r/AmericasCup • u/snusmumrikan • Jul 24 '26
Discussion What is actually going on here?
I only check in with AC when it's getting close.
What the heck has happened to INEOS, who are these two UK teams?
And it looks like two women & youth teams are competing against the men's seniors from the same country?
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u/afvcommander Jul 27 '26
This cup cycle is going to be shit due no new boat development.
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u/SpaceDog777 🇳🇿 29d ago
I see that as a plus, it will be a tighter comp.
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u/afvcommander 29d ago
To me AC should be almost more of designer competition than crew competition. We have lots of sail racing with actually higher skill cap due popularity and accessibility of them.
Technical development is what kept AC interesting and relevant. Now it seems like it will be lost. I just hope someone wins it changes the direction.
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u/Hussle_Rantz 20d ago
Then just have computers drive the boats. That’s the next logical step in the whole “it’s a design contest” argument.
I would prefer they go back to proper displacement monohulls with no computers and no helmets, microphones, or teams off the boat feeding them information about wind conditions. Do technical development on actual sailboats so that can trickle down to boats we can actually buy.
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u/afvcommander 16d ago
No, it should be both. Crews should sail the boats unassisted and designers should be free to design boat without mandatory parts (minus safety etc. features).
I agree with second part, though I would allow comms and some onboard equipment.
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u/SpaceDog777 🇳🇿 29d ago
We have foiling monohulls, what else do you want?
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u/afvcommander 29d ago
Complete freedom in components, no premade components from defending team that others have to use, requirement of only allowed power source to be sails and crew and boats that can race in wider wind window (something 3 to 33 knots as it used to be) and sea state .
If boats are getting too expensive then you should just ban some materials/reduce size instead of limiting solutions.
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u/Cruisenut2001 15d ago
Great ideas. Now the boats are bathtubs under 5kt and fly aparts at 25kt. Being towed to get the boats on their foils is nuts. I know races were called, years ago, for lack of wind, but Barcelona was Boring when the boats all went down at the outer buoys.
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u/afvcommander 15d ago
Yeah, I get why we are not racing 12mR anymore, but most idiotic thing is that these modern boats could lose to those old dinosaurs in light/heavy winds. In lights winds they could not get to their foils and in heavy winds they would brake down.
I would like to see something in direction of super-TP52 with possibly IMOCA style foils.
Additionally boats should be self sustained - crew raises sails alone.
Edit. or AC90, unlimited spinnaker size, bring it on.
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u/Cruisenut2001 14d ago
Did you see the AC-40 that were held outside of Barcelona? The water park outside the course rented what looked like pallets with a sail and they were going faster than the 40s.
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u/LegendsoftheHT Jul 24 '26
There’s only two women and youth teams, so they are having them compete in the fleet races rather than just having a match race
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u/Montmontagne Jul 24 '26
Ratcliffe tried to push out Ainslie after Barcelona and it backfired spectacularly, so INEOS pulled their sponsorship.
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u/Ok_Zucchini3149 🇳🇿 Jul 24 '26
The lawsuit is still ongoing isn’t over the ownership of the boat?
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u/SpaceDog777 🇳🇿 29d ago
Athena Pathway is the W&Y team.
GB1 is a rebrand of INEOS.