Paul Lewis: Technology marches on

We should never spurn technology in sport. People do, of course. In fact, it's human nature to resist change.

So the call by Brad Butterworth and Alinghi to contest future America's Cups - yes, the Courtroom Capers; the lawyers' friend - in vastly expensive multi-hulls rather than big, heavy monohulls deserves a decent hearing before we roll our eyes and complain at yet another self-serving Alinghi initiative.

Sport has always been challenged by technology advances. More often than not, the initial reaction is to ban it.

There are countless examples - the buoyant suits that have both revolutionised and confused the bejesus out of international swimming; Dennis Lillee's infamous aluminium cricket bat; tennis' giant racquet heads; brush spikes in athletics; any number of golf clubs and balls.

In the 1930s, a cyclist called Francois Faure invented the bicycle with the rider in a reclining position - and so scared the world of cycling with easy victories and world records that they banned it.

Football is still resisting video technology with the result that France, not Ireland, are in the World Cup finals after Thierry Henry's infamous handball set up the winning goal.

But technology clearly has an effect, even if only after time in many cases. After all, rugby is no longer played with leather balls that get heavy and soapy when it is wet.

You don't see Roger Federer playing with a wooden racquet and Jensen Button won't be driving Stirling Moss's Cooper from the 1950s when he defends his Formula 1 title.

Both Alinghi and Oracle are said to be keen on racing multi-hulls for a multi-challenger America's Cup once they have raced off in their one-on-one challenge in Valencia in February - BMW Oracle in a vast, sizzling trimaran and Alinghi in an equally large, exciting and technologically advanced catamaran.

The Oracle trimaran is over 100 feet long, 90 feet wide and has been clocked at over 50km/h in only 10 knots of wind. The Alinghi catamaran is similarly capable of converting light airs into astonishing speeds.

There's something to be said for Butterworth's contention that a Cup contested by multi-hulls would take the sport and the event to the cutting edge: "Instead of sailing around in these old boats that are 20 years old, that we painfully go about trying to get a 1/100th of a knot advantage, you can sail these multi-hulls in lighter air ... ," Butterworth said recently.

"You'd have a smaller rig or a smaller sails, whatever and the boats would be going a lot faster and they would be a lot more exciting. My vision of the future would be to see the multi-hull version of it carry on. I think [it ] could be a great road for the future."

There's no doubt the original concept of the America's Cup was probably closer to two technologically-advanced yachts battling it out than a multi-challenger event with heavy monohull yachts conforming to a box rule and other design constrictions.

The two multi-hulls that will contest the 33rd America's Cup in Valencia on February 12 are at the very ragged edges of yachting knowledge; hitting new frontiers like those brave sailors who headed over the horizon to disprove the flat earth theory. The America's Cup monohulls aren't - incredible craft though they are, they are old-fashioned by comparison.

The two multi-hulls have never been raced before and, even though they are vast, multi-million dollar experiments, they are giving designers and sailors extraordinary information and knowledge to push the boundaries of sailing as never before. These things do not just stay in the playground of the elite. In 1983, the winged keel was the big America's Cup secret and revelation. Now they are, if not exactly commonplace, well in evidence among weekend sailors.

But there are some big "buts" to the multi-challenger, multi-hull notion:Expense - Alinghi are talking smaller multi-hulls than the beasts that will race off in Valencia. Which is just as well. The giant multi-hulls have come at prices which would cripple the economy of a small country.

Alinghi are estimated to have spent US$100 million on their catamaran; Oracle somewhere in the region of twice that. Try getting John Key to bankroll that.

Elitism - Even smaller multi-hulls risk busting the budgets of many syndicates and that means the America's Cup - after all these years of broadening the event and attracting more challengers - could go back to being the plaything of the idle rich rather than an international sport.


Self-interest - Alinghi and Oracle will both have invaluable multi-hull racing experience after Valencia. The rest of the world will be aeons behind, even New Zealand which has rich multi-hull tradition and knowledge.

Competitiveness - The last America's Cup produced some of the most exciting racing ever seen in the event. The final race between ETNZ and Alinghi was the closest ever - with not even the sailors sure who had won.

It was classic racing which tends to suggest that the clunky old monohulls and the box rule are working passing well.

Why change? If the design constraints mean that yachts are very close together in terms of speed, that means sailing ability is paramount. Nothing wrong with that.

Loss of features - Because multi-hulls are the kind of yachts they are, they are less interesting upwind and more of a 'drag race' downwind. Essential elements like the pre-start dial-up will be lost as it is too difficult to manoeuvre these giant things.

It will be a decision for the defender and (maybe) all the challengers but ... they should keep the America's Cup boats as they are.

Maybe the answer is a lighter monohull of less draught and less drag as, no matter what we think, the march of technology tends to be inexorable.