VILANOVA – DAY 2

Race 1 – After a couple of push-backs, the Race Committee finally attained a wind reading over a five-minute period above 6.5 knots to allow racing to get underway under cloudless skies, 26-degree heat and 7-8 knots at the start. If the start is reckoned to determine 70% of the result, it was a surprise to see so many boats trapped above the line to start cleanly with Alinghi Red Bull Racing far to windward and INEOS Britannia struggling to get back. A slight drop in the wind caused havoc but for NYYC American Magic who dipped the line and Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli who appeared to do the same, both appeared to ace the start down at the pin end and headed out to the left-hand boundary.

Emirates Team New Zealand were caught short on their time-on-distance out at the starboard end of the line, but along with INEOS Britannia, managed to eke across the line a good 20 seconds down. INEOS Britannia went for a port tack start and fell off their foils almost immediately. As the Americans and Italians tacked at the boundary on to port, the Kiwis were at full pace on starboard tack and incredibly crossed ahead of the Italians before hitting the left boundary and executing a perfect foiling tack with plenty of aggressive pumping of the mainsail to keep flying. This was not a race for tacking, manoeuvres were both costly and risky, and the Americans wisely headed over far right, bringing the Italians with them but as they both tacked back, Emirates Team New Zealand were in the lead.

However, the story of the leg, and indeed the race, were the French Orient Express Racing Team who made a plum start on port, hit the boundary and then sailed a blinder, maintaining flight, and almost anonymously thundered through onto the layline for the port gate after a brilliant beat where they got completely out of phase with the others, and caught everyone by surprsie. Poor judgement of the layline at the starboard top gate saw the Kiwis forced to squeeze and in doing so, dropped off the foils and as the wind faltered, were never able to get back again.

Orient Express elected to fast-track to round the port gate at pace and stole the lead whilst Luna Rossa, having rounded the starboard gate, filed past the wallowing Kiwis and headed off downwind. The initial gybe back to course put the Italians in the lead as the sailors struggled to keep flight and the French headed far left to the boundary (looking down the course) desperate to stay in their puff.

At the gybe to starboard, they fell off the foils but pretty soon the whole fleet were off their foils after their second gybes and a desperate displacement run ensued as the race committee shortened the course to just two legs with the finish at the end of the first downwind. With the wind almost shutting down completely, it was a three-boat race to the finish with Orient Express holding the ace cards having worked their way into the middle of the course whilst American Magic went right (looking down the course) and Luna Rossa played the left. The premium was on keeping moving, keeping way, and keeping cool. The outstanding French were in their sailing element.

Bouncing between the two extremes, Quentin Delapierre, Kevin Peponnet and the team kept the boat rolling with the trimmers, Jason Waterhouse and Mathieu Vandame, out of their pods, shifting their bodyweight around to keep going and eat up the metres to the finish.

With the line approaching fast, a crucial port/starboard low-speed gybing duel, although without contact, with Luna Rossa saw the Italians gain a penalty for their foil radius being too close as the French gybed onto starboard with just metres to run to the finish line. It effectively handed the win to the French who headed out to cover the Americans, gybed on their line onto port and kept it tight to the finish to secure a memorable win - first blood and 10 vital points to the brilliance of France as they rolled in to glory.

(After crossing the line, Luna Rossa were informed that they hadn’t started correctly and were scored a DNS.)  

Race 2 – An extraordinary race that began with five of the six boats in displacement and only Alinghi Red Bull Racing up on their foils. As the gun went to start, the Swiss were actually still way out towards the right-hand boundary (looking upwind) heading in the opposite direction but a smart gybe, 15 seconds after the gun, brought the Swiss back to execute a dip-line start and storm out to the left-hand boundary.

Building an enormous lead as the rest of the fleet wallowed in displacement at speeds from 5-9 knots, Alinghi Red Bull Racing were flying at in excess of 20 knots, leaving everyone for dead and sailing wide angles, crossing the course from boundary to boundary to minimise the manoeuvres. It was a brilliant tactic and spectators held their breath as they went into every tack, rising high on the foils to try and avoid splashdown. The Swiss were on fire, and as they hit the final left boundary for their third tack, they executed magnificently and rode into the starboard gate marker buoy on a brilliant layline. Rounding at speed and still with the whole fleet sailing in displacement mode, this was a race that they never looked like losing.

However, suddenly from dead, flat last, Emirates Team New Zealand managed to rise from the briny, get on their foils and suddenly we had a race. The Kiwis were on port tack heading for the left-hand boundary and needed to nail a high technique tack to keep foiling and as Nathan Outteridge dialled into the tack from the port helm, Peter Burling picked up on the starboard side as the boat smoothly executed with Andy Maloney trimming sweetly behind Pete to maintain flight. It was the tack of the day and in seconds, Emirates Team New Zealand were carving through the rest of the fleet that were trying everything to get on the foils. Crew members were hanging off shrouds, running forward, ooching backwards but it was all completely in vein. Emirates Team New Zealand were the only boat to get foiling from displacement unassisted. This was a tough day at the office for the fleet. 

Emirates Team New Zealand almost certainly looked like they were sailing for second place but a smart, and again smooth, tack at the left boundary brought them into the layline and this time there was no pinching as the starboard marker approached. The Kiwis rounded smoothly some 1200 metres behind Alinghi Red Bull Racing who had navigated three-quarters of the leg, playing every zephyr of a dying breeze and sailing to their first win, for sure, of the 37^th America’s Cup.

However, with the layline to the starboard downwind gate approaching, the Swiss went for a gybe and arguably kept the angle too deep and, agonisingly, on the windward heel post the gybe, they dug the starboard transom in and the Bull fell from her foils to a desperate displacement that they just couldn’t get out of.

Now it was full excitement as Emirates Team New Zealand tramped down the run, nailing every gybe, keeping their exit angles high whilst keeping their patience, safe in the knowledge that if they could keep flying, they would soar past the Swiss and take the lead. This wasn’t a given but with outstanding boat-handling and devastating trimming from Blair Tuke and Andy Maloney, the helms just kept it smooth, hit the starboard gate layline and rounded up with the lead in their pocket.

Now came the trickiest of upwind legs with maintaining flight, in any feasible way, the only game in town. Emirates Team New Zealand performed on another level, rising high through the crucial tacks and keeping the power on through co-ordinated mainsail and jib trimming. It was close but they eked through the tacks, played every whisper of wind, concentrated hard and with the Race Committee calling a shortened course at the windward mark, kept everything tight to nail a final tack on the left-hand boundary into the finish layline.

In the conditions, even the easiest of laylines was a problem but in a mark of their dedication to flight, they ignored the layline, kept the power on and then tacked over to starboard to finish. On the final tack, they fell from the foils but with just a few metres to run, Nathan Outteridge came scampering to the windward side and their momentum carried them through to an unlikely but utterly brilliant, oustanding win.

Alinghi Red Bull Racing were scored in second, with rest of the fleet scored their positions from the first gate - as the last point of certainty.

Standings

Earlier Updates

Four races are planned today of what is now a seven-race series ahead of the Match-Race grand final and all eyes are on Emirates Team New Zealand, NYYC American Magic and Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli as the form teams. INEOS Britannia, Alinghi Red Bull Racing and Orient Express Racing will all be looking for a good performance in what is expected to be lower-range conditions as we saw in the Practice Racing on Thursday. Forecasts are conflicting, so we wait to see what Mother Nature has in store. Racing is set to start at 3.05pm (local time)

This weekend also sees some 210 Patí Catala catamarans competing in a celebratory regatta to mark the arrival of the first Preliminary Regatta of the 37^th America’s Cup. These are unique craft that feature no rudders or tillers and are steered by trimming the sail and shifting bodyweight athletically around the cross beams and hulls. The Patí Catala's were out early with a course starting from Cubelles Beach along the shoreline towards Vilanova, racing into the America’s Cup race area before turning off Ribes Roges beach and finishing at Pasifae beach. As a spectacle it is quite something.

2.00pm: All boats have docked-out from the Pendennis Marina. A cacophony of yacht sirens signalled their departure and they are on their way to the racecourse.

10.30am: Race Director Iain Murray has outlined the schedule going forward into the weekend for the first Preliminary Regatta of the 37th America’s Cup here in Vilanova i La Geltrú with a scheduled seven races followed by the Match-Race grand final on Sunday afternoon to decide the winner.

In order to accommodate the new schedule Race One has been brought forward to 3.05pm on Saturday 16^thSeptember 2023 with four races scheduled to start in quick succession as follows:

15:05 Fleet Race 1 scheduled start

15:42 Fleet Race 2 scheduled start

16:19 Fleet Race 3 scheduled start

16:55 Fleet Race 4 scheduled start

The same format will be adopted for Sunday 17^th September 2023 with racing starting also at 3.05pm as follows:

15:05 Fleet Race 5 scheduled start

15:42 Fleet Race 6 scheduled start

16:19 Fleet Race 7 scheduled start

16:55 Match Race Final scheduled start

Attention is drawn in the Sailing Instructions to the time-limits for Leg 1 and the overall time-limit for each race as follows:

TIME LIMITS

3.1 The Leg 1 time limit will be 10 minutes (refer RRSAC 35.1(a)).

3.2 The “time limit” for a race will be 30 minutes (refer RRSAC 35.1(b)). 

In addition, attention is drawn in the Sailing Instructions to the intended courses as follows:

5.1 Course number: 4

Start - W Gate - L Gate – W Gate – Finish

Course number: 6

Start - W Gate - L Gate - W Gate - L Gate - W Gate – Finish

5.2 The race committee may shorten a course by reducing the number of legs to a course no fewer than two legs. 

10.30am Race Director Update: Iain Murray spoke to the media at his morning briefing and updated on the weather situation in Vilanova with a significant difference between forecasts of the area. A local forecast suggests that a south-easterly breeze will develop this afternoon with winds in the 10-12 knot region with possible gusts later on of 14 knots and the intention is to run Course 6 (as outlined above) with potentially six legs and the option to shorten course if required. The Racing Rules that govern the 37th America’s Cup state that races may not be started in under 6.5 knots of breeze measured on a rolling average taken between 9 and 4 minutes of the starting sequence (the upper wind range is 21 knots). Courses will be set close to the La Daurada complex shoreline, just out from the harbour entrance, if conditions make it possible. Iain also confirmed that the series has been shortened to seven fleet races ahead of the Match Race Grand Final which is scheduled for 16.55 on Sunday 17^th September 2023.

(This page will be updated throughout the day.)