© Chris Cameron/ETNZ/ACEA

Emirates Team New Zealand (left) and Luna Rossa trial their AC72s on New Zealand's Hauraki Gulf in late November 2012. The platforms are virtually identical courtesy of a new technology sharing component of the AC72 rule.

[Editor's note: This story was initially scheduled for the January/February 2013 issue of Sailing World magazine, but was bumped from the issue. It was intended to be posted to the website instead, but was misplaced. Our apologies.]

Watched intently by Northern Hemisphere spy boats and with their 30 allotted sailing days quickly dwindling, Emirates Team New Zealand wrapped up the old year practice racing their AC72 catamaran in Auckland against their sister ship and fellow America’s Cup challenger Luna Rossa.

© Sander van den Borch/Artemis Racing/ACEA

Unlike the other three teams still in the hunt for the 34th America's Cup, Artemis Racing had to be built from scratch. Paul Cayard, shown with the team's first AC72, is the CEO of the challenger.

With some 30 years invested in the event, 53-year-old Paul Cayard is no stranger to the America’s Cup. As CEO of the Swedish-flagged Artemis Racing, Cayard’s taken on the task of building an AC team from scratch, a massive undertaking given the complexity of the boats, the nature of the racing environment on San Francisco Bay, the expense, and limited time within which to make it all happen.

© Sander van der Borch/Artemis Racing

Navigator Kevin Hall sails on Artemis Racing's AC45. A modern day America's Cup navigator must be comfortable doing just about anything onboard the boat as the job's traditional responsibilities have become less and less critical during the short-course racing.

In the modern America’s Cup, the traditional navigator—even at it’s most evolved—is an endangered species. With the courses so compact and the boats so hungry for human horsepower, having one person dedicated to tracking the team’s progress around the course and keeping an eye on the competition is a luxury some teams may decide they can't afford. But if four-time America’s Cup veteran Kevin Hall is worried about his position being flicked off the race boat, you wouldn’t know it.

© Guilain GRENIER

Brad Webb, lying down on the job, literally, if not figuratively. The AC45s and AC72s are beasts to sail, and they go so fast, that reducing windage, even on the sailors, is crucial to victory.

Brad Webb is one of Oracle Racing’s longest standing crew members. He signed his first contract with the team in November 2000. He was bowman on BMW Oracle Racing ‘s monster tri USA-17 that was victorious against Alinghi in the 33^rd challenge for the America’s Cup.