L'Italo-Americano

L'Italo-Americano THURSDAY, MARCH 18, 2021 www.italoamericano.org 6 NEWS & FEATURES TOP STORIES PEOPLE EVENTS r e i n s t a t e d o n e o f t h e America's Cup most tradi- tional aspects, that is, that Challenger and Defender must be an expression of the c o u n t r y t h e y c o m e f r o m (sailboats must be built in the country they represent and at least 20% of the crew must belong to the country o f t h e C h a l l e n g i n g Y a c h t Club), Luna Rossa went well b e y o n d t h e r u l e s : "Italianness is written in the genes of this challenge." Not only the sailboats are enti- rely built in Italy, but the language spoken on board is Italian and the crew is all I t a l i a n , t o o , e x c e p t t h e Australian helmsman James Spithill ("I am the only non- Italian in the team. What an incredible culture and what a t e a m ! S o p a s s i o n a t e ! I t a l i a n s , S a r d i n i a a n d Cagliari welcomed me as if we were all part of one big family"). But most of all, it's the b o a t i t s e l f t h a t s p e a k s I t a l i a n . L u n a R o s s a i s a jewel of Italian ingenuity, made by Italian companies. W e s h o u l d s p e a k m o r e about this Made in Italy, because it's the best in the world, it's the state of the art of sailing, an example to fol- low for the future. All the companies that contributed to making Luna Rossa are at the forefront of their sector, Italian excel- lences in the world. Just like P e r s i c o M a r i n e , t h a t made the double foils for all competing teams. Beside a h a n d f u l o f e l e m e n t s , t h e A C 7 5 — w h i c h m e a s u r e s 22.8 meters (75 ft) in length, 5 meters (16.5 ft) in width, c a n r e a c h a s p e e d o f 5 0 knots and is entirely made in carbon fiber — has been m a d e b y a c o m p a n y i n Nembro, Val Seriana, just a s t o n e ' s t h r o w f r o m B e r g a m o . T h e y m a d e t h e mobile metal and carbon arms holding the foils, the wings that allow these beau- tiful, last generation sailing s h i p s t o f l y o n w a t e r , i n spite of a weight close to 6.5 tons. Here, we should open a parenthesis about resilience and redemption, because this technological marvel w a s b o r n a t t h e h e a r t o f Italy's most deadly red zone, d u r i n g l a s t y e a r ' s f i r s t Covid-19 wave. Luna Rossa and its presence on an inter- national stage have been a victory for the Made in Italy, a proud moment for a land heavily hit by the virus, but t h a t w a s a b l e t o k e e p o n f i g h t i n g a n d h o l d i n g o n , even in the middle of the storm. Luna Rossa I had been a l r e a d y p r e s e n t e d w h e n Italy entered lockdown, in march 2020. The construc- tion of its twin, Luna Rossa I I w a s h a l t e d f o r t w o months and the sailboat had to be transported to New Z e a l a n d b y p l a n e t o g e t there in time. It's been this second boat, lighter and bet- ter performing, to compete in the waters of Auckland. Marcello Persico, pre- sident of Persico Marine, explains to RAI that, when we talk about Luna Rossa II, "We are talking about aero- n a u t i c s . " A n d h e i s n o t wrong, because the AC75 is applied science and high- tech robotics, even though the craftsmanship of those w h o , b y h a n d , a s s e m b l y , laminate and file with preci- s i o n e a c h c a r b o n s e c t i o n produced remains essential. Let's go back to the busi- nesses that contributed to Luna Rossa's success, and let's move to Legnano, near Milan. We should mention the Eligio Re Fraschini, s p e c i a l i z e d i n c o m p o s i t e materials and metal parts, that produced some of the rudders. The upside-down- Y - s h a p e d w i n g s o f L u n a Rossa come from Iseo, just north of Brescia and they w e r e m a d e A n g e l o Glisoni's company, specia- lized in high technology pro- t o t y p e s . I n t h e M o n z a - Brianza province, Cariboni d e v e l o p e d h y d r a u l i c systems. In the Como pro- v i n c e , H a r k e n p r o v i d e d deck equipment. All ropes c o m e f r o m G o t t i f r e d i M a f f i o l i i n N o v a r a , Piemonte, the same that, in 1954, produced the ropes used by the men who con- quered K2. All sails come f r o m C a r a s c o , L i g u r i a , where North Sails has its I t a l i a n s e e . A l l s e c u r i t y e q u i p m e n t c o m e s f r o m Veneto: body suits are made by Dainese, in Colceresa (Vicenza), while helmets are p r o d u c e d b y O a k l e y , a Luxottica brand with facto- ries in Agordo (Belluno). To this long list of Italian excel- l e n c e s , w e m u s t a d d t h e energy of two leading Italian r e a l i t i e s : P r a d a a n d Pirelli. Pirelli, by the way, supplied special elastomers, synthetic polymers similar to elastic rubber, to cover foils' wings and the rudder as if they were tires. It all takes place behind the sce- nes, but it's the essence of it all. Then, we have the Luna Rossa team. 37 specialists, who dedicated their time to naval architecture, structu- ral engineering, mechanical engineering, aero-hydrody- namics, informatics. Other 3 8 w o r k e d o n c o m p o s i t e m a t e r i a l s a n d c a r b o n , hydraulics, electronics, rig- gers, deck equipment and painting. And then, there are the 22 members of the sailing crew. They are all examples of t h a t k n o w - h o w a n d t h a t wisdom thanks to which our Made in Italy is so unique. Beyond sport records and achievements, that's what Luna Rossa is: entrepreneu- rial successes, adventurous dreams to follow with tena- city in spite of all obstacles, stories of people who pas- sionately dedicate themsel- ves, their talent and their sacrifices to sailing. Just like 3 9 y e a r s o l d F a b r i z i o Lisco from Bari, who began s a i l i n g a t 8 a n d b e c a m e world champion in 2008 as boat captain and, in 2012, as deck manager. He became part of the Luna Rossa team just over three years ago and this was his first America's Cup: "If I think about the journey that led me here… it's been 20 years, all dedi- cated to reaching one goal, Luna Rossa, and doing well on Luna Rossa. Luna Rossa is made of people's stories and sacrifices. You see 15 of them on deck, but there are about a hundred of them working shoulder to shoul- der behind the scenes, who create and design, who work in offices and logistics. All w i t h o n e g r e a t g o a l . Together we made Italy." Continued from page 4 The team celebrates the Prada Cup victory (Photo courtesy of Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli/Studio Borlenghi) "Passion and tenacity are at the heart of a crew where individual talent gets even better when is part of the honed mechanism of a team"

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