Maybe it’s time to turn the Alter Cup into a Championship of Champions type event instead of a ladder event. Portsmouth racing has declined considerably in the last few years and I think there are just not as many people who can get excited about racing Portsmouth these days.
Most of the sailors attending AC qualifiers don’t expect to qualify for the championship. From my limited experience in the past people went to the AC qualifiers because it was just another event on the schedule. But that was back when people were actually going to handicap events. This doesn’t happen all that much any more.