25th AMERICA's CUP 1983 Newport, Rhode Island, USA
Yacht / Country : Kiwi Magic /NZL
Sail Number : 12 KZ-7
Syndicate : New Zealand’s Challenge Trust
CEO : Sir Michael Fay
Yacht Club: Royal New Zealand Yacht
Squadron
Designer : Laurie Davidson, Bruce Farr,
Ron Holland
Boat Builder : Marten Marine & McMuller & Wing
Skipper: Chris Dickson
“Kiwi Magic” was together with her sisters yachts
KZ-3 and KZ-5 one of the first 12m with a GRP
(glass fibre reinforced plastic) hull.
Useless to say that the competitors questioned
the strength of the Yacht compared with their
aluminium alloy boats.
But the syndicate had checked in advance her
rating with Loyd’s , the official measurer at that
time.
But Conner did not give up and tried all time to
throw out Kiwi Magic as a non-legal construction
from the competition.
This might explain a certain frustration of Sir
Michael Fay, who tried to get Dennis Conner on the
wrong leg when he announced his challenge
with his “Big Boat” insisting already for 1988.
With the tough skipper Chris Dickson on the helm
she lost out of 38 races only one -
the final of the LVC against Dennis Conner’s US-55.
With the tough skipper Chris Dickson on the helm
she lost out of 38 races only one -
AMERICA’S CUP HISTORY 1983 - 2013
