Latitude 38 VOLUME 404 February 2011 WE GO WHERE THE WIND BLOWS FEBRUARY 2011 VOLUME 404 AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY • AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY • AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY • AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY • AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY • AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY • AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY • AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY AMERICA'S CUP 34 At 5 p.m. on December 31, Bay Area sailors, not to mention the sport of sailing, got the best New Year's present of a grueling schedule negotiating venues ever: Oracle Racing and the City of San for both the Cup and the America's Cup Francisco announced, just hours before World Series, he had come down with the team's self-imposed deadline, that pneumonia — he's since recovered. the two parties had reached an agree- ment to host the 34th America's Cup on What Now? San Francisco Bay. After the ebullience of the day's pro- For the nearly three weeks since the ceedings, the reality set in that the work San Francisco Board of Supervisors for hosting the 34th America's Cup has voted 11-0 to ratify the Host City Agree- just begun. Most pressing is the question ment, which went through multiple of when work on the piers can begin. This iterations as it bounced back and forth is the $50 million question. The project between the team and various members will need the environmental review re- of the "City family," the sailing world had quired under the California Environmen- waited for the announcement. tal Quality Act, more commonly known Acrimonious rhetorical volleys came as CEQA. The CEQA process will take from Oracle Racing's lead negotiator a minimum of one year, so the earliest Stephen Barclay with catch phrases like we will see any work on the piers will be 'the America's Cup is slipping through January 2012, although that estimate San Francisco's fi ngers,' while team of- assumes that much of the engineering fi cials courted an 11th hour bid from a has already been done. presumably unwitting shill in the form Newsom, now California's Lieutenant of Newport, Rhode Island. But in the Governor, has handed over the Mayor's end it appeared as though Newport was offi ce to now-former City Administrator a Potemkin candidate all along, and San Ed Lee, who must bear the mantle of ALL PHOTOS THIS SPREAD GILLES MARTIN-RAGET Francisco's bid became the winner, thus shepherding the massive undertaking ending sailing's own "season of torture" required to get the waterfront in order and marking perhaps the crowning until a new mayor is elected in November. achievement of Gavin Newsom's tenure Whoever takes the reins then will have as mayor. to continue the work. Two leadership On January 5, the two parties gath- changes in less than a year is not an proved to be an articulate and unfl agging ered for a VIP-studded celebration in the ideal scenario for a project like this. proponent for the effort. City Hall Rotunda for a public announce- Fortunately, Board of Supervisors ment and showing of the Cup. Major President and consistent supporter Alphabet Soup of the effort to There are now six main entities be- bring the Cup to hind this America's Cup. In no particular the Bay, David order they are the America's Cup Event Chiu, retained his Authority, America's Cup Organizing spot and his cur- Committee, America's Cup Race Manage- rent term runs ment, America's Cup Executive Steering through January Committee, America's Cup Property Inc., '13. and Oracle Racing. Confused? The latter Vocal pro- should be well known to many by now, ponent Supervi- but what about the rest? sor Ross Mirka- The America's Cup Event Authority rimi will retain is headed by veteran sports marketers his seat on the Richard Worth and Craig Thompson, and board until Janu- is primarily charged with managing the ary '13 as well, event, selling event sponsorships, and and there should marketing the 34th America's Cup. be continuity in The America's Cup Organizing Com- The Auld Mug toured the Bay last month, looking good on the Headlands. the City Family's mittee is a group of local civic leaders media outlets crowded in for a Q&A administrative positions. Hopefully, Kyri headed by San Francisco Rec and Parks session that followed the presentation of McClellan from the Mayor's Offi ce of Commission President Mark Buell, who the Auld Mug and World Series trophy Economic and Workforce Development, will be responsible for helping the Event side-by-side. Newsom and Oracle Racing — Latitude 38's MVP in the effort (and Authority sell the event sponsorships as owner Larry Ellison did a fi rst-rate job everyone else's, judging by the applause stipulated in the Host City Agreement categorizing the previous six months' and cheers she received when introduced reached between San Francisco and negotiations as fi tting for an event of the to the crowd on January 5) — won't be Oracle Racing, which oversees America's Cup's magnitude. Notably absent was snatched up into a big-money corporate Cup Property Inc. — the catch-all for the man with the overarching vision for job that she could no doubt land. Ditto all the registered trademarks and intel- AC 34, Russell Coutts. Under the duress for Port Director Monique Moyer, who lectual property involved with the 34th AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY • AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY • AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY • AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY • AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY • AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY • AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY • AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY Page 84 • Latitude 38 • February, 2011 AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY • AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY • AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY • AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY • AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY • AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY • AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY • AMERICA'S CUP 34 SAN FRANCISCO BAY — SAN FRANCISCO BAY opment, the Port Sailing? Oh Yeah . of San Francisco, While all the venue negotiating was the SF Municipal going on, there was plenty going on in Transit Authority, the sailing realm as well. The AC 45s, the the Department one design that will be used fi rst for the of Public Works America's Cup World Series — until the and the Planning AC 72s make their debut on the Bay in Department. August of '12 — and then for the Youth The America's America's Cup, has gone from CAD fi les Cup Race Man- to sailing in 4.5 months. Although de- agement, led by layed by about three weeks, the fi rst one former Cup skip- went sailing on January 17 in Auckland, per, Olympian, New Zealand. At the projected build rate, The fi rst AC 45 had a successful sea trial in Auck- and six-time 18-ft skiff World Champion there could be as many as ten sailing by land last month, and reports indicate it's scratch- ing 30 knots downwind, tacking effortlessly and Iain Murray, is primarily charged with the time the fi rst AC World Series event staying together; inset from left, ACRM Re- running the Cup races, the America's Cup comes around in June. gatta Director Iain Murray and PRO John Craig. World Series, and the shoreside logistics Whether there will be enough teams of the event. With a staff of about nine as to sail them remains to be seen. As of America's Cup. of this writing, this will swell to about 100 now, there are only fi ve confi rmed en- The America's Cup Executive Steering by the start of the Louis Vuitton Cup, and tries. After Oracle Racing and Challenger Committee was formed by an executive already includes a Principal Race Offi cer of Record Mascalzone Latino, Sweden's order by Mayor Lee, and basically brings you may have heard of: John Craig. Artemis Team, led by Kentfi eld's Paul Ca- together the various elements of San Craig has been brought on as the yard, was the fi rst to formally challenge Francisco's City Family that will have a PRO for the 34th America's Cup and when the entry period opened November stake in the infrastructure requirements all the regattas leading up to it. If ever 1. Aleph Equipe de France was next to for the 34th Cup, including the Mayor's there was anyone qualifi ed to take this step up to the plate, and there is another, Offi ce of Economic and Workforce Devel- on, it's Craig. In the 11 years he's served as-yet-unnamed, but confi rmed entry. as the St. Francis YC's racing manager, The entry period only goes until March AC 34 Timeline Craig has orchestrated many truly world 31, although we have to believe that if Here's an abbreviated timeline for class events. And it's not as though he's more teams wanted to sign up after the America's Cup 34 as it's planned now: done like one per year . most years deadline, competitors would agree to an 2011 it's more like one a month! We've helped extension. Whoever makes the cut will February New brand for AC 34 unveiled out on race committee for a couple St.