Well, I don’t know exactly where I’ll be in February with Alinghi for the next America’s Cup. After Shirley Kornreich ruled that the Swiss choice of Ras al Khaimah (RAK) in the United Arab Emirates was invalid we don’t know exactly where the venue of the cup will be. But today Alinghi told a New York judge that it would race American challenger BMW Oracle Racing off Australia in February as a compromise. Alinghi prefers to race in the Persian Gulf.
The Swiss haven’t named a specific port, but said several locations on Australia’s east coast would be suitable for the best-of-three showdown in giant multihulls, the fastest, most extreme boats built for the America’s Cup.
“This is a venue that should be acceptable to both teams if, as expressed publicly, the true intention of BMW Oracle is to race for the America’s Cup on the water,” Alinghi said in a statement.
“This is an elegant solution to eliminate all litigation,” said Barry Ostrager, a New York lawyer who represents SNG.
Philip Bowman, an attorney San Francisco’s Golden Gate Yacht Club, which backs the American challenger, sent a letter to Ostrager asking him to identify which venue on Australia’s 2,500-mile east coast the Swiss want. Racing is scheduled to start Feb. 8.
“This information is necessary to ascertain whether it would be possible to prepare for a race at the chosen location on short notice,” Bowman wrote.
Kornreich is scheduled to hear the two sides’ latest arguments on rules and the venue on Friday.
My next shootings:
