10 January. Ben Ainslie, among the most decorated Olympic sailors of all time, will be racing in the 2012-2013 America’s Cup World Series, with a view to developing his team into a full-fledged Cup challenger in the future.
Ainslie, a three-time Olympic gold medalist, will field his own AC World Series team – Ben Ainslie Racing (BAR) – before joining ORACLE Racing to help with their defense of the 34th America’s Cup in 2013. Ainslie says building his own AC45 team adds another dimension to the challenge, as he takes on a leading role in all facets of the campaign.
Nice guys finish first
9 January. Who says nice guys finish last? (The aphorism is generally attributed to baseball manager Leo Durocher – Ed)
This past week, two of the nicest guys I’ve met in the America’s Cup both won significant races, offering evidence that counters the old maxim.
First, on Thursday, Emirates Team New Zealand wing guru and multihull specialist Glenn Ashby won the Australian A-Class catamaran championships with a race to spare. Then on Friday night, Energy Team skipper Loïck Peyron brought his maxi trimaran Banque Populaire across the finish line of the Jules Verne Trophy, setting a new standard for fastest circumnavigation.
Jury decision posted in case AC09
9 January. The Jury for the America’s Cup has reached a decision in rispect of application for interpretation regarding voting procedures for amendments to the Protocol.
The decision is posted on the Noticeboard.
Energy Team’s Peyron fastest around the world
6 January. Loïck Peyron, the skipper of the French Energy Team, has led his crew on the maxi trimaran Banque Populaire on a record-setting lap of the planet.
Peyron and his team have shaved nearly three days off the existing record to claim the Jules Verne Trophy in a time of 45 days, 13 hours, 42 minutes, 53 seconds. Incredibly, the team covered 29002 miles at an average speed of 26.5 knots.
ETNZ’s Ashby wins A-Class Championship with a day to spare
6 January. Emirates Team New Zealand’s Glenn Ashby showed why he’s still considered the man to beat in multihulls, winning the Australian A-Class National Championships with a day to spare.
With five wins in eight starts, and his worst finish a fourth place he discarded, Ashby has dominated the field on Lake Macquarie, in New South Wales, Australia.
Fighting Talk
3 January. He quietly, politely introduces himself as James Spithill. At 19, he was the youngest helmsman ever in an America’s Cup campaign. At 30, the youngest helmsman to win the Cup. Now at 32, he is the man on whom software magnate Larry Ellison, the City of San Francisco and the US sailing community have pinned their hopes of keeping the Cup in North America.
