America’s Cup 2003
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Louis Vuitton Challenger Series Oct ’02 – Jan ‘03America’s Cup Feb – Mar ‘03Hauraki Gulf, Auckland, New Zealand We arrived in Auckland in time to see some of the Louis Vuitton Races and the America’s Cup. There is a certain air about the city as everyone gets into the action. 11/29, Auckland, New Zealand 36 49.259 S, 174 45.895 E, Bayswater Marina, Auckland, New
Zealand To catch up a little bit... On Sunday we went to the car fair and bought a car, a 1991
Subaru Legacy. It should be sufficient to get us around for the next 6 months
or so. The following day we changed the registration, done at the post office
for $9.20NZ and got insurance. A relatively simple process. We are now hooked up to electricity and have an inspection
certificate that should be good in Australia as well. Unlimited power! Now we
can start using the freezer again. Most days we do chores in the morning and then watch the
races on the TV in the marina lounge. It is fun to see the action. Today we
went over to the America's Cup area where all of the syndicates are located
near Hobson's Marina. Here all of the super yachts are docked, including
Larry Ellison's Katana. Too bad Katana looks like a cross between the Vashon
ferry and a Hamster Habitat. Anyway, we went to the Loaded Hog, had lunch and
watched the race on the big screen TV. It was fun to watch One World beat
Team Stars & Stripes. We hope that the legal battling goes away also. It
is quite a distraction.
Katana, a cross between the Vashon ferry and a hamster habitat After the races we walked through the syndicate area.
Mostly there are just shops for buying logo clothing and coffee cups, etc. At
the Alinghi syndicate they have an interactive exhibit. Outside there is a
layout of their boat and an explanation of the crew positions. At one booth
where you can test yourself on a coffee grinder winch versus a pro. At
another booth there is a bow section of the boat and it moves. You are
supposed to take a halyard and move to the front of the bow and clip the
shackle onto a ring, while the bow in rocking and pitching and you are
sprayed with water. If course there are no hand holds or toe rails but there
is a trampoline to fall onto if you lose your balance. Sarah tried first and
was pitched over the side before she made it to the ring. Rich tried next and
went head over heels. I tried and managed to get the halyard clipped on the
ring and start to move back off the bow before I fell off. Must be the
practice I had as foredeck! There was a software simulator where you could
match race against another. It was Sarah versus Rich. Rich had a good start
and they were close at the first mark but Sarah broached on the downwind leg
and Rich crossed the line for the win. Must be his downwind driving
experience!
Entry to Alinghi compound
Sarah tries to attach halyard on the moving bow
Rich falls off but he still has the halyard
Elaine attaches the halyard but has problems moving back off the bow As we walked back through the Cup area we saw Team Stars and Stripes coming in. Everyone was clapping and cheering. We walked by the Victory Challenge compound and there were many tears. The boat of Mascalazone Latino is ready for shipment. Le Defi is still practicing on the Gulf but not for much longer. GBR is practicing also.
Sarah and Rich going in the One World team shop
Mascalazone Latino boat packed for shipment home We look forward to more of the Louis Vuitton Cup and then
the America's Cup. We plan to go out on one of the spectator boats to see at
least one race. It should be exciting. More adventures await... 12/20, Auckland, New Zealand 36 49.259 S, 174 45.895 E, Bayswater Marina, Auckland, New
Zealand On Sunday we celebrated Sarah's 15th birthday. Jesse made
pizza with Sarah's fabulous pizza sauce and we watched the Blues Brothers
movie. It is hard to believe she is 15 already. We don't dare tell her that
the driving age here in New Zealand is 15. Shhh! On Tuesday we took the sails off and sent them to Lidgard
here in Auckland. They will check them over and do some minor repairs and
maintenance. We are pleased with the sails. They have been well used!
One World boats being towed to the race course, all that money and they don’t even have an engine! Today Rich and I treated ourselves. We joined the folks from Tauranga, Mark and Terri, Veritas, Tony and Linda, and Mobisle, Dave, and went out on the One World Spectator boat to see the race. We went to the One World compound, waited at the hospitality suite as the two boats went out to the course. We waved and cheered on the team. Once they had left we got on board the double deck catamaran and went out to the racecourse passing by the mega yachts. It was a wonderful sunny day but the winds were light but there was food and an open bar. After the start we moved to the windward and before the last leg we went down to the finish line. It was interesting to watch the boats maneuver in the starting box even in the light airs. Even though One World did not win (should have covered after the start and after rounding the last mark, Mr. Gilmore!) it was a fun day with some fun people. We all cheered for One World. Hope they will win the next races! Sailing is serious stuff here, especially if you are
reading the intrigue in the papers. At least they have stopped criticizing
One World and no more Dennis Conner. But then again, this is the Louis
Vuitton, America's Cup races! 1/17, Auckland, New Zealand 36 49.259 S, 174 45.895 E, Bayswater Marina, Auckland, New
Zealand Every so often an opportunity presents itself that you just
can not pass up. Today was just such an opportunity. We were invited to go
watch race #5 of the Louis Vuitton finals, Alinghi vs. Oracle on the
schooner, Tree of Life. What made this special is the Tree of Life, the owners John
and Sherry and their crew. Tree of Life is a Ted Brewer designed two mast
sailboat, with three head sails reaching off the bowsprit, a gaff rigged main
and mizzen and a top gallant with the emblem of a tree on it. The boat is 11
years old and made of Northwest Spruce with a fiberglass coating. It is
immaculate and well cared for. The galley is done in maple to endure heavy
use. The salon in Hawaiian koa (no long available) with plenty of
spaciousness and a 48-inch diagonal plasma screen TV mounted on the wall. The
boat weighs in at 82 tons and cruises at 10 knots. She sailed from the
Galapagos to Easter Island in 9 days.
Tree of Life
John and Sherry are from Rhode Island and left last year on
their around the world cruise. Their four children are in college. They were
originally having a custom trawler built for them but went to the used boat
show and saw the Tree of Life for sale and they fell in love with her. They
have 6 crewmembers including Kiwis, Aussies, a South African and a Scotsman.
They are more like family who sail and maintain the boat for John and Sherry.
Before and during the race we sailed around the starting
line and along the course. Jesse and I helped raise the mainsail - huff,
puff, no power winches! Heave ho and up it goes (grunt, grunt). This was
sailing the old fashioned way. Helicopters buzzed by looking for shots before
the race began. We cruised through the spectator fleet of over a 100 boats of
various shapes, sizes and prize tags; from Larry Ellison's Katana (up for
sail for $68M USD) to small runabouts. The weather was beautiful and the
winds at the 15+ knot range. When we could not see the competition directly
we could go down and watch it on the TV.
Jesse and Elaine raising the mainsail
Jesse taking it easy before the race We were joined by an interesting group of people. Besides us,
were Keith and Susan of C'est Le Vie, John and Ariana of By Chance as well as
Veronica and her husband, a Kiwi couple, Ulrich and Felicitas of Switzerland
(you know who they were routing for), Ross, another Kiwi, wearing a Team New
Zealand shirt (you know who he was routing for), a woman from Sweden and her
boyfriend plus a few others I don't remember their names. Katie, the cook,
made some delicious sandwiches, chicken, Brie and cranberry relish to
describe one type. There was great conversation, beautiful weather, nice
sailing and a fun race to watch. If you get a chance to watch the televised race on replay
in the States for race #5 and you see a two masted sailboat, sailing in the
background with a top gallant and a huge American flag, that was us. Look for
us waving to the cameras! Cheers |
