America's Cup Returns to NYC
America’s Cup racing has changed a lot since its original New York days
Love it or hate it, there is one undeniably fun aspect to the 35th America’s Cup—the way the Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series is being spread across the globe so that fans can get a close look at the action without having to hit the road.
It also makes for some interesting historical notes: like the fact that later this year, Cup racing (of a sort) will take place off New York City for first time since 1920 when the the New York Yacht Club’s Herreshoff-designed Resolute defeated Sir Thomas Lipton’s Shamrock IV in the 13th Cup challenge.
Back in the day, the waters off the Big Apple and Sandy Hook were ground zero for U.S. big-boat racing, as East Coast millionaires would regularly challenge one another in high stakes racing aboard their various cutters and sloops. All that changed, however, when America’s Cup racing moved to Newport in 1930, where it remained until Australia won the Cup in 1983.
The New York regatta, which is set for May 7-8, is one of six events scheduled for 2016, in which the six current America’s Cup teams will race aboard full-foiling AC45 catamarans for points toward their seedings in the America’s Cup finals set for Bermuda in May of 2017.
A second U.S. World Series regatta is scheduled to take place June 10-12 in Chicago. For details, visit americascup.com.
Photo courtesy of AC35/Gilles Martin-Raget
April 2016
