"So the hanging question is, what actually happened to flip a predictable defeat, into an unlikely success? The answer is, again, not a simple explanation, and despite what many may think, there was no silver bullet. The rumor of a super secret automatic board control system installed mid-regatta, couldn’t have been further from the truth. The potentially catastrophic nose-dive at the reach mark in race 19 disproves this claim. Due to the previous month’s events, we were under intense scrutiny from the measurers the entire time, and we remained transparent and legal throughout, even when things got desperate.
The turn-around was a result of small ideas from smart people, where nothing was discounted. A number of little tweaks to the wing and the boat were put into play and refined. The afterguard spent time poring over video and improved the way the boat was sailed, especially upwind. And everyone embraced the philosophy that we had nothing to lose by implementing a fresh perspective, while maintaining the aspects that still worked well."
