Team NZ members speak about the launch of their 2024 America's Cup boat the Taihoro. Video / Alyse Wright
With three of the six America’s Cup syndicates having revealed the hull shapes of their new AC75s, the teams will operate with one key question hanging over them for the next few months.
Who got it right?
So often referred to as a design race, the veils being lifted on the new race boats are pivotal moments in the campaign, with fans and opposing teams casting a key eye over the visuals now being presented.
Team New Zealand showed their cards late last week when they casually wheeled their AC75 out of the shed and began to put it through its paces on the Hauraki Gulf, before having a launch party on Thursday when Taihoro was officially christened.
They were the second team, after Alinghi Red Bull Racing, to put their AC75 into the public eye, while Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli unveiled their new vessel last weekend.
Speaking to the Herald, Team NZ head of design Dan Bernasconi said there were some surprises in the differences between those three boats.
“To be working on your own team for a couple of years, then to see what other people have come up with when you have exactly the same aims, the same criteria, then they all come out at once, it’s really exciting,” Bernasconi said.
“It’s cool that they’re different. They could have all come out looking the same, but they haven’t. There’s some pretty big differences – at least to me anyway. I’ve been looking at [Taihoro] for such a long time that they’re surprisingly different. It’ll be interesting to see who’s got it right and who’s got it wrong.”
Former Prime Minister Helen Clark christened Team New Zealand's AC75 Taihoro at a ceremony in Auckland. Photo / Emirates Team New Zealand
While the boats are starting to be revealed – with Ineos Britannia, American Magic and Orient Express Racing Team not far off launching theirs – Bernasconi said there was only so much you could take away from what you can see of the hull shape.
The AC75 is a vessel where the technology below deck plays a major role in how it performs, and external elements such as the foils, sails and rudder can be continually developed throughout the rest of the campaign.
“Ultimately, when you look at someone else’s boat, you can see why they might have chosen to do those things, because we’ve all been asking ourselves the same questions. We’ve come to slightly different conclusions, but we won’t know until we race what was the right answer or not,” Bernasconi explained.
“A lot of the differences are ones that you can’t see. The hull shape is out in the open, but you’ve got a whole array of systems within the hull controlling the sails and the foils. That’s an equally big, if not bigger, part of the whole design process.
“We don’t get to see what the other guys have done on that exactly, but if you look hard at the clues you can take from the recon photos. - we spend a lot of time trying to work out what they’ve done below deck as well.”
Over the next few weeks, Team NZ will be making the most of their time on the water before Taihoro has to be packed up and shipped to Barcelona – a journey that takes about six weeks – before the campaign comes to a head in Catalonia.
“Whilst the boat’s on the ship, we’ve got a little bit of breathing room to take stock on the initial things we’ve learned and the chance to have a second relaunch in Barcelona when we’ll make some changes,” Bernasconi said.
“Then it’s really into the final stages; looking at what we can still change. There’s some changes to the sails we can make and changes to the rudder, maybe, but also it’s about getting the most out of the boat we’ve got.”
Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.
