Louis Vuitton Cup - Round Robin 3 Race 3

by Emirates Team New Zealand & Luna Rossa Challenge 22 Jul 2013 09:44 BST 21 July 2013

Emirates Team New Zealand MD Grant Dalton is interviewed by Andy Green on stage ahead of Louis Vuitton Cup Round Robin 3 Race 3 © Chris Cameron / ETNZ

Emirates Team New Zealand AC72, NZL5 lose the jib on the first upwind leg of Louis Vuitton Cup Round Robin 3 Race 3 © Chris Cameron / ETNZ

Emirates Team New Zealand took another point today in the Louis Vuitton cup challenger series, beating Luna Rossa by 2 minutes 20 seconds.

For most of the race, Dean Barker and crew sailed without a jib. On the first upwind leg, the clip at the head of the jib broke and the sail flapped uselessly for several minutes before it was brought down to the trampoline.

It could have been a disaster - but it wasn't. With a lead of 300m when the clip broke, Barker did well to keep boat speed up and minimise the opportunities for Luna Rossa.

As Adam Beashel worked to clear the sail from the stay, Luna Rossa started nibbling into the lead. Then the sail was free; the plan was to throw it over the side. The sail caught inside the side stays with head in the water making it difficult to clear.

Finally, after what seemed like a lifetime, the sail was in the water clear of the boat, with only about 50m of the lead lost. Barker and crew set out to generate maximum boat speed in the 17-18 knot breeze.

To the amazement of spectators and commentators alike, the AC72 was quickly up to speed and racing without a jib, almost as if nothing had happened.

Emirates Team New Zealand AC72, NZL5 lose the jib on the first upwind leg of Louis Vuitton Cup Round Robin 3 Race 3 - photo © Chris Cameron / ETNZ

Emirates Team New Zealand AC72, NZL5 maintain their lead without a jib in Emirates Team New Zealand AC72, NZL5 lose the jib on the first upwind leg of Louis Vuitton Cup Round Robin 3 Race 3 - photo © Chris Cameron / ETNZ

It was a remarkable recovery. The deltas at the marks tell the story. Mark 2 25sec. Mk 3 42sec, Mk 4 1m 17sec, Mk 5 1m 56sec, M6 6 2m 34sec, finish 2m 20sec.

ETNZ Quotes:

Dean Barker: "We've never had a clip break like that in all the sailing we have done. We will find out why. It could have been a race-ending failure.

"The boys dealt with it and we were straight back into the race. The boat was a little harder to sail."

Grant Dalton: "I was impressed with the composure on board. We have sailed together for a long time - through the Louis Vuitton Cup and the America's Cup match in 2007 and since then.

"We have sailed a bit without a jib so we knew it could be done. Ray Davies did a beautiful job of picking shifts on the second beat so we managed pretty well."

Luna Rossa: second race against Team New Zealand (from Luna Rossa Challenge)

Low clouds breaking to some sunshine, 16-18 knots of wind from South-West, flat sea, ebb tide 2 knots. Race start at 12.15 local time.

Today Luna Rossa Challenge faced Emirates Team New Zealand for the second time in the Louis Vuitton Cup Round Robin.

At the start Luna Rossa Challenge entered from the right side on starboard tack, with Emirates Team New Zealand on port side. Luna Rossa won the prestart crossing the line windward and half a boat length in front, but the Kiwis' boat sailed through and rounded inside the reaching mark. Luna Rossa jibed immediately after the mark, whereas Emirates Team New Zealand chose the inshore jibe.

At the leeward gate both the boats chose the right-hand mark, with Emirates Team New Zealand taking a 24 seconds lead.

At one third of the first windward leg Emirates Team New Zealand broke the jib and had to let it go in the water. Luna Rossa closed the gap but was then forced to tack and to sail into a lighter wind patch when the Kiwis chase boat came in their way to pick up the head sail. At the windward gate Luna Rossa rounded with 42 seconds delay.

On the second downwind leg Emirates Team New Zealand increased the lead on Luna Rossa, rounding the downwind gate 1 minute and 10 seconds ahead.

On the second beat Luna Rossa chased the Kiwis boat, but a penalty for boundaries further slowed down the Italian team, whose delay at windward mark was of 1 minute and 54 seconds. At that stage the Luna Rossa had lost contact with the New Zealanders, was not able to reduce the gap during the last downwind leg crossing the finish line 2 minutes and 20 seconds behind.

Luna Rossa skipper Max Sirena declared: "The fact that Emirates Team New Zealand sailed pretty fast with no jib was not surprising for us. We already knew that it is the wing that generates the speed on AC72s. In certain conditions when sailing upwind the jib only helps in the tacks and gives some little additional lift, but it is also a drag. Obviously we have lots of ground to make up on the Kiwis, but this week we reduced the gap introducing some new technical developments and focusing on both handling and crew work. Each time we sail we feel more confident and hopefully we'll have bridged the gap by the Louis Vuitton semi-final. We are taking advantage of the Round Robins to improve our performances; that's how we planned our America's Cup campaign, which started more then one year after the other teams."

Luna Rossa Challenge will be back on the race course on Tuesday July 23rd for the third scheduled match against Emirates Team New Zealand.

Today's crew for Luna Rossa Challenge was: Max Sirena (skipper and pitman), Francesco Bruni (tactician), David Carr (pitman/grinder), Pierluigi de Felice (trimmer), Simone de Mari (primary grinder), Chris Draper (helmsman), Xabi Fernandez (wing trimmer), Nick Hutton (bowman), Lele Marino (wing grinder), Marco Montis (freestyler), Giles Scott (hydraulic grinder).

Facts about today's race