The Australia Cup

The America Cup is a sailing competition for wealth and high tech. The Australia Cup I have seen in the future is a Democratic Boating competition with something for everyone, including for Australia.

I saw its beginnings. There is no expensive ballyhoo. It just starts, and news items tell the public.

The Australia Cup races are for sailboats with crews of two to four, and sponsors are non-commercial organisations. Anyone can enter who brings a boat or hires one and can swim two lengths of the local swimming pool with boating clothes on. It is held fairly close along the shore near public transport.

The Australia 1 Cup is awarded to the winning team overall, and there are Australia 1 Cuplets for everyone who finish the course not too much later. The 'best worst' boat in each race is awarded an Ozmug.

All cups are made locally, all are different, and have the makers' names on the bottom, so there is some competition in producing marvelous cups. The trofies bear two-line Cuplets selected from annual Cuplet-writing competitions. Spectators can buy CopyCups, with the same designs, labelled 'I saw the Australia Cup and I am still afloat'.

Contestants can row, paddle or sail their boats. They can fly their personal, national or local flag, but carry no commercial, sectarian, ethnic, religious or political logos or advertising. They can fly a sponsor's advertising pennant, within ethical guidelines and sizes, and are encouraged to add fun and color to the event with decorated sails and original prows and figurheads.

The three sections of the race

The televised race. Competitors put in a money bid to enter a month before, with entrance money going to costs and to a nominated charity.
A race with a $5 entrance fee. First entrants first in.
A race with no entrance fee, for people unemployed for over 12 months. First entrants first in again.

Sailing of the races

Each Australia Cup race is on a diferent day, and the rest of each day is regatta style, including a Sail Anything competition for home-made manned floating objects, and a Punting race for barges, in a shallow area. The Sail Anything competition has a practical purpose in encouraging and publicising better ways for emergency transport and rescue of animals and goods during floods.

Shore Attractions. On the shore, along the course, are Paddy's Markets, open-air shows, and open-air sales of pictures, crafts and inventions.

It is all great for tourists, great for Australians, and for local enterprise, morale and cultural development. At Australia Cup time the media give festival publicity to the importance of swimming ability and water safety. The Australia Cup and its surrounding events become a great tourist draw, and other Australian localities begin putting on Australia Cup 2, Australia Cup 3, and so on. Other countries can get the idea, and it can come to pass we could go to Zambia Cup 1, Costa Rica Cup 1, and soo forth. Some turists and sailors could go the rounds, and collect as many Cups and Cuplets as they can, rather like mountaineers who collect mountain climbs.

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