Latitude 38 June 2011

JuneCoverTemplate 5/18/11 3:59 PM Page 1 Latitude 38 VOLUME 408 June 2011 WE GO WHERE THE WIND BLOWS JUNE 2011 VOLUME 408 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 The America's Cup Race Management spent ten days in Auckland at the end of April and beginning of May running a Onorato addressed mock AC 45 regatta that, by all accounts, the withdrawal in his was pretty successful. An opportunity typically straightfor- to run race management, umpiring and ward way. media sides of the America's Cup World "I'm not inter- Series through their paces, the test event ested in a hopeless looked successful from our standpoint. challenge," he said. You can judge for yourself by checking "I would be lying to out the video at www.americascup.com. the sponsors, to our fans and, last but not least, also to my- self." Onorato's depar- ture means that one of the more colorful characters in the world of sailing will not be at the table for AC 34. However, the man who stepped in to fill his shoes, while not having his Italian counterpart's flair, has the means to pay for the whole thing himself should no sponsorships be had. Swedish billionaire Torbjorn Torn- qvist's Artemis Racing took over the reins four days later as the new Challenger of Record. Artemis Racing, whose team CEO AC 34 PRO John Craig hard at work in Auckland. is none other than the Bay Area's Paul ALL PHOTOS GILLES MARTIN-RAGET A New Challenger of Record Cayard, will be sailing under the burgee The test event must have been so en- of the Royal Swedish Yacht Club, known couraging that karma decided to knock in its native tongue as Kungliga Svenska things back to size on May 12 with a de- Segel Sällskapet. moralizing development. Although he had “We welcome KSSS and their team previously dropped hints that not all was Artemis Racing into this role,” said AC34 well with his Mascalzone Latino team, Vin- Regatta Director Iain Murray. “We also Spread — 'Oracle Racing' smashes around off Auckland; inset, top-left, helicopters will play a vital cenzo Onorato announced that the "Latin thank CNR and their team Mascalzone role in not only tracking, but filming; inset bottom, Rascals," sailing under the auspices of Latino for their efforts in the important some of this will also happen onboard. Club Nautico di Roma, were withdrawing start-up phase of the 34th America’s from AC 34. Citing an inability to secure Cup. While we are disappointed to lose Latino and CNR, we are confident in the sufficient funding to field a viable entry, a great Italian contender in Mascalzone leadership we anticipate from the KSSS and Artemis Racing.” Tight, balls-out action was the name of the game, and while the umpiring will mostly take place ashore via tracking, the guy on the jet ski is there to make sure the human element isn't lost. Artemis Racing was the second challenger to enter and, according to a state- ment released by the America's Cup Race Management, "under America's Cup rules, automatically succeeds as Challenger of Record." While we're not sure which rules they were referring to, it's unlikely that a po- tential rogue challenger could successfully employ the Cup's Deed of Gift to hijack the proceedings. Among other things, KSSS is a legitimate yacht club that predates the Cup itself and counts 6,000 members. And while Kungliga Svenska Segel Sällskapet is certainly more of a mouthful than Club Nautico di Roma, by the time this over, we may even be able to pronounce it. Interestingly enough, Artemis is a far more local team than defender Oracle Rac- ing. In addition to CEO Cayard, COO Bob Billingham and CFO Chris Perkins will be reprising their roles from the St. Francis 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 86 • Latitude 38 • June, 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 would seem to be a stretch, as unless Mascalzone Latino head Onorato has seri- ously pissed off some important people, it seems unlikely that another Italian team would succeed where the two-time challenger had failed. Organizers are still touting four "undis- closed" teams, and said that one erstwhile challenger had been disqualified during the vetting process. Ostensibly, any en- tries would have already been required to pay $25,000 with their entry fee and post a $200,000 performance bond that was due on April 30. Come June 1, they'll have to drop their entry fees of $100,000. All teams are required to race in the entire America's Cup World Series or pay monetary penalties, and in order to have their boat in time for the first event in Cascais, Portugal in July, they will have had to have sent ACRM about $500,000 — a 50% deposit — to get the build of their AC 45 underway. One encouraging sign among all of these uncertainties, is that late last month we were contacted by an ACRM official looking for the contact info of some local boatbuilders/riggers, saying, "we've got some AC 45s to build." A source in New Zealand has told us that there are currently two shifts work- ing a total of 16 hours a day building AC 45s. We can only hope that our phone call signifies that there are so many viable Racing that started with team owner Larry challengers — at least for the AC 45 — that Ellison's first campaign in '03. New Zealand's prodigious boatbuilding talent is insufficient to satisfy the need for Teams AC 45s, post haste. The biggest question mark still remain- Speaking of AC 45s, Oracle Racing an- ing for the "new-look" America's Cup is nounced late last month that it will bring just how many teams will be vying for the two to the Bay for testing by the second right to challenge Oracle in '13. week of this month. Stay tuned to 'Lec- As it stands now, other than Ar- tronic Latitude for more details on this. temis, Emirates Team New Zealand and — latitude/rg China Team are the Bringing sailing to the masses is a gear-intensive pursuit. only challengers to have their own AC 45s. Aleph-Equipe de France and Loïck and Bruno Peyron's Energy Team are both still on the marquee, but have made no significant announcements with YC's AmericaOne campaign in Auckland regard to funding or in 2000 and involvement w/ Oracle in its hiring. After a splashy, various forms. The team has at least a if seemingly-rushed half-dozen other players returning from announcement, Team that challenge, which seems as if it hap- Australia has been pened eons ago despite the relatively short mum. Team Korea has gap. Another Bay Area notable is Team as well. The Venezia Counsel Melinda Erkelens, who joins the Challenge at least has team after three go-arounds with Oracle a website. The latter 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 June, 2011 • Latitude 38 • Page 87 BEER CANS If you're a non-competitive sailor who's intrigued by the idea of racing, but are maybe a little too intimidated to take the plunge, there's no better way to start than with a Beer Can race. Named for the most common libation involved after these decidedly laid-back weeknight races which typically don't last more than an hour — there's one pretty much every night of the week on the Bay during Daylight Savings time. For giggles, we went down to Oakland YC on May 18 to check out the scene on the Estuary. One of the coolest things about the Bay Area's Beer Can options is that their respective conditions are as varied as the venues on which they're held. For a romp in the Slot, chances are you'll be donning the full complement of thermals and foulies, but down on the Estuary, you might have to put on long pants. With guaranteed flat water — except for maybe a passing powerboat's wake — and consistent, but typically manageable breeze, the Estuary represents some of the most reliable "champagne sailing" you'll find on the Bay. The narrow race course — it's ef- fectively only about an eighth of a mile wide — means that there aren't many opportunities for "home run" tactical calls.

Load more