So this is what it looks like, the new 34th America's Cup. Fast. Flashy. Modern. But in the end, the same crews still win as before. And, unsurprisingly, they are the best.
With few exceptions, Team New Zealand dominated all the action in Cascais, the first of four tour stops in the current America's Cup World Series 2011/12, which continues on 10 September in Plymouth, England.
The Kiwis also impressed in the final fleet race. It was a flawless victory after initially trailing significantly - they were more than 200 metres behind after the first downwind leg. Even after the cross, they were still almost half a minute behind Jimmy Spithill. But they caught up in the second run, put the Americans under pressure and overtook them with ease. Bravo, Deano!
The only opponent they faced during the week in Cascais was Team Oracle Racing with boat number 4, the crew around the reigning Cup winner Spithill, who had won the match race final 2-0 against the Kiwis the day before - probably also because Dean Barker's team got in their own way with manoeuvring errors when setting the gennaker.
Surprises?
Not really. At best, the Kiwis' impressive early form is surprising. After all, like many other teams, they are newcomers to the multihull scene. Well, partly. Cat legend Glen Ashby, who supports and complements Dean Barker on board in the best possible way, undoubtedly played a significant part in the good result.
The highly inconsistent and ultimately unsatisfactory performance of Oracle Racing CEO Russell Coutts on the second US catamaran was also surprising. He, the most successful skipper ever and unbeaten in the Cup to date, lost to underdog Team Korea in the match race on Saturday. A blunder, and by no means his only one in this series.
Otherwise, the final race on Sunday is a good reflection of reality. With New Zealand, Oracle and Artemis Racing, the four fully-funded teams are in the lead. The rest, including most noticeably Team Korea around the English 49er helmsman Chris Draper and the French Team Energy around Loïck Peyron, have been good for surprises at best so far. The training backlog on the AC-45 catamarans is too great and the funding, which is barely enough for the next AC World Series races, is too tight. It is uncertain whether the "little guys", as they are known in the Cup environment, will even make it to the actual Cup in 2013.
The other insights that Cascais provided for the observers who were there and whose impressions were not limited to computer images, tweets and preconceived opinions can be summarised as follows:
- The boats One-design catamarans with wing rigs are a revelation. Anyone who has seen them live, or even better sailed them, is blown away. Even in 5 knots of wind, you can sail regattas with these weapons. Action is guaranteed from 15 knots upwards, and from 25 knots upwards, a space sheet passage becomes a stunt. Extremely tough for the crew, who actually need one or two more men. Jibing and tacking, however, look awkwardly slow, especially in light winds. Nevertheless, nobody can seriously miss the old Cupper. All the more so because the same weapons actually make for exciting races and lots of lead changes.
- The race format Too many classifications, including daily victories that bring nothing but experience or a speed classification à la dragster racing, which is boring and a pure lottery in unsteady winds. A match race qualifying round that required regatta director Ian Murray to spend five minutes explaining (with no questions asked). That doesn't really fit yet. But the new course layout, the virtual boundary lines, penalties, half-wind start, the entire course monitoring, the race management - respect! All skippers love it, and with a bit of good will you can understand it quickly enough.
- Media communication Unrivalled. Despite the blackout at the beginning, despite archive lists on YouTube that don't really make sense, where you really have to search for individual clips or replays, despite the sometimes over-hyped TV commentary - sailing has never been presented better!
- The circus "This is not yet the Cup," said Team Energy boss Bruno Peyron on Sunday. And he's right. It's just the warm-up, first stage, easy trot. Nevertheless, it is impressive what the organisers have come up with. Not even the fog and calm on the first day - of all things! - didn't even disrupt the event. And there was a party every evening. Perfect logistics. The full package. Anyone who seriously followed Cascais has probably already caught the Cup virus.
- The dominance of the defenders Not really recognisable. The one-design cats create a relatively level playing field. And anyone who believes that Coutts and Spithill have deliberately held back to make things artificially exciting is unaware of their burning ambition. It will probably only be in the AC 72 that there will be greater gaps, that financial power will potentially promise a real advantage. For the time being, only training, skill and physical endurance can create real advantages on the water.
- The fans' reactions Reserved. Divided. Some couldn't cope with the live feeds and complained about jerky images, others didn't understand the format, others were still suffering from phantom pains from the departure of the monohulls and the years of mud-slinging between Alinghi and BMW Oracle before the 33rd Cup. But these are typical reactions at the start of a new series. If anything, it is surprising that the download numbers on YouTube are still quite low. Those who watched the replays in the evening were among the few hundred, at best a few thousand. Which allows the thesis: The AC has not yet reached a new audience, and the organisers have yet to fully win over the old one, us sailors.
Jochen Rieker
Herausgeber YACHT
