Pawtucket tribune. (Pawtucket, R.I.) 1890-189?, 1895-08-21
DEFENDER RETIRED
vigiIant Took an Unsatis.
factory Race on a Gift.
RIGGING GOT L0OSENED.
But Defender Beat Vigilant on Elapsed
Time 5m. Flat.

NEW YORK, Aug. 2l.-The first OF tho
tria. races between the Defender and the
Vigilant was sailed yesterday, and the
Vigilant, although outpaced by the new
champion, was declared the winner For
the third time this year the Defender
broke down After sailing the course once
she withdrew, and the Vigilant, which
continued on, was stopped and given
credit for victory.
The boats raced not only TO give the
committee line on them, but also for
500 cup that John J. Astor offered to the
winner Of the majority OF the races that
the committee should order. That Is to
say, that the winner OF two Of the three
trial races will get the cup. The winner,
however, will not necessarily be tho
defender OF the Americas cup One boat
might beat the other three times straight,
and yet the Americas cup committee will
have absolute power and discretion in
picking the defender.
1t Is generally believed that the commit
tee ordered these trial races more In tho
hope that they would see Defender in a
good stiff breeze, II not hard wind "a
condition of things In which she not yet
had the opportunity Of displaying her
power. They cane very near having the
desired view yesterday. But they were
forestalled by an accident that prevented
Defender from really showing what she
could do in breeze Of wind that went
over the water probably at the rate Of 20
knots an hour.
Rigging Gave Way.
In fact, it was the very stiffness of the
breeze that brought dire injury to the fin
Eaa 1ad c<fr k.-
rigging SO much, and played such havoc
among 1t. that IL loOsened 1t to material
extent up toward the masthead, and
caused such damage that the new boat had
to withdraw. The Stacking up of the rig
ging was SO extensive that the yacht will
not be able to compete in tho second trial
race for a week. The committee after
ward decided that the next two trial races
would take place on Tuesday and Wednes-
day of next week.
1t Is a mystery to yachtsmen, especially
those who have. given the closest attention
to the rigging Of toats, why the Defend
er's stays weakened under breeze which
enabled her to still carry her clubtopsail,
which she did when she quit, and con-
tinued to do all the way up the bay to the
anchorage off Bay Ridge
The Vigilant, too, was prevented from
going over the whole course, but from a
different cause. After she had made her
first round of the 10 miles to windward
and return, she hauled down her club
topsail and then ran up against q wind
that burst her jib into shreds.
Nothing daunted, she ran up another
jib, and was proceeding on the course the
second time over, when the committed S
boat Luckenbach, ran alongside of her
while she was tacking, and notified her
that she need go no farther; that the
Defender had withdrawn, and that she,
the Vigilant, had been decided the winner
of the day s race. The time
Outer Elapsed
Start. mark. Finish. time.
Defender ...ll485S 1.09l8 2.O4.29 ELI 7.3d
Viglant ....ll455 1.14.54 20832 222.3G
Thus it will be seen that the Defender
beat the Vigilant on the elapsed time OF
the only round by 5m. fiat.