Rebuilding After the East Coast Piers Race

Rebuilding After the East Coast Piers Race

At the 2025 East Coast Piers Race, Grant experienced every sailor’s nightmare.

Partway through the race, with the boat fully loaded and pushing hard, the mast came down.

In offshore and coastal racing, gear failure is never just inconvenient — it’s abrupt, physical, and unforgiving. One moment you’re locked in, trimming and steering to the rhythm of the sea; the next, you’re dealing with tangled rigging, torn sailcloth, and the sudden silence that follows when the rig is no longer standing.

Thankfully, Grant and the crew were safe. The boat, however, took the full brunt of the incident. With the mast lost and the mainsail damaged beyond repair, the season pivoted instantly from racing to rebuilding.

Turning a Setback into a Reset

For many sailors, an incident like this can mark the end of momentum. But for Grant, it became an opportunity to reassess, refine, and rebuild — stronger and smarter.

With the rig plans already evolving, attention quickly turned to the next chapter: a brand-new F20 deck sweeper mainsail.

Deck sweepers are demanding sails. They live low, work hard, and are asked to deliver maximum power with minimal drag. Designing one properly means balancing raw performance with control, durability, and confidence when the pressure is on.

A New F20 Deck Sweeper Mainsail

The new F20 mainsail has been designed from the ground up with the lessons of the East Coast Piers Race firmly in mind.

Key focus areas include:

  • Structural stability through high-load sections
  • Refined sail shape for consistent power across a wider wind range
  • Reinforced foot and leech zones to handle the demands of deck-sweeping geometry
  • Reliable depowering characteristics for coastal and offshore conditions

This isn’t just a replacement sail — it’s a performance reset.

Built for the Next Start Line

Incidents like a dismasting remind us that sailing at the edge always carries risk. But they also sharpen focus. Every rebuild is a chance to come back better prepared, better equipped, and more confident in the gear beneath your feet.

Grant’s new F20 deck sweeper mainsail represents exactly that mindset: learn, adapt, and return stronger.

We’re excited to see Grant get back on the start line — powered up, dialled in, and ready to race again.

This sail design is available to buy in our GP Sails shop

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