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SCUTTLEBUTT 3242 - Friday, December 17, 2010
Scuttlebutt is published each weekday with the support of its sponsors,
providing a digest of major sailing news, commentary, opinions, features and
dock talk . . . with a North American focus.
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Today's sponsors: JK3 Nautical Enterprises and Holmatro.
OLYMPIC SAILING: CELEBRATE THE DIVERSITY OF SAILING
Recent commentary in Scuttlebutt prompted Rory Ramsden, COO of the RS:X, to
share a perspective that windsurfers have known for decades: all boats are
not the same, so we can't expect them to use the same playing field:
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Mark Reynolds talked about the presentation of Olympic Sailing. Paul
Henderson said that we should not prostitute the sport but focus on the
heroes. Paul also advocates the use of the internet and should be given
credit as the first ISAF President to understand the importance of that
medium.
But no-one has mentioned the 900lb gorilla in the room.
There are those that are fighting to save the 'Star' and there are those
that would do away with Finn, 470 or Laser. The list of opinions is diverse.
And that is the word we should be focusing on.
Sailing as a lifestyle sport has a breadth and depth unlike any other. As
Phil Jones, the chair of the ISAF Olympic Commission, has said. "The IOC
recognizes this diversity as a strength. We should play to our strengths;
not try and make up for our weaknesses."
Do the formats that each event uses in the Olympic regatta reflect this
diversity? No! Every event has the same homogeneous set of sailing
instructions. Every sailor goes out and does the same thing ... almost.
If we are to go back to the future and bring some variety into the formats,
then windsurfing should consider re-introducing the courses that were in
common use before its first appearance in the Los Angeles Games of 1984.
Long distance with a mass start off the beach, course racing and man-on-man
short course racing close to the beach ... even team racing.
These courses were hugely popular both with the sailors and the spectators.
They could be again.
The discussion about which events are selected to appear in the Olympic
Regatta should focus on the diversity represented by the slate of 10 and
show further diversity in the types of format and courses they sail too.
That does not mean that everyone has to develop new ideas. They just have to
be true to their own ideals as sailors and let the available technology show
the world how well they do it.
Celebrate the diversity of sailing. Present each event as well as possible
and ask ISAF to pro-actively promote the Olympic sailing events it chooses
so that rather than having to pay to compete, more athletes can be paid to
compete. -- http://tinyurl.com/RSX-121610
QUOTE / UNQUOTE
American Annie Gardner, Olympic silver medal winner when windsurfing was an
exhibition event at the 1984 Olympics: "It's no wonder windsurfing has
struggled. Trying to fit a square peg into a round hole has never been
successful. I'm surprised it has done as well as it has with the formats
they use. There was a time when slalom and freestyle were part of
windsurfing events. Hoyle Schweitzer had a good thing going when he launched
the Original Windsurfer, but the blue blazers stole it from him and future
generations of young people. Windsurfing could have been the gateway into
the sport, and much like snowboarding is to skiing, it has its own style and
sense of what is fun and competitive. But until this reality is realized,
racing windsurfers will remain on the fringe."
JK3 NEW YEARS SPOTLIGHT
What's your New Year's resolution for 2011? Does it include "sail faster and
win more"? Then take a serious look at the hottest TP 52 on the circuit.
"Stark Raving Mad V" has quite the impressive resume, having just been
crowned the 2010 i52 season champion in Southern California it has won 14 of
17 events participated in over the past two years . making her the most
winning 52 in North America. Past Med Cup winner, and has been IRC optimized
under the careful efforts of Fitzgerald Racing and Reichel/Pugh. Stark
Raving Mad V is thrilling down wind, and has the record to prove it.
Contact: Jeff Brown at jeff@jk3yachts.com or check it out on line at:
http://www.jk3yachts.com
CHANGING THE GAME
With an objective of elevating the America's Cup as a sporting and spectator
event, Larry Ellison and Russell Coutts turned to Morelli & Melvin Design &
Engineering, Inc. to help figure out how to reach that goal. A consultant on
the unprecedented wing sail for Cup-winner USA-17, Pete Melvin took on the
multihull portion of the studies used to evaluate potential new 2013
America's Cup yachts. After looking at all the options within each of
Morelli & Melvin's alternative designs, along with the monohull options,
America's Cup organizers opted for the big multihulls -- a decision that,
good or bad, will indeed change the game.
"We got a call in June asking us to start developing a rule for a
multihull," Melvin explained. "We're the leaders of the group, but we had
consultants from all over the world. BMWOR didn't want just one person
creating this rule; they wanted world-class input from everybody. We spent
four months creating this rule and a lot of things changed along the way.
For example, in a meeting back in May, when we were working in the initial
study, we focused on a trimaran, as they are more forgiving and easy to sail
and more high performance for the dollar. But there was a desire to have the
boats easily shippable via air, and catamarans are more easily disassembled
to go on a plane. Also, they wanted a wing instead of soft sails.
"So we spent more time on the technical side, sizing the boat, how big the
rig should be. The desire was to be able to sail a race from three to 33
knots (wiggled down to five to 30) so we came up with a wing sail catamaran,
with soft sails for downwind sailing. Carrying 11 crew members, it will do
about three times true wind speed.
"The wing is a huge performance element and that's where I think a lot of
the gains will be made. Hulls are fairly well understood -- with a monohull,
where the hull is very, very critical and a very key part of your design,
you'll spend a lot of your resources developing the hull shape. Multihulls
are all long and skinny things and whether you make one with a little more
"vee" or a little less rocker, it's not going to change the drag
characteristic of the hull that much. So a lot of those resources that you
might have put into design engineering will go into the wing or the foils
and less on the hulls."
Speaking of foils, it's time for some new words in the vocabulary. We'll
start with the curved foils. Melvin explains: "They're called dagger boards,
but some people call them dagger foils. They not only prevent the boat from
going sideways, they also lift the boat. I'm sure on some of the boats,
they'll cant them, so you can angle them under the boat and increase or
decrease the amount of lift you can get. The faster the boat goes, the more
you'll want to lift it up on the foil and the more efficient it will be." --
CupInfo, full story:
http://www.cupinfo.com/en/pete-melvin-mdr-talk-2013-americas-cup.php
TIME TO END THIS SONG AND DANCE
By C.W. Nevius, SF Chronicle
Larry Ellison may have accomplished the impossible. He's made the San
Francisco Board of Supervisors look like a thoughtful, constructive
deliberative body that can keep its cool in the face of confrontation. I
hardly recognized them.
For weeks, the board had been divided on the city's bid to host the
America's Cup races in 2013, but after the city found a way to host the
races with minimal costs, infrastructure upgrades and prime public viewing
areas, the board unanimously passed the bid Tuesday. The vote came with so
many compliments and thank-you's that the meeting turned into virtual tea
party.
Now it is up to Ellison to make this work. Frankly, he's going to look like
a major hypocrite if he suddenly decides to ship the race elsewhere. He's
the one who lives in the Bay Area, who joined the Golden Gate Yacht Club and
waxed poetic about the sheer perfection of hosting the world's greatest
sailing race in a natural amphitheater. It would be a showcase for the event
like nothing the sailing world has ever seen.
But where's Larry? Earlier the word in City Hall was that BMW Oracle team
negotiator Stephen Barclay was keeping Ellison from meeting with Mayor Gavin
Newsom.
This struck me as unlikely. Ellison is one of the wealthiest, most powerful
and iron-willed people in the world. Barclay is reported to be a real
hardball guy. But I have trouble picturing the scenario where Ellison, the
co-founder and chief executive officer of Oracle, reaches for the phone and
Barclay says, "Nope, I'm afraid I can't let you do that, Larry." If Ellison
wanted to talk, he'd talk.
And sure enough, Tuesday night he and Newsom had a short conversation. But
apparently the results were not encouraging. I don't get it. It seems
impossible that this is really about which section of the waterfront will be
used for staging the race.
That's the narrative the BMW Oracle team is pushing, with Barclay
fulminating about how San Francisco had its chance to host the Cup, but let
it slip through its fingers.
Sure, all the city had to do was make a bad financial deal for a less
desirable site. I understand the idea that every businessman would like to
get as much as possible, but this is looking more and more like a naked
money grab. There were even reports that someone on Ellison's team was
asking if they didn't deserve a "reward" for allowing the Cup to be held on
the bay.
A reward? Try bribe. Read more: http://tinyurl.com/SFC-121610
=> Curmudgeon's Comment: It is unclear what will be announced on Friday. The
team said they must reach an agreement with the City on December 17th to
ensure they can make a venue announcement by December 31st. That's a two
week window to finalize plans elsewhere. Huh?
BOAT OF THE YEAR
Sailing World magazine announced the winners of its 25th annual Boat of the
Year awards, where this year's field of winners was led by the Boat of the
Year - the RS100 by RS Sailing (Hants, England).
The RS100 and five other new boats won awards from an independent panel of
experts, who tested 17 nominees following the U.S. Sailboat Show in
Annapolis, Md., in October. Selections were based on extensive inspections
and sea trials of all the boats. Sailing World's January/February 2011 issue
will feature all six winners.
"Other builders have tried to design the ultimate singlehanded dinghy with
an asymmetric spinnaker, which is a challenge given the need for one sailor
to handle a lot of sail-control systems," said Sailing World editor and Boat
of the Year director Dave Reed. "But over two years of prototype
development, the engineers at RS Sailing refined every little detail of this
boat, and it shows. It's an impressively technical 14-footer designed by and
for avid performance sailors.
Other winners in Sailing World's 2011 Boat of the Year competition are:
- Best Crossover: Beneteau First 30 (Beneteau, Marion, S.C.)
- Best One-Design Keelboat: J/111 (J/Boats., Newport, R.I.)
- Best Daysailor: C.W. Hood 32 (C.W. Hood Yachts, Marblehead, Mass.)
- Best Recreational: Hobie Mirage Tandem Island (Hobie Cat, Oceanside, CA.)
- Best Grand Prix: Gunboat 66 (Gunboat, Newport, R.I.)
Full report: http://tinyurl.com/SW-121610
INNOVATIVE HOLMATRO DOES IT AGAIN
Holmatro's innovative Furl Finder boom vang and the new Hydraulic Power
Systems (HPS) were big hits at METS last month. At the push of a button, the
Furl Finder boom vang automatically adjusts to the proper boom-furling
angle. A green light signals when in-boom furling may begin, eliminating the
guesswork normally associated with this task. The HPS 1000, 400 and 200 are
easily installed, modular hydraulic power systems for yachts of all sizes,
fulfilling the needs of short-handed and performance oriented sailors alike.
See video on our You Tube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/HolmatroUSA or
visit http://www.holmatro.com/marine
SAILING SHORTS
* Melbourne, AUS (December 16, 2010) - Wind conditions remained unstable on
the fourth day of Sail Melbourne, where steady morning winds faded during
the day. With the final races on Friday to determine who the top ten will be
to advance for Saturday's double-points medal race, the American squad
remains poised for a podium position. Leading the team is Stu McNay/ Graham
Biehl (1st, 470M), Zach Railey (2nd, Finn), Erik Storck/ Trevor Moore (3rd,
49er), and Clay Johnson (9th, Laser). Sail Melbourne is the first event of
the 2010-2011 ISAF Sailing World Cup season. -- http://sailmelbourne.com.au
* (December 16, 2010) - The second sprint of the VELUX 5 OCEANS solo round
the world yacht race got underway from Cape Town today bound for Wellington
in New Zealand. Originally to start last Sunday but postponed due to
gale-force winds and huge seas off the coast of South Africa, the fleet of
five solo sailed Eco 60s crossed the start line beginning a gruelling 7,000
nautical mile sprint across the Southern Ocean through some of the worst
weather conditions known to man. -- Full story:
http://tinyurl.com/V5O-121610
* There have been 76 boating fatalities in Florida this year, a 24 percent
increase from 2009, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation
Commission. Although the FWC patrols Florida's waterways and strongly
promotes boating safety year-round, this year's higher number of fatalities
prompted an increased emphasis on prevention. At least 41 of the 76 deaths
were due to drowning, the agency reports. -- STO, read on:
http://tinyurl.com/STO-121610
PHOTOS OF THE WEEK
Some of the random photos from the sport received this week at Scuttlebutt
include air and water, water and structure, holidays and water, water and
logos, legends and water, water and gifts, work and water, and water and
disaster. Here are this week's photos:
http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/10/1217
SEND US YOUR PHOTOS: If you have images to share for the Photos of the Week,
send them to the Scuttlebutt editor: mailto:editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com
VIDEO OF THE WEEK
T2p.tv - the online network providing On Demand sailing coverage - was in
Miami for the ORACLE RC 44 Cup Miami. This was the American debut for the
RC44 class, which has grown a season championship of events in Europe and
the Middle East.
A significant feature of the class is the travel logistics, where the
movement of each team's equipment and boats is organized by the class
management. This class moves as a pack, and the Miami event saw a star
studded fleet at the highest grand prix level the sport can offer.
Ashley Love and Lindsay Foster of t2p.tv have edited a recap of the event,
providing all the flavor and excitement that follows this glam fleet. If
boats had bumper stickers, the America's Cup boats would say "My other boat
is an RC44".
Click here for this week's video:
http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/media/10/1217/
BONUS: Ever wonder how to share the enjoyment of sailing with your
non-sailing friends? While this video might not do it, hopefully it will
make you laugh. Have you seen the movie 'What About Bob'? This segment with
Bill Murray is a classic: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrbY4hsNh64
SEND US YOUR VIDEOS: If you have clips to share for the Video of the Week,
send them to the Scuttlebutt editor: mailto:editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com
GUEST COMMENTARY
Scuttlebutt strongly encourages feedback from the Scuttlebutt community.
Either submit comments by email or post them on the Forum. Submitted
comments chosen to be published in the newsletter may be limited to 250
words. Authors may have one published submission per subject, and should
save their bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere.
Email: editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com
Forum: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/forum
* From Scott Boye, Friday Harbor:
No, I didn't have to jump for the Rules Book, but then I get to explain to
the members of our high school sailing team just how rule 18 dictates mark
roundings every spring. I do, however, suspect that a certain white bearded
gentleman living on the shores of Lake Washington is shaking his head.
Personally, I view going around marks to be one of the most difficult things
we do as sailors. The interaction with other boats just adds to the
technical challenges of setting or striking the spinnaker, adjusting all
those myriad lines and turning the boat. Please, don't get rid of rule 18.
But keep looking at it with a critical eye and polish it to make mark
roundings clearer and safer.
Since I mentioned Dick Rose (that white bearded gentleman), I will praise
him for his tireless work with the high school sailors in the Pacific
Northwest. Dick regularly umpires at district and national championship
regattas held in the Northwest. He has an uncanny knack of explaining rules
to teenagers that gets the concept across without losing the subtleties of
the rule. He can explain Rule 18. I've heard him and it's helped me make
sense of it.
* From By Baldridge: (re, Matt Knowles commentary and rule 18 detractors)
As a practical sailor I would like to get rid of rule 14. Since this catch
22 rule was enacted, I have found myself in many protest hearings where the
following discussion determines the outcome of the hearing:
Protest Committee: "Was there contact?"
Reply: "No."
Protest Committee: "Well, the committee finds that there is no foul."
Reply: "If there was contact would I be in violation of rule 14?"
Protest Committee: "Possibly."
As a tactician, I have recommended to some helmsmen that if we do not have
contact, we will not win the protest. Their response is rule 14. At times I
have said to just slightly brush their spinnaker or have a small bumping.
These are difficult to do. Protest committees that I have encountered do not
want contact but will only make a decision if there is. The disconnect in
these cases is a major failure of the system.
* From Warren Nethercote, IJ: (re, the elimination of Rule 18)
I sail on both soft water (PHRF and a Soling) and hard water (DNs). The
iceboating rules lack a prescriptive Rule 18 equivalent, as found in the
ISAF Racing Rules of Sailing. It's scary at times. Watch out what you wish
for, if that wish is elimination of Rule 18.
* From Barbara Herman, Secret Love:
Happy 30th Birthday Octavia! What wonderful memories I have racing against
you and partying with Stu and our crews afterwards. The race where you beat
us after an all-night duel in the bay was the best, with both crews going to
the race committee to explain that you won. The comments were priceless.
Thanks for the memories. FAST IS FUN!
CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATION
People who live in stone houses shouldn't throw glasses.
SPONSORS THIS WEEK
Kaenon Polarized - Hall Spars & Rigging - Team One Newport
North U - North Sails - LaserPerformance - Doyle Sails
Ultimate Sailing - Ullman Sails - Southern Spars
Atlantis WeatherGear - JK3 Nautical Enterprises - Holmatro
Need stuff? Look here: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/ssc/suppliers
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