Editorial Andrew Hurst Takeaways
Heaps that was goodEnough that the other stuff should be labelled ‘scope for development’ not dismissed out of hand. The good, the bloody good in fact is that the best racing team in the world won the 35th America’s Cup through a combination of tightly disciplined sailing, a gutsy technical programme, having the right people in
the right job. And a grim determination to see the job through after wages were slashed in 2014 to keep the team going. Emirates had one test boat, rivals had four. This was a no-frills operation. Hospitality was a sandwich and there was no time for glitz and ‘PR’. But onboard footage was a joy to behold. Classic Kiwi with little, even at times no talk. When you’re that good a nod is enough. The team also had the thing common to every Cup winner: they
prioritised brutally. The essential skill which teams sometimes try to import from elsewhere. It doesn’t work. Conner, Dalton, Coutts, Blake grew up breathing yacht racing. Yards hard won. Bermuda Brilliant for televised stadium racing. Everything asked of the island it delivered. But remote and with only a modest native racing community there would never be enough spectators – certainly compared to San Francisco – to create a big impact far beyond the sailing community. But the racecourse was fantastic. Who doesn’t want to be stuck in Bermuda for two years? TVThe best televised sailing of all time thrilled thousands of viewers. And amazing graphics. Brilliant for all who follow the sport but anecdotal reports and empirical evidence of how TV ads were (not) selling during Cup broadcasts tell us that reach beyond sailing did remain limited. But speaking personally the viewing experience was fantastic, so a big, selfish thank you to Larry Ellison for underwriting it all. Sailing has a new story to tell and now the footage to do it. Boats Humble pie consumed… Boats that reliably quadruple the windspeed. Incredible boats. But let’s get real. A 50ft one-design cat – in part selected to level the playing field – on which you can spend US125million improving foils and systems (or about a third that when Dalts signs your wages). Does it matter? For 160 years the Cup has been a lopsided event with the scales tipped in favour of the Defender. That’s part of the ‘charm’ and why a successful challenge is such a huge thing. But in 2017 we had the first sniff of a Cup cartel and it was not pretty. That was 2,000 per cent the reason the whole world was cheering on Emirates Team New Zealand. Nationality A 100 per cent nationality rule is no longer realistic and would compromise new teams. But a strong nationality requirement will drive up the non-sailing interest the 2017 Defender kept banging on about… except when it suited them. Big bad wolf Those controlling the Cup over the past 10 years invited criticism and got it – often deserved. But come on, the show in Bermuda was amazing and who wouldn’t kill to be one of the
‘ FAN Larry Ellison… America’s Cup, tick. But boy did I leave a mark!!!
back three fellas on an AC50 (you can keep the other end). Ten steps forward, four steps back. We just witnessed more than 10 steps. Best image The ETNZ shore team swarming over their still- capsized ship and measuring up the repairs. Inspiring stuff, kids. Most thankful No one fell in the way of a foil travelling at 40kt. Sober reflection needed. This time we got away with it.
q
BERMUDA Well, butter my butt and call me a biscuit.
That was a race! – Daniel ‘Honey Badger’ Ricciardo (OK, Baku)
How would it be to win an Olympic gold medal and then the America’s Cup – all in 10 months
at the age of 26? – Paul Cayard
next 30 years? – Cayard NOPE
What will you do for the
Great to see a bit of fight out of these [Oracle] boys
boat will be fine and it’s way faster than Ben’s. They’ll kill ’em – Spithill
MR NEW ZEALAND People want to go back to what we saw in Auckland… a downtown event, lots of people, lots of boats, lots of spectators, everybody having a great time. I see nothing but good
coming out of it – Dennis Conner I don’t see Oracle coming back this time. I’m already looking for my spot in the
– Pete Burling drops race 6 It’s only just
beginning, mate – A growling Jimmy Spithill INSIGHTFUL
Burling personally polishes the foils every morning and no one is
allowed to touch them! – John Bertrand NO FRILLS
Am I allowed to vote for me, I need a pair of
new boots? – Guillaume Verdier, Emirates Team New Zealand foil design
NO PRISONERS Sure, we are walking away today with another two victories, but again we made too
many mistakes – Pete Burling
CHILL It’s OK, guys, they’re out of control
– Pete Burling reassures his crew as they trail BAR round Mark 1
SAW IT COMING? Q: After the Kiwi capsize is there now a chance for BAR? A: No chance, mate. The
[Auckland] Viaduct – Conner NYET
Our guys looked in detail at the bike option, it’s definitely not worth it
use bikes – June 2017 CONSOLATION
– Everyone else, Jan 2017 Next time everyone will
Mrs Fox thinks Jimmy [Spithill] is a bit phwoar – which is outrageous
anyway. Yeah! – Fox
– TV commentator Digby Fox Pete the Kid is going to take him down
HONEST I think it’s kind of cool,
but then I’m biased – Jimmy Spithill likes racing in the Challenger trials
LIKE IT IS We just sailed like a
TEN YEARS
Seahorse magazine and our associate raceboatsonly brokerage site are both at:
seahorsemagazine.com The editor is contactable by email at:
andrew@seahorse.co.uk
SEAHORSE 9
bunch of spanners – Glenn Ashby, Emirates Team New Zealand, after losing a race to BAR
If they want a battle
we’ll give them a battle – Glenn Ashby, skipper
‘
INGRID ABERY
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96
