New Zealand’s Boat Stirs a Controversy Over the Bowsprit : America’s Cup: Italian group presses the issue, but a protest cannot be lodged until the challengers’ racing begins.
The challengers sail into the America’s Cup today on the crest of their first dispute:
Is the one-meter-long bowsprit on New Zealand’s radical red boat legal?
“There are discussions going on,” syndicate General Manager Peter Blake said Friday as the eight skippers drew for slots in the first round robin of the Louis Vuitton Cup trials. “(But) they’ve always been allowed. It’s been in the rules all along.”
Others aren’t sure. The Kiwis’ strongest rival, Il Moro di Venezia of Italy, is pressing the issue, with moral support from the Le Defi Francais and Spirit of Australia teams.
A formal protest seemed likely.
Dave Perry, Il Moro’s rules adviser from Southport, Conn., said: “Right now it’s all hypothetical. No races have been run yet.”
In other words, New Zealand has violated no rule until it uses the boat in a race. It meets France’s Ville de Paris today, then Il Moro Sunday in a race that could have even more implications than anticipated.
Once the racing starts, Il Moro could raise a protest flag on technical grounds.
Racing protests will be dealt with immediately by on-the-water umpires--a first for the America’s Cup and a system unanimously endorsed by the challenging skippers. Technical protests will go to the international jury ashore.
Perry is believed to have drawn up a detailed paper for the international jury on the issue of the bowsprit.
Robert Hopkins worked for Dennis Conner’s team at Fremantle in 1986-87 and is in charge of design technology for Il Moro. He said the bowsprit may give New Zealand an advantage by attaching one corner of a spinnaker or gennaker--the billowing sails used off the wind--to the end of the bowsprit rather than to a spinnaker pole, which is long and awkward to handle on the new, 75-foot International America’s Cup Class boats.
“It allows you to alleviate a lot of the problems during a jibe (downwind turn) at the moment when you don’t have a (spinnaker) pole there,” Hopkins said.
“We had one on our first boat but got rid of it because we thought it was illegal. So either all other challengers are going to get a bowsprit, or (the Kiwis) will have to take theirs off.”
Andrew Johns, the New Zealand team’s legal counsel, said the issue concerns Rule 64.4 of the International Yacht Racing Rules pertaining to “sheeting a sail through an outrigger”--in this case a bowsprit.
A sheet is a line that controls a sail’s trim.
Johns said the official America’s Cup measurers already had passed the boat at various points in construction and that on five occasions other syndicates had asked the measurers if bowsprits could be used and received affirmative replies.
However, the fourth New Zealand boat--the one the Kiwis will race--is the only one with a bowsprit.
Spirit of Australia skipper Peter Gilmour said: “We aren’t as concerned as the Italians are, (but) the international jury is going to make a decision on it.”
Il Moro and Spirit meet in the first of four matches scheduled to start at 11:30 today. New Zealand-Ville de Paris, Challenge Australia-Espana ’92 and Nippon-Te Kronor of Sweden will follow at 10-minute intervals on the same 20-mile course off Point Loma.
On an adjacent course, unbeaten Defiant (5-0), the America 3boat sailed by Buddy Melges, is expected to close out the first round of defender trials with another victory over stablemate Jayhawk (0-5), steered by syndicate boss Bill Koch.
Dennis Conner’s Stars & Stripes finished with a 3-3 record Thursday. The defenders start their second round Feb. 8.
The survivor will face a formidable challenge in the best-of-seven final for the Cup in May. New Zealand and Il Moro are the powerhouses, with skippers who learned their skills in the United States--Rod Davis and Paul Cayard, respectively.
New Zealand rates the edge off late showings of its newest, ultra-light boat, and after Il Moro comes France, followed in order by Spirit of Australia, Nippon Challenge, Challenge Australia, Spain and Sweden.
The first four qualify for the semifinals, starting March 29, following three round robins. Victories count one point in the first round, four in the second and eight in the third.
Six of the challenging skippers are America’s Cup veterans, although three--Davis, Cayard and Nippon’s Chris Dickson, from New Zealand--sailed for their native lands the last time.
Pajot led France’s gallant, underfinanced French Kiss effort that reached the semifinals in ’87.
Challengers have won the last two multinational defenses: Alan Bond’s Australia II team in 1983 and Conner in ’87.
Gilmour, who was aboard the defender Kookaburra III in its loss to Conner at Fremantle five years ago, said: “The challengers in the modern America’s Cup now have a far greater advantage over the defender from the way the event is structured.”
Any current U.S. defense had to be made through the San Diego Yacht Club, so there was less incentive for sailors from other yacht clubs to compete.
This time it looks like New Zealand--by a bowsprit.
* TV RIGHTS: The cash-starved America’s Cup Organizing Committee has turned over worldwide television rights to the sailboat races to a new organization led by the foreign challengers. (San Diego Edition, B1)
America’s Cup Challengers SPIRIT OF AUSTRALIA Syndicate head: Iain Murray. Skipper: Peter Gilmour. Boat: Spirit of Australia. Budget: $10 million. Comment: Rated best of the one-boat challenges. Has been among faster boats in practice races and testing. Proven team from 1986-87 Kookaburra campaign, although lost to Dennis Conner in finals, 4-0. AUSTRALIAN CHALLENGE Syndicate head: Syd Fischer. Skipper: Phil Thompson. Boat: Challenge Australia. Budget: Unannounced, estimated $10 million. Comment: An unusual design, with sharp, destroyer-type bow. Has shown flashes of speed but is inconsistent. Fischer is a veteran ocean-racer and Cup campaigner and runs a tight ship. LE DEFI FRANCAIS Syndicate head: Yvon Jacob. Skipper: Marc Pajot. Boats*: Three. Ville de Paris. Budget: $30 million. Comment: France has a strong sailing tradition, and this is its best shot at the Cup. Well funded, with experienced skipper and crew, and boat seems competitive with other top challengers. IL MORO DI VENEZIA (ITALY) Syndicate head: Raul Gardini. Skipper: Paul Cayard. Boats*: Five. Il Moro di Venezia. Budget: Claiming $43 million, may be more. Comment: Cayard, an American, has done first-rate job building team from scratch. Only question is whether team has improved recently as much as New Zealand and France. Fifth boat believed to be fast. NIPPON CHALLENGE Syndicate head: Tatsumitsu Yamasaki. Skipper: Chris Dickson. Boats*: Three. Nippon. Budget: $40 million. Comment: Dickson is top-ranked match racer in world. Leaning heavily on fellow New Zealanders in afterguard and shore organization, but has developed inexperienced Japanese crew into competitive team. MERCURY BAY BC Syndicate head: Sir Michael Fay. Skipper: Rod Davis. Boats*: Four. New Zealand. Budget: Claiming $25 million, probably more. Comment: No apparent weaknesses. Boat is shorter with snub nose and bowsprit, light for exceptional downwind speed. Davis, a nationalized U.S.-New Zealand citizen, is second-ranked match racer in the world. DESAFIO ESPANA COPA AMERICA Syndicate head: Carlos Fernandez de Henestrosa. Skipper: Pedro Campos. Boats*: Two. Espana ‘92--Quinto Centenario. Budget: $24 million. Comment: Well funded for first Cup effort linked to 500th anniversary of Columbus’ voyage. Campos has good offshore racing credentials but is inexperienced as match racer. SWEDISH CHALLENGE Syndicate head: Tomas Wallin. Skipper: Gunnar Krantz. Boat: Te Kronor. Budget: $12 million. Comment: The latest arriving and most relaxed of all syndicates. Don’t even hide their keel. Skilled crew has had only a week to practice in San Diego and could improve to become a factor in later rounds. * Some syndicates have used more than one boat in developmental stages. Boat listed is expected to be used in competition.
Compiled by Rich Roberts