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Scuttlebutt Updates
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Archived NewslettersSCUTTLEBUTT 2578 – April 18 2008Scuttlebutt is a digest of major sailing news, commentary, opinions,features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus. Scuttlebutt is published each weekday with the support of its sponsors. GRAND TRAVERSE YACHT CLUB DESTROYED Traverse City, MI (April 17, 2008) The Grand Traverse Yacht Club caught fire around eleven-thirty Wednesday night, bringing multiple fire departments out to respond. Elmwood Township fire officials responded to flames shooting out of the roof of The Grand Traverse Yacht Club...and only hours later the building was a complete loss. "Our deputy chief was driving by coming back from another fire that we were on in Grand Traverse County and he saw the flames through the roof and proceeded to call out equipment," says Elmwood Township Fire Chief Ray Haring. Chief Haring says nobody was inside the building when it began burning, since the last people left the yacht club around ten fifteen at night. At some point between that time and before midnight is when the blaze began. "We're not sure where it started at. Mainly because of the wind, you can't really tell. The wind could have pushed it from one place to another before we even got here, but it would have broke through the roof before we got here," says Chief Haring. The warm temperatures, dry conditions and strong wind gusts only made the flames spread faster throughout the building. -- Complete story: http://www.tv7-4.com/news/news_story.aspx?id=122424 ITALIANS HOLD TOP SPOTS AT FARR 40 WORLDS Miami, FL (April 17, 2008) -- In a stark contrast to Wednesday’s 18-knot winds and lumpy seas, today’s light-air conditions gave the international fleet competing in the Rolex Farr 40 World Championship a new challenge. With a total of six races completed so far in the 10-race series, Italian teams hold the top two spots -- Mascalzone Latino in first, with a three point lead, over Joe Fly in second. The tactician’s role onboard Mascalzone Latino has been a carousel, with Morgan Larson filling in at the last minute on day one for Adrian Stead, who had to get home for the birth of his first child. But Larson had to move on too, so today it was John Kostecki who assisted owner and helmsmen Vincenzo Onorato in putting together finishes of 14-3-5. Thus far, each team has suffered a mid-fleet finish, pushing par for this event a bit higher than the 2007 Worlds. In that event, Mascalzone Latino won with a 5.22 points per race average (and 4.5/race after 6 races), while their present average race score is over a point higher at 6.33. They had also amassed a twelve point lead at this stage, which would be a handy margin right now with lighter winds in the forecast for Friday and Saturday. -- Complete story: http://www.regattanews.com/pressrelease.asp?pid=1865&lang=1 Preliminary results (Top ten of 33; no discards permitted) 1. ITA, Mascalzone Latino, Vincenzo Onorato, 3-12-1-14-3-5, 38 pts 2. ITA, Joe Fly, Giovanni Maspero, 9-1-8-15-6-2, 41 3. USA, Barking Mad, Jim Richardson, 23-5-3-2-16-6, 55 4. MON, Mean Machine, Peter de Ridder, 24-3-9-9-14-1, 60 5. SUI, Alinghi, Ernesto Bertarelli, 8-14-6-6-7-20, 61 6. GRE, Atalanti, Stratis Andreadis, 5-2-25-7-24-11, 74 7. GER, Opus One, Wolfgang Stolz, 15-16-21-1-5-23, 81 8. USA, Ramrod, Rod Jabin, 22-8-17-3-10-21, 81 9. AUS, Kokomo, Lang Walker, 20-7-20-12-15-7, 81 10. USA, Warpath, Fred & Steve Howe, 12-13-14-24-11-8, 82 Results: http://www.farr40worlds.com/content/view/70/1/ On-the-water updates: http://www.farr40worlds.com/content/category/5/6/36/ KUSZNIEREWICZ/ZYCKI WIN STAR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS Miami, FL (April 16, 2008) -- Mateusz Kusznierewicz and Dominik Zycki (POL) won the 2008 Star World Championships at Coral Reef Yacht Club with a fifth place in the sixth race and a total of 14 points overall. The sixth race got off in 10 knot winds with seven boats black flagged, and saw Patrick O’Leary and Stephen Milne (IRL) round the first weather mark in 11th position, grind through the top ten and take the lead at the second weather mark, then hold off the 104 boat fleet for the final lap of the final race. Moving up into the top ten was Rick Merriman/Brian Sharp (USA), rolling a 6-3 in the final two races to leap up the standings. The Worlds results decided the four remaining slots in the Star Class for the 2008 Olympic Games, which went to Switzerland, Croatia, Ireland and Austria. -- Complete story: http://www.starworlds2008.com/news.asp?nk=51 Final results (Top ten of 104) 1. POL, Mateusz Kusznierewicz / Dominik Zycki, 1-1-(44)-3-4-5, 14 pts 2. ITA, Diego Negri / Luigi Viale, 3-3-(25)-9-2-6, 23 3. BRA, Robert Scheidt/ Bruno Prada, (37)-12-2-1-14-4, 33 4. SUI, Flavio Marazzi/ Enrico De Maria, 6-14-(47)-10-8-2, 40 5. GER, Marc Pickel/ Ingo Borkowski, 5-(105/BFD)-6-18-5-11, 45 6. NZL, Hamish Pepper/ Carl Williams, 12-(105/BFD)-3-2-15-19, 51 7. USA, Mark Mendelblatt / Mark Strube, 2-6-(32)-17-11-20, 56 8. AUS, Iain Murray/ Andrew Palfrey, 11-11-5-24-(31)-18, 69 9. FRA, Xavier Rohart/ Pascal Rambeau, 26-21-1-4-20-(27), 72 10. USA, Rick Merriman/ Brian Sharp, (58)-20-29-19-6-3, 77 Results: http://www.starworlds2008.com/ResultsFiles/Star_Worlds_2008.html Video: http://www.sailing-tv.tv/sailingtv.html * Thanks to photographers Fried Elliott, John Payne, and Thierry Martinez for supporting the event gallery on the Scuttlebutt website: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/08/star WE’VE GOT QUALITY AND MORE!!! The official Mount Gay Rum gear supplier, The Pirates Lair, offers you dedication to quality regatta products in gear and accessories. Our pride in quality workmanship is apparent in all our offerings and check out the exciting nautical designs. The Pirate’s Lair carries the best available technical shirts with UPF 50+ sun protection for the ultimate in UV-A and UV-B protection and bags, flasks, and glassware, all with the legendary Mount Gay Rum logo. The easiest way to shop for what you need for the sailing season: http://www.pirateslair.com/store/index.html For info on the Mount Gay Rum brand, go to http://www.mountgay.com NEWBIE ‘BUTTHEADS BLOCKED FROM ENTRY The Newport Ocean Sailing Association’s 61st race to Ensenada, Mexico, a 125-nautical mile run from Southern California to Baja California, is looking less fun these days. This April race attracts a broad spectrum of sailors, from the very serious all the way down to cruiser with no previous yacht club affiliation. The Scuttlebutt Sailing Club (SSC) usually gets a lot of calls before this race, as there are plenty of folks that want to do it, but don’t want to pony up the big yacht club fees to do their very first race. The problem is that the event requires local entrants to be members of a Yacht Club recognized by the Southern California Yachting Association (SCYA), and this organization doesn’t seem to want SSC as a member. SSC is an officially recognized club by US SAILING, and would gladly pay the SCYA annual fees to support their organization, but SSC isn’t able to secure the sponsors needed within SCYA to complete the membership application. The brotherhood of SCYA clubs seems to be protecting their turf, and excluding clubs like SSC that don’t charge a membership fees. Apparently the sport is doing so well so as to keep these “fringe” racers from joining this fun race. However, maybe these newbies are better off staying in the marina this year. Sadly, there has been no shortage of news regarding violence along Mexico’s border cities, which support teams would be frequenting on their way south to meet the boats, and that crews would be driving through to return home. While race officials have reported no problems during their organizational trips to Ensenada, they still felt the situation was bad enough to publish the following list of precautions. -- Read on: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/blog/2008/04/ensenada-race-obstacles.html * The Sailing World website has a sweet story profiling the Curmudgeon, who is known for, among many things, the sixty races that have taken him south of the U.S. border. He claims to have done his final Mexican race earlier this month, but he has said that before. However, in the article he provides some of the pointers he has learned over the years, possibly now making him obsolete. Read on: http://forums.sailingworld.com/blogs/?q=node/144 SERIOUS DAMAGE AND MAYHEM by Jos M Spijkerman , Netherlands, International Judge, Umpire Last month, the New York Yacht Club hosted a Judges Round Table, where there was a discussion about the definition of "serious damage" in the Racing Rules of Sailing. From the report: "In the open session, Rule 44.1 brought the most conversation. Many were interested in discussion on "serious damage". We never reached a consensus but agreed that the term might apply differently to events of different types, where one might consider intrinsic value, and a different event might rely on the ability to continue sailing, or safety issues. Something that needs to be discussed with the OA for guidance prior to an event perhaps." This is what the International Judge Manual says about damage: -- Read on: http://rrsstudy.blogspot.com/2008/04/serious-damage-and-mayhem.html QUOTE / UNQUOTE Alinghi team president Ernesto Bertarelli on describing the next America’s Cup. “I was at a Formula 1 Grand Prix, and I was talking to Ron Dennis, the head of McClaren, and he asked what the next Cup is going to be like. I explained it's like if Formula 1 decided to allow any technologies in the cars. All rules are off, just make it as fast as possible. Dennis said, ‘The designer and the pilot are going to love it, but that's a nightmare for the owner of the team.’ That's exactly it. It's a nightmare for the owners of the teams because it's going to be extremely expensive, but for the designer and the sailors it's an opportunity that comes once in a lifetime. “-- Forbes, http://tinyurl.com/5hjxtq * Adios, America’s Cup: The organizational body of the Valencian Grand Prix that is to take place on August 24, 2008 next in and around the City of Arts and Sciences has revealed that over 112,000 tickets to the event have already been sold, just ten days after the box office initially opened. Valmor Sport also revealed that it was considering the possibility of including more seating due to the interest aroused in the event. -- The Valencia Life Network, mailto:publisher@valencialife.net * More F1: The president of double America's Cup yacht race winners Team Alinghi is keen for his squad to start a technical partnership with Ferrari. Said Ernesto Bertarelli, "F1 and the America's Cup have a lot in common, from the technology to the organisation. I noticed that there's a debriefing too, after a GP, just like we do at the end of the regattas. The difference is that we are 17 on the yacht, while in the car there's just one driver. I would like (a collaboration with Ferrari) because the next America's Cup will be held with multi-hulls, so if there was an F1 engineer wanting to design a boat, this would be the right time to do it.” -- http://www.autosport.com/news/grapevine.php/id/66603 UK-HALSEY INCREASES SIZE, ADDS LOFT UK-Halsey happily announces the latest addition to its worldwide sailmaking group: UK-Halsey Maritimes. This Nova Scotia loft, formerly Victory Sails, opened in 1995 and run by Erik and Angela Koppernaes, already serves sailors throughout The Maritimes. Erik has extensive sailmaking experience (including stints with two major competitors) and one-design success, including three Olympic campaigns and several National Championships. This addition underscores UK-Halsey’s commitment to support customers wherever they sail, now with more than 54 lofts and service centers worldwide. UK-Halsey Maritimes is Canada’s only full service and production loft east of Toronto. In sailmaking, service counts. 800-253-2002. http://www.ukhalsey.com SAILING SHORTS * The Laser SB3 World Championship has reached their maximum capacity of 120 entries six months before the event date. The National Yacht Club, Dun Laoghaire (IRL), has confirmed entrants from twelve countries, including New Zealand, Australia, USA, Dubai, France, Italy,for the September 20 -26, 2008 event. -- http://tinyurl.com/4457qz * A cutting edge media photographic service, including a state-of-the-art online archive, will ensure rapid delivery of stunning images from the 2008-09 Volvo Ocean Race to every corner of the globe. To complete the picture, Rick Tomlinson, leading marine specialist, has been appointed official photographer while London agency onEdition will manage image distribution. -- http://www.volvooceanrace.com/news/article/2008/april/intheframe/index.aspx * The next European Olympic class regatta will be the 40th Semaine Olympique Française de Voile in Hyères, France, where 10 of the 11 events for the 2008 Olympics (no Stars) will be competing Sunday through Friday. Around 1000 sailors from over 50 countries are expected to take part in the ISAF Grade One event. -- Regatta website: http://sof.ffvoile.net * The 15-metre long ship, named after the Norse god Thor, is made from 15 million recycled ice-cream sticks glued together by U.S.-born stuntman Robert McDonald, his son and more than 5,000 children. “If you can dream it you can do it … I want to teach children that anything is possible,” McDonald said. Badly injured as a child in a gas explosion that killed the rest of his family, he has loaded his ship with cuddly toys and plans to reach London and visit children in hospitals. He and his crew hope to cross the Atlantic later on the ancient Viking route to North America via Iceland and Greenland. -- See photo: http://tinyurl.com/3rekdj PHOTOS OF THE WEEK Some of the random photos from the sport received this week at Scuttlebutt include Grand Traverse Yacht Club after the fire, Juan Kouyoumdjian’s designed 100ft maxi Speedboat, German Frers new Swan 90, Clipper 07-08 Round the World Yacht Race winner in Santa Cruz, Sandy Hayes winning team from the 2008 Rolex Women’s Match, racing at the Star and Farr 40 Worlds in Miami, and the final leg of 56-year-old solo circumnavigator Fedor Konyukhov’s on the 16,000-mile Antarctica Cup Racetrack route. If you have images you would like to share, send them to the Scuttlebutt editor. Here are this week’s photos: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/08/0418 LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON Letters selected for publication must include the writer's name, and may be edited for clarity or simplicity (letters shall be no longer than 250 words). You only get one letter per subject, so give it your best shot, don't whine if others disagree, and save your bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere. As an alternative, a more open environment for discussion is available on the Scuttlebutt Forum. -- Scuttlebutt Letters: editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com -- Scuttlebutt Forum: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/forum * From Tim Patterson: Thanks for the "Shout" video (in ‘butt 2577)… a different time, for sure. In regard to 90 foot cats, ocean-going cats are a different breed [ of cats ] than a cat to race around a closed course. One needs only to have been in the 1985 Round Europe race and seen the race in Torquay to know this. It will be interesting to those of us who have sailed blue water in cats to see how some of these issues are addressed. I, for one, look forward to it. * From Richard Johnson: In Scuttlebutt 2577, Eric Sorensen spoke of the 'catamaran activity' at the Oracle building site in Anacortes, WA. When they finally roll out the 90-foot AC boat from that shed, I don't think he should be surprised if it has three hulls -- not two. * From Adrian Morgan: (re, story in ‘butt 2577) Why not go the whole hog: black out news from the OSTAR and all other long distance rtaces from the moment the last press helicopter runs low on fuel and heads for home. Bring back the old days when a sail would appear from the mist after a long period of silence, flags waved, wives cheered and the media had their story. Now we get hourly blogs about sail changes, surfing speeds, dietary details and - bless them - occasionally the news that "after ten days I've finally managed to wash my hair". At least three days of news blackout is better than nothing, but tacit acceptance that a constant stream of news is boring. You gotta laugh though... * From Craig Fletcher: Who cares about having sailing in the Olympics and why? Would you rather have a first in a Star, Snipe or E-22 Worlds on your resume or an Olympics medal (a regatta where you raced against possibly five or six great sailors as compared to all of the great Star, Snipe or E-22 sailors in the world)? Would you rather win a Worlds run by an uncorrupt bunch of amateurs or one run by one of the most corrupt groups in the world? This is a no brainer. You all know the answer. Sailing is our sport; it does not belong to a corrupt bunch of bureaucrats. Let's take back our sport and just tell the Olympics' we just really do not need you, you are insignificant. * From David Gill, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: Just a quick note with regards to Mack Montgomery's comments in (#2577) I would be willing to bet more than a few people will be watching the martial arts portion of the Olympics this time around. Especially considering the Olympics are being held in China or more generally in SE Asia. We tend to forget the Olympic audience in Asia is a little different than the one in the western world. Considering the Chinese economy grew at over %10 last year while the American economy was one step away from the grave of a recession, it would be wise to consider the choices in cutting Olympic events carefully. Maybe the idea should be to create more interest in sailing throughout the world, to keep all the sailing events? * From Eric Gonzalez: (Thoughts on why classes should or should not be included in the Olympic roster; edited to the 250-word limit) It concerns me reading opinions on why certain classes are "justified" to be in the Olympics. Many of these classes of boats were started several decades ago when, at that time, and for many years afterwards, these were considered high tech boats. They were also very popular, provided fair competition and therefore were included in the Olympics. However, times, technology and the interests of the youth in our sport have changed. It is a mistake for us to maintain the mentality that the top sailors of the future will (or should) be developed sailing those same boats. We are already experiencing reduced overall participation in the sport. Arguably (or not) this is related to many years of the sport pushing for boat designs that were not fun to sail, unpopular or just plain dangerous. This is no way to introduce new blood into the sport and we are seeing the results now; generations later. I see this starting to change with the acceptance and growth not only of sport boats but fun and friendly big boats as well. We need to make sure this trend spills into the Olympic movement so that the desire to become an Olympian in sailing is only an extension of the normal process of competing at the local level. I applaud the reaction of much of the sailing community to the class selections for 2012. This was not done in the best interest of the sport and we should expect a correction. CURMUDGEON’S OBSERVATION One tequila, two tequila, three tequila, floor..... Special thanks to Mount Gay Rum Gear and UK-Halsey Sailmakers. A complete list of preferred suppliers is at http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/ssc/suppliers |
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