Cup. Historically, the America’s Cup works on a simple model that suites capitalism as much as it does nations at war: Winner takes all. In Cup parlance, this translates to


big dollars, as the Cup is the world’s third-largest sporting event. Given that a proper Cup involves several years of lead-up racing, huge sponsorship deals and massive amounts of tourism, this is big business. And if nothing else, Ellison is one razor-sharp businessman. Various cities drew up proposals,


with the Defender maintaining that their intention was to bring the Cup to San Francisco. But as the December 31 deadline approached, “where” still wasn’t nailed down. Soon, word spread that while SF had submitted a proposal, the deal wasn’t sweet enough. So, Ellison’s representatives flew to various corners of the country and to Europe, seeking a possible alternative. Rhode Island was looking strong, with plans of revitalizing Fort Adams into a world- class racing area. But as the final hour drew near (the defender stretched this to the absolute last minute, with their official press conference happening at roughly 1700 hours, PST, on December


31), San Francisco added the necessary sweeteners and prevailed. The Cup is coming to California.


The Louis Vuitton Cup will be conducted from July 13 – September 1, 2013, subject to the final number of Challengers and the precise format of the racing to be determined by the Challengers and Regatta Director. The America’s Cup Match (Finals)


will be held on September 7-22, 2013, depending on the actual duration of the best of nine regatta, depending whether the America’s Cup Match is decided in five races, or goes the full nine races. If required, racing will continue until a winner is determined. I can assure you, this will be a Cup unlike anything we’ve ever seen before. Monohulls, historically the


lifeblood of Cup racing (save for 1988 and 2010) are out, replaced instead by hard wingsail-powered catamarans, which will be used to contest the Louis Vuitton Challenger Series (it’s back!), the next Cup, as well as the new America’s Cup World Series (a series of traveling regattas preceding both the LVCS and the Cup that will bring AC racing action to several international


Canal Boatyard. Seattle’s Finest.


Irwin 65 Arabesque


cities). The first of these classes, the one- design AC45s (45 feet, LOA) will race in 2011, while the actual Cup boats, the AC72 class (72 feet, LOA) should debut in 2012. The first of the AC45s has now


been built by Core Composites, in Warkworth, New Zealand, and is currently in Auckland where sailors and designers are testing and conducting sea-trials. Building continues, more or less around the clock, on the next batch of 45s at Core Composites, with teams hopefully getting their boats and piercing starting lines this spring. For Cup fans, this is positive. For


other teams, probably less so, as several trusted sources have reported that the Defender has a massive advantage when it comes to designing wingsail- powered multihulls, but fairness has never exactly been the Cup’s strongest virtue.


And while there are still a slew of


unanswered questions about AC34, this much is for certain: Watching 45 and 72-foot wingsail cats rip around San Francisco Bay will be a jaw-dropping sight. Welcome to an entirely new chapter of America’s Cup racing.


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