America’s Cup Defender Emirates Team New Zealand CEO Grant Dalton has announced Barcelona as the Host Venue after a long and competitive venue selection process. “Barcelona really is one of the most recognised cities in the world so to have the ability to host the most recognised sailing event in the world is hugely exciting".

"As Defender of America’s Cup, we have always felt the responsibility to grow the event, the audience, and the sport of sailing on a global scale and certainly having the event hosted in a significant city such as Barcelona will allow us to propel the growth trajectory on the global sporting stage".

"When thinking ahead to the 37th America’s Cup and the AC75’s racing within a few hundred metres of the Barcelona beach, waterfront, and race village fan engagement zones it will be nothing less than spectacular.”

The AC organiser said Barcelona is a leading city in terms of sustainability and social impact with ambitions to become Europe’s digital and tech capital, so the alignment with America’s Cup is clear. Its existing world-class facilities for racing, team bases, technical infrastructure, superyachts, and areas for the America’s Cup event village to host fans, hospitality, and media as well as an average wind range of 9-15 knots during the September and October race window, made the city completely fit for purpose.

Barcelona’s bid saw an unprecedented alliance across public and private entities working together to attract the America’s Cup to Barcelona which included the Government of Catalonia, Barcelona City Council, City Hall of Barcelona, Port of Barcelona, Barcelona Global’s investment agency and Barcelona & Partners, a non-profit initiative composed of more than 200 of the city’s leading institutions aiming to make Barcelona one of the world’s best cities for talent and economic activity.

The decision by Government to withdraw its America's Cup bid to host what would have been a once in a lifetime event is disappointing and short-sighted given the potential economic, social, and cultural benefits associated with the competition, according to the Cork Chamber of Commerce.

President of Cork Chamber, Paula Cogan commented, “The timing of this event would have provided a real boost for the economy in the immediate post-Covid recovery era. As well as the economic benefit, it was an opportunity to showcase the best of Irish hospitality, tourism and culture. Businesses here in Cork and across the country have now been denied the opportunity to benefit from the event”.

“The gains associated with hosting the event had the potential to significantly outweigh the expenditure that would have been required to host it, and projects such as this require greater ambition and real engagement with local stakeholders. Lessons must be learned from this, only time will tell whether there will be reputational damage when consideration is being given to Ireland for hosting future global bids”.

“The loss of the 2024 America’s Cup bid will be felt by all here in Cork and in the wider region, and this unique opportunity to recover and prosper with such a high-profile yachting race is now another country’s gain”.

Leaks in boats are generally not considered a good thing, even if the recent case of a patriotic Ukrainian crewman trying to sink his Russian arms-manufacturing oligarch employer's superyacht in Mallorca as a protest against the Putin invasion drew widespread approval, particularly when the crewman then returned to Ukraine to join the
defence army, despite being a longtime sailor some 55 years old with no military experience.

However, carefully-positioned information communication leaks in politics, both national and international, are part of the negotiating process. So when geo-politics and sailing get intermixed, the sailors find themselves having to accept something they would normally consider unseamanlike at the very least.

The America's Cup New Zealand supremo Grant Dalton has shown that he can be a tough street fighter, right up with the most ruthless of them when it comes to judicious use of leaks in working towards a conclusion. With the March 31st deadline for the announcement of the 2024 America's Cup venue coming up on the horizon, he had a letter to the authorities in Valencia in Spain recently leaked in such a way that attention now re-focuses intensely on other potential venues.

These still include Cork, despite a very mixed reception when the idea was first floated last year, while a rapidly deteriorating international political and economic situation must now make America's Cup promotion a surefire vote-loser at grassroots level.

Full story here

The core Emirates Team New Zealand team consists of six key sailors led by Skipper Peter Burling who is joined by Blair Tuke, Andy Maloney, Nathan Outteridge, Glenn Ashby and Josh Junior whose focus will be on the performance and development of the boat, along with the all-important strategical decision making during the 37th America’s Cup.

The complete sailing team will be further bolstered at a later date when the powerhouse grinders or cyclors will begin full-time training to provide the power for the third generation of AC75s.

Emirates Team New Zealand COO Kevin Shoebridge has been a key proponent in putting together one of the strongest lineups in the team’s history.

“Clearly we are very happy to have the depth of talent that we have in the sailing team right now. The strength of our core sailing team is clear to see, there aren’t many things in sailing that haven’t been achieved by this group of guys collectively,” said Shoebridge

“After the finish of the last America’s Cup we had an extensive and robust review of the winning campaign and how we can become stronger. Ultimately, all aspects of the organisation must improve if we are to be successful again in AC37 and collectively improving our sailing team as a unit is an important aspect of this.”

Emirates Team New Zealand is well underway in its detailed planning of the sailing schedule for the 37th America’s Cup, with a main point of focus being on the months of September and October when existing teams are permitted to commence sailing in line with the rules of the Protocol of the 37th America’s Cup.

Some childhood dreams can become realities, others remain just that- dreams. For a 10-year-old boy growing up in Bendigo Australia, his childhood dream was to go faster than anyone else had done, powered by the wind.

Speed has always been at the centre of Glenn Ashby’s existence, on yachts, motorbikes- or land yachts. The quest for speed has won him 3 America’s Cups, an Olympic Silver Medal and 17 World Championships in 4 different classes of boat.

After the 36th America’s Cup victory in 2021 the stars aligned for both Ashby and Emirates Team New Zealand, who he has been an integral part of for over 10 years, bringing together his lifelong ambition with the depth of design, technology and innovation of Emirates Team New Zealand. All the while utilising the window of opportunity that existed with the usual lull in AC activities during the transition from the 36th to the 37th America’s Cup.

Emirates Team New Zealand has always commissioned external contracts to keep the design team sharp and engaged during these periods. So, when the independently funded project to attempt to beat the Wind Powered Land Speed World Record emerged it was not hard to find willing designers, engineers and shore crew to put their talents to the test from being fastest on the water of the America’s Cup to being fastest on land ever.

Emirates Team New Zealand Wind Powered Land Speed World Record design and planning

The speed record attempt has been a common point of discussion for a number of years between Ashby and ETNZ CEO Grant Dalton, who himself has had a long-held interest in such a record shot.

“The wind-powered land speed record is something I have always been interested in, so when bringing a design challenge like this into ETNZ I knew it would be beneficial on a number of fronts to keep the technicians and the innovators of the organisation engaged during a down time with new, complex technical issues to solve with a cool project.” said Dalton

Glenn Ashby has been like a cat on a hot tin roof on the end of dozens of Zoom calls back to the Emirates Team New Zealand base unable to re-enter New Zealand for the past 10 months.

“I have never spent so much time on the computer as I have this past year,” explained Ashby. “Basically, from the point that Dalts said ‘let’s look at it’ after the finish of AC36, we have been all go. First job was a two-week in-depth feasibility study to ensure enough of a global understanding that this was something that could be done in a positive way for ETNZ and would not impact the team and its America’s Cup objectives financially or resource wise.”

Since then, the core group of Guillaume Verdier, Romaric Neyhousser, Benjamin Muyul, Jeremy Palmer, Romain Gard, Tim Meldrum, Sean Regan, Adrian Robb, Jarrod Hammond and Dave French have been working through the new design and engineering challenges entirely focused towards beating the existing Wind Powered Land Speed World Record of 202.9km/h (126.1m/h) which was set in 2009 by Richard Jenkins in Greenbird.

"The objective is to design a craft that becomes the fastest wind powered land yacht ever"

Ashby paid tribute to Richard Jenkins whose record he is trying to conquer. “In doing our research and digging deeper and deeper into the intricacies of the design challenges, it became very apparent that Richard really did an incredible job with his world record design.” said Ashby.

“As a team we explored some pretty creative and innovative conceptual ideas in the quest for more speed, however in the end our design and performance principles evolved into a concept reasonably similar in basic layout to the existing record holder, which really emphasised to us what a huge challenge this will be.”

Without a silver bullet in terms of a revolutionary design, and very much like what is predicted in the 37th America’s Cup with the next generation of AC75’s, the gains will come down to the small improvements and refinements that add up to overall advancements and success.

“Like the America’s Cup we just need to be doing it better across the board by utilising our experience, skills and tools gained as a team to date,” explained Ashby,

“And then, like sailing, there is always the weather gods and doing everything we can to be ready when the right conditions are presented at the location.”

Emirates Team New Zealand Principal Matteo de Nora, who is a significant supporter of the world record attempt, is clear on why now is the right time for the challenge.

“We are seeing some very close collaborations now where the design is crossing into Formula 1 territory with Ineos Britannia and Mercedes and Alinghi and Red Bull Racing for a start. This isn’t a coincidence and is focused on the top line speeds and lessons that can be learnt the faster you can go. So, this project will be beneficial in continuing to evolve and learn so much more in the aerodynamic realm which was a significant factor in AC36.” said de Nora.

From a design and engineering perspective, Guillaume Verdier explained “this project is a really compelling one for all of us involved. There are a lot of similarities to what we do with fast sail boats in terms of the aerodynamics and structural forces, construction methods, materials etc, so we are well placed in many respects. But without doubt, no boat we ever design will go anywhere near as fast as we need our land yacht to go. So, with the increase in speed comes increased complexities, but we are sure these are complexities that we can learn from so we can make our next AC75 go faster.”

The obvious element of uncertainty and point of difference for all the Emirates Team New Zealand designers is tyre technology and the dynamic forces associated with tyres on the ground, as opposed to hydrodynamic forces on foils in the water.

“This is the big unknown for us,” explained ETNZ Mechanical Engineer Tim Meldrum.

“Tyres on a flat salt surface going at over 200km/h is a whole lot different to foils in the water at over 50 knots. The rules stipulate we must run on a flat natural surface. The best ones we know of where it can be windy are dry salt lakes. With the tyres being the only point of contact to the salt it is a pretty important factor in finding the sweet spot in maintaining sufficient grip- with the least amount of rolling resistance.”

Our craft when compared to a speed record motorised car has a lot of differences. Firstly our “motor” – a wing in our case really delivers a small thrust force compared to a racing combustion engine. So, anything working against that thrust – wheel rolling resistance and aerodynamic drag has been a high priority to reduce if we want to hit high speeds. Secondly our wing creates a lot of side load over the main back wheels – so we need to provide grip to keep it tracking straight. A downforce aerodynamic wing like those used in F1 to assist cornering grip would rob us of too much speed, so we have opted to add variable ballast weight to allow us to tune our grip level. Extra weight mainly affects our acceleration time but does not compromise aerodynamic drag. The trade-off is we can go faster but we end up using more runway to get to our top speed. Luckily our racetrack is 8km across.”

Another contradictory problem to the norm in the America’s Cup is around weight. In the AC75’s the less weight in the boat the easier it will be to fly and faster it will be. With a land yacht, weight is a positive in certain respects explains Construction Manager Sean Regan:

“In land speed, weight will be our friend if used in the right location. So, we can refine our construction techniques that account for additional weight in certain aspects and not be so focused on weight savings. On the outrigger pod we are actively adding weight or ballast to counter the wind force on the wing sail, without which, the craft would just tip over. Not something we want for Glenn approaching such high speeds.”

But like a scale measuring gold, the weight still needs to be precise. Too little the outboard tyre will come off the ground losing contact, too much it will add unnecessary resistance and lose valuable clicks of speed.

It is these sorts of design problems that will have to be overcome in the typically condensed lead up to a shot at the World Record in July / early August which Ashby and the team are working towards attempting on one of Australia’s vast salt lakes with Lake Gairdner in South Australia or Lake Lefroy in Western Australia as potential locations.

Any world record needs to be stringently verified and will require officials from the North America Land Speed Association to measure and record the run with a specific set of rules that must be adhered to in order to qualify for the World Record.

For now, the craft is already under construction at the Emirates Team New Zealand build facility on Auckland’s North Shore. “The build is scheduled for completion in late March, for assembly and commissioning and preliminary testing in Auckland subsequent to that.” said Sean Regan.

Land yacht construction begins at the ETNZ build facility

“The plan is to then pack the craft and equipment into containers and ship it all to South Western Australian and truck to the record attempt location where a small team will be based from July for testing and then ultimately a shot at the World Record speed run.

“Obviously the objective is to design a craft that becomes the fastest wind powered land yacht ever.” said Ashby

“And no one would have ever been that fast in a wind powered craft on or off the water. So that’s a pretty bloody exciting thing to try to become.”

Just over 11 months since Emirates Team New Zealand’s AC75 ‘Te Rehutai’ crossed the finish line to claim the 36th America’s Cup, its younger sister class- the AC40 is already in production.

While much of the world was having a well-earned break during the transition from 2021 into 2022 the 7 axis CNC machine at McConaghy Boats production facility was working 24/7 carving out the tooling for the hull of the new class.

The AC40 hull shape is based on that of Te Rehutai- but is already a generational step forward incorporating a number of developments learned after the completion of AC36 last year.

In usual America’s Cup fashion, the AC40 design and production timeline has been highly condensed yet achievable due to a global collaboration led by Emirates Team New Zealand design team with Dan Bernasconi and Richard Meacham central to the management of the production process with Mark Evans Group Managing Director of McConaghy Boats.

“While the genesis of the AC40 project comes from the familiar design and innovation of the people within the Emirates Team New Zealand design department we have really had to push the limits by utilising a combination of the best of the New Zealand Marine industry as well as key offshore partnerships.

Specialised elements like the rigs are being built by Southern Spars and the boat building talent we have at the ETNZ build facility are producing the foil arms. We also have a great partnership utilising the production power of an organisation like McConaghy Boats in China for the hulls, decks and fit out as well as North Sails Marine group with the aero package.” said Meacham.

McConaghy Boats has been building composite race boats with leading construction technologies for over 50 years across a range of classes from Maxi’s like Wild Oats (the most successful yacht in the Sydney Hobart race), all the way down to foiling Mach 2 Moths and Waszps.

But for now, the focus is firmly on rolling out the fleet of AC40’s explained Meacham, “Currently there are already 8 AC40’s under order with McConaghy’s, with teams lined up awaiting possession. We have a world leading marine sector here in New Zealand, but like so many industries there are labour resource constraints, so without partnering with McConaghy’s and utilising their production capabilities we simply would not be able to fulfill the orders in time.”

The first AC40 is expected to be ready to be shipped from the McConaghy facility in July of this year to the Emirates Team New Zealand base in Auckland for its on water commissioning in August. And each successive boat will be rolled out in 5-week increments thereafter as the Challenging teams take possession and prepare to hit the water where the performance across with wind range is estimated to be quite exceptional for a 40-foot boat.

In light winds, the AC40 is expected to be able to sail at up to 26 knots at 46º upwind and 30 knots boat speed at 138º downwind. At the upper limits of 20 knots TWS, the boat speeds are expected to escalate to 39 knots upwind at 41º and 44 knots at an angle of 155º downwind.

Due to the AC40 being a ‘production boat’, the process has been a bit different to usual for Head of Design Dan Bernasconi, “Normally during the build of an AC boat the design team has a bit more time to develop and finalise the hydraulics, electronics and systems, but because the production process is so rapid in this case we have had to finalise a lot more of our designs in respect to those areas up front and make sure they are spot on.”

While the America’s Cup teams will be using their AC40’s for testing, development, Match race training, and preliminary events, they will be used for both the Women’s and Youth America’s Cup’s as a key tool for creating the pathway into the America’s Cup for women and the next generation of foiling sailors. This pathway made all the easier with the added benefit of the availability of the AC40 simulator developed by Emirates Team New Zealand for pre-delivery training.

As a further step on from this, the AC40 and the simulator will be available to private owners, many of whom are the backbone of high-performance Grand Prix circuits already and could be looking for a new challenge in a dynamic boat that is right up there in terms of performance close to that of the AC75 America’s Cup powerhouses.

“There is even the possibility of private owners having a long-term ambition to race, but initially wanting to give a prospective Youth or Women’s AC crew a leg up with their campaigns by buying one early as well.” said Meacham

“So, despite the pressure of design and pushing this all along, it is exciting to see the moulds completed and production underway on a class of boat that will cover a wide range of use cases.”

A visit to Cork by a technical team on behalf of the America's Cup is proof that an Irish bid is still in the race for hosting in 2024, say insiders.

A technical team has visited Cork city to assess a number of sites as part of the state’s due diligence process on Ireland’s bid to host the 2024 race.

Cork appeared to be the front-runner to host the next America's Cup until politicians got cold feet late last year over cost projections.

Afloat first reported Cork was bidding to bring the Cup to Ireland for the first time last June.

According to the Irish Examiner, a detailed assessment of transport options to and from each of the sites and an examination of the availability of power and other utilities at each location was performed.

The visit included stops at potential race and event locations, including the Tivoli Docks which have been pitched as the event’s technical and team base, and Kennedy Quay, which could host the race village.

It involved a detailed assessment of transport options to and from each of the sites and an examination of the availability of power and other utilities at each location.

The assessments, which are ongoing, will be used to determine the level of state investment that may be required to bring the sites up to a required standard for what’s claimed to be the world’s third-largest sporting event.

The visit by the technical team has been described by sources as a very positive step in the right direction following the Department of Sport’s request in September for another six months to conduct due diligence on the bid.

A decision to postpone the hosting announcement until the end of March has given Cork a lifeline to convince the politicians their proposal is viable - and to convince the Cup’s assessment group they are the right city among four international options. Malaga in Spain has reportedly joined Barcelona and Jeddah as the alternatives.

However, the new race set-up puts those costs closer to €50m, but with further detailed analysis advised.

Political support for the event is also building, with Cork County Council recently agreeing to write to TDs and the sports minister, Catherine Martin, seeking her support to secure the bid for Ireland.

The new race set-up included a proposal to use publicly-owned land at Tivoli docks for the event’s technical and team base instead of a privately-owned dockyard site in Rushbrooke near Cobh.

Under the new race set up, a race village would be set-up on Kennedy Quay, most of which is in public ownership.

It would be the main public and hospitality area for the America’s Cup event, hosting the ‘dock out’ show every morning and prize-giving every evening as well as the main activities around the race, including concerts, food, conference talks, large race viewing screens and live commentary.

The team base and technical area could be accommodated at Tivoli Docks, which is also in public ownership.

The state, if it decides to proceed with the bid, will have to pay up to €55m for the right to host the event and on TV rights, but a cost-benefit analysis has shown that the event could be worth an estimated €500m to the economy.

Much more from The Examiner here

Whether it'll be based in Cork Harbour or not remains to be seen but what is certain is that there will be a new team challenging for the 37th America's Cup, as Red Bull joins forces with double America's Cup–winning syndicate Alinghi in a campaign for the oldest trophy in international sport.

After an absence of over a decade, one of the most dynamic names in the history of the America's Cup, Alinghi, is returning to battle for sailing's pinnacle honour, and this time the twice consecutive–winning syndicate is partnered by a driving force in global sport, Red Bull.

Sailing under the flag of the Société Nautique de Genève, Alinghi Red Bull Racing begins preparations immediately to race as an official challenger when the Selection Series for the 37th America's Cup begins in 2024.

"While keeping the winning spirit that has always animated Alinghi, we want for this challenge to do something totally different, totally new, totally fresh," said Alinghi founder Ernesto Bertarelli. "When we imagined with Dietrich Mateschitz the involvement of Red Bull in the America's Cup, he said: Our way is not to get into the sport as sponsors, but to blend into the team, to form a true partnership, to nurture young athletes and turn them into the best in their field. He also proposed that we should make contributions to give the America's Cup itself a new dimension."

Bertarelli continued, "With Red Bull we are equal partners in this venture. They will bring their competence, energy and strength in creating performing teams, and we bring our experience in sailing and winning the America's Cup. Alinghi Red Bull Racing will shine a new light on the event."

Alinghi and Red Bull have long been friendly rivals in series such as the GC32 Racing Tour and the Extreme Sailing Series. Having shared this mutual respect and admiration, Hans Peter Steinacher, a two-time Olympic champion in the Tornado Class and Austria's most successful summer sport athlete, is enthusiastic about the new partnership.

 "The America's Cup is – and by volumes – the most important sailing event in the world," said the sailing legend, who has been a leading presence in developing the next generation of sailors as co-founder of the Red Bull Youth America's Cup and Red Bull Foiling Generation. "Alinghi's experience and team spirit are unique in the sport of sailing. All of Red Bull is behind this project, and I doubt it could have been done with another team."

In partnering with Alinghi, Red Bull also brings the expertise of the Red Bull Advanced Technologies unit that has supported Red Bull Racing in achieving a total of five Formula One Drivers' Championships – including the thrilling triumph just secured by Max Verstappen in the last lap of 2021 – as well as four F1 Constructors' Championships.

Fresh from the Formula One final and speaking live via satellite, Red Bull Racing principal Christian Horner – himself a game-changer in motorsports – said, "We welcome Alinghi Red Bull Racing to the World of Red Bull, and our F1 team is looking forward to helping this new member of our family to succeed. Red Bull Advanced Technologies is a world-class technology centre that offers services to different entities including other sports, born out of the innovative, technical expertise we've generated throughout our years in F1. Red Bull Advanced Technologies will establish synergies with Alinghi Red Bull Racing. We will share our experiences, engineering tips, etc. It is a two-way cooperation."

Brad Butterworth, four-time winner of the America's Cup, commented, "I have been with Alinghi for 20 years now, and getting into this new challenge with Red Bull is very exciting. The America's Cup is a technology race which is won on the water with race strategy and tactics. Red Bull has demonstrated that time and time again in F1 and in many of the other sports it competes in."

Among the teams that Alinghi Red Bull Racing will prepare to face are the defender, four-time America's Cup winner Emirates Team New Zealand, as well as the challenger of record, INEOS Britannia.

Because the entry period opened only at the beginning of December, sailing enthusiasts can expect the announcement of additional challengers to extend over the next weeks and months.

In conjunction with the America's Cup, Alinghi Red Bull Racing will also field teams in the debut of the Women's America's Cup Regatta, as well as in the return of the Youth America's Cup.

"Growing the sport and its sailors has always been an important focus for both Red Bull and Alinghi. So Alinghi Red Bull Racing's commitment to these regattas is strong, and I think it's going to be inspiring to see these talents in action," said Steinacher.

Alinghi Red Bull Racing will headquarter its operations near Lausanne, in Écublens, Switzerland, where the hull will be built according to the requirement of the Deed of Gift, the governing document of the America's Cup.

A core crew led by Alinghi's GC32 co-skipper Arnaud Psarofaghis and mainsail trimmer Bryan Mettraux will begin training during the winter period to prepare a 100% Swiss Made crew.

The 37th America's Cup seems to be attracting multiple early challengers.

The defender Emirates Team New Zealand claims to have already received "several challenges" immediately after the opening of registrations on December 1st.

The New Zealand press cites entries submitted by the Swiss from Alinghi and, confirmed by Max Sirena the skipper of Luna Rossa.

As Afloat reported last month, Cork Harbour is still in the running to stage sailing's biggest prize. An alternative proposal for the staging of the next America’s Cup in Cork could save the State some €80 million. More here.

The 170-year-old America’s Cup is global sailing’s Sacred Mystery. To be most true to itself, it should be raced in boats - or more accurately sailing machines - that are about as different as possible from the craft used by most sailors as they go about their more normal and largely unpublicised activities on the water.

In contrast to that normality, the America’s Cup is ultimately totally reliant on very high levels of publicity to fuel the enormous resources of commercial sponsorship – much of it for brands at the luxury end of the international spectrum – which are needed to keep the show on the road and fund the contending teams as they advance the technology, while also hiring the best international sailing superstars within a time-frame which enables them to qualify for a somewhat convoluted nationality and residential time frame.

The publication this week of the Protocol for the 37th America’s Cup in 2024 moves the “Saga of the Auld Mug” into another chapter. It’s a joint production by defenders Emirates Team New Zealand and their club the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron of Auckland, and the Challengers of Record, INEOS Britannia of Royal Yacht Squadron Ltd, otherwise known as RYSL.

The New York Yacht Club’s giant Reliance, successful defender in 1903, was arguably the first extreme boat in the America’s Cup history. Designed and built by Nat Herreshoff for just one season’s use, she used metals in electrolytic conflict such that it’s said she sizzled when put afloat, and leaked at an increasing pace as the programme progressed. After her successful defence, she was taken over by the US Navy to observe and monitor the continuing electrolytic degradation, and then broken up before she was a year old.

For traditionalists, it may seem slightly odd that one of the world’s most historic yacht clubs has lent its name to a run-of-the-mill limited liability company. Royal Yacht Squadron Ltd carries the vague whiff of a brass plate outside a solicitor’s office in an obscure street in Southampton rather than an historic waterfront castle in Cowes. And indeed Hamish Ross, the Auckland-based America’s Cup law expert, has suggested it may be invalid, as the original Deed of Gift stipulated that the challenge should be between the yacht clubs of different nations, and the use of a limited liability company – whatever its name - was not envisaged.

But all that seems to have been blown away this week, with a theme of the Protocol being the wish to make the America’s Cup “more inclusive”, as Ben Ainslie of INEOS Britannia put it, while Grant Dalton of defenders Team New Zealand talks of their desire to limit costs by allowing each team just one AC75 boat – the boat type is going to be used for at least the next two stagings of the cup - while sharing a certain amount of research info, incorporating some one-design features, making do with a crew of eight instead of 11, and planning to create basic boats which will cost only 60 million US dollars apiece….

Maybe so, but as Dalton admits, there’s no upper limit on expenditure, and on past experience he’s expecting that any British, Swiss and Italian challenges – to name but three - will effectively be operating on an open-ended budget. However, the scope of the event is going to be extended to include a women’s series and a youth challenge using the AC 40s. This will lengthen the period over which the 37th America’s Cup is held some time between January and September 2024, making even greater demands on the expectation of prolonged quality sailing weather at the chosen venue.

Charlie Barr (1864-1911). One of the most effective America’s Cup skippers, he commanded three successful defenders for the New York Yacht Club. In doing so, he anticipated the theme of “nationality fluidity”, as he was born in Gourock in Scotland, but his sailing career came to life when he moved to the US in 1885.

In keeping with the inescapable and essential mood of the times, there’s a new emphasis on environmental compatibility, and a high profile will be given to the fact that the official chase boats will be hydrogen-powered. This may see a very small item in the bigger picture, but those boats buzzing efficiently yet cleanly around will be seen on screen by tens of millions worldwide, and their presence will offset the images of the huge carbon footprint of building just one AC75.

DAMIAN FOXALL’S VIEW

Ireland’s own Damian Foxall has recently broadened his environmental portfolio by taking on the role of Sustainability Manager for Charlie Enright’s 11th Hour Racing, which is currently working - among other projects in marine environmental activity - towards the most sustainable possible Vendee Globe campaign.

Damian Foxall has revealed the carbon imprint of the advanced construction of today’s IMOCA 6s and AC 75s

And in typical style, Damian – who has spoken in favour of the America’s Cup coming to Ireland - crisply makes the point that building just one Vendee Globe IMOCA 60 creates as much carbon as building 105 – that’s one hundred and five - Renault cars. We can be quite sure that building the more complex AC75 has an even bigger footprint, so anything that can be done to alleviate the situation, or at least change perceptions of it, is all to the good for America’s Cup enthusiasts, as the reality is that talk of making it more inclusive and accessible doesn’t really bear examination.

For the fact is that the America’s Cup is elitist in both the most base and yet also the purest sense of the word. Supporters may indeed share in the performance achievements of their favoured crews and sailors, but beyond that it’s like suggesting that Usain Bolt fans have personally run the greatest hundred metres ever.

Admittedly at another level there is a genuine meaning to this, which the ancient Greek philosophers carried to such a height that they argued that the appreciative and knowledgeable spectator of athletics was actually morally and intellectually superior to the athletes themselves.

But with sailing being so totally a wind-powered vehicle sport, there’s an extra barrier between the usually few enough spectators and the performers, and it’s further heightened by the AC crew being anonymously clad in Formula 1-style car-racing kit. So the America’s Cup is essentially elitist and remote, for if it weren’t it would be a waste of time, and that’s all there is to it. It’s top-drawer stuff. 

NO IRISH TEAM

Thus the staging of it has become one very difficult, demanding and expensive proposition. But if it weren’t for the fact that Ireland has become involved in the venue selection process, it would be hugely entertaining to observe all this wheeler-dealing. However, with Cork apparently still in the potential lineup despite the absence of any likely Irish team, it has become a minefield for anyone in Irish sailing who dares to question the wisdom of spending tens of millions of euros of taxpayers money in developing the sort of shore base facility at the former Verolme Dockyard at Rushbrook in Cork Harbour which the 37th America’s Cup advocates suggest is essential.

Down Cork way within the sailing community, pariah status awaits anyone who doubts the good sense of Cork going hell-for-leather with high-profile public money in pursuit of this America’s Cup Venue status. It takes the greatest Leeside verbal dexterity to side-step stating clearly whether you’re for or against……

America’s Cup crew in action off Auckland, March 2021. The AC75’s need to have crews in crash helmets and protective clothing has increased the empathy gap between spectators and athletes.

But in the rest of the country’s sailing world, a sceptical viewpoint can just about survive, even if the debate about cost-effectiveness is blurred by the fact that the most recent figures from the 36th staging is Auckland must be adversely affected by the global pandemic battle.

Nevertheless, last weekend’s detailed Sunday Independent enquiry into the topic by Hugh O’Connell revealed – through use of the Freedom of Information Act - just how far back and how deeply the Irish manoeuvring behind the scenes had been and was still going on, with the analysis of released emails and other sources.

But while the relevant politicians and leading civil servants are specifically named, also involved is someone only referred to as “an Irish citizen”, who clearly played a significant role in getting Ireland on the inside track in this summer and autumn’s “one nation bidding war”, which resulted in publicly-stated demands from Grant Dalton of defenders New Zealand that Ireland should commit within six weeks.

Something very special….Grant Dalton with the America’s Cup 

Now with the protocol we see that the decision day for venue selection has been pushed way back to March 31st 2022, which suggests we’re getting into murky water. Or maybe it was rather murky water to begin with, for although most people in Irish sailing could make an educated guess as to who this “Irish citizen” is, it’s significant that Ireland’s largest newspaper stops short of naming the individual in question.

Yet there are alternative ways in which the transformation of Rushbrooke Dockyard could be funded without leaning unduly on the Irish taxpayer. For instance, there would be no better way of projecting the entrepreneurial image of Cork than a local movement to get it done through Munster funding.

Equally, the boundless resources of the might INEOS conglomerate are such that, in order to comply with the apparent need to have a non-British venue, they could simply take over the entire Rushbrook complex lock stock and barrel, re-develop it for multi-team America’s Cup use, and then after two or three stagings of the Cup (the number would probably be dependent on how well our quirky weather proves compatible with America’s Cup requirements), they sell up and move on.

Ripe for development…..the former Verolme Dockyard on Cork Harbour near Cobh.

Whatever happens, it will all add to the special and sometimes scary America’s Cup mystique. That said, we can only hope that the good people living around Cork harbour appreciate that this is contemporary capitalism and consumerism at its reddest in tooth and claw.

Yesterday (Friday’s) American Scuttlebutt included this salutary quote, attributed to a local but un-named Facebook page:

Maybe nice guys can’t win the America’s Cup

Published on November 18th, 2021

It is hard to imagine Sir Ben Ainslie, the most successful sailor in Olympic history, an A-lister at social gatherings and elbow-rubber with royalty, losing the love of Great Britain. Good looking, well-spoken, and in hot pursuit to bring the America’s Cup home, he does seem to be losing traction at home.

A glimpse of Ainslie’s’ fiery side was seen at the 2011 ISAF Sailing World Championships when he jumped out of his Finn and boarded a media boat to confront the crew before swimming back to his boat and sailing away. He was disqualified from the final races, and was nearly banned from the sport prior to the London 2012 Olympics.

After helping the USA win the 2013 America’s Cup, he launched a campaign for his country, embracing an environmental and educational platform in support of sponsors and the crown. However, it was a new team, and it made new team mistakes, failing to develop a boat capable of winning the 2017 America’s Cup.

Ainslie was ready to put the lessons to get use, but needed a bigger war chest. A chance meeting in Bermuda with Sir Jim Ratcliffe, the second richest British billionaire courtesy of his chemical company, launched a new partnership. The sailor exchanged his righteous sponsors for Ratcliffe’s INEOS, a company that’s no friend of the environment, in pursuit of the 2021 America’s Cup.

In 2015, Ainslie had set up his operations in Portsmouth, a port city on England’s south coast. The government had committed significant taxpayer money to assist the development of the team headquarters, relocating businesses to make space for the team’s buildings and facilities.

Thanks and good-bye – it’s “That Building” on the Portsmouth waterfront. 

It was deemed “a fantastic investment” by politicians, but with the results from 2021 falling short again, Ainslie and Ratcliffe are upping the effort, and that has the locals in Portsmouth screaming foul as the team is leaving the city.

Ainslie’s INEOS Britannia is now based nearly 100 miles to the north in Brackley with Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 as Ratcliffe owns a third of the F1 team and is leveraging that asset to win the Auld Mug. However, the announcement of the move has solicited a strong reaction from a local media Facebook post about the team’s departure:

Leslie Harris: “I don’t think he ever intended to stay long, that building is an eyesore.”

Tina Pink: “Another waste of tax payer’s money, should be made to pay it back!”

Rob Watkins: “Hopefully he’s taking the monstrosity of a building away with him that’s destroyed residents views!”

Other readers have added what they think should be done with the building now it is no longer being used by the team.

Rob Emery: “Knock it down and erect buildings more in keeping with the area, or use it to house the Royal Marine and other maritime museums.”

Paul Henty: “He has used the city, so if he has left who does the building belong to and whose money built it? He should definitely not profit from it, if it reverts back to the council it should be used for youth club/outward bound groups.”

Paul Threadingham: “What a waste of money which could have been spent on other areas in Portsmouth for the people of Portsmouth, not a bunch of spoilt rich boys.”
No venue has yet been set for the America’s Cup and Sir Ben is now being forced to pay £110,000-a-year rent for The Camber after pulling the sailing team from the base in June this year.

The rent is now due as a clause in the contract brings to an end the rent-free period if the building is not being mainly used for the America’s Cup.