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GBR Challenge finds loophole

GBR nosing ahead of Team New Zealand in America's Cup International Regatta

LONDON, England -- In a move that has taken other syndicates by surprise, Peter Harrison's British America's Cup Challenge has said it is building a second boat.

The boat is not being built for the current Louis Vuitton Cup challenger elimination series that starts on October 1. In fact, the boat will not be launched until the 2003 America's Cup is over.

Harrison said: "I have taken the decision to build a second hull this year, in order to secure a second sail number to the GBR 70 we already have, as each team is only allowed two hulls in each cup cycle."

The America's Cup Protocol restricts syndicates from building more than two new boats in each Cup cycle in an effort to avoid the escalation of costs after American billionaire Bill Koch built five boats to win the Cup in 1992.

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Harrison has always maintained his personal investment in the GBR Challenge has been to get the British back into the America's Cup game and he does not expect to win on the first outing.

He said he was prepared to put a considerable part of his personal fortune, some $350 million, into building the British team for 2003, but was looking for major sponsor support to continue into 2006.

So far, he has put in the whole of the planned budget of $25 million.

The building of a second hull ensures the GBR Team has continuity and a flying start with two of the latest generation America's Cup 2002 yachts ready to commence training for the next America's Cup competition anticipated in 2006.

If GBR Challenge did not build a second boat, it would be left with only one new boat, GBR70, to train for the next challenge. It would be forced to buy a second training boat from another syndicate, and, as part of the Protocol, would not be allowed technical or design information about the boat.

In order to get issued with a new sail number it is not necessary to complete the new boat, just to build a mould and lay up the first skin of the hull. The plan is to complete the hull after the Cup and use it for training in the summer of 2003.

Clearly the British team has identified a loophole in the current rules, but there is always a chance the winner of the Cup could change the Protocol to put a stop to the British plan.

Harrison says the decision to build a second boat does not mean he has committed to backing the British entry in the future.

"At this stage, I'm not prepared to commit myself to financially backing the GBR Challenge campaign for the next America's Cup.

"What I will have done is to put in place the requisite building blocks for continuity so that, whether it's myself leading the team or not, GBR Challenge will have the best possible foundations for success in the future," he said.