First test

A first sail is not usually a year in the planning, but when Te Rehutai hit the water in Auckland, that was exactly the case with many areas of her new design having been locked in over nine months or more ago.

On 20 November, Te Rehutai left the dock and immediately started tow testing on the way out to the Hauraki Gulf.

Launched a day earlier on Thursday 19 November, for many in the team, seeing her out sailing on her first day was the real moment of celebration.

Reflecting on the first day, Blair Tuke said: “After the official launch last night, it was pretty awesome to be able to get out there and throw the boat around in a beautiful southerly breeze on the Hauraki Gulf. It’s great for the whole team to see it out there flying, doing its thing, after a heck of a lot of work from so many people to get to this point.”

A successful first day marks a major turning point for the team, where building and development make way for testing and race preparation, but developments in all areas will continue right until the very last race.