''NZL 82'' was a 2003-generation

International America's Cup Class The International Americas Cup Class is a class of racing yacht that was developed for the America's Cup between 1992 and 2007. These yachts, while not identical, were all designed to the same formula to offer designers the freedom to experiment ...

racing yacht. Raced by defenders

Team New Zealand Team New Zealand or TNZ is a sailing team based in Auckland, New Zealand representing the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron. Team New Zealand became a household name in their home country following their consecutive wins in the America's Cup i ...

in the 2003 America's Cup match, she was defeated 5–0 by challenger Alinghi ( ''SUI 64'').

Design

After the successful 2000 defence in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

, many senior

members were lured to richer syndicates and their challenges for the 2003 America's Cup. Most notable among these departures were those of

Russell Coutts Sir Russell Coutts (born 1 March 1962) is a world champion New Zealand yachtsman. Early and personal life Coutts was educated at Otago Boys' High School (1975–1979) and is a Life Member of Paremata Boating Club, where he learnt to sail in ...

and

Brad Butterworth Bradley William Butterworth (born 1959) is a New Zealand yachtsman known for the role he played as tactician and skipper in the America's Cup for Team New Zealand and the Alinghi team of Switzerland. Butterworth was born in Te Awamutu, New Zeal ...

to Swiss challengers Alinghi. These departures resulted in a lack of senior leadership at Team New Zealand, which along with a relative lack of funds, caused the team to resort to radical design innovations in an attempt to defend the cup with raw boat speed alone. ''NZL 82'' was notable for her design innovations. The most controversial of these was the so-called "HULA" (Hull Appendage) – a flat appendage attached to the afterbody of the hull designed to increase waterline length (and therefore speed) without increasing the overall length of the boat. Another radical innovation was the keel bulb, which at approximately in length, was over longer than its competitors of the time.

Career

America's Cup

''NZL 82'' was used in

's 2003 America's Cup defence. She was completely ineffective, losing 0–5 to challenger Alinghi. The defeat was largely due to ''NZL 82''s lack of reliability. The first race was sailed in a stiff breeze and choppy seas. ''NZL 82'' retired due to multiple gear failures in the rigging and the low cockpit unexpectedly taking onboard large quantities of water. The end of the

boom Boom may refer to: Objects * Boom (containment), a temporary floating barrier used to contain an oil spill * Boom (navigational barrier), an obstacle used to control or block marine navigation * Boom (sailing), a sailboat part * Boom (windsurfi ...

snapped off due to increased stress caused by the weight of water in the boat. In addition the

headsail A sail plan is a description of the specific ways that a sailing craft is rigged. Also, the term "sail plan" is a graphic depiction of the arrangement of the sails for a given sailing craft.> In the English language, ships were usually describe ...

pulled out of the groove in the forestay foil, damaging it and preventing a new sail from being hoisted. Race 4 was sailed in strong winds and rough seas and ''NZL 82''s mast snapped on the third leg causing retirement. On the third leg in race 5, ''NZL 82'' broke a

spinnaker pole A spinnaker pole is a spar used in sailboats (both dinghys and yachts) to help support and control a variety of headsails, particularly the spinnaker. However, it is also used with other sails, such as genoas and jibs, when sailing downwind ...

. Alinghi's ''SUI 64'' proved to be quicker and more reliable.

2004–06 Louis Vuitton Acts

''NZL 82'' was subsequently refined and competed in the Louis Vuitton Acts which were used as the build-up to the 2007 America's Cup. ''NZL 82'' won the 2004 Louis Vuitton Season.

2007–08 use

''NZL 82'' along with ''NZL 81'' are both currently in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. The boats, now owned and operated by Cabo Adventures, are set up so that the public has the opportunity to race the yachts off the Gulf of California / Pacific Ocean areas near Cabo San Lucas. Both yachts have had engines installed for commercial use. Heavier duty sails have also been purchased and installed which will last much longer than the lighter, racing sails used in America's Cup racing.

References

{{America's Cup Yachts International America's Cup Class yachts America's Cup defenders Team New Zealand 2000s sailing yachts Sailing yachts built in New Zealand 2003 America's Cup