Gary Jobson. Image copyright Gilles Martin-Raget/www.americascup.com
by ORACLE Racing media
Gary Jobson has long been considered ESPN’s voice of the America’s Cup. When the all-sports network first broadcast live America’s Cup racing from Fremantle in 1986-87, it was Jobson’s experienced voice relaying the happenings to tuners-in around the world. Jobson won the 1977 America’s Cup as tactician for skipper Ted Turner, and currently is president of US SAILING.
Jobson delivered an interesting presentation at the forum Unfurling Opportunities, the America’s Cup on San Francisco Bay. San Francisco will play host to the 34th America’s Cup in 2013 and the forum was intended to make local businesses aware of the opportunities that lay ahead of them.
Gary Jobson talks about America's Cup opportunities:
“I look at the America’s Cup with very wide eyes and there’s a lot that can be done with the trophy. To get something out of this you need to be prepared to put something in. There’s no free lunch, and you have to be clever, engaged and put something in. if you do, the rewards will come back. Because of all the sporting events in sailing, this is the only one that reaches beyond the normal audience. The America’s Cup has that ability to reach beyond the passionate sailor.”
Jobson has seen plenty of America’s Cup racing and believes the move to catamarans will produce exciting racing.
“The America’s Cup has always been about speed, and these catamarans are going to be pretty fast,” Jobson said. “A 72-foot long, 46 wide cat with a 130-foot wing sail … they have the potential to go fast. I have a gut feeling we’ll see crashes along the way. It’s horrible, but great for television.”
America's Cup
