EMIRATES NEW CATS LAUNCHED
Wednesday July 13th, 2011
EMIRATES NEW CATS LAUNCHED
The Emirates Team New Zealand are warming up ahead of the 34th America's Cup and have launched two 33ft catamarans for crew training and test platforms for the design team of the brand new SL33. The boats, designed by US firm Morelli Melvin were built by Hakes marine of Wellington.
Emirates’ MD, Grant Dalton said, 'We needed a way to get the entire sailing team working on the water and the design team wanted to be able to test in the real world... The SL33s are the ideal solution. With a crew of four or five the sailing crew will get the time on the water they need and the designers will be able to make frequent modifications over coming months. The yachts are plain black making modifications easier and cheaper to do.'
Skipper Dean Barker said, 'The AC45 has been dismantled, packed into containers for shipping by Maersk Line to Portugal where the first pre-regatta of the 34th America's Cup will be held starting on August 6... We have had a good long summer and autumn on the AC45, but we won't have any further access to it for crew development. We will sail it for a few days before each regatta and then go racing. It will be dismantled after each regatta and shipped to the next venue.'
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