34th America's Cup: multihulls!

Artemis AC72 #2 wrapped up, cockpit looks interesting.

 

"Soon she will fly"

 

Bad News

Apparently Artemis capsized a little while ago and there has been a fatality! Checking into it-more later.
http://artemis-racing.americascup.com/news/4508 Can't find confirmation of the fatality-hope it doesn't prove out!!

More confirmation: http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/live

 

1 dead, 2 injured. Confirmed by Fire Department http://bigstory.ap.org/article/americas-cup-boat-capsizes-san-francisco-bay

 

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Evan, I can't get to SA-are you having trouble?

 

Just tried, can't get on. Probably crashed due to the news and everyone going on SA to find out more. To be honest that is the last place I want to hear news from because some people are just going to be blaming Larry, and starting false rumors of who passed.

Here CBS is saying they have live footage, but all I have seen is footage flying over the city: http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/live-video/ Looks like they are refueling then hopefully will head back out.

 

http://www.tvnz.co.nz/there is a short clip[ on the TVNZ web site of the capsize.

 

From the CBS footage it appears that the port hull has broken clean just forward of the rudder.

 

CBS reported the deceased crew member was underwater for an estimated 10 minutes.

 

Team Artemis

From Team Artemis:

It is with immense sadness that Artemis Racing confirms the tragic death of crewmember Andrew “Bart” Simpson today in San Francisco.

Simpson, a British double Olympic gold medalist, was one of the 11-man crew aboard Artemis Racing’s AC72 catamaran which capsized during training on San Francisco Bay ahead of this summer’s America’s Cup. All other crewmembers are accounted for.
Simpson, however, was trapped underneath the boat and despite attempts to revive him, by doctors afloat and subsequently ashore, his life was lost.
“The entire Artemis Racing team is devastated by what happened,” said CEO Paul Cayard. “Our heartfelt condolences are with Andrew’s wife and family


more: http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/loca...t-Capsizes-off-Treasure-Island-206820701.html

more from CNN: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...ium=referral&utm_campaign=editorial&hpt=hp_t2

From the AC site: http://www.americascup.com/en/news/8/teams/15517/artemis-racing-capsize-ac72-during-training
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Andrew "Bart" Simpson:

 

Artemis-AP Report

From the AP-

British sailor dies during America's Cup practice
Published - May 09 2013 05:51PM EST

SUDHIN THANAWALA, Associated Press

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A 72-foot-long Swedish sailboat capsized Thursday in San Francisco Bay while practicing for the upcoming America's Cup races, killing an Olympic gold medalist from the United Kingdom and injuring another sailor, authorities said.

Artemis Racing said Andrew "Bart" Simpson died after the capsized boat's platform trapped him underwater for about 10 minutes around 1 p.m. PDT.

Simpson served as the Swedish team's strategist and had won one Olympic gold medal and one silver medal. He was 36 years old, according to San Francisco Fire Department officials.

Artemis said doctors "afloat" with the team and on shore couldn't revive Simpson after he was freed from the wreckage.

"The entire Artemis team is devastated by what happened," CEO Paul Canyard said in a statement posted on the team's website. "Our heartfelt condolences are with Andrew's wife and family."

Simpson and another sailor were injured when the Artemis Racing catamaran capsized near Treasure Island, a former naval station in the bay, Fire Department spokeswoman Mindy Talmadge said.

Both were brought to shore and taken to the St. Francis Yacht Club, where paramedics performed CPR on Simpson. He was pronounced dead a short time later, fire officials said.

The other sailor suffered minor injuries, and the rest of the crew of 13 was accounted for and taken back to their dock in Alameda in a boat operated by Oracle Racing, which is defending its 2010 America's Cup title in San Francisco this summer.

The Swedish-based team and two other yacht clubs are scheduled to compete with each other for the honor of challenging Team Oracle for the America's Cup, sailing's most prestigious trophy.

The boat that capsized is a specially built catamaran that can reach speeds of 45 mph.

Coast Guard Lt. Jeannie Crump said the agency did not know the extent of the damage to the boat. She said a commercial salvage boat was at the scene and would tow the vessel to Clipper Cove, between Yerba Buena Island and Treasure Island.

Crump added that Coast Guard officials weren't sure what caused the boat to capsize. The Swedish team has two boats, she added.

The America's Cup race is scheduled to run from July through September, and the teams are training in the bay.

The Louis Vuitton Cup for challengers starts July 4, with the winner facing Oracle in the 34th America's Cup beginning Sept. 7.

This is the second time a sailor has died during training for the America's Cup.

In 1999, Martin Wizner of the Spanish Challenge died almost instantly when he was hit in the head by a broken piece of equipment.

Artemis has had its share of upheaval in the buildup to the 34th America's Cup. Late last year, skipper Terry Huthinson of Annapolis, Md., was released. He was replaced by Nathan Outteridge of Australia, who won a gold medal at the London Olympics.

Artemis has had technical problems, as well. Last fall, Artemis said the front beam of its AC72 catamaran was damaged during structural tests, delaying the boat's christening. A year ago, Artemis' AC72 wing sail sustained serious damage while it was being tested on a modified trimaran in Valencia, Spain.___

Associated Press writers Paul Elias and Garance Burke in San Francisco, and Bernie Wilson in San Diego contributed to this report.
----------------

 

Andrew Simpson

One of the best comments written on SA by "daveuu":

As we morn the passing of one of our best and brightest stars we need to keep in mind that humans live to push boundaries. This is not the first time our endeavors to tame wild environments, cross oceans, climb mountains and break speed records has resulted in the loss of life.

Andrew Simpson lost his life doing exactly what he wanted to be doing which was to sail in the America's Cup, on one of the most technical boats ever devised; a man at the top of his game who deserved to be participating at the highest level.

Will we learn from this? Absolutely yes. Boats will get better, safety systems will be devised, and this loss of life will not go without careful thought and inner examination.... but right now is not the time to analyze just what the heck went so horribly wrong.

Rest well Andrew, I hope your next sortie is even better than the one you just left.

 

Andrew "Bart" Simpson

An excerpt from the Daily Sail article: ( http://www.thedailysail.com/inshore...mpson-dies-during-artemis-racing-ac72-capsize )

He moved from the Laser into the Finn for the Athens cycle at the same time as Ben Ainslie. Finally he got to have his own long overdue crack at Olympic glory teaming up with Iain Percy, as crew on the British Star boat for Beijing 2008. Percy and Simpson returned home from China with Star gold. This performance they were heavily touted to repeat at London 2012, and were in good shape to do so, comfortably leading going into the medal race, finally losing it by just two point to the Swedish crew, taking silver in its place.

With Iain Percy signing on to the afterguard of Torbjorn Tornqvist's Artemis Racing America's Cup challenge, Andrew Simpson looked set to stay at home lost London 2012 with his young family, wife Leah and son Freddie. He had just set up a business with his brother in law making composite furniture. However in the night of the long knives that saw Terry Hutchinson ousted at the end of November, and with Iain Percy being bumped up to Sailing Team Director, so it was perhaps inevitable that Simpson would follow his friend and sailing companion out to San Francisco, becoming strategist with the team, a role he has previously fulfilled with TeamOrigin (he had also been tactician for +39 during the 32nd America's Cup.)

 

Artemis

Found on SA:

From Newstalk ZB and the NZ Herald:

"A New Zealander was injured in a training accident on the Swedish America's Cup challenger Artemis on San Francisco Bay today.

"America's Cup veteran grinder Craig Monk suffered a cut to his neck when the AC72 flipped, reported Newstalk ZB.

"He has been described as seriously injured and is now in hospital.

"Monk's injuries are not thought to be life threatening."

 

Artemis

Found on SA:

For what it's worth, from "Wired", of all places:
"....

Preliminary reports indicate Artemis’s boat didn’t capsize because the sailors were pushing too hard or made a mistake, as was the case with Team Oracle. The problem was with the boat itself, either faulty engineering or faulty construction. The boat simply broke apart under sail, folded, then flipped. The Artemis boat has had a history of cracking and problems with the carbon fiber used in the twin “beams” — the two girders that lash the two narrow hulls together. The boat had been in and out of the shed numerous times in an attempt to correct those problems. Today, however, the forward beam — the girder in front of the sail — gave way during a practice run. The two hulls, no longer connected, began sailing in slightly different directions. This caused one hull to snap just forward of the aft beam, and the mast, held up by high-tension rigging connected to the front of the hulls, simply fell over. The boat began to cartwheel, ultimately trapping Simpson underneath and drowning him.
....."

http://www.wired.com...icas-cup-crash/