Oracle Team USA started their two-boat testing platform in ideal conditions in the Great Sound yesterday.

After going through the normal pre-sail testing of the various on-board systems, Oracle’s pair of foiling AC45S catamarans left the team’s base in Dockyard shortly before midday for an afternoon of sparring for the first time.

The spectacle was indeed a sight to behold as the defender’s racing catamarans hopped up on the foils and screamed around the Great Sound in 15-18 knot southwesterly breezes, with the chase boats trailing well behind.

“It’s so difficult to get answers and results from testing just one boat,” Jimmy Spithill, the Oracle skipper, said.

“For us, we need two boats — first to progress all of our design tools and get the technical answers; secondly, we won’t be racing in the challenger play-offs. We need to have a second boat to be able to practice racing and push, and that’s what this new boat allows.”

Oracle’s second AC45S test boat arrived on Island in August and was launched last week after Hurricane Joaquin passed by.

The team launched its first AC45S, the first America’s Cup class catamaran in Bermuda, in May and were soon followed by Artemis Racing, the Swedish America’s Cup challenger, who are the first challenger to launch an AC45 on these shores.

Oracle’s first AC45S has been upgraded since its arrival on Island to closely replicate the configuration of the team’s second boat. Among the most significant modifications is the addition of a second grinding pedestal to each side of the boat which will increase the physical demands on the sailors and closely imitate the America’s Cup class boat for 2017.

Oracle’s sailing team will continue training on their pair of AC45S turbos before shifting focus back to the Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series Bermuda, of which they are the host team, this week.

Oracle are third on the overall World Series leaderboard behind Land Rover BAR, the British challenger, and leaders Emirates Team New Zealand.

The World Series runs from October 16 to 18.

Two 25-minute races are scheduled per day to fit with 90 minutes for a television show produced by America’s Cup TV (ACTV). It will be broadcast globally.

The racecourse will be located in the Great Sound. The finish line will be positioned in the Great Sound for race one of each day and in Hamilton Harbour for the second race, providing viewing opportunities for both on-water and on-shore spectators.

The World Series is a racing circuit featuring the best sailors in the world, competing on foiling, one-design 45ft catamarans.

The event is the first stage of competition in the 35th America’s Cup and ends in the America’s Cup in Bermuda in 2017.