The_Alchemist
Super Anarchist
Maybe not much, but it shows that AM has learned something about sailing in light winds.
From the Sail-World article on that day:
....the team making the absolute most of the 6-knot breeze.
.......a highly respectable flight time of almost an hour ensued with Tom Slingsby and Paul Goodison gaining valuable time-on-the-water in the lower wind range. Mainsheet trim and traveller adjustments were aggressive, meaning the cyclors were at the max, as the huge mainsail was fanned to promote flight – particularly straight after the tacks and gybes – almost like the team were sailing a foiling dinghy. Those ‘fans’ were precise and co-ordinated whilst Dan Morris, the jib trimmer could be seen crossing the boat to trim the J1 jib from the windward side – clearly the main/jib co-ordination is something the Americans have focussed on and they looked good all afternoon.
These are valuable days for the team, testing at full-scale on their AC75 from Auckland and it's a relentless programme for everyone at American Magic but the buzz around the camp is palpable. Today’s stats were solid with 12 tacks and 9 at full foil-to-foil – a 75% success rate and 11 gybes with 8 fully foil-to-foil – an equally impressive 72% success rate especially considering the conditions. With two ex-International Moth World Champions and respective Olympic gold medallists on the controls, it’s no wonder that American Magic are concentrating on sailing style and it’s impressive to watch.
Those are number that no boat achieved in the last cup in 6 knots of breeze!
Barcelona is projected to have very light winds during the next cup. Working on mastering the coordination of sails, maneuver techniques and cyclor power requirements in 6 knots of breeze is something that all teams will need.
