America's Cup - Hundreds turn out for Cup's visit Gulf Harbour YC

by Rodney and Waitemata Times on 26 Sep 2017 The Auld Mug received a winner's welcome at Gulf Harbour Yacht Club last week.

With queues leading out the door and into the carpark, hundreds of locals dropped in on Friday afternoon to lay eyes on the oldest international sporting trophy - the America's Cup.

Gulf Harbour Yacht Club commodore John Butcher said bringing the cup back to New Zealand 'means a hell of a lot to the sailors of Gulf Harbour, as it does to all New Zealanders'.

'This is an opportunity to get involved in the community, open up our club and show off our club, which is part of our ongoing membership drive.'

Wentworth School sailing academy attended the ceremony with teacher Amy Fischer, who said the students were 'super excited about seeing the real thing'.

'They avidly followed [the America's Cup]. We'd have meet ups in the corridor where we'd talk about the races in the mornings,' she said.

'Some of them know the history of the cup better than I do.'



Wentworth's sailing students use the club facilities several times a week, including the changing rooms and the rescue boat.

Fischer said the club's support for the school is 'fantastic'.

'They've been really supportive of us in the last couple of years with their storage of the boats and their enthusiasm to get us out on the water,' she said.

'We live in one of the best sailing areas in New Zealand, let alone the world, so having the resource of the yacht club within a stone's throw of the school is a huge asset.'

The cup was on display to the general public for nearly two hours, followed by a formal dinner for club members.

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