Disperser 23 Posted October 26, 2016 Share Posted October 26, 2016 Having been in the bay area during the time of the America's Cup, I was much unimpressed. My single greatest impression was that the whole thing was a joke made so by money, greed, and the worst enemy of any sailor: ego. And the win, the "we found another gear" issue was the biggest farce of the whole mess, in my opinion. What struck me most about the America's Cup is that it has nothing to do with sailing in any practical or real sense. The America's Cup is about sailing. It's about national pride in the art of what used to be (and, ahem...will be again quite a lot sooner than any of you likely imagine) the best and only way to get around this big old world of ours. We race to test our ability to efficiently capture the forces of wind and sea. And we race to test ourselves. We NEVER raced to test how well we can cheat, or how much technology and money we can throw at something, damn everything else. Until the America's cup got crazy that is... So my humble little proposal takes the Americas Cup back in time to when we raced to prove ourselves. The America's cup should be a national team of seasoned sailors who have worked together and learned a single vessel. Thus, the boat, and crew, must have logged several months and miles together to even qualify for entry, with the official cup crew consisting of at least 75% of the same crew who logged the qualifying distance. And the boats must be sailed in a circumnavigation, at least, before qualifying for entry. And they must be sailed to the event. This eliminates any possibility of the farce that was the last America's cup. No more fragile technological showcases where the engineers and crew have no conversation whatsoever. And no more slapped together crews either. That's it. Quite simple. Boats must sail around the world with at least 3/4ths of the racing crew present on the circumnavigation. If the boat can't survive a circumnavigation, it's too fragile for the America's cup. If the crew can't get along enough for most of them to remain together for the cup, then they won't qualify. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MasterOfDisaster 0 Posted October 30, 2016 Share Posted October 30, 2016 Are ETNZ still planning on retrograding the rules if they win, or have they fallen in with Russell and Larry's grand future of foiling? I recall there was some talk of it at the last AC - if they won. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
hb1849 12 Posted October 30, 2016 Share Posted October 30, 2016 The America's Cup is about sailing. It's about national pride in the art of what used to be (and, ahem...will be again quite a lot sooner than any of you likely imagine) the best and only way to get around this big old world of ours. We race to test our ability to efficiently capture the forces of wind and sea. And we race to test ourselves. We NEVER raced to test how well we can cheat, or how much technology and money we can throw at something, damn everything else. Hmmmm... not really.... The America's Cup has a long, colourful history of scandal etc., and I think it is part of what makes it unique. It's always been a race between rich guys, often with ego playing a huge part, rather than national pride. Completely agree that the foiling cats are a bit ridiculous though. Far too little time for shouting matches between the afterguards for one thing. Bring back the 12-meter. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
erice 732 Posted December 16, 2016 Share Posted December 16, 2016 Murray Jones. Photo / Supplied. Team New Zealand has continued its hiring spree, today announcing the appointment of five-time America's Cup winner Murray Jones. The addition of Jones to the line-up follows yesterday's announcement sailing coach Rod Davis has returned to the team to help finetune the crew's match-racing skills, while the team last month added young sailors Josh Junior and Andy Maloney to the line up. The bolstering of Team New Zealand's ranks comes after the America's Cup organising body are believed to have been forced to pay out millions in compensation to the Kiwi syndicate for a breach in contract dispute. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=11768533 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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