Hyeres France Laser Masters Worlds - US Team Shirts

by Pam

Update:  this post was revised 5/21/14 and again 7/22/14 ... this is now the official US Team shirt (interpreted to mean no one else volunteered and this is the only US shirt)

Doug has registered, we've booked our flights, hotel, rental car and made arrangements for house sitting for our very large, protective and spoiled pup (meaning, the house is not empty). It appeared we were behind schedule because the flights and hotels were already selling out so we grabbed a place away from the hustle and bustle of 600 crazy sailors. France, here we come!

US Team Shirt for 2014 Masters Worlds

We here at Improper Course always seem to be out of step, swimming upstream, and doing all things improper. What fun would life be to follow the crowd? Anyway, since the normal mode of operation on US Team shirts is to sometimes wait until the last minute, we decided to start kicking around ideas early when, of course, we should have been booking our travel. 

This started out as an "unofficial" US Team shirt but is now the US Team shirt and it is available for order now and will be delivered to you in France. Feel free to send us an email (somewhere in the right margin under our "About Us" is an "Email Us") and let us know your size (men's or women's) and quantity. We don't yet know the final price but it should be under $25.00 depending on how many are ordered. The design will be embroidered and I already bought a sample shirt just to make sure Doug liked the quality. He gave it two thumbs up. Men's and women's shirt and sizing detail is below.  

I think everyone knows the connection between the US and France and the Statute of Liberty … but I did some research and found a lot of things I didn't know so here are a few tidbits. Can you guess which are not true?

Tidbits about the Statute of Liberty: 

1. Lady Liberty is French by birth, immigrated to United States in 1886 and is among the most famous American symbols in the world. 
2. Her full name is Le liberté éclairant le monde (Liberty Enlightening the World).
3. She was given to the United States by the people of France to commemorate the centennial of the signing of the Declaration of Independence and to represent the friendship between the two countries established during the American Revolution.
4. In addition to the US and France, there are replicas located in Argentina, Austria, Australia, Brazil, China, Ecuador, Germany, India, Ireland, Israel, Japan, Kosovo, Malaysia, Mexico, Norway, Peru, Philippines, Spain, Taiwan, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Vietnam (pictures around the world).
5. In the early 1950's, Boy Scout troops erected over 200 replicas in 39 states of the US to celebrate Scouting's 40th anniversary theme "Strengthen the Arm of Liberty." (photos across the US).
6. The most recent replica in France was unveiled on February 1, 2014 in Nice about 80 miles from Hyères and commemorates 100 years since the First World War. She stands in the Quai des États-Unis (Quay of the United States) which was named in honor of the US when they decided to join the Allied Forces in 1917. 
7. French historian Edouard de Laboulaye suggested the statute.  Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi sculpted the statue and obtained a U.S. patent (D11023S) for its structure. The framework was designed by Alexandre-Gustave Eiffel (the man behind the Eiffel Tower).
8. She functioned as a lighthouse from 1886 to 1902. In high winds of 50 mph, she can sway up to 3 inches and the torch can move 5 inches.
9. It is claimed that the seven spikes on her crown represent the seven oceans and the seven continents of the world, indicating the universal concept of liberty.
10. When Lady Liberty arrived in the US, the US had agreed to provide funds to build her pedestal but the funds had not been raised and there was no pedestal. John Pulitzer (yes, that Pulitzer) took on the task of raising the funds and asked people to send in their pennies. $102,000 was raised from 120,000 donors.
11. Her meanings have changed over the years: a monument of political cooperation between France and the United States; a monument to the end of slavery in US; a monument to American national unity amid ethnic diversity; a monument to immigration and economic opportunity; a monument to political liberty and freedom around the globe; and post 9/11, a monument to the resilience of New York City, and by extension, of humanity, in the face of destruction.
12. In 1984 she was added to the list of the World Heritage Sites.
13. In 2007 she was one of 20 finalists in a competition to name the New Seven Wonders of the World.