America’s Cup Teams Comment: Bermuda Venue

December 14, 2014

“Bermuda is a fantastic sailing venue,” was one of the comments made by the sailing teams following the announcement that Bermuda was selected as the venue for the 2017 America’s Cup.

Earlier this month it was announced Bermuda would host the prestigious sailing event, which is predicted to deliver approximately $250 million in additional on-island spending.

Americas Cup 2017 Bermuda Facebook Cover from BermudaCovers.com generic (2)

What The Teams Are Saying:

Jimmy Spithill, Oracle Team USA: “It’s fantastic. I’ve spent a bit of time there and really enjoyed the racing, the people. We bring a whole family. It’s not just the athletes. It’s the shore team, the engineers, their families, their kids. The cool thing about Bermuda is, if you live in Bermuda, you are associated with the nautical theme, with the water. And that’s our life. So that integration of the whole America’s Cup community is going to be a very nice fit.”

Ben Ainslie, Ben Ainslie Racing: “We’re absolutely delighted. I’ve had some great experiences racing there with the Gold Cup on and off the water. It’s a great venue, so I’m looking forward to it.”

Nathan Outteridge, Artemis Racing: “Since the Cup ended last year we’ve kept a strong team together doing design and sailing in our AC45s. But now that we know the venue we can study the weather patterns for that place. Hopefully we’ll get there as much as we can to sail there in the May, June, July weather window to understand what will be secret to winning the America’s Cup. In every Cup there is one key thing that gets you over the line… So we’ll be focusing our efforts on understanding what the weather range is and working on designing a fast boat.”

Kevin Shoebridge, Emirates Team New Zealand: “Bermuda is a fantastic sailing venue. It’s an island with a huge maritime history and I think there will be engagement by all the Bermuda public to support the event, so I think that will be fantastic.”

Franck Cammas, Team France: “I’ve never been to Bermuda, but I hear it’s a good place to race and sail and it’s good for the show and the television. It’s not so far from Europe so it’s good for us and our sponsors to be able to see the race.”

Max Sirena, Luna Rossa Challenge: “It’s great news. Our team is very happy. We can focus on Bermuda now. It’s a great place to sail. It’s something new that should give us an opportunity to move forward in this new evolution of the America’s Cup. We’ll start to plan for the next couple of years now and we look forward to moving there as soon as we can.”

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Comments (16)

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  1. Commodore JB of BBIRYC says:

    We here in Bermuda and at BBIRYC are thankful for these comments by the AC2017 participants. Their honorary memberships to BBI Royal Yacht Club are forthcoming.

  2. Ensign Smilen (Press Secretary for Commodore JB of BBIRYC) says:

    We at BBIRYC are delighted! We are all working feverishly to prepare all of our facilities. AC2017 upgrades are well underway. The island will be awash with fellow prestigious yachts people. Stay tuned for more updates and surprises in the months to come!

  3. Vice Commodore Double Seven Single Niner says:

    I can’t even begin to tell you how excited I am for AC17. I have begun preparations to my huge mansion on B&B Lane in preparations for the teams to arrive . Most recently I have added an 80 inch TV to my laundry room, in the near future I will be submitting plans to build a 500 foot tower on my property so I can view the yacht racing from the comfort of my yard.

  4. Raymond Ray says:

    The ole adage is: “If you can’t move fast then move early”. There’ll be countless opportunities available, it’s a time for some people to get their heads out of the sand and become a part of these up-coming events.

  5. Coffee says:

    Can someone tell me whether or not this most prestigious event will take place during the hurricane season ?

    • Rick Rock says:

      No. Bermuda closes down for hurricane season. Nobody does anything during that 6 months just in case it’s too windy. You know that.

    • Micro says:

      Pretty sure they’ve given dates

    • BermudaRat says:

      No, it is in June. Just as Newport Race is.

    • Common Sense says:

      It’s good to hear that Coffee is seriously concerned about safety for the America’s Cup yachts. It does seem a little risky holding any big sporting event during hurricane season although they have held the Newport to Bermuda Race no less than 50 times during hurricane season (that’s the one where they sail across the ocean all the way from Newport to Bermuda). Those crazy sailors have also held the Marion to Bermuda Yacht Race (another ocean crossing) for years, and some courageous locals venture out onto the water at the height of hurricane season to take part in the annual non-Mariners Race. And then we have the Bermuda Gold Cup every October.

      As for other prestigous sporting events in Bermuda surely there is nothing bigger that Cup Match which is held at the height of hurricane season.

      I don’t recollect too many of these events being cancelled because of hurricanes.

      Maybe the organisers should provide us with an assurance that races will only take place in the Great Sound rather than having their yachts venture way offshore into deep water, and also assure us that racing can always be postponed for a day or two if the weather kicks up too hard. These assurances would no doubt help Coffee to rest a little easier knowing that the AC organizers are preparing for every eventuality.

    • Unbelievable says:

      Oh look at Coffee trying to sabotage the America’s Cup with their very pointless question?

  6. bermy Bud says:

    Blue water (75-80 degrees), great weather (sun, wind), shorter track (faster), the views (can go anywhere to watch it), hospitality (Bermudians), what more do u want to host a sailing event! San diego was fighting a losing battle! Welcome to my home America’s Cup WE hope to be a host venue for years 2 come!

  7. Andrew says:

    Great news !

    I,ve been up to Dockyard to the South Basin Long Arm with my duct tape and marked off my spot and my cooler and deck chairs are ready and waiting…….

    Bravo, happy sailing !