Poll Comments :
  • We need to unleash the beasts.
    4/20/2009 8:41:42 PM
  • It will be much closer to the original spirit of the cup, and also more exciting to watch
    4/20/2009 8:53:50 PM
  • Put Bertarelli and Ellison in lasers whoever wins best of 5 let their decision go on.
    4/20/2009 8:54:49 PM
  • This will rebuild media and public interest and hopefully remove the egos. Michael Fay never came back after the big boat debacle.
    4/20/2009 8:55:32 PM
  • All in identical Joel White W-76 yachts, crewed by nationality.
    4/20/2009 8:56:36 PM
  • There is Publicity World wide with a multi-challenge field. The multi-hull challenge will just delay a multi-challenge by a couple of years. We want to see the excitement of multi racing asap. The Multi-Hull can be a whole new event and will be exciting to see, but NOT as America''s Cup
    4/20/2009 9:01:39 PM
  • The cup should revert to its original format as in Fremantle and try and resolve all the in fighting that has occured. Perhaps if any country starts up another legal battle (that I believe may have already destroyed the iconic nature of the cup)they should be banned from racing. David from Perth (WA)
    4/20/2009 9:02:33 PM
  • The giant multihulls would be exciting but it is not the AC we have all come to love with its drawn-out challenger series followed by up to 7 final races.
    4/20/2009 9:03:19 PM
  • Get the spectral over with and start again in a new monohull class as in 1992
    4/20/2009 9:03:27 PM
  • Multi Challenger event ONLY if the defender is not in it.
    4/20/2009 9:03:58 PM
  • A match race in 90 foot tri''s is too cool to miss. I also vote that the course and rules be adjusted a bit. New format: jousting style, at the drop of the white flag, both boats reach towards each other 90 deg to the wind with lances fixed - last boat to sink wins. Wasabi
    4/20/2009 9:05:27 PM
  • This can only work if the defender does not take part in the Challenger series. Like society, the AC competition depends upon its participants behaving themselves, at least to a minimal level. Alinghi (and, to a lesser extent, Oracle) has not behaved itself. It behaved badly in its manipulation of the jury and the jury''s decisions in its match against Team New Zealand in 2007, and it behaved appallingly in its attempts to control the outcome of the next match. It beggars belief that Alinghi would seek to take part in the challenger series. A huge part of the Cup''s mystique has always been that, until the start gun goes for the first race of the Cup Match, no-one really knows how the two teams (and their boats) will perform as against one another. Alinghi has sought to destroy that mystique in order to give itself greater exposure and a greater chance of retaining the Cup. Who is going to get excited about watching Alinghi race the Challenger in the Cup Match if they have watched Alinghi race the same team several times already in the previous few weeks?
    4/20/2009 9:09:33 PM
  • normally I would not vote the way i did, for multi-hulls. that is not, in my opinion what the Americas Cup represents to me. However Bertarelli blew it and Larry Ellison took him on and won in the Court. So now these two ''Rich kids'' get there day on the water. Then, it should go back to the New York Yacht Club, holder of the Deed to get it back to where it was before 1987. I agree, this is THE event of yachting and that is where it should be. Screw the sponsors, screw television lets get back to boats and sailors, period.
    4/20/2009 9:13:52 PM
  • I would like to see 100'' multihulls racing around the buoys. Two years later we can go back to multihulls, unless ....
    4/20/2009 9:15:28 PM
  • FAST, FUN, AND JUICY
    4/20/2009 9:16:07 PM
  • Do you trust Alinghy? Multihull is toss the coin. Too risky. Fair rules for multichallenger are the best. If Alinghy win then they may try to go back to unfair rules, but the probability of Alinghy winning are less.
    4/20/2009 9:16:09 PM
  • get on with the sailing...
    4/20/2009 9:19:34 PM
  • The America''s Cup competition was launched as a naval architecture design competition to speed the development of fast yachts and to extend maritime technology. Since WWII and the adoption of one-design AC classes, the competition has become eviscerated, first elevating the kabuki dance of match racing to an unnatural importance, and lately spawning an insipid "AC industry" of also-rans through excess commercialization. George L. Schuyler must be spinning in his grave. Racing two gigantic state-of-the-art multi-hulls is exactly in the true spirit of America''s Cup and it will rekindle public interest in the premier trophy in sport.
    4/20/2009 9:22:13 PM
  • Cats are the way forward for sailing! Make it big an grand!
    4/20/2009 9:23:59 PM
  • I have been to every one the defender trials or the finals since 1962 with the exception of 2003 in Auckland. No question Fremantle and Valencia stand out. South Africa,China and all the interest from Europe. My God how did this mess come about?
    4/20/2009 9:27:02 PM
  • I just think it will be fun to see what those boats can do.
    4/20/2009 9:27:30 PM
  • USA has the best sailors. The ''CUP'' comes to America. USA shows class as they host the AC the way it should be! Amen!
    4/20/2009 9:28:27 PM
  • Someone said just the other day in Scuttlebutt, that the most important thing to have happen if the America''s Cup is to survive, is for the next one to occur as soon as possible. I think this is a fact that many are overlooking. Bring on the two big boats, and let it happen soon!
    4/20/2009 9:31:21 PM
  • After the long legal delay, some catharsis is needed. A 3 race series could provide that and set the tone for the next multi- challenger event.... assuming an authentic COR is picked this time around.
    4/20/2009 9:31:27 PM
  • time for something different. Multihulls every 21 years or so.
    4/20/2009 9:36:14 PM
  • It will take a minimum of 3 years to hold a multi-challenger regatta in a new class of boat. The Defender & Challenger each have a multi-hull & a race can be held within the next 9 months. While the multi-hull Deed of Gift race is being planned & held the current Defender and Challenger of Record can begin discussions with other interested clubs to establish a new box rule and protocol for the next multi-challenger regatta to be held in 3 years time
    4/20/2009 9:42:00 PM
  • Lets get the teams racing again - my Valencian AC 32 DVDs are now worn out! Allan Reid
    4/20/2009 9:43:10 PM
  • Add at least one reaching leg It should be a race between crews and not $$$$. Spectators can''t see the technology.
    4/20/2009 9:44:39 PM
  • Bring it on! This has the potential for a once in a lifetime. DOG Race for February 2010. Bind both parties to agree to a multi-challenger regatta for 2011, with either a new class AC 90 or Version 6 ACC boats. Mark Reid
    4/20/2009 9:46:19 PM
  • As a former AC judge and umpire, I say lets get back to some real racing with as many teams as possible, as cost effectively as possible in the current financial environment. Steve Hatch
    4/20/2009 9:47:25 PM
  • Detremental to exclude all the teams which have signed up for the 2011 Cup. Mikkel Thommessen
    4/20/2009 9:54:53 PM
  • On the race course and not in the court room!
    4/20/2009 10:01:26 PM
  • Get the multihull event out of the way and, God willing, return to the format that worked so well for so long. The Cup survived the "Coma off Point Loma"; it will survive this.
    4/20/2009 10:03:27 PM
  • I believe the issue is not so much the form of the 33rd, thanks to the courts finally getting it right. I think the real issue is to make sure the 34th isn''t a clone of F1. If Ernesto (or even Larry) want to impose a new "vision," that''s fine, but it''s not the America''s Cup. Let whoever has a new vision create a new event and leave the America''s Cup as it is, the ultimate challenge cup.
    4/20/2009 10:05:28 PM
  • The multihulls would be fast and challenging. It would be true Gran Prix racing. Racing yet again in monohulls is like watching Peterbilts vs Kenworths---yes it is hard do do but what does it prove?
    4/20/2009 10:07:45 PM
  • As Isaid before to you. I want both.1st multihulls followed bymulti challenger fleet. Dave Few
    4/20/2009 10:08:49 PM
  • Scuttlebutt you are missing the whole point. We don''t give a rat''s ass what they race in. Let''s just get on with the racing and get rid of the lawyers. The Americas Cup is definitely the pinnacle. It should be like the World Cup or World Series. Held regularly on a fixed schedule. The way it is now it is just another version of the World War. Held whenever the lawyers and politicians can''t solve anything as usual and the soldiers in the trenches have to take over. If we sailors had any say we would boycott the products of the principles until they woke up to the fact that the customer is tired of all the bullshit and get on with the show.
    4/20/2009 10:19:45 PM
  • Should as the rule intended be team against team to bring out the best in design and skill in a sportmanslike competition. Ha has so gone wrong.
    4/20/2009 10:24:35 PM
  • Bring on DoGzilla!!! What could be cooler than 100 footers flying at 30 knots? We''ll have lots of chances to see another 400 rounds of challenger matches in nearly identical monohulls. Let the monster multis do their thing just this once. Best regards - Al Johnson, Seattle WA
    4/20/2009 10:30:55 PM
  • Having had the VERY great priviledge of racing in the Aussie boats for 3 AC challenes in Newport in "the good old days", and then working with one of the Australian defence teams off Freo, I agree absolutely with the multi challenger philosophy! The overall publis interest generated during the 1987 "big breeze" match, and the boost that it gave in the big breeze Aussie sailing at all levels was fantastic. So too was the well televised and commentated TV coverage of the last Madrid match. If we wish to use te reatest sailing match in the world to enthuse kids of all ages about our sport, then real racing in real boats in a multiple fleet is th way to go.
    4/20/2009 10:33:32 PM
  • As much as I would love to see the multi''s duke it out, getting the cup back on track should be the priority. Let the challengers battle it out to race against the defender as it should be. As a race steeped in tradition, tradition should prevail. Jim T.
    4/20/2009 10:38:30 PM
  • Let''s get on with it
    4/20/2009 10:45:28 PM
  • The old system was great, a challenger series without the defender leading up to the the actual AC regatta.
    4/20/2009 10:51:46 PM
  • Bertarelli has had enough chances to see reason and be a good sportsman, he''s the one that brought on this whole debacle. To now let him come back and play with all the other teams he''s jerked around would be rewarding him for bad behavior. Bring on the DOG match in the big multihulls and get it over with!
    4/20/2009 10:53:43 PM
  • THE ONLY WAY TO GO AND IT MUST TAKE PLACE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE 2010 IN VALENCIA
    4/20/2009 11:01:30 PM
  • A best of three series could be all over in two races, a flash in the pan that would hold the public interest for all of two days! Not what one would call a commercially viable event.
    4/20/2009 11:02:40 PM
  • Let''s get back to the events as they were before this hiatus occured. Mono hulls, mono hulls, ONLY mono hulls
    4/20/2009 11:20:24 PM
  • duh!
    4/20/2009 11:24:59 PM
  • Hurry up -or the AC will be a thing of the past. Oily
    4/20/2009 11:29:28 PM
  • Once again, the honourable (?) Curmudgeon is correct... Let''s get the America''s Cup back to its iconic best. It''s always had lots of legal by-play and ''dog eat dog'' competition, but let''s keep that side of it as honourable as possible....
    4/20/2009 11:32:52 PM
  • Multi-hulls arenot made for match racing
    4/20/2009 11:34:48 PM
  • BOR must win in the water at all the challengers of the 33 AC, not only Alinghi. If BOR want defend some day the Cup he must win it "legaly", not in the Court and eliminating 10 or more competitors in the asphalt of NY.
    4/20/2009 11:45:01 PM
  • Let the ego''s go!!
    4/20/2009 11:45:37 PM
  • "Do not base your choice on what is good for your favourite team?" What other sports would ask this of their fans? The sad fact is that none of these teams are anybody''s favourites because the casual fan couldn''t give a shit about them anymore.
    4/20/2009 11:56:44 PM
  • They can race their multihulls later, just for the fun of it and for the spectacle............
    4/21/2009 12:12:45 AM
  • The AmCup should always be about the Deed of Gift. If it is a multi-hull showdown, so be it. Let the best billionaire win. The winner should reintroduce the nationality rules and again make it a contest between nations, not hired sailing professionals.
    4/21/2009 12:23:05 AM
  • Right now, the AC is an unfriendly rivalry between bank accounts!These two need to slug it out the old fashioned way, head to head, boat to boat, ego to ego and get it over with. Then we can get the AC back into being a friendly competition between nations, with all the pomp and circumstance of a Challenger Sselection and Americas Cup regattas.
    4/21/2009 12:26:46 AM
  • what a question!!!
    4/21/2009 12:33:25 AM
  • Let''s see a FUN multihull COR race first, and then go back to the BORING multi-challenger format...
    4/21/2009 12:43:49 AM
  • Unlike the enthusiasts out there who are salivating at the prospect of a duel between giant multihulls, I could not think of a worse outcome for the America''s Cup and for sailing in general. It will simply be another race between mismatched boats, circa 1988: a 90ft x 90ft trimaran (Oracle) versus a yawl-rigged 115ft x 75ft catamaran (Alinghi). In all likelihood, the boat with the longer waterline (Alinghi) will win simply because that usually translates to more speed - and if that happens you could end up with margins separating the boats of 15 to 20 minutes that would have spectators going off for an afternoon siester! Throw in the ill will that already exists between the two teams and, like the 1988 contest, it will be far from a "friendly competition between foreign nations". A multichallenger competition, followed by an America''s Cup defence, in preferably a Version 6 of the International America''s Cup class boats will guarantee closer and more exciting racing for spectators, and promise a fairer event for all competitors - truly "a friendly competition between foreign nations". If Ernesto Bertarelli was ever serious about putting on a spectacle in 2010 with 19 challengers from a dozen nations, then he will not turn his back on that concept now. He should swallow his pig-headed pride, admit he was wrong from the start with his lop-sided protocol and puppet challenger (CNEV) and sit down with Oracle to salvage the mess he has created!
    4/21/2009 12:51:45 AM
  • The America''s Cup is quintissentially a monohull concept, event. Whatever the truth, the opting for the multihull appears as just another part of the controversial side of AC antics. Let''s keep the event as the pinnacle of yacht racing that respects heritage, acknowledges development and applauds fine racing.
    4/21/2009 12:53:59 AM
  • I am fast approaching the point of ambivalence. Your point is well made the Americas Cup is what counts lets get back to first principles and see some yacht racing with a degree of excitement.
    4/21/2009 1:03:41 AM
  • I think the Multi hull challenge would be exciting and get the regular regata back on the water quicker!
    4/21/2009 1:17:33 AM
  • Lets get back to what George Schuler envisaged!
    4/21/2009 1:29:45 AM
  • Let the tradition continue
    4/21/2009 1:32:14 AM
  • The AC is iconic because it is about raw competition. Driven personalities, height of technology, bare-knuckle, no-holds-barred, winner-takes-all competition in sail boats. Why change it?
    4/21/2009 1:34:32 AM
  • I really want to see multi-challenger monohulls and think that would bring back AC status, but I think multi-hulls would draw more attention from the general public. In any case get on with the races. Ben Neal
    4/21/2009 1:39:28 AM
  • It should be a full field event without any discussion. Not only is it a more exciting event with different boats, designers,and sailors. This drives development and technology which ultimately makes the sport more enjoyable for all of us. The Cat-on-Cat idea is ridiculous, remember the DC Cat against the monster Kiwi monohull? Horrible, every else excluded, boring sailing, two boats and that''s it, over and done in a wink! That was not the intended spirit behind the Cup, to have two teams going at it.
    4/21/2009 1:39:56 AM
  • I believe it should be the defender and COR racing what ever sailing vessel they choose within the deed of gift.
    4/21/2009 1:46:21 AM
  • If the Defender and COR racing in multi-hulls, the legal impasse… and all the delaysn will go on. Even with all the judges etcetc on board... At the other hand, Ernesto Bertarelli had now enough time, to overtop the Oracle-Monster... Let''s see, so we can see. Peter Hürlimann, Switzerland
    4/21/2009 1:47:23 AM
  • Fast exciting and soon.
    4/21/2009 2:01:02 AM
  • amazing machines. Lets have a dog fight *quickly* followed by a more traditional format.
    4/21/2009 2:04:46 AM
  • The multi challenger format as practised is good for the AC. We also used to have a defender selection process in the past as run by the NYYC. Challenges are between clubs, not boat owners. After all the club get to safeguard the trophy, not the sailing team which has won it for the club. Monohulls are vastly preferable to multihulls. We do not need freak boats, we did have this problem already in the past and have discarded it. Number of professional sailors should be very strictly limited. Nationality rule reinforced. The AC is not a playground for paid sailing mercenaries. Gunther E. Hering
    4/21/2009 2:22:06 AM
  • I''ve seen the BOR tri up close. A match between such boats would be much more akin to the early AC racing, and should be very exciting.
    4/21/2009 2:22:54 AM
  • If you were lucky enough to experience the 32nd AC in Valencia, which I was as a spectator, you will realise the enormous contribution it made to bringing sailing to the attention of literally millions of people. The organisation was fabulous, the setting brilliant and the atmosphere electric. The selfishness of any one billionaire should not be allowed to ruin this completely. In the further interest of the AC as a whole NO DEFEATED CHALLENGER OF RECORD SHOULD BE ALLOWED TO RE-CHALLENGE UNTIL AT LEAST ONE DIFFERENT CHALLENGE HAS BEEN COMPLETED. Otherwise, this could be a perpetual match between just two yacht clubs. Tim Abady, France.
    4/21/2009 2:48:32 AM
  • It would be over quicker in Multi hulls. I am tired of all the palaver tell me when it is on again and when thr race is over. John Rumsey
    4/21/2009 2:51:46 AM
  • What would be better is Defender and a multi-challenger field racing in multi-hulls, but any multi-challenger event is better for sailing than a 1v1 short series.
    4/21/2009 2:58:14 AM
  • Hopefully with the close racing we saw in the last event.
    4/21/2009 3:07:53 AM
  • Bring back the national teams competing against each other.
    4/21/2009 3:20:28 AM
  • This time because it will happen sooner and the spectacle will be something that everyone will wait in anticipation to watch.
    4/21/2009 3:25:58 AM
  • Duplicate last time more or less. One boat programs. If at all possible make it so each team is crewed by folks from one nation. Use an outside arbiter to determine race format.
    4/21/2009 3:44:17 AM
  • They can''t both have the same size chip on their shoulder, one of them got to be knocked off before they totally ruin the cup.
    4/21/2009 3:51:01 AM
  • I would like to see a friendly competition between nations showing the best boats and equipment made in the nation with the team consisting of that nation''s sailors.
    4/21/2009 3:54:32 AM
  • How about a few more choices like C.) Who cares? and D.) Stop these silly polls!
    4/21/2009 3:55:16 AM
  • Keep it more traditional
    4/21/2009 3:56:38 AM
  • Perth - the pinnacle of America''s Cup events. ~ psyklik
    4/21/2009 3:59:37 AM
  • DOG: Short, sharp, high profile...a spectacle. Should be good for the AC. Not so good for sponsors. Then back to the regular event, a la Valencia thich was fantastic.
    4/21/2009 4:03:10 AM
  • This I think will have the widest appeal to audiences and the best chance of stimulating as wide an entry list, and be best thing for yacht design development internationally
    4/21/2009 4:06:56 AM
  • Mega multis should spawn mega interest in a quick burst, even to non sailors. Then get back to the tedium of the old format!
    4/21/2009 4:11:57 AM
  • Go back to the AC 32 protocol using the same design rule, allow defender and challengers alike one new boat each, and let''''s get the show on the water.
    4/21/2009 4:15:00 AM
  • The key is the multi-hulls. The boats would be the fastest ever raced in America''s cup. Crosses will be especially nerve racking. Boat handling will also be at a premimum as capsize is a real possibility.
    4/21/2009 4:22:39 AM
  • I believe Mr. Elison would want the first option. That way he only has to face 1 boat for an opportunity to win the "Cup" It would only "cheapen the event" KB
    4/21/2009 4:23:56 AM
  • I believe that they should establish an oversight committee comprised of the Royal Yacht Squadron, NYYC, San Diego, Royal Perth, New Zealand, and SNG to hold the cup and rule on arguments.
    4/21/2009 4:27:30 AM
  • it should be held in a "big wind" venue, and the boats should be built to handle it.....as a former 12 meter guy in 1962 and 1964, racing in RI Sound was a pretty good test of boat and crew. And none of us were paid a dime!!
    4/21/2009 4:27:38 AM
  • The multi-hulls could make for great entertainment.
    4/21/2009 4:35:18 AM
  • Much faster and much more spectacular!
    4/21/2009 4:37:10 AM
  • This is a remarcable and historic race. I believe that its caracteristic should be maintained with monohulls. I think that in a short tome period it would lose its tradition.
    4/21/2009 4:40:21 AM
  • The stone age didn''t end because they ran out of stones... but if you pick the smooth flat ones, they will still skip across the water.
    4/21/2009 4:40:36 AM
  • More countries, more sailors, more sponsors, more TV coverage,more prestige = Iconic status
    4/21/2009 4:42:25 AM
  • please keep the tradition of AC in tact.This "high tech"is cool but bring back the good old days.Yes I''m going to Boston,mostly for the harbor scene.
    4/21/2009 4:51:46 AM
  • Never took up an interest in the drama. The final race of the previous cup is likely the best sailboat racing that any of us will witness. Meantime, will be waiting merely for the schedule - not the news.
    4/21/2009 4:53:10 AM
  • I''d love to see Ernesto lose and this is the easiest way.
    4/21/2009 4:58:25 AM
  • I''m an ordinary Joe sailing a Hunter 31. While I love the thrill of seeing the big multi-hulls fly, the reality is that 99.999% of us, at some time in our lives, imagine our own monohulls flying like a VO60 as long as the platform we are standing on doesn''t leave the water. Mac Moss
    4/21/2009 5:01:25 AM
  • I''ll go for the multi-challenger races unless it takes more time to organise, get something going now! Bob Leslie
    4/21/2009 5:05:02 AM
  • The sooner there is a race the better. Do the monster tris as soon as possible and then get back to the multi-team format.
    4/21/2009 5:05:32 AM
  • Race whatever you like just keep it on TV so we can see it.
    4/21/2009 5:07:34 AM
  • Bring back national teams, bring back more open compounds, reduce the cost so more countries can participate. Make it more like the final years in Newport.
    4/21/2009 5:08:53 AM
  • Keep the world involved. We do not need meaningless spectacle. There are plenty of places for leading edge development.
    4/21/2009 5:11:51 AM
  • Just get this one done and then put the next one together with a multi-challenger field in monohulls. Increased delay will hurt the interest in the America''s Cup the most.
    4/21/2009 5:12:32 AM
  • My God man. Multi-hulls? Have you turned turtle? Why not allow giant sail boards? Maybe just include a few power boat? Just allow off shore ocean racers??? Dennis Conner should have been banded from cup racing for not following the sprit of the cup, and cheating. Multi Hulls ?????????
    4/21/2009 5:12:32 AM
  • Let''s just get it done. I also think that this is the only way sponsors will jump back on board. There has been too much damage to the multi-challenger series at the moment. Sponsors need a clear direction for the future of the event that the multi-hulls challenge will eventually bring. Saling needs a bit of a boost and this would be a different way to acheive that goal. Let the rich boys beat it out and then bring back the multi-challenger series for 2012.
    4/21/2009 5:12:47 AM
  • Its not whether the race is sailed in multi-vs mono hulls, its about putting on a great event. Combine a spectator friendly race venue and syndicate camps, highly competative boats and crews, unparalleded media coverage, web viewing, approachable sponsors and throw a really big party. Who wouldnt want to take part?
    4/21/2009 5:14:36 AM
  • Develop another challenge or regatta for multi hull sailing vessels. The America''s Cup started as a mono hull competition and that is the tradition. BK
    4/21/2009 5:16:29 AM
  • Make he boats more economical, that doesn''t mean cheap or even inexpensive.
    4/21/2009 5:17:11 AM
  • Let the amazing multihulls race as planned, then re invent the NEXT America''s Cup to be multi teams competing in Extreme 40 catamarans.
    4/21/2009 5:25:54 AM
  • I vote to keep this a true international sailing competition. RBG
    4/21/2009 5:26:36 AM
  • Although I would love to see the multi-hulls race, I am afraid that it would postpone a multi-challenger monohull event. I say let''s do both. Schedule a multi-challenger monohull event sailed in current generation A-Cup Boats ASAP with the next A-Cup to be sailed in 24 months after using new boats base on a tweaked rule. Then use the giant multi-hulls for dog and pony shows. Call me if you need some guidance. Geoff Miles STYC
    4/21/2009 5:27:20 AM
  • Bring back the Nationality restrictions. It''ll make it more interesting to the casual observer like in the Soccer World Cup.
    4/21/2009 5:28:59 AM
  • we have other venues for multi hull racing. This is a mono hull race between countries not corporations. A non olympic competition over a fixed course with a pro-am format. yee haa
    4/21/2009 5:29:16 AM
  • And the America''s Cup should be competed for in well found Yachts; bring back the scantling Rule. Let''s restore real Sailboat Racing to the event. Nuff said. David E. Cain, Jamestown, R.I.
    4/21/2009 5:29:39 AM
  • VALENCIA WAS GREAT. WHY TRY TO FIX WHAT AIN''T BROKE. RON HUDSON RICHMOND, VA.
    4/21/2009 5:30:14 AM
  • And the loser of this match should be banned from ever sailing again and forced to golf or bowl or something as eternal punishment for their part in wrecking what was once truly wonderful.
    4/21/2009 5:32:46 AM
  • Leave the courts OUT of this
    4/21/2009 5:33:10 AM
  • Sail the friggin race already! There are plenty of boats from the last AC, get them all together and each day swap boats. Race!
    4/21/2009 5:37:35 AM
  • As much as we''d all like to see the spectacle of a maxi multihull race tradition should rule here.
    4/21/2009 5:42:37 AM
  • The America''s Cup is on its way to complete irrelevancy. The round-the-world races and the Olympics generate more interest. Originally, the America''s cup races were nationalistic in nature, and it was easy to root for your country. That is almost completely gone, and all you can do now is pick a bothersome billionaire to root for.
    4/21/2009 5:44:51 AM
  • multihull sailing is a separate sport. Let the multihulls develop their own cup. I would suggest the "pointless cup" for them.
    4/21/2009 5:45:48 AM
  • Two teams racing in multihulls will be a redux of the 1988 event in San Diego--BORING; like a really exclusive regatta. The world won''t care. A multi-challenger event is so much more interesting and exciting! It''s the way to recapture the special cache that the AC series had, that iconic status.
    4/21/2009 5:54:09 AM
  • Problem is, which boats will they use? Brand new designs that will cost bookoo bucks and take a year to build or the existing designs which aren''t equal. Also, who will make the new rule to build the new boats to and will that rule be temporary and if so for how long? Too many variables. Let''s use J-24s!!!
    4/21/2009 5:56:40 AM
  • . . . assuming that the Defender does not participate in the Challenger trials. The Defender should be tested against other possible Defenders from the same country. This is supposed to be country against country, not yacht club against yacht club.
    4/21/2009 6:02:10 AM
  • I would not watch a single minute of Defender vs. COR in multihulls.
    4/21/2009 6:05:24 AM
  • The multi-hull event will be another "DC" fiasco. That was really the start of this foolishness. Let''s get back to the "traditional" racing in equal (or near equal) boats that pit one country against the other. I am also very tired of all this trading of skippers. If they are not a "countryman" by legal standards than they should not be a skipper. Ron Fox
    4/21/2009 6:07:23 AM
  • If the America''s Cup got back to the original roots of 100% country against country, the AC would take a big step respectability.
    4/21/2009 6:09:57 AM
  • If we are in search of the real best sailing program in the world we should have Nationally constructed teams compete in identical yachts in a round robin competition to held in the same venue as the current IACC competitions with the winning country hosting the event every 2 or 4 years. I believe that the sport could still be financed by big bucks billionares to support the training and conditioning of the teams as well as replacement parts and repairs. There will still be a need for major sponsors and the event will be a little more personal nationally for the "average" spectator.
    4/21/2009 6:10:40 AM
  • National teams
    4/21/2009 6:11:40 AM
  • let''s take it a step further and make them true one design boats...keeps the price down and allows the best team of sailors to win, not the ones with the deepest pockets.
    4/21/2009 6:14:36 AM
  • The two rich boys battling out whose got a bigger and better you-know-what does nothing to enhance the original Deed of Gift. Let''s get the nations who are ready to go to battle for their chance at the Cup get back into the ring and be a part of the sport that they are already in position and on location to do.
    4/21/2009 6:16:54 AM
  • Could it be time to make more than one class for the AC? Multi hulls in Europe, monos in North America?????
    4/21/2009 6:17:52 AM
  • Back to the Valencia format of the last cup series.
    4/21/2009 6:18:14 AM
  • Lets go for 2011 in a multi Challenge
    4/21/2009 6:18:56 AM
  • Taking big multi-hull technology to a new level is a great opportunity, not to be missed. The monohulls will be back later.
    4/21/2009 6:19:48 AM
  • The unique opportunity of having huge high tech multi-hulls in a match race at unbelievable speeds seems very enticing. Let''s do this race followed quickly by the traditional multi-challenger field in monohulls.
    4/21/2009 6:21:38 AM
  • Keep it simple to keep it going. Massive exposure creates massive interest. Egos exist in every sport but the attitudes currently on display only serve to further enforce in the public mind that sailors are those other folks and they could never be one of us. How silly is that?!
    4/21/2009 6:25:57 AM
  • Forget old-fashioned romantic notions about the event that went out when national requirements were dropped. It''s purely a commercial event now, and we have to support the army of professional sailors, technicians and others who have grown to depend on the AC for their livelihood. That means getting everyone involved again.
    4/21/2009 6:27:18 AM
  • The days of dueling on the field of honor went out with Aaron Burr (if not earlier). Let''s get back to crowning a world champ, not a world-class chump. Alfred Poor
    4/21/2009 6:27:29 AM
  • Multihulls are fun and exciting but certainly do not represent the mainstream of sailing in the US or around the world. Monohulls still hold that position. However, the monohulls should be fast and exciting to watch. For the spectators, they want to see big colorful sails and close boat to boat competition that multihull racing will lack. From both a historic and "iconic" point of view, the America''s Cup should remain a monohull event. It certainly would be fun to have a multihull event as well. Perhaps an event, supported by the AC teams, between the eliminations and finals. GDD
    4/21/2009 6:27:38 AM
  • Tough one to answer. legally it should be a DOG Race because the alternative feels biased. What would be best would be a repaeta of the last AC.
    4/21/2009 6:29:11 AM
  • Another year''s wait would be acceptable. If they adhere to the courts pronouncements and clear intent of the DoG, the Cup should be safe and secure going ahead. The NYYC should form a perpetual America''s Cup Governing Cmtee with permanent and rotating members [current contenders] to oversee the process and insure the Cup''s future.
    4/21/2009 6:29:52 AM
  • They''ve already built the multihulls. Let''s just admit that the 33rd cup will be a whole lot of fun to watch, and get it on the water ASAP so that GGYC can go ahead and defend the 34th cup in the waters off Newport (where they should concede to defend, rather than San Francisco, as a concession to their own pig-headedness in this whole mess).
    4/21/2009 6:41:41 AM
  • So simple it doesn''t need a comment.
    4/21/2009 6:44:19 AM
  • The Cup''s roots are one rich guy wanting to prove he and his country have a faster boat than the defender. We don''t need yet another one-design or box rule international racing series. Let''s get the Cup back to its roots.
    4/21/2009 6:44:40 AM
  • Race something and tell them to get there heads out of there asses
    4/21/2009 6:50:23 AM
  • I went to the 2007 Cup in Valencia and watched races 3 and 4. I personally would like nothing better than to repeat the experience. It was fantastic. Wes Bray
    4/21/2009 6:50:48 AM
  • A DOG match race between Multis would actually be more in line with the traditions of the cup with two very silly rich people facing off in the most technologically advanced sailboats of the day. The giant multihulls actually fit the mold. Bring on the spectacle. The multi challenger format lost all appeal when the nationality rules were abolished. Valencia 2007 was snore city.
    4/21/2009 6:51:17 AM
  • I''ve gotten to the point where I say, "who cares?".
    4/21/2009 7:00:26 AM
  • The whole recent mess was such a downer that you can''t just go back to the same old format. Two well prepared teams with exciting multi-hulls will provide a shock to the system - then go back to a multi-challenger nationalistic event or whatever the best minds can come up with.
    4/21/2009 7:02:02 AM
  • Race the big multi''s ASAP, then the loser becomes COR for a conventional multi challenger event in new monohulls.
    4/21/2009 7:04:16 AM
  • I believe a 2010 multi-hull match series would attract much-needed media and public attention and could prove exciting to watch, even to non-sailors. However, beyond 2010,longer-term planning should move toward returning the Cup to a multi-challenger monohull competition.
    4/21/2009 7:04:53 AM
  • Cut the bullshit billionaire crybaby whining and get back to sail boat racing. You two pricks need to get over it and quit f*^#ing the rest of the sailing community over. If you don''t want to play the game as it has been played for years, take your toys and go home. ENOUGH ALREADY.
    4/21/2009 7:06:41 AM
  • Let the sailing begin ASAP so some momentum can be regained. After that lets see a complete return to "one nation" teams. Perhaps having the boats be one design craft on alternate years would keep the event in the media every year and yet allow the other boats to be a developmental class of boats. I also don''t see the necessity of having such large boats to compete on. Smaller boats would save a ton of money and make the sport open to smaller less affluent nations. As it stands now only the mega rich can afford to indulge in the AC.
    4/21/2009 7:06:56 AM
  • I think it should be a multi-challenger series based on a reasonably sized loose box rule of width and length (50 or 60'' square?) of a moderate size to let technology and innovation reign supreme. multihulls, foils, you name it but only human power and electronic instruments...i.e. no motive use of electricity (pumps, motor winches, generators, etc.)
    4/21/2009 7:10:35 AM
  • Let''s keep a well known inclusive A/C event going and let the multi-hul challenge stand on its own - GGYC vs Alingi.
    4/21/2009 7:13:01 AM
  • Regretfully, the rich history of the America''s Cup has been lost to the "arms race" of money and technology that dominates "professional" sailing today. This is the beauty of one design programs where ability and intuition rule and the best sailor and crew win on any given day. Bring back Corinthian competition!
    4/21/2009 7:20:47 AM
  • I assume the second choice means a round-robin challenge ending with a face-off between the defender and a challenger....
    4/21/2009 7:21:29 AM
  • That''s the fastest way to get the Cup back to the USofA and GREAT match reacing in SF Bay, the best site in world for viewing boat races...
    4/21/2009 7:22:11 AM
  • I would like to see a return to the imposition of national rules regarding crew composition, design and manufacturing. The America''s Cup was a much more relevant event for both the sailing and the sporting world when the event evoked a sense of nationalism. The current cup competition differs little from an y other major saling regatta organized by multinational teams and sponsors. Return the Cup to its grandeur.
    4/21/2009 7:31:59 AM
  • I would prefer to see multiple teams competing but I would be just as happy to see two large multihulls battle it out on the open sea. Either event would be good for our sport.
    4/21/2009 7:33:23 AM
  • The Cup has always been about 2 strong opponents, strong egos, and determination. When we remember the past cups, we remember big boats and big egos. We have that in Bertarelli and Ellison. The Cup doesn''t need to cater to a multichallenger regatta. That''s a media event. The Cup deserves more Liptons, Vanderbilts, Herreshoffs, Bonds, Blakes Connors etc. I think we have that with Ellison and Bertarelli.
    4/21/2009 7:34:58 AM
  • If the Defender and COR can agree, then there should be a defender and multi-challenger event in monohulls. Perhaps the current generation AC boats should be used to get this thing back on track ASAP. The Defender needs to stay out of the Challenger series and should create a Defender series if they want extra practice time. The racing will be close and that is what I want to see. If the Defender and COR cannot agree, then they should duel it out in multi-hulls. And that would be a spectical to behold.
    4/21/2009 7:40:07 AM
  • The speed range of multi-hulls makes for boring sailing. Although spectacular to watch the speed,in match racing tactics are the paramount draw. Lead changes, wind shifts and close encounters on tacks, jibes, and mark rounding makes for a much better spectator event. I vote of single hull boats! Harrison Hine
    4/21/2009 7:55:16 AM
  • let´s fight on the water instead of in court..
    4/21/2009 7:56:14 AM
  • To cite a VERY early quote, "ALL Nations..."
    4/21/2009 7:56:25 AM
  • A tough choice: State of the art v. More great sailing. The former edges for me.
    4/21/2009 7:59:04 AM
  • Should go back to the traditional format with national teams competing against each other instead of the current mercenary teams.
    4/21/2009 7:59:45 AM
  • Maybe just once in the big speedsters. Could be fun.
    4/21/2009 8:01:37 AM
  • There are wonderful fleet races throughout the world, open to all who can float a boat at one level, and all who can foot the bill at the next level. the America''s Cup should continue as a unique event between a defender and a challenger that won its place at the line. John Lafer, Peshastin, Washington
    4/21/2009 8:04:17 AM
  • DoGzilla now and then racing in San Fran.
    4/21/2009 8:06:11 AM
  • Let''s get all the challengers back on the water so the media has more of the stories to tell, while I would love to see the multi-hulls go head to head I think we need to get the Cup back on the track it was derailed from.
    4/21/2009 8:09:42 AM
  • On mutual consent multihull clash of the giants, if at all possible with sensible rules & courses leading to a lot more races than just best of 3, spread over 3 weeks to have major propability of different wind conditions on those races. Each race should be several rounds on shorter course until given amount of time from the start and then finish tha lap they are on to finish that race, not predetermined total course length at all like default rule states. It could be spectacular !!!
    4/21/2009 8:15:51 AM
  • Use the same boats as last time, get everyone out on the water!
    4/21/2009 8:21:37 AM
  • Let the America Cup history continue to evolve but not morph into the multihull causing the monohull to become history. The multi needs it''s own status including the Olympic Games. There are plenty of sailors and money to go around. Then if one fades it will be because of natural selection (or something). Lets have both and then another. Big Moths?
    4/21/2009 8:24:35 AM
  • This is the second time ego''s and money have almost ruined the Cup. Let''s get back to sailing and somehow cut the cost to challenge - it has got way out of hand.
    4/21/2009 8:26:41 AM
  • Crews should be from one country per boat. Provide for a Commission to manage the competition. See other Jobson suggestions in his recent article. http://www.sailingworld.com/racing-views/jobson-report/the-deed-is-in-need-of-a-makeover-1000070318.html
    4/21/2009 8:28:27 AM
  • Defender vs challengers who run own series for selection, new smaller faster, lower cost yachts, back to more National team if possible,
    4/21/2009 8:35:51 AM
  • Stop the pissing match!
    4/21/2009 8:38:09 AM
  • Start the race, continue the tradition, and a windier venue makes it more exciting to watch. It is a good recruiting tool for racing and sailing, when the attention is correct, Sailing is treatened by its suits, law and blue. Who races multi-hulls? ML
    4/21/2009 8:38:16 AM
  • go back to the old rules; everything on the boat, including the boat itself and sailors must come from the country of origin
    4/21/2009 8:40:50 AM
  • Get it over with as soon as posible and hold a multi-challenger event as soon as possible.
    4/21/2009 8:41:18 AM
  • The last three LV Cups have been stunning, with the AC being somewhat anti-climactic. The challenger series rocks!
    4/21/2009 8:46:20 AM
  • How do you make the America''s Cup iconic? Make it EPIC! A one on one race between two of the biggest, fastest, and coolest sailboats in the world is something that anybody can watch and appreciate.
    4/21/2009 8:54:02 AM
  • Make the teams'' country-specific!!!
    4/21/2009 8:57:22 AM
  • I think a DOG match in multi-hulls would be a suitable and exciting conclusion to the recent unpleasantness. The winner could then organize another multi-challenger event and begin a new era in the Cups'' history.
    4/21/2009 9:00:04 AM
  • Mutli-hulls, and soon as possible. The entire saga from the first Alinghi protocol that sparked this war in the courts, with all its billionare-battling, acrimony, and effects on all involved, should make great promotional fodder leading up to a head-to-head battle of revenge in huge multi''s. Done right, the general public will be swept up in it as well - A contest between top professionals is enjoyable, but one between known rivals is almost irresistable exciting.
    4/21/2009 9:01:57 AM
  • Push the envelope with something outside the old box. Do it as a match race series in the giant multi-hulls. It will be a spectacle that is worthy of the Americas Cup in 2009.
    4/21/2009 9:02:16 AM
  • Also, place the venue where there is a high probability of strong breeze.
    4/21/2009 9:05:13 AM
  • I just want to see BOR90 in action. Closing speed!!!!
    4/21/2009 9:18:13 AM
  • Yawn.....
    4/21/2009 9:20:10 AM
  • much more difficult and more even competition
    4/21/2009 9:20:37 AM
  • The A-Cup should be organized and run acording to Gary Jobson''s April fools day scenario.
    4/21/2009 9:23:27 AM
  • In my mind there is no question about which event would be better to restore the iconic status of the AC. Tom Rowe
    4/21/2009 9:25:36 AM
  • A COR match later this year followed by a multi-fleet in a year oer so. The big multi hulls will attract a very large amount of attention by those within the sport,and those not; big time attention for a short period of time. Like it or not, the big cat in san diego, and the monster are still remembered and spoken of. Regards RCK
    4/21/2009 9:26:55 AM
  • Let''s get back on track! Let''s go back to a national Championship!
    4/21/2009 9:28:47 AM
  • The race started years ago with mono hulls. Let keep it that way. There are other races that can allow monohulls. The America''s Cup has a long tradition that should be preserved.
    4/21/2009 9:29:22 AM
  • A traditional event deserves traditional yacht designs and traditional regatta prototcols. That means a) monohulls and b) an open challenger series.
    4/21/2009 9:33:16 AM
  • Let''s get rid of the big egos trying to draw the blanket to them to become master of the world (like Bernie E.) and get back to sailing. A better way to spend those millions, instead of wasting them on lawyers (nothing against lawyers - a lot against those spending) would be to help train kids, make sailing a safer place...
    4/21/2009 9:33:22 AM
  • This AM CUP is supposed to represent serious Ocean Sailing Activity; as the original America sailed across the Atlantic to take the Auld Mug I would not want to go across oceans on anything but a monohull... you know, the kind of sailing machine that recovers from a knockdown ?? Cheers- Oscar Gallo - Long Beach,ca
    4/21/2009 9:37:06 AM
  • lets keep it trADITIONAL
    4/21/2009 9:37:54 AM
  • Lets get on with it, of Newport of course.
    4/21/2009 9:47:41 AM
  • Consider the First Law of Engineering: If it ain''t broke, don''t, uh, "interfere" with it.
    4/21/2009 9:54:19 AM
  • There is enough paid sailing going on at present, I think the V O R is great, in saying this though I think the sport needs to have some breathing room for us amatures. I live in Rhode Island and we miss the America''s Cup, I can''t even get the local news media to cover the sport even a little, beleive me Kenny Read a Newport sailor is not getting his boats due exposure?????????????? Tired of all the ball sports from the last winter. Oh well I am getting my wind machine ready for a great summer,
    4/21/2009 9:57:33 AM
  • 90'' multi-hulls going upwards of 40 knots would be a real spectacle and perhaps excite prospective sailors at the same time. Big concern is, could it ever revert to monohulls?
    4/21/2009 10:00:59 AM
  • make sure we remeber the spirt of sailing competion and sailsmanship for all.
    4/21/2009 10:06:32 AM
  • The slate must be cleared. However your two choices are to simplistic. Either way, two giant, self centered egos are in control and who knows what they might decide. That is, except for there own interests.
    4/21/2009 10:12:51 AM
  • I believe the yachts should be smaller and higher tech. Lets get more competitors involved for better competition from more countries.
    4/21/2009 10:17:46 AM
  • The Louis Vitton series leading up to the final challenge was very exciting and offered great spectator racing even via the television. I hope the LV series is reinstated for AC33 and the many international teams get to fight it out on the water for the chance to challenge Alingi.
    4/21/2009 10:20:43 AM
  • Despite my hatred of Alinghi, their new AC boat design sounds like a step in the right direction--i.e., faster, especiallly downwind.
    4/21/2009 10:27:46 AM
  • Puleeze stop all of the bickering and fighting, it does nothing to enhance anything least of all the sport of Sailing.
    4/21/2009 10:31:43 AM
  • The problem with a Deed of Gift match is that if Alingi wins it, they can do just what they did before, while making sure that their sham COR meets the DOG requirements.
    4/21/2009 10:43:19 AM
  • Let there be: - rounds in multihulls and monohulls in fleet racing, and - the LV Cup and final AC races on monohulls. Mix but do not confuse. The AC Cup is monohull one-on-one; defender against the best of challengers. Lawyers have complicated brains and I believe it is affecting the sailors'' brains as well. Lawyers are to be hired as last means to resolve a dispute... AC sailors are confused on the purpose of such necessary evil. Let the sailors sail! And the lawyers stay home. Cheers.
    4/21/2009 10:45:30 AM
  • I believe that the America''s Cup should be a match race between national teams sailing similar large monhull boats. The older 12 meter races in which the US boat was so superior in speed as to make the race a parade was a large bore to read about and even a larger bore to watch. Reinstate the nationality rules for the crew, keep the multi-challenger format and restrict each team to one complete boat so as to drive costs down. However, allow at certain times-early on in the challenger trials-modifications to that hull, rig and underwater appendages.
    4/21/2009 10:52:22 AM
  • I want Valencia all over again. Although I''m so pissed at a certain Swiss fellow for messing the AC up that I''d really enjoy seeing him routed in a one on one multihull battle...
    4/21/2009 10:53:46 AM
  • New technology - exciting sailing! It always has been, and will be a "big-money" sport.
    4/21/2009 11:03:39 AM
  • It''s the quickest way to get rid of Alinghi.
    4/21/2009 11:07:45 AM
  • Lets do it the old fashion way, RACE>>>>>
    4/21/2009 11:07:53 AM
  • Four years?! Yawn....Even die hard sailors are loath to wait that long between events. Cash and it''s motivation have taken over what has long been a gentlemens'' sport. Wait, what am I thinking? Cash has always been the motivation. Nevermind. Just get the thing going before I''m dead.
    4/21/2009 11:18:25 AM
  • Run it the way the NYYC ran it.
    4/21/2009 11:26:44 AM
  • I have no problem with a Deed of Gift race. People who really understand the America''s Cup and it''s history know that it doesn''t have to be a multinational regatta every time to be interesting and successful. ALSO, the biggest obstacle to growing interest is multinational crews. I really miss the days of being able to root for a crew of Americans on an American built boat designed by an American. Maybe the multinational efforts serve some professionalized and idealized one-world agenda, but it does nothing for the rooting interest in the sport.
    4/21/2009 11:54:19 AM
  • Once in a while its time for a DOG fight. Its all a part of the cup as it is stipulated in the rules of the deed. Multi callengers like 2007 in Valencia are of course a bigger and grander event but once every 25 years ist fun with a DOG fight!
    4/21/2009 12:15:28 PM
  • Stay with the format that worked in Valencia.
    4/21/2009 12:18:41 PM
  • It would be fun to see the Alingi and the Oracle Multihulls race in an exhibition regatta, and then lets get back to the way it was in Valencia and NZ, Monohulls with multi challengers, but still match racing.
    4/21/2009 12:25:02 PM
  • As much as I personally would salivate over the spectacle of a match race in giant multi-hulls.... I think what''s best is what was proven to be best in 2007. at least for this next round, make only minor adjustments in the protocols from 2007 and enjoy keep more yacht clubs and sailors involved. It will be interesting longer than a DOG match between two rivals
    4/21/2009 12:31:33 PM
  • My vote is tempered by my admiration for GGYC taking a stand for right principals, therefore they should not give way on those just to get a multi challenge event this time.
    4/21/2009 12:35:54 PM
  • Do the DoG match we have all been waiting to see then get back to the real America''s Cup
    4/21/2009 12:42:45 PM
  • Get back to what the Cup is about
    4/21/2009 12:47:50 PM
  • I am not optimistic that they will agree on anything and both will claim to be the wounded party.
    4/21/2009 1:09:22 PM
  • Either one as far as it is a step towards establishing NEW equitable rules. I must admit I would like to see an old fashion one-to-one challenge, especially with those beasts, though! Whichever it is I hope the cup will move to a better (wind-wise) location.
    4/21/2009 1:21:03 PM
  • sooner the better
    4/21/2009 1:22:50 PM
  • Get it together for the good of the event and the sport! Make it fair, make it close racing, use the new class - get on with it!
    4/21/2009 1:31:45 PM
  • GGYC has no duty to the Mutual Consent Challengers at all, and so to hell with the SNG posse who were all too cowardly to stand up to Ernesto Bertarelli (and happy to file all those briefs against the victor). Let them all be left out of the 33rd cup. Besides, I want to see what a 100'' tri can do.
    4/21/2009 1:54:10 PM
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