Matthew Sheahan looks back at another crazy day of America’s Cup racing in Auckland, which saw assumptions turned on their head once moreI\u2019m off to buy a gum shield tomorrow. It\u2019s bad enough grinding my teeth at night, but doing it for an entire afternoon while watching America\u2019s Cup racing is starting to hurt.
\nToday was yet another extraordinary day. Just as we thought we were getting a handle on the finer aspects of each of these teams, we have to re-set what we thought we knew once again.
\nJust as we thought that it wasn\u2019t possible to pass in light winds we had lead changes in both America\u2019s Cup races today.
\nAnd just as we thought we might be here for a few more days we have had to accept that it might be all over tomorrow.
\nBut as far as what happened today, Luna Rossa won both starts, led for the first few legs and then managed to lose both races. Now I write it like that, it sounds harsh, but that\u2019s what happened.
\nPhoto: ACE \/ Studio Borlenghi
\nSuccess is defined by small margins at this level of competition, that and a sprinkling of luck.
\nIn the first race of the day the turning point seemed to be when the Italians allowed the Kiwis to break away to the right-hand side of the course at the start of the second beat. The Kiwis had been looking seriously quick upwind, something else that was new to us.
\nArticle continues below\u2026<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\tAmerica\u2019s Cup: Wacky races as New Zealand claim two wins<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tA crazy day on the waters of the Hauraki Gulf saw Emirates Team New Zealand the first boat to take\u2026<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\tAmerica\u2019s Cup: The key figures for Luna Rossa and New Zealand<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAs racing gets underway in this 36th America\u2019s Cup, most people\u2019s eyes will be squarely on only a few key\u2026<\/p>\n
Once they were through there was little holding them back.
\nBut it was the second race that was the real roller coaster. There are few (if any) Cup races on record that see a deficit of 2km recovered and then reversed in a short five lap race. Few that see the time difference between the two boats change by more than 8 minutes in a race of just short of 39 minutes.
\nPhoto: ACE \/ Studio Borlenghi
\nThe main problem for the Italians, who as you know were leading at the top of leg 3 was that they stalled out their foil during a tack and dropped themselves back down into displacement mode. On the onboard comms you can hear Jimmy Spithill say, \u2018lots of cavitation in that one,\u2019 just as the spray rises up from the new leeward foil.
\nOnce down there was no way back.
\nAt this evening\u2019s America\u2019s Cup press conference, Peter Burling made no secret of the fact that they knew how fortunate they had been to get back into the race and while he acknowledged the Herculean effort his grinders had made to keep the boat on the boil his comment, \u201cBetter to be lucky than good,\u201d said it all.
\nSpithill on the other hand is now in his \u2018Pitbull\u2019 element and was more animated this evening than we\u2019ve seen him for a while. If there\u2019s one person that can rally the troops it will be him.
\nPlus, the fact is that while the Kiwis will be delighted that they have taken a two race march, the reality is that they were beaten twice in the start by a team that has a slippery boat.
\nSo, the Cup is within grasp, but will it happen tomorrow? Who knows.
\nThis morning (Monday) Tuesday was forecast to be the windiest of the week, now it\u2019s set to be a vacuum.
\nI\u2019m making no predictions until I\u2019ve got something to protect my molars.
\nYou can read more from Matthew Sheahan on his blog at planetsail.org.
\nThe post America\u2019s Cup: Matthew Sheahan\u2019s view on a crazy day in Auckland appeared first on Yachting World.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Matthew Sheahan looks back at another crazy day of America’s Cup racing in Auckland, which saw assumptions turned on their head once moreI\u2019m off to buy a gum shield tomorrow. It\u2019s bad enough grinding my teeth at night, but doing … <\/p>\n