No second race, again.
-- Al
America's Cup Kicks-Off Today (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Desertkiwi
- Start date
-- AlI missed Friday's race #13, but apparently the US won (according to the massive 3 dozen word write-up), making the race count 8-3 in favor of NZ. Still sudden-death for Oracle, but at least it has gotten competitive. Will try to watch today's race, unless it gets pre-empted for the latest tipped cow story.:rolleyes2: -- Al
Desertkiwi
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Yes, yesterday was very frustrating for the Kiwi's, with the first race being pulled when they reached the fourth mark, having blitzed Oracle, due to the time. Unbelievable, considering they were only minutes from finishing and taking the cup. Oracle had no answer and had gear problems.
New Zealander's were horrified and being a Saturday down here it seemed like the whole country was glued to their screens.
As for the second, the Kiwi's won the start, but later ended up with a penalty, apparently having tacted too close to Oracle. That was the 'ball-game' really and they never recovered, so it was a great day for Oracle.
So we are again set to race today, fingers crossed. It's clear things are getting tense for both teams on and off the water too with a bit of friendly eye-balling going on yesterday, not to mention Jimmy Spithalls constant snipping of Dean Barker & Team NZ during the press conferences.
I'm sure todays races will be yet another jaw biting spectacle......can't wait^&grin
Desertkiwi
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Poor wind killed racing yesterday and now today we have a whale in the bay, enjoying the course......all we need now is for Greenpeace to show up{eek3}^&grin
I have it on good authority that the whale was chased into the bay by some guy named Ahab who happens to dislike catamarans.:wink2: -- Al
4th Hussar
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Larry Ellison, who has more money than Greece has debt, hired the whale to buy his team some time to figure out why they keep losing.
Desertkiwi
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The fear of a whale attack seems to have worked well today, with the Kiwi's bombing out of both races big time......after Saturdays debacle with the tight time restrictions this is cruel.
What can we expect next, maybe a flock of crazed seagulls with a fetish for red & black sails....{eek3}{sm5}:tongue:
Our news coverage on this event is really bad. I had no idea the races were even run until I read your post. I looked all afternoon yesterday for TV coverage but there was none listed or any I could find and there was no mention on the sports shows either. I found 2 short paragraphs in this morning's AM paper about the race, saying it is now NZ 8-5. It is now a much more competitive race so maybe some more interest will be generated over here, though I doubt it as I have been checking the AM sports shows and still no mention. Trying to follow these races from the east coast is really frustrating. I don't even know when the next races are. Oracle still needs to win 4 straight races to retain the cup so I don't know if NZ should worry yet, but I can understand that this must be nerve-wracking. Still, all NZ needs is one more win. Odds are they will get it as I think 4 more in a row is asking too much. -- Al
Desertkiwi
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Hi Al, nice post mate, yeah I've heard coverage in the US is pretty poor. Next set of races is today, with kick off just over an hour away, however the forecast is for light winds again, so it's hard to tell if they will race at all today at this stage.
The races run live here, with several large TV screens erected around the country for the public to watch too, it's exciting stuff and great to see the country get in behind Team NZ. They even sell special America's cup red socks to show their support....^&grin
A little known fact, is that Oracle flow up several Kiwi boat builders last week to work on their Cat to get some more puff out of it, on top of that they employ 74 Kiwi's in their afterguard. if it wasn't for the Aussie Skipper and a few crew members from the US & Europe you'd almost think it was two Kiwi teams racing......{sm3}
Right I'm off to work now early to catch the first race in the bosses office....{sm4}
Thanks for the race info. Once again, no mention, no listings for today's races. Guess I'll just start cruising the sports channels and hope to hit a broadcast. Good luck to your team, although, as you point out, it does seem to be pretty much an all NZ effort, with only the final location of the Cup's residence in question.:wink2:^&grin -- Al P.S. Just found TV coverage starting in 10 minutes. Thanks again for the info.
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Well, I'm just shocked that Oracle has closed what was a 7-1 deficit to an 8-6 deficit. I really didn't think this race would ever get this far as bad as Oracle was looking through the early races. Another day to wait but NZ still has the advantage, smaller though it may be. Winning one more race is all NZ needs, Oracle needs 3. Still, this contest has sure perked up. -- Al
Desertkiwi
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Cheers Al, yeah the Kiwi's made too many mistakes today and it was Oracles day again, which was disappointing to say the least. It always was going to be a David & Goliath contest, with Team Oracle's deep pockets making the difference.
The subbing on of new Oracle tactician, Sir Ben Ansie, I think has had the biggest impact, because the Cats overall are pretty much the same.
Even though the Kiwi's still hold the advantage, they're cutting it fine and it's clear that it's going to be close as to who takes it out now.
More races scheduled tomorrow at the same time, weather dependant of course.
Toddy
johnnybach
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I have been quietly watching the races on TV - they are on every night here.
I agree, that it may be significant that the turn-around in fortunes of the American boat ( funny American accents these guys seem to have?) - appears to have happened since Sir Ben Ainslie turned up! Did he sprinkle a little bit of dust from all of those Olympic Gold medals around????:smile2:
I agree, that it may be significant that the turn-around in fortunes of the American boat ( funny American accents these guys seem to have?) - appears to have happened since Sir Ben Ainslie turned up! Did he sprinkle a little bit of dust from all of those Olympic Gold medals around????:smile2:
Absolutely amazing. I've never seen anything like this comeback by Oracle. The second race was unbelievable. Oracle just up and left the NZ boat in the dust on the third leg. I don't understand it. Same wind, same boats. How does one boat just walk away like that? All this racing and all this living day to day by Oracle all comes down to one race now. All bets are off. I'm really just stunned. Winner take all tomorrow. Be there. It will be memorable whichever way it goes.-- Al
Well, it has taken a remarkable comeback and a chance for the US to retain the Cup, but the Washington Post newspaper has finally given the match more than just a paragraph and a passing mention. Sort of. This morning there is an actual 2 column article about the winner-take-all finale. It is buried on page 8 of the Sports section, right next to the Classifieds section.:rolleyes2: Maybe the winner of the finale will rate a mention on page 1 of the sports section tomorrow. Right. -- Al
Desertkiwi
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Cheeky bugga:tongue:.....hey with a name like Jimmy Spithall he's all yours Wayne.^&grin Seriously though we're guttered by the turn of events.
Larry's pulled out all the stops with his billions and it shows, still think we were robbed on Saturday, unbelievable really.....from all accounts, if we lose today, NZ won't challenge for the cup again......it's way too expensive!!{eek3}
Go Team NZ.
Once again, what was a close race early turns into a rout as Oracle just up and ran away from the Kiwis to win the race and retain the Cup. Never seen anything like this series of races with such a turn in fortune. Congratulations to Oracle for the comeback and win and congratulations to the Kiwis for a fantastic contest that went the limit. It's a crying shame someone had to lose this race and it's a crying shame it has garnered such little attention over here. After I got adjusted to watching these cats, it turned into a fun watch. -- Al
The Military Workshop
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Well done the non USA team. Not sure about last day but on 2nd last day only 1/11 of boat crew was actually
from USA.
Read today the USA team manager was the Aussie Navigator who won the Americas Cup 30 years ago today.
Amazing result which unfortunately will be remembered more for how NZ lost it than how USA won it.
Commisserations to all of NZ.
from USA.
Read today the USA team manager was the Aussie Navigator who won the Americas Cup 30 years ago today.
Amazing result which unfortunately will be remembered more for how NZ lost it than how USA won it.
Commisserations to all of NZ.
Desertkiwi
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Cheers Brett & Al, yeah a truly gutting result for Team NZ. The 'cup' has always been a rich mans plaything, but Larry Ellison's deep pockets have taken it to a whole new level.
The Kiwi's gave it their all and so much more, but with Oracle's sudden increase in speed last week the writing was on the wall. There will of course be plenty of questions as to what exactly they did to achieve the turn around?
Congratulations to both teams and I say that with all sincerity, but I can't quite get over the 'what if' aspect of todays outcome.
Nice to hear Ellison is planning a lawsuit to contest the 2x race penalty Oracle got slapped with for cheating, prior to the start of the regatta. Maybe with todays result he might like to let that one slide.......
Toddy
The Kiwi's gave it their all and so much more, but with Oracle's sudden increase in speed last week the writing was on the wall. There will of course be plenty of questions as to what exactly they did to achieve the turn around?
Congratulations to both teams and I say that with all sincerity, but I can't quite get over the 'what if' aspect of todays outcome.
Nice to hear Ellison is planning a lawsuit to contest the 2x race penalty Oracle got slapped with for cheating, prior to the start of the regatta. Maybe with todays result he might like to let that one slide.......
Toddy