These days, just mention the words “America’s Cup” to any group of sailors and it’s likely that in no more than a few minutes they’ll all be arguing. Gone are the times when this same contingent would wait with bated breath, unified by their love of sailing, to see what beauty would be incarnated for this very special gentlemen’s match race around the buoys – a race that only happens every three or four years. Gorgeous boats would be designed especially for this occasion– the oldest and most dignified major sporting event in existence. Common sailors would await the unveiling of the world’s most foremost yacht designers’ creations only to be sailed by the world’s most decorated and respected sailors. What could be better? What could ever corrupt such bliss? The answer: foiling multihulls.
All was well in 2007 when sailing fans from around the world tuned in to see the shiny new graceful and sexy 24-meter monohulls compete in the waters of Valencia in good breezes and sunny skies. Eleven teams from all over the world grinded winches, called tactics and changed sails, not unlike most racing sailors did on their own boats, albeit with some distinct differences. Alinghy beat New Zealand in some very exciting racing and everyone was thrilled, but then it got weird…
Money, animosity, ego, politics and greed became the major players in the 33rd Cup and it all devolved into one of the strangest most public displays of billionaire bizarro world anyone had ever seen. It was compelling for all the wrong reasons, coming down to two very very wealthy middle-aged men spending ungodly sums of money to build one-off boats that were built for sheer speed – an other-worldly 90 x 90 trimaran with a hard wing built by the American team and a 90-foot catamaran with soft sails built by team Alinghi. They hired the best sailors in the world and tried to crush each other. The Americans won the somewhat sad contest and the America’s Cup would never look the same going forward – it was hard wings and multihulls from here on in. Although some loved this sexy, Formula One style speed driven focus, traditionalists lamented. The ability to relate would soon disappear.
In the 34th Cup the world saw 72-foot foiling catamarans with wings that literally looked like they just came off of a jet airliner. The boats would reach velocities that would triple the wind speed with the two feather-light carbon fiber hulls popping out of the water and truly flying around the marks with nothing but an L-shaped foil in the water. Armchair sailors were left with less to say. These races were more about the efficiency of hydraulic systems and airplane wing design than sail trim and racing prowess.
Pol went on to say that if you don’t have a proper control system you “can’t have a stable flight.” You read that correctly – designers refer to sailing around the buoys as a “flight.”
But let us not forget – the America’s Cup has always been a design contest first. This fact is often lost on sailing fans that love the on-water competitive aspect of the event. With personalities like Dennis Conner, Russell Coutts and Jimmy Spithill it’s easy to think of the America’s Cup as any other high-level sporting event – a race with teams of athletes that win or lose. The AC is not this. Much of the battle is on the drafting table. Generally speaking, a box rule is in place and design teams are battling away day and night. You can bet they are at it now, tweaking foil designs and control systems that will squeak out another sixteenth of a knot.
So where does that leave us – the sailing fan? Perhaps not in a place we once called home. We no longer look at the America’s Cup boats as gorgeous designs with cutting edge innovations that will one day trickle down to the very boat we sail. We can no longer look at the racing to watch and take notes, applying what we see to our own local habits. Case and point: One of this year’s AC boats actually has a crewman assigned to a power-generating stationary bicycle. The contemporary America’s Cup is a different beast.
Perhaps that’s just the way to approach it – as a different beast. It’s a high-speed spectacle full of NASA style innovation. It’s a trapeze act that began as a sailboat race but still has sailing as it’s beating heart. Let us see it that way and enjoy what lies before us until someone does what can be done in any given America’s Cup – scrap it and start with a completely different concept.
For more information about the 35th America’s Cup visit americascup.com
Responses
Very interesting
As my wife, a former drag race driver, “It’s a race. How much does a top fuel dragster look like a Chevy or a Ford?” Sad but true. Racing is about speed. Hard to swallow for a monohull sailor like myself, but swallow I must.
this is not sailing. I went from loving the AC to the point I could not be less interested. I’d rather be sailing..
As a life long sailor, I see the AC principles as being lost years ago. It used to be (fairly) matched boats of same design with the sailors competing in a skills, knowledge, tactics,and endurance test, to prove who was the better team. Although it has always been a rich man’s sport (with the likes of Lipton and other’s bank accounts) it was always the skills of the sailors, not the talents of engineers, techies, and draftsmen. When AC came to San Francisco, 18 miles from my home, I turned down an invitation to see it all for free. If I had been in San Francisco that day for any other reason, I would not have bothered to go to the water front to see it! I’m totally disgusted with the whole thing.
Could care less. The “America’s Cup” is meaningless except to 3 or 4 billionaires. These “things” are capable of operating in only a narrow range of conditions. They aren’t sailboats and have no connection to reality. They might as well be racing blimps or submarines.
Agree with Mike, but there will always be a lot of audience for raw speed—a sailing equivalent of NASCAR, just watching people go in a circle as fast as they can.
Suggestion: create two classes of racing: a go as fast as you can class and a strictly controlled one design class, eg a 1970’s era 12 meter class that is more about the sailors than the boat. Then require each team to race both classes with same personnel on board. The cup goes to the overall winner of points from both classes. Interweave the race days for the classes so results for each class Re in doubt till near the end
Winterkorn
I thought I read there is a similar effort on SF bay to have 12 meter look alikes made in the country represented sailed by it’s own citizens. Is that still happening?
I like watching the speed and in harbor closeness of the hydrofoils. I also like watching battles of open water of the classic monohulls. There is room for both. Have the race every 1 1/2 years and leap frog the sailing class. This will give 3 years for each class to design and these designs will filter to the yachting industry in both classes. We get to see more racing. Also, change the name from America’s Cup to the World Cup or Global Goblet. (I don’t like these names, but not America’s). Also, put limits on the money so the most money doesn’t have such an advantage. The challenge to design build and attract crews with a cash limit makes it more competitive and legit.
I have been sailing for more than fifty years and teach sailing in retirement. I teach students about boat dynamics, sail trim, crew coordination, tacking duels, and reading the wind. The current iteration of the AC is quite simply boring. Yes they are fast, but their design and operation bears little resemblance to what 98% of the sailing community knows as sailing and sailboat racing. I would rather watch a class fleet of thistles or lightnings or a PHRF group have at it around the buoys. Give me 12 meters or something similar in 20+knots of wind. Create a separate class of foiling cats for those who think sail racing is only about speed.
I agree with Mike.
As newbe to sailing, I don’t see anything the AC would have to offer have to offer me. Few if any of the crew skills apply. The boats do not behave like the ones I would sail. So if new sailors are not attracted then the audience will inevitably shrink and kill it off.
To the American Sailing Journal
I now live in Ft. Lauderdale called “The Venice of the United States.” I attended college in San Francisco and spent 30 years in the Bay Area, mostly Silicon Valley. While attending SF State, I lived in Pacific Heights in San Francisco. I had a great view from the Golden Gate Bridge to Coit Tower. I said many times, that holding the America’s Cup in San Francisco Fore Bay would be a fabulous spectator event!
I saw the Louis Vuitton Cup in San Diego in 92. I had to charter a boat to go out on the Pacific Ocean and orbit near one mark. This race included a number of challengers from various countries. There was no radio or TV coverage as provided in the 34th cup including audio commentary on VHF marine band channel 20. I had no idea what the yacht’s standings were. From all the cup history that I have read, only one other cup was held in the lower New York Harbor, the rest on the open ocean away from land and spectators.
My best memories of the 92 cup were on the waterfront. As memory serves, Bill Koch’s America3 compound was located at a Chevy dealer. Close by my hotel were waterfront bars that were located near the English and Australian compounds. The English team had just been eliminated and the crew was off duty. They really livened up the bars. These “stud-ly” young men had many sailing stories and jokes. It was like a scene out of “Jaws” or “The Perfect Storm.” Many years ago, I attended the “12 Hour Grand Prix” at Sebring, FL. The local Pontiac dealer was the center of operations for Ferrari. There were many movie stars and groupies and even Sterling Moss. The streets looked like a movie set. It was alive and exciting. The 92 cup waterfront had the same atmosphere.
I flew into San Jose on Thursday, 5 September 2013 and rented a car. On Friday, I drove up to San Francisco and parked the car near Pier 39. On the trip up, I drove on Sunset Blvd. Each light post had colorful banners heralding the 34th America’s Cup. When I got to the Embarcadero, the same was true. These banners were flying off all the streetlight posts from Pier 39 to the AT&T Park which is the home of SF Giants. Because of the ballpark stadium, there has been a restoration and building boom along the waterfront. Now it has street cars that connect to BART. This waterfront area reminds me of a modern European city. And add to this, the excitement and color of the America’s Cup. I walked down from Pier 39 to the America’s Cup Park at piers 27 and 29. This is near the finish line. There was an AC 45 cat on display. The piers were covered with temporary buildings including reworked shipping containers. There were a number of shops selling monogrammed “T” shirts, hats and other souvenirs. There were open air bars and restaurants and a great view of the finish line. I became excited at the thought that the next day, the first races would be held. On the way back to my lodgings, I drove south into the rust belt and industrial area to pier 80 which is the base camp for Oracle Team USA. I saw the trimaran that won the 33rd America’s Cup and a huge 150 ft. crane flying a huge American flag. This crane is used to raise and lower the wing on the AC 72 cat.
On Saturday, I drove to Sausalito to work on a charter boat as a deck hand. We had the boat hove-to between the start line and gate #1. I was fascinated to watch these cats dice for position in the start box before the start. Then, at the gun, both boats rose up on their foils,” burnt rubber” and raced for the first mark. This is what I had come here to see with my own eyes. The charter boat was equipped with a large flat screen TV and carried the race commentary on VHF 20. We moved our location outside of the exclusion zone farther east to get a better view of legs 2 and 3. I got some great photos with my Nikon D-90 & 200 mm lens (These photos are part of my bucket list).
On Sunday, I paid $250 to be a passenger on the Blue & Gold Fleet ferry and tour boat. They are located by Pier 39. The Harbor Emperor was also a stake boat that marked the boundaries of the exclusion zone. It was equipped with a free bar, buffet and large flat screen TV tuned to the race coverage. The fog was rolling in from the Pacific through the Golden Gate and the wind was up. The Harbor Emperor was maintaining position halfway down the course. I got some great shots of the AC 72’s emerging from the fog at top speed. — I was in heaven! — Because I was so busy taking photographs, I did not eat or drink or watch TV. All that I knew was the Kiwis won.
On Tuesday, I was back in Sausalito to work as a deck hand. This time we positioned the vessel closer to mark # 1 so I could get better shots with the sun at my back. Again, I got some great action shots. At the end of the first race of the day, we repositioned the vessel to the downwind mark #3. We were in a great position to take some great photos but Oracle USA played their cancel card and the second race was postponed to the next race day.
On Thursday, I drove to Pier 39 and parked. Then I walked to the end of the pier to scope out a good position to take photos. I got a different perspective of who visits San Francisco; most of the people were tourists from Middle American and many foreign countries. They had no concept of the America’s Cup or what was transpiring on the water in front of the pier. Besides these groups of people, there was a contingent from New Zealand and a mix of USA sailors. I found a perch on the second deck. Luck was with me as the pier management had hired a DJ to rebroadcast the audio commentary for the races. I got some great shots with the sun behind me. Since I had sailed the fore bay many times, I was amazed of how large the AC 72s were. When they were by the Golden Gate Bridge, their mast appeared to just clear the center span. The distance from mark #1 and #2 is about 5 miles. I was amazed at how fast these airborne cats flew over the water and past Alcatraz Island in only a few minutes. It was pure joy to see this spectacle. I experience the joy of a kid along with the other spectators on the pier. — Thank you Larry Ellison! — Between races, I visited one of the pubs on the pier and met a lot of very jovial people. The mood that day was that the Kiwis were going to walk away with the cup and I did not know the lyrics to “Waltzing Matilda.”
As I mentioned before, I have always wished that an America’s Cup could be held in San Francisco Bay. The Saint Francis Yacht Club is located on prime waterfront real-estate. This club hosts many international sailing events. One is the Big Boat Series. These yachts are about the size of the old 12 meters. On a nice Sunday, they blend in with the hundreds of sailboats on the bay. In contrast, the huge and colorful 72s dominate the bay. — Larry Ellison was right. — This was a spectacular spectator event and with the 72s speed, the race concluded before the crowd got bored (particularly when standing on a pier).
In 1958, the Douglas Fir Plywood Association developed plans for a 26 ft. sailboat called a Thunderbird. They sold the plans for about $200. The vessel was to be constructed from marine plywood. It had hard chines so it could be built by a person with average woodworking skills. Usually, it was covered with fiberglass and resin. It was a very successful boat for its time. At the same time, Arthur Piver was selling plans for trimarans that utilized the same construction techniques. I interviewed many “want to be sailors” in Redwood City in the South Bay. Most had little or no sailing experience. In one case, four California Highway cops quit their jobs and built a 40 ft. Piver “Victress” model. They were featured on the evening news as they sailed out of the Golden Gate. A week later after running into a storm, where a wave stove-in a large Plexiglas window, the hulls developed cracks and were taking on water and the auxiliary engine failed. They were towed into San Diego where they put the boat up for sale.
So I turned my attention to cats. Rudy Choy, of Honolulu, helped pioneer the modern catamaran was one who I was interested in. His cats were beautiful, fast and even raced in the Trans Pac. TV’s Matt Dillon, James Arness, was the owner of “Sea Smoke” which raced the Trans Pac.
Then I found a book “The 40 Knot Sailboat.” (Available at Amson.com for under $100) It was a history of the quest of speed from the Polynesian Flying Proa to the ultimate sailboat — a hydrofoil airfoil. The problem was maintaining stability when on the foils. From this book, I joined an English group called the Amateur Yacht Research Society. They hosted a weekend seminar at TRW (an aero space company) in Redondo Beach near LA. The title of the seminar was “The 40 Knot Sailboat.” — So when Larry Ellison produced the America’s Cup 72 ft. catamaran with hydrofoils and a wing, I had to come and see my lifelong dream.
After the death of Andrew “Bart” Simpson, Latitude 38 published many articles and letters demanding a change from the AC 72s to the safer AC 45s. Since then, the prohibitive cost to campaign the 72s was a major factor in many countries not entering this cup series. Obviously, a safer and cost effective vessel must be selected for the next cup and still present visual excitement. I have paid air line tickets and an AirBnB in Somerset, Bermuda for 10 days to view and photograph the first races of the America’s Cup finals.
I hope to see you there.
And from the closing line in the book “40 Knot Sailboat” – “A sailboat on the wind is a thing of beauty! And to make it go faster, makes it more beautiful!”
Capt. Dick Linehan.
Some folks like it, I suppose.
I’m not exactly excited about the hybrid form of racing … I’ve been on Connors boats making commercials and I long for the day of 12 meter yachts … and the wonderful teamwork, network coverage on the boat etc. I say build up the personalities and crew members and what they do and let’s celebrate SAILING not engineering!!!
Great article. You give all the reasons why I do not follow the AC and follow the Volvo (although based on a recent survey I received the are considering treading on very thin ice). I want to see racing that shows me how to be a better sailor not racing that gives me no better inspiration than to go out and buy a lottery ticket. At least I am already in love with sailing. What about the next generation who may be put off because it seems out of reach?