Team NZ’s aggressive development programme excites Kiwi helmsman
Peter Burling has talked up Team New Zealand’s testing programme as they get set to trial the latest developments on Te Aihe.
The full-size AC75 is likely to re-emerge this week, giving the prospect of two Cup boats on Auckland’s Waitemata Harbour, with challenger American Magic enjoying a productive start to their trials.
The defenders have been busy in the shed over the last week as they load the gains off their test boat Te Kahu on to the 75-foot foiling monster.
It’s been a regular pattern of trial and validation between their two boats and one that helmsman Burling feels is proving productive.
‘‘Testing is going really well at the moment, and we’ll be excited to get back out on the big boat soon,’’ Burling told the Sunday Star-Times.
‘‘We are really pushing development at the moment. There are a lot of little bits and pieces getting through it.
‘‘The test boat has been absolutely incredible. It’s something that we have got so much done . . . a pretty critical part of our programme.’’
The successful improvements are being worked into TNZ’s soon to be completed second boat, which is being built to defend the Auld Mug next March.
Burling senses the buzz building with the Americans just across the Viaduct Basin and the construction of bases for the other challengers, INEOS Team UK and Luna Rossa, of Italy, well under way. ‘‘It’s exciting to have one of the challengers in Auckland, it’s really starting to build the atmosphere now and it’s shaping up to be a pretty incredible summer.’’
The summer will lead into a busy year for Burling and his long-time sailing partner Blair Tuke, with the pair announcing they will front a New Zealand team in SailGP.
The first race is set for San Francisco in April, just after the America’s Cup match.
Burling and Tuke will also have to juggle their Olympic 49er campaign as they look to defend gold at the Games in Japan, which have been postponed until July 23 because of the pandemic.
‘‘We like keeping busy and this was a good opportunity for Blair and myself to get some regular high-performance racing in and keep the skills sharp for the long term,’’ Burling explained.
‘‘We have proven that we can turn these things into a positive. We love that high-level competition and that ability to be able to compete at the high level on a regular basis . . . we definitely feel like it is to our advantage to be busy.’’
Burling and Tuke also see the global series organised by Kiwi yachting great Sir Russell Coutts as an ideal platform to get international exposure for their Live Ocean environmental project.
‘‘Having Live Ocean tied into this was something we wanted to do and it’s something that we are really passionate about,’’ Burling said.
‘‘We believe that New Zealand needs to step up and champion the world in ocean health and through this team we can spread this message of protection and restoration of the oceans.’’
Burling said they were still to work through the logistics of the SailGP team, but was confident they’d find a crew to do the New Zealand flag justice in a championship that has nationalitybased teams. ‘‘New Zealand is a country where the talent pool to choose from is incredibly deep, and we are excited about putting that together.’’