Gladwell's Line - Burling hopes results will pull America's Cup fans

by Richard Gladwell/Sail-World.com NZL on 18 Sep 2015 Sail-World New Zealand editorial from the newsletter of September 16, 2015

Emirates Team New Zealand skipper, Peter Burling, has echoed the comments made in Sail-World NZ's newsletter editorial last week.

We hit out at the local print media and NZ Herald in particular over their one sided reporting of the team - noting that the publications were quick to run regular headline stories when the team was having its restructuring post the 34th America's Cup.

But the team's win in the second America's Cup World Series didn't rate a mention in even the sports shorts in many publications. The close second place in Portsmouth got the same cold shoulder.

Now Emirates Team NZ skipper Peter Burling has picked up on the same theme in an interview published in the Bay of Plenty Times. He spoke with Peter White.

The distinct lack of fanfare accorded Team New Zealand by national media outlets after winning in Gothenburg last month was not lost on helmsman Peter Burling.

The Tauranga sailor has guided his new-look team to the top of the Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series table after two rounds, with one qualifying leg left this year, to be held in Bermuda next month at the venue for the America's Cup in June 2017.

'A few of the yachting fans were saying it is ironic how whenever there is scandal and stuff in Team New Zealand, or something is happening that is kind of a bad story, it is headlines everywhere. Yet when we won Gothenburg we couldn't even get much [coverage],' Burling said.

'You take the good with the bad I suppose. For sure, I'd like to turn that around and we are always trying to keep the public on side. Hopefully most of what went on [last America's Cup] is in the past now and we will just let the results speak for themselves.

We think there is a massive fan base out there that is keen to see some good racing that hopefully we can provide at some stage.'

For the rest of this story click here

Following the editorial we received a letter from a UK reader, Rees Martin, a Six Metre sailor, commenting on the paucity of free to air TV coverage of the America's Cup racing.

He writes:
It is astonishing that the AC management seem totally oblivious to the irritation they are causing by charging for access to the TV coverage. Along with several friends in the UK, I cannot help but compare it to the VOR. The latter was/is easy to access, up to date coverage and is completely free of snide and/or partisan views.

As most national newspapers pay lip service to international racing, the bulk of the coverage is via the internet – and the yachting world is deluged with a fantastic amount of news, views, and general gossip. I subscribe to several and really read three – including of course Sail-World..

It takes me minutes to scroll through headlines and revert to the newsworthy sectors. I get irritated with sites that are heavy on the adverts and advertorial and wading through interrupted text is a real turn off.

It is clear that the AC administration hold a very tight grip on information on their event. Possibly understandable as they have had some shocking press, however if they do want to charge for their news, they must at least get it out quickly, easily and most of all cohesively. The APP download is a joke. I paid for it (I think), didn’t get it but was told I could get the Gothenburg event. Didn’t bother. Appallingly amateur for such a fantastic event, particularly as the actual racing is just sublime – and a real boost for yacht racing.

In the end I gave up and concentrated on the VOR who seemed to be nice and efficient organisers, thoroughly nice participants and pleased to tell me about the event. Truly inspiring.

I am a proud (?) member of the South West Shingles Yacht Club (see www.swsyc.co.uk/ ). At our last annual dinner at the Royal Thames one of the Vesta crew addressed us on the VOR event; in particular the scary grounding and aftermath events. His description was brief, objective and certainly sobering.

However his description of his homecoming in Holland bought the house down.

Apparently his family welcomed the hero home, apart from his seven year old son who grabbed his father’s hand, took him to his very large IKEA map in his bedroom. He pointed out the grounding site, saying “Dad, We can see where the reef is, why couldn’t you!”

That comment about being a member of the SWSYC begged the question as to Rees Martin's qualifying feat as membership is very much by invitation only.

He explained:

I had not been able to get my Int 6 Metre Bear over from the Hamble until the morning of the 2007 World Championships Opening Reception in Cowes. It was blowing about F5 SW and gusting; falling tide - you get the situation… We briskly headed down the Southampton Waters and took the East track to Cowes. Done many times. Just before East Knoll the mark which stands just east of the Bramble Bank I made a memorable remark to my crew something along the lines of “ If I cut inside the mark I can make Cowes in one hit” A truly through away line.

About a mile off Cowes I hit the eastern finger of the bank and despite frantic efforts, remained there. In the meantime the Opening Reception at the Royal London opened and some two hundred sailors/guests etc., watched our efforts. We had the RNLI, the Solent Coastguard and the Royal Yacht Squadron on the scene.

Eventually the boat became swamped and we were taken off to Cowes by the RNLI who were absolute stars. Some of my fellow 6m owners met me on the pontoon with several bottles of NZ’s best red and the rest of the evening was well, blurred.

I managed to qualify for membership of SWSYC on three accounts; I did something really stupid (having done the crossing many occasions), I had witnesses (most of the Reception) and owned up immediately (I had little option…)

We got the boat off the next day and actually completed one race…

Some two years later I received a strange call from a person stating he was my Commodore and that I had qualified for membership of SWSYC. I confessed (again), paid my joining fee – and received a very nice tie.

Bob Fisher is a founder member. On the rare occasion when we meet on the water, I am suitably humble.

Keep up the good work with Sail-World. My favourite.

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Good sailing!

Richard Gladwell
NZ Editor

sailworldnzl@gmail.com

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