ANOTHER CATAMARAN AC? Seems at least a little controversial.

[jocal505]

Insiders are saying that wing cats are in, done deal. Will be announced the 17th.

Is there a thread around that goes into all that, pro and con?

The Tornado Class was recently eliminated from the Olympics, rightly or wrongly.
Now, a change in the AC going the opposite direction. Both ideas are disturbing.
I mean, the cats are fast, and dramatic in action, certainly.
But BOR90 will be parked next to the Spruce Goose, or worse, very soon.
And as overall vessels, cats lack manouverability. And wingsails are just impractical day-to-day.
The AC tradition had been in mono-hulls, what about that? It's a radical step, and another game.
Further, the open sea tradition had been monohulls, partly because they can recover after a capsize.
Canting keels, water ballast, and twin foils could use the AC design development right now.
And in terms of the overall sport, just vusualize say 50% catamaran traffic out there, especially in the blue water.
Or the size of your new cat that offers standing headroom: your moorage would reflect getting charged for your vessel's width. Good for the sport, or not?
And your wingsail could store along the driveway, if you put one of those hang glider racks on the pickup, I guess... A 30 ft. craft would have say a 45 ft. mast...
Lastly, I just feel sad when I see cats bigger than a Hobie 18, actually; they never seem to go out.
Any thoughts?

[Big Brass Balls]

Insiders are saying that wing cats are in, done deal. Will be announced the 17th.

Is there a thread around that goes into all that, pro and con?

The Tornado Class was recently eliminated from the Olympics, rightly or wrongly.
Now, a change in the AC going the opposite direction. Both ideas are disturbing.
I mean, the cats are fast, and dramatic in action, certainly.
But BOR90 will be parked next to the Spruce Goose, or worse, very soon.
And as overall vessels, cats lack manouverability. And wingsails are just impractical day-to-day.
The AC tradition had been in mono-hulls, what about that? It's a radical step, and another game.
Further, the open sea tradition had been monohulls, partly because they can recover after a capsize.
Canting keels, water ballast, and twin foils could use the AC design development right now.
And in terms of the overall sport, just vusualize say 50% catamaran traffic out there, especially in the blue water.
Or the size of your new cat that offers standing headroom: your moorage would reflect getting charged for your vessel's width. Good for the sport, or not?
And your wingsail could store along the driveway, if you put one of those hang glider racks on the pickup, I guess... A 30 ft. craft would have say a 45 ft. mast...
Lastly, I just feel sad when I see cats bigger than a Hobie 18, actually; they never seem to go out.
Any thoughts?

The AC needs a severe kick in the ass, and the cats could help with that. The testing they did with the onboard video was very impressive.
The combination of the two could really boost ratings and appeal, no matter what venue.

[PD Staff]

Gladwells Vision For Americas Cup 34 Site Venues

Richard Gladwell's vision for the AC 34 to be hosted in SF has a very positive spin:




'Pier 50 is adjacent to the current Lot A for the Giants AT&T Park in China Basin. Slated to take 10-12 bases for the 34th America’s Cup.' Erik Simonson © www.pressure-drop.us

The Venue is the third element in the formula for the 34th America’s Cup.

The first two - the Protocol which governs the conditions under which the Match and its preliminaries will be conducted; and the Boat to be used for the Match will be announced in Valencia in Monday at 1300CET.

As for the Venue, there are three options, but maybe more.

First and probably the frontrunner, is San Francisco, home port of the Defender, Golden Gate Yacht Club. Others in the mix are Valencia, host to the 32nd and 33rd America’s Cups, and an Italian venue understood to be Fiumicino.

The latter is just 25kms from Rome, the Italian nominated venue for the 2020 Olympics, and for which a decision will be made by the International Olympic Committee in 2013. Which fortuitously is the same year, or maybe a year earlier than the date for the 34th America’s Cup.



Possible America’s Cup location - Rome, Italy - .. .

Valencia, is one of two maybe three, venues in the world with facilities that would require little by way of work to accommodate an America’s Cup at short notice. The other two being the 2000 and 2003 venue in Auckland, and the 1987 venue in Fremantle, Australia. Neither are believed to be in contention.

Valencia is the obvious choice for the venue, given that many of the key teams have bases in the Spanish city, which is also on the Formula 1 circuit. The dock area was transformed after Valencia won the bidding war for the 32nd America’s Cup ahead of Cascais, Portugal – another option should the America’s Cup be sailed once again in Europe.



Alinghi 5 in the Darcena at Valencia - © Juerg Kaufmann www.go4image.com Click Here to view large photo


But sadly, Valencia did not win the 33rd America's cup, and most would like to see the Cup contested again in the waters of the Defending club.

At this stage, the America’s Cup venue is San Francisco’s to lose – and the City has made several attempts to drop the ball.

First of these are sidestepping environmental and planning processes to fast-track the development of new facilities. America’s Cup organisers have made it clear that they want certainty around the standard process – and need that surety by 30 September 2010.

That is a big step away from City Fathers making encouraging noises, and then leaving the normal planning processes to take their course.



However the all-time clanger came in a report from the San Francisco Chronicle, last Saturday:

If city officials are successful in their plan to host the next America's Cup, the drab Piers 30-32 would be transformed into a striking bayfront amphitheater and sailing showplace - a focal point of a revived waterfront stretching from the Bay Bridge to south of AT&T Park - all without tapping taxpayer funds.

Under a proposal that Mayor Gavin Newsom's administration recently presented to race organizers, the city would provide free land and future development rights on the property in exchange for the America's Cup event authority paying $100 million to $150 million to shore up the piers, dredge the area around them, and install new breakwaters and utility lines.

The Port of San Francisco would retain ownership of the property. Future development would be under a long-term lease and still require governmental approvals. Structures to house team headquarters, a public amphitheater and new mega-yacht slips would be temporary and paid for by race organizers.

Read Full Report Here