Cup Spy Jan 8 : Luna Rossa catch a big breeze, while American Magic have a day on the Bay
by Richard Gladwell/Sail-world.com/nz 9 Jan 2023 18:32 PST
10 January 2023
Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli - LEQ12 - January 8, 2023 - Cagliari © Ivo Rovira / America'sCup
What happened in the Cup - January 8/9, 2023:
- INEOS Britannia did not sail having had a session the previous day.
- American Magic sailed inshore on Pensacola Bay in light winds, rather than take their chances on a long tow to the Gulf, and just get light/no wind.
- Emirates Team New Zealand are not expected to sail until January 16
- Luna Rossa sailed from Cagliari in a 12-18kt breeze after towing on another Mediterranean breeze hunt.
- Alinghi Red Bull Racing remained in the shed
- No further developments from the late entry French K-Challenge
American Magic - AC75 Version 2 - Pensacola - January 8, 2023 - Day 30
Patriot sailed inshore today, despite the intention to maximise time in Barcelona conditions expected outside of Pensacola Bay on the Gulf of Mexico.
They covered approximately 50 nm, comprised of 16 W/L legs. Five headsails were loaded into the support RIB, 1 of them, a J#1, was used.
Sailing began at 13:00, 23 maneuvers were undertaken, with the sailing session ending at 16:00hrs. Patriot had a total flying time of 82 Minutes, out of the 180 minute session. Top speeds were approximately 32kts upwind/ 36kts downwind according to the RIB GPS. These are very good multiples of wind speed - probably 4X, considering a wind speed of only 7kts.
However of 11 attempts to take-off only four were self launched, with seven tow ups onto the foils. This ratio indicates that the wind strength was maybe less than optimal. More likely that the team is using minimum sized foils which won't generate the required lift at low windspeeds, but are very fast, due to the low drag once the boat is foiling.
Statistics should not be taken too literally, particularly with American Magic which in Version 2 mode sails with only eight crew, but in testing may sail with a few more.
Sailing was postponed one hour as the team waited for the sea breeze to fill in. There were also some delays with crane issues. Eventually the team were able to get in three hours of sailing despite looking like the day might have been canceled.
"The forecast looked pretty marginal definitely weren't gonna go outside with no wind outside. And then we were hoping that this late push would come in, and we had a nice, nice afternoon sailing on the Bay," helmsman/skipper Paul Goodison told the AC37 Joint Recon team dockside after the sail.`
Despite having sailed in the flat waters and generally light winds of Pensacola Bay, for 26 of their 29 on the water days, Goodison says they are still learning.
Aside from testing their system changes, which has brought the AC75 from Version 1 in which they sailed in Auckland for the 2021 Cup to Version 2 for the 2024 Match, most of the focus seems to have been on achieving take-off in as low a windspeed as possible. Part of the changes to Version 2 of the AC75 Class Rule have been a reduction in all up weight, which will make the Version 2 AC75's easier to get self-launched onto their foils in a lower windspeed.
The lower wind limit for America's Cup racing is expected to be the same as for the 2021 event - 6.5kts rolling average over 30 secs until 3 minutes before the starting signal, when the race will be live - regardless of any drop in windspeed before the start. Most teams struggled when the wind dropped below 6.5kts, and the Brits were the worst, but certainly on the pace at the top end of the wind range (23.5kts).
"Patriot is a very similar to the boat we had last time, the hull form and the foils are exactly the same. If the wind got to 7-8kts we could have started foiling. If it drops below that we struggled to get out of the water. Maybe we can take off in nearly a knot less wind speed than last time just through the changes."
The Recon team observed that American Magic have split their sessions into separate phases - one where long (5nm) legs are sailed for speed testing, and the second where much shorter legs are sailed for crew training in maneuvers.
"We have a quite a complex test matrix we're trying to get through and we're more focused on the long straight line stuff," Goodison explains. "And that just gives us the ability to collect a lot of data before we make a change and then collect more data and keep things consistent. And then on the other days, I guess we kind of call it crew man grooming, where we're trying to bash in loads of maneuvers.
"We've ticked off a lot of hydro (hydraulics) and a couple of aero (rig/sails) tests today in this light stuff. And everyday you learn something more and and see how one thing affects the other."
"We're trying to get lots of information on the systems while we're making different changes to the bikes, and the guys are trying to give us feedback of how hard it is what we need to change in hydro world and any more new stuff we want to try looking forward to the to the next AC 75."
The light winds and Bay sailing have provided the opportunity to bring in crew members without previous AC75 experience. Riley Gibbs, USA's Tokto2020 Olympic representative in the Nacra 17 has been helming, while another AC75 rookie, Tom Slingsby is spending an extended Xmas break in Australia, along with a SailGP regatta in Singapore this weekend.
"We're just looking at Riley getting a bit more more training in and Tom's obviously back next week when he'll be back on board. But we did a good session today. Like Dan Morris was flying the boat for a very good stint. We had Lucas Calabrese the on the trim inside. So we just rotating crew. We're devoting a bit of the day to getting the tests out of the way. And then we're devoting the second part of the day to crew training and the guys are guys are coming along really well. The boats sailing better under their control. I think for one part, two days ago, we had the boat completely sailed by by the new guys, which was impressive to see."
Goodison wrapped up the session commenting "we had a pretty nice day on the water, with no real issues. So we've given the [sailing] guys a day off tomorrow."
Session Statistics - Pensacola - January 8, 2023 - American Magic - AC75 V1.5
- Wind Strength 6-7kts SE (PM)
- Wind Direction: E (AM) E (PM)
- Sea State: <1ft(AM) <1ft (PM)
- Roll out: 1130hrs Dock Out: 1230hrs
- Dock In: 1645hrs Crane out: 1715hrs
- Total Tacks: 13 - Fully foiling: 9; Touch & Go: 6; Touch Down: 4
- Total Gybes: 10 - Fully foiling: 7; Touch & Go: 0; Touch Down: 3
Crew: Paul Goodison, Riley Gibbs, Lucas Calabrese, Dan Morris, Andrew Campbell, Michael Menninger, Dan Morris, Colten Hall, Trevor Burd, John Croom, Tim Hornsby, Terry Hutchinson observed in various positions
Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli - LEQ12 - Cagliari - January 8, 2023 - Day 20
Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli's LEQ12 was launched at 0955hrs and docked out 1150hrs, with the the team headed out in the Gulf of Cagliari.
Conditions were glassy at first and the team looked for the forecast strong incoming SW breeze and significant waves.
Sailing began at 1320hrs completing 16 maneuvers, surviving approximately five significant dives and splash downs. The three hour sailing ended at 16:20.
On several occasions, the AC37 Joint Recon team observed that while heading downwind, the LEQ12 was sailing with both foil arms down, while sometimes lifting the windward arm was raised up again. There are several explanations as to why this was done, ranging from improving stability, part of a test script covering raising and lowering of foil arms while sailing etc..
Out of three headsails loaded on the chaseboat, the J1 was initially hoisted for one short "sketchy" run. Given the 15-18kt breeze the team switched to the correct jib selection a J#4.
On breaks between runs while switching sailors, support team members were observed on board checking the clew and traveller of jib.
The AC37 Recon team reported that on "two runs of each 11 minutes towards the beach of Poetto, the team encountered tougher conditions of 17 kts SW and 1.5m SW waves and searched for occasional shelter closer inshore in the bay. The LEQ12 had a total flight time of approximately 57 minutes reaching top speeds in the low 40kt range according to the Recon RIB's GPS.
"We have just come back from a short break for Christmas," explained Operations Manager Gilberto Nobili, dockside after the session. "Today was planned to be a shakedown and a quick sail. We're expecting some bad weather over the next few days. So we decided to make this a longer session. It was very productive, with 10 to 15 knots and quite a bit of waves. So it was a good comeback from a short break."
"The forecast for tomorrow is quite windy, a little above our expectations. So we plan to stay on shore to do some maintenance and some upgrades to the boat as usual," he added
In response to other questions Nobili made it clear that the LEQ12 was not designed to be the fastest possible near-40fter.
"It's a prototype. So the goal of this boat is not to reach performance it is to try new stuff and debug the system. Our goal is changing every day - we try to learn as much as possible. Looking towards the big boat, this one is a prototype.
"Every day that you go out with this kind of boat, you learn something, he added.
"Today was a great day for the crew because the 10 to 15 knots with waves is what we expect to have in Barcelona.
"So it was a great day for the crew to train. It was a good day for all the team to be back in the water because every time you stop, you need a little bit of time to get the machine going. It was a good comeback. for us," he said.
Session Statistics - Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli - LEQ12 - Cagliari - January 8, 2023 - Day 21
- Wind Strength 15-18 (PM)
- Wind Direction: SW (PM)
- Sea State: 1-1.4 metres
- Roll out: 0950hrs Dock Out: 1150hrs
- Dock In: 1640hrs Crane out: 1815 hrs
- Total Tacks: 7 - Fully foiling: 5; Touch & Go: 1; Touch Down: 1
- Total Gybes: 9 - Fully foiling: 4; Touch & Go: 2; Touch Down: 3
Crew: Francesco Bruni, Marco Gradoni (rotating as helmsman with Ruggerio Tita), Andrei Tesei, Umberto Molineris, Vittario Bissaro, Enrico Voltolini
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