Courageous IV Seized for Unpaid Bills

FREMANTLE, Australia —  Courageous IV, the proud protector of the America’s Cup in 1974 and 1977, suffered its another blow Thursday when bailiffs here seized it because of unpaid bills.

The same fate may await other 12-meters who prove too slow in the current challenger trials. The West Australian Supreme Court announced that Courageous IV had been seized under a warrant issued to a company claiming it is owed $15,600 in charter and towing fees.

Courageous IV, which was withdrawn from further competition after losing 11 of 12 races in the first round, is sitting on a hoist on the America’s Cup dock with no mast and its huge bulbous keel, added on in an effort to keep the old yacht competitive, immodestly exposed.

Syndicate executives have returned to the United States and no representative was available to comment, but it’s doubtful that the vessel will ever return to the United States, despite a statement by skipper David Vietor that he wanted to see the yacht become a museum or youth training ship. Shipping it to Newport, R.I., would cost more than $50,000.

More likely, it will be scrapped for its 30 tons of aluminum and equipment. It is virtually obsolete against modern 12-meters, as several others will be once they are eliminated.