There's never a dull moment around here.

Act 11 ended Sunday evening, and the team got a well-deserved day off on Monday. Nonetheless, your Ed. did notice several members of the design, shore and marketing teams here at the Base on Monday and still hard at it.

Everyone was back at work bright and early Tuesday morning when we launched into a series of debrief sessions on every aspect of the campaign. At the same time a number of the sailing and marketing teams are involved in a BMW TV commercial being shot this week here at the Base and out on the water.

The secrecy surrounding the shoot, which involves a prototype BMW yet to be announced, is friendly but firm. We found out first hand. As I said, never a dull moment....


The BMW video crew fitting a gyro-stabilized cam this morning to
the marketing chase boat Henri Lloyd for an on-the-water shoot
this afternoon.


Meanwhile, out on the street behind the base the camera
op gets ready to shoot the new vehicle entering the Base.


Ready, roll video, action!


Security men checking for cameras in neighboring buildings.
At first, they were not amused when they saw your Ed. nearby
with a camera.


The friendly but firm security man realizes that we are all
batting for the same team. Good thing, as otherwise he had been
getting ready to use that black cloth on your Ed.

Congrats to our team partner BMW!

After unveiling results for the first three months of 2006, BMW said it sold 332,923 cars, up 12% on a year earlier. Pre-tax profits for the first quarter jumped 58% from the 2005 figure to 1.3bn euros ($1.6bn; £894m).

"We are thus heading for the best year in our corporate history," said BMW chairman Helmut Panke.

Let's hope we (BMW ORACLE Racing) can say the same thing at the end of this year -- and next.

Full report from the BBC...

Hardly a day goes by that I do not check the c|net website for the latest technology and gadget news. Their "Weekly Hit List" of the top 20 products is a must-read for those who want to be up on the latest and best in consumer technology.

Rarely are there two cars on their Hit List at the same time, let alone two cars from the same company. This week both BMW's 2006 325 xi Sports Wagon and the 2006 550i are featured. Each receives a "spectacular" rating.

And they sound like the perfekt husband-wife car combo for Valencia. ;)


c|net's spectacularly-high rating of the 325xi is no April
Fools' Joke.

For our first-ever video post here on the BOB we present a sneak preview of the terrific new NASDAQ TV commercial that features Oracle Corp. and a prominent member of our sailing team -- Larry Ellison (USA, Afterguard and Alternate Helmsman). In this commercial Larry is helming a BMWOR Match Race 40 in San Francisco Bay. We are told the commercial will begin airing in the USA and internationally in mid-March....


"Racing to create the future." With thanks to Judy Sim and Karen Webb
for helping make this post possible.

We are sometimes asked why BMW has partnered with the AC team that carries the flag of an American yacht club. One assumes that at least part of the answer can be discerned from an AP story running today on MiamiHerald.com....


BMW produces one-millionth vehicle here

GREER, S.C. - BMW Manufacturing Co. has produced its one-millionth vehicle in South Carolina.

The blue Z4 M Roadster, which came off the line Tuesday, will be on display at the Upstate factory for several weeks before moving next door to the Zentrum museum.
On Friday, the company celebrated how far the plant has come since producing its first vehicle in 1994. It has grown from 600 employees in a 1.2 million-square-foot plant to 4,500 employees in a facility double that size.

"This is truly a remarkable milestone for this company," said Bob Nitto, vice president of corporate affairs.

The car took four days to complete, much longer than the usual 24-hour start-to-finish cycle, because BMW officials purposefully extended the production time.
"We wanted each of the departments to have a celebration along the way," said BMW spokeswoman Bunny Richardson.

Winkie Seay of Spartanburg, who works in the paint shop, said all of her co-workers wanted to touch the car as it passed through their department.

Iris Campbell, the widow of the late Gov. Carroll Campbell who is credited with bringing the plant to South Carolina, said her husband would be proud of the company's growth.

"Carroll's probably smiling down on this day," she said Friday.

Gov. Mark Sanford, who has been criticized for the state's high unemployment rate, said BMW is a leader in the state's economy. South Carolina is home to 48 BMW suppliers, he said.

Production of the Z4, the first vehicle launched at the Palmetto State plant, began in 2002. Production of the new Z4 M Roadster, Z4 Coupe and M Couple is expected to begin this spring.

"Judging by the reception so far, we expect this baby to be a very, very hot car," said Clemens Schmitz-Justen, president of BMW Manufacturing.

As CNET reviews go, few products receive a more glowing report, or higher rating. Makes us proud to be associated with the brand. Very nice ink, indeed.

The two feet of snow in NYC reminded us of this recent Times (of London) Online article by Dean Irvine....

Like all good products designed to get a bloke’s attention, there is a bit of science and technological innovation involved. The fabric of this jacket is made with 11 per cent steel, which creates a non-conductive outershell that neutralises static charges. Static, so the jacket will have us believe, is the enemy – the force that prevents us from focussing long enough to work out a cryptic crossword clue or remembering to pay the bills on time. This silver jacket also claims quite boldly to impart its performance-enhancing qualities in challenging environments and extreme conditions. Would it reveal its benefits in the challenging urban environment of South London when it’s focus-enhancing qualities were needed – doing the su doku on the Tube, playing five-a-side football and at the pub quiz, for example. A trial was needed. One with all the academic rigour of a primary school science project. [More]


Good review: the Henri Lloyd
Sullivan Parka Jacket.

Congrats to our Team Partner for a stunning performance in 2005....


BMW Group Revenues For 2005 Rise To New High
Revenues up by 5.2% to euro 46,656 million/ Earnings forecast confirmed. Sales volume expected to increase again in 2006

25 Jan 2006 -- Munich. The BMW Group has grown faster than the market as a whole and faster than all relevant competitors in the financial year 2005 and has achieved new record figures for sales volume and revenues. Group revenues rose by 5.2% to euro 46,656 million (2004: euro 44,335 million). Revenues of the Automobile segment increased by 7.8% to euro 45,861 million (2004: euro 42,544 million). The Motorcycles segment recorded revenues of euro 1,223 million (+18.9%; 2004: euro 1,029 million). Revenues of the Financial Services segment increased by 14.4% to euro 9,408 million (2004: euro 8,226 million). [More....]

Nice ink for BMW and BMW ORACLE Racing on the AutoWeek website that appeared during the North American International Auto Show that ended yesterday in Detroit....


Gilles-Martin Raget


The Ultimate Sailing Machine
BMW dives into America's cup

By JAN TEGLER

AutoWeek | Published 01/16/06, 8:23 am et

Here's a riddle. What is a German auto manufacturer doing helping an American sail team challenge the Swiss defender of sailboat racing’s biggest prize?

Two words—structural optimization.

The BMW you know—builder of benchmark sedans, heavy hitter in Formula One, and participant in sports and touring car racing—dipped its toes in sailing’s equivalent to F1 in 2002, sponsoring billionaire software mogul Larry Ellison and his Oracle Racing team. Finishing third in its challenge for the 31st America’s Cup behind Team New Zealand and winner Alinghi, Oracle will contest the 32nd America’s Cup in 2007. This time around, BMW is more deeply involved.

“Our goal was not to just be a sponsor for this campaign but to be technically engaged in the yacht design,” says Raymond Freymann, BMW Group’s director of research and technology. “We are responsible for the lightweight construction of the yachts, for structural optimization.”

[More....]

Our partner Henri Lloyd got some nice ink in a fashion article in yesterday's Daily Telegraph (subscription site, but free to register and worth the effort considering the relatively good coverage they give sailing):

There is little point in having a glamorous new gym kit if you don't have a stylish bag to carry it all in. Henri Lloyd is a company best known for providing high-performance sailing gear; it is currently the technology partner to the America's Cup BMW Oracle racing team. However, it also has a modish range of casual wear, and its bright-pink retro Jackson sports bag, £35, is an ideal holdall for gym clothes and trainers (0161 799 1212; www.henrilloydstore.co.uk).