Louis Vuitton Pacific Series settles down

by Richard Gladwell, Sail-World on 6 Dec 2008
Emirates Team New Zealand's Operations Manager, Kevin Shoebridge confirmed in an interview on Radio Sport, yesterday that two teams (Mascalzone latino and Team Germany) had dropped out of the Louis Vuitton Pacific Series, starting in seven weeks time.

Other sources indicate that one of the teams on the reserve list Spirit of France has dropped out as well, meaning that the final field will comprise 10 or 11 teams.

Final numbers are yet to be confirmed.

'There was a scramble for positions when the series was announced', said Shoebridge, 'and it is not surprising that when some have had to work through the logistics of competing that they will not be able to make it to Auckland.'

Even with the slightly reduced field, organisers are still very pressed to get through the busy race schedule, and further reduction to 10 teams would probably not be unwelcome. Between races, crews will have to be swapped and sponsor and crew branding changed on each mainsail - which will be a significant exercise in itself.

Shoebridge said the courses would have a leg length of 1.3nm compared with 3.3nm on a regular America's Cup course, and a beat would be expected to take just 10 minutes.

The key players in the 2007 America's Cup are expected to compete, including America's Cup holder Team Alinghi, 32nd America's Cup Challenger, Emirates Team New Zealand and semi-finalists Luna Rossa and BMW Oracle Racing.

The Emirates Team New Zealand crew will be pretty much the same as those who sailed aboard NZL-92 in the 2007 America's Cup.

Far for being a rock up and race series, Shoebridge said that several of the top teams were taking the event very seriously with Team Alinghi, Luna Rossa and Team Origin expected to sail in a 10 day training camp in Valencia.

Shoebridge described the Louis Vuitton Pacific Series as a 'breath of fresh air' in a turgid America's Cup scene. 'The competitors will be looking to put themselves in a good stead for 2010' he said, adding that a good performance in the Louis Vuitton Pacific Series would help set teams up for the 2010 America's Cup in terms of sponsors and confidence.