With news that the first regatta of the Catalonian port of Vilanova i la Geltrú, is the Host Venue for the first Preliminary Regatta of the 37th America's Cup to take place in September this year, coincidentally Emirates Team New Zealand’s launched their 36th America’s Cup-winning yacht in Auckland.
Te Rehutai, is set to return to the waters of the Hauraki Gulf just over two years since the last time it was sailed for the final race of AC36.
The team’s AC75 emerged from the shed after a long hibernation on Monday for a series of rig and dock checks encompassing a mix of old and new. Visually sporting fresh new livery and technically presenting a valuable bridge between the 36th and 37th America’s Cup AC75 class rules.
“It's a really cool day for the team wheeling out Te Rehutai, which is obviously a very special boat, having won the America’s cup for us.” said Nick Burridge, Team Reliability and Maintenance Manager.
“The boat has been upgraded to meet the latest rule changes. So, we've got a bit of rig tuning, messing around with a few geometries before we put it on the water and run through a series of checks and things to make sure it'll be safe to push off the dock and go sailing when we get a favourable weather window.”
The Vilanova i la Geltrú event will take place over four days between September 14 -17 when the six international America's Cup syndicates - Emirates Team New Zealand (Defender), INEOS Britannia (Challenger of Record), Alinghi Red Bull Racing (SUI), American Magic, Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli (ITA), and Orient Express Team (FRA) - will race each other in AC40 one-designs.
Vilanova i la Geltrú is situated 45 kilometres southwest of the America's Cup host city, Barcelona, in Spain's Catalonia region, and the event marks the official start of racing in the 37th America's Cup cycle. More on that story here from Cup Insider
