From: wwalker@qualcomm.com (Bill Walker)
Newsgroups: rec.boats
Subject: America's Cup results for April 7, 1992
Date: 8 Apr 92 19:34:05 GMT
Organization: Qualcomm, Inc

America's Cup results for Tuesday, April 7, 1992, from the San Diego 
Union-Tribune.

CHALLENGERS

Conditions:  Winds:  9 knots at start building steadily to 14 at the end 
of the restarted Il Moro di Venezia-Ville de Paris race.  Direction:  west 
and steady.  Seas:  moderate with swell of 2-3 feet plus chop.

New Zealand defeated Nippon by 0:31.  Loss officially eliminates Nippon.  
New Zealand broke through on the second weather leg with a 42-second gain 
and was never headed.  Kiwis need on win in final two races to reach the 
Louis Vuitton Cup finals.

Il Moro di Venezia defeated Ville de Paris by 1:28.  French were 
victimized by the race committee, which incorrectly called them for being 
over the starting line early [based on the feature article, the writer is 
not saying they weren't over early, but is complaining that it took them 
almost 20 seconds before the flag was raised, during which time Il Moro, 
already judged over early, was already restarting.  Also, the original 
start was delayed by an hour while the Italians fixed a masthead fitting]. 
 The French, who did not restart, reached the first mark with a 17-second 
lead and were holding the lead on the run when the race committee stopped 
the race, admitted they had made a mistake and ordered a restart.  By that 
time, the winds had freshened and favored the heavy-air Il Moro.  Ville de 
Paris needs to win both remaining races and have New Zealand lose its last 
two starts to advance.

Schedule:
April 8:  Il Moro vs Nippon, 12:25 PM.  New Zealand vs. Ville de Paris, 
12:40 PM.
April 9:  NZ vs. Il Moro, 12:25 PM.  Nippon vs. Ville de Paris, 12:40 PM.

Standings:
              Overall record
              |    Il Moro di Venezia
              |    |    New Zealand
              |    |    |    Ville de Paris
              |    |    |    |    Nippon
              |    |    |    |    |
x-Il Moro    5-2       1-1  2-1  2-0
New Zealand  5-2  1-1       1-1  3-0
Ville de P.  3-4  1-2  1-1       1-1
y-Nippon     1-6  0-2  0-3  1-1

x-Clinched berth in finals; y-Eliminated.


DEFENDERS

Conditions:  Wind:  8 knots at start building steadily to 12 at finish.  
Direction:  westerly, swinging 30 degrees to the left on the first leg.  
Seas:  2-foot swell with medium chop.

Kanza defeated Stars & Stripes by 0:57.  What could become a crucial race 
for Dennis Conner turned against the Stars & Stripes team on a 
controversial call at the last weather mark by on-the-water officials.  A 
victory would have clinched S&S a tie for a spot in the defensive finals - 
meaning the only way S&S could be excluded was three straight America^3 
wins over Conner's boat (the last coming in a sail-off).  Now America^3 
will win the berth if it wins its last four races.  A slam dunk early on 
the first weather leg allowed Conner to pin Kanza underneath Stars & 
Stripes on a long port tack, an advantage Conner extended to a 42-second 
lead at the first mark.  But as the winds increased toward Kanza's favored 
range, the Cubens gained with Buddy Melges and Bill Koch again sharing the 
wheel.  On the last weather leg, Kanza took the lead nearing the mark, 
Conner luffed Stars & Stripes up to gain room to round the mark inside of 
Kanza.  Melges turned Kanza down to round.  There was contact and both 
boats protested.  Contact means that one boat had to be guilty of an 
infraction.  But on-the-water referees ruled there was no violation.  The 
contact forced Stars & Stripes into the mark.  Hitting the mark is a foul. 
 And S&S was cited, requiring the boat to make a 270-degree penalty turn 
some time during the run to the finish.  Conner sailed S&S inside Kanza 
and took the lead down the run.  Nearing the finish line, Conner attempted 
to round up into his penalty turn and force Kanza outside the mark in one 
move at the finish line.  But a bad spinnaker drop killed the slim chance 
he had and Kanza won a race that will become one of the most controversial 
if Conner fails to reach the finals.

A^3 has a new keel and less ballast in the keel going into today's race, 
which they expect will increase their performance in lighter conditions.

Schedule:
April 8:  Stars & Stripes vs. America^3, 12:15 PM.
April 9:  America^3 vs. Kanza, 12:15 PM.
April 10: Stars & Stripes vs. Kanza, 12:30 PM.
April 11: Stars & Stripes vs. America^3, 12:15 PM.
April 12: America^3 vs. Kanza, 12:45 PM.

Standings:
              
                  Scored wins (includes bonus wins)
                  |    Kanza
                  |    |    Stars & Stripes
                  |    |    |    America^3
                  |    |    |    |
Kanza             5        2-1  1-1
Stars & Stripes   4   1-2       2-0
America^3.        1   1-1  0-2     

Kanza entered this round with two bonus wins based on points acquired by 
Defiant and America^3 in first three rounds.  Stars & Stripes received one 
bonus win for second-most points.  America^3 was placed in slot with zero 
wins.

----------
Bill Walker - WWalker@qualcomm.com - QUALCOMM, Inc., San Diego, CA
All opinions expressed are mine, and do not reflect those of my employer.
"First thing we do, we kill all the lawyers." - Shakespeare