In case you're interested. The final event has started Sat Sept 7 1pm. The two teams are evenly matched, sailing very fast and close. First to 9 wins it, Oracle USA is docked 2 races, must win 11. Kiwis just won race 1. N.Amer. coverage is NBC live. Youtube shows whole uninterupted event with equal graphics and commentary on a delay. AmerCup site informs of all TV coverage on a site page.
I watched race 1 but my computer wouldn’t load race two.
I really don’t get the people who can’t get enthusiastic about these boats. In race one they changed lead twice and on one leg they crossed twice with a boat length…going over thirty knots! How can you not like that? They round the windward mark going over 40 knots. One commentator said they wre skidding around the mark. Would you want to go back to the old twelve meters that rarely got into double digit speeds?
Some comlplain about only two boats racing. The America’s Cup has always been about match racing, one boat against another. It has never been a fleet race.
Some complain about it being disputed inshore. The Cup has pretty much always been inshore, never truly offshore. There no such thing as a long distance AC race.
Some complain about the fact there were only three challengers. For most of it’s history there ws only one challenger.
Some complain about how expensive the boats are. Does anybody recall the J Boats? AC has never been dinghy racing.
The fact is the boats are consistently racing at near Guiness Book of World Record speeds. They are truly state of the art. Now they seem pretty evenly matched. As far as apllication to surfboards, boat builders have always been way ahead of the curve with respect to surfboard builders. Ask anyone who has worked in both industries.
Got to tip your hat to the Kiwis and Aussies for their watermanly skills. If the team members were truly limited to their native nations the folks from the Southern Hemisphere would be pretty dominant.
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There is a lot that Board builders and designers can learn from those Boats
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Please give some examples of what we can learn from those (barely) boats.
I watched the first race yesterday and to be honest I'm one of the many who felt multihulls in the AC were just wrong to begin with.
Watched some of the race yesterday. Those boats are amazing the speeds are so fast. There is a lot that Board builders and designers can learn from those Boats
+1 or more for llilibel03 making several very appropriate comments as to the current state of AC racing. I was turned off those years ago when the business was being conducted in court rather than on the water. But take it for what it is, these zillion dollar twin hulls are state of the art wrt the technologies used.
i am a little dubious about much of what they do and the applicability to surfing but here's how it went for me today: I watched the race in Joe Quigg's living room with him, Baby Dave Rochlen and my wife. We were all suitably amazed at the competition. I tried to engage Joe about various aspects but he's a very deliberate speaker and not easily drawn out. I hope to be peeking over the fence as he shapes a replica balsa for Paul Strauch in the coming weeks.
Dang I want more of this and may be able to post a bit. Dave had a discreet tape recorder going and is sposed to transcribe for Fragale' Surfing Heritage operation. Myself am a little skeptical of those mining the sport for personal gain but am willing to go along for a ways. Gotta keep on his wife Aggie's good side though. She's a pistol.
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I hadn't seen an AC ace in years. Those boats are amazing. Running at almost 40kn!!!
awesome stuff. Look at how close the races were yesterday. can't watch it live because it's in the middle of the night here in germany but i always watch it afterwards on youtube. Maybe Laird Hamilton gets some inspiration for his foil surfing type of boards.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5g3gSoWCSI&feature=c4-overview&list=UU0gzXt1Ms4WVQ7tyGgjTmqA
Here are two just off the top of my head. Those boat have bottmless for RandD and Building. They have teams of designers for all aspects of construction. Maybe some of that constrution can be used to make a lighter stronger board. Another area to look at is The sail foils. Those sails can propel those boats 3 times faster then the wind. Those shapes might translate into better more efishant fins Fins that will tap more of the energy in a wave and aid in accelerating the board, as well as giving the surfer more control over the board.
Consistently over 40 knots on the reaches. I would have liked to have seen more of a triangular course with longer reaching legs. The races happen really fast, very little room for error. The commentator mentioned that at the speeds they are going they cover 100 meters in a couple of seconds. In these races they were consistnetly within a 100 or so meters of each other.
With regard to surfboard applications- I'd like to know what the transparent material in the wings (and deck) is and how they work it. The dream of a strong, lightweight, and transparent surfboard (so you cn watch the fishes or reef as you speed along) might not be far off…