When the new head of the Espace Vag shipyard James Simon is asked what made him imagine the Ikone 6.50, he answers to Bateaux.com: "The Muscadet!" For him (and for many others), "It's a boat that has set the foot in the stirrup for a whole generation of sailors". It was when he spoke to the architect Fred Neuman about his idea of recreating a modern Muscadet, that the latter replied that he also had the same vision and the same desire to recreate a "small toolbox sailboat".
With the future Ikone 6.50, Espace Vag hopes to reach a generation of new sailors, a young population that cannot find a suitable and affordable sailing boat and a younger population that is looking to simplify their lives to continue sailing.
Thus the Ikone 6.50 (6.50 m long) will be transportable and clever. Its program is to be able to go on a cruise (even far away) with a family on board (2 adults and 2 children) for one week.
Stop going down to the cellar
The Ikone 6.50 is flooded with light. "We have to stop going down to the basement in our sailboats," says James Simon. To do this, the architect has designed a deckhouse with glass around it. This deckhouse is held by only 4 supports (2 at the front and 2 on either side of the companionway), all the rest is a glazed surface that gives light and vision to the outside.
Still for the light, the transom that gives to the bottom of the double berth installed under the cockpit and also in plexi. It will thus offer a beautiful view of the sea from its berth.
Large volume of development
On the accommodation side, this small sailboat has a large hold on the starboard side for storing equipment (accessible only from the inside). This can be equipped with a toilet (on which an adult has enough headroom to sit). There is a small wardrobe on the starboard side with a mini chart table and a galley block opposite. Very copious fittings for such a small unit.
In the centre of the cockpit and accessible from the outside, a large locker can accommodate the outboard motor (a 4 to 6 hp) or fenders while sailing.
Cat boat or sloop?
Like all the Ikones, the 6.50 will be proposed with a cat boat rigging (mast placed on the bow): this will be the Rando version. This simplifies manoeuvres (a single mainsail with a boom) and doesn't really penalise performance, as the big brother the Ikone 7.50 shows. The mast is self-supporting (without shrouds) in carbon.
A sloop version is also envisaged to develop a more "racing" sailboat. In this case, the mast will be towards the middle of the deckhouse with a epontille crossing the cabin (penalizing a little the habitable volume).
Fixed keel or lifting keel?
Originally, this cruising yacht will be proposed with a fixed keel (draft 1.60 m) with a lead bulb. But it will also be available with a lifting keel (sabre keel) always with the same lead ballast. The will of the shipyard (and the architect) is to propose a sailboat that will still be able to sail under sail with the keel half raised, in order to reduce the draught and to sail in shallow water.
Participate in the Mini?
Just as Muscadet was in the prime of the first editions of the Mini Transat, the Ikone 6.50 could very well serve as a support for this race. But it will have to be modified to fit into the measurement system. The side decks, for example, are not wide enough to be validated. The deckhouse (narrower) would then have to be redesigned for it to be accepted. The shipyard plans to do it. To be continued..
To be discovered in September 2018
While the first sketches are coming in, the architect is currently finishing the final structural calculations. The construction of the preform is planned for June with the first hull scheduled to be built in July. The shipyard's aim is to finish the first specimen to be exhibited at the Grand Pavois in La Rochelle in September 2018. It will then be offered to the public at a price of less than 48,000 euros ready to sail.
