Latest reports from the AC37 Joint Reconnaissance Programme – 30 October 2022
Highlights include reports on the Alinghi Red Bull Racing raising their boomless mainsail system, and Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli with a stunning blast out in their super-refined LEQ12 plus a quick dip.
While down-under Emirates Team New Zealand’s Nathan Outteridge and Pete Burling were putting the finishing touches to the commissioning of the first AC40.
Alinghi Red Bull Racing broke cover on their boomless mainsail system, something that’s been a bit of an open secret around the team who have been working on the development for several months.
On a Barcelona day that offered a complete glass-out, it was the perfect opportunity to rig up the new mainsail and run through the checks with a lot of attention being paid to the clew area and the attachment options that the Swiss team now has.
Noticeable from the recon shots taken are the stiff battening that runs on the inside of both skins to the tack with the distinctive electronic cabling that connects through to the quite beautifully detailed clew car leech tensioner and push rod mechanism.
It is a similar system to the one seen on the new Luna Rossa LEQ12, where the large centre piston rod connects to the mainsail track, and the two smaller pistons on tracks connect to the respective mainsail skins.
In place of the gooseneck are now two actuators for the downhaul of each skin. The M2-2L mainsail was cut and adjusted for the new boomless system, noticeably in the “batwing” clew and the foot of the sail to close the sail-deck gap.
The team spent two and a half hours adjusting and testing the fit new system and mainsail while alongside the chase boat, however they were not able to test the new equipment under sailing conditions due to a lack of wind.
The Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli team are more than determined to go one-better than last time and their LEQ12 testing programme is well and truly underway.
With a choppy swell running at 0.6 metres, and a steady 16 knots breeze, huge plumes of spray were sent hurtling skywards to half-mast height at times.
The team, led by Jimmy Spithill and Ruggero Tita driving in alternate pods with Umberto Molineris and Andrea Tesei supporting, really put the hammer down and started to thoroughly test the capabilities of their brand new, stunning test platform.
The LEQ12 performed strongly showing boat speeds up to 28 knots with some decent swell condition sailing between close and broad reach courses.
A stationary unfortunate capsize while on unstrained tow line at low speed stopped the sailing session of the team.
Emirates Team New Zealand had picture-postcard conditions as they began what is in effect Day One of their testing programme.
With the commissioning of the AC40, the first in the world, now largely completed other than a few mods and uploads to the foil cant system, the design office can now get to testing ideas and systems that have sat within laptops and on super-computers for the past two years in a real-world environment.
By far the most intense of the programme to date with 47 tacks thrown in, 46 full foil-to-foil completions whilst 37 gybes were completed with a 100% success rate foil-to-foil.
These are big days for the Kiwis who, with a settled testing team of Nathan Outteridge, Pete Burling, Andy Maloney and Blair Tuke onboard, are pushing the AC40 right to its limits.
Sailing style is of note as the team have found semi-roll tacks whilst their dedication to keeping power on through the lulls upwind is most evident in their aggressive use of the mainsail track combined with increased leech tension all in near-perfect co-ordination with the helmsman’s scalloping manoeuvres upwind.
Off the breeze, the boat is smooth with minimal adjustments to ride height and it would seem that the team have found the optimum set-up in low-riding mode to produce maximum efficiency.
ETNZ are definately getting th most out of their extended period with the AC40, and will be the team to beat in what ever guise the AC40 is used in.
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