Meanwhile in Valencia ... the Oracle theater comes down

While sailing's top event has been put on hold, the F1 construction works are advancing at great speed in Valencia, in view of next year's race in late August. The F1 track will be passing in the space right in front of four bases (Alinghi, +39 Challenge, Shosholoza and BMW Oracle).

One of the "victims" of these works is the Oracle theater, a public exhibition inside the BMW Oracle base, where last edition's Challenger of Record showcased its state of the art technology. Still, the team's results put in evidence the fact that having the best technology does not necessarily guarantee success!!

Unless one has been living under a rock or spent the last 4-5 months lost in the Amazon jungle, all readers are familiar with the infamous litigation between BMW Oracle and Alinghi in New York. One thing that puzzles us though is that there isn't the slightest indication that the American team is about to vacate the base. On the contrary, at least from the exterior, there are signs of increasing activity and an equally increasing number of cars parked in front.

To the best of our knowledge, the teams that took part in the 32nd America's Cup but have not entered for the 33rd edition (this obviously includes BMW Oracle) had until today, November 3rd, to indicate what their intentions were. One can imagine what the Americans told ACM today: "You bet I'm going to stay".

Out with the old, in with the new. The Oracle theater comes down to make way for the F1 race track. Valencia, 3 November 2007. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing