A short history of 'New Zealand's Cup'

By HELEN TUNNAH

Shrouded in secrecy, Team New Zealand has taken America's Cup mystery to a new level for this campaign.

Each morning, their boats are towed out to the Hauraki Gulf encased in skirts, hiding maybe nothing - or the latest breakthrough design which will prevent any of the nine challengers wresting the Cup from their grasp.

From its inception in 1851, it has been more than just the best sailors who have won the world's most famous yachting trophy.

Long gone are the days when a yacht could be decked out with rugs, pot plants and mirrors, while the cruising crew could include a dog and a monkey.

Now, the winners are those campaigns with sharp designers, innovative minds and, at times, the money to pay for the much-needed testing of ideas.

They are the teams that can eke out even the tiniest improvement from the one class of boat used for all Cup racing since 1992.

It was partly in response to a design row that the new International America's Cup Class was born.

1987

New Zealand's first challenge for the America's Cup was in 1987. Chris Dickson skippered KZ-7 Kiwi Magic in a campaign led by Aussie Malcom.

The Kiwis had boldy built a fibreglass-hulled yacht at a time when racing yachts were typically built of aluminium. KZ-7, which was soon dubbed the "Plastic fantastic", didn't win the Cup, or even the challengers series, but it was the forerunner to the even more controversial "big boat" challenge the following year.

1988

Then merchant banker Michael Fay challenged Dennis Conner and the San Diego Yacht Club for the Cup, but instead of racing a 12-metre design, as used since 1957, Fay's challenge stipulated a return to the 90-footers of days past, launching the massive KZ-1 New Zealand which is now on display outside the National Maritime Museum at Auckland's Viaduct Basin.

Stung by the audacity of Fay, Conner launched a 60-foot catamaran, and the acrimonious series became a farce, both in the courts and on the water where the catamaran easily won. Partly to avoid a repeat of the controversy, the International America's Cup Class was born.

Used ever since, the ultra-light yachts are about 24m long, with masts soaring more than 33m above deck. The class rule involves meeting a formula for balancing length, sail area and weight.

Optimising that formula has proved critical in each of the last three Cups.

1992

Sir Michael Fay's 1992 campaign included four boats built to the new rule. The New Zealanders introduced a bowsprit, which drew intense criticism from their Italian rivals. Rocked by off-water protests, the distracted Kiwis let slip a 4-1 lead to lose the challenger series 5-4.

Two of the four boats from 1992, NZL-10 and NZL-12, now sail in the Bahamas. NZL-14 and NZL-20 are part of a San Francisco IACC racing circuit.

1995

By 1995, Team New Zealand was born, and this time pure boat speed won the Cup. While the best of the Australians sank, the New Zealanders were unstoppable.
In only a two-year campaign, they had designed two boats which were simply quicker than any others in the regatta. NZL-38 was unbeaten on the water, while in the Cup itself, NZL-32 beat defender Conner 5-0.

Visitors can see NZL-32 displayed in the carpark at Auckland International Airport, but after the 2003 America's Cup she will be taken to her new home at the Museum of New Zealand, Te Papa Tongarewa, in Wellington.

NZL-38 was sold to Sweden's Victory Challenge for the 2002 Louis Vuitton Cup campaign and renamed Cristina. She has now been retired.

Team New Zealand wasn't the only group of Kiwis challenging for the cup in 1995. Chris Dickson sailed NZL-39 for the Tutukaka South Pacific Challenge, and the Farr design was later used as a training boat for the America True challenge in 1999-2000.

2000

Team New Zealand again won the Cup 5-0 in 2000 and there was little doubt that the cup winner NZL-60, and her training mate NZL-57, were quicker than their rivals.

The defenders introduced the millennium rig, which was stiffer with fewer spreaders, resulting in less windage and weight. There were winglets in the middle of the keel bulb and a knuckle-shaped bow.

Both NZL-57 and NZL-60 have been retired. They still belong to Team New Zealand, and are stored at Westhaven.

2003

For the 2002-2003 regatta, challenging syndicates adopted many of NZL-60's features. For the defenders, the test will be whether Team New Zealand has been able to improve sufficiently to remain ahead of her challengers.

As Chris Dickson wrote three years ago, that may depend on whether the NZL-60 crew revealed all their tricks, or kept some secrets for another day.