In the 34th America’s Cup, simply getting your AC72 airborne was a big challenge, with remaining airborne through a gybe was like the “Holy Grail.” Now full-foiling gybes have become routine and full-foiling tacks are the name of the game, not just in terms of boatspeed, but in the way they open things up tactically. In this video, Dean Barker and Chris Draper of Softbank Team Japan, one of the earliest teams to accomplish a full-foiling tack, discuss what it felt like pulling off the first one and how they see it affecting the America’s Cup overall.
April 2017
