Ned Collier Wakefield

Eleven seconds ahead of Soldini after 600 nautical miles in the Caribbean

In February 2023, Ned Collier Wakefield completed the RORC Caribbean 600 on the MOD70 Zoulou in 30 h 55 min and crossed the finish line 11 seconds ahead of the Multi70 Maserati skippered by Giovanni Soldini. Over a 600-nautical-mile course around eleven islands, the gap is negligible — and tells you everything about the helmsman. British, born in the mid-1980s, Collier Wakefield moved from Class40 to MOD70 around 2018 and established himself as one of the most experienced skippers in the 70-foot trimaran circuit.

The Concise years in Class40

He made a name for himself starting in 2009 with Tony Lawson’s British Concise Team. Won the Class40 World Championship in Hamble that same year, set a class record in the Sevenstar Round Britain & Ireland 2010, led the RORC Caribbean 600 2011 in Class40, and won the Normandy Channel Race 2012 with Sam Goodchild. Six seasons in the Anglo-Saxon Class40 circuit gave him a solid technical foundation on 40-foot monohulls before switching to multihulls.

The original Fastnet record on PowerPlay

Summer 2021, aboard the MOD70 PowerPlay owned by Peter Cunningham, it covered the 595-nautical-mile historical Fastnet course (Cowes-Fastnet-Plymouth) in 25 h 04 min 18 s. That’s nearly 3 hours under the previous record held by the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild since 2019. Three years earlier, he had already won the 2018 RORC Transatlantic Race in MOCRA class on the same PowerPlay.

Zoulou, Erik Maris’ program

Since 2022, he has been skipper and helmsman of the MOD70 Zoulou, a 21.2 m trimaran designed by VPLP and purchased by Erik Maris. Skysat handles the boat’s electronic and electrical preparation: NKE instrumentation, Starlink, foil rake sensors, and alternator.

Palmarès

• 2009 — Class40 World Championship in Hamble: 1st on Concise
• 2010 — Sevenstar Round Britain & Ireland: 1st in Class40 on Concise II, class record
• 2010 — Gijón Class40 World Championship: 3rd on Concise II
• 2011 — RORC Caribbean 600: 1st in Class40 on Concise 2
• 2012 — Normandy Channel Race: 1st on Concise II with Sam Goodchild
• 2014 — Round the Island Race: 1st in Class40 on Concise 8
• 2018 — RORC Transatlantic Race: 1st in MOCRA on PowerPlay (owner Peter Cunningham)
• 2021 — Record for the original Fastnet course (595 nm, Cowes-Fastnet-Plymouth) in 25 h 04 min 18 s on PowerPlay, nearly 3 hours under the 2019 record of the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild
• 2023 — RORC Caribbean 600: 1st overall in multihull on Zoulou, 11 seconds ahead of the Multi70 Maserati skippered by Giovanni Soldini after 30 h 55 min of racing