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02/14/2010: "America’s Cup Returns After 15 Years"

(How big is Oracle? Arrow points to the crew -see close up below left)

The race is over, and the Americas Cup has been won by “local boat” BMW Oracle. a trimaran built by Sedro-Woolley based Janicki Industries.

It was never really a contest as the Oracle won the first of the best-of-three race off the coast of Spain with a 15 minute lead, and the second and wining race on Sunday was completed with Oracle crossing the finish line 5:26 minutes ahead of the Swiss team on the reigning champion catamaran Alinghi.

While both were multi-hull boats, only one hull touched the water as they flew across the water with one hull slicing through the waves. The Oracle used a sail wing that allowed it to travel three times the speed of the wind.

The final Sunday race had a six and a half hour delay due to lack of wind, but once started, speed for the Oracle was not a problem as the 113 foot long boat, with wing sail reaching 240 feet in the air hit speeds up to 33 knots, more than enough to win the 159 year old contest and bring the cup home to the Golden Gate Yacht Club.

Ready more at the Oracle Racing Web Site (server may be down due to too many hits)