To the uninitiated, the New York Yacht Club might seem just that, a yacht club somewhere in New York. For those in the know, however, the very name is legendary – and synonymous with the very best in yachting tradition.
The long-awaited showdown in Valencia between holders Alinghi and America’s Cup challengers Oracle saw this most venerated of yachting’s trophies return to its ancestral home in the US as the American team beat the Swiss champions to take the trophy back home.
The high-tech Oracle trimaran proved too strong for the Alinghi catamaran, scoring two back-to-back victories and taking the second win with a more than five-minute lead over their European rivals. Oracle’s victory was hailed in the US, as it is the first American win since 1995, when the San Diego Yacht Club beat the Compagnia della Vela di Venezia.
After just two races of the 2010 America’s Cup a victor was declared: the USA’s Team BMW Oracle.
Commentators were particularly struck by the way in which the American team’s boat out-performed Team Alinghi’s, with many references made to the former craft’s “towering wingsail”.
The America’s Cup w
ill commence next week and Valencia is already in a state of high excitement. After the courtroom dramas of the past year, only the most pessimistic sailing fan would anticipate anything less than a good old-fashioned ding-dong battle when Switzerland’s Team Alinghi finally faces off against America’s BMW Oracle.
Starting from humble beginnings, Jorge Martínez – or Aspar, as his fans came to know him – was to become a true motorcycling sensation. His prowess on the bike made him a national sporting icon and a much-loved figure in the sport internationally, but his success story did not end there, for he was to prove as influential off the track as on it, leading his racing teams to multiple successes and playing a pivotal role in the development of a world-class circuit in his home region of Valencia.
Born in the little village of Alzira, in an area surrounded by orange orchards, few would have foreseen the rise of Jorge Martínez to international motorcycling star. Here, most people earned their living as farm or factory workers, and his hardworking father was no exception, toiling long hours throughout his life. From a young age on Jorge displayed a total fascination with and talent for anything fast and mechanical, yet it would take time and determination to break through.
Think of the world of Formula 1 and the name that will spring to your mind first of all is very likely to be Italy’s most glamorous marque, Ferrari. Male ambition can usually be measured only by the size of the toys involved. From happy days spent with a Hot Wheels model of a blood red Ferrari 512 S to saving up for that ever-elusive Ferrari Spider as an adult, the spell of Ferrari, once cast, is seldom broken.
Now fans will have the opportunity to enter Ferrari World in a very immediate sense when the world’s first Ferrari themed amusement park opens in Abu Dhabi.
One of Spain’s many advantages is its warm climate, so it is the ideal environment for keen golfers. Fanatics will be pleased to learn that it’s not short of courses, either.
However, to appreciate the full benefit of playing golf in Spain it’s wise to choose your local golf club with great care.
Rimontgó is able to offer some extraordinary properties within a short drive – in the golfing rather than the motoring sense – on some of the best greens on the Costa Blanca – and beyond.
BIG