Why bailing out is wrong and staying in is right

In trying to anticipate what might be of most interest at the Louis Vuitton Pacific Series in Auckland, I put the racing towards the bottom of the list. After all, in a series that counted for little more than the trophy the top team would walk away with, the show looked likely to draw in some of the world’s top players, both in the sport and the industry. Indeed it did.

But as I jump in a taxi and head out to Auckland’s airport on my way home I will not be able to report on the closing stages of a match that has displayed some of the most exciting and revealing professional racing that we’ve seen in years. Little surprise that it has captivated the local audience where everyone from Cup addicts to taxi drivers have become overnight experts.

The good news is that anyone can now hook up to a superb package of live visual/tv/radio commentary for free online to see the quickfire closing stages.

If you haven’t caught up with it so far, I urge you to take a peek, not just so that I can justify the expenses associated with reporting from this event when I have to face the music in the editor’s office, but to see the result of a recent deal to make live streaming over the net possible for the knockout phase of this event. Combining one live camera, a tv studio, a radio team and the sophisticated Virtual Eye software, the continuous output has been some of the best on offer.

The racing has been outstanding in equally matched America’s Cup boats and has seen some of the under dogs excel after being lent some smart toys. Rarely, if ever have we seen this type of racing in the Cup circus. The final looks like being superb.

So even if I could turn left while boarding the plane, I suspect I still wouldn’t be able to follow the live action.

Leaving early was a big mistake.

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