BMW ORACLE Racing continued to share the top of the leaderboard in the Louis Vuitton Act 4 regatta in Valencia with two more wins today. Racing took place in 8-12 knots of breeze.

A spirited tacking duel in the first match against the Italian +39 team and an aggressive luff against the South African Shosholoza team in the second were the highlights of the day. With a 4-0 win record after two days of racing, BMW ORACLE Racing shares the lead with three other teams.

Match One - USA-76 vs ITA-59

Race Summary - Sailing in an 8-9 knot breeze, the yachts got away to a split tack start, with USA-76 opting to cross the line on port tack and immediately claim the right hand side of the course.

The first beat was a classic match, with USA-76 fiercely protecting the right hand side of the course in a duel that saw the two crews completing 20 tacks on the leg. USA-76 led around the mark by 21 seconds and then stretched their lead on every successive leg to claim BMW ORACLE Racing’s third point of the regatta by 1 minute 14 seconds.

Match Two - USA-76 vs RSA-83

Race Summary - After a split tack start, BMW ORACLE Racing and the South African Shosholoza team had a close tussle in the early part of the first windward leg until USA-76 worked up under the leeward side of RSA-83 and luffed hard. The South African yacht was forced almost head to wind, as USA-76 bore off on course and established a solid lead.

Trailing USA-76 by 45 seconds around the windward mark, the South Africans blew out their spinnaker and USA-76 leaped away to a commanding lead to take their fourth win in four starts by 3 minutes 37 seconds.

Quotes

Chris Dickson, BMW ORACLE Racing CEO: “We have done a lot of testing this year, which is showing some gains now, but will lead to more gains in the future. We have done a lot of sailing in Valencia conditions. The team has worked hard, so these results are not unexpected against teams that have done less preparation than we have.

“The starts, the performance and the crew work so far are in line with what we expected. Nevertheless, we are pleased with these early results, because we take nothing for granted.

“From the results so far, there are four teams on top of the leaderboard and we very much look forward to meeting the other three over the next couple of days.”

Eric Doyle, BMW ORACLE Racing Strategist, commenting on the tacking duel with ITA-59: “We wanted the right hand side of the course at the start. There was a little more pressure on that side. Gavin Brady (helmsman) did a nice job getting that side, but the Italians also did well to stay right with us.

“I believe we did 20 tacks on that leg. It was good to get some training in race mode. We were always confident of our speed, so we were happy to keep it close.

“In the second race (against RSA-83) we wanted the left side at the start and we got it, but we tacked a little early. The South Africans got a little jump on us, but we were able to work them out to the starboard layline, put a lee bow on them and push them up.

“At that point, they had nowhere to go, because they were already over the layline with the wind shifting right. We luffed them and took them head to wind and came out with a big gain. After just three days of sailing their new boat, the Shosholoza team must be happy with their progress.

“Overall, we were happy with the day’s work. We have not raced much this summer. Things are different when you are in a real race. We are all settling into it and getting more comfortable.

“Larry Ellison (BMW ORACLE Racing team owner) took the helm in both races. Basically, he sailed the second half of each race. He had the boat going real well.”

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