The 34-meter Baltic 111 Raven has rewritten the rules of offshore performance by taking Monohull Line Honors, winning the IMA Transatlantic Trophy and setting a new monohull record in the 2026 RORC Transatlantic Race, which started on January 11, in Lanzarote, and ended approximately 2,995 nautical miles later in Antigua.

“Well, it feels incredibly good of course to have set a new record across the Atlantic in the RORC Transatlantic Race,” says Klabbe Nylöf, Royal Swedish Yacht Club (KSSS) member aboard the foiling 111ft Raven, the first monohull to cross the finish line without any accidents. “But nothing comes for free. There were a number of gybes throughout the trip because our downwind sails can’t sail lower than 130–135 TWA. The race developed into a pure downwind race, the first two days were about getting as far south as possible to avoid getting caught in the large high pressure that had established itself and expanded southwards. There was a period of lighter winds before the trade winds filled in. The choice and time to start sailing westwards is a critical and tactical opportunity. If you gybe too early, you will quickly sail out of the trade winds and into lighter winds, and with worse gybe angles, it is very costly in time and nautical miles to get south to a more stable and steady trade wind.”

“We were close to getting stuck in lighter winds, the wind slowed down and turned, whereupon the boat speed dropped to 10–12 knots. It cost us quite a lot of time. Despite that, we can look back on a super successful race.”

The new record is 6 days, 22 hours, 27 minutes, 47 seconds, besting the 2025 record set by the 88-footer Lucky, of 7 days, 20 hours, 34 minutes 41 seconds.

“Our highest speeds were over 35 knots in the infamous squalls when the wind can reach 28–30 knots with lots of rain and, as is usually the case at night, with sail changes and lots of action.”

The Transatlantic Race was the first race for Raven, though the boat sailed 18,000 nautical miles during testing and training.

“We had an almost flawless race and Raven worked fantastically overall, no major damage or functional problems. We never had to hold back. We had the mainsail down on two occasions and repaired some friction damage that arose from all the gybing and we managed to break one of our reaching struts with a bang. Raven has a complex control system for foils and advanced software that we are constantly working on developing. This trip was invaluable to us. I am very happy that we had no problems with either the electronics or the hydraulics,” says Klabbe with clear pride.

When asked about the steering when the speed increases to 25–30 knots, Klabbe replied that it is wet and intense but incredibly fun. “The boat is faster than the waves so if you don’t get over them, you will go right through, with an incredible amount of fire hosing on board. We built a new splash guard before the trip which helped, but the eyes still took a lot of beating. We use helmets with visors and ski goggles. The acceleration is awesome. It almost takes your breath away and gives the same feeling as on a multihull boat.”

The foils are most effective at high speed, allowing Raven to maintain a high average speed with less resistance from waves, which is unique for a monohull. “It foils without coming completely out of the water. I think Raven shows what the future can bring, fantastic speed, stability, reliability. You can sail it like a regular boat and at the same time reach a whole new level in terms of speed and range.

The first edition of a very fast superyacht, Raven is not intended to be a full racing yacht and carries some comfortable equipment on board, such as air conditioning and a coffee machine. The aim is high comfort and speed for the owner and guests. The immediate plan is to sail to Florida for some work on the keel, new antifouling and work on the mast and foils. During the summer she will be sailed from New York to Europe.

Raven Crew: Brad Jackson, Carlos Hernandez Robayna, Charlie Wyatt, Claes Nylöf, Corrado Rossignoli, Damien Durchon, Daryl Wislang, Dean de Groot, Simbad Quiroga, Julien Cressant, Justin Slattery, Pablo Arrarte, Robbie Naismith, Roger Samuelsson, Rudi van Velzen, Tony Mutter, Will Oxley.

Photo: James Tomlinsson