America's Cup- Oracle Team USA enjoys steady flight on foils
by Richard Gladwell on 16 Feb 2013
Oracle Team USA - San Francisco - Day 11 of sailing - February 8, 2013 Guilain Grenier Oracle Team USA
http://www.oracleteamusamedia.com/
Oracle Team USA, the Defender of the America's cup has released a video showing their AC72 catamaran flying steadily on San Francisco Bay while foil-borne.
To date the team's first AC72 has been plagued with rumours about her ability to foil steadily and under control. This lack of ability has been put down to a number of factors, orbiting around the rather obvious platform twist.
In this video released by the team - the first to show her foiling with none of the rearing up that has typified the AC72's performance to date.
It is also interesting to see the AC72 take off on foils in a similar style to Luna Rossa and Emirates Team NZ - lifting onto her leeward foil off the bottom of her daggerboard, before lifting her other hull out to windward.
The video is shot with the AC72 in flat water. There is one bearway in which theleewrd bow does dip sinificantly before the leeward daggerboard/foil cuts in and lift the whole hull clear of the water, as it is designed to do.
The angle of the foils is near vertical showing that they are not being angled forward to increase lift, for visual effect, but increasing drag significantly, and reducing speed. Oracle's revamped AC72, has sailed for six days since February 1, the most of any of the four teams involved in the 34th America's Cup.
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