34th America's Cup, Team Oracle USA and Emirates Team New Zealand's AC72 catamarans compared

From the following article submitted to Sail World by Richard Gladwell:

http://www.sail-world.com/index.cfm?nid=122447

For the past few weeks two designers from Oracle Team USA and Emirates Team New Zealand have been giving an almost two hour presentation in various venues around New Zealand, as part of the Institution of Professional Engineers NZ centenary celebrations.

Sponsored by leading New Zealand engineering consultancy, Beca, the free-entry presentation has travelled to six centres in the North and South Islands and has attracted packed houses.

The two design engineers Andy Kensington from Team NZ and Neil Wilkinson from Oracle, both graduates from New Zealand universities have been involved in America's Cup teams for 13 and 23 years respectively.

Kensington opened running through a few of the differences between AC72 technology and the earlier monohulls used in the America's Cup and looked at the canting keelboats. Then he turned to why Emirates Team NZ settled on the foiling concept from the outset.

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USA 17 the massive trimaran which won the Deed of Gift match against Alinghi to reclaim the America's Cup has been relocated by helicopter skycrane to outside Oracle's Headquarters

From the following article on Sailing Scuttlebutt:

http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/2014/05/11/americas-cup-usa-17-sails/

Following the 33rd America’s Cup, won by Golden Gate Yacht Club in 2010, there was hope to see their massive 90-foot wing-powered trimaran USA 17 sailing in San Francisco Bay. It would have made for an impressive sight, and created early interest in the 34th America’s Cup that would be held three years later. But due to its enormity and considerable risk under sail, the manpower was directed elsewhere, and USA 17 sat dormant on the blacktop of Pier 80 in the Dogpatch that became home to the American defender.

So what becomes of this America’s Cup winning marvel? She becomes a pond ornament. Larry Ellison, owner of the defense syndicate, had USA 17 moved to the lake at his Oracle Corporate Headquarters in Redwood City. Affectionately known as Dogzilla, Erik Simonson describes the 20-mile transit..

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Philippe Presti of Team Oracle USA interviewed by Vsail

From the following article on Vsail.info:

http://www.vsail.info/2014/05/03/philippe-presti-coach-of-oracle-team-usa-talks-to-vsail-info/

It is clearly evident that mastering the art of foiling will be a key in the America’s Cup, at least for the foreseeable future. Who better to talk about foiling yachts, of all types and sizes, than the French coach of the America’s Cup Defender, Oracle Team USA:

VSail.info: You have been foiling a lot lately and a few days ago you took your maiden sail on a Moth. How was the experience?
Philippe Presti: It was good fun. It was just my first try and it was very interesting. It’s a very small boat but I have already ordered one, in order to learn and figure out how to set it up and rig it. It’s very complex and if you don’t fine tune the foiling and the angles you aren’t going to make it. I went to the training camp with the Swiss team and we had a great training session.

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America's Cup news, New Zealanders implicated in AC45 unauthorised modification case escape further sanction from Yachting New Zealand

From the following article submitted to Sail-World by Richard Gladwell:

http://www.sail-world.com/Australia/index.cfm?SEID=2&Nid=120957&SRCID=0&ntid=0&tickeruid=0&tickerCID=0

The two New Zealanders involved in the ruckus over boat tampering in the AC45 class prior to the 34th America's Cup have not had any action taken against them by Yachting New Zealand.

The incident blew up several weeks before the start of the 34th America's where several members of America's Cup Defender Oracle Team USA questioned by the International Jury after measurement irregularities were found. Several members of the team were accused of cheating and adverse findings were made against five of those. Six team members were found by the International Jury to be actually implicated in the issue, but one had no further action taken against him.

Two members of the team were found by the International Jury to have lied to the judicial body for the America's Cup. This is a serious matter under the Protocol of the America's Cup which covered both the America's Cup World Series regattas sailed in AC45 wingsailed catamarans, and the America's Cup itself.

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35th America's Cup, Team Australia to launch AC45 for preliminary training against Oracle Team USA in Sydney on Thursday

From the following article by Richard Gladwell submitted to Sail-World:

http://www.sail-world.com/Australia/Americas-Cup:-Team-Australia-to-launch-AC45-on-Thursday/119805

Team Australia, the Challenger of Record for the 35th America's Cup is expected to launch their AC45 on Sydney harbour on Thursday morning.

The team is expected to be sailing later that day and on the weekend.

They are scheduled to sail in a series of tune up races against the America's Cup Defender, Oracle Team USA.

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34th America's Cup, new book "Winging it" by Diane Swintal, R. Steven Tsuchiya and Robert Kamins

From the following article:

http://www.wingingitbook.com/

Winging It: ORACLE TEAM USA’s Incredible Comeback to Win the America’s Cup (McGraw-Hill Professional/International Marine, 224 pages with 37 b/w photos, 12 charts and illustrations)

The book is now available at online sellers and in bookstores.  More information on availability
One of the Greatest Comebacks in Sports
Millions of sailing enthusiasts and casual fans alike watched the 2013 America’s Cup in awe as ORACLE TEAM USA, trailing one point to New Zealand’s eight and on the brink of losing the trophy to the Challenger, came back to win eight straight match-point races to successfully defend the most famous trophy in sailing.

The 2013 America’s Cup was raced in 72-foot wingsailed catamarans at speeds of 40-50 miles per hour in San Francisco Bay. Designed and engineered by each team, these multihulls were unprecedented, using hydrofoils to race in close quarters around an inshore course, watched by tens of thousands of spectators.

35th America's Cup, part 3 of interview with Tom Slingsby of Team Oracle USA

From the following interview on Sail-World by Rob Kothe:

http://www.sail-world.com/Australia/Tom-Slingsby---Americas-Cup-at-the-Extremes-and-Olympics-(Part-III)/117012

This is part three of the three part Sail-World interview with Tom Slingsby, Olympic Gold Medallist and Oracle Team USA 34th AC strategist who is returning to the Oracle Team for AC35.

‘Foiling made the 34th Cup the spectacle it was but it was pretty extreme racing.

‘On the AC72’s we could only adjust the main foil. We couldn’t adjust the rudder foil. I think if we could adjust the rudder foil, obviously not computer automated but if you could adjust the angle of a tack of a rudder foil you would have better foiling upwind and it would make it a lot safer also.

If the wind picked up 10 knots in a race you wouldn’t be stuck with the max lift setting and it wouldn’t be anywhere near as dangerous. You adjust it and get to your 20 knot setting and not your 10 knots setting and the boat would sail a lot safer.

‘I hope you are allowed to adjust the rudder angle and then all of a sudden the performance of the boats will go through the roof just with that one adjustment to the rule.  

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'Oracle Team USA foiling - 34th America’s Cup'    Chuck Lantz ©

America's Cup update, Sail-World Interview with Tom Slingsby of Team Oracle on the 34th America's Cup and the future 35th America's Cup

The following articles have been published on Sail-World part 3 is yet to be published.

Part 1

On the 34th America's Cup

http://www.sail-world.com/go_link.cfm?srcid=15&nid=116887&link=http://www.sail-world.com/index.cfm?nid=116823

Part 2

On the 35th America's Cup

http://www.sail-world.com/Australia/index.cfm?SEID=0&Nid=116887&SRCID=0&ntid=0&tickeruid=0&tickerCID=0

34th America's Cup, Cup experience blog compiles links to videos of all 19 races

Thanks to John Cadwallader for this link.  Cup experience have compiled a post with links to the videos and notes on all of the 19 races in the 34th America's Cup.

http://www.cupexperience.com/blog/2013/10/videos-of-all-19-americas-cup-races

America's Cup update, Oracle Team USA get to know Jimmy Spithill, Ben Ainslie, Kinley Fowler and Brian Macinnes

America's Cup World series update, Measurement committee report on Team Oracle USA and BAR AC45 catamaran weight discrepancies

From the following article submitted to Sail-World by Richard Gladwell:

http://www.sail-world.com/Australia/Gladwells-Line:-Measurement-Committee-clarifies-report-to-Jury/113305

The often bizarre world of the America's Cup took a new twist today with the release of two new reports form the International Jury.

In fact, only one of the reports was new - that of a clarification from the Chairman of the Measurement Committee - on some points made earlier in his report to the International Jury concerning the taking out of class of three AC45 catamarans managed by Oracle Team USA.

The situation was discovered by boatbuilders from America's Cup Management, when they were assembling and equalising the AC45's to be used for the Red Bull Youth America's Cup Series.

Initially the report from the Chief Measurer has it that three forward kingposts (supporting struts under the mast and sprit of the AC45's) were found to be overweight, and had weight added to them by Oracle Team USA.

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America's Cup update, Team Oracle USA demonstrate their foiling gybes

Rule 69 hearing to be carried out over illegally modified AC45 one design catamarans belonging to Oracle and Ben Ainslie Racing teams

From the following article on the excellent Sail Racing News magazine:

Op-Ed: Oracle Team USA and Ben Ainslie Racing await Rule 69 investigation after admitting America's Cup World Series rules violations.

 

August 10, 2013

Depending on who you listen to in San Francisco, the revelation by Oracle Team USA in the last few days that their AC45 catamarans had been illegally modified during the America's Cup World Series, us either a storm in a teacup or professional sailing's equivalent of the Lance Armstrong scandal.
Oracle tried to take the high ground on the situation by issuing a carefully worded press release late on Thursday claiming that the infringement had come to light after an internal investigation led by team CEO Russell Coutts. The inference was that the American syndicate had caught itself cheating and done the honourable thing by withdrawing from the last four AC World Series events. In their view, it seems that should be an end to it.

In reality the illegal modifications were discovered by the America's Cup measurement team who were scrutineering the AC45 fleet for the upcoming Red Bull Youth America's Cup. The measurers discovered lead weights amounting to about 2.5 kg packed into the king posts at the front end of three of the boats - two which had previously been raced by Oracle and the other one prepared by Oracle but used by Sir Ben Ainslie's BAR campaign.

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America's Cup update, get to know Team Oracle USA coach Philippe Presti

America's Cup update, Will McCarthy grinder for Team Oracle on his role in the team and path to the America's Cup

America's Cup update, Kyle Langford from Team Oracle on his path to the America's Cup

America's Cup update, Brad Webb on his role of grinder for Team Oracle USA

Brad Webb of Team Oracle USA on his role as grinder and his path to competing in the 34th America's Cup.

America's Cup update, NYTimes article on the America's Cup

It's a bit lightweight this article but take from it what you will, the video and the timelapse section of the launching is quite interesting.

From the following article on the NYTimes website:

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/04/magazine/a-sea-change-for-the-americas-cup.html?ref=magazine&_r=1&

There is a moment when the yachts racing in this year’s America’s Cup go from being mere boats to something more like flying machines. It happens at around 17 knots, or 20 miles per hour, when both hulls of the carbon-fiber catamarans rise out of the water and the entire craft skims over the surface on a thin hydrofoil beneath the downwind pontoon. Free of the water’s drag, the vessels accelerate to speeds as great as 50 miles per hour.

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America's Cup update, Team Oracle allowed to keep performance data under wraps

From the following article on stuff.co.nz authored by Duncan Johnstone

http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/other-sports/8994454/Team-Oracle-allowed-to-keep-boat-data-secret

America's Cup defenders Oracle will be able to keep their information advantage over the challengers, including Team New Zealand.

The Kiwis went to the International Jury to sort out the status of Oracle while it trained on the cup course, particularly in the immediate aftermath to Louis Vuitton Cup challenger races.

The challengers have to present all their performance data while under race conditions.
Oracle has access to that and can then match it against the performance of its two boats who have also been on the course.

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America's Cup update, Team Oracle and Team Artemis sail around the course together

A video recorded and narrated by John Nava's of Team Oracle and Team Artemis practicing together on San Francisco Bay.  Team Oracle generally looks faster but Artemis does not seem to far off the pace.