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AMERICA 3
1992
America's Cup yacht winner
America³ (USA–23) was one
of four yachts built for the America3 Foundation racing
syndicate for the 1992 Citizen Cup. The syndicate was
headed by American businessman
Bill Koch.
Koch's unorthodox
scientific approach to boat design was a major
contributor to the skepticism in yachting circles that
America³ was not a serious contender. Koch said:
"To win, you have to combine art and science. We
ignored the rules of thumb and looked at what made
products better."
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“When I decided to compete for the America's Cup,
everyone thought that what you needed to design a boat
was a great naval architect. I said ‘bullshit’. Naval
architects are good for ideas but they are not
scientists.”
“My doctorate degree is in fluid dynamics so I
understood science extremely well. I had also discovered
what makes a boat go fast and what makes a boat go slow.
I’d set up a research program at MIT to do exactly that.
We looked at it for five years and we came up with the
fastest boat in the world."
America³'s innovative
design is based on extensive scientific research and
testing. She belongs to a class of sailing craft known
as "maxis," the largest, fastest, and most expensive
sailboats built to race.
It was the first edition of the America's Cup that was
sailed on International
America's Cup Class yachts.
The yacht was built by
Goetz Custom Sailboats Inc. in Rhode Island and the
carbon fiber mast package was built by the Offshore
Spars Co. in Michigan. She was launched in 1992.
The America3 Foundation
racing syndicate won the 1992 Citizen Cup. She then moved on to successfully defend the
America's Cup against the challenge of the Italian yacht
Il Moro di Venezia V (ITA-25), winner of the 1992 Louis
Vuitton Cup.
Koch turned down
Dennis Conner (the yachtsman who has won the trophy four
times).
He skipped
America3
to victory!
The America3 Foundation
racing syndicate entered the 1995 Citizen Cup with an
all women's program. The team sailed America³ (USA–23)
in the first three stages of the Round Robin, then
switched to their newly delivered yacht Mighty Mary
(USA–43) for the remainder of the event.
America³ is on display at the Wichita Boathouse in
Wichita, Kansas.
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This wooden model of the
America3 is
24" long. It
will be completed in one week after your purchase.
$2,570
Shipping and insurance in
the contiguous USA included.
Other places: $300 flat rate.
Learn more about the
America 3 here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/America%C2%B3_(1992_yacht)
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