"We have started the process of structural testing: getting all the load cells on the boat so that we can measure the data; this morning at six am we turned the boat over - a pretty difficult task that uses two cranes - and now she is upside down in the shed and we are running loads through the hull to simulate a pitchpole, a sideways capsize, shroud loads, and foiling loads - all the things that the other teams have already done." Outteridge said that when and if the tests were all passed there would then be another five to 10 days of work to prepare the boat for launch. "It will take that long to get the net on the boat, run all the ropes and rigging and stepping the wing and doing some structural testing on the mooring." Once launched and sailing Outteridge said the team would be focused on "being as productive as possible" with their sailing time. "Who knows how long that might take," he said. "But we are prepared to get up nice and early in the morning to get out there and make the most of every day."
Based on this assessment Outteridge said he did not expect to be racing
during July. "It would be asking a lot to get the boat in the water, have nothing go wrong and show up for racing this month. We don't want to do anything dangerous. We are focused on the safety of our own team and that of our competitors." Outteridge admitted that the prospect of sailing an AC72 for the first time since the crash which killed fellow crew member Andrew Simpson was a "nerve-wracking" one. "We will probably do it some nice light winds and It will probably be just a load testing day," he said. "You can test whatever you like in the shed, but there is only so much you can learn. Once you get it on the water and you start to build the loads and fly the hull and load the daggerboards, that's going to be a big day of just listening and
29 Image credit: Paul Todd/Outside Images
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