THE BATTLEFIELD

The race course is specifically set out to test the balance between boat speed and match racing ability in a team. The course is up to 18.55 nautical miles in length and consists of up to three laps of a right-handed windward-leeward course between a windward mark at the top of the course and a leeward gate near the bottom of the course. The start and finish line are the same at the bottom of the course.

To express their ability with boat speed and tactical skill
The leg lengths are the perfect size for allowing the crews on each boat to express their ability with boat speed and tactical skill. If the legs were much longer the boat speed element would dominate and no matter how good a crew was a faster boat would just about always win. If the legs were much shorter the tactical ability only of a crew would dictate the outcome and a boat’s finishing position would be based on the situation just after the start.

A leeward gate

As it is always hard to pass when trailing, several features have been incorporated into the race course to give the trailing boat a chance. The mark rounding at the top of the course is to starboard which often gives the trailing boat an advantage if they are close when they approach from the right. The second feature, new for the 32nd America’s Cup, is a leeward gate, two buoys placed approximately 6 boat lengths apart, between which each boat must pass before rounding one or the other and starting the next upwind leg. By rounding the buoy not used by the leading boat this gate always gives the trailing boat the opportunity to start the next leg differently with a significant amount of lateral separation and the chance to break cover.

To place its wind shadow

The final feature that helps the trailing boat is the downwind finish. On the upwind legs the leading boat dictates the tactics in a match race and is able to place its wind shadow where it wants on the trailing boat to keep it behind. On the downwind leg the reverse applies and the trailing boat is in a more advantageous position, and is often able to blanket the wind blowing towards the leading boat and sail past. As the last leg of the race is always downwind, close finishes and last minute upsets are always possible.

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