Sips from the Cup: Syndicate row fills up as challengers unpack their race boats

By JULIE ASH

With just 52 days until the start of the Louis Vuitton challenger series, nine new cup boats are here and a further eight are on the way.

Mascalzone Latino have returned to Auckland with their new boat ITA72 and their fellow Italian syndicate Prada are expecting the arrival of their new yacht, ITA74, in the next two weeks.

Team Dennis Conner and Le Defi Areva are the only two challengers left to take up their positions on "syndicate row." Both are expected to arrive this month.

The British challenge is expecting the arrival of its second yacht, GBR78, known as Wight Magic, today.

Originally a one-boat campaign, GBR decided to construct another yacht with the intention of having two 2003-generation yachts to train with after the cup.

The boat was to stay in Britain, but at the last minute the syndicate decided it would be of more use to them in Auckland.

GBR founder and chairman Peter Harrison was delighted to see GBR78 on her way to Auckland.

"Flying out the second boat will give us five or six weeks of final practice and tune-up time, which will be demanding on the team, but will give us the maximum boat selection options between rounds," he said.

The second boat was named Wight Magic to go with her sister yacht Wight Lightning (GBR70).

"I have named her Wight Magic to continue the theme of linking with our team base on the Isle of Wight, where the Auld Mug was first contested 151 years ago.

"Wight also has a spiritual meaning of spirit, courage and enterprise, as well as magical connotations."

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Former Team New Zealand strategist Murray Jones, now with Alinghi, is out of action for a few weeks after breaking his left foot while sailing on the Hauraki Gulf this week.

"The wind was blowing at 10 knots and the two Alinghi boats [SUI64 and SUI75] were involved in routine training when Murray's foot got stuck in the mainsail sheet," Alinghi's physiotherapist Xavier Jolis said.

"We will have to wait a few days to assess the injury, but it looks like Murray won't be able to sail for a few weeks."

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NZL38 has officially retired from Sweden's Victory Challenge.

The boat, renamed Cristina, was taken out sailing for the last time on Thursday. It will now be removed from the base to make way for Victory Challenge's new boat SWE73 (Orm).

"NZL38 has been the cornerstone of our project until now, without her we would never have got this far," Victory Challenge project manager Mats Johansson said.

"We have sailed her continuously since her launch in July 2000. This has been achieved without any kind of damage. She must be the best America's Cup boat ever."

With NZL38, Team New Zealand won the Louis Vuitton Cup in 1995. Her sister yacht, NZL32, won the cup match.

Victory Challenge are not sure where the future of NZL38 lies.

"It looks like we'll sell her. Hopefully, she'll get a home here in Auckland. She's an historic boat after all, especially for New Zealand."

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With so many new boats in action, the temptation for the challengers now is to pit themselves against each other.

So far when syndicates have raced each other it has been with their training boats built for the last cup, except when Victory Challenge used their new boat, SWE63, in the International America's Cup regatta.

But last week Victory Challenge lined SWE63 up against Britain's GBR70 in a battle of the new boats.

Although the two syndicates agreed not to discuss what went on in the race, it appears a torn asymmetric spinnaker caused the Swedish team a few problems.

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Oracle BMW Racing's chief executive officer Larry Ellison can keep an eye on his team's progress from America via his computer.

Oracle's software captures data ranging from wind-speed and boat-speed, to direction and keel angles.

Captured at 180 variables a second, the data is transformed into information about their boats - USA71 and USA76 - and then distributed to Maryland where the yachts were designed, to California where the boats were built, and to Auckland where the team is training.

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Bill Endean is the new commodore of the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron, replacing Peter Taylor.

Endean's brother and grandfather are both past commodores.

The new vice commodore is David Charlesworth, and John Crawford is the new rear commodore.

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