Yachting: Designers speak out on break-up

By Suzanne McFadden

Young America's fated America's Cup boats showed critical signs of weakness as soon as they touched the water in Auckland.

The week before USA53 snapped in half and almost sunk on the Hauraki Gulf last November, the syndicate's shore crew tried to fix a fault in the boat's side deck - where it later broke - but never told the boat's builders or designers.

One of the designers, New Zealander Russell Bowler, yesterday spoke about the findings of the Farr Yacht Design investigation, after "11 weeks of silence."

Their disclosure was sparked from disappointment that Young America's insurer had not yet released its report on the nearsinking incident.

Bowler, a partner with Bruce Farr, said the Farr office did not seek to lay blame on anyone. But Bowler's revelations yesterday highlighted a lack of money and a communication breakdown in the Young America camp.

Problems with the boats began days after they were first launched in Auckland last September.

Patches of delamination - where the carbon-fibre skin does not stick to the inner core - were found in the hulls. If the core is not bonded, the strength of the boat's structure is affected.

"Looking back, there were hints from this work that there was more to come," Bowler said.

Then, a week before USA53 broke on November 9, there was a sizeable patch of delamination found in the starboard side deck. The shore crew at the base attempted to repair the patch, but did not inform the boat's builders or designers back in the United States.

"The first we heard of it was after it happened, unfortunately," Bowler said. "My reaction was one of utter horror. Certainly there was a breakdown in communication."

The Farr designers say the repair was ineffective, and the boat broke in the same spot.

"It's very easy to sit here with the benefit of hindsight and consider what might have happened, had the right person issued the right instruction at the right time, but I guess the same reasoning applies to the Titanic," Bowler said.

"Certainly, full-time composite experts continually on site in New Zealand could have saved the day, but we didn't have one. Limited resources and budgets didn't allow such luxuries."

After the start of the fateful race against Nippon, the crew noticed there was something wrong in the deck. "There was stuff going on in the side deck areas and probably most of it was as a result of the original defect," Bowler said.

But the boat also hit three solid waves in succession - the impact so hard that the three on-board computers' hard drives crashed at the same time.

Bowler would not apportion blame, but the designers felt it was time to speak out.

"We've been the recipient of quite a bit of criticism on this and I think we were frustrated with all this thrown at our feet," he said.

"I think the team is accountable and I think that's the way it's going to sit."