- An Auckland ferry forced Sail GP catamarans to divert when it cut through a practice session last week.
- The ferry had right of way and maintained a safe distance from the catamarans, according to
- The video of the incident has amassed 2.8 million views, with SailGP confirming all safety precautions were taken.
An Auckland passenger ferry has been captured on video cutting through a Sail GP practice forcing the catamarans to take evasive action to miss it.
An Auckland Transport spokesperson said the ferry, heading to Bayswater, had right of way and there was no risk to passengers.
The video, posted by the official SailGP account on Instagram, had amassed 2.8 million views and over 300 comments.
The footage showed the Great Britain and Canadian racing craft forced to steer around the ferry as they sprinted off the start line.
鈥淣othing gets in the way of the Bayswater ferry,鈥 one commenter said.
鈥淎hh, sailing with obstacles now. Adds a bit more of a challenge,鈥 another wrote.
Others were concerned for the safety of passengers and crew.
鈥淪omebody鈥檚 getting fired.鈥
An AT spokesperson said the Bayswater ferry 鈥渟lowed down鈥 for the several SailGP catamarans in the harbour.
鈥淚n this instance, the ferry鈥檚 skipper had been called through by the race marshal.
鈥淎t no point did the ferry get to within 50 metres of any of the SailGP catamarans, and passenger safety was never put at risk.鈥
Kiwi sailor Andy Maloney, whose Brazilian team was racing in the other half of the fleet on Thursday, said the league was making sure the teams were aware of other boats on the water.
鈥淚t was something the league was managing well, giving us different statuses of how many boats were on the race track and when to take caution and keep your eyes out for certain vessels,鈥 he told the Herald.
鈥淭hey had it under control, but it was weird to see that replay of the ferry going through the foiling site.鈥
The account replied to concerned commenters explaining that 鈥渁ll necessary safety precautions were taken鈥.
They also joked that the ferry was not handed down any 鈥減enalties鈥.
鈥淛ust a stern warning.鈥
SailGP has been approached for comment.
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