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September 30, 2017 By Jack Griffin

Protocol Released for 2021 America’s Cup

America's Cup 2021 - Auckland. Challenger Patrizio Bertelli, CEO of PRADA and head of Luna Rossa.  Image: Getty Photos

Patrizio Bertelli, CEO of PRADA and head of Luna Rossa. Image: Getty Photos

Emirates Team New Zealand and Luna Rossa presented the Protocol for the 36th America's Cup on 29 September 2017. 

  • Next America's Cup Match in March 2021 in Auckland
  • 75 foot monohull with 10-12 crew; teams may build two
  • Strictest crew nationality requirements in America's Cup history
  • Prada is title and presenting sponsor
  • Luna Rossa will run all racing except the America's Cup Match

More details about the yachts will be available on 30 November 2019, and the AC75 Class Rule will be released on 31 March 2018. ETNZ CEO Grant Dalton claimed that the yachts will be "spectacular." Design head Dan Bernasconi said the "might" be designed for foiling.

MORE INFO ABOUT THE PROTOCOL​

As of 4 October, the new FREE Cup Experience Club is in pre-launch phase. The Club will feature more detailed information, interactive discussions among members and special content. As an example, we have articles from Seahorse Magazine written by top sailors and designers.

MORE INFO

September 18, 2017 By Jack Griffin

Oracle’s Disastrous Gybe in Race 2 – America’s Cup 2017 Bermuda

What Happened??

At the beginning of the second upwind leg of Race 2, Oracle trailed New Zealand by over 500 meters. In the light air they seemed to be on the right side of all the shifts and closed the gap. A poor tack by the Kiwis let Oracle round the right gate mark on New Zealand's transom. But when both boats gybed together on Leg 6, Oracle fell off the foils and confusion seemed to reign on board.

In this ACTV video footage, it's hard to see who's doing what in the aerial and onboard shots, but if you look closely you can see...

  • While on port gybe, Tom Slingsby leads Kyle Langford to the starboard hull to prepare the gybe. Langford then grinds while Slingsby is on the helm. The wing has not yet gybed. The sheet is slack on starboard, and trimmed on port.
  • Number 1 Graham Spence is seen on his knees on the trampoline on the port side. He starts to cross, in front of the wing, hesitates, and takes a step back towards the port hull. In the next aerial shot you can see him cross in front of the wing, to the starboard hull.
  • Number 2 Kinley Fowler starts to step out of his cockpit on the port hull, then steps back.
  • Helmsman Jimmy Spithill is not in view. Normally he would be holding the wing sheet. I assume he releases the port wing sheet and we see the wing gybe. It's not clear why the wing gybes since there is no tension on the starboard wing sheet. Did Oracle have hydraulics to tack and gybe the wing?
  • Spithill crosses to the starboard hull.
  • Slingsby crosses back to the port hull, apparently to grind at pedestal 1.
  • Fowler is grinding on pedestal 2 in the port hull.
  • Number 3 Cooper Dressler is not grinding; he seems to be sitting at the wing trimmer's position, looking up at the wing.
  • In the starboard hull we see Spence, Langford and Spithill. Spence turns the handles a few times, stops and seems to be waiting for something. The onboard mics pick up someone (Slingsby?) saying, "Pressure's coming back." Spence says something including the words "oil build."

What was going on? Did they lose hydraulic pressure during the gybe? Their accumulators should have been fully charged - they had made their last tack, to starboard some time earlier, well before rounding the mark and bearing away. Had they bled off all their pressure with the board rake controls when they tried to engage New Zealand after the Kiwis tacked? It's a bit mysterious! It was certainly disastrous - the Kiwis won the race easily and put their first point on the scoreboard.

July 19, 2017 By Jack Griffin

Rolling Stones’ Advice on Protocol for 36th America’s Cup

"You Can't Always Get What You Want"

The Rolling Stones must have been singing about the America's Cup. Opinions are flying about what the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron and the Circolo della Vela Sicilia should put into the protocol for the 36th defense.  It's easy to say, "We should go back to monohulls," or "There should be strict nationality rules for the crew," or "Yacht clubs should be in charge, like the Deed of Gift says," or "We need to keep the great LiveLine graphics." But it's a lot harder to come up with a complete Protocol, since some apparent desiderata are mutually exclusive. And there is the small matter of how to fund the event.

What's the Objective?

Before diving into details, let's think about what we want to achieve. 

  • Do we want to build the America's Cup into a profitable sports entertainment business?
  • Should we return to a "traditional" America's Cup? What does "traditional" mean? The traditions of the Herreshoff era, with tycoon-funded American yachts with a Scottish skipper and a crew of Scandinavian fishermen? Or the traditions of the 12m era, sailed in the smallest yachts ever, until the AC Class catamarans of 2017? Or the traditions of the 1930's with huge, elegant J Class yachts helmed by their owners?

Tradition?

America's Cup Trophy - Photo: Royal Yacht Squadron website

Photo: Royal Yacht Squadron website

From the Royal Yacht Squadron website

America's Cup - Royal Yacht Squadron 1851 poster

America's Cup - Royal Yacht Squadron 1851 poster

RYS Annual Regatta - 1851

J Class racing during 2017 America's Cup in Bermuda

J Class racing during 2017 America's Cup in Bermuda

Popular Topics

  • ​Monohulls or multihulls?
  • The fastest boats (apparent wind always forward) or boats with downwind sails and sail changes?
  • Stadium racing or racing in big waves and strong winds? (NYC ACWS or Freemantle Doctor?)
  • Build a linear TV audience big enough to attract broadcast rights fees equivalent to, say, the Tour de France (about $50M)? Or use a "digital-first" strategy on a freemium model?
  • Help owners build their teams into long lasting, financially valuable "sports franchise" assets? Or continue with varying mixes of patronage and sponsorship?
  • Establish a permanent governing authority? Or give more authority back to yacht clubs? (What staff and funding does a yacht club need to run the America's Cup?)
  • Provide visibility by defining the dates, venues and boats for multiple future editions? Or follow the Deed of Gift and have the defender and challenger issue a Protocol months after the conclusion of each Match?
  • Encourage additional nations to enter?  Or institute 80-100% nationality requirement for the crew? 
  • No racing among the teams before the Challenger Selection Series? No sailing with the Defender before the America's Cup Match?
  • Frequency? Every two years? Every four years? Random, decided by the Challenger in the case of a DoG match; or by the Challenger and Defender under mutual consent? 
  • Branding. (OK, I have not seen any discussion of this - as a businessman it is a special interest of mine.) Stop diluting the brand by holding "America's Cup This or That." America's Cup World Series. Red Bull Youth America's Cup. America's Cup Qualifiers. America's Cup Challenger Playoffs. America's Cup Superyacht Regatta.  Stop it! The America's Cup is the Match, between the Defender and the Challenger. Find other names for all those other events. Go back and look at the 1851 RYS. There was only one event called "The R.Y.S. £100 Cup." All those other events were great, but each had its own name.

What's the Revenue Model?

How much will it cost to run the event? Regatta management, security, an international media center, broadcast production, the LiveLine graphics which require helicopters and a team of engineers to operate the system - who pays for all this? 

Sailing is unlikely to generate much revenue from big sources that some other sports have: TV broadcast rights and ticket sales. As with Formula 1 venues, Valencia and Bermuda paid significant venue fees. Sailing is highly dependent on sponsorship. Merchandise, licensing and commercial hospitality provide additional revenue sources. How much revenue can be generated? Will it cover the cost of producing the event? If not, who makes up the shortfall?

Will We See a New Framework Agreement?​

The RNZYS did not sign the "Framework Agreement." At the time, Team New Zealand said "Emirates Team New Zealand believe the future America’s Cup format should be decided by the Defender and Challenger of Record as it has historically been."

But might RNZYS and CdVS agree to a protocol that requires additional challengers to commit themselves to conditions imposed by the defender and the challenger of record?  

June 26, 2017 By Jack Griffin

Kiwis Dominate Oracle to Reclaim America’s Cup

Kiwis Celebrate Winning the 2017 America's Cup

Kiwis Celebrate Winning the 2017 America's Cup - Photo: Gregory Bull -AP

If the 2013 America's Cup seemed like "The Empire Strikes Back," 2017 gave us "Return of the Kiwis." Peter Burling's Luke Skywalker vanquished Larry Ellison's Darth Vader by racking up eight race wins while Oracle could manage only one. Jimmy Spithill and the Oracle crew seemed to succumb to Jedi mind tricks, losing seven of the nine starts, going OCS in two races, sailing out of bounds once, misjudging laylines both upwind and down and falling off their foils in several tacks and gybes.

Starts

The Match started out badly for Oracle when they were over the start line early in the first race.

America's Cup Match - USA OCS in Race 1 - Image: ACTV Video

America's Cup Match - USA OCS in Race 1 - Image: ACTV Video

The following Saturday, Oracle was again OCS, in Race 5.

Oracle is over early again, in Race 5 of the 2017 America's Cup Match

Oracle is over early again, in Race 5 of the 2017 America's Cup Match

​

Oracle is over early again, in Race 5 of the 2017 America's Cup Match

Oracle is over early again, in Race 5 of the 2017 America's Cup Match

The Kiwis won the first five races. Oracle got their only win in the second race on Saturday 24 June.  

Errors 

On Sunday, in Race 7 Oracle had good speed to weather of the Kiwis, but after an inexplicable turn upwind by Spithill, they crossed the line over a boat length behind and slower than the Kiwis.

Oracle Team USA faster and to windward in pre-start of Race 7 in the 2017 America's Cup Match

Oracle Team USA faster and to windward in pre-start of Race 7 in the 2017 America's Cup Match

Oracle helmsman Jimmy Spithill loses speed turning upwind in pre-start of Race 7 in the 2017 America's Cup Match

Oracle helmsman Jimmy Spithill loses speed turning upwind in pre-start of Race 7 in the 2017 America's Cup Match

Oracle is late and slow at the start of Race 7 in the 2017 America's Cup Match

Oracle is late and slow at the start of Race 7 in the 2017 America's Cup Match

In the pre-start of Race 8 New Zealand's Peter Burling manage "to hook" Jimmy Spithill and force Oracle almost head to wind. Burling's protest was green-flagged by the umpires, but Burling was able to speed off to lead at Mark 1.

New Zealand's Peter Burling hitting the

New Zealand's Peter Burling hitting the "protest" button in the pre-start of Race 8 of the 2017 America's Cup Match

ORACLE TEAM USA picks up a penalty with unforced error going out of bounds on leg 3 of Race 8 in the 2017 America's Cup Match

ORACLE TEAM USA picks up a penalty with unforced error going out of bounds on leg 3 of Race 8 in the 2017 America's Cup Match

Speed and Boat Handling

The Kiwis closed out the Match in Race 9 with a demonstration of the boat speed and good handling that had brought them to match point. Oracle managed to win the start and led at Mark 1. The first gybe on leg 2 spelled the end for Oracle. New Zealand's gybe was crisper and they edged ahead, gassing Oracle with turbulence off their wing. They extended their lead and were never threatened, speeding to win the race and claim the America's Cup.

USA leads NZL on leg 2 of Race 9 - 2017 America's Cup Match

USA leads NZL on leg 2 of Race 9 - 2017 America's Cup Match

NZL and USA gybe together on leg 2 of Race 9 - 2017 America's Cup Match

NZL and USA gybe together on leg 2 of Race 9 - 2017 America's Cup Match

NZL leads USA on leg 2 of Race 9 - 2017 America's Cup Match

NZL leads USA on leg 2 of Race 9 - 2017 America's Cup Match

June 13, 2017 By Jack Griffin

America’s Cup Challenger Finals: Team New Zealand Defeats Artemis

Team New Zealand vs Artemis in America's Cup Challenger Finals - Image: Ricardo Pinto

Team New Zealand vs Artemis in America's Cup Challenger Finals - Image: Ricardo Pinto

Emirates Team New Zealand used sharp crew work to defeat Artemis Racing and become the Challenger against Oracle in the America's Cup Match. Artemis continued to be plagued by bad luck, losing helmsman Nathan Outerridge overboard at a crucial moment in Race 3 on Saturday 10 June.

America's Cup Challenger Finals Results

America's Cup Challenger Finals Results

Team New Zealand crew work in America's Cup Challenger Finals - Image: Ricardo Pinto

Team New Zealand crew work in America's Cup Challenger Finals - Image: Ricardo Pinto

Artemis crew work in America's Cup Challenger Finals - Image: Ricardo Pinto

Artemis crew work in America's Cup Challenger Finals - Image: Ricardo Pinto

Nathan Outerridge lost his footing and slid overboard during a tack near the windward gate on Leg 5 in Race 3 on the first day of the America's Cup Challenger Playoffs. Artemis had led down the previous downwind leg, and then traded the lead on the last upwind leg. After losing Outerridge overboard, Iain Percy steered for a while before calling to Luke Parkinson to take the helm. Parkinson steered through the gate rounding and the first gybe, but it was clear Artemis would have no chance to catch the Kiwis.

America's Cup Challenger Finals - Outerridge MOB in Race 3 - Image ACTV Video

America's Cup Challenger Finals - Outerridge MOB in Race 3 - Image ACTV Video

June 3, 2017 By Jack Griffin

America’s Cup Qualifiers Results

America's Cup Qualifiers results

America's Cup Qualifiers results

Oracle won the round robin America's Cup Qualifiers and earned a bonus point for the America's Cup Match. With eight wins, two losses and one bonus point from coming second in the America's Cup World Series, Oracle finished the Qualifiers with nine points. Team New Zealand also finished the Qualifiers 8-2. 

As the top challenger, New Zealand got to choose their opponent in the Challenger Selection semi-finals. They picked Land Rover BAR, leaving Artemis Racing to face SoftBank Team Japan in the other semi-final.

BAR finished the round robin with four wins - two against Team France and, surprisingly, two against Artemis. With two bonus points for winning the America's Cup World Series, BAR finished with six points.

Groupama Team France finished last and was eliminated. With the smallest budget and the least amount of time to train, the French nevertheless had a good run, taking wins from Artemis and BAR. 

May 23, 2017 By Jack Griffin

2017 America’s Cup Guide

31 March 2018  JUST RELEASED: AC GUIDE for the 36th America's Cup in Auckland

The AC GUIDE is available in the Cup Experience CLUB. Membership is FREE.

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Quick Navigation
THE CUP EXPERIENCE SHOW - DAILY WEBCAST
Calendar
Teams
Scoreboard & Race Results
STANDINGS
America's Cup Qualifiers
Challenger Playoff Semi-Finals
Challenger Playoff Finals
America's Cup Match
Race Course
How to Watch
Television
AC+ App
Red Bull Youth America's Cup
Pool A
Pool B
Finals
Spectator Boats & On-the-Water Guide
Visiting Yachts Guide
Endeavour Program
Endeavour Race Program 
Superyacht Racing
J Class Racing
Race Areas - J Class & Superyachts
Tall Ships - May 26 to June 5
Parties, Concerts, Events

Update - 26 May'17  See "Calendar" /  "Info for Visiting Yachts" /  "Spectator Boats & On-the-Water" Guide"


THE CUP EXPERIENCE SHOW - DAILY WEBCAST

Update Sunday 28 May:  Daily webcast at 18:30 Bermuda summer time (UTC-3)

REGISTER FOR DAILY AC PLAYOFFS WEBCASTS

Calendar

Note: Racing on Friday 26 May postponed because of high wind.  
Six races are now scheduled on both weekend days.
Saturday:  Races 1-6            Highlight:  Race 5  USA vs NZL
Sunday:  Races 7-12            Highlight: Race 10 USA vs SWE

2017 America's Cup Calendar
Download the Calendar

Teams

Scoreboard & Race Results

  • Standings
  • Race Results
  • Tie Break

STANDINGS

America's Cup Qualifiers

All six teams competing, including the defender, Oracle Team USA​


Current Standings - based on America's Cup World Series results​

America's Cup World Series Final Standings

America's Cup World Series Final Standings

Challenger Playoff Semi-Finals


  • Top scoring challenger in the Qualifiers chooses their opponent
  • The other two challengers go to the other semi-final​

Challenger Playoff Finals


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America's Cup Match


Defender - Oracle Team USA vs Challenger - to be decided 10-12 June​

RACE RESULTS

Round Robin 1

  • R1: USA vs FRA
  • R2: SWE vs JPN
  • R3: FRA vs NZL
  • R4: GBR vs SWE

TIE BREAK SYSTEM

The final standings of the America's Cup World Series determine bonus points carried into the round robin AC Qualifiers. Any ties at the end of the Qualifiers will be broken based on these final standings. This could determine... which challenger is eliminated, the pairings for the Challenger Playoff semi-finals and, which team can carry a bonus point into the main event, the America's Cup Match.

America's Cup World Series Final Standings

America's Cup World Series Final Standings

Race Course

America's Cup 2017 in Bermuda - Race Course

How to Watch

Bermuda Dockyard webcam here.

MyIslandHomeBDA YouTube channel here.

Television

Check here for the local broadcaster in your country. You will need to check your broadcaster's schedule to find out what coverage they offer: Live, Replays, Highlights.

USA:​

  • USA: NBC Sports Channel carries LIVE broadcasts of all races in the Qualifiers and Challenger Playoffs.
  • NBC carries LIVE broadcasts of the America's Cup Match.​

AC+ App

Download link for AC+ App here.

*PLEASE NOTE: For the following countries there will be no live video coverage on the AC App, but virtual graphics with commentary only:   United Kingdom, Ireland, France, Monaco, Australia, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela​

Red Bull Youth America's Cup

  • 12 teams - one for each pro team plus six teams selected by Regatta Managers
  • Regatta Managers - two time Olympic gold medalists in Tornado, Roman Hagara and Hans-Peter Steinacher
  • Two pools of six teams, top four from each pool qualify for Finals
  • Each pool has two days of qualifying, three fleet races per day
  • Top four from each pool advance to Finals
  • Finals: two days of fleet racing, three races per day.
  • Prize-giving: Wednesday 21 June after racing

Pool A

  • Artemis Youth Racing - SWE
  • Team France Jeune
  • Kaijin Team Japan
  • Youth Vikings Denmark
  • Team Tilt (SUI)
  • SVB Team Germany

Qualifiers 15-16 June

Time:  14:00 -16:00​

Reserve day 19 June

Pool B

  • Team BDA - Bermuda
  • NZL Sailing Team
  • Land Rover BAR Academy - GBR
  • Spanish Impulse Team
  • Next Generation USA
  • Candidate Sailing Team - AUT

Qualifiers 12-13 June

Time: 17:00 - 19:00  Note time!  

Reserve day 14 June

Finals

Time: 14:00 - 16:00        Place: Great Sound​

20-21 June, reserve day 22 June​

Spectator Boats & On-the-Water Guide

  • VIP Superyacht Race Day Experience with Club Team France - Reserve
  • ACEA Specator Boats - Reserve
  • On-the-Water Guide for Private Yachts - Download

Visiting Yachts Guide

​Last update: 26 May 2017

Downloard "Visiting Yachts Guide"

More info​

Endeavour Program

Endeavour Race Program 

  • 15-16 June:  O'Pen Bic and RS Feva fleet racing
  • 17 June: O'Pen Bic "half-time" regatta
  • 18 June: RS Feva "half-time" regatta​
  • 22-23 June: Hobie Wave fleet races
  • 24 June: Hobie Wave "half-time" regatta

​

​

Superyacht Racing

  • 13,14,15 June - South Shore
  • Watch from on board superyacht Arabella - reserve tickets here

J Class Racing

  • 16,19,20 June - Murray's Anchorage, North Shore
  • Watch from on board superyacht Arabella - reserve tickets here

Race Areas - J Class & Superyachts

America's Cup 2017 in Bermuda - Race Areas

Tall Ships - May 26 to June 5

  • In St. George's 26 May to 1 June
  • Parade to Hamilton on 1 June
  • ​Parties on Front Street: 1 June 19:00-23:00 / 4 June 14:00-21:00
  • Parade to depart Hamilton, sail along North Shore and on to Boston - 5 June

Parties, Concerts, Events

Superyacht "Arabella"

Full Program of Events on Arabella

  • Sunset Cruises
  • Cocktails & Dinner
  • J Class Race Viewing
  • Superyacht Race Viewing
  • Red Bull Youth America's Cup​

Book tickets here.

Parties, Concerts, Events - partial list, more info to come...

  • Fri    26 May    20:30   Opening Ceremony - AC Village 
  • Sat   27 May   17:15 Wyclef Jean Concert - AC Village
  • Sun   28 May   Endeavour Day - AC Village
  • Wed   31 May   11:30   Ladies' Day - AC Village
  • Thu     1 June    Tall Ships Parade to Hamilton from St. George's
  • Thu    1 June    19:00  Tall Ships Street Party - Front Street
  • Thu     1 June   19:00   Race for Water Gala - Caroline Bay Marina - reserve tickets
  • ​Sun     4 June    14:00 Tall Ships Street Party, Front Street
  • Mon     5 June   Tall Ships Parade from Hamilton, Depart for Boston
  • Wed   14 June   Caroline Bay Golf Tournament
  • Wed   14 June   Endeavour Party
  • Fri    16 June    Louis Vuitton Gala - undisclosed location - ask
  • Wed  21 June  19:00  America's Cup Hall of Fame Reception - Caroline Bay Marina
  • Thu  22 June  19:00  Seakeepers Gala - Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute

​

May 20, 2017 By Jack Griffin 10 Comments

America’s Cup Videos – Tribute to MyIslandHomeBDA

​

Say "Thank You" to Jason, the man who makes MyIslandHomeBDA. DONATE.

And, thanks to AC Tragics Group for editing this video of a few of Jason's great shots!​

Thanks to MyislandhomeBDA from AC TRAGICS GROUP on Vimeo.

12 April TEAM ABBA vs TEAM SUSHI from AC TRAGICS GROUP on Vimeo.

April 15, 2017 By Jack Griffin 2 Comments

Burling and Tuke Interviewed Before Departing for Bermuda America’s Cup

Kiwi helmsman Peter Burling and crew Blair Tuke are relaxed and confident in this entertaining interview shortly before they traveled to Bermuda for the 35th America’s Cup.

Emirates Team New Zealand helmsman Peter Burling (right) with crew Blair Tuke.
Emirates Team New Zealand helmsman Peter Burling (right) with crew Blair Tuke.

April 14, 2017 By Jack Griffin Leave a Comment

America’s Cup Test Races – The Results and What They Mean

The five America’s Cup teams in Bermuda held the second series of test races in their America’s Cup Class race boats – 17 races in all. In windy conditions Artemis dominated, winning all nine races, including four against Oracle. Oracle beat everyone else, including three wins against stablemates SoftBank Team Japan. Team Japan lost five races but beat Land Rover BAR and Groupama Team France once each. BAR raced each team once, beating only the French. France raced each team once, losing to everyone.

America’s Cup Practice Racing – 6-12 April 2017

17 Races Were Run

America's Cup Practice Racing Results 6-12 April 2017

Head to Head Results

America's Cup Practice Racing Results 6-12 April 2017

But… All of the teams will continue improving!
France has good straightline speed but are still mastering their boat and the control systems.
BAR has great crew work on a slow boat that they will continue to develop.
Team Japan, like the French, has a fast boat and will continue to improve.
Oracle has heaps of resources and experience at making a comeback.
Artemis will keep getting faster.

And… then there is the mystery team – Emirates Team New Zealand.
We will find out how competitive the Kiwis are during the next training race series – five days beginning Monday 24 April. All reports say they are fast, smooth and confident, as we heard in this interview.

Comments From the The Teams

Oracle Team USA Skipper Jimmy Spithill

Nathan Outteridge and Iain Percy – Artemis Racing

 

April 12, 2017 By Jack Griffin Leave a Comment

Emirates Team New Zealand America’s Cup Class Yacht Arrives in Bermuda

09/4/17- Emirates Team New Zealand load their America's Cup Class race boat into an Emirates Sky Cargo 747 at Auckland International Airport to fly to Bermuda for the 35th America's Cup
ETNZ loading America’s Cup Class yacht into 747 in Auckland to fly to Bermuda for the 35th America’s Cup

Loading the 747

09/4/17- Emirates Team New Zealand load their America's Cup Class race boat into an Emirates Sky Cargo 747 at Auckland International Airport to fly to Bermuda for the 35th America's Cup
ETNZ’s America’s Cup Class yacht in the hold of the Emirates 747 in Auckland, ready to fly to Bermuda for the 35th America’s Cup

The air freight arrival of the team’s America’s Cup Class foiling catamaran coincided with the start of a three-day practice racing window for the teams involved in the 35th America’s Cup. The Kiwis hope that their boat will be reassembled before the next practice racing session, that runs from April 24-28.

The team’s base in Dockyard was ready for the precious cargo of… two hulls, the crossbeams, the pod and fairings for their America’s Cup Class yacht. Also on board the 747: daggerboards, two wing sails, a chase boat, electronic and hydraulic systems – all told around 42 tons. Loading and unloading took over three hours at each end of the trip.

February 18, 2017 By Jack Griffin 12 Comments

Kiwi Surprises – America’s Cup Class Race Yacht with Bike Grinders and More!

Emirates Team New Zealand took the America’s Cup world by surprise when they launched their race boat on Valentine’s Day with bicycle grinding stations.

ETNZ's America's Cup Class yacht with bicycle grinders - Richard Gladwell
ETNZ’s America’s Cup Class yacht with bicycle grinders.   Photo: Hamish Hooper

Why is wing trimmer Glenn Ashby looking at the wing? You can see him doing the same thing in the videos. In 2009, Oracle Racing’s wing designer Scott Ferguson had to convince the sailors to trim by the numbers, not the shape of the wing. He made his point by asking them if they had ever seen a pilot looking out the window to adjust the flaps on an airplane. So what is Glenn looking at?

 

ETNZ’s design coordinator Dan Bernasconi explains how they developed their design. Video includes a clip showing tests they did between arm and leg grinding.

Back to 1851?

If she is right, then we are all wrong.

All the other teams evaluated using bicycle grinding stations but rejected the idea. The others decided that the improved power output was not worth the problems with crew mobility. It’s harder to get off and on bike grinders during manoeuvres. In 1851, Lord Uxbridge, 1st Marquess of Anglesey and a founding member of the Royal Yacht Squadron, on seeing “America’s” design, remarked, “If she is right, then we are all wrong.” We may be hearing those words again in 2017!

Bicycle grinders have been tried before in the America’s Cup. In 1977, Pelle Petterson’s  12 meter “Sverige” had bicycle grinding stations below deck. They did not work out well, since the crew had a wider range of tasks than today’s America’s Cup Class grinders. And offshore single-handed sailors have used bicycle grinders, especially when shaking out a reef in the mainsail.

America's Cup skipper Franck Cammas using bicycle grinder on offshsore singlehanded multihull.
America’s Cup skipper Franck Cammas using bicycle grinder offshore.

More Surprises

The bicycle grinders are not the only surprise. We’ll have to investigate how Glenn Ashby trims the wing, but there is no winch on the deck.

America's Cup Class yacht - no wing trim winch.
America’s Cup Class yacht – no wing trim winch. Photo: Richard Gladwell

And, this is a pretty extreme shape for the daggerboard wing. Richard Gladwell reported that the Kiwis were foiling smoothly in as little as four knots of wind.

Inverted gull wing board on NZL's America's Cup Class yacht.
Inverted gull wing board on NZL’s America’s Cup Class yacht.

 

Inverted gull wing
Similar to wing shape on WWII Junkers Ju-87 Stuka diver bomber.

More about aircraft wing shapes and configurations in a good Wikipedia article here.

February 6, 2017 By Jack Griffin 4 Comments

Rumors from Auckland

Emirates Team New Zealand had previously said they would launch their race boat in late January and sail in Auckland during February before shipping the boat to Bermuda. That way their 28 day “blackout period” would be spent disassembling, shipping and re-assembling the boat. We have no news of the boat being launched yet. But we have heard that they were sailing very well in December, in their AC45X test boat. The rumor is that they laid out an AC race course and could sail an entire race without dropping off their foils – tacking upwind as well as downwind. We may get some more news when they launch in Auckland (soon?) and, of course, when they first sail on the Great Sound in late March.

February 6, 2017 By Jack Griffin Leave a Comment

AC Birthdays

Ben Ainslie turned 40 yesterday, 5 February. He shares the date with Groupama Team France’s Thomas Le Breton who turned 35. On New Year’s day, ETNZ’s Peter Burling celebrated his 26th birthday. Speaking of birthdays and sailors’ ages…
No Sport for Old Men
Foiling multihulls are no place for old men. Or so the thinking goes. At age 54, Argentine Santiago Lange won the gold medal in the new Nacra 17 mixed multihull event in Rio. Nine months earlier he had a lung removed after being diagnosed with cancer. The Nacra will be upgraded to foil for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. Last week at a conference in Sweden, Santi revealed that he will be campaigning for 2020. He’ll be 58 by then…

January 23, 2017 By Jack Griffin Leave a Comment

Practice Racing in Bermuda

AC Race Management Regatta Director Iain Murray is running two weeks of practice racing in Bermuda, with teams sailing their AC45X test boats. This is the third time ACRM has run training races in Bermuda. All teams were invited, but neither Groupama Team France nor Emirates Team New Zealand is participating. Not only have the French and the Kiwis not yet arrived in Bermuda, they no longer have test boats – they’ve been disassembled for parts for those teams’ AC Class race yachts.

Our contacts in Bermuda say that Artemis and Team Japan seem to be going especially well, but not to read too much into that.

The umpire is making calls on the water, so there is plenty of shouting, especially in the pre-starts. The LiveLine system requires helicopters and a complete technical team to operate it – a bit impractical for practice races.

This is not just for the sailors – it’s a rehearsal for the shore crews as well. There is some flexibility in the work schedule on training days, but on race day the boat needs to be at the starting area on time. The designers will also be getting feedback on how their daggerboard designs are performing. Control systems ergonomics and hydraulics will also get thoroughly tested in race conditions.

January 9, 2017 By Jack Griffin Leave a Comment

2017: What to Expect and When to Expect It

Oracle Team USA, SoftBank Team Japan, Artemis Racing and Land Rover BAR are already established in Bermuda. Groupama Team France and Emirates Team New Zealand will arrive in February.

January: The four teams already in Bermuda will probably be sailing their AC45X test boats on the Great Sound. They are allowed to train together when sailing these boats. Groupama Team France and Emirates Team New Zealand are stripping down their test boats to build their race boats with most of the components from the test boats.
February: The four teams in Bermuda will probably launch their race boats on 9 February, after taking their 28 day “blackout period.” Team New Zealand and Team France will set up their bases in Bermuda and wait for their race boats to arrive.

February-April: The teams are not allowed to sail their race boats together. Team France and Team New Zealand will not have AC45X test boats so they will need to test and train on their own. Oracle, Artemis, BAR and Team Japan have test boats to sail against their race boats, but with only eight sailors, Team Japan’s sailing team is too small for that – they will probably only sail their race boat. Artemis only lists 11 men on their “sailing team” but the 11 includes helmsmen Francesco Bruni and Paul Goodison. They also have Loïc Peyron and and Stu Bettany listed in other departments, so they could put two boats on the water. BAR list 13 sailors including backup helmsman Leigh McMillan, so they will be able to sail both “T3” and their race boat if they choose. Oracle lists the biggest sailing team with 14. They will be able to sail two boats if they choose. Don’t underestimate the logistical challenge of putting two boats on the water – we may see the teams mostly sailing only their race boat.

May: Racing starts on 26 May with all six teams in the double round robin AC Qualifiers. Each team will race twice on at least two days, and only two substitutions are allowed between races. Remember that BAR starts with two points and Oracle has one, their reward for coming in first and second in the AC World Series. At the end of the Qualifiers, one challenger is eliminated. Oracle goes on to the AC Match while the four remaining challengers sail in the Challenger Playoffs to decide who will sail against Oracle in the AC Match.

June: The semi-finals and finals of the Challenger Playoffs run from 4-12 June. Superyachts, J Class and Youth America’s Cup racing will begin on 12 June. The big showdown, the America’s Cup Match, will be sailed on two successive weekends beginning 17 June. By Sunday 25 June we may have our winner but it might take until 27 June for one team to score the seven points needed to take the Cup.

Later in 2017: Five of the six teams want to start up the AC World Series for a 2019 America’s Cup cycle. There could be AC World Series events in Bermuda later in the Summer and another ACWS event in Chicago later in the year. If Team New Zealand wins, all bets are off – the Kiwis have other plans.

January 9, 2017 By Jack Griffin Leave a Comment

Team Updates – Monday 9 January 2017

Emirates Team New Zealand Five time America’s Cup winner and AC Hall of Famer Murray Jones has joined ETNZ to help coach Peter Burling on match racing and on the cutthroat competition in the America’s Cup. Murray was one of the “tight five” who moved with Russell Coutts to Alinghi for the 2003 AC. Coutts recruited him to Oracle for the 2013 cycle, but now Murray is back with Team New Zealand.

ETNZ started tearing down their team base in Auckland right after New Year’s, to ship it to Bermuda. Presumably their AC 45X test boat is being torn down as well. The team will build their AC Class race boat using many components from the test boat. They will launch in Auckland by the end of January and sail it several weeks before shipping the boat to Bermuda. When the race boat gets to Bermuda, they will have only one boat.

Groupama Team France The team stopped sailing their AC45X test boat on 18 December. The boat was shipped from Lanveoc to Vannes to be dismantled for parts for the AC Class.

On 4 January the team began packing up their base in Lorient for the the move to Bermuda. Most of the team will arrive in Bermuda in February. They plan to have their race boat in there by March.

Land Rover BAR The Brits arrived in Bermuda in early December. They had their final sail of 2016 on 21 December and started up again sailing T3 on the Great Sound on 4 January. Their built-in-Britain race boat arrived in Bermuda on 3 January.

They will take their “blackout period” beginnining 9 January and launch the race boat on 6 February.

SoftBank Team Japan Like the other Bermuda-based teams, Team Japan will probably launch their AC Class race yacht on 9 February. Team Japan bought their design from Oracle, and former Team New Zealand design team leader Nick Holroyd has helped them with development. Their website lists only eight sailors, not enough to sail both their AC Class race boat and their AC45X test boat.

Artemis Racing In early December Artemis began practicing match race manoeuvres with their two test boats. In a recent video, Francesco Bruni gives a tour of the cockpit and some of the controls on the team’s first AC45X test boat “Turbo 1.”

Watch the video here – skip forward to the six minute mark.

Oracle Team USA The team returns 9 January from time off for the holidays. We can expect to see them sailing their AC45X test boats in January. They will probably launch their race boat on 6 February.

January 9, 2017 By Jack Griffin Leave a Comment

Why No Team Launched Their Race Boat Yet

Teams were allowed to launch their AC Class race boats almost two weeks ago, but no one did. Why not? It’s not only the holiday schedule. The rules changed. Again. All teams must pick 28 consecutive days when they do not sail their AC Class yachts. If they take their blackout days after launching, they may not work on their boat during the blackout period. So the only logical thing to do is to take your blackout period before launching. A quick look at a calendar lets us figure that the four teams already in Bermuda – Oracle, Japan, Artemis and BAR – should launch on Monday 6 February. This will leave them 109 days to develop and learn to sail their race boat before the first day of racing on Friday 26 May.
Why the rule change? It is probably part of making amends to Team New Zealand for ACEA pulling the round robin AC Qualifiers out of Auckland back in March 2015. Read about that dispute here. Confidentiality rules prevent the teams from confirming that the Arbitration Panel awarded damages to ETNZ. ETNZ will use the blackout period to ship their boat to Bermuda. Groupama Team France will do the same. Rules geeks who want all the details can download the most recent Protocol here and read Article 35.5.
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