Jimmy Spithill says he has a "leak" in Team NZ. Photo / Photo Ricardo Pinto
Jimmy Spithill says he has a "leak" in Team NZ. Photo / Photo Ricardo Pinto
Love tap of the day
It didn't take long for Jimmy Spithill to try to rattle Emirates Team New Zealand on dry land after beating them on the water.
The Australian-born Oracle Team USA skipper took several not-so-subtle nudges at the New Zealanders following their loss, taking aim at the mistakes made by Team New Zealand earlier in the day.
"Both times we've raced Team New Zealand they have made some pretty fundamental mistakes ... at the start line today and obviously at the top mark again," Spithill said.
"One thing that is pretty powerful in our boat is we've got a dedicated technician in Tom Slingsby and Kyle Langford is also included. The other boat - they don't have any of that. You can hear that in their communications."
Spithill claimed that he managed to receive inside word that Team New Zealand would choose Land Rover Ben Ainslie Racing as their semifinal opponent, thanks to "the leak I've got in their team".
He also managed to have a crack at the New Zealand media regarding the controversial bonus point they take into the match racing.
"[Without it] people, especially you Kiwi media, would suggest we were sandbagging out there, we would try to fix the results."
The master of minds games wrapped up his media duties in Bermuda with one last blow aimed at the Kiwis.
"We could come back and see this bonus point as a real defining moment."
Quote of the day
In a video posted to the official America's Cup Twitter account yesterday, America's Cup CEO and five-time champion Sir Russell Coutts praised the competitiveness of all the teams in the qualifying rounds of the competition.
"What's surprised me about the racing is how close these teams are in the practice racing," Coutts said.
Sir Russell says all teams have been competitive. Photo / Getty Images
Term of the day
Reefing.
According to Wikipedia, the act of reefing means "reducing the area of a sail without actually changing it for a smaller sail.
"Ideally, reefing does not only result in a reduced sail area but also in a lower centre of effort from the sails, reducing the heeling moment and keeping the boat more upright."
The act of reefing is performed by sailors to suit the wind conditions for safety measures.
There are three common types of reefing: slab reefing, in-mast roller-reefing, and in-boom roller-reefing.
Slab-reefing - which is the act of "lowering the sail by about one-quarter to one-third of its full length and tightening the lower part of the sail using an outhaul or a pre-loaded reef line through a cringle at the new clew, and hook through a cringle at the new tack" - is the most commonly used form of reefing.
Team New Zealand's sailing action starts from around 5am tomorrow morning, which is when the team will set out on the water in preparation for the first two races of their semifinal against Ben Ainslie racing.
Listen live to sailing guru Peter Montgomery's commentary of Team New Zealand's races on Newstalk ZB or Radio Sport, and join us at nzherald.co.nz for live blog coverage - and all the news that follows - to stay up to speed with what's happening on and off the water.
Day seven results: Oracle Team USA beat Emirates Team New Zealand; Land Rover BAR beat Soft Bank Team Japan; Artemis Racing beat Groupama Team France; Oracle Team USA beat Land Rover BAR.
Day seven results:
Oracle Team USA beat Emirates Team New Zealand; Land Rover BAR beat Soft Bank Team Japan; Artemis Racing beat Groupama Team France; Oracle Team USA beat Land Rover BAR.
