Is SF an America's Cup City?

FROM SEPTEMBER BAY AND DELTA YACHTSMAN MAGAZINE

Is San Francisco An America’s Cup City? In 2013 San Francisco joins the list of six other seaport cities that have played host for yachting’s esteemed holy grail: the America’s Cup. The event kicks into high gear next year as five teams will rip it out with their high-tech, multi-million dollar catamarans off the city’s sprawling waterfront and out on the treacherous waters of San Francisco Bay. When the Golden Gate Yacht Club (GGYC) crafted its protocol for the 34th America’s Cup, it called on all parties to come together quickly to try to pull off a successful circus in a very short time span. The effort is taking the willingness, hard work and determination of multiple city agencies, groups and organizations whose numbers are beyond comprehension. The cooperation of so many has been mind-boggling. The plan has not been without its share of pitfalls and potholes, but in taking on the challenge San Francisco will endeavor to place itself above and beyond the others in trying to be known as the “America’s Cup City.” Can our emerald city on the Bay be forever linked with the America’s Cup and become the international sailing center for the ages? “Without a doubt!” boasts Jane Sullivan, who is San Francisco Mayor Edward Lee’s Communications Director for the 34th America’s Cup in the city’s Office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD). “We are organizing the community to put the whole event on much firmer ground, as the America’s Cup Event Authority (ACEA) moves to rebrand the Cup into a sustainable event, emphasizing forward thinking and technology, with a definite eye toward the future,” Sullivan said. Sullivan moved to City Hall two years ago from her management role at San Francisco International Airport to segway over to help build an organization here “from scratch.” “My feeling was I’m done here and ready for a new challenge,” said Sullivan. She added that if the America’s Cup had been a powerboat race, there is “no way” the city and community would have gotten behind the event. As it tries to strive toward the title of being the “America’s Cup City,” the competition has been fierce! Newport, Rhode Island, will invariably be linked with the Auld Mug having played host for over 53 years. Large-scale, transformational projects in the tiny fishing village of Fremantle (Western Australia), Auckland (New Zealand) and the industrial Mediterranean port city of Valencia (Spain) have set the standard in making the America’s Cup an event that can act as a catalyst toward urban renewal. San Francisco is one of the world’s most beautiful cities with its stunning panoramic vistas, landscaped gardens, unique coastal architecture surrounded by the rolling hills and islands of the Bay Area, but with many parts of its historic waterfront that are in dire need of a facelift. The impetus here is the prospect of massive 15-story, high-fixed wing sails on top of carbon fiber catamarans, with their hulls and winged foils, screaming through the waves. They will literally fly atop the roiling waters of San Francisco Bay against a backdrop of two of the most famous places in the world, Alcatraz Island and the Golden Gate Bridge. So, what’s not to like? “We are really excited!” exclaims Laurie Armstrong from San Francisco Travel. “There will be layers of benefits and the impact will be a shining light on our city. “This will make us a sailing city and this is a tremendous opportunity to reach out to the world and show how beautiful San Francisco is,” Armstrong said. “One of the first benefits of all of this is that the America’s Cup made the new James R. Herman Cruise Terminal a reality sooner rather than later,” Armstrong said. “This brings a whole new level of attraction here to go with our incredible art, restaurants and parks.” “We are disappointed overall that more teams will not be here,” she continued, adding that she does not think this will detract from the event and we are “still expecting $1.6 billion of economic impact.” “We are joining the old and the new,” said Ian Murray, who is the CEO for America’s Cup Race Management. “We have invented a new wheel.” Auckland and Valencia, with the assistance of their respective governments, were able to wave a magical wand over blighted parts of their cities and create a tourist infrastructure that will pay dividends for generations. Valencia now plays host to not only many international regattas, but also has a Formula One Grand Prix around its “Port America’s Cup.” San Diego, while a fine host, never took advantage of the opportunity to use the event for urban reclamation. The America’s Cup World Series (ACWS) event there last November, while providing great racing, was disappointing in not drawing the hoped-for numbers to watch, as Murray put it: “our contemporary version of the Cup.” Even with the dreams and hopes to revitalize parts of San Francisco’s decaying waterfront, the current plans in place will not transform the city, and special interest groups have already put the kibosh on several of the hoped-for projects. The ACWS events this past August and in October will be a great “soft test” for all the local government, transit, police and federal agencies involved. Sullivan points to the potential projects like the Muni “E-Line” that will transport people along the waterfront as being the “glimmer” in that department’s eyes. The E-Line would have the potential to move legions of people from the Cal Trans Depot to Fisherman’s Wharf and, long term, eventually on to Fort Mason. The historic rail cars would provide a picturesque backdrop for visitors to the city and fulfill a vision by city planners. Another key component of the process has been the inclusion of the vast expanse of the Bay Area and the necessity that a majority of the viewing opportunities, for potentially tens of thousands, will be located on the public lands of Golden Gate National Park (GGNP). Incorporating the entirety of all the San Francisco Bay, Crissy Field, Fort Baker, Alcatraz Island and the Headlands area into our own natural amphitheater as part the America’s Cup “stadium of sailing” is unprecedented in the history of sports. You could probably fit 10 Indianapolis Motor Speedways at 400,000 fans each into the confines of our “arena.” Much of the area falls into the jurisdiction of the Park Service. According to Howard Levitt, Chief of Public Affairs for the GGNPS, the Park Service has been working closely with the ACEA to “ensure that the sensitive and fragile areas of the park are well protected.” “We have been putting up fencing around environmentally sensitive areas as a precaution,” Levitt said. “We will have a public information staff and enforcement in place, similar to Fleet Week, to point spectators in the right direction. “The Park is a wonderful place to watch the races and the ACWS will be a spectacular event to watch, while we make sure our resources are protected,” said Levitt. The number of staff will be determined by the size and scope of the attendance on different race days. “We have cost recovery process in place with the ACEA through the City to cover fees associated with protecting our resources,” said Levitt; adding that “Alcatraz Island will be business as usual and there will be no grandstands there.” Like the Golden Gate Bridge’s 75th Anniversary, Levitt advises the public to leave the car at home and look at alternative forms of transportation. “This year will be an interesting component and will allow us to gage what to expect in 2013,” said Levitt. A generation ago, who could have envisioned SOMA (South of Market Area) extending toward the Dogpatch as being the land of milk and honey? With the San Francisco Giants baseball park, sprawling corporate parks, campuses and green spaces that stretch toward the confines of Oracle Racing’s facility on Pier 80, San Francisco is working on what Sullivan terms the “legacy pieces” with “a definite eye toward the future.” With the possibility of the Golden State Warriors building a new arena on Piers 30-32 and the ACEA wondering aloud: “Where in the hell are we going to go?” in the future, Sullivan offers potential opportunities on piers 35 and 29 south of the Bay Bridge. “There is not a lack of space.” Oracle Racing has taken an aging facility of empty warehouse spaces and transformed it into a 22nd century space age fabrication factory that has become its high-tech ground zero. Under airtight security, the racing team is transforming the carbon fiber components of parts and pieces of its AC72 multi-hulled yacht into a raging sailing monster. “Oracle Racing has an incredible facility,” exclaims an enthusiastic Armstrong. “It is jaw dropping!” Sullivan said, “The custom fabrication guys at Pier 80 are not messing around.” The team hopes to launch its AC72 this month. “It is hard to build an organization from scratch,” she said. “I can’t stress enough how much the city is working the Port, the ACEA, everyone; these things don’t just happen.” San Francisco has to put all the pieces of the puzzle together in a very short time, less than two years, in contrast to the Olympic Cities that have in some cases a decade or more to prepare and six or seven years to construct facilities. “There were a host of problems. This was new and it was not an easy thing for the City to do,” said Sullivan. “We had to figure out how to promote it locally and make it sustainable.” The ACEA, along with multiple city agencies, also announced the creation of a “One-Stop-Shop” that will allow information to be shared and utilized to the benefit of San Francisco businesses and the community at large. According to Armstrong it will “help facilitate interaction.” The offices will be located at Pier 23 and managed by the OEWD. It is a centralized resource where Bay Area businesses can access information, get assistance on local issues related to the America’s Cup, and learn about business opportunities. “‘The One-Stop-Shop at Pier 23 is another tangible example of how the economic benefits of the America’s Cup races are coming to San Francisco,” Mayor Edwin M. Lee said. “I congratulate all our partners for developing this exciting new center to serve the America’s Cup teams, local businesses and local visitors and deliver a world-class series of events.” Stephen Barclay, CEO of the America’s Cup Event Authority, said, “The One-Stop-Shop is an important tool in disseminating information about the America’s Cup to all interested parties.” A key component of the One-Stop-Shop will be the Business Connect web portal, which will be managed by the S.F. Chamber to help facilitate the procurement process for work contracted by ACEA, the City and County of San Francisco and the America’s Cup teams. Steven Falk, President and CEO, San Francisco Chamber of Commerce, said, “We are committed to providing an inclusive, responsive and transparent process that will boost local business participation and help drive job and economic growth throughout the region.” Fremantle bolstered its status in 1987 by constructing another harbor specifically for the Cup and creating space for facilities that the competing challenging teams could not only use for their boats and equipment, but also became places to utilize as an important fundraising tool. San Francisco and “Freo” have the most important ingredient in common: They are incredible places to sail! The challenging sailing conditions on the Indian Ocean and here on the Bay are intimidating, awe inspiring and breathtaking for sailors and spectators alike. In Australia, there was a regular sea breeze known as the “Doctor” checking in every afternoon like clockwork. At 20 to 30 knots the conditions were optimal for teams, and likewise here, the winds and strong ebb tides will be challenging. Back then for the television viewing audience, it was a panacea theater with Kevlar®-busting winds and aluminum-bending waves as the 12-meter boats ripped through the turquoise waters. Dennis Conner and his Stars & Stripes sailing team met their date with destiny by reclaiming the America’s Cup for America. With that event, the America’s Cup reached the pinnacle of sport. Unfortunately since then, infighting, litigation and internal politics have dominated the headlines. It has never been able to recover that elusive slice of the market pie since. The opportunity was there 5 years ago when Emirates Team New Zealand and Alinghi from Switzerland sailed a spectacle that was wiped away mere moments after the Swiss won the exhilarating final race by a second. Then, the Societe Nautique de Geneva and its billionaire benefactor Ernesto Bertarelli missed the opportunity to cash in on the golden goose by making its own grab for the “ring of power” with a self-serving protocol. Leading the local charges here are several important organizations, departments and offices that have labored intensively over the last two and a half years since USA 17, the GGYC’s powerful trimaran, captured the America’s Cup in Valencia and San Francisco was announced as the host city. Larry Ellison has given San Francisco a golden opportunity to host the “Super Bowl” of sailing and other events like it for many years to come. The ACEA has struggled to raise the profile, organization and funds necessary to host the event here; but one thing for certain, it is important to rebuild our waterfront. We need more than just giving it a sprucing up for 2013. Everyone needs to move forward in order to create a waterfront that will pay dividends for future generations and will create real jobs, revenue and public interest with an opportunity to host other prestigious events from around the world. Thirty Precious Days Like Gollum’s ring, the only thing more precious these days for Dean Barker and Grant Dalton from Emirates Team New Zealand (ETNZ) is how to best use the 30 “sailing” days on their recently launched AC72 multi-hull between now and Feb. 1, 2013. Amid great fanfare, Mandy Barker launched a magnum of champagne across the carbon fiber baked bow of ETNZ’s metallic red and black, sparkling, high-tech catamaran and christened her New Zealand. Thousands attended the ceremony in Auckland’s Viaduct Harbor and the festivities featured exciting displays of fireworks and pyrotechnics. “What you see before you here is the result of 50 man-years of design and 65,000 hours of building by the New Zealand marine industry,” according to ETNZ CEO Grant Dalton. “It’s a great honor for me to lead this team, along with Dean Barker, as we take this on to San Francisco.” Barker told the crowd, when asked about sailing the catamarans, “For us it’s been a huge learning curve. The boats are exciting to sail. Rather than finesse, it’s more about getting out there and just getting into it. It’s been fantastic.” Mandy is the wife of Kiwi skipper Dean Barker. The powerful new challenging yacht for the America’s Cup was made possible by an essential, but controversial, $36 million from the New Zealand government in support of the team’s effort. ETNZ also has major corporate sponsorship from Emirates Airlines, Nespresso, Toyota, Camper and Omega. As has been shown worldwide, the outstretched arms of several years of an economic downturn has left every competing team affected, leading the Chinese, Spanish, Italians and now the French to withdraw their efforts and without the New Zealand Government’s support ETNZ would have foundered, too. Taken off the tow for its initial sail, New Zealand carefully worked its way up Auckland’s East Coast Bays and spent a majority of the first of its “precious” sailing days testing off Tiritiri Martangi Island in between a series of rain squalls on a dreary day where wind conditions hovered around 10-12 knots. It was actually perfect for a team not wanting to push the envelope on its AC72’s maiden voyage. The weather won’t vary too much in the coming weeks as it is the middle of winter for the Kiwi’s. In this brave new world of the America’s Cup, next to the designer, skipper and crew the most important element on the team is the meteorologist! For the Kiwi’s, the weather-prediction duties fall on the shoulders of Roger “Clouds” Badham. Once the teams reach San Francisco, the flows and ebb tide currents of the Bay will undoubtedly conjure up another unsung hero in the mist. Barker endorsed the activities of these early days of AC72 testing as “science meets real life” as the gigantic multi-hull and the ETNZ crew systematically work through its checklist for the new boat under the watchful eyes of “spies” from the other America’s Cup teams. “It is good to get the first sail under our belt,” Dalton said. “Overall the weather could have been better, but the wind was ideal for a first sail. It’s what we had waited for.” Dalton said the day, while unspectacular, was productive. “We know more about the boat than we did this morning and that’s why we go testing.” The day was perfect for initial load testing as tactician Ray Davies describes: “It was a bit of a relief to get out there and fly a hull on the first day” between Takapuna Beach and Tititiri Matangi. “We got her up on one hull, whizzing around at 20 knots in 10 knots of breeze. She’s going to be pretty impressive in a serious breeze... and a bloody handful, too,” Davies said. “The 72 will be a handful to sail in a breeze, very fast and very difficult to sail and extremely demanding on the crew.” Davies described the AC72 as “pretty docile” compared with the AC45s they’re racing in the America’s Cup World Series regattas. “The bigger the boat, the slower they are to react. Tight courses in a breeze will be a challenge. These boats want to stretch their legs but they will have to be very maneuverable for AC racing.” “We will be racing in San Francisco in a breeze expected to range from late teens to early 20s, so there’s no point sailing around Auckland in 8-10 knots,” Barker said. Windy conditions on a second day of trials testing came to an early conclusion when a broken rib in the front element of the massive 140-foot high fixed wing resulted in some minor damage. Dalton said, “We had a good two hours of upwind testing in 12 knots of breeze and flat water before the break. The boat is under extreme loads. We could go out there every day and break something different; it’s just part of the process of getting the boat up to speed. The engineers made the prudent call to fix the rib permanently, so we stayed ashore.” Under the liberal terms for the “constructed in country” clause for the 34th Protocol only the hulls are regulated to the home country as most of the critical parts of the new generation AC72’s can be built elsewhere. Most of the AC72’s will probably become regular visitors to the composite shop as collisions and “pitch poling” are bound to be frequent occurrences on the volatile San Francisco Bay where winds routinely rip above 30 knots and the infamous ebb tides can bring a submarining hull to a screeching halt. The boats must also be able to be disassembled within a 24-hour period. ETNZ will continue to train in Auckland for the next several months with Italy’s Luna Rossa Team. Under a “partnership” agreement, the two teams will work together until early next year when the Italians launch their first boat and New Zealand christens their second. The teams are not expected in San Francisco until March or April of next year. The competition for the Louis Vuitton Challenger Series begins in July 2013. Viva La France? Pas Cette Fois! The French Withdraw The French Energy Team has withdrawn their effort to build an AC72 for next year’s America’s Cup. The announcement was not unexpected. The European economy has struggled and the Peyron brothers, Bruno and Loïck, who run the team, were not able to raise the funds necessary to build a new boat by next year. On a positive note, the Energy Team will stay intact and continue to compete in the America’s Cup World Series. The Energy Team will be entering a youth team in order to compete in the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup in August 2013 in San Francisco. The team’s high point came earlier this year when it captured the ACWS in Venice, Italy, in May. “We have always said that we would not be competing just for the sake of it,” said Loïck Peyron. “This decision is a logical one if we look at the goals we gave ourselves with the Yacht Club de France, which are still the same: to set up a team that is able to compete at the highest level and bring back the America’s Cup.” This will be the first time, save Deed of Gift (DoG) Cup races in 1988 and 2010, that the French will not compete since 1970. Even with an AC72 “box” agreement with Oracle earlier this year, that was not enough to allow France to compete. France has some of the world’s premier multi-hull sailors and is home to one the finest technical composite facilities at Multiplast in the western port city of Vannes, France, located on the Gulf of Morbihan. “We can all be proud of the work that has been accomplished in such a short space of time, but we must not take a big gamble with the risk of losing everything,” said Peyron. “Whilst the final phase of our project is beyond our grasp this year, let us now look ahead to the 35th America’s Cup.”