Thanks for not taking that comment the wrong way, Eric.

I gave up trying to guess the motives of others long, long ago. Murray is pretty wrapped around the axle about the "all or nothingness" of the 37 rules as a package deal. It could be as simple as thinking he is right, has the authority, and genuinely thinks he is doing the right thing for, and with the perceived support of, all of the teams. I tend to take people at their word, at least until I have good reason not to.

Mike

hmmmm..I have no idea - my apologies.

No worries. I'm trying to be as neutral as possible. All five sides (Oracle, Artemis, ETNZ, LR and the OA/RC) have good points, and bad.

Mike

The recommendations originated from ETNZ and LR back on May 17-22 (over six weeks before the first race of the LV). Amazingly, 6 weeks later, when time is precious, ETNZ (June 28) and LR (July 2) protest their very own recommendations.

Let's see the teams with compliant rudders that measure in, regardless of ruling:
ETNZ (check)
LR (check)
OR (check)

It' AC politics as usual.

Luna Rossa showing their foiling gybe.

What a load of Bertelli crap . . . or is it?

What are these new mid course marks all about? Anybody know?

Anybody know what the rules are regarding traffic on the race course? Seems like a high risk liability to have commercial traffic on the course during racing.

If it's the Asian market they're after, they picked the wrong sport for marketing.

Paul Cayard weighs in:
We are here to race.

Regarding the ferry...

I can speak from my experience at the ACWS in Newport (from aboard a weather mark boat). I would assume the rules are the same, or very similar, as those events were very much test beds for the RC.

There is an outer perimeter, marked by stake boats. These are large (typically monohull) sailing yachts, anchored and flying large red flags. These are set an hour or two prior to race time, based on the expected wind direction and strength, and the best guess for how the course will be set that day.

All normal spectator boats (and non-AC traffic) is required to remain outside of this outer perimeter. It is enforced by marshal boats (small power boats), and for large traffic, the Coast Guard.

VIP boats operate inside of this outer perimeter, and are essentially only limited by the actual course boundaries, which change from race to race (and lap to lap). They don't typically get too close unless they are a fast and maneuverable photo boat.

It's not foolproof. I don't know if anyone saw this on TV, but there were some large motor yachts anchored near Hammersmith Farm (south of Fort Adams) at the ACWS in Newport. This was well inside the restricted zone, and no one really knows why they weren't moved before the racing began (yes, a large portion of the bay was officially closed to unofficial traffic). Anyway, at one point, John had us move so far south, that the course enveloped these anchored boats. The marshals tried to get them to move, but they didn't react fast enough, and at least one of them became a large speed bump as the fleet tacked around them getting to the weather gate.

Having said all of that, I would say that judging by the number of people on that "ferry" in San Fran, it was actually being used as a VIP spectator boat.

Mike

The manned boats that had the positioning systems on them were deemed to be a bit of a hazard to the AC72 boats and the people on both vessels since they were hard and the speeds involved could be pretty crazy. They came up with these floating marks instead. I think they still have similar position maintaining propulsion systems so they don't require an anchor (not entirely sure about that).

But why are they set "mid course", as in the middle of the course? These are not windward or leeward marks.

I haven't seen the diagram. Could be a mid-course gate, or leftovers from the start box. I'll try to look for this later.

Mike

I'm pretty sure this is the course and why you are seeing marks mid-leg

go to 31:34 in the video. Definitely a mid course gate. Can you tell me if it is just for upwind?

startline - see above.

Yep. I see it. Clearly visible at 47:30. Thx.

To why ETNZ,LR changed their minds, They may believe they will have an advantage in not changing the rudder rule. Or they know that with the changes US-17 may be able to set a new sailing speed record. "enter your speculation here" Better yet, why isn't the media banging down the door at ETNZ and LR asking if the claims IM has made are true?

I understand what your saying about the permit. However, honestly IM can't know what the CG will do if he has to go back with those rules removed. He has spent time with the CG and may have more insight to what the CG wants. He is the guy in the jaws of the vise. Currently he has the permit.

I don't believe the CG permit will be pulled. It will be amended with some changes. I think the CG main focus will be keeping the spectators and other boating traffic safe. We now know that a boat has rounded up more than once at over 40 mph. Maybe the spectator fleet may need to be pushed back further. Again, "enter your speculation here"

Mid course gates have been used to keep the action centered (VOR in-port races have used them). Probably not needed for the AC because of all of the digital wizardry.

Leftovers from the start box was really my first guess, but I couldn't recall whether the start was in the middle of the course, or above the windward mark (it's been mid-course for most of the ACWS). Even if those marks have propulsion for self-positioning, getting them off the course fast enough is probably more of a risk than leaving them in place.

As an aside, I listened to a lot of the Murray press conference, there's a lot there that tells me he's a stand-up guy.

Mike