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ePaper created 2014-06-11, 13:05:34 | version 1.30.01
89 disappeared just as the boats were on the last down harbour leg. In the middle of this, just as the boats were nearing the naval base a frigate arrived and started to make a turn to starboard on its way to the base. Suddenly, the air was filled with some of the most choice descriptive language possible describing the Captain and the crew in no uncertain terms and advising him to remove himself and his ship out of the scene. To the astonishment of those watching the frigate slowly went astern allowing the yachts to proceed unheeded. The looks on the faces of Admiral Chas.Williams and the Whitbread hierarchy who were on my boat were a study. Such a thing could never happen in the RN (Royal Navy). All credit to the RNZN (Royal New Zealand Navy) for their consideration. The foregoing is a rather brief overview of the beginnings of match racing and some of the celebrities involved. The series was always interesting and enjoyable to watch. We owe a big debt of gratitude to the Stewarts for their unwavering support.” -Jack Alison From Russell Coutts “The Stewart 34’s were the first stage of match racing development in New Zealand. The local racing was fiercely competitive which helped to create a large pool of excellent crew that went on to prominently feature in many of New Zealand’s major international campaigns. They are a challenging boat to sail with the large overlapping genoas and long spinnaker poles putting the emphasis on good team work.” The Citizen Watch Match Racing Series in Retrospect The Citizen Watch Match Racing Series could have never taken place, let alone been as successful as it was without the participation of many organisations. Each brought different things to the table, and each had their own agenda. Let’s examine this just a bit. First there were the yachtsmen-skippers and crew. They came to sail and wanted to perform well, not only for the glory of winning, but to climb the ladder of the world rankings. By the time the Citizen had matured as a world class event, there was a band of “professional sailors” competing on the world circuit, who were generally supported by sponsorship. Naturally, they wanted the best boats, equipment and sails, and of course, at someone else’s expense. Their costs were minimal because their airfares and accommodation were paid for, and they didn’t own the boats they were sailing on. Of course they wanted to have the best possible crew. On occasion they were not overly polite to the Stewart 34 owners or their representatives. Between the NZ Trials and the Citizen, some of the Stewart owners actually loaned their boats as many as 15 times to 15 different skippers over the years and most reported similar experiences of the gratitude, or otherwise, of the borrowers. According to the Stewart 34 owners,the overseas skippers were considerably more gracious than the Kiwi skippers,despite the fact that the New Zealand yachtsmen gained their original exposure to international racing on a yacht borrowed from a fellow Kiwi. Pivotal to the success of the Citizen was TVNZ. Without television, the event would not have attracted sponsorship looking for that all important national exposure. Without sponsorship, there would have been no money to pay the airfares of international skippers. Without international skippers,the event would have been little more than another club regatta. Coverage of the Citizen would have improved television ratings, boosting ad revenue, not to mention the reputations of the TVNZ personnel involved. Yachting in New Zealand owes a huge debt of gratitude to the efforts and forethought of Peter Montgomery and Doc Williams. The print media also provided wonderful coverage of the events. Alan Sefton and the Auckland Star had, to that date, undoubtedly provided more editorial and photo coverage of the Citizen than any other newspaper in the world had for a yachting event, apart from the America’s Cup. New Zealand’s yachting magazines other than the America’s Cup also provided tremendous coverage, no doubt enhancing their readership, subscriptions and ad revenues. The sponsor, Citizen Watch Company and its New Zealand managing director Warwick Browne was undoubtedly the pivotal player. In the early years of the Citizen, the many hours of live television coverage of boats emblazoned with the Citizen Watch logo, were certainly an advertising bargain for Citizen. The rising costs of the event unquestionably made the venture less attractive in the later years. The time and effort of Warwick Browne,ably assisted by his friend and associate Ken Lusty,was considerable and hopefully beneficial to them. Television exposure of the Citizen brought yacht racing into nearly every lounge in the country