Cup Spy - April 4, 2023: Sir Jim drops in on the Brits, Swiss hit high notes, Kiwis have a breakdown
by Richard Gladwell/Sail-World NZ 5 Apr 2023 19:37 AEST
5 April 2023
Jim Ratcliffe - T6 - LEQ12 - INEOS Britannia - Day 31 - April 4, 2023 - Mallorca © Ugo Fonolla / America's Cup
What happened in the Cup - April 4, 2023:
Three teams sailed out of Barcelona, Palma and Auckland - each in a different boat type. With the Swiss in their AC40 One Design; the Brits with their LEQ12, test boat; and the Kiwis with their AC75, upgraded to Version 2 of the AC75 Class Rule.
- INEOS Britannia had a good day in their LEQ12 test boat, with INEOS boss, Jim Ratcliffe watching from on the water.
- Alinghi Red Bull Racing sailed their AC40 One Design in a bigger sea state off Barcelona, reporting few issues and getting their dry tack/gybe percentage back to the level enjoyed by other teams.
- Emirates Team New Zealand sailed their AC75, upgraded to Version 2 of the AC75 Class Rule, however the session was cut short due to some damage which required rectification ashore.
- American Magic did not sail - they did sail yesterday and again on April 1
- Luna Rossa did not sail - they last sailed on March 25 in their LEQ12 test boat.
- No further news from the Orient Express Team (formerly K-Challenge).
INEOS Britannia - Mallorca - April 4, 2023 - LEQ12 - Day 4
Top sailing journalist, Justin Chisholm was on the water and made various observations on the British boat:
Although the day dawned with clear skies over Palma Bay this morning, by the time the British LEQ12 T6 test boat had been rolled out, rigged, launched, and left the dock at 1245, there were rain showers over the land and menacing looking cloud formations swirling ominously around offshore.
With winds in the high teens forecast for the afternoon the crew - helmsmen Ben Ainslie and Giles Scott with trimmers/flight controllers Leigh McMillan and Luke Parkinson - opted for the little used J4 headsail.
It did not take long to become clear how good a choice that had been as the British T6 LEQ12 test boat leapt effortlessly into flight mode and tore around the bay at speeds in the low to mid 30s upwind and in the mid 40s downwind.
With a tight window of opportunity before the breeze was expected to shut down around 1530, the team was clearly focused on maximising flight time. Indeed, over the two hour session the boat was airborne for for almost an hour and a half. Easily noticeable once again were periodic large splashes thrown up by T6's "W"-shaped starboard foil.
Watching the action closely during the high adrenaline sailing session from on board the high performance tender to his superyacht Hampshire 2 was team owner Jim Ratcliffe.
When the breeze started to die away at 1500 the team called a halt to proceedings, with the sails packed away by 1520 and the boat on the dock by 1545.
Session Statistics - INEOS Britannia - Mallorca - April 4, 2023 - LEQ12 - Day 4
- Weather: Sunny 15 degrees turning cloudy with showers 13 degrees C
- Wind Strength 12-18kts
- Wind Direction: 230-240 degrees
- Roll out: 1000hrs Dock Out: 1245hrs
- Dock In: 1545hrs Crane out: 1615hrs
- Total Tacks: 9 - Fully foiling: 8 Touch & Go: 0; Touch Down: 1
- Total Gybes: 6 - Fully foiling: 4; Touch & Go: 2; Touch Down:
Crew: Ben Ainslie, Giles Scott, Luke Parkinson, Leigh McMillan
Alinghi Red Bull Racing - Barcelona - April 4, 2023 - AC40 One Design - Day 15
From the AC37 Joint Recon team:
Alinghi Red Bull Racing rolled out their AC40 at 09:30am. The 12 man shore team prepared the yacht for a planned dock-out at 11:30am, later delayed to 11:45am due to a departing cruise ship.
The team hoisted the M1 mainsail and J2 jib under the breakwater and began sailing from the port entrance at midday. The East wind at the start of the day was measured at 6 knots, gusting 8 knots, with a growing short period swell from the East, starting from 1m, peaking at 1.5m.
The team warmed up with a figures of eight, both tacking and gybing around leeward gate marks. They proceeded with pre-start practice and laps around the 1NM windward/leeward course, followed by a big nose dive to end the first stint. Just after raising the windward foil on port tack, the yacht started to accelerate and lift out of the water.
The rudder elevator lifted out of the water, causing the boat to instantly pitch forward and nose dive. After 15 minutes checking systems, the yacht was released for the second stint and a few more laps of the course were sailed. The chase boats acting as boundaries on the course. The crew swapped just before the third and final stint; Yves D + Bryan M off, Lucien C [Starboard Trim] + Nico R [Port Trim] on).
The yacht was sailed four nautical miles offshore, to practice sailing in the bigger waves, as the wind was also decreasing.
The waves were estimated to be maximum 1.5m, with a 4-5 second period. The team sailed well in the bigger sea state, though not as consistent in foiling maneuvers. They also struggled at times to take off, in part due to the lower wind. A long downwind was sailed right up to the port entrance.
The team spent almost four hours on the water, covering over 40nm. They completed 77% of their maneuvers (foil-foil), from a total of 70 moves, one of their best sessions yet on the AC40.
Session Statistics: Alinghi Red Bull Racing - Barcelona - April 4, 2023 - AC40 One Design - Day 15
- Wind Strength: 6-9kts
- Wind Direction: SSW
- Weather: Sunny 12°C
- Sea State: Beaufort 2 - 1-1.5m East Swell
- Roll out: 1005hrs Dock Out: 1145hrs
- Dock In: 1545hrs Crane out: 1605hrs
- Total Tacks: 34; Fully foiling: 30; Touch & Go: 3; Touch Down: 1
- Total Gybes: 36; Fully foiling: 24; Touch & Go: 8; Touch Down: 4
- Dry Tack/Gybe percentage = 77%
Crew: Maxime Bachelin, Nicolas Charbonnier, Yves Detrey, Lucien Cujean, Nicolas Rolaz, Bryan Mettraux
Emirates Team NZ - Auckland - April 4, 2023 - AC75 - Day 8
From the AC37 Joint Recon Team [Alastair Moore AC-Recon]:
Te Rehutai was rolled out of the shed at 1030hrs, after a bit of waiting around she was towed out into the harbour at 1230 before getting sails up and going sailing for around 35-40 Minutes.
Team went for a crew swap and some lunch then before jumping back in noticed some damage (Unsure to what) which they wouldn't be able to fix on the water so headed in shortly after that.
Session Statistics - Emirates Team NZ - Auckland - April 4, 2022 - Day 8
- Weather: 20 degreesC Sunny
- Wind Strength:
- Wind Direction:
- Sea State: Slight
- Roll out: 1030hrs Dock Out: 1230hrs
- Dock In: hrs Crane out: 1500hrs
- Total Tacks: 36 - Fully foiling: 30; Touch & Go: 5; Touch Down: 1
- Total Gybes: 37 - Fully foiling: 34; Touch & Go: 3; Touch Down: 0
Sailing Crew: Nathan Outteridge, Peter Burling, Andy Maloney, Blair Tuke
Power Team Simon Van Velthooven, Marius Van Der Pol, Louis Sinclair, Louis Crosby, Hamish Bond, Marcus Hansen.
Emirates Team NZ sailed with the full crew configuration onboard - 4x power group, 2x helm 2x trimmer
This commentary was written and compiled from video, still images and statistical content extracted from the AC37 Joint Recon program and other material available to Sail-World NZ including photo files, and other on the water coverage from the 2010, 2013, 2017 and 2021 America's Cups.
Additional Images: