by IanHB » Sun May 20, 2007 9:56 pm
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Capt. Flak</i>
No disrespect to the Kiwis. We all know their talents and that is why there are so many of them sailing on just about every boat. But just maybe their hearts are not in it to win for a billionaire American.
I think every team out there should have at least some measure of National pride and identity.
ETNZ are the only team with a majority of their own nationality on board. They have a couple of non-Kiwis, but that is about it. All the other teams are dominated by hired guns. I just think that that does not promote the real idea of the event, which is a friendly race between Nations.
It is a money driven quest to bring the REAL prize of the $billion revenue to the winners home port.
If I could change one rule about this event, it would be to make the skipper and the afterguard citizens of the Country they are sailing for. The hired guns can be the crew, but the guys calling the shots should be Americans on the American boat, Kiwis on the Kiwi boat and so on.
Of course I could just have sour grapes because the American boat is having its butt handed to them by an Italian team with an Auzzie skipper and Brazilian tactician.
Maybe I would not be so upset if the "dictator from down under" would at least open his ears to Brady, Isler, and Kolb.
There are 11 guys from NZL on the American boat and only 3 Americans. There are 15 guys from NZL on the NZL boat.
Chris Dickson gets paid, win or lose. There is nothing in this for him except maybe to keep his job one more time for another failed attempt. And how many failures will that be for him...FOUR...FIVE...? Ellison should have never fired Cayard.
Ok, I am done venting.[:(]
Joe Walter #24
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></font id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
<font size="2">Sir, with the greatest respect I would suggest that your venting is ill informed, bigoted
(Blindly and obstinately attached to some creed or opinion and intolerant toward others) and indeed may even be libelous.
To insinuate that a member of any team may not be doing their very best for that team is not within your sphere of knowledge and does you no service as a sportsman or a fair minded citizen of any country.
May I also remind you that the teams competing for the Louis Vuitton Cup are not "national" teams but represent yacht clubs.
So it is a team from the San Fransisco Yacht Club, Royal Yacht Squadron Auckland, or Naples Yacht Club that you may choose to support, or not as you wish.
What then matters the original nationality of any members of the team. They have been living and working together for three or more years and their lives and that of their families are dedicated to one all consuming goal, the winning of that one hundred guinea cup.
Only one group can win the Americia`s Cup.
Regardless of your own personal opinion of the cup and all it`s expence and associated hullabloo it will be considered as the pinnicle of yacht racing for long after we are both gone.
To be part of the winning team is the highest achievment in yachting and to suggest that
any team members "heart is not in it" shows a complete lack of understanding of the commitment of these people.
To be a true "Sportsman" one needs to be able to both win and lose with dignity, humility, decorum and self respect.
Losing is something we all do throughout our lives, to lose with dignity is the mark of a true gentleman in my opinion.
There will always be more losers than winners that is the nature of life.
Personalities of individuals is what all this is about, not nationalities.
Larry Ellison hired Chris Dickson to do a job for him, if he did his best but was beaten by a better team then just take it on the chin.
Respectfully,
Ian Hull-Brown.
DO IT NOW, Before it`s to late<font size="2"></font id="size2"></font id="size2">