As reported on this website last week, the aspiring recordbreaker SpeedDream has launched a 35ft replica of the boat with which it aims to set new monohull speed records.

The SpeedDream team, led by Vlad Murnikov, will use the 35-footer to trial design ideas before building a full-sized version.

Mr Murnikov wants to break monohull speed records and match the speeds recorded by multihulls, using many of the technologies that are on the extreme foiler L’Hydroptere, the triamaran that holds the outright speed record.

He said: ‘Appendages like the extreme canting/telescoping keel and the lifting/stabilising foil have to be tested and optimised in a real sailing environment and this is why we believe that building the prototype is necessary.

‘I feel that a 35-foot version is the right size to provide a superb realistic platform to test all the critical SpeedDream components.’

Maybe we should all follow Mr Murnikov’s lead.

Own a 40ft cruiser and interested in seeing how a new type of antifouling will work? Then build an identical, 20ft version and test it out on that first.

Unsure about whether to fit a wind generator, solar panel or a trailing generator? Then throw them all onto a half-size mini-version of your boat and then pick your favourite.

Or maybe not. Mr Murnikov’s idea might make financial sense to him and his boat, but it doesn’t quite seem realistic for the rest of us.

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