AC45. Image copyright Gilles Martin-Raget/www.americascup.com
The old and the new: Oceanbridge Aucjland Anniversary Day regatta saw the AC45 racing around Rangitoto. Image copyright Gilles Martin-Raget/www.americascup.com
AC45 suffers minor wing damage whilst gybing in breeze
by Jane Eagleson
There were heavy conditions on the Hauraki Gulf on Monday and many of the city’s boating community were out on the water for the Anniversary Day Regatta, an annual tradition that dates back to 1840 - older than the America's Cup itself.
AC45. Image copyright Gilles Martin-Raget/www.americascup.com
AC45. Image copyright Gilles Martin-Raget/www.americascup.com
AC45. Image copyright Gilles Martin-Raget/www.americascup.com
Given the opportunity to push the limits, the AC45 test crew put the boat through its paces in the strongest breeze to date.
“It was big breeze today – a good day for us,” said Matt Mason. “We pressed the boat as hard as we have so a real good test for it.
"We put the bow in a couple of times at 30 knots and loaded everything up. We were on our toes the whole time and it was great for the boat and the crew to come out of it relatively unscathed.”
AC45. Image copyright Gilles Martin-Raget/www.americascup.com
AC45. Image copyright Gilles Martin-Raget/www.americascup.com
The boat received some minor damage to the trailing edge of the wing in the first gybe of the day out of the Viaduct Harbour but nothing to get in the way of a 30-mile sail in up to 30 knots as the crew opted for a circumnavigation of the iconic Rangitoto Island.
AC45. Image copyright Gilles Martin-Raget/www.americascup.com
Skipper Jimmy Spithill said sailing in 25-30 knots of wind speed was, "a hell of a test for the boat. We were right on the edge.”
AC45. Image copyright Gilles Martin-Raget/www.americascup.com
ACRM boat captain Troy Tindill was happy to see the shore support crew handle the craning out of the boat in 30 knots. “It was good to know we can manage the boat at these upper limits.”
AC45. Image copyright Gilles Martin-Raget/www.americascup.com
Auckland's Annual Festival of Sail
Lion New Zealand. Image copyright LuvMyBoat.com
by Auckland Anniversary Regatta media
It has often been called "the biggest one day Regatta in the world" and it is distinctively Auckland. This great meeting for boat or yacht races reflects the very character of Auckland and its environment. The setting is well nigh perfect with the almost landlocked Waitemata Harbour flowing into the diverse waters and islands of the Hauraki Gulf. Over the years that an organised Regatta has been held in Auckland, right back to the very pioneer days when Auckland did not exist in 1840, through the turbulent years of the land wars and fluctuating economic times of the last century and into the 21st century, the Regatta has only been cancelled once in 1900 due to the war in South Africa.
Image copyright LuvMyBoat.com
Over all those years the Auckland Anniversary Regatta has reflected the changing social trends.
The first ten years it was a naval occasion, celebrated by the crews of the Port's commercial sailing ship, and then as the town grew and built, crewed in the main by professional yachtsmen. It was not until the 1960's that women really came into yachting. Children followed and today the all-male crewed hard driving yacht is a thing of the past.
Image copyright LuvMyBoat.com
Looking back over the years the harbour is the same, the wind is the same, only the people and social customs have changed. Today the Regatta is a family Regatta and long may it remain that way, for of all the sports, yachting is truly a family sport.
Image copyright LuvMyBoat.com
Over the last ten years Auckland's Anniversary Day has become a day of celebration for all Aucklanders to enjoy. The objective has been to provide a number of fun and exciting events along Auckland's foreshore to coincide with the activities on the water, which will enable the citizens of Auckland to enjoy their two greatest assets, namely the harbour and the surrounding waterfront activities and to unite to celebrate their Anniversary Day.
Regatta History:
Image copyright LuvMyBoat.com
1840: The first Auckland Regatta was held on the day the city was founded, 18 September 1840, the day that Captain Hobson's officials raised the flag and 11 years before the first America's Cup contest was sailed in 1851.
That first regatta on the Waitemata Harbour was an impromptu three-race event that took place after representatives of Lieutenant Governor William Hobson rowed ashore from the barque Anna Watson and took formal possession of the site in the name of Queen Victoria.
Image copyright LuvMyBoat.com
A report in The New Zealand Advertiser and Bay of Islands Gazette of 24 September 1840 said the official party rowed back to the Anna Watson and then: “After partaking of luncheon, a regatta took place between a five-oared gig belonging to the Surveyor-General and a six-oared gig belonging to the Anna Watson, both pulled excellent style by amateurs. This was followed by a match for a purse of five pounds between two whale-boats pulled by sailors, and by another between two large canoes paddled by natives.”
1842: There were two official Regattas, one to commemorate Irish born Hobson's arrival in September and the second to honour St Patrick on March 17th. The date was shifted from September to 29 January.
Holding a Regatta was not easy - boats were in such short supply that any vessel arriving in harbour with a long boat was pestered to sell it.
Image copyright LuvMyBoat.com
1850: The Auckland Anniversary Regatta became recognised as the official celebration of the arrival of Captain Hobson in New Zealand.
In the early years boats such as the gigs, dinghies, whaleboats and Maori canoes provided the interest. Some of the most exciting Regattas were the events for fishing boats such as the centreboard mullet boats that were converted to cruisers. Compared to the keelers, they were cheaper, easier to moor and quite suitable for holidays.
Image copyright LuvMyBoat.com
Late 1890's - early 1900's: Many of today's venerable yachts competed in their maiden races on Anniversary Day - a builders’ showcase was an apt description of the Regattas.
1900: The Regatta was cancelled due to the war in South Africa.
1903: Power craft made their debut.
1914: The first Anniversary Regatta speed championship was held.
1917: Handicaps, often a bone of contention, led to the appearance in the 1917 Regatta of the x class, the first single design boat.
Image copyright LuvMyBoat.com
1919: Proving the adaptability of the Regatta was the inclusion in 1919 of a flying race, the first in the Southern Hemisphere involving a seaplane and two flying boats which took off from Kohimarama.
Image copyright LuvMyBoat.com
1940: Entries gradually increased until the Auckland Anniversary Regatta grew to be the biggest one-day Regatta in the world. Post-war to the present day was an exciting time in the yachting world with new materials, more yachts, more classes. With New Zealand's expert yachtsmen starting to challenge the world, the Regatta committee decided to introduce races for Olympic and International classes.
1970: The first sailboard made its appearance early in the 1970's when an American became tired of surfing and raised a sail.
Image copyright LuvMyBoat.com
2006: A multiplicity of classes is catered for today from slick racing machines which can challenge the world without shame, to tiny radio controlled yachts. Among the slick races to honour the Regatta in recent years has been the late Sir Peter Blake's trimaran "Steinlager".
2007: Saw the arrival of the tugboats on the scene, an event which commandeered the attention of the media. The sight of 21 tugboats churning up the Rangitoto Channel to Narrowneck Buoy and racing back to North Head was a sight to behold. The tugboat race was to become a major feature of the Regatta from this year on.
2010: The keelboat startline moved into the downtown city area off Princes Wharf, a move which proved to be a popular one for both spectators and participants
Dressed over all, or "my other boat's a..." Image copyright LuvMyBoat.com
America's Cup
Oceanbridge Auckland Anniversary Day Regatta
