2017 35th America's Cup Protocol Released

Bring it on, boys!! Can't wait for the next round of Rock 'em-Sock 'em sailboats!

Who's up for the challenge? Rules released for America's Cup - 35th America's Cup

http://ac.mueva.eu/media/files/m187_protocol-for-ac35.pdf

Only a couple of months behind schedule in releasing this, but that's not unusual.

Now, the next big question - where will it be held? Unfortunately, still lots of problems with the snobs of Frisco.

Rules for 2017 AC

The 25% nationality rule assures that there will be Kiwi's on all boats, how about an 80% rule so that pay for staff doesnt become such an issue or better still how about a 100% rule.

Sorry had to vent: but they might as well just see who can write the biggest check and give them the cup in 2017 without anyone getting their feet wet.

So much for the talk last year about keeping the boats size down in the 45' range through the whole series.

Time to step off the soap box:


Takes Two
currently in Annapolis MD

Sink the cats, bring back the old 12M boats. The current competition, interesting as it may be, relates to everyday boating like F1 relates to my daily drive.

I agree

Loved the old days of the 12M and Alan Bond and the RPYC going against the US. One of the Koch brothers used to have his winning America's Cup yacht perched on hard display on the banks of the Arkansas river in Wichita. Ks. Don't know if it is still there. I loved the year the Aussies finally won and had the next cup in Fremantle. I think Alan Bond got in trouble with the Aussie securities commission and went to jail shortly after that. He was our neighbor when we lived in Perth.

My wife knows... Now... I know, I know!

Let's make this all twice the FUN!

One America's Cup for wide open super duper high tech cats

One America's Cup for enclosed mono hulls

Twice the fun, Twice the excitement, Twice the economic boosts, Twice the chance for rave reviews, Twice the number of winners!

Happy America's Cup Daze – Art and Linda

Cathy and David said:

... I think Alan Bond got in trouble with the Aussie securities commission and went to jail shortly after that....

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He did indeed. He also suffered a tragic loss of memory during official inquiries into his corporate activities, fortunately this condition improved by the time he left jail and resumed business activities, outside Australia.

BruceK said:

Sink the cats, bring back the old 12M boats. The current competition, interesting as it may be, relates to everyday boating like F1 relates to my daily drive.

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I'm ok with the cats, folks complained the 12M boats didn't represent reality either. If F1 was akin to my daily drive there'd be no compelling reason to watch it.

If these folks didn't spend the money racing these boats they'd just be wasting it on scotch anyways.

CPseudonym said:

I'm ok with the cats, folks complained the 12M boats didn't represent reality either. If F1 was akin to my daily drive there'd be no compelling reason to watch it.

If these folks didn't spend the money racing these boats they'd just be wasting it on scotch anyways.

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Like he said. However, I also feel the 25% nationality thing is too loose. Should be the other way round, 75% home country - 25% marquee import.
James Spithill would still get to drive, but the crew would be predominantly US, as it should be. The crew nationality make-up on Oracle last time was a joke.

But the boats sound like they should be spectacular to watch, and require great skill to sail, and hey…what's wrong with America's Cup being the sailing equivalent of F1..? Believe me, you really wouldn't want to go back now to those sluggish 12 Metre boats.

I had my whole family watching the cup last summer. They were on the edge of the couch cheering. They wouldn't have done that with 12m boats.

12m boats were the pinnacle of sailing technology in their time. Now they are not...

Sigh. This is from an ex Fort Schulyer cadet.

Sink the cats, bring back the old 12M boats.

Sink the 12 meters and bring back the J boars.

All these toys are raced by rich folks , so lets have some eye candy.

OK ,so I can use the J boats 12 speed Titanium sheet winch on my boat , I cant use most F-1 gear on my Honda CRV , So What???

J boats , not for the masses , just for FUN!!

It's racing, it's supposed to be the cutting edge of technology. And, damn, it was exciting. Just not as romantic as the mono hulls.

BaltimoreLurker said:

It's racing, it's supposed to be the cutting edge of technology. And, damn, it was exciting. Just not as romantic as the mono hulls.

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As someone who do unexpectedly was addicted to AC racing since the Conner days, this venue is plain boring.

The coupe de grace was lowering the wind speed they could race at. That killed the what suspense was left.

There was not one suspenseful race. Virtually every race was over at the first turn, some even at the start.

The fact that one team could win virtually all the races and then the other team did the same just does how terribly uncompetitive the whole spectacle was.

The challenger series was only missing one thing, challengers!

They are now running an electric, hydraulic boat. So fatigue will no longer be an issue.

And lastly, for those who think this is like F1, it would be, if F1 cars had no f...ing tires and became hovercraft, like in the Jetson's.

Nuff said.

Ahhh, the good old days. Now, THAT'S racing!

Catch the aerodynamic front on the fuel tank. That would help.

Ahhh - shades of the good ol' stage coach days... two men on the driver seat... one to steer and one riding shot gun just in case them damn bandits might try to attack!

Wxx3 said:

As someone who do unexpectedly was addicted to AC racing since the Conner days, this venue is plain boring.

Not sure which races you were watching, but they were anything but boring. By far, more passing than any other AC in history.

The coupe de grace was lowering the wind speed they could race at. That killed the what suspense was left.

Unfortunately, high winds were at least partially responsible for also killing a sailor. I didn't like it either, but it made sense and I understand it. And, there was plenty of suspense.

There was not one suspenseful race. Virtually every race was over at the first turn, some even at the start.

Again, what were you watching? The boat that won the start won 12 races and lost 7. Oracle came back and won 4 races after being behind at the first mark, and NZ came back and won 3 after being behind at the first mark. After being behind at the second mark, Oracle and NZ both came back and won 3 races each. After the third mark NZ came back and won 1 race. Not much need for the fifth leg though. Have you seen an AC that remotely compares to this?

The fact that one team could win virtually all the races and then the other team did the same just does how terribly uncompetitive the whole spectacle was.

Uncompetitive??? There were some damn close, and exciting races (until the last leg).

The challenger series was only missing one thing, challengers!

How true!

They are now running an electric, hydraulic boat. So fatigue will no longer be an issue.

Really? I don't remember the numbers, but heart rates were monitored, and these guys were on the levels of triathletes. Didn't you see them not only grinding, but running almost the entire time? These guys were athletes like never seen before in the AC.

And lastly, for those who think this is like F1, it would be, if F1 cars had no f...ing tires and became hovercraft, like in the Jetson's.

Nuff said.

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Now, anybody that's read any of my pre-AC posts knows that I was most skeptical about these boats & their speeds and wished they would have stuck with the monohulls. More speed usually translates to larger margins of victory and less competitiveness. I was glad I was wrong.

I loved the 12 meters too, but it was a mature design and they had squeezed every 1/10 of a knot out of them that they could, and there was no room left for improvement. Unless you're going to have true one design race, it was time for them to go. The AC class was another story. They were faster, still had plenty of improved design left in them, and provided the closest racing in AC history. But, unfortunately, the world now demands more, more, and more speed in order to satisfy the younger generation.

As for nationality, I'm all for it if you're going to refer boats and syndicates to countries. But, it's been tried before and it didn't work, as there's too many ways around it. Dual citizenship, official residence, green cards... The only way to control it is with country of birth, and that's not going to happen. Even the rule for this AC is a joke as it requires only 25% of the crew to be from the representing country, which equates to (wait a minute while I get my calculator out), wow, only 2 of 8!

Nuff said.

The America’s Cup Match, featuring the defender, ORACLE TEAM USA against the top challenger.

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If football was like that, the Seahawks would have an automatic bye to the next SuperBowl no matter what they do during the season. Or Spain is already in the World Cup Final, because they won it in 2010.

I thought the idea of the AMERICA's Cup was to pit the best of the last victorious COUNTRY against the best of the rest of the world. Maybe it has always been this way(?) but it seems an odd way to encourage competition.

Still neck-to-neck after crossing San Pablo Bay:

Wxx3 said,
"The coupe de grace was lowering the wind speed they could race at. That killed the what suspense was left."

That's about your only statement I agree with, I afraid - that and the introducing of an arbitrary maximum time limit in low winds Otherwise Team NZ would have been the winner hands down, having been way ahead in one race when the wind went ½ a kn over the max allowed so called off. Then, in another was entering the final leg, way ahead, when it was abandoned because it exceeded the time limit…interesting that..and they all were NZers - might have been one non-Kiwi..? Can't remember now.

Ahh Pete, do I detect a embryonic Kiwi stirring?

Typical, just in time for the Bledislo cup. ( for all those friends north of the 'line' look it up)

Tonic said:

If football was like that, the Seahawks would have an automatic bye to the next SuperBowl no matter what they do during the season. Or Spain is already in the World Cup Final, because they won it in 2010.

I thought the idea of the AMERICA's Cup was to pit the best of the last victorious COUNTRY against the best of the rest of the world. Maybe it has always been this way(?) but it seems an odd way to encourage competition.

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Oracle is the best of the last victorious country. Unfortunately, they are also the "only". If enough zillionaires get interested, there will be defenders series again sometime in the future. Use to happen all the time, but not in recent times because of the costs.

Peter B said:

Wxx3 said,
"The coupe de grace was lowering the wind speed they could race at. That killed the what suspense was left."

That's about your only statement I agree with, I afraid - that and the introducing of an arbitrary maximum time limit in low winds Otherwise Team NZ would have been the winner hands down, having been way ahead in one race when the wind went ½ a kn over the max allowed so called off. Then, in another was entering the final leg, way ahead, when it was abandoned because it exceeded the time limit…interesting that..and they all were NZers - might have been one non-Kiwi..? Can't remember now.

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There was nothing arbitrary about the 40 minute time limit at all. It was done for TV purposes. They had 2 hours - enough for two 40 minute races, a 32 minute interval between races, a short pre-game show, and maybe a little left over for a re-cap.

The actual problem was not having set a low-end wind speed limit to begin with. It should have been set at least to 10 knots and this never would have happened. But, don't feel sorry for the Kiwi team as everybody knew the rules, except the TVNZ announcers, Martin Tasker and Peter Lester. Feel sorry for the Kiwi fans watching on TV. They thought the race was won and when the counter started at about the 38 minute mark, the announcers had no idea what it meant. Gary Jobson of the U.S. broadcast brought it up within 2 minutes of the start and kept mentioning it throughout the race. Now, the Kiwi's listening on the radio were fine, as the announcer there, P.J. Montgomery, was also very aware of what was about to happen.

No, not all Kiwi's on the Kiwi boat. Glenn Ashby and Adam Beashel are Australians.

The whole nationality sub plot doesn't play well in the United States perhaps as we are a country of immigrants. Frankly I fail to see the relevance of it myself.

I'll admit my ignorance but do football and rugby have any nationality restrictions?

If they do I've not noticed it but admit to being only a casual fan of the All Blacks from afar. My wife's a bit more rabid though

Didn`t the Cup start from a race run by the Royal Yacht Squadron around the Isle of Wight in England, which in 1851 was won by a boat called "America"?

MY problem with the racing cats is they dare not sail up to the edge.

Most ecert other boat can be sailed yp to near disaster and perhaps , with skill, beyond.

When a cat capsizes the repairs (new wing mast) are so immense that it is frequently out of the race for the season.

Far more fun when the sailing master is willing to take a chance at over pressing the vessel than when he dares not.

J boats !!!! SO bigger more interesting races can be done , and they get to the race on their own bottom, not in a cradle.

BruceK said:

Didn`t the Cup start from a race run by the Royal Yacht Squadron around the Isle of Wight in England, which in 1851 was won by a boat called "America"?

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Yes Bruce, correct…and it stayed in New York Yacht Club for 134 yrs (the longest any sporting trophy has ever been held by the same holder), until Alan Bond's Australia II took it to Fremantle.

CPseudonym said:

The whole nationality sub plot doesn't play well in the United States perhaps as we are a country of immigrants. Frankly I fail to see the relevance of it myself.

I'll admit my ignorance but do football and rugby have any nationality restrictions?

If they do I've not noticed it but admit to being only a casual fan of the All Blacks from afar. My wife's a bit more rabid though

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Yes, National Football (most or all codes) teams have to be citizens of the country at least, even if not born there. This is true of the Football (soccer) world cup and similarly for Rugby and most other sports, fielding national teams. Of course in the 'World Series" baseball, all the teams are in the US I believe, so that's kinda different.

Nsail said:

There was nothing arbitrary about the 40 minute time limit at all. It was done for TV purposes. They had 2 hours - enough for two 40 minute races, a 32 minute interval between races, a short pre-game show, and maybe a little left over for a re-cap.

No, not all Kiwi's on the Kiwi boat. Glenn Ashby and Adam Beashel are Australians.

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I guess when I said arbitrary, that's what I meant. Made to fit into TV scheduling. Rather weird right. I mean, can you see them stopping Superbowl a few minutes before the end because they had had too many time-outs and the set TV time was over - I think not - or maybe they might..?

Yes, you were right, there were a couple of Aussie Bros in there…so were there actually any US citizens in Oracle at all..? I know they roped in a Brit as navigator when the US guy seemed to be out of his depth a bit. Dammit - he was good.

Peter B said:

Of course in the 'World Series" baseball, all the teams are in the US I believe, so that's kinda different.

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There's still one team hanging on in Canada. The other moved to DC a few years ago.