Oracle battu de 40 secondes par Alinghi

Photo: F.Socha / www.francksocha.com

In contrast, a botched spinnaker drop at the end of the first downwind leg cost Oracle BMW Racing dearly. Having closed up to within two boatlengths on the run, the San Francisco-based team blew their chances when the spinnaker was allowed to trawl in the water, hauling the boat to a standstill and breaking the spinnaker pole in the process.

Despite the costly mistake, Oracle BMW Racing managed to keep the action fairly close, although Alinghi’s lead was never threatened for the remainder of the race.

Racing took place in 14-16 knot easterlies, with a slight chop still left on the course following nearly a week of easterly-quadrant winds over Auckland.

After a relatively quiet start, with the yachts keeping well clear of each other for most of the final three minutes, Alinghi, skippered by Russell Coutts, hit the line on starboard tack, to leeward of Oracle BMW Racing, skippered by Chris Dickson. USA-76 tacked away immediately and on each successive tack of the first beat Alinghi made gains.

Throughout the race, the Swiss crew functioned with precision, making just one mistake in their final gybe when the spinnaker guy went under the bow. With a comfortable lead, there was no panic as the problem was sorted and SUI-64 swept across the finish line to capture their second win of the finals.

Their pattern throughout the regatta has been to capture the lead and then sail conservatively for the rest of the race and today was no different. It is a formula that has seen them lose only two races in the regatta so far and worked again today to give them a 2-0 lead.

Tangon cassé pour les Américains et spi chaluté pour les Suisses

Photo: F.Socha / www.francksocha.com

• ALINGHI (SUI-64) BEAT USA-76 - DELTA 00:40

The call onboard Oracle BMW was for starting helmsman Peter Holmberg to win the right hand side in the pre-start. He duly did so close to the committee vessel, but had to contend with Russell Coutts’ Alinghi just to leeward. Both boats crossed the line together, but the Swiss boat started with slightly better speed Speed #speedsailing and accelerated away a little quicker.

Holmberg held onto the helm until the completion of the first tack 40 seconds after the gun and handed over to skipper Chris Dickson. The problem for Dickson was that Alinghi seemed to be sailing slightly higher and faster. When the boats got into an early tacking duel, Alinghi also seemed to be able to accelerate out of the tacks slightly faster. Only seconds separated the boats up the first beat, with Alinghi holding the initiative and herding the American boat over the starboard lay line. Dickson trailed round the first mark by 26 seconds.

Oracle BMW Racing closed up on the run and came within two boatlengths of Alinghi at the leeward mark, but disaster struck Dickson’s team after their spinnaker went ’trawling’ in the water. Problems were compounded as the boat sailed over the spinnaker and broke the spinnaker pole. USA-76 was slow rounding the mark and lost about five boat lengths in the manoeuvre. For the third time in the regatta so far, the Oracle foredeck team did a splendid job in repairing the pole with a splint.

Alinghi were able to protect a comfortable lead of about seven boat lengths and recovered well from a poor gybe in the final two minutes of the race to win by 40 seconds.

ORACLE BMW Racing in tough battle on Auckland’s Hauraki Gulf

After an intriguing and close battle, ORACLE BMW Racing succumbed to its second defeat against the Swiss Alinghi team to go 2-0 down in the best of nine series for the Louis Vuitton Cup. In variable and overcast conditions with the wind ranging from 12-16 knots, USA-76 entered the starting box from the unfavored port end. Overturning this disadvantage, the afterguard of ORACLE BMW Racing started in the windward position at the committee boat end, controlling the starboard advantage. The first leg saw a close tacking duel out towards the starboard layline, with the Swiss boat having a slight edge in speed Speed #speedsailing . By the windward mark, USA-76 was 26 seconds astern and both boats set off downwind, gybing almost in unison. By the end of leg two, Team Skipper Chris Dickson had forced some separation between the two sailboats. Looking potent off the wind, USA-76 sailed into the first leeward mark on a fast, low angle and had significantly closed the gap. However, during the spinnaker drop, a last minute glitch aboard USA-76, resulted in the carbon fibre spinnaker pole snapping in half and the spinnaker trolling in the water.

The second mark delta was down to just 19 seconds, however, Alinghi stepped out to a 52-second lead at mark 3 after USA-76’s problem, and the crew affected a repair to the pole in time for the next rounding. On leg four, ORACLE BMW Racing came downwind under spinnaker to close the gap to just 31 seconds as the wind increased to 16 knots. On the final beat to windward, the afterguard of USA-76 initiated a tacking duel, but with the wind freshening they could not close the gap. Rounding the final mark 48 seconds astern, ORACLE BMW Racing sailed hard on the downwind leg, gybing on the shifts and using the boat’s downwind performance advantage. By the finish line, USA-76, with Larry Ellison again aboard as 17^th man, had closed to within 40 seconds of Alinghi’s transom after another tough race. It’s 2-0 to Alinghi, but as Team Skipper Chris Dickson commented: "We’re still in exactly the same position as when we started - we still need to win five races to win the series."

Quotes From the Boat:

"Tough day at the office today, but the boat speeds were relative, and passing lanes were non-evident. Our mistake at the leeward mark probably cost us the race, but don’t forget it’s a best-of-nine series." Afterguard member, Tommasso Chieffi

" We certainly aren’t out of this regatta, but we can’t afford any mistakes against this Swiss team. The boats seem reasonably even, Alinghi is probably a little quicker upwind, and USA-76 is possibly faster downwind. We’ll just have to sail better on Wednesday." Skipper, Chris Dickson.