Mini-Transat: How Caroline Boule wants to make history as the first woman on Foils

In the Imoca 60, which will start the Ocean Race in Alicante in mid-January, the proportion of foilers is 100 per cent. In the Mini 6.50 prototype classification, on the other hand, it almost seemed as if the hydrofoil issue had been ticked off.

Although Tanguy Bouroullec, son of Pogo Structures boss Christian Bouroullec, dominated almost all the qualifying regattas for the Mini-Transat 2021 with his "Pogo Foiler", he did not win the decisive highlight of the season, where he only came third.

Jörg Riechers, who wanted to compete with a foiler in 2017, abandoned his original plans and finished second in the Protos with his flat-bottomed mini "Lilienthal" despite the configuration with conventional centreboards. For him, that was the end of the story. "Foils are no solution in rough seas," he said with conviction. "The Mini is too small to sail on hydrofoils."

Caroline Boule doesn't think so. On the contrary: for her, foils are the future, especially in the mini 6.50 class. And she is about to prove it. Her new Proto with bow number 1067, built by Multiplast, has already clocked up a number of flying hours at speeds of up to 25 knots. But what is even more impressive is that it also works in light winds!

The design comes from none other than Sam Manuard, who is currently one of the most sought-after architects in all offshore classes from the Mini and Class 40 to the Imoca 60 - and is also involved in the America's Cup. In him, Caroline Boule has found a brother in spirit who, like her, firmly believes in the feasibility and superiority of minis with foils.

"We haven't yet seen what foiling boats are really capable of," says the engineer, who discovered her passion for flying in the Moth class and has currently put her ongoing doctorate at the Ecole Polytechnique in Paris on hold in order to find enough time for her latest project. For her, the Mini is a culmination point where she can combine her two greatest passions: solving complex development tasks - and sailing faster than the wind.

Her analysis of previous mini-foilers is razor-sharp: "The wings were too small or too unstable." Neither T-foils nor C-foils are the right solution, because the former provide too unstable lift and the latter too much drift, which requires additional centreboards, which in turn entail more complexity and weight

Which brings Caroline to the second problem area: weight. "The previous mini-foilers were too heavy, which is why the boats didn't stand a chance in light winds." Her construction number 1067, on the other hand, weighs less than David Raison's current Protos - despite the enormously wide hydrofoils, which remain "well under 20 kilograms" each. They can also be retracted so far that they practically do not increase the wetted area in light winds.

The tests off Lorient so far, in which Sam Manuard was also on board, have been extremely promising, says Boule, whose enthusiasm effortlessly outstrips the researcher's at least equally impressive rationality. "We foiled stably right from the start," she says. Thanks to the T-shaped trim tabs on the very deep-reaching rudder blades, the so-called elevators, her Mini works more smoothly than an Imoca, despite its size.

From as little as six knots of wind, the foils produce enough buoyancy to lift the hull so far out of the water that it only lightly touches the surface. From eight knots of wind, it lifts off completely. In a fresh breeze, it can easily reach speeds of 20 knots, peaking at 25 knots - albeit still steered by hand. However, Caroline Boule says that this will soon also be possible under autopilot.

Her boat is equipped with the latest hardware and software from NKE, which is self-learning and has "super modes" that allow radical course changes within defined bandwidths in order to become even faster when foiling. The Polish-born daughter of a Frenchman has yet to test her Mini 6.50 in rough seas. That is next on the programme. However, her confidence in the design as well as in the build quality and strength is so great that she is not worried about it.

As a novice in single-handed offshore sailing as well as in the Mini class, she has prescribed herself a simple preparation programme for the Mini Transat: "My plan is to sail as much as possible, even in winter." In her unaffected appearance, her refreshing self-confidence and her power of persuasion, she is reminiscent of Clarisse Cremer, who - also with no previous experience in the Mini - came second in the series ranking from a standing start in 2017 (and tenth last year, making her the best woman at the Vendée Globe!).

The big race that Caroline Boule is working towards starts in Les Sables-d'Olonne in September and leads to Guadeloupe via a stopover in Gran Canaria. She wants to fulfil two missions at the finish line: To be the first woman to win the Transat and the first to win on a foiling boat. "The only way to get there is through training," she says.

A few weeks ago, Carlos Manera also launched a foiling boat designed by Sam Manuard. Unlike Boule, however, the 24-year-old Spaniard has opted for a compromise: his boat has C-shaped foils and is therefore reliant on centreboards upwind. Manera has already sailed the Mini-Transat in 2021, so has more experience in the class. It will be exciting to follow the two newcomers in the Proto classification.

Find out more about Caroline Boule and her latest project on her homepage ( click here! )