Sail Magazine

by Kimball Livingston

All on assignment, Kimball Livingston has sailed the oceans blue. And he's been to Fink, Texas, too.

AC Update: Sunday

by Kimball Livingston, Posted February 7, 2010

Both boats left the dock early on Sunday. At dawn.I said a few columns back that I knew the race was on when I saw a TV schedule. There would be no moving the date now, and here we are counting down by hours instead of days and suddenly the room is jumping and there are TV people walking around the media center sticking microphones into reporters' faces—if you can't talk to a sailor, cover

Wishful Thinking

by Kimball Livingston, Posted February 6, 2010

I have a theory, soon to be tested, that the 33rd defense of America's Cup launched and lived as an exercise in wishful thinking.That you could farm-raise a pet challenger. (Sorry, CNEV)That Larry Ellison's hostile alternative challenge would blow away. (Not yet)That you could turn down a compromise offer and no one would remember. (October 2007)That you wouldn't have

Are You Scared?

by Kimball Livingston, Posted February 5, 2010

Ah, Valencia, city of Calatrava.City of Festivals.Birthplace of paella.Home to America's Cup 33.The announced plans for Saturday included an Owner's Press Conference conference with the two major players in the same room—Ernesto Bertarelli the Defender and Larry Ellison the Challenger—which sounded like a photo op for a wide lens. Better make that a

First Warning

by Kimball Livingston, Posted February 2, 2010

Everybody’s asking, will it happen? It has to happen.America’s Cup 33.Race One. Monday, February 8. First Warning 1000 local time Valencia.Even if mutual consent should erupt, and we see no signs of that, don’t figure it would extend to delaying a match that now has Consorcio Valencia trumpeting the millions

He Said She Said

by Kimball Livingston, Posted January 20, 2010

I’m pretty sure the BMW Oracle folks weren’t really expecting Alinghi to apologize for what they claim are misrepresentations attributed to Alinghi skipper Brad Butterworth—regarding the breakup of the Singapore negotiations—but for the record, Golden Gate YC commodore Marcus Young did request an apology in a January 15 letter to SNG commodore Pierre-Yves Firmenich. In a new

Will the Apocalypse be Televised?

by Kimball Livingston, Posted January 20, 2010

I had a couple more of those conversations today.They start with someone asking, “Are you going to Valencia?”Yep.“What’s it gonna be like?”Darned if I know.At this point in ‘07 I was long since pre-registered at the America’s Cup Media Center, which may or may not now exist. The building, yes, but no authority has put itself forward advising me how, as foreign

Ruling the Rules of Physics

by Kimball Livingston, Posted January 5, 2010

Around Morrelli & Melvin's design office in Hungtinton Beach, it’s OK to let your mind wander from the long-legged catamarans the company is famous for. Down at the Coast Highway, the welcome sign says Huntington Beach: Surf City USA (hint hint). When Gino Morrelli finds Nat Shaver with a foiler Moth project on the computer screen, the “bust” is a laugh. Minutes before, jaywalking under a warm

Hurry Up and Relax

by Kimball Livingston, Posted September 3, 2009

On the East Coast, West Coast, and Gulf Coast...on the Great Lakes and all the little lakes and rivers, too—most American sailors have been wooed at one point or another by the siren call of an occasional low-stress, mid-week race. (OK, perhaps it was the skipper’s promise of beer and burgers afterwards.) These informal “beer-can chases” are a great way to break up the

Abracadabra, they're gone but...

by Kimball Livingston, Posted August 18, 2009

If I’m not mistaken, more than one of the rock-star boats that were supposed to be making news are not. If I’m not further mistaken, quite a few of the usual suspects are missing from the ranks of the regulars.It’s a sign, but a sign of what? New boats are being built—in lesser numbers. Races are being sailed—with fewer boats at the higher end. And high-profile boats disappear for a

Catalina 445

by Kimball Livingston, Posted July 7, 2009

There are certain things you can count on in a Catalina. It will sail well. Not like a world beater, but like an honest boat. It will be built to a price point, but not the lowest price point. And a Catalina will incorporate scads of the value-add notions of in-house designer Gerry Douglas, who also gleans ideas from endless conversations with Catalina owners.The new