Paul Bieker On Some of His Oracle Design Projects
Matthew Sheahan on Yachting World pointed out the following on Paul Bieker's blog which helps support his earlier post on speed improvements made to the Oracle. Bieker has a number connections to local boats including the PT15 built by the Boat School and located at the Maritime Center. From Bieker Boats blog It was an epic battle on San Francisco Bay - ending in an eight race Oracle Team USA winning streak to win the Cup after being down 8-1 in a first to 9 event. It was a hard won regatta - both on the water and in the [...]
America’s Cup: What was Changed on Oracle
How Oracle turned their boat into the rocket ship that won the 34th America’s Cup Photo by Jan Pehrson Post by Matthew Sheahan on Yachting World Having remained in San Francisco for a few days after the end of the event, I got to speak to a number of people about what was really going on. It didn't take long for the real picture of what was behind the speed improvements to emerge. Oracle's jump in performance half way through the America's Cup is still the subject of hot debate, particularly among the New Zealand press who are [...]
PT’s Chris Sitzenstock, Two-Time Cup Winning Team Member
From the Port Townsend Leader. Annie and Chris Sitzenstock, both PTHS graduates. Photo courtesy of Annie Sitzenstock from the PT Leader Posted: Wednesday, October 2, 2013 5:00 am By Patrick J. Sullivan of the Leader Port Townsend played a role in last week’s stunningly successful defense of the 34th America’s Cup sailboat race for the oldest trophy in the history of sports. Chris Sitzenstock, Port Townsend High School Class of 1996, is now a two-time America’s Cup winner with Oracle Team USA. A number of Port Townsend marine trade businesses and individuals also have been connected in some [...]
Oracle Team USA Wins America’s Cup!
An amazing event for sailors and non-sailors alike. Amazing.
Cup Tied Up at 8 Races Each, Last Race Decides All
Just fabulous racing today finds Oracle after winning two races today tied with New Zealand at 8 races each . Great match racing, amazing boats, solid grit and it all comes down to one last race, winner takes all.
Oracle Down 2 Races Before America’s Cup Starts
By JOHN BRANCH of the NY Times, Published: September 3, 2013 SAN FRANCISCO — Oracle Team USA will begin defense of the America’s Cup on Saturday with a two-race deficit after being penalized for prohibited modifications to its racing yachts in 2012. Oracle will begin the best-of-17 event with a score of minus 2. To capture the America’s Cup, Oracle will have to win 11 races. The challenger, Emirates Team New Zealand, will need to win nine. A five-member jury of the International Sailing Federation also barred a veteran Oracle sailor, the wing trimmer Dirk de Ridder, and two shore [...]
AC Idea, It’s Not Too Late to Switch to Moore 24’s
Former Bay Area Express 27 sailor Larry Fisher sent this along with a note saying, ” My feelings exactly. Of course I would have suggested Express 27’s!” From In the Present Sea. It’s not too late to switch to a more compelling boat and save this Cup. Evanston: GANNET Wins America’s Cup By chance Saturday afternoon I happened across television coverage of the first race of the challenger finals for the America’s Cup. I deliberately don’t say ‘live’ coverage, because it was mostly dead. How you can spend a hundred million dollars, have a team the size of [...]
New Zealand Protest Could Affect the America’s Cup…Forever
Published on July 1st, 2013 in Scuttlebutt | by Editor With so much promise, so much build-up, so desperate a desire to put the America’s Cup on a stage where it can draw unprecedented interest, the last thing the organizers want to hear is bad news. With the start on July 7, it must now be all about good news. But the news is not all good. Scuttlebutt’s legal analyst Cory E. Friedman has prepared a detailed tour of the facts which have led to the current Emirates Team New Zealand protest that could change the face of the America’s [...]
AC History
Long, but good.
Millions Spent on Cup Techonology Begins to Trickle Down
Next week, cars that fly. From Wired magazine. Some day, our whole life will be on foils. Maybe. Frank Rinderknecht never set out to be the Willy Wonka of the automotive world. The mad scientist of motoring started out importing sunroofs into Europe. Then he tried his hand outfitting cars for handicapped drivers. Then he started modifying Porsches and helping a few German automakers with R&D. It was all normal enough. But then something snapped and he started doing things like building scuba-diving sports cars. Rinderknecht discovered his penchant for the absurd 40 years ago. In the years [...]
Team Emirates/NZ and Luna Rossa Line Up
On Sunday, New Zealand Herald sports editor Paul Lewis was guest onboard the Kiwi AC72 for some practice racing against Luna Rossa. Impressive how little spray these boats make while foiling as opposed to V1 of the Oracle boat.
Oracle Racing Resumes Flight Tests
click for large image Meanwhile, back on the other bay (San Francisco), Oracle Racing, after a spectacular crash of their Cup boat #1 that ended with it drifting under the Golden Gate and out into the Pacific, managed to do a six-month repair job in three and one-half months and relaunched. She's back out testing with a couple of noticeable differences: beefier cross beams and less twist in the hulls, deeper rudders, cockpits for the the grinders and helmsman, and two bright red wheels. Having to steer the boat with what looked like a very expensive tiller extension [...]
Riding shotgun on Emirates Team NZ’s AC72 at 43.6kts
With ORACLE in the shed after a capsize that smashed the wing and tore up the hulls, and ARTEMIS and LUNA ROSA just getting started, Emirates Team New Zealand is looking stronger every day. Richard Gladwell reports from the Hauraki Gulf after a sail topping 43 knots on just how strong they are. 'Sail-World’s Richard Gladwell (red wet weather gear) , checks out the wingsail twist as Emirates Team New Zealand’s AC72 rips across the Hauraki Gulf at speeds of over 40kts' Chris Cameron/ETNZ© Sail-World.com's NZ and America's Cup Editor, Richard Gladwell, spent three hours perched on the [...]
AC World Series Lights Up San Francisco Bay
Oracle 17 foils for the first time. With rebuilt foils, Oracle 17 was back on the Bay Tuesday and foiled for the first time. Interesting video of rebuilding the foils from the big tri from the last Cup to replace this versions broken foils here. Now it's time to put away the big toys and celebrate one more week of the America's Cup World Series in AC 45's. The Thursday through Sunday fleet and match races will once again be available on YouTube live, and available for replays. The racing is scheduled at: Thursday, Oct. 4 12:25-12:55 pm [...]
ORACLE TEAM USA Wins Both Fleet and Match Racing Championships at ACWS / SF
Score a double for ORACLE TEAM USA, as Jimmy Spithill has won the fleet racing championship of ACWS San Francisco after stablemate Russell Coutts won the match racing championship earlier today. Spithill had to claw his way back through the fleet to ensure the victory, which was by 1 point over Luna Rossa Piranha (Chris Draper). Draper won the fleet race finale by 3 seconds over Spithill, which rounded the final reach mark in 3rd place. But Spithill was able to get a penalty on Team Korea (Nathan Outteridge), which was in 2nd place. Team Korea had to slow down [...]
“This style of racing, you’re going to get a bit of crash and burn evey once and a while.”
Sometimes, even if the guy works for you, there's no room at the Committee boat.
Live AC World Series / San Francisco Starts Thursday
Copyright ACEA 2012 / Photo: Gilles Martin-Raget. Almost as exciting as PACEMAKER, RAMBLE and RAVEN rounding the tower together Wednesday night. Looked just like this. Racing on Thursday through Sunday (2:00 pm PDT start time from Thursday through Saturday and at 11:30 am PDT on Sunday) will be broadcast live around the world on the America’s Cup YouTube channel (subject to territorial broadcast restrictions). On television, coverage is available Thursday through Saturday throughout the Bay Area on NBC Bay Area 11.2, and in California on Comcast Sportsnet California. The Sunday finale will be broadcast live, coast to coast [...]
AC World Series / San Francisco features 11 crews, 55 sailors and a new format
Featuring a new team, more boats and more sailors the second season of the America’s Cup World Series is scheduled to begin Wednesday, Aug. 22, at ACWS San Francisco. The entry list of eight teams includes Artemis Racing (SWE), China Team (CHN), Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL), Energy Team (FRA), J.P. Morgan BAR (GBR), Luna Rossa Challenge 2013 (ITA), ORACLE TEAM USA (USA) and Team Korea (KOR). The fleet now numbers 11 boats with Artemis Racing, Luna Rossa Challenge and ORACLE TEAM USA each fielding two crews, and the return of China Team. At this regatta there are 55 sailors [...]
America’s Cup in Naples, Day 1 Highlights
Wild, bear away at the windward mark, bury bows, do an endo (or is that just a broach?), destroy wing. The program for Thursday starts with Match Racing, the pairings determined by today's results, followed by two Fleet Races. Racing begins at 1330 CEST (04:30 PDT). Check here or here to watch.
America’s Cup 34, a tech overview
The media presentation of sailboat racing has forever changed based on the work done for the 34th Cup races. It's really excellent and if you haven't seen it you can replay the races on YouTube here. At the center of those changes is Stan Honey, well known sailor, navigator and electronics wizard. The first down lines super imposed on the TV show football field, Stan's work. Nascar car tracking and data, Stan's work. And now he has brought that technical expertise to help clarify and explain his own sport, sailing. From the Panbo electronics blog, a review of the equipment [...]
Highlights – Seeding, San Diego Match Racing Championships
Fleet racing qualifiers for the San Diego America's Cup Match Races.
America’s Cup Carnage, race 7
Looks like the wind was up for race 7, cats flipping like fish.
America’s Cup World Series – Plymouth, Race 2
If you get a chance, check out the live web coverage of the America's Cup World Series. The multi-camera live coverage with Stan Honey's integrated graphics is terrific, and the level of physical effort required of the sailors in race day 2's 30 mph winds is incredible. If the 45 footers put on this show, it's hard to image the show the 72' Cup boat will put on. One thing does seem certain: the Cup - and sailboat racing - will never be the same.
Catamarans Crashing, Cup Preview
More evidence of how stock car racing and sailing are becoming one.
AC Action: Going, going, gone!
http://youtu.be/ddZNDavV4Y4
30 Knots, No Problem Mate
"When asked whether the new multi hull was a handful in 25 knots, Oracle Racing Skipper Jummy Spithill's enthusiasm spilled over, “It’s awesome mate! I think we’ll be able to race these in 30 knots and it will be a handful. Who knows, maybe there will be a few boats who will be right on the edge and perhaps someone will capsize one, but look, that’s what I think the sport is all about, it needs to have that element of risk…" Read the entire story on "Sailblast" here More pictures from the gallery "AC45 : testing the [...]
AC45 Wing-Sailed Catamaran Under Sail in Auckland
First sail, rumored 23 knots in 10 knots of wind for the new winged Cup trainer.
San Francisco to Host America’s Cup in 2013
Bloomberg News is reporting that the Cup will be held in San Francisco. Dec. 31 (Bloomberg) — Larry Ellison will defend the America’s Cup in 2013 off San Francisco, the first U.S. city to stage the international sailing competition in almost two decades, the America’s Cup Event Authority said. Ellison’s Oracle Racing team selected San Francisco Bay as the Cup’s home waters after also holding talks with Newport, Rhode Island, Stephanie Martin, a spokeswoman for the Cup organization, said today in an e-mail. The team won the right to choose the next venue for the 159-year-old regatta by capturing yachting’s [...]
Dhow Racing in Dubai
Filed under wooden boat racing. Interesting looking hull when you see it on the trailer. Look for some exciting upcoming information about next year's PTSA sponsored racing series for our local wood boats.
New Cup Rules May Include Jousting
From the Louis Vuitton Trophy in Dubai. As they say, "That will buff right out."
San Francisco takes big step toward hosting the America’s Cup
By: BERNIE WILSON,Associated Press The chances of the next America's Cup being sailed with a backdrop of the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz and the Coit Tower improved dramatically Tuesday. City officials finalized a host city agreement with the Golden Gate Yacht Club, which backs America's Cup defender BMW Oracle Racing. The agreement quickly was submitted to the Board of Supervisors, which must approve it. Six of the 11 supervisors are co-sponsors of the agreement. The Board of Supervisors voted 9-2 on Oct. 5 to approve a term sheet that was a precursor to a host city agreement. The [...]
Is This the Future of the America’s Cup?
Reflecting the trades of the folks aboard, there is lots of car chatter on my boat. When it comes to racing, while the majority tend to praise the beauty of Formula 1, some of us raised in the desert watching the Unser's - fathers, sons, grandsons - flip sprint cars in the dust of a New Mexico night tend to champion a little more action. Sprint cars may lack the elegance of a perfect Formula 1 race, but they are a heck of a lot less boring. Which seems to be the thought behind Coutts and Ellison's revision of the [...]
Fast, spectacular, wingsail catamaran unveiled for 34th America’s Cup
The draft rule for the spectacular AC72 Class has been published, following the announcement on 13 September that a catamaran would be used for the 34th America’s Cup. Encapsulating the 34th America’s Cup – the best sailors in the world on the fastest boats – the AC72 will be a physically demanding boat capable of top speeds twice the windspeed. The new AC72 class is the first-ever wingsail catamaran class for the America’s Cup and the fastest-ever class in the iconic 159-year-old competition. It replaces the ACC monohull class, which was created in 1988 and first raced in [...]