Who’s the home team?

When it comes to the America’s Cup, who exactly does one cheer for?

There are the Swiss, the current champs, but who has the time to read Swiss newspapers or is in the area (Switzerland) to catch up on team gossip? They're a non-entity for foreigners. Neutrals, bankers, watch-makers, whose Army has great knives, but no nukes.

There are the USA guys, winners from times gone by, but how does one cheer them on? Most of these Top Guns for Hire already are racing on other boats, happily supporting the teams of other countries (Traitors? Turncoats? ExPats?). Who cares a rats-part about them?

And, there’s everybody else. New Zealanders? The Aussie’s? They’re so far away, it’s hard to relate, somehow. The Brits? How jolly, but boring. The Spanish or Italians? One can support them, but when the fighting gets rough, you have to translate everything they say and write into English before universal understanding, perhaps.

Who’s that leave: Individual team owners or presidents, one supposes. And, exactly how does one relate to someone who can buy a new Ferrari every darned day of the year and still have buckets and barrels and trainloads of money left over to spend?

So, let’s hear it for the sailmakers, the designers, the boat builders (who?), and the riggers and the hoards of little guys who create and keep these monster boats going. Three cheers!!! Now there’s someone authentic to cheer on without holding back.