NYYC American Magic were well into their final preparations to dock-out into the stable afternoon air for a one-boat testing session of extraordinary intensity.
Setting just one jib – their bespoke LEQ12 J1.5 C2 jib and pairing it with the M1-C5 mainsail for the entire three and a half hour session, this was a day where Tom Slingsby and Paul Goodison were in full attack mode, testing tack and gybe angles and modes with no less than 108 manoeuvres completed – approximately 2 manoeuvres a minute and at a 96% foil-to-foil ratio. Outstanding.
Cup legend Sean Clarkson, now into his ninth America’s Cup campaign, spoke to the recon team after sailing saying: “We’ve been very fortunate with the weather here the last two or three weeks, it’s been really, really, good – a bit chilly but it’s been nice. Today was just very consistent breeze so the one jib covered all the range, and we had a good day of trying different things, different techniques and different manoeuvres, a lot of sail shapes and profiles, it was a good day…different trims, heels, cants and feeling what felt good or bad.”
Asked specifically about the sail programme and where the Magic team are at in their programme, this wiliest of sailors gave the classic answer about time being the enemy of every campaign: “I think you can always do more because you can go down a rabbit hole but at some stage you’ve got to make decisions. Our race sails are being designed and built very soon so at a certain stage your runway is done but you could always take more time.” American Magic have been looking imperious in recent sessions and today was another belter from the team who will be back two-boat race practising tomorrow.
On-Water Recon Report – NYYC American Magic: NYYC American Magic followed up a day of single one design AC40 sailing yesterday (Monday February 12) aboard ‘America’ with a day on ‘Magic’ using custom sails.
Magic was rolled out at 11.18 and was rigged and launched by 11.42 ahead of a 13.26 dock-out. Sails (M C5 mainsail and J1.5 C2 headsail) were hoisted at the harbour entrance with the boat leaving the harbour at 13.50.
With the southerly breeze blowing at only 6-7 knots from the south it took the crew close to 10 minutes to get airborne. Once up, though, the sailors launched into a 37-minute downwind flight that featured 20 foiling gybes and one touch and go gybe. After a 10-minute break and with the breeze now at 10 knots the crew set off on a second flight that lasted close to an hour and saw 18 foiling tacks, 11 foiling gybes, one touchdown gybe, and one touch and go gybe.
After just a two-minute break, the boat was airborne again for a 10-minute flight in 7-8 knots of breeze that featured two foiling tacks and eight foiling gybes. A 15-minute stop for a battery swap followed before a final hour long windward / leeward flight that saw 45 foiling tacks, 3 touch and go tacks, and one fall off the foils in a lull.
The boat sailed into the harbour at 1725 and was back on the dock at 1745.
