NY Yacht Club threatens future of foiling races
Team New Zealand appear to be guardians of the America’s Cup foiling generation.
The ability of sport’s oldest trophy to fly with the fast-paced action that has brought in so many new fans and influenced current sailing technology may rest with the Kiwis successfully defending the Auld Mug in March.
There have been some alarming noises emerging from the New York Yacht Club over the past week that suggest if their American Magic syndicate can finally win back the America’s Cup they will return to traditional yachts that have their hulls stuck to the surface.
‘‘We are going to put the boat back into the water,’’ New York Yacht Club commodore Chris Culver told Sailing World.
‘‘It will be somewhere between 80 and 100 feet in length. It will be a displacement monohull that is good for traditional match racing. You need to be able to see the boats from a distance, and the boats need to be majestic.’’
American Magic appear a legitimate threat to Team New Zealand. It’s early days in a long summer of racing, but they were impressive at the recent world series regatta, beating the Kiwis once and only losing the rematch through one botched move they credited to a brief systems failure.
It’s that sort of technical hitch with the radical 75-foot foiling monohulls TNZ introduced for this 36th edition of the America’s Cup that is frustrating all the challengers in Auckland, and seemingly threatens the future of the boat.
It’s uncertain what sort of path Luna Rossa would take if they finally won the America’s Cup.
In signing up as challenger of record, the Italians were insistent the boat for Auckland 2021 needed to be a monohull after three editions of multihulls. They just didn’t envisage anything as far-fetched as what the TNZ design gurus came up with in the form of the AC75, and they have had plenty of complaints about it over the past three years.
British challenger Ben Ainslie likes the fast-paced action, but has been vocal in his frustrations at the complications and costs of the current concept.
TNZ need to tread lightly here as the small three-team challenger fleet speaks volumes about the budget and dedication required to compete at this level under their rules.
Ainslie is into his second campaign and enduring his second load of issues after a disappointing Bermuda 2017. Success in yachting’s greatest contest is a long-term commitment, but how long can his patience and that of his backers last as they try to crack the code of the hi-tech Cup? He’s not the sort of person the competition can afford to lose.
But you’d let the New York Yacht Club win back the America’s Cup at your peril. They held it from 1851 to 1983 in a reign of rule changes, many designed to assist themselves.
A return to big, traditional monohulls would certainly suit the two billionaires who currently back American Magic.
Hap Fauth and Doug deVos are multiple world champions in their own right in Maxi and TP52 classes.
But the New York club insist their plans, if successful in Auckland – and that’s a big if given the speed of Team New Zealand’s Te Rehutai – go beyond their own needs.
‘‘The America’s Cup needs to be about national and country pride,’’ Commodore Culver told Sailing World.
‘‘We want to see more challengers, and this will happen if we make the Cup more economically feasible. If you reduce the time it takes to design the boat and campaign it, the costs will be lower.
‘‘The yacht club should play an important role like it has in the past. We have to better balance sailing skill and technology.’’
There’s certainly some sense to that, especially with the costs of the current campaigns that include reports of a mindboggling NZ$220m British budget. But there seems no sense in seeing the America’s Cup fall of its foils. Look at any water craft now emerging and what is capturing the attention of the youth. It’s clear the future is foiling.