Completely Polarised
by John Curnow, Sail-World.com AUS Editor 21 Oct 10:00 NZDT
Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Race 7 - October 18, 2024 © David Maynard /
www.alleycatphotographer.com
In the weird and wonderful spaces of my mind I came to sunglasses. With a wry smile, too... For they are kind of dichotomous to the AC75. Don't get me wrong, I love my polarised sunnies from Barz Optics. Might not get as much of an outing these days as times of yore, but they're definitely in the go-to kit bag for when I get to go for a yacht or undertake a boat review, I can tell you!
Evidently, so too does our Managing Editor, Mark Jardine. So, before we weave a mat as complex and layered as an interchange on a busy US Freeway, let's get down to tin tacks.
The boat
Now the original premise for this here ditty was the AC75 as a vessel. People call me and go, 'they're just plain weird', or 'they don't look anything like the ones we see on the TV on Boxing Day', to say nothing of 'they're not yachts, and it is not sailing'.
Fair's fair, and going airborne in SFO in 2013 kind of 'elevated' the naysayers. (Boom. Boom. Basil Brush...) And yes, us nerds got into it earlier with the spy shots from the Hauraki Gulf, but the general public got its first taste for AC34. So then, when the cyclors appeared on the AC50 in 2017 for AC35, with posteriors in the air, well, 'normal' had very much left the building by then.
These futuristic, current versions of the AC75 with everyone just about hidden, and 'twin' crews so no one crosses over for tacks and gybes, which by the way would mean you would probably have to roll under the foot of the decksweeper main if it was indeed possible, certainly make viewing interesting. Trying to comment on and explain it all during radio interviews over the last little while is possibly akin to the required SEAL training that would be required to execute said manoeuvre under sail in a timely, safe, and precise manner. Enough said...
During my conversation with Andy Claughton that yielded, Look familiar?, I commented on how to me these yachts simply reminded me of slot cars. Claughton laughed, as he appreciated the point. They go around virtually flat until it all goes very wrong (which happens in a real hurry), and you need speed in the straights, thence both diligence and shall we say, fortitude in the corners, where you are a hero until you are a complete zero.
Yes, being the Flight Controller on board the AC75 is not easy, very stressful, and no doubt complex with closure rates, shifts, and lay lines all to consider in quadruple time. Marvellous stuff. Then you have G-forces to handle. You'll probably find the picture of one of the Flight Controllers in the Dictionary under GABO (Got A Bot On).
One thing that is clear, is the technological advancement on display. It is as incredible as it is mesmerising. Yes, they have a very defined window of operation, but so too has every America's Cup class that have preceded them. For sure, you won't see one of these tackling the Fastnet, or lobbing in for the Thursday Twilight at your local club, although the latter would be way cool, and certainly give the Handicapper one hell of a dilemma, and I am not sure where you could obtain an IRC certificate from to compete in the former, either.
So, what's the point? You won't see much of this in 'normal' yachting, they say. We have said it before and will reiterate now, the same could be said for F1 and WRC, but a lot of the wizardry developed in the upper echelons is now often not even seen, but busy beavering away, across the entire model spectrum, right down to your Korean shopping trolley. Quod erat demonstrandum... i.e. Flappy paddle me that Batman!
Now you have to go quite lateral, but the Hydrogen chase boats offer just one glimpse of where it all can go, both from a transportation and private boating scenario, with the T-Foil being the star. The next generation of foiling powercats will no doubt deploy retractable T-Foils rather than the current fixed ones that transverse the tunnel. Lower drag and being partially or completely retractable will mean less fuel to operate at either displacement or planning speed. This is just one way the effects will be felt.
Still not convinced? Boil the kettle, as it were. Foil development time. Ponder the next AC75s going through to 60, or even 75 knots off 13-21 knots TWS. Yes. I'd like to see that.
The event
I had remembered how some well-credentialled observer had said you need a decade to jag the win, and INEOS have been at it since 2012, so their window was now. Mark Jardine elucidated the country's thoughts in Should the British start dreaming?
As far as this piece here goes, the contrast was as marked as it was vitriolic. Some wanted a whitewash by the Kiwis, others wanted it down to the wire. 4:nil spoke volumes; 4:2 had loads of memories like dare to dream, as some tweaks and mods bore fruit for the Brits; and then 6:2 could have been just one more, or claw back time, and like we have not seen one of those before...
Ultimately, just the one more outing was required, and a 37-second margin was described as 'textbook', and 'clinical', but really the whole ETNZ campaign could have that moniker applied to it. Not all that surprising when you look through the roster, either. 'Pace' would be another one...
However, the overarching aspect from here is simply, way cool. A three-peat ends up being the exclamation point attached to it all.
Both had said they would be the other's Challenger of Record no mattered what happened, so expect the Brits to sign up once more. It is not back 'home', yet, and it has been a long while since that side of the pond had their mitts on the Auld Mug. They made a strong challenge for AC37 and will have a lot to go on moving forward.
Kudos
I am pretty sure it was KZ7 that took out the trimmers pits and placed everyone around the coaming (might possibly have been KZ5), and then of course by the time we got to the AC class, everyone was crouched down underneath it. Innovation has clearly been a big part of the Kiwi deal, ever since they came to play at Fremantle.
Well done ETNZ. From hosting rights to tv coverage, to inclusion of the other events into the fray, and bringing along other countries and teams by creating a way for them to be part of it all by using the AC40s that would have just sat around, going to waste otherwise. Here. Here.
OK. There it is. There is so much more on the group's websites for you. Simply use the search field, or 'edition' pull-down menu up the top on the right of the masthead to find it all. Please enjoy your yachting, stay safe, and thanks for tuning into Sail-World.com
John Curnow
Sail-World.com AUS Editor