Protocol done: Now to sort out the crew
Team New Zealand boss Grant Dalton expects his star crew will sign up to defend the America’s Cup, but is still open-minded about who will skipper the 2021 defence.
With the logistics of the protocol out of the way and the fine points of the boat design to be used nearing completion, Emirates Team New Zealand must now look at the logistics of its defence.
Retaining the core of the crew that won the Cup in such emphatic fashion in Bermuda in June is paramount.
Skipper Glenn Ashby, helmsman Peter Burling and Blair Tuke top the list with the Kiwi syndicate desperate to keep them and others away from the big money of potential opponents.
The new 75-foot monohulls will have crews of around ‘‘10 to 12’’, meaning a large sailing squad will be required.
‘‘We have every intention of moving forward primarily with our same guys. We have moved to sign most of our guys up,’’ Dalton said, adding that some had already been signed. He refused to say who.
Dalton said Burling was ‘‘involved in the process’’. Burling told Stuff he was still finalising his future, but he all but ruled out sailing for any other syndicate in 2021.
‘‘I’ve said all along that I really want to sail for New Zealand. I’m really proud of being from this country and love spending as much time as I can here so that’s my intention.’’
Dalton wouldn’t confirm if Ashby, who headed the sailing team in Bermuda, and was captain, would continue to be skipper, saying that important role would depend on the boat that was eventually chosen.
But he made it clear that he ‘‘absolutely’’ wants the Australian in the team. ‘‘He easily meets our requirement under nationality, he lives here most of the time,’’ Dalton said. Fear not America’s Cup fans, the new monohulls to be used in the 2021 regatta will have the ‘‘wow factor’’ of the catamarans that drew in new fans in San Francisco and Bermuda.
That point was emphasised by Team New Zealand boss Grant Dalton yesterday as he unveiled a brief outline of the 75-foot monsters to rule the seas in Auckland in four years.
‘‘We have been the primary driver of foiling in multihulls. We are looking to bring that same level to the monohulls,’’ Dalton said.
Helmsman Peter Burling said: ‘‘I can’t give too much away but I’m just really excited about it. It’s going to be a really cool boat, really fun to sail.
‘‘We’ve done a lot of concepting in the design office, trying to make sure we can create a boat that will do what we want it to do. We’re really happy with some of the concepts we’ve got.’’
At 75-foot the boats are larger than the giant cats that ruled in San Francisco and a major leap forward in size on the 50-footers used in Bermuda.
They will require a crew of 10-12 sailors and ‘‘cyclors’’ will be allowed to help power them if individual teams believe that is the best way.
‘‘We don’t know yet [about the skipper]. We have to decide what the boat is first and the way the boat gets crewed in a monohull is potentially quite different in a catamaran.’’
With a team from across the Tasman in the pipeline, Ashby made no secret that it has always been his dream to take part in an Aussie challenge. He could have a very tough decision on his hands.
‘‘It would be fantastic for an Australian campaign to get off the ground,’’ he said. ‘‘For myself, that’s a thought that has been with me since I was six years old watching Australia win the America’s Cup in 1983.
‘‘Having said that, we’re very comfortable here and New Zealand’s been a fantastic home for us the past six or seven years.’’
Dalton believed the nationality rule would help cap salaries and that would be a poaching prevention for the Team NZ talent.