Oracle wins early America's Cup advantage

BY KENT GRAY IN VALENCIA

Last updated 09:35 08/02/2010

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ON ONE WING: BMW Oracle completes final preparations for the America's Cup off Valencia.

FULL SAIL: Alinghi completes final preparations for the America's Cup off Valencia.

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BMW Oracle Racing gained an early psychological edge as intrigue, secrecy and stress – the usual suspects - marked the final countdown to the 33rd America’s Cup off Valencia overnight.

The US-syndicate won the much desired starboard tack entry for the opening race of the best-of-three Deed of Gift match following a coin toss at the official opening ceremony between the commodores of San Francisco’s challenging Golden Gate Yacht Club and Switzerland’s defending Société Nautique de Genève (Alinghi).

It hands Oracle right of way honours for the scheduled 10pm (NZ time) start, putting helmsman James Spitall in pole-position to force a pre-start penalty if the teams opt to engage in a traditional match-racing dial up.

A pre-start duel could prove the decisive act of the entire regatta as a syndicate forced to labour their giant multihull through a 360 degree penalty turn would struggle to recover while their rival sails away at more than 20 knots (37kmh).

Forecast six to eight knot (11-14kmh) sou-westerlies make racing likely tonight although Aucklander Harold Bennett, the principal race officer, privately hasn’t dismissed a delayed start to the 40 nautical mile windward-leeward course to allow a predicted south-easterly wind shift settle in.

Meanwhile, the make-up of the respective crews remained a closely guarded secret as the headline hungry international media corp swelled dramatically at the Port America’s Cup's media centre yesterday (there have been 600 accreditations issued). For unknown reasons, both syndicates have decided to delay naming their line-ups until just before the boats are towed out onto the race course as early as 7am local time (7pm NZ time).

It is understood Oracle chief executive and skipper Russell Coutts will not be aboard USA-17, the American syndicates giant trimaran with its 68m (220ft) tall wing sail. But there will be plenty of Kiwi influence in the intriguing showdown between the fastest, most powerful and technologically advanced race yachts in history.

Matthew Mason is believed to be a starter for Oracle who are expected to carry a crew of 12-14. Alinghi are tipped to sail with a crew of 10 including skipper and tactician Brad Butterworth, strategist Murray Jones, trimmers Warwick Fleury and Simon Daubney and fellow Kiwis Dean Phipps, Rodney Arden and Peter Evans.

Along with the usual intrigue over pre-race favouritism, stress was a common emotion overnight as officials unveiled media and spectator craft restrictions.

Multihulls this big have never engaged in a match-race so officials have taken a cautious approach by setting a minimum 800m wide start-finish line and a four nautical mile exclusion zone around the yachts. That is a mammoth buffer given the legs for the last multi-challenger America’s Cup – sailed off Valencia in 2007 – were two nautical miles long.

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The combination of a race course that could extend 40nm (74km) offshore and a 25nm limit placed on the official media boat means journalists and photographers may be better off covering the race from the media centre.

That didn’t go down well with the assembled press corp but these are no ordinary boats and this is no ordinary America’s Cup. Simply keeping up with yachts that have been clocked at more than three times the speed of the wind is a headache for on-the-water race officials and television.

Faced with that issue and the challenge of getting a signal back to shore for an estimated international audience of two billion viewers, the host broadcaster has hired a fixed wing plane to circle the course at 27,000 feet (8230m). It will relay the pictures captured by two helicopters that will follow the yachts nearer sea level; there will actually be three helicopters rotating between the race course and refuelling stops given the distances they have to cover and the estimated four hour race time.

As international jury technical advisor Sebastien Destremau said:''The umpires are stressing out, the race committee is stressing out, we’re stressing out [the jury], you [media] are stressed out with us – we're all stressed together.''

But soon the stress will make way for pre-race excitement and intrigue. Promotional banners adorning the streets of Valencia trumpet ''Bring it on''. After more than two years of legal wrangling, bring it on indeed.

* Kent Gray is the editor of Boating New Zealand magazine.

- © Fairfax NZ News

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