This photo was taken on Wednesday, September 11, Defiant’s very first day of sailing, and a few Rhode Islanders claimed on social media to have seen the 75-foot speedster jibing on her foils! © Amory Ross/American Magic
After an estimated 76,000 combined hours of fabrication and finishing work by the production and shore teams of New York Yacht Club American Magic, the U.S. Challenger’s first AC75 racing boat was officially named and launched at the team’s base in Portsmouth, Rhode Island on Saturday morning, September 14.
The 36th America’s Cup is almost a year and a half away, a and the American Challenger is off to a flying start. © Amory Ross/American Magic
Named Defiant, the cutting-edge foiling monohull is the first America’s Cup class boat built to represent the New York Yacht Club in more than 16 years. The boat underwent initial testing on Narragansett Bay earlier in the week. Defiant was constructed at a dedicated facility in Bristol, RI, the site of America’s Cup boatbuilding efforts since the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company’s first Cup defender, Vigilant, was launched in 1893.
Defiant shows off her foils as she’s lowered into the water. © Amory Ross/American Magic
Patricia Hutchinson, mother of American Magic Skipper and Executive director Terry Hutchinson, christens Defiant with G.H. Mumm champagne, the Official Champagne Partner of the 36th America’s Cup. © Will Ricketson/American Magic
New York Yacht Club American Magic Team Principal Doug DeVos addresses the crowd as Defiant rests in her cradle. © Amory Ross/American Magic
New York Yacht Club American Magic will continue to train in Rhode Island waters during the fall of 2019 before relocating to Pensacola, Florida for the winter. The 36th America’s Cup presented by Prada will be sailed March 6 – 21, 2021 in Auckland, New Zealand. To learn more about the team that will be bringing America’s Cup racing home to Newport, log onto americanmagic.americascup.com…and be sure to do some holiday shopping for your favorite sailors at the American Magic Supporter Store! ■
Will Ricketson, New York Yacht Club American Magic’s Communications Director, contributed to this report.
