Measures suggested to increase AC72 sailor safety
SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) –
People take pictures of the new Oracle Team USA AC72 as it leaves the dock for the first time, in San Francisco, on April 23, 2013. Buoyancy aids, body armor and locator devices were among 37 recommendations made on Wednesday by America’s Cup regatta director Iain Murray to increase sailor safety.
Buoyancy aids, body armor and locator devices were among 37 recommendations made Wednesday by America’s Cup regatta director Iain Murray to increase sailor safety in the wake of British yachtsman Andrew Simpson’s death.
The powerful AC72 catamarans, designed to bring modern excitement to the venerable event, will still be used, but Murray recommended third-party evaluation of each craft to assess the structural integrity of various parts and systems, including the wing sail and platform.
Simpson, an Olympic gold medalist and crew member of Swedish team Artemis, died when Artemis’ AC72 capsized while training on San Francisco Bay on May 9.
He was apparently trapped beneath a solid piece of the boat and when he was found could not be revived.
The exact cause of the accident is still under review by Artemis and by an America’s Cup panel headed by Murray, but it renewed concerns about the safety of the AC72s.
Regata Director and America’s Cup Race Management CEO, Iain Murray, pictured before a press conference in San Francisco, California, on May 14, 2013. Buoyancy aids, body armor and locator devices were among 37 recommendations made on Wednesday by Murray to increase sailor safety in the wake of British yachtsman Andrew Simpson’s death.
The spectacular craft have been described by event organizers as “speedsters” powered by 130-foot (39.6-meter) tall wing sails and with the ability to hydrofoil, essentially rise out of the water to reduce drag.
The capsize of the Artemis boat followed a spectacular capsizing of an Oracle team AC72 on San Francisco Bay last year, in which no one was hurt.
Artemis Racing chief executive Paul Cayard said in a statement Wednesday that the team was “back to work” but said whether the squad will race depends on whether team members feel safe in the catamarans.
“This confidence will be dependent on many criteria, one of the most important of which is the new safety criteria and rules changes that the America’s Cup organizers and competitors will adopt.”
Many of the recommendations are intended to increase the personal safety of the sailors and they include buoyancy aids, body armor, crew locator devices, hands-free breathing apparatus and high visibility helmets.
Murray planned to bring in experts to define the best such gear.
Workers for Artemis and America’s Cup use a crane to lift the damaged Regata from the San Francisco Bay off the coast of Treasure Island in California, on May 10, 2013. America’s Cup organizers announced a full probe into the capsizing of a catamaran that killed British Olympic champion Andrew Simpson, casting a pall over yachting’s biggest race.
Patrizio Bertelli, head of Italian syndicate Luna Rossa, last week urged organizers to institute lower wind speed caps for the races, and Wednesday’s recommendations include that.
A 10-knot lower wind limit, to 20 knots maximum during the Louis Vuitton Cup challenger series in July and August and to 23 knots maximum during the America’s Cup proper in September, are among 37 recommendations issued Wednesday.
Also proposed is the reduction of round robins in the Louis Vuitton Cup, scheduled to start July 7, from seven to five to allow more time for maintenance.
Artemis, Luna Rossa and Emirates Team New Zealand are slated to battle in the challenger series for the chance to take on defending Cup champion Oracle, of the United States, for the America’s Cup.
“All four competing America’s Cup teams have cooperated in an open, helpful and constructive way,” Murray said, “and the Review Committee noted there is a clear desire on the part of the teams to ensure the safety of the America’s Cup as much as possible.”
Emirates Team New Zealand managing director Grant Dalton said the team supports the recommendations in principle.
“They are prudent and reasonable,” he said. “The committee has done some remarkable work in only six days. The details still have to be worked on but we see nothing that will adversely affect the event.”
Additional recommended support equipment includes an increase in the number of support boats allowed, mandatory paramedics on rescue boats, rescue divers and one-way communications allowed from race yachts to chase boats.
America’s Cup chief executive Stephen Barclay said the additional recommendations have been incorporated into the safety plan produced by the America’s Cup and forwarded to the US Coast Guard.