Pete Burling

The Death of the Grinder and the Rise of the Ampere For 175 years, the America's Cup relied on the raw, sweating reality of human muscle to tame the wind. Whether it was the rhythmic heave-ho of the J-Class era or the frantic pedaling of the modern cyclors, the physical engine room was a non-negotiable component of competitive sailing. That era has officially ended. The rollout of the latest AC75 class marks a historic pivot: the complete removal of human power for sail adjustment, replaced entirely by a standardized battery block. This is not just a technical tweak; it is a fundamental shift in the DNA of the sport that changes how boats are designed, how they are sailed, and how the story of the race is told to the public. Freddie Carr, a veteran of the grueling cyclor and grinder roles, notes that this change effectively erases the "big unit" from the deck. The move to battery power reduces the crew from eight down to five, slimming the boat’s profile and focusing the competition on software efficiency rather than aerobic capacity. While the boats may look familiar to the casual observer, the internal mechanics have been gutted and replaced with something far more clinical. The question remains: in the pursuit of pure speed and technical perfection, has the Cup lost the human magic that defined its legends? The Strategic Physics of Finite Power The transition to batteries introduces a new tactical variable: energy management. Unlike the AC40 training boats, which operate with effectively infinite power, the AC75 in the upcoming match will operate with a finite block of energy. This battery has a fatigue rate, simulating the way a human crew would tire over a long race. Teams can no longer adjust sails or trim travelers with reckless abandon. Every push of a button draws from a limited reservoir that must last the entire duration of the match. This creates a high-stakes game of "power budgeting." A team that burns through its energy during a frantic pre-start battle might find itself sluggish during the final upwind leg. Conversely, a team that manages its "clipping"—charging the system or conserving power during straight-line segments—will have the surplus energy required for the rapid-fire maneuvers needed to defend a lead. This shift forces helmsmen and trimmers to unlearn the habits developed on smaller boats where power was never an issue. The feedback loop has changed from a physical one—a grinder shouting that the oil pressure is low—to a digital one, where a screen warns of a depleting battery. Under the Hood: The New Intellectual Property Battle With everyone using the same battery pack, the competitive advantage has shifted to the plumbing and the code. Team New Zealand has dominated recent cycles because of their superior hydraulic and software integration. Efficiency is now the primary currency. If one team’s hydraulic system is 20% more efficient than another’s, they essentially have 20% more power to play with during the race. This makes the systems engineer the new MVP of the America's Cup. This technical focus has triggered a talent war. When Luna Rossa hired Pete Burling and Josh Junior, they weren't just buying world-class steering; they were acquiring the knowledge of how the Kiwis link their software to their hardware. The ability to translate sailor intent into mechanical action with the least amount of energy loss is the secret to winning the next Cup. The battle is no longer won in the gym; it is won in the simulation labs where software engineers optimize the algorithms that control the sail’s positioning to target settings. Re-distributing the Five-Man Crew The reduction to a five-person crew forces a radical redistribution of roles. In the 2024 Barcelona cycle, eight crew members managed the workload. Now, five must do the same, albeit with the heavy lifting handled by electricity. This creates a need for "multi-taskers" who can handle both tactical observation and fine-tuned technical control. Emirates Team New Zealand has already shown its hand by integrating Jo Aleh into the AC75 program, prioritizing her focus on the main boat rather than the Women’s America’s Cup. This lean crew structure means that every person on board must be a specialist in data interpretation. The art of looking up at the leech of a sail to feel the pressure is being replaced by looking at a monitor to confirm that the sail has reached its pre-determined target setting. While this allows for more precision, it removes the "dialogue" between the different units on the boat. The silence of the battery replaces the communication of the grinding unit, turning the deck into a quiet, helmet-bobbing laboratory of speed. Global Shifts: American Absence and the French Gamble The geopolitical landscape of the Cup is shifting alongside the technology. For the first time in nearly two centuries, we face a future with no American participation. American Magic and its backer Doug DeVos have pivoted their focus toward SailGP, signaling a potential move away from the high-cost, high-barrier entry of the America's Cup. This leaves a void in the sport’s traditional power structure. Meanwhile, the French team is taking a different gamble by hiring Diego Botin and Florian Trittel. These Olympic champions are attempting to balance a 49er campaign, SailGP commitments, and the America's Cup simultaneously. It is a testament to the new era of sailing that the skills required for a light, high-performance skiff are now seen as directly transferable to a 75-foot foiling monster. However, the risk of a "scattered focus" remains high in a competition where the incumbents are already logging hours on the water. The Bacardi Cup: A Reminder of the Old School As the America's Cup moves toward autopilots and AI, the Bacardi Cup provided a stark, beautiful contrast. Paul Cayard, an icon of the sport, secured a win 46 years in the making. The victory was not won through software, but through a classic match-racing duel against Robert Scheidt. Cayard’s tactical decision to "lock horns" with Scheidt before the start, dragging him to the back of the 80-boat fleet, is the kind of human drama that the battery era risks obscuring. This "archaic" form of racing—human against human, rope against winch—remains the soul of sailing for many. While the AC75 represents the pinnacle of engineering, the Star Class and the 18-foot skiffs on Sydney Harbour remind us that the audience still craves visible athleticism and tactical grit. The challenge for the America's Cup organizers is to find a way to tell the story of the battery and the software engineer as compellingly as the story of the grinder’s exhausted sprint. Conclusion: Navigating the Technical Horizon The 38th America's Cup is a sprint toward a digital horizon. By removing human power, the sport has entered a phase where the "human element" is expressed through code and hydraulic efficiency rather than sweat and muscle. This change makes the boats faster and more recognizable as technical marvels, but it places a heavy burden on the media to explain the invisible battles happening under the hull. The cup is back, but it has a different heartbeat—one measured in volts and amperes rather than beats per minute.