AMERICA'S CUP

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXI, Issue 21907, 17 September 1934, Page 9

AMERICA'S CUP

NOT ENOUGH BREEZE FIRST RACE "NO CONTEST" TIME LIMIT EXCEEDED DEFENDER IN THE LEAD By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright (Received September 16, 6.36 p.m.) NEW YORK. Sept. 15 The first of the seven races for the America's Cup was sailed to-day off Newport, but, as it could not be finished in the prescribed time of five and a-half hours, owing to lack of sufficient wind, it was declared "no contest."

After splendid sailing Mr. H. Vanderbilt's yacht Rainbow, the defender, was half-a-mile from the finishing post and a mile ahead of the British challenger, Mr. T. 0. M. Sopwith's Endeavour, when the race was abandoned. The defender and the challenger will meet again on Monday.

At the start there was a seven-mile south-easterly breeze, but the sea was remarkably smooth. Handling the Ameripan yacht as it it% were a toy in his hand, Mr. Vanderbilt beat Endeavour by a minute at the start, but Mr. Sopwith went in hot pursuit.

It 'was either yacht's race for a time. Then came a tacking duel, with Genoa jibs on the large, single head-sails. Endeavour's crew could not sheet their Genoa as fast as Rainbow's, with its great "coffee grinder" winch to raise the Genoa sheet in a hurry.

Rainbow gained an additional minute and 46 seconds lead. The last four miles were sailed in calm water, and the two craft drifted, with little more than a sea heave to move them.

Mrs. Sopwith sailed as timekeeper. She is the first woman ever to have been a member of a crew in an America's Cup race. Later she acted as observer for Rainbow, and did her work well. * A great flotilla, including Nourmahal, carrying President Roosevelt, watched the contest over the 30 miles to windward and 30 miles to leeward course, which was patrolled by coastguard cutters and naval destroyers.

The wind at no time exceeded nine knots, which, according to Beaufort's scale, is a gentle breeze.