Cup Spy Dec 14: Swiss have final sail for 2023, Kiwis tow test ahead of final test block
by Richard Gladwell/Sail-World NZ 24 Dec 2023 11:20 UTC
15 December 2023
NZ Pohutukawa (Xmas tree) in full bloom - Emirates Team New Zealand - LEQ12 Prototype - Day 47 - December 14, 2023 - Auckland © Sam Thom/America's Cup
Last Thursday Alinghi Red Bull Racing resumed training in their AC75 and wound up that training/testing block today. Emirates Team NZ were unable to sail due to strong winds, but tow-tested for an hour in flat water.
Due to Cup Spy being incapacitated, this report is a late posting of content from the AC37 Recon File System from mid-December.
What happened in the Cup - December 14, 2023:
- Alinghi Red Bull Racing - Returned to Barcelona from Jeddah, where they last sailed on Monday December 4. On Thursday they resumed training in their AC75 and wound up that training/testing block today, a week later.
- Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli - Suffered a compression crack in the port topside of their LEQ12 on Tuesday. There is no update on the repair, other than it is proceeding at pace.
- American Magic - Sailed out of Barcelona on Thursday in their AC75. They have some new systems onboard which are being "debugged" during sailing trials.
- Emirates Team New Zealand - Came out for a tow test only today in flat water - with strong winds precluding any sailing. They are expected tomorrow Friday, and into next week to complete their pre-Xmas test block.
- INEOS Britannia - Did not sail - No update on their situation - they had rudder/rudder box issues for the second time in mid-November.
- Orient Express Racing Team - No report, however they will be sailing in the SailGP Dubai, this weekend.
Cup Spy apologizes for the delay in publishing these America's Cup team updates due to undergoing a two hour surgery mid-last week. We have the information gathered, and it will be presented grouped by team or date, and published over the next day or so.
AC37 Joint Recon Team Reports:
Emirates Team New Zealand - LEQ12 - Day 47 - December 14, 2023 - Auckland
Strong wind was forecast and tow testing was called for before the day.
Dock out was at 1147hrs, ETNZ gently towed down the harbour then speed up to a around 25 kts.
It was a very quick day on the water they motored along the northern beaches in the flat water to Milford Beach and then back to the base. For one period they sped up to 30kts. For another period they looked to be running through a range on foil arm cant angles and flight heights, they looked to once simulate a stall test on the foil by letting the boat glide with no tension on the tow rope till the yacht came off the foil.
In total there was about 25 minutes of tow testing from North Head to Milford beach and back. Once back at North Head they were straight back to the dock. Dock in at 1245hr.
Report from Sam Thom - AC37 Joint Recon Team
Crew:
Peter Burling, Nathan Outteridge, Andy Maloney, Blair Tuke
Session Statistics: Emirates Team New Zealand - LEQ12 - Day 47 - December 14, 2023 - Auckland
- Weather: 18° C
- Wind Strength: 20-30kts
- Wind Direction: SW 225° Offshore
- Sea State: Flat 0.1mtr
- Crane In: 1050hrs Dock Out: 1147hrs
- Dock In: 1245hrs Crane out:
- Total Tacks: 0 - Fully foiling: 0; Touch & Go: 0; Touch Down: 0
- Total Gybes: 0 - Fully foiling: 0; Touch & Go: 0; Touch Down: 0
Alinghi Red Bull Racing - AC75 - Day 107 - December 14, 2023 - Barcelona
Alinghi Red Bull Racing rolled out their AC75 at 09:30, followed by routine control systems checks at the dock. The M2-2R mainsail and J3-1R jib were prepared on deck ahead of a 13:00 dockout. Notably, the steering wheel was changed as confirmed by Arnaud. A battery was also carried onboard into the port cockpit.
The yacht was towed out under Port Olimpic, with sails hoisted by 14:15. The day's sailing included three stints, characterized by converging wind conditions and sea state from different directions.
Joseph Ozanne (Simulator and AI Lead) was notably in the starboard guest seat, between the helm and trimmer.
Stint 1 (14:20 - 14:30, 8-12kn 290° @ 14:15)
The team commenced with a short downwind, performing two gybes, followed by an upwind leg with one tack before stopping for a five minute pause. The conditions grew increasingly more patchy
and shifty.
Stint 2 (14:35 - 14:50, 10-15kn 10-50° @ 14:40)
The yacht sailed upwind towards Badalona, encountering a significant shift to the right. The yacht was sailed with two boards down, navigating the boundary of converging winds, with only one proper tack performed due to these conditions.
Stint 3 (15:00 - 15:45, 10-15kn 50° @ 15:00 *measured before towing South)
This stint started with the yacht sailing away from the shore but falling off the foils after entering a lull. After a tow south, where the wind blew from the West, the yacht resumed sailing with a long downwind on starboard, a quick round-up, and an upwind of 2.5 NM with a couple of tacks at the end. This was followed by the another downwind leg at a lower angle, before turning back upwind and sailing at a slightly higher angle than the previous upwind. By the end of the stint, the wind started to die and shift to the right, at which point an end to the day was called and sails were dropped.
The team spent just under three and a half hours on the water, with 55 minutes of sailing time. Nine manoeuvres were performed throughout the day. The focus was on aero, sail testing and setup.
Session Statistics: Alinghi Red Bull Racing - AC75 - Day 107 - December 14, 2023 - Barcelona
- Weather: 17°. Sunny
- Wind Strength 8-15kts
- Wind Direction: 30° - 50°
- Sea State: Flat 0.5mtr
- Crane In: 1130hrs Dock Out: 1300hrs
- Dock In: 1620hrs Crane out: 1645hrs
- Total Tacks: 6 - Fully foiling: 6; Touch & Go: 0; Touch Down: 0
- Total Gybes: 3 - Fully foiling: 1; Touch & Go: 1; Touch Down: 1
Crew:Sailing: Arnaud Psarofaghis, Maxime Bachelin, Nico Charbonnier, Yves Detrey, Bryan Mettraux, Nico Rolaz. Power: Théry Schir, Nils Theuninck, Nico Stahlberg, Barnabé Delarze
Additional Images:
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. Its format is intended to give Sail-World readers a snapshot of all teams' progress on a given day or period.