America's Cup

As some (most? all ideally) you know SA has an entry in the AC (America’s Cup) – without any doubt the biggest and most prestigious sailing “race” (series of regatta’s actually) there is around. Before going any further I’d like to repeat all the press about how big a deal it is that the guys on Shosholoza got as far as they did. I know only too well (but at a completely different scale) how difficult it is to come out of SA with a (relatively) minuscule budget and compete with teams with up to 10 times the funding.

Quite aside from budget – and the strains on the team that it produces – you also have to admire the guys who have slogged it out day in day out, quite literally “beating their brains out” tuning the boat/sails/rig day after day (for those not in the know it is not pretty, elegant or much fun). It is mind-numbing.

That said, it was really unfortunate to see them being tripped up on the little things – the torn sails or broken spin poles. Often incurred when trying to outdo themselves unnecessarily. When a conservative approach would have sufficed, a “go big or go home” approach surfaced instead – something very common to South African sailors (I know, I have succumbed to it myself on occasion). It is with this in mind that the decision to replace the combination of Mark and Ian was so puzzling – here were the guys that knew what the rest of the team could do (and not do) and most importantly would do it with a calm head.