When I was growing up in Newport there were very few boats and no sailing events in Newport. I had to travel to sail in big regattas and on big boats. The America’s Cup took place every 3 years, but nothing like it is today.
I am constantly in awe of what is happening in the sailing world today, in particular in Narragansett Bay. It is truly a treasure, one of the finest places anywhere in the world to sail. But growing up, all the activity was in Long Island Sound both for dinghys and big boats.
In 2011 the “big” event was the “J” class regatta. big and majestic. 160 tons and 130 feet long. In sharp contrast in 2012 was the america’s cup 45 catamarans, at a little over 3000 pounds and 45 feet long.
SAN FRANCISCO APPROVES AMERICA’S CUP RACE FOR SEPTEMBER 2013
POSTED ON 27 MARCH 2012
It’s full speed ahead for the 2013 America’s Cup race in San Francisco.
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors today approved the agreement to host the America’s Cup in San Francisco September 7 to 22, 2013.
One of the most fiercely competitive and sought after trophies in all of sport, the America’s Cup, was first raced in 1851 around the Isle of Wight, 45 years before the modern Olympics. The U.S. yacht Americawon, giving the international sailing competition its name.
At the first race, Queen Victoria, who was watching at the finish line, asked who was second to America. The famous answer, “Your Majesty, there is no second.”
The 2013 race will be the first time the competition for the “Auld Mug” will be held in San Francisco, a perfect natural sailing arena where more than one million spectators will see the 34th edition of the America’s Cup.
The San Francisco agreement calls for teams to be based at Piers 30/32 and for the America’s Cup Village – the public Race Headquarters – at Piers 27/29. The pier improvements will be funded by the Port.
“We have worked very hard to bring this historic race to San Francisco and we’re very happy to have finally reached an agreement,” said Stephen Barclay, interim CEO of the America’s Cup. “Now we are focused on making this the most spectacular race in America’s Cup history.”
“We are thrilled that, in addition to the Louis Vuitton Cup and the America’s Cup racing in 2013, that the America’s Cup World Series will also take place in San Francisco in 2012,” said Mayor Edwin M. Lee. “This will add even more visitors, jobs and economic development as part of hosting one of the world’s premier sporting events.”
The inclusion of Piers 30/32 as the “pit row” for the teams in close proximity to the America’s Cup Village at Piers 27/29 will make the event’s footprint more compact and will benefit the teams as well as the general public. Racing will be visible from the shoreline – only minutes from downtown shopping and hotels, making this the most spectator-friendly event in the Cup’s 162-year history.
The dates for this year’s (2012) racing for the America’s Cup World Series, the global circuit of events leading up to the 2013 America’s Cup regatta in San Francisco, were also confirmed today:
AC World Series Naples, Italy – April 11-15, 2012
AC World Series Venice, Italy – May 15-20, 2012
AC World Series Newport, USA – June 26 – July 1, 2012
AC World Series San Francisco, USA – August 21-26, 2012
AC World Series San Francisco, USA – October 4-7, 2012
Each event will be a combination of practice and championship racing, with additional practice sailing on-site ahead of each event.
Racing for the Louis Vuitton Cup, the America’s Cup Challenger Series, will take place in July and August, 2013. The America’s Cup Match (finals), pitting the winner of the Louis Vuitton Cup against defending champion ORACLE Racing – Team USA, commences Saturday, Sept. 7, 2013 and is a first to win five-race series.
America’s Cup racing in 2012 and 2013 will be televised internationally, and for the first time in more than 20 years it will be broadcast free-to-air in the U.S. by the NBC network. It will also be broadcast internationally through our family of media partners, and will be streamed to the web on www.youtube.com/americascup.
This unprecedented broadcast coverage is a reflection of the exciting venue, the technologically-advanced yachts, the Emmy-nominated fan-friendly advances in the television production, and the sheer physical and tactical challenge presented to the world’s best sailors by the yachts, format and venue.
Before the end of 2013 the America’s Cup is expected to have generated more than $1 billion in economic benefits for San Francisco, and created several thousand jobs.
Major sponsors include some of the world’s top brands: Louis Vuitton, PUMA, Prada, Emirates Airline, TAG Heuer, and Oracle.
?The America’s Cup will grace San Francisco not once, not twice, but thrice, citizens were promised: before catamarans race for the main Cup currently held by Larry Ellison’s Oracle team in 2013, there will be smaller World Series races in October and in August, according to plans the race event authority floated before city leaders.
This came as a surprise to San Francisco officials and New Yorkers alike, but is likely nothing more than a “head-fake” from an event authority angry over a scaled-down deal, a source told The Snitch.
It was always the plan for America’s Cup-related races to crisscross the globe this year: in a month, the race heads to Italy. Other scheduled races are planned for Venice, and Newport, Rhode Island.
Three teams are competing in the AC World Series. The location of the August event — San Francisco or New York — will be announced “shortly,” organizers said in a release.
The races will be televised for the first time since 1992.
The Event Authority itself did not deign to speak to The Snitch; phone messages and emails were unanswered as of Wednesday afternoon.
The America’s Cup is not unknown to New York City, though it’s been a while since the boats graced those waters. When the New York Yacht Club owned the cup betweem 1930 and 1983, the race was held there all the time. The race has not been held in the Hudson since the club lost the cup in 1983.
Reached via telephone in Newport on Wednesday, Michael Levitt, communications director for the New York Yacht Club, of which Mayor Michael Bloomberg is a member, said he had yet to hear of any plans to race sailboats in New York.
Whether this came as a surprise to Mayor Ed Lee is unclear; a spokeswoman for the mayor, who last week announced a vastly scaled-back event, said that the city is “waiting to hear” if the televised race will be held in San Francisco or New York.
“This is one of a series of sailing events even in 2012, so the impacts to the City [San Francisco] will be minimal of one race is held in New York,” Lee press secretary Christine Falvey wrote in an email. “Under either scenario, there will be a regatta here in 2012.”
Under the original agreement, Ellison’s race team was to spend $55 million to rebuild Piers 30 and 32 in exchange for rent-free use of them for 66 years and title to Seawall Lot 330 — all prime, undeveloped waterfront property — nearby.
Last night, Like many of the sailing population of Newport, I sat and listened to Brad Read speak about the America’s Cup World Tour visit to Newport in June-July. The Bermuda Race will be done and dusted, but preparation for the event will be well underway even before the Bermuda Race leaves Newport.
The Ship which brings the traveling “circus” will dock at Quonset and 90 containers will be trucked to Ft. Adams.
Big efforts are being made to move the expected crowds in other than cars. Anyone who has ever driven in Newport, particularly in the summer recognizes the potential problem. The Sailing will be best seen from land based on the description by Brad. And while I am excited to see the boats, the event itself sounds like everything I try to avoid.
I added the photo of Ft. Adams taken a few days ago which shows the trees which provided a buffer between those living in housing there and the public parking removed. I hope it proves to be a wise decision.
Here are the published instructions for spectator boats wishing to watch the America’s Cup in San Diego.
America’s Cup World Series San Diego Course Marshal Instructions for Spectator Boats
Spectator boats are welcome to join and watch the racing from the water. The extreme nature of the AC45 catamarans requires exclusion zones. Please obey these instructions and enjoy the race.
Race Area
The area indicated in the diagram is the area where racing can take place. In reality the entire area will never be used and the length and location of the race course depends on wind direction and strength.
Stake Boats
35-?50ft Sailing Boats displaying a big grey America’s Cup flag in their mast will mark the outline of the restricted area. As a default the Stake Boats will outline and restrict the full area 1 hour before the start. When the Race Committee feels confident in wind direction and course configuration the Stake Boats will move in closer to actual race course. The area and passage close the Navy Base will be closed at all times.
Marshal Boats and Restrictions
A number of Marshal Boats displaying official America’s Cup flags will operate along the lines created by the Stake Boats. Please obey their instructions. To avoid wake at the race area the speed limit is 5 knots. To be able to move quickly if requested spectator boats can not anchor.
Official Boats
A number and team and official boats such as Media, TV, Rescue, VIP and others will operate within the race area. They will all display official America’s Cup flags.
Race Schedule
The complete race schedule and format can be found at americascup.com.
Race Communications
Start sequence count down, VIP boat communication and Course Marshal information will be broadcasted on VHF 68. Live broadcast and commentary can be found at americascup.com.
Safety and Emergencies
The Captain is responsible for the safety and control of his/her boat and all person on board; and the conduct of his vessel in accordance with maritime law and good seamanship. Always obey the instructions of local maritime authorities and law enforcement.
The coloured area indicates where racing can take place. The actual race area will be smaller and depends on the strength and direction of the wind.
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America’s Cup cost defended by Plymouth City Council
The nine racing catamarans have been unloaded from a cargo ship in Millbay Docks
The cost of bringing the America’s Cup to Plymouth has been “money well spent”, the leader of the city council has insisted.
The yachts are due to begin racing in Plymouth Sound on 10 September.
Suggestions that it could cost up to £500,000 to stage have been rejected by Vivian Pengelly, who said the council had budgeted £100,000.
Plymouth City Council has estimated the second leg of the world series could generate £10m for the local economy.
It said providing accommodation for the teams alone – 700 beds for 20 days – will benefit local hoteliers by £1.2m.
The council has previously said it could not disclose the “fee” it paid to host the event in the city.
Devon sailor Conrad Humphreys said staging the America’s Cup could cost the council “at least” £500,000, but Mrs Pengelly said that was “not quite true”.
Continue reading the main story
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Start Quote
The public are going to see quite a spectacle”
Peter Greenhalgh
Team Energy competitor
“It’s not going to cost nearly as much as we thought, because we’ve got so much sponsorship from people like the university and business, who’ve been absolutely fantastic,” she told BBC News.
“It can cost anything up to £100,000, but until we know exactly what sponsorship we’re getting, we’re not really sure what the cost will be.”
A media city has been set up on Plymouth Hoe where a 100-strong television crew will beam the competition across the world.
The nine 45ft (14m) catamarans taking part in the challenge have been unloaded from a cargo ship which arrived in Millbay Docks last week.
An estimated 150,000 people are expected to watch the newly designed AC45 racing yachts from vantage points all around Plymouth Sound.
Peter Greenhalgh, a British sailor who will be competing on board the French catamaran Team Energy, said the boats were fast and the racing would be close.
“The public are going to see quite a spectacle,” he told BBC News.
“The boats are very easy to identify and I think they’ll find it enjoyable viewing.”
Mrs Pengelly said staging the America’s Cup was an opportunity to showcase Plymouth to the world and the cost was “money well spent”.
“Everyone’s getting very excited about it and there’s a real buzz around the town,” she said.
Entertainment programme
The first stage of the series took place earlier this month in the Portuguese town of Cascais and the final leg of the qualifying event will be held in San Diego, California, between October and December.
Visitors will also be able to enjoy a full programme of entertainment over the 10-day event, including live music, food, shopping and a yacht racing simulator.
The America’s Cup is named after the yacht America which sailed from the east coast of the United States in 1851 to race against British yachts.
America won the race and the trophy was donated to the New York Yacht Club under a Deed of Gift that still governs the competition.
Newport, Rhode Island has been “awarded” one of the acts, I have written about this before. How will it work in Newport? I am not sure. It will allow the state to spend money to improve the docks and facilities at Fort Adams. Anyone who has experienced a festival at Fort Adams and the traffic in Newport might understand the logistical problems that the city of Newport has inherently has to deal with.
The event will from a distance be a feather in the cap of Newport and it’s reputation as the sailing capital of the world.
San Francisco does seem to be overcoming the issues that stood in the way of having the event there. Work is moving forward on the waterfront.
