It has accompanied McLaren at the most recent Formula One World Championships, mounted the highest step of the podium on Rafa Nadal’s wrist and won the Le Mans 24-hour race with Sébastien Buemi.
For Richard Mille, sport is not only a showcase for the brand’s values but also a test bed for new technical solutions and cutting-edge materials. It was inevitable, then, that the company should be linked to yacht racing, an association that’s renewed this year at the Les Voiles de St. Barth, an event that is becoming an increasingly significant reference point on the international scene, and for which Richard Mille is official sponsor.
This role is beautifully expressed by the RM 60-01 Flyback Chronograph Regatta. It’s no ordinary watch, and celebrates Richard Mille’s watchmaking vision for the sport – in fact, it can be regarded as a true mechanical prodigy. The beating heart of this timepiece is the Calibre RMAC2, an automatic mechanical movement with variable inertia spring. Made in grade 5 titanium, it has a 50-hour power reserve and powers the flyback chronograph, second time zone and year calendar, with large date information in the double window at 12 o’clock and month data displayed between 4 and 5 o’clock.
The rotating bezel shows the four points of the compass, the two scales, one graduated on 360° and the second with the 24 hours, so the RM60-01 is a valuable instrument for plotting course and location in open sea or during ocean races. This is achieved by starting from the local time and the position of the sun.
To calculate 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 the UTC hand lines up with the local time engraved on the bezel’s circumference. When set like this the compass headings North, South, East and West on the bezel will correctly line up with the direction on the Earth’s surface.
The size of the 50 mm grade 5 titanium case makes it easy to manage the various functions. The RM60-01 is water resistant down to 100 metres.