Evening Star Newspaper, November 10, 1929, Page 106

illions to Detftend “The OLLD MUG." Kings of Sport and Money Rally to Defend America’s Cup Against Challenge of Sir Thomas Lipton and Shamrock V_ in Races to be Staged Next September. BY HARRY GOLDBERG. HERE still remains one sport for kings—monarchs of money as well ' as rulers by birth. When the New York Yacht Club accepted the challenge from the Ulster Yacht Club, sent on behalf of Sir Thomas Lipton, millions began to be mobilized for the race for America’s Cup, which will be pailed off Newport, R. I, next September. Sir Thomas has spent a handful of millions himself in his four unsuccessful attempts to take the “old mug” back to its former home. When he started to build the Shamrock V the members of the New York Yacht Club also be- gan similar activity. Sir Thomas plays a lone hand, but on the _ American side of the water syndicates are be- :ing formed to build boats, the best of which, ias decided by elimination races, will defend ‘ghe cup. Harold S. Vanderbilt and Vice Commodore ‘Winthrop W. Aldrich have organized a syndi- ‘tate and ordered a boat to be designed by W. {Starling Burgess. George Nichols and Junius ‘8. Morgan, jr., head another group, whose boat ‘will be designed by Clinton H. Crane. Another rmm, headed by John S. Lawrence and : C. Paine of Boston, is arranging to build & yacht at Lawley, designed by Paine, while Hammond and George Pynchon are embers of a fourth group which hopes to e'.bv.mt(leslg‘neclI:y1.~.:l"mncl.sm:fl'e- Each of these boats will be in the 76-foot- ‘pating class and the cost to each syndicate will be upward of $500,000. After the yachts slide off the ways they must be taken out to sea for trials as to speed and handling. The rules limit the men on board in the challenge races to 31. In ordinary racing the crew would consist of about 18 men, but for America’s Cup races they will probably carry 25 paid hands and three or four amateurs and executives. Suitable crews are difficult to obtain, for the craft of sailormen is disappearing with the in- crease of powerboats. Yachtsmen despair of finding skilled Americans, so descendants of the Vikings of Scandinavia, who still know how to handle sail, will, in all probability, be recruited for the races. The cup has been in America since 1851, when an American schooner yacht showed its heels to 18 other boats circling around the Isle of Wight. Since then there have been 13 attempts to retrieve the trophy. The first took place in 1870, when the challenger Cambria raced the whole fleet of the New York Yacht Club and came in tenth. On Sir Thomas Lipton’s first attempt, in 1899, the Shamrock I was beaten by the Co- lumbia in three straight races. In 1901 the Shamrock IT was sent against the Columbia. Two years later Lipton’s Shamrock III was de- feated by the Reliance. Sir Thomas pondered on the subject of con- tinuing the battle and as the result of his de- liberations the Shamrock IV started for Amer~ ica in 1914, just as the war got under way. She went into dry dock umtil 1920, when the « Resolute came out to meet her. Under full sail. Insert: The much coveted yachting trophy which Sir. Thomas Lipton hopes to take back to England with him next year. Sir Thomas Lipton. Sir Thomas thought he had his hands om the trophy. Twice the Shamrock came breesz- ing in a winner, “I have looked forward to this moment for 21 years,” he said. But his hopes were dashed when the Resolute walked off with the last three races. me is one noteworthy change in the rules for the forthcoming race as come pared to the rules governing former races— there will be no time allowance, a handicap formerly worked out in each race under the succeeding rating rules in force in the New York Yacht Club at the times of the races. Formerly the competing yachts might vary considerably in displacement, length and sail area, making some sort of handicap necessary. For the forthcoming race, however, it has been agreed that both yachts shall be of 76-foot rating, thereby eliminating all handicaps, which, at best, are always unsatisfactory. With time allowance eliminated, the first yacht to cross the line in three out of five heats over the 30-mile course will be the winner. In 1920 New York Harbor traffic and a heavy film of oil on the surface made the Sandy Hook course unsatisfactory, so the wa- ters off Newport were chosen as the most ideal place for the race. The Shamrock V will be cutter-rigged and will be constructed within the limits of the 76-foot rating, The Shamrock IV, the last challenger, was sloop-rigged and 75 feet on the water line. Since winning the cup race the rig of the Resolute was changed to that of a schooner, but while she was laid up for the Winter her rigging has been changed back to that of a sloop. Both the Resolute and another old cham- pion, the Vanitie, may be out for the trials, but there havg been many changes in the science of mariné architecture since they were built and it is generally believed among yachts- men that they would not be fast enough to compete with the new types of craft which are being planned. Under the old rules the designers, anxious to get every bit of speed and sall out of the boats, usually produced what were, to some extent, nautical freaks. The yachts have been fragile and easily in- jured. The Resolute and the Vanitie had hull plates three-sixteenths of an inch in thick- ness, and their decks and interiors were cleared of every ounce of unnecessary weight. There were no rails, the masts did not have the sturdiness of yachts built for seaworthiness as well as speed, and leaks were not uncommon, No quarters for the crews were built under the deck. The only space allotted for use was required as & sail loft. Under the new rules Lloyds regulations are accepted as to factors of strength in hulls, plating and ribs. However, the new boats will also be kept as free as possible of any superfluous gear, and although a skeleton crew will remain aboard the cup ships, tenders will have to be provided to accompany the yachts and care for the crews. T LEAST one month’s training of a crew is essential, even in advance of the trials. Sailors must learn to work together, sails must be tried out to see if they work smoothly on masts, and the skipper must get the the deck under his feet and learn how the ship will behave in all kinds of weather. view, although there is no doubt that New- & far better place than Sandy Hook for a yacht race. ‘The revenue cutters which have patrolled the course in the past will have much less difficulty at the new race course, for there will probably be fewer spectators than previously. There has been great public interest in the races of the past and the spectators’ gallery has been very large, due to the numerous ex- cursion steamships which mingled with thg private’ yachts off Ambrose Lightship. So far as the yacht owners are concerned, Newport is a splendid place to anchor, but the opportunities for watching the race will be diminished for the general public. Sir Thomas figures that if the Americans build five yachts and race the best of the loé against him, England's chances to win will be one to five, since he is building only a single boat. “I'm going to do my darndest to win this time. I hope and trust we will have good luck. To bring back that cup would be one of the greatest pleasures of my life,” he declared, “The old mug has been in America more than fifty years. A little trip to its own country would do it good. I would like to have it, if only for a month or two. I have the largest collection of yachting trophies in the world in my home in London, but I would swap the whole lot of them for the mug you have. “I have never received better treatment any- where than I have in America. If ever America made a mistake, it has been in my favor. They always treat me fairly and squarely. And I will tell you a secret. America would be just as pleased if the Shamrock took that cup away as England would be pleased to receive it.” The policy to be followed during the races is restricted by clauses in the deed of gift which accompanies the cup. It specifies that the courses over which the races are sailed must be on the ocean free from headlands. The number of heats may be arranged by mutual consent. The deed of gift alse includes another clause which permits the defending club the privilege of not selecting its representative until the time agreed upon for the start, but it limits the entry to this selected ship, which must sail in all the races. Thus if four or five craft are built by syndi- cates or individuals, the identity of the defender need not be disclosed until the last minute. Such a policy, however, is very unlikely, for undoubtedly there will be a series of elimina- tion races to choose the defender. The deed also requires that each race must be completed within an agreed time limit, otherwise the heat is to be called off. Six hours was the time limit in 1920. This provision was invoked by the judges in the last cup race. The Shamrock IV and the Resolute had been salling for five and one-half hours in the faintest of breezes. As it was obvious that the race could not be completed within the sched- uled time the judges canceled the heat. The Resolute was 34 minutes 12 seconds ahead. The time limit for the next race is five and one-half hours. The question of the skipper of the defender 4s already being discussed in yachting circles. One guess is as good as another. There are at least 10 men who would be highly competent —one especially, the man who commanded the Resolute in 1920. He is Charles Francis Adams, Secretary of the United States Navy. To have the civillan Secretary of the Navy as the skipper of the ship defending American laurels in an international competition would create a dramatic situation. As boss of the United States Navy he commands the America, the boat that brought the cup to Americs in *51, which is now a naval vessel.