KEY POINTS:
The 10 international teams assembled in Auckland for the Louis Vuitton Pacific Series could be forgiven if they felt as though it was a bit of a novelty being back on the water this week.
With the America's Cup still in limbo after 18 months of bitter feuding
between holders Alinghi and Larry Ellison's BMWOracle Racing, it certainly feels that way for the weary public.
Tomorrow, they'll really be entering Twilight Zone territory when the first day of racing begins in the Louis Vuitton regatta.
That's right, America's Cup teams. Out on the water. Racing. How could this be, one may ask, when the America's Cup is in such turmoil?
From the beginning, organisers of the Louis Vuitton series set out to create a very different environment to that of the secretive and tetchy atmosphere of an America's Cup regatta.
With a high level of co-operation required among all the teams to ensure the success of the inaugural Louis Vuitton series, the mood at the regatta village is friendly and open, and Emirates Team New Zealand boss Grant Dalton couldn't be more thrilled.
"It's just great the way it's all come together - we've dubbed it the friendly games," he said.
"I hope it stays that way. Everyone knows the undercurrent that exists in the sport at the moment at this level."
Dalton, who along with former French America's Cup skipper Bruno Trouble is in a large part responsible for getting the regatta going, said the series has brought a new sense of purpose to the high and dry syndicates itching to sail again.
He hopes having all the players in one place will help calm the troubled waters in the America's Cup.
"I hope it has some sort of healing process for the America's Cup," he said.
"There was a moment on the very first day when we started training against Russell [Coutts], and I looked across and it was just cool to be on the water again sailing and I was just thinking 'why did it need to get to this?' If we let the sailors sort it out it wouldn't have."
Dalton also hopes the regatta will help reignite public interest in Team New Zealand and the sport, proving sailing isn't just about bickering billionaires.
"One of the advantages of having this sort of regatta on our doorstep is that it re-engages the New Zealand public with this team and with the sport, because there is absolutely no doubt that it is damaged."
Team New Zealand skipper Dean Barker knows winning the event would go a long way towards "re-engaging the New Zealand public".
The last time Kiwis watched Team New Zealand sail America's Cup boats in Auckland it wasn't a happy experience, and Barker sees the series as an opportunity to regain credibility.
"We didn't enter this event to come second, we'd definitely like to win, but we're not kidding ourselves about how high the standard is."
