City Would Love to See the Cup Here, but Not See It Sail Away

I had lunch one day this week in a room filled with confused people. The occasion was a fund-raiser for Sail America, and these folks were certainly interested in seeing Stars & Stripes do well in the America’s Cup.

But . . .

These people were successful and affluent, and they did not get that way by pouring money into ill-considered ventures.

The fellow on my left was in the business of bringing tours to San Diego. He would gladly donate to Sail America and willingly take the chance that Dennis Conner might not be successful in retrieving the Cup.

But . . .

“Suppose,” he said, “I donate a bunch of money, Dennis wins the Cup . . . and then they decided to defend it in Hawaii. What good does that do me?”

Not much, I would guess.

The fellow on my right was in the hotel business. He was contemplating an opportunity to link with Sail America in a rather expensive promotional plan. It would be quite good for business.

But . . .

“The Cup would have to be defended in San Diego,” he said, “or my money would be wasted.”

Patriotism is wonderful, but this would seem to be a time when the bottom line comes into play. After all, this is a yachting competition and not a war, though at times the distinction might be a little hazy the way they are going at it in Australia.

The problem hereabouts is that there is considerable confusion about where a defense would be held should Conner and his cronies be successful in Fremantle.

I guess I am like everyone else in San Diego. I made a very serious and naive mistake.

I assumed. You know what they say about how folks who make assumptions can come to look like the first three letters of the word.

Hee-haw, I say.

I simply assumed that all the rhetoric about bringing the Cup back to San Diego meant that the Cup would also be defended in San Diego.

Stupid me.

It has been made clear this week that such is not necessarily the case. That is about all that has been made clear.

On one day, for example, I got chastised with the explanation that Sail America President Malin Burnham has never said the Cup would be defended in San Diego.

On the very next day, Burnham himself asserted that he has never said the Cup would not be defended in San Diego.

Get that?

OK, I understand. Unfortunately, what I understand is that no one is saying the Cup would be defended in San Diego should Conner win.

It seems the winds may not be right and docking may not be sufficient and the kelp might catch in the winged keels. That’s what I heard from the Sail America folks in Fremantle.

This was all interesting because the economic impact of having a Cup defense in San Diego was waved like a golden carrot--or maybe carat would be more appropriate--throughout this fund-raising luncheon. It was repeatedly stressed what the defense has done for Australia and what a defense might do for New Zealand and, yes, what a defense would do for San Diego.

A slide flashed onto a large screen near the podium.

It declared that San Diego would be (a) the center of media attention, (b) the yachting capital of the world and (c) the beneficiary of a potential $1 billion in economic impact.

Admittedly, the possibility that the Cup might not be defended in San Diego was not ignored. However, it was treated a bit like the black sheep at a family reunion, acknowledged only to the extent that maybe it would go away without embarrassing anybody.

This question of where the Cup would be defended is a rather gigantic “if” . . . and I got the impression from the fellows on my left and right that they wanted it answered before they reached for their money clips.

This does not come under the heading of minor details.

As the plea for funds continued, a chap from Sail America displayed a promotional T-shirt with the message: “Help Bring America’s Cup to America’s Finest City.” I didn’t see any message about the Cup then being defended here. Perhaps that was on the back of the shirt, or maybe there was a disclaimer in small print on the sleeves: “To be stored here, but not necessarily defended here.”

This prospect has come as a shock to folks who had done what I did. Assumed.

I talked one evening this week with a very well-respected civic leader, who pays more than his share of dues to the community in both time and money.

He was astounded to learn that a victory by Stars & Stripes would not automatically cause the defense to be located in San Diego. He talked of feeling like he--and the community--had been sold down the river.

I talked later in the week to a fellow involved with a San Diego Restaurant Assn. campaign to raise funds for Sail America. Call it coffee for the Cup. Member restaurants, and others, will donate 10 from the cost of each cup of coffee sold between Monday and the end of the month.

Yes, he admitted, a Cup defense would be quite lucrative for his industry . . . and many others.

“There are going to be a lot of livid guys if the defense doesn’t come here,” he said. “Sure, they like sailing and they’re patriotic, but they have to be thinking of economic benefits, too.”

You see, most San Diegans will have a sense of pride should Dennis Conner be successful. They would gather at the airport and cheer his return. They would line Broadway should a parade be arranged. They would share in the excitement.

And that would be wonderful.

However, the Cup itself would really do little for the average San Diegan, be it enshrined in the Hall of Champions or the San Diego Yacht Club or Conner’s den.

San Diego has been sold on more than just winning the Cup. San Diego has been sold on what it would mean to win the Cup. San Diego was sold on being the home to both the Cup and the Cup defense.

Or so it was assumed.