Politics, the Congo Cup and Rio—Sailing news from the U.S. and beyond
by David Schmidt, Sail-World USA Editor on 8 Apr 2016
- Day 1, Congressional Cup, Long Beach Long Beach Yacht Club
http://www.lbyc.org
While politics and sailing are strange-if not terrible-bedfellows, there’s a certain irony in the fact that the U.S. presidential primary elections are hitting a fever pitch at the same time that racing is getting underway at the 2016 Congressional Cup (April 5-10), especially given the fact that none of the candidates currently enjoy much popularity (I’m being kind) within the halls of the U.S. Congress. While I certainly can’t speak for most Americans, I am personally far more interested in the latest twists and turns from the regatta racecourse, just off of the Long Beach Yacht Club in Long Beach, California, than I am in the latest (rancid) campaign-trail quips or tweets.
For anyone just tuning in, the “Congo Cup”, as many sailors affectionately call it, is widely regarded as “the grandfather” of modern match racing, as the event has focused on level match racing in identical boats since the event began in 1965. The regatta initially used Cal 40s that were owned by club members, followed by other large keelboats, but in 1990 Catalina Yachts provided 11 identical Catalina 37s, which the event has used ever since.
Today, the regatta still offers world-class match racing and has become a part of the World Match Race Tour, placing even more importance on this premiere-level event. Get the full scoop on the 52nd Congressional Cup, including a great photo spread, inside this issue.
While there’s plenty of politics associated with the America’s Cup, today’s AC news is-fortunately-of a foiling nature, not one involving private email servers or bad comb-overs. To take your mind of the later, check out the new team-supplied videos to learn more about foiling and the technology behind the wingsail-powered catamarans that will be used to contest the America’s Cup World Series and the 35th America’s Cup.
Meanwhile, the fleet of 12 identical, Tony Castro-designed 70-footers that are racing from Qingdao, China to Seattle, Washington in the Clipper Round The World Race have had a horrific week. First, there was the tragic news that Sarah Young was killed last Friday when she was swept overboard.
This week, news hit that the fleet stared down a 48-hour day while battling 40-knot-plus winds that saw multiple crews haul their red sails on deck.
“This is nothing that we haven't already been through or seen before, but we are in the Pacific so there isn't a lot of land to stop massive waves building quickly,” reported Greg Miller, Skipper of Mission Performance. “It will be behind us so at least we will be going in the right direction.”
Get the full Clipper report, inside.
And while the Olympics are often used as an international measuring stick by world powers, earning a berth at the Games to represent one’s country boils down to practice, skill, practice, speed, and, well, more practice-not politics. Just ask the U.S. 470 teams that are competing at this week’s 470 European Championships (April 5-12), which are being held off of Palma, Spain.
While Stu McNay and David Hughes are effectively running on an uncontested ballot for their berth, Annie Haeger and Briana Provancha are in a heated battle against Sydney Bolger and Carly Shevitz. Haeger and Provancha beat out Bolger and Shevit by two places at the closely contested 470 World Championships (February 20-27), and-at the time of this writing-were 24 places higher than Bolger and Shevit on the leaderboard at the 470 Europeans. Still, with 5 days of racing left on the clock, it’s important to remember that the racing isn’t over until the final guns have sounded.
As for the U.S. elections, let’s all just be glad to be talking about sailing and not “hanging chads”…at least not yet.
May the four winds blow you safely home,
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