After much debate, the organisers of the 32nd America’s Cup are throwing caution to the wind and scheduling Louis Vuitton Act 13, the final fleet racing series that precedes the Louis Vuitton Cup in April 2007.

The racing calendar for the 32nd America’s Cup always listed 13 Louis Vuitton Acts. However, Act 13 didn’t exist, with the schedule leaping from Act 12 in 2006, to Act 14 in 2007.

This scheduling of course reflected the common western superstition that 13 is an unlucky number. The fear of the number 13 is known as Triskaidekaphobia. And combining the number 13 with the day of the week Friday, making for a Friday the 13th, is another well known superstition causing consternation in the western world.

However, the team representatives who drafted the ‘Valencia Plan’ which details the attribution of bonus points through performance in the Louis Vuitton Acts clearly did not suffer from triskaidekaphobia. They referred to a ’13th Act’ and ‘Act 13’. So following that lead and to avoid further confusion, that’s the way we’ll communicate from now onwards.

By the way, there is always at least one Friday the 13th each year and in 2007, it falls in the week after Louis Vuitton Act 13, on April the 13th.

The organisers say there’s no racing scheduled that day, the Louis Vuitton Cup doesn’t begin until the 18 April?not that they’re scared or anything!