There are many reasons why Lake Michigan was chosen to be the first freshwater venue to host America’s Cup racing in the event’s 164-year history.
Chicago is the third-largest city in the U.S.. Lake Michigan over 100 miles wide and 300 miles long and is the 5th largest body of fresh water in the world. Chicagoans love world-class sports. Chicago’s lakefront will be a perfect venue to deliver up-close viewing of the races. And yes, the ice on Lake Michigan will be long melted when the Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series brings its special brand of high-performance yacht racing to the heartland from June 10-12. The upcoming AC event in Chicago is also sure to attract thousands and thousands of passionate sailors and a long list of VIP’s just like New York City did several weeks ago.
But, unlike the recent event in NYC that suffered a bit from lack of wind and ripping currents on the Hudson, Chicago is in fact the “Windy City,” and the chances are pretty good that the actual racing (in high-tech, hydrofoiling catamarans capable of sailing/flying at well over 40 MPH) could outshine the spectacle of event due to the placement of the race course on Lake Michigan as well as the prevailing weather conditions for that time of year.
In fact, if you really want to see these boats fly (and don’t want to head over to Europe later this summer or wait until the main America’s Cup event in Bermuda in 2017) Chicago will be your last and best chance to see the Cup, and the boats, and the racing, and the spectacle of the America’s Cup up close and personal. And if you are going, here’s what you need to know.
Chicago’s Navy Pier will serve as the event headquarters and include a ticketed viewing area, entertainment and VIP hospitality areas. In addition to the racing, some of the entertainment planned includes: Q and A’s with the sailors, music, beer gardens, and flyovers by jet fighters among other things.
Click here for ticket info (including how to watch the racing from a boat on the water).
Click here for the complete event guide.
“Chicago is a world-class city, and Navy Pier’s lakefront architecture creates the perfect sailing venue to showcase the excitement of the modern America’s Cup,” said Sir Russell Coutts, America’s Cup Event Authority chief executive officer and five-time America’s Cup winner. “Regardless of wind direction, spectators are guaranteed up-close racing action.”
