KEY POINTS:
Frenchman Paul Gauguin was a dab hand when he had a brush in it. He also had a useful way with words.
"Life being what it is, one dreams of revenge," he said.
The 19th-century Parisian impressionist put himself about a bit. He liked a drink and died
of syphilis but his words will ring loudly in Kiwi ears over the next few days as a group of sailors aboard a boat try to wrest back a certain trophy from Swiss hands in Valencia.
This has been four years in the making, since Alinghi, bolstered by a group of former Team New Zealand sailors, arrived in Auckland and gave the defenders a decent kicking and headed off, like pirates with their booty, laughing into the sunset.
Much has changed since then when fury was the predominant emotion when names like Russell Coutts, Brad Butterworth, Murray Jones, Dean Phipps and Warwick Fleury were mentioned.
For one thing, it was a rude wake-up call for those who naively cherished the notion that men out on the Hauraki Gulf were sailing for their country.
As it happens, most of this crew happen to possess New Zealand passports.
And so far, so good in terms of the only objective that matters. But until the two yachts head into the start box for the opening cup race early tomorrow, no one, in their heart of hearts, knows what will happen.
It's all very well studying each other for hours, assessing possible strengths and weaknesses, looking for chinks in each other's technique. But until you eyeball your opponent, until you strive for the same patch of water, you cannot possess utter conviction about what will happen.
However, there's a school of thought that within the first half hour we'll all know the likely outcome. Even though it's a best-of-nine series. Remember that sinking feeling - no pun intended - after a couple of races in 2003. You knew there would be no happy ending.
Fifteen of the Team New Zealand sailing crew were there then. People often grumble about shortening memories, especially as advancing years set in.
For those men, including skipper Dean Barker, afterguard chum Adam Beashel, grinders like Olympic rowing champion Rob Waddell, Chris McAsey and Jonathan Macbeth, others like Tony Rae, Jeremy Lomas and Grant Loretz, one of the motivating forces for them - and if they denied it, they'd stand accused of telling amiable porkies - will have been 2003.
And what of Grant Dalton? He doesn't have that first-hand hurt to fall back on. Instead, he has the cussedness that carried him around the world a few times, not a place for the faint-hearted or those not up for a challenge. He's a tough rooster known for calling things as he sees them. For all his ocean-racing success, this would be his Everest.
Team NZ got better as the campaign wore on, whistling past Spanish hopes Desafio Espanol 5-2 in the Louis Vuitton semifinals and crunching Luna Rossa 5-0 in the final.
If they'd had their way they would have probably fancied carrying on against Alinghi the next day.
Instead, it's been 16 days between the fifth challenger final race and tomorrow.
Question: What do Dalton and Joe Karam have in common? Looking ahead to their respective challenges, both have stuck their chins out and insisted, "Bring it on".
Valencia has been a dead duck as a venue, notwithstanding the recent arrival of Kiwi fans. But at least it's in Europe, which is where most syndicates would like the next regatta to be staged. Potential financial reward and easier location are the obvious attractions.
So Team NZ should relish the position of being the syndicate none of the others are supporting. And as they eyeball Alinghi in the start box, and knowing they're alone, they can heed the words of Frank Sinatra: "The best revenge is massive success."