Great racing so far, and the trends have really begun to emerge.

Dean Barker is the epitome of grace and sportsmanship. He never whines and he never gloats -- even though he probably has the most right of any skipper here to do both.

Frank Cammas keeps putting on a good face, even though it was obvious from the outset that the Groupama boat simply doesn't foil as well as the others.

Nathan Outteridge must be supremely frustrated. Artemis is sailing much better than the results indicate, but they seem to wind up on the wrong side of most setup choices, close calls, and wind shifts. Other teams are able to capitalize on SWE's mistakes, but SWE can't capitalize on theirs.

Peter Burling is learning to present a modest image and is now coming across very well. Couple that with Emirates' outstanding performance so far and it's difficult to imagine them not coming out on top. Team NZL's boat has consistently been the fastest and their boathandling is unmatched.

Jimmy Spithill is doing a great PR job. He's consistently unassuming, positive, and likeable. On the course, Oracle has made many mistakes but has always stayed in the game. Team USA has been lucky with their comebacks so far though. They aren't as dominant as their score might indicate. I'm sure the team must be very worried about NZL.

Ben Ainslie is looking defeated. His many mistakes and Land Rover BAR's inability to foil in light wind have taken their toll. GBR is not as competitive as they were in the ACWS.

All in all, the racing has been very exciting, and I'm looking forward to seeing more.

I wish I could say the same about the reporting. The America's Cup is the pinnacle of our sport -- it's a shame that we can only get second-rate reporters. TV coverage has been lackluster, focusing on images of teams grinding, people running across the trampoline, and the foil tips. They often fail to show the positions of the boats on the racecourse, and usually miss the reasons for lead changes. Gone are the explanations of the course, the rules, and the tactics that made the last America's Cup understandable to the public.

The post-race interviews, videos, and press releases are amateurish. The only recaps worth reading come from Paul Cayard, and they are dry, dry, dry. The skipper press conference reporters ask fluff questions and never follow up - or are pushing their own agendas. The photos and videos are low in production quality. Yesterday, reporting sank to a new low with allegations of race fixing. One of the reporters had the gall to ask Dean Barker if he intentionally threw the race so that USA could win an AC point. Richard Gladwell (Sail World's AC reporter), who has always been biased for New Zealand, repeated the charge in his article, and went on to say that it looked to him like Softbank JPN intentionally chose the wrong side of the racecourse at Oracles "team order". Such unfounded accusations of cheating are appallingly unprofessional. Personally, as someone who believes that sportsmanship is a fundamental tenet of sailboat racing, I find it offensive.

I think Sail-World.com is past due for a new reporter.

Sadly,
Eric