[nolatom]

When a fire destroyed the Southern Yacht Club here six years ago, most of the century-old trophies were melted into oblivion.

But the Lipton Trophy was replaced, a donation by the Lipton Tea Company. Like their founder, a class act.

 

[Yamsailor]

I have absolutely NO INTEREST in the Americas Cup. It has become a symbol reminiscent of the US Govt. I do not find it interesting or fun to watch at all since it has gone Corporate.

 

[L124C]

I have watched some of the TV coverage and it was pretty exciting however the course modifications you mention would have worked just as well to make monohull racing more spectator friendly.

Yeah.... but mono hulls would have barely been moving in some of the the San Diego air that still allowed interesting multi hull racing. Do I wish the sailors were from the country they are sailing for. Yes! Do I wish the wings, sails and hulls didn't have to look like billboards? Yes! Do I wish my "representatives" in Washington represented me? Yes!
It's a new world folks. As a mono hull sailor, I think the multi's will be good for the sport.

 

[L124C]

Here is an excellent article that addresses the evolution of the AC and the technical aspects of the cats. Worth a look, I certainly learned a lot. To quote the article: The next America's Cup will, as Oracle Racing's CEO Russell Coutts puts it, "meet the expectations of the Facebook generation, not the Flintstone generation." (Coutts and me!)
Winging It: America's Cup Racers Push the Sailboat to Its Limits | Magazine

 

[Minnewaska]

...."meet the expectations of the Facebook generation, not the Flintstone generation." .....

Good luck to them. There isn't a single member of the Facebook gen that owns a boat at my marina and that generation is entering sailing in fewer numbers than the Flintstones. Sounds doomed as a spectator sport. The rich guys can joust privately as long as they are amused by it, otherwise, it will vanish. Corp sponsorship is marketing, which won't work if there are not enough to market to.

 

[L124C]

Good luck to them. There isn't a single member of the Facebook gen that owns a boat at my marina and that generation is entering sailing in fewer numbers than the Flintstones. Sounds doomed as a spectator sport. The rich guys can joust privately as long as they are amused by it, otherwise, it will vanish. Corp sponsorship is marketing, which won't work if there are not enough to market to.

If thats true, sounds like sailing is doomed, not just racing. Fortunately, I see plenty of Facebookers with boats at my marina.
I really don't understand why people don't want the AC to progress with technology. Personally, I draw the line when sailors are no longer sailing. If you look at the San Diego video I linked, you will see those guys are crewing like mad dogs. If you look at the article I linked, you'll see that the length of the cats was determined by the fact that if they were any bigger, the winches would need mechanical assist. They are therefore about 8 feet shorter than the AC Mono hulls. I crewed on a wooden yawl in the Master Mariners this year, and was in awe of all of the beautiful vintage boats in the race. On the other hand, would you expect the Indy 500 cars to stop with 70's technology (for example) and never progress. I never hear anybody say "only rich guys have Indy teams". Why should the AC be any different? Should we go back to the vintage boats from the 1800's? You would still need deep pockets to afford and maintain those boats, and I'll guarantee you, watching them wouldn't be nearly as exciting as the next AC will be! Ironically, the AC started as a pissing match for rich guys. It seems to me that technology is making it more appealing to the masses.

 

[Minnewaska]

I guess we will have to see how many actually watch it.

 

[L124C]

I guess we will have to see how many actually watch it.

Well... in the US, viewership has always been dismal. It can only improve!
I'm betting it will.

 

[jimrafford]

As much as I miss the days of watching the AC in Newport and get a woody looking at a restored j class, watching racing for the average consumer is about as exciting as watching paint dry. Peoples attention spans are to short. How much coverage do you see of sailing at the olympics.
As far as advertising look at any sporting event. Every available inch to display on is sold.
Anything that can be done to bring the AC closer to more spectators w/ more action will be good for the sport.
Jim

 

[Minnewaska]

As mentioned above, if you could arrange for more crashes that result on total destruction, you would be on to something.

Next thing you know, you would have beer ads, then pretty women holding position signs.

Let's call it Nas-yachting.

 

[jimrafford]

Better yet, crew the boats w/ professional wrestlers and have Victoria's Secret run a fashion show on the dock. Guaranteed sold out event.
Jim

 

[imagine2frolic]

I watched the racing at Cowes. I thought it had everything going fopr it. Tacking duels, a little crashing derby thrills, and some awesome speed. I believe this is one of the best things that could raise interest in the A/C.

It has always been about money, and litigation. Why would it be any different now? Instead of being hundreds of thousand it's hundreds of millions. Check out the dollar rate for the 1800's, and today. I am sure it's still close in money spent. I reread the GRAND GESTURE recently again. It tells a lot of the same story with politics, and money involved. Not to mention the GOOD OLD BOY system in place.......i2f

 

[gaha]

you know what really sucks, is that if the wind and the waves are not just right they don't race.Whats up with that.What happened to seamanship.At are local marina they race every Wed.Don't even go there about how much the boat cost and sails.They use to have to sail the boat across the big pond just to get to the starting line.

 

[pdqaltair]

The first time my folks saw a sailboat race they were out on my beach cat

"What are all those boats doing over there, sailing slow and close together?"

"They're racing."

"Oh, it's like a whispering contest, right?"

----

Just funning ya guys. We love sailing up to monohulls, looking at the pretty boat, and moving on.

----

I don't see what's wrong with rich folk wasting their money trying to build fast round-the-buoy racers. It's not as though we don't waste what we have on sailing. I get a kick out of both the spectacle and the litigation.

 

[L124C]

you know what really sucks, is that if the wind and the waves are not just right they don't race.Whats up with that.What happened to seamanship.At are local marina they race every Wed.Don't even go there about how much the boat cost and sails.They use to have to sail the boat across the big pond just to get to the starting line.

Not sure what you are talking about here (multi/mono). Check out the AC You Tube site AmericasCup's Channel - YouTube . 25 Knot multi hull carnage in Europe, yet they were able to produce exciting sailing in 5 knots of wind in San Diego! On the other hand, the mono hulls in the AC in New Zealand couldn't sail in more than 15 knots. The big offshore swells that developed in 15+ Knot winds could break the hulls in half.

 

[L124C]

Better yet, crew the boats w/ professional wrestlers and have Victoria's Secret run a fashion show on the dock. Guaranteed sold out event.
Jim

You may be onto something. However, I'd rather see the VS girls crewing the boats (funny, yet visually stimulating)!
It may take something like this to get any interest generated in the US. The combined attendance of the recent AC event in San Diego was around 80,000 (over several days) and the cable viewership was around 3,000. The Newscaster who revealed this on the local evening news pointed out that there were currently over 175,000 viewers currently watching him!
BTW: jimrafford, your avatar gives a whole new perspective to sailing up wind!