We can put the Twitter hashtag #TheWindyCityIsMadeForThis, used by the America’s Cup to promote the event, to rest after today. The America’s Cup World Series Chicago had three races scheduled on Lake Michigan Saturday, but settled for just one, and it was a substitute race that may not even count.
Yes, after a whopping two hour, fifteen minute delay due to the absence of sufficient wind, the substitute race was held on an alternate course, and decisively won by New Zealand. The Kiwis dominated from start to finish in a boringly one-sided race that won’t even count unless tomorrow’s racing is also cancelled for some reason.
Give New Zealand a lot of credit though, Australia’s Canada is a traditional power in this sport.
The event’s failure, due to lack of enough wind, reminded all non-Chicagoans what us locals have known our entire lives about “The Windy City” nickname- it’s political, not meteorological in nature.
The moniker originates with New Yorkers’ derision for local politicians talking big about the 1893 Columbian Exposition (World’s Fair).
The other major storyline emerging from this America’s Cup qualifying event was one of capsizing.
The two best teams (New Zealand and USA) both capsized during Friday’s practice day (watch the footage here at this link)
Capsizing can be very scary, as RedEye points out that “in 2013 an English sailor was killed during practice near San Francisco when his team’s boat flipped onto its side and he was trapped underwater for 10 minutes.”
It’s also what the people come to see however, exactly like the wreck in auto racing.
We may not want to admit it, but the evidence is ubiquitous: disaster movies dominating the box office, “if it bleeds it leads” setting the media coverage tone, reality television hegemony. Now we even have a reality television star as the presumptive Presidential nominee for the Republican party.
https://twitter.com/PaulMBanks/status/741395868021051392
Many people involved with the America’s Cup refer to it as “NASCAR on water,” and the analogy truly holds on many levels.
Both sports feature corporate dominance, racing teams that require massive fundraising in order to even exist, interviews and press conferences overrun by sponsorship brand names and of course, anticipation for the crash.
In America’s Cup it’s the capsizing, in NASCAR it’s the wreck and pile up.
https://twitter.com/PaulMBanks/status/741383570149810176
Despite all that went wrong, we saw a lot of positives in this event. It drew a tremendous crowd of thousands, on an ugly, oppressively hot day no less.
You also saw lots of private boats on Lake Michigan coming to observe the races. Credit the fans who waited it out patiently and behaved well even though they ended up getting much less than what they paid for.
That’s a shame for the casual fan, and the new fans just discovering the sport for the first time here today. For them, $19 tickets (also $20 glasses of champagne if you want them) are an expense that carries significance.
https://twitter.com/PaulMBanks/status/741715836017119232
Unlike the sport’s main base, which is essentially 1%ers, for them, a bank note with Andrew Jackson’s image is nothing.
The Sports Bank America’s Cup Coverage
-Riding Along on an America’s Cup Sailboat (Photos)
-Guide to Watching the America’s Cup on TV
–How the Rich America’s Cup History Could Prelude Its Future
–Articulating the Catamaran Sailing Experience
-America’s Cup Guide; Media Day Preview
–How Chicago ACWS Event Could Prelude a 2021 America’s Cup Bid
For more America’s Cup photos, check out our INSTAGRAM and Twitter Photos feeds.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, partnered with FOX Sports Engage Network. and News Now. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, currently contributes regularly to the Chicago Tribune’s RedEye publication.
He also consistently appears on numerous talk shows all across the country. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram