The latest: Races 11 and 12 May Be Postponed Because of Wind, Tide Conditions
Wrap up: The day ends with just one race run, Race 8 in the finals, won dramatically the Oracle Team USA. Race 9 is called off with Emirates Team New Zealand enjoying a small lead at the beginning of the third (upwind) leg. The standings:
Races: New Zealand 6, Oracle 2.
Points: New Zealand 6, USA 0 (Oracle Team USA's second victory today works off the team's two-race penalty.
Update:Race 9 is under way. Again, New Zealand enjoys a small lead at the start and past the first mark. NBC TV commentators say both of the 72-foot catamarans are flying at more than 50 mph. It's a drag race, with the Kiwis leading Oracle by less than 100 meters. Turning upwind, the Kiwis lead by 7 seconds. BUT OFFICIALS HAVE CALLED OFF THE RACE BECAUSE THE WIND IS EXCEEDING THE REGATTA SAFETY LIMIT OF 22.6 KNOTS (about 26 mph). It's clear watching this on the tube that the New Zealand crew wants to keep going. At first, they ignored the call to abandon, then just grudgingly acknowledged it. By way of explanation: This wind limit is a direct result of the Sweden/Team Artemis accident in May that killed British sailor Andrew Simpson. The proposed limit for racing before that tragedy was 33 knots.
If you're following #AmericasCup on Twitter, there's lots of comment about the irony of a sailing race being called on account of wind. And some New Zealanders (who needed to get up early Sunday morning to see today's racing) are very unhappy with the cancellation:
Gutted by the race being abandoned - we had such a good lead! Bring on tomorrow. #AmericasCup #TeamNewZealand
— Rachel Dobric (@racheldobric) September 14, 2013
Great job by @EmiratesTeamNZ to regain their composure and lead the last race. Unfortunate the race was abandoned. #AmericasCup
— Alistair Bull (@theFullNoise) September 14, 2013
Rubbish. Race cancelled cause they knew TeamNZ were smashing Oracle #AmericasCup
— M. Hadi (@Mohza) September 14, 2013
Update: Here's the video (by way of the America's Cup site) of New Zealand's near-capsize: