Cup Spy Apr 3: Kiwis impressive in big breeze
by Richard Gladwell/Sail-World.com/nz 4 Apr 2023 00:02 NZST
2 April 2023
Emirates Team New Zealand passes ahead of NZ's first major international trophy winner - Rainbow II - winner of the One Ton Cup in 1969 - Waitemata Harbour - April 3, 2023 © Richard Gladwell / Sail-World.com/nz
Emirates Team NZ - Auckland - April 3, 2023 - AC75 - Day 7
Emirates Team New Zealand put in a solid training session on the Waitemata Harbour and inner Hauraki Gulf today in offshore winds of 20-25kts, and gusting to just under 30kts.
Aside from issues finally hoisting the AC75's mainsail and jib at the start of the session, requiring a crew member to go aloft, the session lasted three hours, with little downtime, other than to apparently make power crew changes.
The 2021 America's Cup champion has been redeveloped to comply with Version 2 of the AC75 Class Rule which will be used for the 2024 America's Cup.
Today was Day 7 of testing, or the sixth sailing day for the AC75. To date The New Zealand team have proceeded carefully with commissioning of the test boat, which in theory could defend the America's in Barcelona in October 2024. However today caution seemed to be thrown to the wind, with conditions that were at the top end and beyond for America's Cup racing.
Despite all the changes made, the AC75 seemed to hardly miss a beat in a performance that was hard to fault, where the foiling monohull appeared to be going around on rails.
Reports from the AC37 Recon team have yet to be posted, which may include some idea of the speeds achieved - however the bear-aways would have gone close to 50kts - but with the boat appearing to be under perfect control during the maneuver, and also the gybes at high speed.
The practice session took place on the southern end of the Course A area used for the 2021 Prada Cup and America's Cup.
In those events, and the Prada Cup Semi-Finals in particular - sailed on Course C under North Head, we saw AC75's on the edge of control and beyond in similar, or less severe conditions, recorded at 18-22kts. The first day of the Semi-Finals of the Prada Cup were when American Magic set the record speed for the 36th America's Cup of 53.31kts before their rudder ventilated and the US Challenger spun out of control.
Today Emirates Team New Zealand appeared to be a model of stability, with a level of control that was quite amazing for the conditions - remembering that an offshore breeze in Auckland is punctuated with sudden variances in strength - providing a tough test for foiling monohulls.
We watched the training session through high powered binoculars from North Head, and also from the grounds of Takapuna Grammar School, bordering a high cliff overlooking the training area.
The training session consisted of free sailing on upwind and downwind runs, without the use of set marks.
From North Head the AC75 was easily visible as a cloud of spray which obscured the hull. From TGS we could look down onto the AC75, watching it zig-zag upwind and down - all outwardly under full control. In these conditions the slightest weakness, waver, or speed wobble gets heavily punished. Blink under pressure - and a capsize would be an inevitable and very spectacular outcome.
Part of the testing for the session would have revolved in the cyclors, operating from the back end of the AC75. Today's test would have hinged around whether the four strong team were capable of providing enough hydraulic pressure for the sailing and maneuvers - on the basis that today's conditions were beyond expected racing requirements.
The sea state was probably less than that expected in Barcelona, however during today's session there was an incoming tide, which always creates an interesting and variable sea state.
It was also a test under fire for the cyclors, to see how they coped with high speed sailing. Interestingly, today Emirates Team NZ released a training and safety video - showing their towable test platform to train the cyclors how to escape from a capsized AC75, with trained medic Tony Rae assisting.
The forecast for the rest of the week is for light winds, going into the four day Easter Break.
AC37 Recon Team Summary:
Te Rehutai was rolled from her shed at 9.45, had the mast on its ball at 10.02 and in the water in the pen by 10.30. The Head boards were loaded while alongside the dock, she was eased from her berth and towed down the harbour to about 1NM NNW of Rough Rock [off North Head] where she dropped the tow and took Chase 1 along side.
At 11.43 the main sail was on the lock quickly followed by the #3 jib. At 12.16 Te Rehutai dropped the chase and set out about her testing schedule. Starting with a big run out towards Tiritiri Matangi, here she just legged out in front of us putting about 5 miles on the recon boat before we stopped and watched her come on the breeze and start working her way back towards Takapuna.
She came off her foils about 12.40 in a big puff and looked to feather through it in displacement mode for approximately 5 minutes before getting foil borne at 12.45.
Catching up with her after this time in displacement mode for the last part of the beat up into Takapuna a large kink was observed in the forestay just above the head of the Jib. The yacht stopped sailing at 13.36 and did a power group rotation and was sailing again at 13.49. Here she followed a similar pattern with a 7-9 mile run out towards Shearer Rock [in a northerly direction] before hardening up and beating back in towards Takapuna.
With no marks set and the extreme speed meant getting close was very hard work, at times out wide the sea state had us down to under 20 knots boat speed to keep all onboard onboard.
At the end of the session we observed two laps of Rangitoto channel in flat water with breeze in the upper teens we had no hope of keeping up in a straight line and had to cut the corners to stay close.
Te Rehutai came to a stop at 14.27 just north of Northern leading, took Chase 1 along side and doused her sails before the tow back to base.
[Alastair Moore AC-Recon]
Session Statistics - Emirates Team NZ - Auckland - April 3, 2022 - AC75 - Day 7
- Weather: 18°C with occasional showers
- Wind Strength: 12-22kts
- Wind Direction: SW
- Sea State: Slight/Moderate
- Roll out: 1050hrs Dock Out: 1120hrs
- Dock In: 1500hrs Crane out: 1542hrs
- Total Tacks: 18 - Fully foiling: 18; Touch & Go: 0; Touch Down: 0
- Total Gybes: 16 - Fully foiling: 16; Touch & Go: 0; Touch Down: 0
Crew: Sailing: Nathan Outteridge, Peter Burling, Andy Maloney, Blair Tuke Power: Simon Van Velthooven, Marius Van Der Pol, Louis Sinclair, Louis Crosby, Hamish Bond, Marcus Hansen.