Thinking about the yacht of the 2020s
The origin of the Kiss project is closely linked to the history of the Glénans school, as explained by Guillaume Voizard, head of innovation and development. "We spent some time redefining ourselves and thinking about where we come from and what we bring. In our history, there is the Vaurien, which has contributed a lot to the democratization of sailing. We asked ourselves what the Vaurien of now would be, which led us to a 3-sided specification:
- fun, not a simple linen sailboat
- simplicity. No need to make it complicated. Others know how to do the sharp stuff better than we do.
- Ecology and inclusion. This led us to the choice of material. We are not a laboratory. The idea is more to be the link between ocean racing and Mr. Everyman."
A sail and paddle canoe
After having approached Roland Jourdain and his foundation Explore, then the architect Hervé Penfornis, the reflection continued. Guillaume Voizard's taste for the paddle and the dugout opened the reflection. After some trial and error, the Kiss project took the shape of a 6.60 meter long and 3.20 meter wide canoe. A sort of trimaran with enough volume in the hull and floats for fun under sail, and light enough to reduce drag when paddling. The target weight is less than 200 kg.
The Kiss dugout can accommodate 3 people and can be easily dismantled. The 4 arms are fixed by interlocking systems with pins and dowels.
A simple and most ecological construction
The hull is made of 8 panels, flat laminated. The bottom of the hull is made of marine plywood, while the walls are made of a sandwich of flax fibers and PET foam. For the floats, the linen is associated with a cork core.
Guillaume Voizard is delighted with the construction of the 1st unit in Les Glénans. "It puts us back into the construction culture. The idea is to bring in a few things that are different from the traditional market. We're becoming more acculturated to new materials, forming our own opinions about linen, for example, that we can pass on to the community."
Kiss canoes in free construction
For the Glénans, the Kiss project is not intended to be a source of income, nor even a boat designed for use by the sailing school. On the other hand, the plans will be distributed in open source, with the first projects within the National Education. "We are financing 10 kits for high schools, so that they can build them. The final objective is to make a rally with these boats and the students in Les Glénan. We take care of a 5-day course for learning about sailing and the environment. Eventually, the idea is that someone interested in the plans can contact us if they wish ."
The first Kiss canoe was presented at Nautic 2022. The teams, who tested it beforehand, are delighted with the quality of navigation and surfing on the waves in good conditions.
