Simply Abu Dhabi XXXI

E verybody in the watch world knows that RichardMille forms meaningful professional partnerships with a wide range of distinguished athletes. He has a proven knack for spotting huge potential, alongside well-established talent, and perhaps an even better ability to strike up a long-lasting rapport with his ambassadors. They become his life- long friends rather than merely stars under contract and commercial obligation. The latest member of the Richard Mille family is Pierre Casiraghi, the entrepreneur and son of the Princess de Monaco. Casiraghi is the first sailing navigator to become a partner of the brand. He wears the RM60-01 Regatta Flyback Chronograph, the first technical watch from Richard Mille for navigating the seven seas. Commenting on the new relationship the brand says, ‘Pierre belongs to a new generation of skippers; he is a gentleman with no shortage of daring. His main goal at the moment is to participate as a duo with Boris (Herrmann) in the Transat Jacques vabre aboard their monohull. Pierre’s taste for risk, his demanding nature and quest to surpass himself are all qualities he finds echoed in Richard Mille.’ Reflecting on joining the Richard Mille family Casiraghi says, ‘I am truly amazed by what Richard has achieved as an entrepreneur. He has successfully created a brand that is both original and innovative.’ And speaking about his new watch, he adds, ‘I love its architecture, and besides, it’s the first mechanical watch I’ve seen that has a bidirectional bezel with compass—a crucial instrument for navigation.’ The RM 60-01 Regatta Flyback Chronograph is indeed an exceptional timepiece that will be put through the many ocean-going tests on the wrist of Casiraghi. It is powered by the calibre RMAC2: an automatic winding movement with hours, minutes, running seconds at 3 o’clock, oversize date, month, annual calendar, Flyback chronograph with central seconds counter, and 30-minute countdown timer at 9 o’clock, 24-hour totalizer at 6 o’clock, Universal Time Coordinated (UTC) function and adjustable rotor geometry. Using the pusher at 4 and 5 o’clock, the running chronograph can be reset without first having to stop the mechanism. This was originally developed for pilots to not waste time (and therefore accuracy) from stopping, resetting and starting the chronograph whilst crossing a navigational point. While the chronograph function is activated, the hours and minutes show up the elapsed time thanks to the counter at 6 and 9 o'clock, the seconds are indicated by the central hands. The UTC hand can be used either as a second time zone indicator or in combination with the sun and the rotating bezel to orientate the points of the compass. It can be easily adjusted using the pusher at 8 o’clock. Using the RM 60-01 is based on two factors: knowledge of local time and the position of the sun. To calculate one’s location, the UTC indicator is directed towards the sun using the UTC pusher located at 9 o’clock and then the bezel is turned so that that the UTC hand lines up with the actual local time engraved on the bezel’s circumference. When set in this manner, the compass headings North, South, East and West on the bezel will be correctly aligned with the actual direction on the Earth’s surface. What differentiates the RM 60-01 from other similar types of watches is its ability to orientate within the northern as well as southern hemispheres without any additional calculations. Another exceptional element of this watch is the crown. In order to avoid accidental actuation resulting from an error of manipulation, Richard Mille developed a secondary locking crown that is able to lock both pushers simultaneously with a simple turn. The green and red indexes respectively show whether the locking mechanism is in operation or deactivated. This complex, innovative mechanism is exclusive to Richard Mille. This exceptional watch has found the perfect protagonist in Pierre Casiraghi and we will watch this space for details of their triumphs in years to come. Pierre Casiraghi RICHARd MILLE – RM 60-01 R e g a t t a F l y b a c k C h r o n o g r a p h 1 1 2 S I M P LY A B U DH A B I