"That's it"! That was the brief comment from team boss Grant Dalton when he took delivery of the hulls of the second AC72 cat, which was built for Team New Zealand at the Cookson shipyard. "We will probably make the boat faster, but the shape will remain the same. We'll see if we're right in September." Dalton's words sound full-bodied. Because he is obviously implicitly assuming that he will win the Louis Vuitton Cup, i.e. the challenger qualification against Luna Rossa, who only build one boat, and against Artemis. "Our hopes are pinned on this boat," said technical director Nick Holroyd. "With a bit of luck, this boat will be good enough that we won't have to get the old (decommissioned) one out of the cupboard." In the coming weeks, the boat will be screwed together before its maiden voyage in February.
"In general, Team New Zealand has a good, straightforward and conservative boat with a lot of volume and a proven structure," explains Mike Drummond, one of the former designers of Oracle Team USA, on the Sail-World website in a detailed interview on the various AC72 design philosophies. "The Wing is an evolution of the C-Class (Kats) and they have correctly paid more attention to the appendages." Drummond points out, however, that boats with high volume also have high drag, which could cost up to 5 per cent speed at the speeds sailed, especially in lighter winds.
This is not only about turbulence, but also about aerodynamic efficiency, which suffers from the many struts and the Y-shaped beams under the trampoline on Team New Zealand and is also impaired by the large distance from the lower edge of the wing to the water surface. Oracle addresses this problem with a smooth and attractive pod between the hulls, which not only has a load-bearing function but is also intended to extend the wing downwards towards the water surface. Drummond did not forget to mention that his compatriots from Team New Zealand used all available sailing days for testing and were thus able to gain experience that should benefit them in the further development of the second boat.
Regardless of the speculation as to which design team backed the right horse, Prada boss Patrizio Bertelli, who sponsors Luna Rossa, made disparaging remarks about the AC72 cats. "The 34th Cup will be the only one sailed with these boats," he was quoted as saying by Italian magazine Vela quoted. "It's not about monohulls or multihulls. Kats are attractive, but these AC72s are a lunacy that you have to get into the water with 40 people."
Team New Zealand takes over second boat
