Marlow extends a long-running Clipper supplier relationship
Marlow Ropes has signed a four-year partnership with Clipper Ventures, formalising a supplier relationship that has developed over more than two decades. The agreement makes Marlow the official rope supplier for the new Clipper RX fleet in the 2027–28 and 2029–30 editions of the race.
The scope also extends beyond the race yachts to Hamble School of Yachting, Clipper Events, SKIRR Adventures and Clipper China. That gives Marlow a broader technical role across training, adventure sailing and events rather than limiting the relationship to one race programme.
RX rigging specification builds on the Clipper 70 experience
The running-rigging specification for the new RX fleet is based on the established Clipper 70 package because the two generations have similar mast heights and overall dimensions. Marlow says the first trial sail did not require changes to rope type, although individual line lengths may be adjusted before racing begins.
New jammers and deck hardware have also been load-tested at Marlow’s facility through repeated cycles up to maximum working loads and near-failure conditions. That testing gives both the rope supplier and the race operator a controlled way to validate the interaction between line, hardware and expected loads before the fleet enters service.
Race programmes remain useful development environments
Round-the-world fleets expose ropes and deck hardware to high mileage, repeated sail changes and a wide range of environmental conditions. The resulting wear data can help manufacturers refine products that later appear on performance cruising yachts and larger sailing-yacht projects.
For Marlow, the four-year agreement provides continuity across two race cycles and several Clipper businesses. For the wider yachting sector, it offers another long-duration operating programme in which materials, handling and durability can be assessed outside laboratory conditions.
