Oracle Team USA delivers the knock-out punch to defeat Emirates Team NZ

“This is it! Work your arses off!” –Ben Ainsle

ORACLE TEAM USA won the 34th America’s Cup in a winner-take-all 19th race, defeating challenger Emirates Team New Zealand by 44 seconds in today’s clincher. Led by 35-year-old skipper Jimmy Spithill, ORACLE TEAM USA won by the score of 9-8.

OTUSA Wins! © ACEA / PHOTO GILLES MARTIN-RAGET

This is the second America’s Cup win for ORACLE TEAM USA and Spithill, which won the 162-year-old trophy in Valencia, Spain, in February 2010. Then 30 years of age, Spithill became the youngest to ever skipper a Cup winning team.

In the past week ORACLE TEAM USA has steadily improved its boatspeed to the point where it could hydrofoil upwind at 30-32 knots, incredible performance never seen before in the America’s Cup.

“It was a fantastic race. We wouldn’t have it any other way,” said Spithill, the two-time Cup winner. “We came from behind, the guys showed so much heart. On your own you’re nothing, but a team like this can make you look great… We were facing the barrel of a gun at 8-1 and the guys didn’t even flinch.

“Thanks to San Francisco, this is one hell of a day,” Spithill said.

Jimmy’s cup runneth over.

ORACLE TEAM USA’s victory marks one of the most improbable comebacks in the history of sport. The team won 11 races to score the 9 points required for victory due to a penalty imposed by the International Jury. Just last Wednesday, Sept. 18, ORACLE TEAM USA trailed the series 8-1. With the challenger on match point, the defender closed out the series with eight consecutive victories.

This was the third time in the history of the America’s Cup with a winner-take-all final race. Previously, the defender won in 1920 and the challenger won in 1983. Both times the winner rallied from a multi-race deficit, but never anything amounting to eight straight wins.

“This was a wonderful match of teams,” said Regatta Director Iain Murray, who’s been involved with the America’s Cup since 1983. “In the case of a boat coming from behind, 3-1 down as was the case with Australia II in 83, the shoe is on a different foot this time around. Then it was the challenger behind and this time it was the defender. But in the end we had great competition between two great teams, evenly matched, battling it out to the end.”

One million fans visited the official America’s Cup venues at Piers 27/29 and Marina Green since they opened on July 4, and hundreds of thousands more lined the shores of San Francisco Bay to catch a glimpse of the flying, foiling AC72.

Oracle TeamUSA takes their victory lab around San Francisco Bay.

34th America’s Cup Standings (first to 9 points wins)

• ORACLE TEAM USA – 9 (11 wins; ORACLE TEAM USA was penalized its first two victories by the International Jury)
• Emirates Team New Zealand – 8

Race 19 Performance Data

• Course: 5 Legs/10.07 nautical miles
• Elapsed Time: OTUSA – 23:24, ETNZ – 24:08
• Delta: OTUSA +:44
• Total distance sailed: OTUSA – 11.9 NM, ETNZ – 12.2 NM
• Average Speed: OTUSA – 30.55 knots (35 mph), ETNZ – 30.55 knots (35 mph)
• Top Speed: OTUSA – 44.33 knots (51 mph), ETNZ – 45.72 knots (53 mph)
• Windspeed: Average – 18.2 knots, Peak – 21.3 knots
• Number of Tacks/Jibes: OTUSA – 9/7, ETNZ – 9/7

From AmericasCup.com

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Sting to Headline at New America’s Cup Pavilion on Pier 27/29 in SF

America’s Cup Pavilion Set to Open on Piers 27/29

World-renowned Musician Sting to Perform on June 2

The America’s Cup and Live Nation are proud to present the America’s Cup Concert Series at the America’s Cup Pavilion, located between Piers 27/29.   The America’s Cup Pavilion will host multiple events in the summer of 2013 in San Francisco’s first outdoor, waterfront concert venue.

Sting, the multi-Grammy award winning musician is the first headline act to be announced. Tickets for the concert, part of the critically acclaimed Back to Bass world tour, will go on sale beginning Friday, February 22nd at 10am at Ticketmaster.com. Additional events will be announced throughout the concert season that runs through October.

The America’s Cup Concert Series is a major live entertainment initiative in support of the America’s Cup Park on the Embarcadero, intended to create a vibrant, public space with a full range of activities for sailors and non-sailors alike.

The new, temporary, 9,000 seat venue will be centered in the America’s Cup Park on Piers 27/29 and will host a wide range of events including concerts, family shows, community and business events, comedy, as well as America’s Cup race activities and viewing sessions.

The America’s Cup Park at Piers 27/29 on the Embarcadero is the center of event activities during the 34th America’s Cup in San Francisco. This is where fans will find team bases, interactive exhibits, food and beverage courts, as well as shops featuring their favorite team gear. This is also the place to come on race days for the Dock-In and Dock-Out shows, as well as team and guest hospitality.

The America’s Cup Concert Series will run throughout the summer of 2013 and coincide with the Louis Vuitton Cup (the America’s Cup Challenger Series), the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup and the America’s Cup Finals.

“The America’s Cup is one of the world’s great sporting events and by partnering with Live Nation we can create a fun atmosphere with both entertainment and educational opportunities in the family-friendly environment of the America’s Cup Park,” said Stephen Barclay, CEO of the 34^th America’s Cup. “San Francisco’s storied music history is part of the fabric of this great community and we plan to continue to celebrate music and culture as part of the America’s Cup.”

“We’re honored to partner with an event as prestigious as the America’s Cup to bring an exciting new entertainment venue to San Francisco,” said Jodi Goodman, President of Live Nation Northern California. “An outdoor venue in the City of San Francisco is long overdue.   The America’s Cup Park will truly add to our rich San Francisco culture and bring more value to our City and its waterfront.”

The stage and seating on Piers 27/29 will allow America’s Cup organizers to host a range of both ticketed and non-ticketed events. In addition to a full music line-up, the amphitheatre will offer daytime shows featuring educational topics themed around the America’s Cup and race viewing opportunities on a large screen.

Construction is set to begin in spring of 2013 with the first events anticipated by mid-May 2013 and running through October 2013.

The next Louis Vuitton Cup, America’s Cup Challenger Series (July-August 2013), leading to the America’s Cup Finals (September 2013), will be held for the first time in San Francisco Bay, a natural sailing arena, in AC72 wing sail catamarans.

 

Courtesy of America’s Cup.com

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Best Boating iPad Apps of 2012

12 Apps – On 12:12:12 – to Make Your Time on the Water Great! 

(Just updated!)

By Nancy Birnbaum

It seems like there are five times as many apps for boating enthusiasts than there were when I wrote my first annual “Best Boating Apps” review, back in 2009.

Boaters are catching the wave and diving into the App Store for everything from navigation & charting to basic communications apps for their iPads, and Apple says that they’ve sold over 100 million of them since they first hit the market. With over 12,175,900 registered vessels in the U.S. alone, I wouldn’t be surprised to find that a few million boaters now use a mobile device of some kind. Fortunately for those who have climbed onboard the mobile tech boat, there are some terrific new apps ready to make boating even more fun and safe.

The biggest change over the past year for handheld devices is the number of apps now available that connect to NMEA data via WiFi and TCIP.  Which reminds me of the top question readers ask me, “How can I interface my boats’ systems to my iPad?” Some great news for the techie-types who want to virtually “run” their boat from the palm of their hand.

Many developers like Digital Yachts, Zapf, Ocean Equipment and ShipModul, have brought this capability to the world of iOS, thereby allowing data from instruments like wind and speed, as well as AIS and radar to be streamed to a laptop over WLAN or over WiFi to an iOS device. Note: You must have a device (such as Digital Yacht’s iAIS or SeaMate1A) that will get your NMEA data from your boat’s network to your various i-devices. But the good news is that it’s getting easier to integrate and the new apps are really well designed.

Here are a few for your consideration:

NAVIGATION

Garmin BlueChart Mobile
Garmin International
Free (Charts are available via in-app purchase and range from $29.99 -$69.99)

Just released in November 2012, BlueChart Mobile is the next level of Charting for boaters with iPads. It does what most of the top Nav apps do, like use the same BlueChart data available for Garmin chartplotters right on your iPad, but that’s where the similarities end and the amazing design takes you on a whole new voyage to charting heaven. The first big new element is the download interface. With BlueChart Mobile, once you’ve got your chart (via the easy in-app purchase), you’re offered a large-scale view of the area (say North America), with a simple grid overlay. By clicking on a specific box you can choose which areas to download—a great space-saver for your device. Zoom into to see chart features and overlays for weather conditions, (temps, wind direction/speed) grib info and ActiveCaptain content overlaid on the chart data.

One drawback: The new Garmin app does not support NMEA or AIS or any of the WiFi units mentioned here. Plus, you’ll have to buy iPad charts even though you may already have charts for your Garmin chart plotter.

BlueChart Mobile has ActiveCaptain inside! For those of you not already using it, ActiveCaptain is a web community that provides real-time content generated by mariners, for mariners. It’s a virtual cruising guide that never goes out of date. Read and write reviews about marinas, local boating knowledge, anchorages and hazards. More than 100,000 boaters write reviews and update the information on ActiveCaptain—with more users joining all the time. Best Feature: It’s seriously difficult to pick just one favorite feature on this terrific app, but it may just be the cool info wheels that pop-up when you click on any icon from the ActiveCaptain overlay or hazard. It’s just a really fun interface!

RayControl
Raymarine UK
Free

If you’re lucky enough to have Raymarine electronics onboard you’ll want to have this handy app on your iPad that lets you display everything from you e-Series or c-Series Multi-function Display (v 315 or later).

Even better than RayView, RayControl puts your iPad in the driver’s seat. Use it just as you would your Multi-function Display, with touch screen interaction and a virtual slide-out MFD keypad. Chart plotting, depth/Fishfinder, engine systems, radar, even view video from any installed cameras. Uses onboard WiFi network.

SEAiq Open/ SEAiq USA
Sakhalin, LLC
Free (Charts are available via in-app purchase). The USA version is $9.99 with free charts from NOAA

What makes one Nav app stand apart from all the others? In the case of the new SEAiq, it’s the ability to view always up-to-date vector charts of the USA; however the free versions do limit you to only displaying charts of scales greater than 1:50,000 until you purchase the upgrade.  Vector charts offer more detail and faster scrolling than Raster.  SEAiq Open is unique for allowing users to install their own charts, including S-57, S-63, and CM93 charts, which means that you don’t have to purchase the same charts you’ve already bought a few times over. Though the interface is less than ideal (transfer chart files via iTunes), it is another great benefit not found in other nav apps.

You’ll need a fast connection to set it up the first time. SEAiq Free and SEAiq Open are among the few navigation apps with a useful free version. All the versions offer some good bells & whistles including ActiveCaptain, WiFi NMEA, AIS, and night color modes. You’ll need a fast connection for the set up. I found it took quite some time to download charts or transfer ActiveCaptain data and wished that it could have done it in the background while I went on with other things.  Best Feature: ActiveCaptain interface and support of external NMEA/AIS over WiFi. In fact, according to the creator of SEAiq Mark Hayden (a sailor and delivery captain), it is the ONLY charting app of those reviewed here that supports NMEA and AIS over WiFi and TCP. “The SEAiq AIS is good enough that professional pilots that board 1000ft freighters use it,” says Mark.

 

SHIP’S SYSTEM INTEGRATION

On-Board
ONboard Solutions
Free

It used to be that your ship’s library held all your various manuals, cruising guides and any “fun” reading took up whatever space remained. Thank goodness that ONboard came to the rescue with a great app that organizes all your boating-related reading into one really small digital space. On-Board gives you the ability to integrate and display your boat’s documents, photos, videos- both personal and from your yacht’s manufacturer, dealer or mechanic.

Get real time info from your boat’s manufacturer. Need to search for how to prime your fuel system? You can search your manuals and find it fast. Manage all your important records like maintenance, registration, insurance, financing, warranties and claims. Plus you can even manage your online subscriptions to your favorite boating pub right from the app. Best Feature: Getting your own unique email address at yourname@yacht.com!

 

SAFETY

iAIS
Digital Yacht
Free

This is the newest AIS plotter in the App Store and it’s by a UK company that seems to be putting out some pretty good onboard interface apps. AIS is great for anyone boating in crowded areas or for those curious about who’s out there. Any vessel that has a registered AIS device will show up with their name, vessel details, course, speed and direction which can be helpful when you’re in high-traffic anchorages or bays. Best Feature: iAIS also can be used as an overlay with iNavX. Now that’s handy!

 

 

Float Plan
Big Tuna Apps
$0.99

Everyone responsible boater knows that it’s always prudent to file a Float Plan before you depart on your trip no matter how long you expect to be out. This new app, which runs on most Apple & Android devices, will save you time due to the easy interface and ability to email a pre-filled plan to anyone you choose. Though, I found it a little clumsy in my test of the app, specifically when trying to check off selections in lists like Safety gear. One improvement would be to have a default save New Trip, so you don’t have to check that (something I didn’t see until it was too late!).

A sample floatplan that can be sent via email to your list.

 

WEATHER 

PocketGrib
Nicko Brennan
$5.99

It’s one thing to be able to get good weather info while you’re out there on your boat, but knowing how to interpret that info is an entirely different thing. With PocketGrib you can access, view and analyze global weather data (with a connection of course) and then display that info even when you’re offline.

See wind speed, direction, precip, air temp, waves, current, and forecasts. Grib data is supplied by NOAA’s GFS model and is updated 4 times per day or every 6 hours. Best feature: GRIB files can be downloaded to your PC via iTunes, which means that if you’re cruising with a personal forecaster service, you can view your Gribs using PocketGrib! Best Feature: This app is very well designed, easy to use and super fast.

 

 

 

Intellicast Boating for iPad
WSI Corporation
$4.99

It now easy to get the best weather info right on your chart with Intellicasts’ Boating for iPhone/iPad. Integrates NOAA nav charts with advanced meteorological data just like their website offers. Lots of overlay options from Radar to Satellite, Wind Speed to Temps, and NWS Marine Forecasts (Offshore) and Tides. Even track Hurricanes. Best Feature: Very handy and easy to see on the iPad’s retina display. Note: a cellular or WiFi connection is needed.

 

COOL TOOLS & FUN, USEFUL APPS

Dropbox
Dropbox, Inc.
Free

Not too many years ago, you either had to take your laptop with you ashore to send or receive email or better yet, take a tiny thumb drive, like we did in remote ports in Baja. Now there’s Dropbox. This handy app runs on any device and allows you to keep files of any kind in the “cloud.” That way you can access them from anywhere, either via the app or via your account on their website. The free account comes with 2GB of storage which you can add to by inviting others to join by sharing your files with them. The more you share, the more free space they give you. Or you can get a Pro plan starting at $9.99 for 100MB. Once you download those files, your space is freed up for more!

 

America’s Cup/America’s Cup HD (for iPad)
America’s Cup Event Authority, LLC
Free

Just in time for the 2013 finals! The app gives you the latest news, event schedules and great videos. Enjoy the races anytime using the Virtual Eye 3D viewer including historical races. Listen to live commentary and onboard audio feeds streamed directly from the racing yachts when the finals start up in August/September. In the meantime, you can follow along as the teams wreck (er, I mean – race!) their yachts in practice events.

EasyMeasure
Caramba Apps
Free

Easily measure the distance from your stern to that yacht that anchored right on top of you! Uses your iPhone’s camera to measure with a great 3D grid overlay. Just set up once (an easy task) and measure away! (Also a great golf aid).

 

Whale Alert – Ship Strike Reduction for Right Whales
EarthNC
Free

You may have noticed more news about whales trying to jump on boats or boats running into whales. As more of us venture out into their world, chances of running into them increase. Now there’s even an app for avoiding whales by the good folks at EarthNC (makers of Marine Charts with ActiveCaptain!).

Whale Alert was designed to assist in the management of right whale conservation areas and to help reporting in shipping lanes in and around Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary. Whale Alert can help reduce the likelihood of ships colliding with these endangered whales, which can injure or kill them. It is not meant to be used alone but to compliment existing protective measures. Whale Alert is the first mobile application to take advantage of the transmission of environmental data over the AIS protocol. The system takes DMA and real-time right whale observations and displays that data graphically, directly within the app.

Happy Holidays!

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USA Oracle TEAM Spithill Wins Second Consecutive America’s Cup World Series

San Francisco, CA 2012: ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL, in last place position at the start of the final match race, took the overall points to win the the America’s Cup World Series San Francisco Championship.

ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL celebrates win in AC World Series 2. Photo: Gilles Martin-Raget

Jimmy Spithill and his crew of Dirk de Ridder, John Kostecki, Jono MacBeth and Joe Newton fought their way back through the fleet in the “Super Sunday” fleet race after starting dead last, and just barely beating stable-mates ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS.

Coming from a near disaster on Saturday when ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL capsized their AV45 Catamaran during the first fleet race of the day, the crew made a heroic comeback to race in the very next heat. The Team also won the August AC World Series San Francisco Championship by one point, previously the closest finish at an AC World Series event.

ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL capsizes in the middle of the first fleet race in Day 4 of the AC World Series. Photo: Guilain GRENIER

“We’ve always said we need to be able to come from behind and overcome adversity,” said Spithill, who skippered the team to victory in the 2010 America’s Cup. “I thought I gave them that yesterday with the capsize, but it’s really a sign of a strong team. The shore crew, our coaches, it’s been a fantastic team effort.”

AC45 catamarans race in San Francisco Bay with Alcatraz Island in the background. Photo: Guilain GRENIER/2012

Ainslie drew a penalty in the prestart for “trying to get into a gap that was too small,” he said, adding he didn’t think that’s where he lost. “The first leg upwind was where we lost it because we got stuck in a corner; we got squeezed out and lost a lot of ground to the fleet.”

Russell Coutts said the one-two showing by Spithill and Ainslie is a good sign for Oracle’s prospects of defending the America’s Cup next year. Ainslie will be helming the No. 2 boat for in-house competition to keep Spithill’s crew sharp.

“The writing’s on the wall,” Coutts said. “With another year of practice and trials, it’s going to be a very powerful combination.”

Back Story:

The ACWS was created to whet the appetite for the more prestigious America’s Cup event coming here next summer – 2013. As the current holder of the Cup, Oracle CEO Larry Ellison chose San Francisco Bay as the site and the two weeks of competition this summer became part of the build-up.

Artemis and Oracle Teams cross the finish line in front of massive crowds along the SF Bay waterfront. Photo: Nancy Birnbaum/2012

Why the two separate racing sessions?

“It allowed the teams to come here and basically race and then train and race again to get used to the conditions,” Murray said. “And also give San Francisco a little education on what the boats are and who the people are.”

As promised, the weather was the better than anyone could have wished for with any fog burning off early from the warm sun. With the Golden Gate Bridge on one side, and the Bay Bridge on the other side with Alcatraz and Angel Island in between, the race course is spectacular indeed. As Oracle Racing Team Owner Larry Ellison said, “The San Francisco Bay is the most spectacular natural amphitheater for sailing!”

The U.S. Coast Guard estimated more than 150,000 spectators on shoreline along America’s Cup Village and more than 1,000 vessels watching on the Bay on just Sunday alone for the final match and Blue Angel Fleet Week air show. San Francisco City Tourism estimated that 1 million visitors were in town for “event-ageddon” to take part in the jam-packed merrymaking for various fairs, sports events and to watch the Fleet Week Airshow.

The Results:
AC World Series San Francisco Fleet Racing Championship (After 7 of 7 races)
1. ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL (Jimmy Spithill) 8-1-6-5-DNF-2-1 – 79
2. J.P. Morgan BAR (Ben Ainslie) 1-3-1-2-4-1-4 – 79 points
3. Artemis Racing – White (Terry Hutchinson) 10-2-2-1-3-3-3 – 72
4. Emirates Team New Zealand (Dean Barker) 2-8-5-6-1-4-7 – 57
5. ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS (Russell Coutts) 3-5-8-7-8-10-2 – 56
6. Artemis Racing – Red (Nathan Outteridge) 4-4-4-4-9-8-5 – 52
7. Energy Team (Loick Peyron) 6-7-7-3-6-7-6 – 47
8. Team Korea (Peter Burling) 5-9-10-8-2-5-10 – 40
9. Luna Rossa Piranha (Chris Draper) 9-6-3-10-10-6-9 – 36
10. China Team (Phil Robertson) 7-10-11-9-5-11-8 – 28
11. Luna Rossa Swordfish (Iker Martinez) 11-11-9-11-7-9-11 – 20
(Scoring, Races 1-6: 1st = 12 points, 2nd = 10, 3rd = 9, 4th = 8, 5th = 7, 6th = 6, 7th = 5, 8th = 4, 9th = 3, 10th = 2, 11th = 1; Race 7: 1st = 40 points, 2nd = 25, 3rd = 20, 4th = 16, 5th = 13, 6th = 11, 7th = 10, 8th = 9, 9th = 8, 10th = 7, 11th = 6)

AC World Series San Francisco Match Racing Championship
1. ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL, 2. Emirates Team New Zealand, 3. Artemis Racing – White, 4.Artemis Racing – Red, 5. ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS, 6. Energy Team, 7. J.P. Morgan BAR, 8.Team Korea, 9. China Team, 10. Luna Rossa Piranha, 11. Luna Rossa Swordfish

Go to AC World Series San Francisco Results

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Watch The Fastest Sailboats on the Water!

This is an amazing video from America’s Cup – on YouTube. Watch it and remember to breathe!

ACWS 2 Update:

Racing at the America’s Cup World Series San Francisco got underway yesterday with seven races in the qualifying round of the match racing championship.

With the wind gusting over 20 knots and creating a nasty chop on San Francisco Bay, Artemis Racing – Red (Nathan Outteridge), Emirates Team New Zealand (Dean Barker), Energy Team (Loïck Peyron), J.P. Morgan BAR (Ben Ainslie) and Team Korea (Peter Burling) all advanced to the quarterfinal round, with matches scheduled for Thursday and Friday.

China Team with Phil Robertson, won their first match race of the AC World Series and stood on the brink of advancing to the quarterfinal round, but didn’t start his final match against Artemis Racing – Red due to broken frames in the wingsail.

Full report to come. Visit the America’s Cup website for more information.

Results
Team Korea bt. Luna Rossa Piranha, +:02
Energy Team bt. China Team, +:56
Emirates Team New Zealand bt. Artemis Racing – Red, +:50.8
J.P. Morgan BAR bt. Luna Rossa Swordfish, +1:15
China Team bt. Luna Rossa Piranha, +:06
Artemis Racing – Red bt. Luna Rossa Swordfish, +:33
Artemis Racing – Red bt. China Team (DNS)

Quarterfinal Pairings
Thursday (12:25 pm PDT): Team Korea vs. Artemis Racing – White
Thursday (12:42 pm PDT): Energy Team vs. Emirates Team New Zealand
Friday (4:05 pm PDT): Artemis Racing – Red vs. ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS
Friday (4:22 pm PDT): J.P. Morgan BAR vs. ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL

Go to AC World Series San Francisco Results

America’s Cup on NBC Bay Area!

Be sure to catch all the action with the America’s Cup regional media partner NBC Bay Area, who plan to broadcast three days of live coverage around the AC World Series (Oct. 4-7).

Beginning today, Thursday, NBC Bay Area will broadcast the racing live on its digital channel California NonStop (channel 186 on Comcast and 11.2 on over-the-air digital). It will also broadcast live racing on tomorrow, Oct. 5, and Saturday, Oct. 6.

The “Super Sunday” final day of racing on Oct. 7 will be carried live by NBC Network, beginning at 1:30 pm PDT.

NBC Bay Area will produce and broadcast “Countdown to the Cup,” a half-hour program featuring the latest AC World Series races and activities surrounding the events. The show is scheduled to air on Oct. 6 at 8:30 pm PDT, and rebroadcast on Oct. 7 at 3:00 pm PDT.

NBC Bay Area also will air “America’s Cup Discovered” on Sunday, Oct. 7, at 9:30 pm PDT.

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America’s Cup World Series + Fleet Week = Massive Excitement in San Francisco

Skippers gather before the start of the America’s Cup World Series 2
in San Francisco Bay. Photo: N.Birnbaum/2012

Pre-race events today included “Up Close & Personal” interviews with Oracles Team  Captains’ Russell Coutts and Jimmy Spithill.

With record highs and almost no wind, todays’ practice runs won’t give the crews anything to write home about. But come tomorrow, the second America’s Cup World Series San Francisco will begin, with qualifying racing for the match racing championship. Then on Thursday, the first two of seven scheduled fleet races kick off the event championship, which concludes Sunday, Oct. 7, with a live nationwide broadcast on NBC.

The America’s Cup World Series San Francisco is being held during what is being billed as the busiest week of events in the city’s history. According to America’s Cup Commissioner and regatta director Iain Murray, there will be more spectators for this weekends’ AC World Series than ever before in the history of the America’s Cup. Besides the AC World Series, there are a few other great events happening in Bay Area this weekend. As many as one million people are expected for events such Oracle OpenWorld (the largest technology conference in the world) at the Moscone Center , the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass music festival in Golden Gate Park, the Mill Valley Film Festival, the Castro Street Fair,home games for the San Francisco Giants and San Francisco 49ers, and San Francisco’s annual Fleet Week.

“We have a challenging program this week,” said Murray. “We’re working with Fleet Week, so most of our racing will be later in the day. On Super Sunday we’ll be participating in the air show with Fleet Week. The air show will start and then stop, we’ll sail our Super Sunday fleet race (scheduled to start at 1:55 pm PDT), and then the air show will resume.

Hopefully that will allow the spectator fleet to keep incidents to a minimum. It’s always fun to be on the Bay during a Blue Angel flyover – all eyes are focused on the sky while thousands of boats make their way around, hopefully refraining from making sailing into a contact sport.

All 11 teams that raced the first AC World Series San Francisco in August return, including (in order of standing): ORACLE TEAM USA SPITHILL (Jimmy Spithill), Luna Rossa Piranha (Chris Draper), Team Korea (Peter Burling), Energy Team (Loick Peyron), Luna Rossa Swordfish (Iker Martinez), Artemis Racing – White (Terry Hutchinson), Emirates Team New Zealand (Dean Barker), ORACLE TEAM USA COUTTS (Russell Coutts), Artemis Racing – Red (Nathan Outteridge), J.P. Morgan BAR (Ben Ainslie) and China Team (Phil Robertson).

Just as they have for the past two ACWS regattas, NBC will broadcast nationwide the “Super Sunday” fleet racing championship. Racing on Thursday, Friday and Saturday will be broadcast by the America’s Cup regional media partner NBC Bay Area on its digital channel California NonStop (channel 186 on Comcast and 11.2 on over-the-air digital). California NonStop is on the air in select California markets, including San Francisco.

If you have not had the pleasure of viewing ACWS racing on Television, you should certainly tune in. The technology that goes into each broadcast is truly amazing and a treat to watch.

Racing on Thursday through Sunday will be broadcast on the America’s Cup YouTube channel.

The AC Race Village will once again be located at Little Marina Green, and fans will again be able to watch the racing from shoreside bleachers. Visit the ACWS San Francisco event page for more information about the venue.

It may be a billionaire’s sport, but you don’t have to be a billionaire to enjoy it.

But just to maintain that grand style of yachting, sponsors like — Louis Vuitton, Lexus, Moët & Chandon and … Red Bull, have joined in the festivities.

©2011 ACEA/Ricardo Pinto

Spillhill enjoys a Moët moment. ©2011 ACEA/Gilles Martin-Raget.

Moët & Chandon have a tent to themselves along the waterfront — called the Club 45 — where VIP’s and their guests can have commanding views of the racing along the Marina Green while sipping some of the world’s most iconic champagne.

“Moët & Chandon has been associated with the America’s Cup for nearly 25 years.  This year, as the official champagne, we raise a glass to this most prestigious event in the world’s grandest setting: the iconic San Francisco Bay,” said Stephane Baschiera, President & CEO of Moët & Chandon.

The Moët & Chandon tradition of supporting the grandest achievements lives on as a ‘grand prize,’ where a bottle of the House’s iconic champagne becomes the award itself for champions. Victorious athletes celebrate their exceptional triumph on the winners’ podium, such as at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, by accepting a well-deserved bottle of Moët & Chandon – a symbol of the overflowing joy of success.

The racing schedule:

Wednesday, Oct. 3
4:00-6:00 pm PDT    Match Racing Qualifying

Thursday, Oct. 4
12:25-12:55 pm PDT  Match Racing Quarterfinals
5:00-6:15 pm PDT    Fleet Races 1 & 2

Friday, Oct. 5
4:00-4:35 pm PDT    Match Racing Quarterfinals
4:50-6:00 pm PDT    Fleet Races 3 & 4

Saturday, Oct. 6
4:00-4:35 pm PDT    Match Racing Semifinals
4:50-5:55 pm PDT    Fleet Races 5 & 6
6:10-6:25 pm PDT    Match Racing Championship

Sunday, Oct. 7
1:55-2:25 pm PDT    Fleet Race Championship

 

Guide to Special Events in San Francisco

It’s a busy week in San Francisco and the entire Bay Area!

Check out our event info and transit resources page to find out what’s going on and how to get there (or get around it) –>http://bit.ly/UEhP2a

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