The Mad Sport Of A Cyclor Sailor
These guys above are the engine power that provide the wattage required to make things happen on the Americas Cup sailing boats. Each race lasts roughly 25 minutes and these guys are pedaling away the entire time. It was not that long ago we used to see the riggers using their arms rotating their shoulders at top speed when they had to change the boat direction or adjust the sails. These guys above have replaced that job as this is now all automated and they provide that power for the automation done by hydraulics to happen.
The energy these guys create is used immediately or saved in a two liter accumulator system. We have seen boats floundering at the start whilst others were up and running and it bolds down to the power of the human engine room to be able to make things happen immediately.
The start is when the boats are maneuvering around more than during the race as each boat is trying to out smart and out move their opponent. The problem is if you do too nay moves like adjusting the rigging and doing a 90 degree turn all at the same time you could run out of power which is the risk of leaving you dead in the water.
The boats they have been using are AC75's that have legs and these boats need speed and momentum to stay out of the water so as soon as the bow drops you need to reset and hope for the wind to help you raise out of the water again whilst the cyclor crew are pedaling like crazy. This is a killer time for the cyclor guys as every part of the boat is being used and moved which is ultimately driven by their legs pedaling frantically away on the cranks.
The cyclor crew is mostly made up of professional cyclists and rowers who somehow found their way to sailing. The idea of competing as part of a team is what sportsmen enjoy and this is a sport where you do not get to see them competing, but they are a very important part of the cog.
During the race the hydraulic pressure will be called upon every time they tack as this adjusts the sails and the legs or arms that come up and go down require energy. On a windy day the cyclor crew will be asked for peak energy at these crucial times and over one race will involve many sprint sessions of minutes at a time increasing the energy output required.
Ineos Brittania lost the Americas Cup to Emirates Team New Zealand 7-2 and as you can see by the data n the above scree shot it was not a result of the cyclor team as they on average generated more energy than their opponents. Sailing ability and skill is what ultimately wins the races and the cyclor team allows the skipper to maximise the boats potential.
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