Helvete løs i San Fransisco

Hovedbilde: Etter at Oracle Team USAs 72 fots katamaran hadde kullseilt var deler av mannskapet, båt og rigg spredt utover San Fransisco bukten. Foto Erik Simonson, Pressure Drop.

Se også America's Cup egen hjemmeside

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Båtene er for store. De er for kostbare, og seilerne kommer til å bli skadet. Dette er allerede observasjoner knyttet til AC 72 båtene som skal seile i de neste seilasene om America's Cup. Nå kan man legge til en ny: Det blir kaos når de kullseiler.

På den åttende treningsdagen ble pokalforsvarer Oracle Team USA den første til å kullseile med en AC72 med det resultat at seilere og løse deler ble spredt utover San Francisco bukten.

Erik Simonsen var på bryggekanten for å fotografere Oracle Team USA's treningsseiling da han ble vitne til båtens forsøk på å falle av såvidt øst for Golden Gate Bridge. Båten satte nesa i vannet ca kl 3:00 pm PDT, og og gikk spektaulært på trynet, omgitt av enorm sjøsprøyt. Her er hans rapport fra San Francisco for kort tid siden, og som best kan leses på originalspråket:

- They were headed to weather about ¾ of a mile west of Alcatraz in 25 to 30 knots. They bore away to set towards Point Blunt. They went about 200 yards and stuffed the bows. Most of the crew fell off at that time. The top of the wing broke off at that point, the second section broke off about 2 minutes after that, and now the entire rig, less the very bottom, is floating and connected by who knows what.

- The boat is resting in a tripod fashion. It's resting on the bows and what's left of the wing. It is currently drifting at about 2 knots out the gate. I see parts floating around. I think that they're not interested in the parts. It looks like they're trying to right the boat, so they can tow it out of danger. If they don't do it fast, it's going to be out the Gate (in the ebb tide)."

Full rapport på Sail Revolution

- We didn't know what was going to happen with the new boat," said Tom Slingsby (AUS). - When the nose went down, the wing hit and a few guys went in the water. We were unsure if the wing would snap, so we all climbed off the boat." It is unclear who was on the boat at the time, though it is confirmed that John Kostecki (USA) was not.

Live video showed the current had taken the AC72 to the west of the Golden Gate Bridge and into the Pacific Ocean. A large swell was hampering recovery. The wing was destroyed, the hulls had turtled with one hull floating lower than the other. At press time, three hours after the capsize, the scene was far from secure. An effort was underway to tow the boat (now with its bows down, sterns up), though the sinking hull appeared to be hampering the salvage. The boat was still west of the Golden Gate Bridge, approximately nine miles from its base inside San Francisco Bay. Further details were not available.