Sisters starting to show age in likely swansong

By Suzanne McFadden

The identical sister yachts who have served New Zealand in three America's Cup campaigns are showing the wear and tear of old age.

NZL10 and NZL12 started cracking up on the Waitemata Harbour yesterday on the first day of racing in the Road to the America's Cup.

The white boat had been under the scalpel the night before the challenger series started, fixing a stress fracture in her mast.

During the day racing was delayed for minor sail repairs. Then to end the first round, the boom on the black boat broke off and swung around wildly, smashing the computerised instruments off the mast. Fortunately it didn't hit any of the Le Defi France sailors on board.

A late night at the Team New Zealand sheds should have the boat ready to hit the
water again today.

Built as trial horses for the 1992 New Zealand cup campaign, they have since been used for races between Team New Zealand and rival syndicates. But this final cup dress rehearsal looks likely to be their swansong.

The wind on the Waitemata yesterday, gusting to 23 knots, was about as strong as the sister ships can handle.

But they are still ideal for these mini-cup regattas, and the three challengers showed how these boats can still turn on a dime, a centime and a lira.

America True and Italians Prada engaged in dizzying pirouettes in their pre-start, while the French managed to make their boat go backwards in the starting box with Italy.

Prada, who are becoming skilled at reading Auckland's weather after five months, top the leaderboard after the first day with two wins from two.

The boisterous French notched up one win, and America True have yet to score.

But as helmsman John Cutler pointed out, it was a practice day for the Trues - after all, a win yesterday was worth one point, a win today counts for two.

The Americans underwent a last-minute crew change after some of their Kiwis failed to meet the cup's nationality clause. They got the better of the pre-start against Prada, but the Italians picked up a windshift on the favoured left-hand side of the course and built a lead to 32s at the finish line.

Former world matchracing champion Bertrand Pace sailed the perfect start to the Le Defi-True encounter, racing away up the left again to win by 1m 11s.

After lunch the Prada men jostled with the French who got a little too excited.

They incurred a penalty before crossing the startline, had trouble hoisting their jib, and then luffed too hard on the final beat to be penalised twice more.

As they were carrying out their three 360 degree turns, the pin holding the boom at the gooseneck fell out and the boom crashed to the deck. Prada, who had already edged ahead, sailed to the line alone.

The round-robins continue through to Friday, when the winner will meet Team New Zealand in a best-of-nine final on the weekend.

Pictured: Bertrand Pace, team Le Defi, breaks the boom after a pin fell out during a 360 degree turn yesterday in the first round of the Road to the America's Cup races on Auckland's Waitemata Harbour. PICTURE / JOHN SEFTON