RACE DAY 3 -- Preview Aug 27, 08:45
A noticeable pickup this morning, Saturday, in the number of punters standing outside the paddock fences looking in as the yachts are lifted from their cradles and lowered into the water by the four, huge shoreside cranes.
The number of VIPs already (08:00) in the paddock on this cool, breezy morning is up, too. More and more journos and others are referring to team bases area as "the paddock." It is a term we are borrowing from F1, which I believe they borrowed from horse racing. Regardless it seems appropriate, seeing these (forgive me) thoroughbred yachts lined up side-by-side.
And sorry to repeat, but the entire America's Cup should be set up to operationally more by way of the "paddock" we had in Marseille and have here in Malmo, and less like the way it has been with separate, fenced off bases since Freo (87 Cup, Perth, Western Australia). Have not talked with a person here who disagrees, including Scott Ferguson, Bruno Trouble, Tom Weaver, Salvatore Sarno, Christine Belanger, Hamish Ross, George Clyde, Dawn Riley, John Cutler, John Sweeney, Jean Charles Scale, Peter Harken, Paul Henderson and Luca Devoti to name but a few.
Herb McCormick, like Rich Roberts and others who have written recently of their reservations about the "new" America's Cup (as have I), need to experience the scene here first hand. Indeed, these roadshows, and the paddock, creates precisely the "the way it was" atmosphere about which they have written and still, understandably, yearn for.
Full marks to ACM and, especially, the local organizers here in Malmö-Skåne for the set-up here.
As to the racing today...
I lifted the picture below from this morning's ValenciaLife.net. Great shot. We'll credit the photog if someone can tell me who took it -- of Alinghi, during yesterday's racing, in the shadow of the "Twisted Torso" designed by Valenciano architect Santiago Calatrava. Indeed, the building will be dedicated today by Mr Calatrava, while we are racing Alinghi in the "match of the day." While it is another calm, routine day at the office, I also sense a little "let us at 'em" feeling in the air in the breakfast room and at our base this morning. Our second match is against United Internet Team Germany, and we can't be complacent about the Jesper Bank-led white boat which, while they had a tough day yesterday, at times here this week they have looked quite good.
"Twisted Torso" (the building, not
Alinghi's bowman).
Each day, in addition to everything else he has to do (requiring an 04:00 wake-up) Chris Bedford prepares a slide for the daily "morning show" we do for our VIP guests in the BMW ORACLE Team Hospitality suite at the Foredeck Club. Today's is below. Should be perfekt conditions for both races today. Still plenty of breeze, but not as much as yesterday.
"Weather porn."
Today's line-up:
Bow - Webb
Midbow - Jameson
Mast - Brooke
Pit - Gale
Port Grind - Monk
Starboard Grind - Baker
Main Grind - Spooner
Trim up - Halcrow
Trim down - Naismith
Main - Clarkson
Traveler - Westlake
Helm - Dickson
Alt Helm / Afterguard - Ellison
Tactics - Brady
Strategy - Doyle
Navigator - Burns
Aft grind - Daniel
The number of VIPs already (08:00) in the paddock on this cool, breezy morning is up, too. More and more journos and others are referring to team bases area as "the paddock." It is a term we are borrowing from F1, which I believe they borrowed from horse racing. Regardless it seems appropriate, seeing these (forgive me) thoroughbred yachts lined up side-by-side.
And sorry to repeat, but the entire America's Cup should be set up to operationally more by way of the "paddock" we had in Marseille and have here in Malmo, and less like the way it has been with separate, fenced off bases since Freo (87 Cup, Perth, Western Australia). Have not talked with a person here who disagrees, including Scott Ferguson, Bruno Trouble, Tom Weaver, Salvatore Sarno, Christine Belanger, Hamish Ross, George Clyde, Dawn Riley, John Cutler, John Sweeney, Jean Charles Scale, Peter Harken, Paul Henderson and Luca Devoti to name but a few.
Herb McCormick, like Rich Roberts and others who have written recently of their reservations about the "new" America's Cup (as have I), need to experience the scene here first hand. Indeed, these roadshows, and the paddock, creates precisely the "the way it was" atmosphere about which they have written and still, understandably, yearn for.
Full marks to ACM and, especially, the local organizers here in Malmö-Skåne for the set-up here.
As to the racing today...
I lifted the picture below from this morning's ValenciaLife.net. Great shot. We'll credit the photog if someone can tell me who took it -- of Alinghi, during yesterday's racing, in the shadow of the "Twisted Torso" designed by Valenciano architect Santiago Calatrava. Indeed, the building will be dedicated today by Mr Calatrava, while we are racing Alinghi in the "match of the day." While it is another calm, routine day at the office, I also sense a little "let us at 'em" feeling in the air in the breakfast room and at our base this morning. Our second match is against United Internet Team Germany, and we can't be complacent about the Jesper Bank-led white boat which, while they had a tough day yesterday, at times here this week they have looked quite good.
"Twisted Torso" (the building, not
Alinghi's bowman).
Each day, in addition to everything else he has to do (requiring an 04:00 wake-up) Chris Bedford prepares a slide for the daily "morning show" we do for our VIP guests in the BMW ORACLE Team Hospitality suite at the Foredeck Club. Today's is below. Should be perfekt conditions for both races today. Still plenty of breeze, but not as much as yesterday.
"Weather porn."
Today's line-up:
Bow - Webb
Midbow - Jameson
Mast - Brooke
Pit - Gale
Port Grind - Monk
Starboard Grind - Baker
Main Grind - Spooner
Trim up - Halcrow
Trim down - Naismith
Main - Clarkson
Traveler - Westlake
Helm - Dickson
Alt Helm / Afterguard - Ellison
Tactics - Brady
Strategy - Doyle
Navigator - Burns
Aft grind - Daniel
by TFE
