Our brand new keelboat was launched at Düsseldorf Boat Show this weekend, designed to bring wider availability and popularity back to keelboat racing.
Jon Partridge – Managing Director (Sales) talks us through the emotive process.
“There is something unbelievably special about launching a new boat at a Boat Show. The journey is always an emotional roller-coaster and getting the RS21 to Düsseldorf was no different.
At RS Sailing we have had the privilege of launching many boats over the last two years, the RS21 unveiling at BOOT Düsseldorf did not disappoint as we received messages of people flying in from around the world to view the boat.
Standing on the RS Sailing Düsseldorf stand 30 minutes before the show opened, it was hard to control the emotions of excitement, expectation and fear as we are never sure how the market will receive a new boat. I may have shed a tear or two! This was RS Sailing’s new adventure into the club keelboat market. After three years of researching the market, a huge amount of time has gone in to designing and developing a boat that we are unbelievably proud of, a boat we believe can change the outlook of club keelboat racing. The RS21 truly stood out amongst the other small keelboats at the show. Her up to date lines were surely going to make her a star of the show as she stood on the stunning RS Sailing stand.
As the show opened and the steps to the view platform filled up we knew we we going to have a great day. All day long we received fantastic feedback about how she looks, the space in the cockpit, the super smart Torqeedo retractable saildrive and the great value the RS21 offers.”
Another view
“I was absolutely blown away by the RS Sailing’s adaptation of a electric Torqeedo outboard into a retractable saildrive system. This feature is going to make the RS21 stand head and shoulders above the competition.” Dr Christoph Ballin (CEO of Torqeedo)
Jon continues
“At 5pm with worn out voices and tired feet, DJ Henk (an RS Legend) got the RS21 launch party started! Many customers and friends joined us for a few beers as we prepared for the Facebook Live launch.
It is hard to explain the relief as we finish the Facebook Live to a round of applause from our friends on the stand. The RS21 was launched and at the end of the first day it was an amazing feeling to have 12 orders in the bag.
The RS Sailing development team had pushed themselves to the limit for us to be able to launch the RS21 at BOOT Düsseldorf, they have created a beautiful keelboat that is going to have a dramatic effect on club keelboat racing across the globe.”
Click here for further information on boat specifications and features
