OZYMANDIAS
Ozymandias
- by Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792-1822)
I met a traveler from an antique land
Who said: Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them, and the heart that fed;
And on the pedestal these words appear:
“My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!”
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.
The story behind this chateau is one of hubris. Constructed while Versailles was underway. He invited the king to visit; Louis, the sun king, was not blind to the beauty of the Chateau and promptly imprisoned his host.
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The excitement must be palpable aboard Banque Populaire V. the distance to the finish is 1150 miles, their advantage over Groupama is 1330 miles and increasing with every passing hour; sailing at over 30 knots of boat speed.
Here is the latest weather chart showing the cold front they are riding to the finish. They had to sail almost to New York to set up for this, but with a boat of this size, it is not hard to do. It is more about knowing when to slow down sailing these monsters.
This is a wonderful accomplishment, while yet uncompleted, it is almost certain they will set a new record. It must also be put in context; this is the largest, most powerful boat anywhere, much larger than Groupama. Clearly well prepared. The crew seemed to have no particular problems all the way around the world. The weather routers were nothing short of brilliant.
THE CATACOMBS OF PARIS
It is difficult for me to know what to think of the Catacombs. I am fascinated, awed, humbled, terrified, and horrified all at the same time. The bones of six million dead, moved and stacked with great care; and then shown as a spectacle for everyone to see.
AT A LOSS FOR WORDS
Murmuration from Sophie Windsor Clive on Vimeo.
40 DAYS AND 40 NIGHTS
Banques Populaire V the massive French trimaran has been at sea for 40 days and nights. She is under 2500 miles from the finish. The Azores high is forcing them to sail almost towards Boston, MA to get to Lorient.
Interestingly, this final leg in the north atlantic has been the bugaboo for many attempts, each of whom arrived here ahead of the record only to get stuck as they approached the finish. BP is hold a 2000 mile lead over Groupama and while I am certain no one on board would whisper it until they cross the finish line, they can taste victory.
CARINA FINISHES THE SYDNEY-HOBART
“Carina” finished 2011 by competing in the Sydney-Hobart race; a journey that started in June with the transatlantic race to England, the Fastnet race; and the kids sailing the boat to Australia in time for the race.
Naturally when I pause to think of the wonderful adventure 2011 brought to them I reflect on my own small adventures. The Transtalantic race aboard “Snow Lion”. I have sailed with most of the crew on both boats for great distances and keep many fond memories.
NEW YEAR’S EVE IN PARIS
BEST WISHES FOR THE NEW YEAR
A closing note about the America’s Cup event in Newport, Rhode Island in June 2012.
PROVIDENCE – A committee to take charge of the many arrangements needed for the America’s Cup World Series regatta slated for Newport next year was formally established Thursday when Gov. Lincoln D. Chafee signed an executive order creating the panel, to be chaired by Brad Read, executive director of Sail Newport.
“The America’s Cup World Series races have great potential to bring job creation and revenue to Rhode Island,” Chafee said. “Newport has long, strong ties to the America’s Cup and these races renew that historic connection. The host committee established today, led by renowned sailor Brad Read, will help to coordinate important preparation efforts to ensure that this exciting event is thoroughly successful.”
Joining the governor at the Statehouse signing ceremony were Read, Russell Coutts, CEO of Oracle Racing, current America’s Cup champion that will defend the title in finals set for San Francisco in 2013, and Richard Worth, chairman and CEO of the America’s Cup Event Authority.
The America’s Cup World Series Host Committee will serve as the state’s principal entity for coordinating the races and affiliated events. The local committee will coordinate marketing, business outreach, public support, event logistics, traffic, public safety and public infrastructure preparations.
The panel will consist of at least 23 members, yet to be named, including representatives of: Aquidneck Island towns; the Newport County Chamber of Commerce; the convention and visitors bureaus based in Providence and in Newport; various state departments; the commercial shipping industry; and the marine industry.
The races, featuring high-tech AC45 wing-sailed catamarans, are scheduled for June 23-July 1 in Newport Harbor and will comprise the final event of the first World Series circuit, established to ocean racing during America’s Cup off years.
The local committee will coordinate marketing, business outreach, public support, event logistics, traffic, public safety and public infrastructure preparations. State officials have estimated the event will generate $72 million in new spending and create 400 jobs.
LIGHTS IN THE SKY
That we can share this, is an example of the marvel of modern technology. Brian Thompson reported about a week ago an unusual sighting in the sky from the deck of Banque Populaire V. Here is validation of what he saw, thanks to NASA.
SOMETHING LOGICAL
I hope everyone had as nice a Christmas as I did, which was in Venice.
At last a move that seems so logical, we wonder what took them so long to act on the thought. Valencia has an infrastructure like no other place for the America’s Cup. Additionally, the America’s Cup belongs in Europe from a sailing audience point of view.
The HR Constitution – the cargo ship that has served as the main mode of transport between America’s Cup World Series venues – has arrived in Valencia where it will discharge its cargo.
All of the ‘materiel’ on the ship will be offloaded in Valencia before the HR Constitution is returned to its owners in time for Christmas.
“We took the decision to land the equipment in Valencia, after considering several factors,” explained Regatta Director Iain Murray. “There is a possibility for a number of teams to train together in Valencia, given the local infrastructure from the previous America’s Cups there.
“And for ACRM, Valencia is also an ideal place for us to undertake remedial maintenance work on our fleet of support boats and equipment. Several of our employees live in Valencia, making it even more convenient.”
The America’s Cup has secured some 2,500 square meters of space in the Port to store all the cargo and to complete the work on the support boats.
According to Andy Hindley, the Chief Operating Officer for America’s Cup Race Management, the use of the HR Constitution to ship the America’s Cup World Series fleet from Portugal, to the UK, to San Diego and back to Europe this year has been a winning formula.
“The chartered vessel has been a great success and delivered the logistics needed better than we hoped,” Hindley said.
Following a three month stop in Valencia, all the equipment will be shipped out from Valencia in the middle of March, in time for the start of the World Series event in Naples, Italy on April 7, 2012.
Banque Populaire V is holding a 1,000 mile lead over the ghost ship Groupama sailing in day 36.