The Class Rule for the next America’s Cup yachts is due out this month – March 2014 

 

While we are waiting for the rule to be announced, we have heard some ideas that have been floated for  the Class Rule:

From Russell Coutts, CEO Oracle Team USA

• An overriding theme is an effort to reduce costs and increase media exposure, so that teams can provide a better return to their sponsors for significantly less money than was required last time.

From Pete Melvin, of Morelli & Melvin, leading the rule-writing process

• Confirmed the concept of foiling, wingsail catamaran
• Include safety considerations
• Reduce the cost of the entire campaign, meaning…
• Fewer sailors
• Fewer personnel involved in design and logistics
• Reduced construction cost
• Write the rule so it is easier to measure the boats and to administer
• Parts of the wing could be one design
• Make things one design if they absorb lots of design resource for little performance gain

From Nathan Outteridge, helmsman, Artemis Racing

• Make the wing small enough so that the gennaker is needed for downwind foiling – show the sailors hoisting, gybing and dropping sails. The sailors should be seen doing more than grinding.
• Have a real job for the bowman.
• Allow adjustable elevators on rudders for safety and to enable upwind foiling.

From Paul Bieker of Oracle Team USA

• We want to foil upwind in 12 knots of breeze and downwind in 8 knots.

From Tom Slingsby, Oracle Team USA strategist

• It has to be sailed in the most high performance, most spectacular boats, and foiling is the only way to do that properly.
• You don’t want any computer automated devices. You don’t want to make foiling easy.
• The load on the mainsheet for a soft sail would be so much higher than with a wing – the wingsail is definitely the way to go.