Montgomery pinpoints comms

Veteran sailing broadcaster PJ Montgomery has singled out a key element in American Magic’s set-up that he believes contributed to their capsize on Sunday.

Speaking to Newstalk ZB yesterday, Montgomery said that of anyone on the water that day, Dean Barker had the local knowledge to avoid catastrophe — had he been able to see the signs of its imminent arrival.

As American Magic and Luna Rossa approached the final gate of their race, television commentators mentioned the gloomy weather system they were entering and warned of the danger of strong gusts.

However, the US team attempted a complex tack around the mark off the coast of East Coast Bays.

“That’s where Dean Barker grew up, sailing out off Murrays Bay, and where he won his first youth world Laser championships, so he would have known the weather.

“But I think a part of the problem was that Dean, of course, was down to leeward and may not have seen those daunting black clouds.”

The AC75 boats involved in this America’s Cup are the fastest and some of the most complicated in the event’s history. Montgomery says this level of complexity means mistakes are more likely if communication is compromised on the boat.

“The way American Magic is set up is in contrast to the Brits, where we hear Giles Scott and Ben Ainslie talking, which is a modern-day version of Coutts and Butterworth.

“There’s too much going on for the [American Magic] helmsman, being able to cope with all the systems and going at breakneck speeds north of 40 knots, to be able to get the oldfashioned head out of the boat and look and see what you’re able to see, as the Brits were able to do.”

Montgomery’s advice for the stricken US team is to work hard on repairs and focus on being able to compete but only when absolutely necessary.

“The electronics down below these boats are like a pinball wizard show . . . there’ll be a lot of damage there. Bite the bullet and prepare for the semifinal.”

The Prada Cup semifinals are scheduled to start on January 29 and will see the two lowest-placed boats from the round robin compete for a place in the final against the top seed.

That gives American Magic 10 days to repair their boat before it needs to be cleared for competition.

Sunday’s drama has changed Montgomery’s views on who will take on Team New Zealand for the America’s Cup.

“Before it started, I picked American Magic to be the challenger. Now, the whole thing’s wide open.”