Go The Black Boat
by Anton Kelly
On the first day of the upcoming SOLO conference, the America's Cup begins. I can't wait.
Apart from what I've picked up watching previous Louis Vuitton and America's Cup competitions, I know nothing about sailing. But I've seen enough to get me interested in buying a small yacht some day so I can go out and learn to sail with my son. I'm looking forward to what must be the thrill of leaning out over the water as my sails fill with a fresh breeze. I'm even looking forward to the inevitable dunkings.
We kiwis are a parochial lot when it comes to our sport. When the All Blacks are doing well everyone loves them. When their rugby sucks, everyone bays for their blood. Such bad feeling is only skin deep and is quickly forgotten the next time the AB's run onto the field.
This in mind, I wasn't at all surprised when the whole of New Zealand seemed outraged after several key members of Team New Zealand left for foreign shores three years ago. It was the old 'hot and cold' syndrome again. After all, the country was over the moon about the black boat's successful defence of the Cup. I for one will never forget the joy the retention of the Cup brought to Auckland. I got married in March 2000 and my stag do, wedding and honeymoon were set against the backdrop of national celebration. It couldn't last forever - something had to bring the joy to an end. That something was the treachery of Russell Coutts, Brad Butterworth and a few other Team New Zealand members.
I thought the bad feeling would soon subside and things would go back to normal. But it just didn't go away. Throughout the long buildup to the recently completed Louis Vuittion Cup last October, dark mutterings about Coutts and Butterworth, stolen design secrets and foreign money kept bubbling to the surface. It reached a crescendo when the yachts were back on the Hauraki Gulf, with talkback radio, newspaper editors and letter writers loudly venting their anger at the greedy traitors. The appearance of the thankfully short-lived 'Blackheart' campaign brought things to a head, and the ill-feeling began appearing in every news bulletin. Death threats against family members of the Alinghi crew made headlines here and overseas and, for the first time ever, I was ashamed to be a New Zealander.
I cannot see what all the fuss is about. These guys are individual privateer sailors, not a national team. They sail for a living, and they work hard. They sell their considerable skills and experience to the highest bidder. Sure, as a professional sailor it would be nice to be able to sail for your country, but money talks, and so it should. No professional in his right mind would turn down an opportunity to further his career, especially if that opportunity came with a huge salary increase.
The America's Cup is for the most part privately funded, and it contributes enormously to New Zealand's economy. It represents a purer form of capitalism than can be seen elsewhere in sport. The racing yachts make an impressive sight as they scythe through the water, the perfect combination of technology, teamwork and strategy with wind harnessed by the power of man's mind as their only propulsion. In short, the America's Cup competition is fantastic.
I don't care about the internal ructions or the personality clashes that caused Team New Zealand to break up in 2000. I have nothing but respect for Coutts, Butterworth and Co because they are incredibly skilled sailors who know what they want and know how to get it. I admire the way they calmly ignored the outrage that surrounded their move to Alinghi, and I long for the day when men like them can follow their own rational self-interest without drawing the scorn and hatred of their countrymen. Let us not forget it was they who helped bring the Cup here in the first place. And by putting Alinghi into the best of nine series with the black boat, they have made for what will undoubtedly be an exciting and unforgettable competition. I just hope it all goes smoothly and the whingers and irrational Alinghi-haters stay at home.
That said, watch out, Alinghi. Team New Zealand still has some formidable faces in its ranks. Go the mighty black boat!
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