12 Metre North Americans – Great start to the America’s Cup Reunion

by Connie Bischoff on 20 Sep 2010 12 Metre North Americans Era Reunion update: It is no surprise that Newport, RI is the epicenter of the 12 Metre 'world' this week. It is also not shocking that Ted Turner and his former America’s Cup Tactician Gary Jobson, USSAILING’s current president, revealed that they still have their sailing skills after 33 years.

The team on American Eagle -- 40 years ago a converted 12 Metre on which Turner won the World Ocean Racing title in 1970 -- showed their expertise during the three-day 2010 North Americans, earning five bullets in the regatta and winning their division. The many on-the-water spectators included a whale.

This was the perfect kickoff to the 2010 America’s Cup 12 Metre Era Reunion presented by Rolex and hosted by New York Yacht Club. The event, also sponsored by Jaguar North America, continues through Sunday, September 19 at New York Yacht Club’s Harbour Court.

The regatta took place out on Rhode Island Sound with the social events being held at New York Yacht Club’s Harbour Court. The PRO for the regatta was America’s Cup veteran Sam Wakefield. Watching the Twelves sail out brought back old memories of the America’s Cup that was raced in 12 Metres in Newport from 1958 to 1983. Today, there were 11 of these classic boats in four divisions competing in the regatta.

In the oldest Vintage Division (also known as Division D consisting of 12 Metres built between 1918 and 1937), Northern Light ~ US 16 triumphed. She is owned by Elizabeth Tiedemann and sailed by Kip Curren. The second place boat was Onawa ~ US 6. These beautiful wooden boats were built in 1938 and 1928, respectively. They showed that classic boats can still be competitive.

The next oldest class, Division C, is the Traditional Class made up of boats built from 1958 to 1970. The winner was American Eagle ~ US 21, owned by Herb Marshall, chartered by Carol Swift with Ted Turner as the skipper. 1958 America’s Cup winner Columbia ~ US 16 and Easterner ~ US 18 followed closely.

Division B, Modern is made up of boats built between 1974 and 1983. The winner, Courageous had previously won the America’s Cup in 1974 and 1977 (with Ted Turner as the skipper in ‘77). In the 2010 NAs, Courageous was followed by Freedom ~ US 30, Victory ’83 ~ K 22 and Intrepid ~ US 22.

Grand Prix, the newest Division A, is made up of boats built for the 1983 America’s Cup. USA ~ US 61, with owner Guy Heckman at the helm, dominated the regatta with seven bullets…one in each race. The other competitor in this class was America II ~ US 46.

The 2010 12 Metre North Americans concluded with the famous Candy Store Cup where the entire fleet (boats in all four divisions) raced from the Sound past Castle Hill and Ft. Adams into Newport Harbor to finish at Bannister’s Wharf. This is a spectacular race to see, and the winning boat enjoys a magnum of champagne as they cruise around the harbor (known as the 'harbor burn') while they celebrate their victory. The victorious boat this year was Courageous.

Trophies were presented by NYYC Commodore David K. Elwell Jr., himself a grinder on Intrepid in '67, the defender that year.

The 2010 12 Metre NAs enjoyed fierce competition and great camaraderie as these big and beautiful boats sailed across the royal blue waves off Newport. It was not just a great photo op; it was a perfect example of the 'class slogan'…12 Metres…still elegant, still racing.

Results

Grand Prix	Sail	Owner/Skipper	POINTS	Place
USA	US 61	Guy Heckman	7	1
America II	US 46	Marcus Cholerton-Brown	17	2
Modern	Sail	Owner/Skipper	POINTS	Place
Courageous	US 26	Ralph Isham/Alexander Auersperg	11	1
Freedom	US 30	Ernest Jacquet	16	2
Victory 83	K 22	Dennis Williams	17	3
Intrepid	US 22	Andy Rose	18.9	4
Traditional	Sail	Owner/Skipper	POINTS	Place
American Eagle	US 21	Ted Turner	9	1
Columbia	US 16	Alain and Dan Hanover	15	2
Easterner	US 18	Paul Callahan	20	3
Vintage	Sail	Owner/Skipper	POINTS	Place
Northern Light	US 14	Kip Curren	10	1
Onawa	US 6	Morten Kielland/Earl McMillen	11	2

 

For more information, please go to: www.nyyc.org