Emirates Team New Zealand are continuing their AC75 sailing programme, under RECON surveillance as required by the AC38 Protocol.
Expanding on their advantageous time on the water, now at day 9 of the 45 days permitted, while none of the challengers has rolled out their re-configured Ac75. And of course any late entries will be even further behind the development curve.
Friday the Kiwis added another five hours of sailing on the Hauraki Gulf to their scoresheet, with the focus on light wind trim and manoeuvres.
For Recon purposes their re-configured Ac75 Taihoro is referred to as Hull 03-B, and Friday was configured with port wing FW7-B and foil FF10-A, starboard wing FW8-B and foil FF11-A, and the MT3-B mast.
Point to note was that a new rudder was added to the Declaration – R4-C rudder.
Sailing commenced with J2-2 rig configuration.
Early testing included gybe headings from 252° to 165°. Building phase observed with a target speed around mid-teens. Boat speeds 22–28kts. Initial manoeuvres comprised slow turns with slight heel applied into the turns. And there were repeated rudder loss events during turns: with full rudder loss reported twice.
Adjustments made to slower turn rates eliminated the issue with bottom-end speed through tacks approximately 14kts. Best results were achieved with slow, controlled turns.
Later the breeze stabilized at 9–11kts and they changed to a J3 configuration with tack bear-away combinations practiced.
Key Takeaways:
- Manoeuvre control: Slower turns reduce rudder ventilation and improve consistency.
- Board timing: late, deliberate board drop in light air gybes.
- Trim & setup: Jib car and slot tuning crucial in sub-10kt conditions.
- Reliability: Frequent battery changes
ETNZ Crew
- Helms – Seb Menzies port, Nathan Outerridge starboard
- Trimmers – Iain Jensen Port, Andy Maloney starboard
- Position 5 & 6 – Jo Aleh starboard
