SAIL.SailMagazine

Never before has the red-hot favored team to win the next America’s Cup been in such a dicey predicament. Some claim that Emirates Team New Zealand has already won the Cup in the design department, but even if that proves true, it makes the team no less vulnerable to the fortunes of war.  

Call it sour grapes, but I for one am getting sick and tired of the way many sailors—pros in particular—feel it necessary to spray champagne all over the place after winning a regatta.

On Saturday, February 18, Italian skipper Giovanni Soldini and eight crewmembers aboard the VOR70 Maserati celebrated a record-smashing victory after sailing from New York to San Francisco in just 47 days, 42 minutes and 29 seconds.

My love for boats began in 1960 when I was a high school freshman. A friend’s father had a small powerboat and we water skied in wet suits as early as May.

There was a time when getting your hands on the wheel of a U.S. America’s Cup boat was almost the same as saying, yes, I’ve won a Star Class world championship. Think Bill “Ficker Is Quicker” Ficker, Dennis Conner, Tom Blackaller, Buddy Melges.