Blog: Win kick-starts Kiwi party

Kiwi fans welcome Team New Zealand back to port after they defeated Alinghi in race two of the America's Cup. Photo / Reuters

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Well Valencia was pumping with excited Kiwis today.

The wool shed, packed to the rim, was going off.

It was a great start. Barker was brilliant. He was really strong at the start. Team New Zealand wanted to start on the right and Alinghi wanted to start on the left.

On that first beat Alinghi got ahead through speed and a bit of pressure to leeward. Alinghi might have a had little click of speed upwind but nothing major.

Team New Zealand's come back came in the second beat. If Alinghi had not made a mistake they probably would not have got past but they got themselves in a position where they were close enough to pounce if Alinghi slipped up.

How it unfolded was that Alinghi were sailing quite loose. When you are fast you do tend to be a little bit loose and a little bit casual.

At the bottom gate the teams went around different marks. The Kiwis took a little gain from doing that. When they came back together Team New Zealand had come back to within a length of the Swiss.

Alinghi then tacked to leeward. When Ed Baird did the tack it was a bit of spinning tack, it wasn't a smooth tack and as a result it slowed the boat down. That opened up a very small opportunity and the New Zealanders took it.

So it's 1-all. There is now a lay day before race three on Tuesday night NZT.

Full coverage of the America's Cup from nzherald.co.nz/americascup and desktoptv.co.nz