Stars & Stripes (America's Cup syndicate)

Stars & Stripes

Stars & Stripes
Team Dennis Conner
Career
Yacht club  San Diego Yacht Club
Established 1987
Nation  United States
Team principal(s) Dennis Conner
Skipper Dennis Conner
Notable victories 1987 America's Cup
1988 America's Cup
1987 Louis Vuitton Cup
Yachts
Sail no. Boat name
US–53 Stars & Stripes 83
US–54 Stars & Stripes 85
US–56 Stars & Stripes 86
US–55 Stars & Stripes 87
US–1 Stars & Stripes 88
USA–11 Stars & Stripes
USA–34 Stars & Stripes
USA–77 Stars & Stripes

Stars & Stripes (Team Dennis Conner) is the name of an America's Cup syndicate operated by Dennis Conner and its racing yachts. The name "Stars & Stripes" refers to the nickname often used for the flag of the United States. TDC was registered under the flag of the San Diego Yacht Club (SDYC).

12-metre class yachts

The well funded Sail America Foundation commissioned four 12 metre yachts to support a campaign led by Dennis Conner, representing the San Diego Yacht Club, to win back the America's Cup in the 1987 competition in Fremantle, Australia.

The movie Wind is loosely based on Dennis Conner's experience, from the 1983 America's Cup loss to his America's Cup win in Perth, and on a number of events that occurred on various competitor boats throughout the match races of the 1987 America's Cup. For artistic reasons, the 12 metre Stars & Stripes 87 was dramatized in the film as Geronimo.

Catamaran-hull yachts

The surprise challenge by Sir Michael Fay caught the San Diego Yacht Club unprepared. They initially rejected the challenge, but were compelled to respond when Mr. Fay brought the matter before the New York courts. The court's decision was handed down in November 1987, leaving little time to prepare for the 1988 challenge race.[4]

As the challenge used the original Deed of Gift as its basis, the design requirements specified only that she be a single masted yacht no more than 90 feet at the waterline. The San Diego Yacht Club and Dennis Conner's syndicate chose to respond with an assuredly faster multi-hull design. Conner enlisted the help of designers Morrelli, Chance & Hubbart & MacLane, and aircraft manufacturer Scaled Composites. Two Stars & Stripes cats were built, one with a conventional soft sail (Stars & Stripes S1), and the second with a wing mast (Stars & Stripes H3) built by Scaled Composites. The wing masted boat proved to have superior performance, and so was used in the defense.

To no one's surprise, Stars & Stripes dominated its match races with KZ 1, the challenger from New Zealand. Following the race the New Zealand team sued and initially won the America's Cup trophy in a court case. The decision was reversed on appeal, and the San Diego Yacht Club retained the Cup.

After the 1988 America's Cup, the wing masted catamaran was bought by Mexican yachtsman Victor Tapia and sails in Mexico. The soft sail yacht was bought by Steve Fossett and used to set speed records in various yacht races.

The soft sail yacht suffered a dismasting during a Mackinac race which resulted in her being stored for several years. In 2015, Freddie Mills acquired the vessel and has re-rigged and re-commissioned her as a private racing yacht operating out of Newport, Rhode Island.

2008 Port Huron to Mackinac race

Fossett's Stars & Stripes yacht was entered in the 84th running of the annual Port Huron to Mackinac Boat Race to Mackinac from Port Huron, Michigan, and was favored to win and set a new record time. An experienced Chicago sailor Donald Wilson captained the yacht, chartering it from a Florida businessman for both the Port Huron and Chicago to Mackinac races. The same yacht previously competed in the 74th running of the Port Huron regatta (1998) but was unable to complete the race after the mast broke off near Alpena, Michigan.[5] The yacht was again dismasted mid-race in heavy winds while leading a rival multihull yacht Earth Voyager, which then went on to finish the race in record time.[6]

International America's Cup Class

1992

Conner's 1992 IACC AC yacht, Stars & Stripes USA-11 lost the defender series final, the Citizen Cup, to Bill Koch's America3 USA-23.

1995

Conner's 1995 AC yacht, Stars & Stripes USA-34 won the defender series, the Citizen Cup against Young America USA-36 and Mighty Mary USA-43, by use of tactics. However, it was considered to be the slowest of the three defending yachts, partially due to an old sail inventory, and also a result of neglecting important recommendations from the design team. The defender can choose which boat to use, so Team DC selected Young America, considered the fastest defender,[7] instead of Stars & Stripes in the America's Cup final, losing to Team New Zealand. Dennis Conner did not run a two boat campaign due to cost, so there was no second Stars & Stripes.

2000

Conner again ran a one-boat campaign, entering Stars & Stripes USA-55. Eliminated in the semi-final repechage by OneWorld Challenge.

2003

Conner's $5 million 2002 entrant, Stars & Stripes USA-77, was sunk on July 23, 2002 when a rudder broke during preparations for the 2002–2003 races to select the challenger for the America's Cup. The boat was raised out of 55 feet (17 m) of water just outside Long Beach Harbor. Conner's luck that year would not improve, as Alinghi and Oracle BMW Racing, two well financed boats, would contest for the spotlight. Conner had a backup and training vessel available, Stars & Stripes USA-66, which he raced until USA-77 could be repaired.

2007

Conner announced that he could not raise sufficient funds for another Cup challenge.

References

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