Born and bred local sporting hero Joseph Sullivan was a cyclor/grinder on board ETNZ in Bermuda. After rising through secondary school rowing ranks to Maadi Cup, Joseph won gold at the London Olympics five years ago. He now has a street named after him in Picton. And the local sailing club, the Queen Charlotte Yacht Club, has a proud tradition of junior sailing successes. It's the little club that could. And still does.
So it was no great surprise that a campaign sprang up months ago to get the cup here. Bring on social media. Numerous Facebook likes and insta hashtags later, the Auld Mug made its way to Picton on the Interislander ferry this week.
We joined the flotilla of small boats waiting just out of the harbour to help bring the cup to town. There was a choice. Two local boat companies were offering spaces on board for the occasion. One involved a glass of wine, the other didn't. I had a 50% chance of getting it right. Oh well.
To clarify, we were two 60-something women with a 5 year old and a 7 year old. I had warned his sister that Bruce would rather stand on melting tar than be involved in a flag-waving event celebrating the exploits of the rich and famous. And so it proved. We were just doing it for the kids, of course. And, yes, I may have had a silver fern flag in my hand...
As the ferry hove into view (I've always wanted to use that word in a sentence), it was impossible to miss the massively tall and shiny thing sitting casually on the handrail at the bow.
Whoever was steering the Kaitaki that night did a sterling job bringing her into the berth while avoiding the dozens of yachts, fizz boats, water taxis and launches alongside her, hooters blaring. Meanwhile, we disembarked and found ourselves a spot to wait for the street parade.
This was the best bit. Forget the fancy floats, blazered dignitaries and ticker tape. That's for big city folk. We got a pipe band, marching girls, ranging from midgets to, er, masters in age, trucks and fire engines and a monster of a machine that had something to do with harvesting grapes. Then, after a longish wait, some blokes in Team NZ uniforms hove into view. Oops, sauntered around the corner.
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| How they did it elsewhere |
And there was the America's Cup, carried casually on foot along the length of High Street and into London Quay. Apparently, at the last minute, the plan to drive the Cup on the back of a ute was ditched in favour of walking with it. This took longer because, of course, people wanted to take photos of it, touch it even. Full disclosure, yes, I Touched The America's Cup. I've also kissed the Blarney Stone and stroked the standing stones of Stonehenge. I'm a tactile person, OK?
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| Joseph with the silverware. Photo credit: Marlborough Express |
Sometimes, small towns get things just right. The night the America's Cup came to Picton was one of those times. This was a Kiwi celebration without glitz or hype. But with a proper sausage sizzle on the beach afterwards. Thanks, #ETNZ, we loved every minute of it.
And who knows what local amenity will be renamed to mark the occasion? The Joseph Sullivan Town Square has a nice ring to it...
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| You've gotta love Picton on a fine day😎 |
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