Two America’s Cup Anniversaries Have Come and Gone

On September 26, 1983 — just over 40 years ago — the longest winning streak in sporting history was broken when the US lost the 25th America’s Cup to Australia. This was news to most Americans, who probably never knew the Cup existed until they lost it.

Australia’s win in ’83 set up what will forever be my favorite Cup: the 1987 Match in Fremantle, Australia. I was 12 years old and had been sailing for a few years, and I was just starting to race. Thirteen challengers from six countries battled in the Louis Vuitton Cup in the big breezes and smashing seas off Western Australia, with Dennis Conner ultimately finding redemption. To quote the classic 1992 movie Wind, which was inspired by the events between 1983 and ’87, “The only thing better than winning the America’s Cup is losing it … and winning it back.”

“Me losing after 132 years was the best thing that ever happened to the America’s Cup and the best thing that ever happened to Dennis Conner,” said Dennis Conner. “Before the win by the Australians, the America’s Cup was only big in the minds of the yachties, but the rest of the world didn’t know or care about it at all. But when we lost it, suddenly, everyone appreciated it. If I hadn’t lost it, there never would have been the national effort. Without that, there never would have been the ticker-tape parade up Fifth Avenue in New York, lunch with the President at the White House, and all the doors of opportunity that it opened.”

On September 25, 2013 — just over 10 years ago — Oracle Team USA completed one of the great comebacks in sports history after rallying from an 8-1 deficit to beat New Zealand and successfully defend the 34th America’s Cup right here on San Francisco Bay.

Sailed on the giant AC72 catamarans, the Cup had entered the foiling era.

I worked for the America’s Cup Event Authority in the summer of 2013. After watching the final race on the big screen at piers 27/29, I found myself on the dock next to Teams USA and New Zealand as they converged to shake hands. Larry Ellison cracked a small, satisfied smile, while Emirates Team NZ skipper Dean Barker looked absolutely devastated. Team USA had won eight races in a row to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

Surely, the America’s Cup would forever be ensconced in these glorious, feel-good moments.

Though I was personally invested in both events, I’ve kind of lost interest. I wish there were more teams and more all-star skippers aside from the small handful who also moonlight on the SailGP circuit. (Actually, SailGP is now their full-time gig and the AC is the side hustle.) I like the foiling boats and appreciate the massive technological leap taken. I have seen first-hand the trickle-down effect — countless windsurfers whom I’ve sailed with for 15 years, most of them in their 60s, have jumped onto foils.

But once you’ve watched one foiling boat going 50 miles an hour, you’ve seen them all. Once you’ve watched a boat raise and lower a spinnaker, you’ve seen them all. To be fair, once you’ve watched other people play sports — be it surfing, football, sailing, basketball, etc. — you’ve seen them all.

My apologies, reader, for my tardiness in marking these two significant America’s Cup anniversaries. Since starting at Latitude in 2017 — the year of the 35th AC — I’ve been curator of a deeply polarized and sometimes bitter discussion over the past and present of the Cup. People either love or hate the foiling era, and say so often.

I posted that top photo of Australia II on our Facebook page; the only comment was this: “The same guy built two more 12-Meters to defend the Cup; [they’ve sat] abandoned in a yard in Borneo for well over 10 years, winged keels and spars, sails rotted away years ago. BTW, I think the Cup lost its glory when they stopped racing 12m boats. I lost all interest.”

What about you, reader? Do you occupy a middle ground between the two Cup extremes, aka the past and the present? Do you have memories of Cups past that are unique to you or evoke nostalgia?