AMERICA'S CUP 2013: San Francisco, California, USA.

[Alexjc]

Just over two months to go before the knife edge of the yachting world takes to the water on the fastest sailing boats ever.

Although the incredably quick AC45 cats have produced some spectacular results, its the mighty AC72 monsters that the Louis Vuitton Cup and, ultimately America's Cup will be decided on. All teams are only allowed two AC72s.

Louis Vuitton Cup racing begins July 4th and concludes August 30th with three challengers slugging it out: Sweden's Artemus Racing - the surprise favourites and Challenger of Record, along with regular America's Cup stalwarts, Italy's former Louis Vuitton Cup winning Luna Rossa Challenge - with their AC72 decked out in Chrome, and Emirates Team New Zealand - the only former winning America's Cup team still in it's current format. A match series will begin in August, followed by a truncated three way semi final series and Finals with a 'best of' 13 races, the winner needing to win 7.

Oracle Team USA will be paralleling this event with a two team Defender Series picking out over the crews of Ben Ainslie and Jimmy Spithall, using the team's only two AC72s.

America's Cup Finals racing begins September 7th and concludes September 21st. Where the winner of the Louis Vuitton Cup will challenge current America's Cup holders Oracle Team USA. A 'best of' 17 races will decide the winner who will need to win 9.

I know that there are many out there that would rather watch paint dry or Syncronised Swimming...But this whole new generation of ultra high speed catamarans leave the past 40 knots behind them. And enevitably someone's going to crash and/or wipeout...just go to YouTube and watch Oracle's first AC72 disintergrate after nosediving into SanFran Bay at 40knots.

Early days yet, but getting a page up and running now.

Don't need to vote striaght away - best wait till mid July/August.

[paul]

Fantastic.......I'll be there.

[paul]

Stretching across the city shoreline from Piers 27/29 out to near the Golden Gate Bridge, the course will bring the action closer to shore than ever before in the 160-year history of the Cup.

Tucked between Alcatraz and the city shoreline, the race course offers up-close viewing from any number of locations along the city front, with the Marina Green and Crissy Field among the prime locations. The exact location of the race course area will change slightly on any given day depending on weather conditions.

Environmental buffers and small boat access areas were prime considerations in setting up the racing box. A transit channel has been set up along the shore to allow ferry traffic, boats needing to transit in and out of the marinas as well as commercial fishing boats and other craft, to still operate safely during racing. The restricted area box is expected to be in place for three to four hours a day on scheduled race days.

Racing in 2013 will take place in the AC72 class; a new breed of America’s Cup boats, these wing-sailed catamarans are on the cutting edge of design, engineering and technology. Outrageously fast and requiring a crew with great athleticism as well as vast reserves of courage to sail, the AC72 is designed for thrills… and spills.

The 2013 racing season starts on July 4th, with the Louis Vuitton Cup, the challenger selection series, leading up to the America’s Cup Finals from September 7th-22nd.

[Sir Rols]

That sure is a good course for shore spectators. And very photogenic. Had a lovely day wandering along the exact shore there just weeks ago. This could be a great edition!

[micheal_warren]

Am really looking forward to the America's cup and supporting team New Zealand. I am not sure how enthusiastic New Zealanders are this time compared to previous challenges and defenses of the cup. I will never forget 1995 when we first won the cup. A huge moment for New Zealand when we won the cup and in 2000 were able to defend the cup.

Bring it on.

[baron-pierreIV]

whoaaaaaa! am getting excited about this -- even tho I really can't identify with this rich man's sport.

[Alexjc]

Am really looking forward to the America's cup and supporting team New Zealand. I am not sure how enthusiastic New Zealanders are this time compared to previous challenges and defenses of the cup. I will never forget 1995 when we first won the cup. A huge moment for New Zealand when we won the cup and in 2000 were able to defend the cup.

Bring it on.

Walked along that foreshore...San Fran's awesome, almost feel bad that we are going to take the America's Cup away from them...

Since its been friggin in the riggin ages from Valencia...and all the vitriol that has gone by...I'd say after the All Blacks Tri-Nations and French tests,NZ will move it's focuss to the AB's on the Water so to speak. We are now a full generation removed from that magical moment in 1995. Since it will happen in a respectiable timezone, and very quick races, we'll see mass support - not on the Grand scale of 18 years ago but enough to get enthusiastic about.

Wary of Artemus though...

[Alexjc]

That sure is a good course for shore spectators. And very photogenic. Had a lovely day wandering along the exact shore there just weeks ago. This could be a great edition!

Where's ya boat Aussie???? ...oh that's right, still lying on the bottom off Pt Loma.

[paul]

x

[Alexjc]

ETNZ second AC72 has arrived in San Fran...The same day Artemus flipped theirs on the habour today...

Looks like a rocket ship...But Artemus once again shows how spectacularly dangerous these high speed wave slicers can easly get away on it's crew, two crew members have been badly injured...

STOP PRESS

A CREW MEMBER INVOLVED IN TODAY'S CAPSIZE ACCIDENT HAS DIED FROM SEVERE INJURIES HE RECIEVED AS A RESULT. IT IS BELIEVED THAT THE CREW MEMBER IDENTIFIED AS BRITON, ANDREW SIMPSON, WAS KNOCKED OUT BY COLLAPSING RIGGING AS THE AC72 CAT TURNED OVER.

[4gamesandcounting]

That course looks great for spectators. Although I don't find sailing exciting to watch myself.

Didn't realise ainslie was competing - fingers crossed he does well!

[baron-pierreIV]

Uh-oh. First death in this year's America's Cup - a Briton, Andrew Simpson, gold medal winner in the Star class, Sailing, Beijing 2008, was killed.

http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Sailor-dies-when-Swedish-Cup-entry-capsizes-4503435.php

[Alexjc]

Very Sad...

It has cast a huge pall over the America's Cup compound...Because of the closeness of all three Challengers and Defender, a period of mourning has been allowed...

This was what America's Cup officals have been dreading for some time over the safety of the to hot to handle AC72 super cats. Artemus' boat2 had just arrived around the same time as ETNZ's boat2.

Today's tragic end to practise racing happened on board boat1.

[paul]

Sad day.

RIP

An­drew Simp­son

[baron-pierreIV]

R they strapped in the boat so that prevented Simpson from swimming out??

[Fox334]

Seems like a somewhat unwise choice of class :/

Shame that this happened.

[paul]

Any hardware would be quick-release; it’s more likely he got caught up in part of the rigging, as the hull broke away and twisted. Sounds like this team had been dealing with structural problems with both cats they launched in SF, specifically this one had issues with the cross beams structure and in the accident the port hull broke away.

R they strapped in the boat so that prevented Simpson from swimming out??

[Alexjc]

R they strapped in the boat so that prevented Simpson from swimming out??

Err...No, go on YouTube and watch some clips.

It looks like he got caught up under the wing net when he was knocked out.

ETNZ team members went through a full emergency training course last year to work out a resuce and survival plan...It was almost the equivilant of a Helicopter crashing at sea system they use in the North Sea. Incuding being equipped with carbon fiber knives to cut through rigging and air bottles if they get trapped underside if the yacht turns turtle. Chase Boats have to have two emergency divers on board ready to take the plunge at short notice.

The AC72s hulls are designed to detatch from the wings and allow the mast/aerofoil to foldup if the vessel topples right over.

[Alexjc]

Seems like a somewhat unwise choice of class :/

Shame that this happened.

Being right at the front of yachting development...America's Cup racing has for good or bad, become the testing ground for ultra radical design. Twenty five years ago Dennis Conner sailed a Burt Rutan designed wing sailed cat against a lumbering Reliant sized fiberglass monohulled monster in the farsical 1988 challenge. Both yachts were cutting edge for their respective designs at the time. The little cat roared away at 30kts and won the best of three. The ACC yachts developed from the broad hulls of the 1992 regatta through to 2007 where they had became sleek trim designs that reached their limitations. In 1995, oneAustralia had, by far, the fastest boat on the water, but was designed over the limits of sensiblity for the sailing conditions in San Deigo...The result, it still lies on the bottom off Point Loma.

Today's multi-hull racers comes about because of the need for excitment of the spectator and television viewer! High speeds, thrills and spills, and the fact that inner habour circuts can be used due to reasonably shallower keel draughs (AC45 class). Unlike 'traditional' racing that could take up to three hours, todays racing can be over within an hour half...and will allow a second race...And further more, very little wind is needed to get these monsters moving, unlike the old monohulls which created fustrations due to 'no wind' cancellations that plagued the Auckland regattas and spawned the idea of multihulls inside Russell Coutts, Brad Butterworth and billionaire Larry Allison.

They, the AC72s, are 'Hot to Handle' but are the way of the future, although were would've seen more challengers with the AC45s or the stillborn mid sized 64s...Even the IOC is looking at the AC45 class cat as a potential for the Olympic yachting programme.

[Alexjc]

With yesterday's tragic events on the water...and a full investigation by Authorities now underway, there is speculation that this year's regatta could be cancelled until next year. No doubt lawyers will be crawling all over the rule book here.

Investigators will look at the concept of the AC72 class catamaran and any safety issues that need addressing.

[paul]

Structural issues wee apparently haunting this team; the Artemis boat fell apart into “many pieces”………?

LA Times

America's Cup Regatta Director Iain Murray said the Artemis boat was on the water with another boat "training in what they had been doing for months … and looking frankly quite good." Murray told reporters that the Artemis boat was being steered away from the wind when its bow unexpectedly nose-dived. "The boat nose-dived, and all that we know from that point in that maneuver is that the boat ended up upside down, capsized, broken into many pieces," Murray said at the news conference. "All of the crew, except for Bart, were located immediately," Murray continued. "It appears Bart was trapped under some of the solid sections of the yacht, out of view, out of sight."

SF Chronicle

"Nothing's off the table," said Stephen Barclay, head of the race's event authority, a day after Andrew "Bart" Simpson was killed. While he said all options are being considered, Barclay strongly suggested the event is not likely to be canceled. "I've got absolutely no doubt the event in San Francisco will be a fantastic event," he said.

Local sailing experts said Friday it's too early to know what caused the wreck, and that it could have been a combination of factors, but speculation seemed to center on a structural failure, said Andy Turpin, managing editor of Latitude 38, a sailing magazine published in Marin County.

WIRED

Artemis was having a difficult time with its AC72 even before yesterday’s crash. After getting the boat in the water for the first time in November, the team quickly realized a number of flaws and put the boat back in the shed. Then, after completing a few practice runs against Team Oracle in February, the team realized it was vastly outgunned by boats that could use trick daggerboards to raise both hulls out of the water and “foil.” The team went back to the drawing board.

Because of the retooling necessary, the team didn’t received its second set of hulls, shrink-wrapped and in royal blue, until Tuesday. The boat on the water Thursday was its red-hulled first design “Big Red,” flying the team’s second wing after the first was smashed in Valencia last May. It was to be the boat’s last practice run.

Breezes were around 18 to 20 knots — brisk, but not at all atypical for a summer day in San Francisco Bay. In contrast, on the October day that Team Oracle’s AC72 capsized, winds were closer to 25 knots with gusts up to 30. The waters also were relatively flat; unlike the choppy waters Team Oracle encountered in October, the boats were sailing in a flood tide.

“It was neither a proper capsize nor a proper pitchpole,” says Dick Enersen, who has competed in and made documentaries about the America’s Cup.

Oracle pitchpoled — digging its hulls into the water and flipping upside down — and took hours to disintegrate. With Artemis, the speculation is that loads on the crossbeam, which links the two hulls, in front of the mast caused the girder to fail at its intersection with the port hull, after which the whole structure immediately collapsed: The port hull snapped in half just in front of the rudder, and the rigid wing fell over. Parts of the wing were seen being picked up by chase boats in the water around the main vessel.

With Artemis, the speculation is that loads on the crossbeam, which links the two hulls, in front of the mast caused the girder to fail at its intersection with the port hull, after which the whole structure immediately collapsed: The port hull snapped in half just in front of the rudder, and the rigid wing fell over. Parts of the wing were seen being picked up by chase boats in the water around the main vessel.

[micheal_warren]

Being right at the front of yachting development...America's Cup racing has for good or bad, become the testing ground for ultra radical design. Twenty five years ago Dennis Conner sailed a Burt Rutan designed wing sailed cat against a lumbering Reliant sized fiberglass monohulled monster in the farsical 1988 challenge. Both yachts were cutting edge for their respective designs at the time. The little cat roared away at 30kts and won the best of three. The ACC yachts developed from the broad hulls of the 1992 regatta through to 2007 where they had became sleek trim designs that reached their limitations. In 1995, oneAustralia had, by far, the fastest boat on the water, but was designed over the limits of sensiblity for the sailing conditions in San Deigo...The result, it still lies on the bottom off Point Loma.

Today's multi-hull racers comes about because of the need for excitment of the spectator and television viewer! High speeds, thrills and spills, and the fact that inner habour circuts can be used due to reasonably shallower keel draughs (AC45 class). Unlike 'traditional' racing that could take up to three hours, todays racing can be over within an hour half...and will allow a second race...And further more, very little wind is needed to get these monsters moving, unlike the old monohulls which created fustrations due to 'no wind' cancellations that plagued the Auckland regattas and spawned the idea of multihulls inside Russell Coutts, Brad Butterworth and billionaire Larry Allison.

They, the AC72s, are 'Hot to Handle' but are the way of the future, although were would've seen more challengers with the AC45s or the stillborn mid sized 64s...Even the IOC is looking at the AC45 class cat as a potential for the Olympic yachting programme.

Im not sure that One Australia had the fastest boat on the water! Black Magic Team NZ had the fastest boat....

My thoughts are with Andrew Simpson and his family and the Artemus crew. This is a tragic event!

[Alexjc]

Im not sure that One Australia had the fastest boat on the water! Black Magic Team NZ had the fastest boat....

When they (TNZ) pumped in the Data of the second oneAustralia boat, AUS35, they found it had an edge over NZL38...When LV finals arrive, AUS31, heavily modified, had a huge gain that was equal to NZL38, which shows how cutting edge the oneAus' programme was. In the end it was all about crew experience, Brad Butterworth and Tom Schankenburg in the afterguard that was the deciding factor in the 1995 LV finals.

In the America's Cup its self, the now Historical NZL32 was used simply because the defenders just didn't know their boat enough in time. NZL38 is what got us there...now shoved out in an Auckland warehouse, unloved and forgotten.

[micheal_warren]

When they (TNZ) pumped in the Data of the second oneAustralia boat, AUS35, they found it had an edge over NZL38...When LV finals arrive, AUS31, heavily modified, had a huge gain that was equal to NZL38, which shows how cutting edge the oneAus' programme was. In the end it was all about crew experience, Brad Butterworth and Tom Schankenburg in the afterguard that was the deciding factor in the 1995 LV finals.

In the America's Cup its self, the now Historical NZL32 was used simply because the defenders just didn't know their boat enough in time. NZL38 is what got us there...now shoved out in an Auckland warehouse, unloved and forgotten.

Hmmm.... Well you learn something every day. Thanks for that.

[baron-pierreIV]

They shouldn't have named it after the Goddess of the Hunt. She was not a water creature. Plus, having a Swedish boat being skippered by a non-Swede is really odd. I imagine Poseidon didn't like these anomalies!!

I would name my boat The Kraken!!