Cup Spy - Day 20 : Louis Vuitton Cup - Finals Day 6 - Preview
by Richard Gladwell, Sail-World NZ 2 Oct 2024 22:08 NZDT
2 October 2024
American Magic Womens AC team - PUIG Women's America's Cup, Official Practice. October 1, 2024 © Ian Roman / America's Cup
Sail-World's Preview of Day 20 of the Louis Vuitton Cup - Finals Race Day 6 - October 2, 2024. We will switch to a new story once racing starts, which will feature all the days coverage, reports, commentary and images.
While you are waiting we have podcast at the bottom of the page from North Sails Ken Read, a former America's Cup skipper and America's Cup competitor, asking some deep questions oh Emirates Team NZ co-helmsman Nathan Outteridge, Tom Whidden and Bruno Dubois
Weather Prognosis:
America's Cup Weather Partner PredictWind has provided a dedicated Race Weather Center offering fans access to detailed daily weather breakdowns, live webcams and historical weather data to daily weather breakdowns written by meteorologists.
Provisional Forecast Race Day 19:
Wednesday October 2, 2024
The wind pattern changes on Wednesday. In the morning, a weak North Easterly wind blows associated with a strong Northerly wind gradient offshore. During the day, the wind will globally turn right and increase in speed with some uncertainty in the forecast.
For the afternoon wind direction is expected around 90-120° (East/East-South-East). For wind speed, there is a big range due to uncertainty from 10 to 17 knots with potentially gusts up to 23 knots.
The sea state will build throughout the day and we expect 1.2 meter from the East with a 4-second period, making challenging foiling conditions.
The sky will cover up completely during the day, ahead of rain occurring in the evening/night.
Course Location:
Race Schedule - Finals Matches 9 and 10:
Final - Match 9: Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli (ITA) (Port Startbox Entry) vs INEOS Britannia (GBR) (Starboard Startbox entry) Start: 1210hrs UTC
Final - Match 10 : INEOS Britannia (GBR) (Port Startbox entry) vs Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli (ITA) (Starboard Startbox Entry) Start: 1315hrs UTC
While you're waiting...
While you're waiting for the coverage to start you can update with the following:
INEOS Britannia's Dock Walk recorded just a few minutes ago in Barcelona hosted by Georgie Ainslie chatting with various members of INEOS Britannia team
Inside Tack
The best team produced show of the 2024 America's Cup - the INEOS Britannia inner sanctum of Freddie Carr, Giles Scott and Iain Jensen discuss issues of the day, including the racing, how the races and day unfolder, what was seen on and off the water, where Giles Scott got his "haircut", how Freddie Carr handles his hairy legs, now that he is a cyclor - and other key issues confronting the British team.
North Sails Loft 57 Podcast
North Sails Ken Read talks with Emirates Team NZ co-helm Nathan Outteridge, veteran Cup sailor - and tactician to Dennis Conner, Tom Whidden and Orient Express Racing Team's super-manager Bruno Dubois
Virtual Eye
After the racing you can replay the key points, or the whole race using Virtual Eye from ARL This is the tool that Inside Tack are using to demonstrate various points - using the actual tracks of the AC75s.
You can go directly to the Virtual Eye America's Cup coverage by clicking here and click on "Watch Previous" then select the race you wish to view. Virtual Eye is a 3D viewer so you can zoom in, out, around and up and down just like you could in a helicopter.
Crew Lists
Format and Points:
The Finals are modelled on the America's Cup - 13 races are scheduled, and the winner will be the first to score 7pts. Generally that will be the first to win seven races, however the International Jury may impose points penalties for infringements, on and off the water, that are not covered by the Racing Rules which are adjudicated by the Umpiring team.
Two races are planned each day. The same wind limits will apply as for the earlier rounds of the Louis Vuitton Cup - a lower limit of 6.5kts and an upper limit of 21kts, measured at the top and bottom of the course (start line) using recording devices on each gate. There are a total of four devices, with the readings averaged over 30 second intervals over a five minute period between the 9th down to the 4th minute before the start. If the wind is within the allowed limits the Course Director will make a radio call (heard on the TV commentary) telling the crews that the racing is going to proceed.
If the go-ahead is given then the race proceeds regardless of what the breeze does regardless of the wind limits. Once the go-ahead is given, the only constraint on the race is that teams must make a first leg time limit of 12 minutes, and then a race time limit of 45 minutes. The length of legs, compass direction of the next leg and number of legs can all be altered by the race committee during the race.
To date no race has gone over 25 minutes duration.
The race director has the power to not start racing (even if the breeze is within the prescribed limits) if he considers the sea state is unsafe. He also has the ability to call off a race for safety reasons - a power which he came close to using during the lightning strikes on Day 5 of the Louis Vuitton Cup. However Emirates Team NZ's decision to drop out of their race and sail beyond the 100metre boundary line, triggering their disqualification, and the immediate awarding of the race to Luna Rossa, meant that the Chief Umpire's actions forestalled any action on safety grounds by the Race Director