SAILING : New Zealand Gaining Support

Sailing, like politics, makes strange bedfellows. Consider that all but two of the American skippers who defended the America’s Cup since World War II have rallied to New Zealand’s cause for the final round in court.

Bus Mosbacher, 1962 and ‘67; Bob Bavier, ‘64; Bill Ficker, ‘70; Ted Hood, ‘74, and Ted Turner, ‘77, have joined a flock of foreigners--among them Alan Bond and all but one of the challenging skippers since 1945--in filing a friend-of-the-court brief with the New York Court of Appeals, seeking to intervene in the case.

The exceptions are Briggs Cunningham, ‘58, who agreed to join but changed his mind, and Dennis Conner, ’80 and ‘83, who remains loyal to the San Diego Yacht Club.

On Feb. 8, the court will hear New Zealand’s plea to reverse the decision by the Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court that overturned Judge Carmen Ciparick’s award of the America’s Cup to the Mercury Bay Boating Club.

This is like waiting for instant replay, only longer. A final decision is expected in March.

The brief was organized by Jim Michael, a lawyer who belongs to San Francisco’s St. Francis Yacht Club, and the New York Yacht Club. He has been an advocate of New Zealand’s challenge from the start. Two months ago, Michael asked a former law associate, Leonard Garment of Washington, to handle this final ploy.

Garment’s first question: “What’s the America’s Cup?”

“Good,” Michael said. “You’re not biased.”

Ficker, a Newport Beach architect, said the brief “is an expression of knowledgeable people that have a certain attitude toward the race and what a level playing field is . . . in the best interests of yachting fairness.”

The contention is that the catamaran was unfair.

Of course, it was unfair. But San Diego insists that the only issue at this point is whether it was within the rules of the Cup’s 19th Century deed of gift.

Tom Mitchell, spokesman for the San Diego committee, said: “It’s more of a PR move than a legal move. The only opinion that counts is the court’s.”

Recommended viewing: The Whitbread Round the World Race for the Beefeater Trophy fleet sailed into Fremantle, Australia, last month with sea tales and video footage to make the 1987 America’s Cup at that site seem tame.

Six crewmen went overboard into the icy Southern Ocean on the 7,650-nautical mile second leg. One died. Winches were frozen, spars snapped, sails blown out regularly.

ESPN will have a half-hour program Saturday at 4:30 p.m. and again on Jan. 22, at 6:30 a.m. One skipper, Harry Harkimo of Finland, states the case for all when he says: “I feel that this kind of ocean racing is quite stupid. (This is my) third time here, (but) I actually don’t know what I’m doing here anymore.”

Tracy Edwards heads an all-woman crew on the British boat, Maiden. Edwards recently was chosen British yachtsman of the year.

Edwards says the race has been “everything we hoped it would be . . . to go in the Southern Ocean for 28 days without washing and having to dress properly. We loved it.”

The 3,434-mile third leg to Auckland, New Zealand, was the least eventful, although a French boat, Charles Jourdan, got a 2 x 12-foot hole above the waterline on its starboard side when the boat hit a whale and had to sail on starboard tack to avoid taking on water.

Steinlager II, skippered by Peter Blake, has won all three legs--the last by 6 minutes 4 seconds over another New Zealand boat, Fisher & Paykel. With the race about half over, Steinlager’s lead is 14 hours over Switzerland’s Merit, which is 20 hours ahead of Fisher & Paykel, with Rothmans of England another four hours back.

The fleet departs Auckland for Punta del Este, Uruguay, on Feb. 4.

Sailing Notes

The Southern California Yachting Assn.’s 61st annual Midwinter Regatta is scheduled for Feb. 10-11 (most classes) and Feb. 17-19 (San Diego and big boats). The largest regatta in North America is a project of 87 yacht clubs, with the addition this year of the Arizona YC of Scottsdale for six classes. Also, a cruiser navigation contest will be introduced, with the Cabrillo Beach YC as host. . . . Rod Davis will be the skipper of New Zealand’s crew against the Iain Murray-Peter Gilmour tandem in the second best-of-seven ANZ 12-Meter Challenge Jan. 26-28 in Sydney Harbor. They’ll alternate using Kookaburra II and III from the ’87 America’s Cup campaign. Murray-Gilmour defeated Dennis Conner last year.