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At the end of 1999, Mystère International decided to launch their second Formula 18.
After producing and distributing the Mystère Cobra for nearly two years, the
Franco-Canadian shipyard called on a designer well known in the small world of Formula 18
: J. Valer, who already created the Alado and the Tiger.
To devise this new boat, the shipyard undertook a study of the various boats on the
market. They realized that some of them, designed several years ago, no longer meet
current needs, are often too unwieldy, something to idiosyncratic and always too
expensive. Finally, for Mystère, a Formula 18 must correspond to a broad agenda and be
capable of offering very good performance in all weather and should not be too complicated
to move ahead so the crew can enjoy themselves and save the time needed to watch the
water. It should also be comfortable and not require impossible sailing positions for most
regatta racers. It also seemed important to have the lowest possible price level to offer
the opportunity for crews sailing on smaller catamaran series to consider moving up to
Formula 18 for a lesser cost.
With such specifications, all that was left for J. Valer was to reflect on the basic
design and study the elements that make for the success of each model in each condition.
He devised an "all-weather, all-crew", more modern than the Tiger and Alado.
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A special keel
The specificity of the Twister's keel is essentially in the height of its freeboards.
Between the keel line and the deck, on a level with the forebeam, the new Mystère has a
height of nearly 70 cm, approximately 10 cm more than the other F18s, except the Cirrus.
The hulls are very high over the water for the purpose of promoting their passage in the
sea, controlling dipping and avoiding sudden braking from the wave striking the beams.
Surfing has also been privileged and the Twister's new hulls generate no turbulence aft.
The boat is also quite pleasant to the eye, with well distributed volumes and the high
freeboard goes almost unnoticed. Our only regret might be its great resemblance to the
same designer's other boats… The flat deck is comfortable and the boat is hardly
sprayed. The weather boards are rounded enough to withstand long periods at the trapeze.
Aft, the beam positioned fairly far from the transom makes it possible to equip the
rudders with long sticks for precision steering. The rudders were designed by M. Fisher;
they are thin and deep, with an innovative look and are made of carbon. The centerboards
are from Valer and have a gradual angulation system up to 0.5° of the boat's route. This
innovation helps increase the boat's heading upwind without affecting speed. In their
upper part, the profile is narrower and, when they are completely sunk in their shafts,
they block automatically with incidence (slightly crosswards).
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This system, well known in less fast series like solo dinghies, is available as standard
equipment for the first time on a catamaran. Quite efficient in low wind, the factory
racers E. Proust and Y. Andrillon assert that it works rather well. Emphasis has also been
placed on centering weight, since, as everyone knows, a Formula 18 for the time being is a
little too short in relation to the weight of the rigging and many of these boats tend to
list strongly in choppy seas. To remedy this, the weights on the Twister have been
centered as much as possible and lowered as much as possible. Thus, the Mystère is
equipped with a new lighter mast, carbon rudders with their weight at the lower limit
allowed for the rating and an ultra-light Zicral boom. The beams are made of de 3.2 mm
double dur Stiffer, but with the same weight as the previous ones, they provide a very
rigid platform that can thus transmit the energy from the rigging directly without
distortion. A Harken rail has been integrated for the mainsail traveler and the jib
fastener tack. The rigging is made up of a mast that is rather flexible but responsive to
control the power of the sail through automatic adjustment to wind conditions by twisting
on top. This option offers the possibility for a light crew to remain competitive in a
breeze ; it lowers the center of propulsion and maintains maximum power while providing
speed and good acceleration. Special sails have been developed to adapt to this new mast.
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They are made by Seagull (which supplied the French team on Tornado) and use a
combination of Dacron in the areas that must remain flexible for adjustments and Mylar in
areas requiring great effort. The fittings are designed using the best from Harken, Holt
or Ronstant. The jib and mainsail cunningham, mast rotation and jib fastener tack
adjustments are all accessible from the trapeze. The trampoline is made up of mesh mounted
on cable, which has a twofold advantage: no holes in the hull thereby reducing water
intake and the possibility of seeing if you are dragging seaweed with the leeward
centerboard. The hulls are made in the Mystère factory in Canada ; the finishing is very
good.
On the water
We did not have the time to try out the Twister, but we have already seen her sail several
times. The big surprise was to see that, unlike her competitors, her development was very
quick. From her first launch, for the French Cup in La Rochelle last September, in the
presence of all the bigwigs in the series, the Twister managed a very good 4th place from
the start. Her second outing took her to the Catagolfe, with the same participants and
where she came in third Finally, in her third regatta in the Antilles last November, the
Twister crewed by Proust-Andrillon easily came in second behind Booth and ahead of Souben.
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Knowing the Twister is only at the beginning of her career and that a team of racers
will reinforce the existing team in the 2000 season, it seems highly likely that this boat
will soon become a big winner. And we kept the best for the end: the complete Twister is
sold for approximately FF 80,000 (E 12,200), 20% less than most other Formula 18s.
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