October 2008 Archives
The Maltese Falcon, one of the world's largest privately owned sailing yachts, arrived in San Francisco Bay on September 27, 2008 to take part in October's Leukemia Cup Fundraiser, marking the first time the record-setting, award-winning clipper ship has sailed into US territory.
The ship is enormous in every measurable dimension. At 289 feet in length, it falls only six feet short of the Athena, previously the clear record holder in private sailing yachts at 295 feet, and sixteen feet short of the Eos at 305 feet. However, both of its rivals have bowsprits extending their length by over 30 feet, while the entire length of the Falcon is accounted for by its hull. The Maltese Falcon weighs in at 1,110 tons, with a beam of 42 feet. Its three masts reach 191 feet into the air, and are only outdone by the sloop Mirabella V with a single mast 292 feet tall. At almost 20 stories tall, the crew had to wait until low tide to sail under the Golden Gate Bridge, and even then there was only 20 feet of clearance between the masts and the bridge deck. The most amazing measure of The Maltese Falcon, however, is its price: the ship was commissioned by Tom Perkins, co-founder of Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, one of the first venture capital firms on Sand Hill Road in Silicon Valley, at a cost of over $150 million.
While the specifications for each of these ships can be argued when discussing the world record, The Maltese Falcon easily stands out as the most technological sailing yacht ever constructed. Each of its three carbon-fiber masts support five sails that unfurl automatically from inside the mast. Each mast rotates independently at the base to adjust sail position according to wind direction, and has a fiber-optic strain sensor imbedded inside to ensure the masts are never overloaded. The technology has proven itself in 25 foot seas with 68 knot gusts of wind, with the ship cruising through the waves at 20 knots, and has allowed The Maltese Falcon to reach a speed of 24.8 knots while using only three of the fifteen sails - Mr. Perkins thinks speeds over 30 knots is possible. Most impressive, though - all this technology allows The Maltese Falcon to be piloted by just one person.
For the adventurous, The Maltese Falcon can be chartered for $400,000 per week including a crew of 16. And if you are a successful hedge-fund manager in the market for a floating mansion that can sail across the Atlantic in ten days, the ship is listed for sale by Mr. Perkins with a price tag of $190 million.
The ship is enormous in every measurable dimension. At 289 feet in length, it falls only six feet short of the Athena, previously the clear record holder in private sailing yachts at 295 feet, and sixteen feet short of the Eos at 305 feet. However, both of its rivals have bowsprits extending their length by over 30 feet, while the entire length of the Falcon is accounted for by its hull. The Maltese Falcon weighs in at 1,110 tons, with a beam of 42 feet. Its three masts reach 191 feet into the air, and are only outdone by the sloop Mirabella V with a single mast 292 feet tall. At almost 20 stories tall, the crew had to wait until low tide to sail under the Golden Gate Bridge, and even then there was only 20 feet of clearance between the masts and the bridge deck. The most amazing measure of The Maltese Falcon, however, is its price: the ship was commissioned by Tom Perkins, co-founder of Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, one of the first venture capital firms on Sand Hill Road in Silicon Valley, at a cost of over $150 million.
While the specifications for each of these ships can be argued when discussing the world record, The Maltese Falcon easily stands out as the most technological sailing yacht ever constructed. Each of its three carbon-fiber masts support five sails that unfurl automatically from inside the mast. Each mast rotates independently at the base to adjust sail position according to wind direction, and has a fiber-optic strain sensor imbedded inside to ensure the masts are never overloaded. The technology has proven itself in 25 foot seas with 68 knot gusts of wind, with the ship cruising through the waves at 20 knots, and has allowed The Maltese Falcon to reach a speed of 24.8 knots while using only three of the fifteen sails - Mr. Perkins thinks speeds over 30 knots is possible. Most impressive, though - all this technology allows The Maltese Falcon to be piloted by just one person.
For the adventurous, The Maltese Falcon can be chartered for $400,000 per week including a crew of 16. And if you are a successful hedge-fund manager in the market for a floating mansion that can sail across the Atlantic in ten days, the ship is listed for sale by Mr. Perkins with a price tag of $190 million.
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