Lessons From the Sting of Defeat: The 34th America’s Cup from the Kiwi Perspective AUGUST 28, 2014 BY SAIL1DESIGN EDITOR Ahh, sailboat racing. No matter how talented, prepared, and invested you are into any particular boat or regatta, this sport, it seems more than most, can offer up bitter and cruel defeats. I personally have had my share of those, losing a major regatta by 1/4 of a point (back when 1st place was 3/4 of a point!), winning 3 of 4 races in a 70-boat J/24 regatta, then learning one was a dreaded OCS, and more. It can be hard to take, and much credit should go to those that keep at it, letting bad things go, and savoring the great moments. Someone once said “I never lose, I either win or get better.” This attitude, or some similar form of it, is what drives the best to the pinnacle. For example, Mike Holt has been at 505 sailing now for 30 years, and just won his first World Championship. At what some see as the pinnacle of our sport, the sailing world watched one of the greatest, or one of the worst, dramas unfold in San Francisco at the 34th America’s Cup. The most improbable of all comebacks, or thrilling victories, and also one of the the most agonizing of all defeats, played out on the waters of SF Bay, narrated by American commentators, triumphal at the end, and Kiwi analysts, shocked at the crushing defeat. Our New Zealand correspondent, Sara Morgan Watters, got a chance to catch up with Peter Montgomery, the voice of NZL Yachting, and get his thoughts on what happened, and why. Race 8 is what Peter Montgomery, New Zealand’s voice of yachting, will most remember of the 34th America’s Cup. Known by most as PJ, avid sports fans remember him best for his iconic call in 1995 “America’s Cup is now New Zealand’s Cup!” But broadcasting in 2013, those words, for a brief moment were only sweet memories for fans watching, during what became one of sport’s greatest comebacks. Although PJ wasn’t able to repeat those famous words during his coverage in San Francisco, he did get an insiders view of the Cup that he recently shared at an evening presentation I attended at the Royal Port Nicholson Yacht Club in Wellington. In an attempt to better understand how Emirates Team New Zealand lost their lead to go on to lose the Cup, PJ broke it down into three main mistakes, holding ETNZ players both on and off the water responsible. 1. Kiwis made a mistake on the water According to PJ, the beginning of the end was in Race 8 when Team New Zealand nearly capsized, after a last minute decision to tack because of a questionable port/starboard crossing. Problems with the hydraulics during the tack caused the one hull to lift out of the water, making the boat heel to a 44.8 degree angle. Only .2 degrees away from capsizing, at the time it was a victory that the team managed to recover with out any damage, but according to PJ, this was the first of three costly mistakes that lead to their defeat. Eager to gain some insider knowledge and a better understanding of how this important crossing unfolded, PJ re-played this painful moment to the audience. I could feel the tension in the room rise as the footage revealed that in fact the Kiwis would have crossed on port cleanly with on-board audio between Oracle’s Ben Ainslie and skipper Jimmy Spithill confirming this as they discussed having to sail behind the Kiwi team. Instead, in a moment of hesitation, the Kiwis decided to tack, causing a near disaster. The icing on the cake was the American announcers, Gary Jobson and Ken Read (broadcasters that didn’t appear on Kiwi coverage) saying “airplane tickets are being changed from Monday to Tuesday”, as Team Oracle took the lead to go on and win the race and prolong the series. Americas Cup Sailing 2. The Kiwis made a mistake off the water According to PJ, the second mistake came on Friday 13th, when Team New Zealand officially decided they didn’t need to use the reserve day and that the team would be better off resting. This extra day gave Oracle time to go out on the water and practice, exactly what they needed, according to PJ. In addition to Team New Zealand giving up their momentum, Oracle was able to work on their speed, angles sailing upwind, and foiling through jibes and tacks. This extra practice gave Oracle the speed they needed to be more competitive. PJ wasn’t shy to attribute the decision to take the lay-day to rest as a political error in judgment. Waving paper up in the air in front of the audience, PJ explained that they were copies of the email from Grant Dalton explaining to race organizers the team’s decision to take the day off the water, when in fact it was really only the team owner’s choice. 3. Kiwis didn’t play the mental game Although PJ never suggested anyone cheated, his third point was that the Kiwis missed the opportunity to pursue clarification with the rules on how the hydraulic system should work. From his point of view, it was clear the hydraulic system that controlled the foils was simplified on the Team USA boat, making it easier to use. Having watched sailors prepare for major events like the Olympics and other high stress world championships, PJ recognized the importance of understanding and playing the mental game of sailing and he felt there was a missed opportunity to play the game. The mistake being that, the Kiwis should have addressed this issue earlier, so to distract Oracle away from the racing. The theme of the evening presentation certainly wasn’t how Team USA won the America’s Cup, but rather how Team New Zealand lost it. The speech directed neither negativity nor cause for defeat towards Team USA, but instead focused on the mistakes the Kiwis made that eventually led to their loss. When asked his thoughts on the event, Wellington Ocean Sports Project Manager, organizer of the evening’s event, and local Kiwi, Matt Wood gave his own perspective on the matter… “Although in the end Oracle clearly was the fastest boat in the 34th Americas Cup, it will go down as New Zealand’s biggest missed opportunity to win. After initial dominance there was a period of several days where the Cup was within our grasp, but lost due to some basic errors. Given everything Team New Zealand had in its favour heading into the regatta against Oracle (a jump on foiling and a significant speed advantage) it begs the question, can this team in its current configuration actually win? We can only hope this result has strengthened the teams resolve to solve the Americas Cup equation.” As the speech was coming to a finish, the audience longing for those iconic words declared 18 years ago only to be cast as hallow echoes in 2013, PJ gave them the bitter sweet satisfaction of ending the night by reenacting those famous words one last time. And so the audience was left that evening with the memory of what could have been met alongside with slight optimism for what the future could hold.
Posted on: Fri, 29 Aug 2014 06:38:56 +0000
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