Audemars Piguet

A look back at the Audemars Piguet Alinghi Polaris Offshore

 

AP certainly has delighted us over the years with very unique editions of the Royal Oak Offshore.  Now 20 years into the existence of the model line, one of my personal favorite renditions remains the Royal Oak Offshore Alinghi Polaris flyback chronograph (reference 26040ST.OO.D002CA.01).  This watch was issued in a limited edition of 2000 pieces in 2006.  While we might not consider 2000 pieces to be very "limited", that fact remains this was an extremely popular edition, and as evidence, we rarely see this model offered in the secondary market.

What I remain most impressed about with the Alinghi Polaris is AP's creation of a timing device that follows the rules specific to the timing of an America's Cup Regatta race.  Of course, AP was an official sponsor of team Switzerland's Alinghi boat.  But the watch was not just themed after a boat, but specifically created to be worn by a team member to monitor the specific countdown prior to the commencement of the race.






This special Offshore was fitted into a stainless steel case and supplied on a rubber strap with stainless steel deployant. 










The case middle is thicker than a standard Offshore chronograph case.  We also see the inclusion of an additional crown at 10:00, used to operate the inner flange.  This rotating device allows the wearer to find one's bearings according to the position of the sun.  It also doubles as an additional countdown device, as the graduated minute circle is labeled in reverse order.  When used in conjunction with the minute hand, it can be set to countdown a desired number of minutes.






And now the beauty of the Regatta timing function.  The window at 12 displays the last minute in what is the traditional 10 minute countdown to begin a regatta race. So when you activate this chronograph from zero, a few things happen. The long white needle begins to move at normal pace counting seconds for the timing function (your continuous seconds counter is located at 3:00). The long red need also begins to move, but this is a single minute counter. You also have a minute counter at 9:00 like other Offshores. Hours are tabbed at 6:00. Going back to the long red needle, every 60 seconds it arrives at a red minute mark on the outer flange. Thus in 10 minutes this hand will be back to pointing straight up at 12. The cut out window has a rotating disc below it. It turns black over the first minute of operation. When the timing function reaches 9 minutes, the window slowly becomes red again. Here is where the most amazing aspect of the Alinghi Polaris begins to happen. When the timing function reaches 10 minutes, you have 2 hands and the disc perfectly synchronize at 12. The faster moving white hand sweeps over the red hand, and at the very instant the window becomes all red.

In the following photo, the timing function is underway, and we are about 45 seconds in.   Note the red hand is about 3/4 of the way to the 1 minute tick mark on the circular red track.

Even closer to one minute now - about 54 seconds, as indicated by the white needle.  The red needle almost to that 1 minute mark, and just a little bit of red left showing through the aperture at 12, which will be all black in another 6 seconds.

The following photo shows us just over 4 minutes into timing.  Note the disc at 12 is all black, and it will remain that way until we pass 9 minutes, at which point the red will begin showing on the left side until it entirely fills the window when the elapsed time reaches 10 minutes.

The caseback of the Alinghi Polaris featured a cool carving of a wind rose.  The solid back also contributes to the antimagnetic protection offered in other solid caseback Offshores.

A few other features make this Offshore a bit different than most other editions.  The dial design is obviously specific to the functions, but the numerals and curved "Audemars Piguet" at 12 are super special.  The watch does not have a date function.  Given all of the specific timing information the it displays for a Regatta race, it was a good choice to omit this customary Offshore function.  The watch also displays the counters in a 3-6-9 arrangement as opposed to the 6-9-12 most Offshores have.  Lastly, the minute counter at 9:00 is broken into 20 minutes instead of 30, and the hour counter at 6:00 logs 6 hours instead of 12.

When you consider all of these special features, it is easy to make an argument for the Alinghi Polaris being the most unique chronograph Offshore AP has offered.  While we would see the envelope pushed further with the 2007 forged carbon Alinghi Team Chronograph, I always felt this model was more special due to its function-first design.  Without question, I miss owning this watch, and hope to reacquire it when the time is right.
This message has been edited by AnthonyTsai on 2013-03-23 13:50:27