible computing power and expertise that Yandex and their engineers can offer. We will take the empirical data collected from our prototype, extrapolate it into a larger design, and then run a variety of simulations over the next few months.”
The Extreme Sailing Series is now in it’s seventh season and has set new standards, both in terms of high-level competition and sporting entertainment. The award-winning Series has attracted some of the very best sailors from around the world and has been on the cutting edge of corporate sporting hospitality and sailing innovation. “Part of the Extreme Sailing Series philosophy is to welcome other interesting and innovative concepts in to our Stadium - the SpeedDream project will create some interest for sure, and if they develop a class of these in the future we could imagine having them as one of the additional classes racing at the event,” commented Mark Turner, Executive Chairman of OC Sport, the Series organizers. “So we agreed to test it out in Istanbul, the meeting point for Asian and European cultures, and now the meeting point for innovation in sailing!"
Yandex- SpeedDream will remain in Europe for the summer with plans to exhibit the boat in various locations where high performance, along with style and innovation are appreciated and celebrated.














