There were crowds at the Portsmouth LVACWS •event, but it is hard to give much credibility to a two-race rcgaua
The LVACWS regattas were slated to take place in Portsmouth, UK (July 2015), Gothenburg, Sweden (August 2015) and Bermuda (October 2015), with up to six further events planned for 20 16. In these regattas, results count towards standings that can be used to break ties at the end of the Round Robin series that will sta rt the elimi nation process of ultimately selecting a challenger to face Oracle Team USA in the 35th America's Cup, in Berm uda 2017. The Portsmouth LVAWCS regatta program allowed for two days of racing, two races a day. Four races only - a very small regatta by any standards, and very small indeed for something as trenchant as an America's Cup event. The first day's racing delivered sunshine, suflicient breeze for 'marginal foiling conditions', and a reportedly good crowd turnout. Sir Ben Ainsl ie, Britain and the world's most-decorated Olympic sailor, began his mission to take the Cup horne with a win and then a come-from-behind petfotmance for a second place in the second race to lead the six-boat field.
"The Portsmouth LVAWCS regatta program allowed for two days of racing, two races a day. Four races only - a very small regatta by any standards, and very small indeed for something as trenchant as an America~ Cup event. " And that was it. The next day, England produced the sort of summer weather for which she is famous and gale force winds cancelled the second half of the regatta. Ainslie's BAR Team was handed their two-race regatta victory on a plate. As a sailing event part of the bigger picture of the America's Cup, the event was a bitter disappointment. No doubt much will be made by orga nisers of the visitor numbers and the economic benefits for the Portsmouth area, but in terms of world impact the opening gambit that leads up to the next AC in 2017 was a fizzer, not a firework. Bob Fisher, seasoned observer of the America's Cup and not a man to mince words, remarked, " ... at least they stuck to the program as announced that's a first," referring to the glib propensity of ACEA to move the goalposts at will. The next LVACWS event will be in Gothenburg in late August. Just one week before, the Extreme Sailing Series St Petersbu rg regatta, will pump out up to 40 races over four days: which series will be the most interesting and exciting remains to be seen. Does the America's Cup command respect any longer, or has it become an ordinary and rather lackluster sporting spectacle? At the second ACWS event, in Gothenburg, Sweden, Emirates Team New Zealand were triumphant afterfour races and now lead the series overall. Land Rover BAR were third and Oracle Team USA finished in second place. ~