Remember When?

NOVEMBER 1987 WHAT DOES THE WORLD REALLY WANT?
Malin Burnham, President of Sail America, "We have 25 signed affidavits to support our interpretation on racing in 12-Meters. The weight of the world is in our favor." Michael Fay, New Zealand Challenge, "There is a great deal of worldwide support for such a competition (J-Boats), and it's growing." Arthur J. Santry, Jr., Commodore New York Yacht Club, The San Diego Yacht Club's action is not in the best interest of the America's Cup and is inappropriate."So tell me. What does the world really want? More importantly, what will the world get? Brace yourself, the battle lines for the "Auld Mug" are being drawn, and you had better be careful on which side you choose.
Once again the America's Cup wars have returned to the shores of the Atlantic Ocean. Unfortunately, this time they're being waged on the floors of the New York Supreme Court.The litigation in New York began with Michael Fay's challenge for the Cup in 90 ft. waterline length boats, the maximum allowed under the Deed of Gift.
The San Diego Yacht Club refused his challenge, so Fay brought the matter to court. Fay is attempting to hold the SDYC responsible for administering the provisions of competition for the Cup under the terms of the original Deed of Gift. "We have taken the initiative, both to challenge in 1988 and to do so in a completely different class of boat that will restore some of the romance and grandeur to the event," said Fay, who was the syndicate head of the New Zealand Challenge in Perth and is representing the Mercury Bay Boating Club in this matter.
“We are dismayed and disappointed that Mr. Fay would elect to drag one of the world's premier sporting events into a court of law," states Malin Burnham, President of Sail America, and no stranger to Cup politics, having run Dennis Conner's last three campaigns.Sail America is manager of the SDYC's America's Cup Defense.
"I can assure Mr. Burnham and Sail America that this is a genuine and serious challenge, made in the best traditions of the America's Cup," says Fay, "and New Zealand will be pursuing it with full vigor.""Fay's action comes as no surprise," said Burnham. "It is merely further evidence of his determination to manipulate and control the terms of this matter to his own advantage."
THE DEED OF GIFT
The Mercury Bay Boating Club sent its challenge to the SDYC on July 15, 1987. Under the provisions set forth by the Deed, Fay gave the SDYC 10 months' notice, calling for races to be held on June 1, 3, & 7 of next year, off San Diego, in boats that will measure more than 135 feet in length.Unfortunately, the challenge came at an inopportune time for the SDYC, as they were struggling with Sail America just to hold the next Cup regatta in home waters.
These giants will be ultra-light "trapeze" J-Class boats, with crews of 40 men. The boat is under construction now at Martens Marine in Auckland, NZ, and will be christened on February 27, 1988.The SDYC has received three other challenges to date in J-Class yachts. They include Alan Bond from the Royal Perth YC, Peter de Savary, representing the Royal Burnham YC, and the YCof Cannes, France. Both Bond and de Savary have also challenged in 12 ­Meters.
To date, Sail America has received 20 challenges for 1991 in 12 Meters, and according to the affidavit filed on September 18th, half of those challengers have spent $7.7 million dollars on their 12­Meter campaigns.
The center of this controversy is the Deed of Gift. The Deed is the constitution of the America's Cup. All matters relating to the Deed are subject to interpretation by the New York Supreme Court. The original Deed of Gift was written in 1857 by the surviving members of the America Syndicate and the NYYC, which had won the America's Cup in 1851 off the Isle of Wight in England. It was amended in 1887 by George Schuyler.
Two amendments have been added since then: in 1956 to allow for 12-Meters as the yacht of choice, and in 1984, to accommodate Perth, Australia, as trustee to the Cup.The storm revolves around a series of provisions, which are referred to as enabling resolutions.These unwritten by-laws to the Deed have gone unchallenged until now."If it were not for the NYYC in 1956 as acting trustee conceiving of ways to adapt the Deed to drastically changed times and circumstance, the America's Cup, would be a relic gathering dust,' states Burnham."Mr. Fay and his colleagues would have us forsake the living Deed of Gift at the very peak of its vitality and return instead to an obsolete match which bears no resemblance to the vigorous spirit of truly international competition so evident in Perth earlier this year!" states an emphatic Burnham."As trustee of the Cup, SDYC has a responsibility to protect the interests of all challengers," said Burnham.
"While we are unhappy to see Mr. Fay attempt to win in court what would be hard to win at sea, we are well-prepared to fight for the sake of the other challengers and for the future of the America's Cup.
ENTER NEW YORK YACHT CLUB
If one front in this war wasn't enough for the SDYC to wage, enter the NYYC, author of the Deed of Gift and trustee to the America's Cup for 132 years. The NYYC has gone to court to prevent SDYC's petition to amend the Deed, that would allow for the Cup to take place only every four years and then only in 12-Meters.The NYYC, which adamantly maintains that the Club takes no position in the suit between SDYC and Fay, and has stepped forth only to prevent, according to Commodore Arthur J. Santry, Jr., "each future trustee of the Cup from being able to dictate whatever terms for the challenge and defense of the Cup that seemed best to suit the interests of that trustee.
"There is a lot of misunderstanding in regards to the Deed of Gift," spoke Santry. "SDYC's actions are not in the interest of the Cup and is inappropriate." In response to the legality of Fay’s challenge, Santry said, 'I don't think there is any question about it."
"It's important to remember that the NYYC does not support New Zealand's challenge," said Tom Ehman, executive VP and chief operating officer of Sail America. Ehman was also the executive director for the NYYC's unsuccessful America II challenge. "They are only involved in the separate proceeding in which we have asked to amend the Deed of Gift," states Ehman. "They have remained neutral on the challenge."
IN THE BEGINNING
When the SDYC first responded to Fay's challenge with a blunt thanks, but no thanks, it then went about its own business: you know ­'Rain, rain, go away, come again another day'. Well, it never rains in San Diego, except on the day when the SDYC and the City chose to make their announcement on the America's Cup.Well, on that day, what was to have been a landmark occasion for the City of San Diego, became instead the format in which to respond to Fay's challenge. On the previous day, Fay had sought and obtained a restraining order from the Court preventing the SDYC from discussing any plans that relate to the 1991 Cup.
The restraining order was lifted a week later, which basically meant that Sail America could proceed with their plans on paper, though no-one was rushing out to start pouring concrete. When Stars and Stripes won the America’s Cup earlier this year, Conner and Company had rolled through the New Zealand “plastic fantastic" to win the series 4 to 1 and earn the right to face Kookaburra 3 (which they trashed as well) for the America's Cup.
Kiwi Magic was the first fiberglass 12-Meter and had passed technical inspection. But Conner, who plays the psychology game as well as anyone, and is not one to mince words about enemy technology, commented that, "Why else would you build a fiberglass 12 Meter, unless you were going to cheat?"Well, New Zealand hadn't, but that was not the point, and Conner knew it. But Fay wasn't about to let dead dogs lie, and while everyone in San Diego was haggling about where to hold the Cup Defense, he was up late studying the Deed.
Also Russell Bowler, project manager for Kiwi Magic's fiberglass construction.Fay's challenge dictates that the races commence 10 months from the date of his challenge in accordance to the Deed, though the Judge has ruled the races would take place 10 months from her decree, if she rules in Fay's favor."What we are proposing won't be any easier than challenging in 12­ Meters," said Fay. "New Zealand will again be the newcomer going against the Americans, who were invincible for more than 80 years when the Cup was raced in boats of the size we have nominated."
"New Zealand is interested in sailing, not in being in court; we're looking back to the old traditions of the America's Cup, and we have to be careful that the sport does not become overly commercialized.""We welcome the challenges from Australia and Great Britain, and we are prepared to sail againstthem," said Fay, "and any other challenge that arrives in San Diego in time. Just to get the boat ready and to San Diego in time will be a major feat."New Zealand, J-l has a construction crew of 30 people working around the clock to get her ready. David Barnes, who skippered Kiwi Magic to a World Championship in Sardinia last summer is part of the resource of the program, but no decision will be made on a skipper for some time to come. Though no one would comment publicly, there can be no doubt that the Stars and Stripes brain trust are plugging in numbers for a J-Boat design of their own.“SDYC and Sail America are confident we have the moral and legal high ground in this matter, and we hope and expect a favorable decision shortly, states Ehman.”We haven't even taken our gloves off yet," boasts Burnham.
THE BOAT
The boats that Fay proposes to sail in are maxi-sloops whose likes haven't been seen around the America's Cup course since the turn of the century. Fay, along with his partner, David Rich white, has assembled a design team awesome in scope to work on plans for this ultra-light "trapeze J-Boat".Head of the design team is Bruce Farr, one of the co-designers of Kiwi Magic, and one of the best maxi-boat architects in the world. UBS Switzerland, which captured the line honors in last year's Whitbread Around-the World Race, was a Farr design.
Joining Farr on the design team is Tom Schnackenberg, technical director of North Sails International. “Schnack” the man responsible for Australia 2's winning sails in 1983.San Diego is it!It is interesting that the announcement the San Diego Yacht Club wanted to make, and Southern California wanted to hear for so long was forced to take a backseat to· Michael Fay's lawsuit.
Barring unforeseen circumstances, San Diego, California will host the 27th Defense of the America's Cup in 1988 or 1991."We were prepared to announce San Diego as the venue on September 2nd", said Gerry Driscoll, chairman of San Diego s America's Cup Committee. "We held off because of a temporary restraining order issued by the New York Supreme Court."The announcement ended months of speculation that Honolulu, Hawaii would host the defense. After Fremantle's spectacular setting and heavy winds there was a great deal of support to race off the Hawaiian coast. But, in the end, SDYC received the community support it was looking for, and as the story goes, "There is no second place."
Plans call for the America's Cup course to be located 7 to 15 miles southwest of Point Lorna, past the notorious kelp beds which he along Coronado Roads. Light air is listed as prime enemy number one, but SDYC officials insist that during the planned months of competition, April through August - that the breezes average a robust 10-14 knots. That may be a bit overstated, but there is a consistent breeze between 12:00 noon and 5 p.m. in the afternoon. Consideration may haveto be given to raising the five hour time limit per race to 6 hours, or shortening the course.
One of the interesting features of the ocean off San Diego are the huge rolling swells, which could produce a lot of surfing 12-Meters or Trapeze J’s.