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MAN AT THE TOPSIR GILES PETER CODRINGTON

SUPERYACHT TOYSTHE TOP YACHT TOYS OF 2012

REGATTAS ST. BARTHS BUCKETTHE SUPERYACHT CUP – PALMA

PROFESSIONAL SNAPPER TIM WRIGHT

SHARING IT GET YOUR YACHT UP TO SPEED

A Colin Squire Publication

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Featuring The Supplement

Covers YM23 10mm spine_Cover Spread 13/07/2012 13:42

VENICEAMERICA’S CUP WORLD SERIES WORDS BY ANNE SPYROPOULOS PHOTOGRAPHY BY COLIN SQUIRE

YM23 master artwork 17/07/2012 17:41 Page 105

HE AMERICA’S CUP, STEEPED IN HISTORY AND

tradition, has undergone many changes since Oracle’s

win in 2010, beating Alinghi 2–0 to become the first

American syndicate to win the Cup since 1992. The new format,

being showcased around the world this past year during the

America’s Cup World Series, has put on display superfast wing-

sailed catamarans and cutting edge technology, bringing the

racing closer to the shore than ever before.

The AC45s as the catamarans are called are being used

throughout the World Series circuit which has just finished its

inaugural season having made stops in Cascais, Plymouth,

San Diego, Naples, Venice and Newport. Overall season

championships went to Team Artemis who won Match Racing

with Skipper Terry Hutchinson and led by CEO Paul Cayard and

Fleet Racing honours went to Oracle Racing Spithill skippered by

James Spithill and led by CEO Russell Coutts. The second season

of the World Series kicks off in San Francisco at the end of August

and will finish in Naples in May 2013.

In the month of May it was Venice’s turn to welcome this

prestigious international event with racing right in front of St.

Mark’s Square in the Venetian Lagoon. In keeping with the city’s

rich maritime history, the America’s Cup village and VIP

hospitality venues were hosted inside the Arsenal, or ‘Arsenale’ as

it is known by locals which is now a military installation and rarely

opened to the public. Sailors, technical personnel, media and

visitors including many local Venetians who have never had such

an extensive opportunity to view the area visited the Arsenal

during the World Series stop in Venice from May 12-20, 2012.

Embracing the ‘new’ America’s Cup format and encompassing the

highest level of technology and innovation, the city of Venice,

steeped in history and maritime tradition, created a showcase for

the new and old when it hosted the fifth inaugural AC World

Series event.

The history books all speak of the Venetian navy’s superior

sailing ability and efficiency in managing the building of its own

ships, a key factor that was supplemented by an extraordinary level

of organisation and the ability to adapt during wartime. The Arsenal

AMERICA’S CUP WORLD SERIES

T


BWA YACHTING - OPERATIONAL PARTNER OF THE AMERICA’S CUP SUPERYACHT PROGRAM

For more information on the exclusive packages being offered for superyachts please contact BWA at [email protected]


108 YACHTING MATTERS & THE YACHT OWNERISSUE 23

was the headquarters of the Venetian Republic’s shipyards and

armories responsible for producing Venice’s naval power during the

second millennium AD. Venetian vessels, once built in small

workshops throughout Venice, were put under one roof in this single

public shipyard during the thirteenth century, which ushered in a

period of Venetian strength and dominance that lasted for centuries.

The Arsenal complex, established in 1104 started out as a

dockyard to maintain ships for the Venetian Navy and spans an

area of about 110 acres, or approximately 15% of the city of

Venice. The ‘aresenalotti’, or maritime workers, as they were

known, were comprised of specialised boat builders which formed

their own community within the walls of the Arsenal. Each area

specialised in a different trade and created a highly advanced

‘vessel’ assembly line, the first of its kind. At its peak, during the

1500s the Arsenal employed up to 15,000 people, working day-

to-day to build and maintain the ships that the maritime republic

needed to maintain its control over the Mediterranean. Rather

than keep an entire naval fleet at the ready in water, at an

enormous cost, the Arsenal was able to keep 100 galleys in various

states of readiness for battle. This fully autonomous and self-

sufficient production allowed the Arsenal to average the launch of

one warship a day and was considered the largest manufacturing

plant in Europe before the era of industrialisation.

The essential materials needed for boatbuilding, namely

timber, iron and hemp were all obtained via water routes that

were often blocked by rivaling nations and pirates. Venice,

surrounded by water, was at a disadvantage for raw materials and

without endless resources like other Italian cities, namely Pisa,

Genoa and Naples, Venice relied on shipments of timber from

Croatia, Albania and Germany. Interestingly, once in Venice, the

wood was cut into solid beams, measured and stamped with the

Venetian winged lion and then immersed in an underwater sea

basin near the island of Lido. They were soaked for 10 years to

ensure durability and prevent them from warping. Venice’s


dominance in the Mediterranean can be attested directly to the

shipyard, in particular during the 15th century when a law during

this period decreed that all ships, whether private or State owned

had to comply with strict regulations and measurements, in a

sense they had to be practically identical.

This allowed not only uniformity

and efficiency during the construction

process, but the use of standardised

interchangeable parts that ensured that

the assembly would be quick. The

moving assembly line (via the canals in

the Arsenal) allowed the galleys to be

moved to the materials and equipment

and this revolutionary way of building

was not seen again until Henry Ford

reintroduced the modern assembly line

in the early 20th century. Producing

more vessels in a shorter period of time

provided the flexibility to enforce the

entire fleet during war time. Venetian

merchants, used to sitting idle during

wartime, were able to convert their

fleets for the fight and once conflict was over, ships would be sold

at auction back to the public, allowing merchants to resume their

trade. The tactical advantage of having ships with similar

characteristics also permitted the navy to predict how their ships

would perform under varying weather situations.

It’s not every day that the city of Venice closes itself to all

water traffic for three consecutive afternoons in a row. Venice is a

city that lives and breathes by the power of the sea, travelling by

water is an essential part of daily life in Venice whether it be a

water taxi filled with tourists on the way to their hotel, an ice

cream boat with its daily delivery to the local ‘gelaterie’, or the

many boats that support the city’s infrastructure with garbage

collection, water ambulances and law enforcement. The water

traffic stopped though, with not a complaint heard, to welcome

the most prestigious sailing trophy in the world. Over a period of

10 days, Venice’s maritime history, art and culture provided an

incredible backdrop to the state-of-the-art catamarans that were

trialed and then raced along the waterfront. Each day brought

tens of thousands of spectators to the city and into the America’s

Cup headquarters in the Arsenal to participate in the spectacle.

109YACHTING MATTERS & THE YACHT OWNERISSUE 23

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ALEXSEAL.COM > EU: +49 (0) 40 75 10 30 > USA: +1 843 654 7755

LEFT: THE VENETIAN CUPHEADQUARTERS ‘THE ARSENALE’


AMERICA’S CUP –THERE IS NO SECONDBY EDWARD PEGAN

T ALL STARTED ON AUGUST 22, 1851, WHEN THE STRANGE

looking schooner named America, sailed by Queen Victoria,

beat the British at Royal Yacht Squadron’s 100 Guinea Cup in

Cowes, England. History has it that the Queen turned to one of

her attendants and asked who was in second place, to which the

reply was given, ‘Your Majesty, there is no second.’ Returning to

the shores of the new world, the trophy would be named the

America’s Cup, after the winning schooner and was donated to

the New York Yacht Club under a Deed of Gift, declaring the

trophy a perpetual challenge for friendly competition among

nations. Since that first victory in 1851, there have been thirty

three challenges in all. The Cup remained in the hands of

American sailors for over 100 years, losing it to Australia in 1983.

In all, only four nations can lay claim to having won the America’s

Cup, with New Zealand and Switzerland joining Australia and the

United States in victory. The America’s Cup is arguably the hardest

trophy to win in all of sports and proudly boasts to be the oldest

trophy in the history of international competition. The Cup itself

was made by Garrard & Co., thought to be one of, if not the

world’s oldest, jeweller based in London.

For the 34th Challenge of the America’s Cup, to be hosted

in San Francisco during the summer of 2013, little remains the

same from that August in 1851. What hasn’t changed is the

passion and fierce competition among sailors and nations to win

the coveted trophy, earning also the right to organise the 35th

Challenge and select the host city. The summer of San Francisco

promises to be like no other in the race’s history, with a series of

events from July through September 2013 which includes a

month of round robin racing, the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup,

the America’s Cup Super Yacht Regatta, the Louis Vuitton Cup and

lastly, the America’s Cup Finals.

For racing enthusiasts, the events lined up will truly provide

daily excitement throughout summer showcasing as the

organisers like to say, ‘The best sailors, the fastest boats.’ All events

will be viewable along the race course or from land, with stunning

backdrops of the Golden Gate Bridge, Coit Tower, Alcatraz and

downtown city itself. Construction is underway on the America’s

Cup Village along the waterfront of San Francisco and super yacht

owners will be pleased to know that an America’s Cup Super Yacht

Marina will be completed in time for the events. For those owners

wanting to bring their yachts to San Francisco, packages are being

developed to include: exclusive berthing, 24 hour concierge

services, race day flagged positions, live race feed aboard, access to

Club 72, the VIP hospitality centre, team base tours and

participation in official events, ceremonies and the social calendar.

Guest and crew activities are being planned as well, from wine

tastings in the Napa and Sonoma valleys to excursions into

Yosemite National Park. For technical jobs and down time in the

yard, several facilities exist around the bay area and are more than

capable of carrying out works that are needed.

For more information about the America’s Cup Super Yacht

Program, please contact BWA Yachting at [email protected]

AMERICA’S CUP WORLD SERIES

110 YACHTING MATTERS & THE YACHT OWNERISSUE 23

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