Jurjen Van der Noord also use nanocoating on his sails for the record attempt in Luderitz:
'This sail on the photo is coated with a innovating high-tech Nano coating to reduce drag. Thanks Red-Gull Europe and Severne Sails & Starboard Windsurfing'
There are super-hydrophobic coatings out there, but expensive and hard to get hold of in Australia. Some 'permanent' coatings are widely used in shipping, aerospace and automotive racing to prevent air drag, algal growth and reduce water drag. Last time I contacted a market leader and innovator in the US, they refused to ship samples to Australia, but the figures they quoted on drag reduction were astounding, with at least 50% surface drag coefficient reduction.
No doubt this stuff will become more available and employed by speed sailors in the future.
Last time this was discussed on the Breeze, the discussion ended in a bit of farce but people will start to pay attention eventually, as is the norm.
