|
SCUTTLEBUTT 3745 - Wednesday, January 2, 2013Scuttlebutt 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. Website: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com Twitter: http://twitter.com/scuttbutt Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/sailingscuttlebutt RSS: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/rss/index.xml Today's sponsors: Point Loma Outfitting, North Sails, and KO Sailing. LOOKING FORWARD TO THE NEW YEAR Volvo Ocean Race chief executive Knut Frostad has taken a frank look back at the last edition which finished in July and spoken candidly about his aims for 2013 and beyond in a special New Year's Day interview. * In mid-2012 you announced in Lorient the fundamental switch to a one-design boat model. Six months on, how confident are you that the 2014-15 Race made the right decision with this? KNUT FROSTAD: I knew this was a bold decision but from the moment we made it, the reactions and feedback I have had from exciting potential teams, the sailors and in particular the sponsors, have been 100% positive. In fact the more we get into the project the more it makes sense. That said, the project is also complex and demanding on our organisation as we now have added a whole new dimension and area to our team. There is a lot more to it than what was obvious to us when we started. No one has ever created a true one-design class in high performance offshore racing before and I know why. It is not easy and it is a huge undertaking both financially and in terms of resources to make it all happen on time while working to the smallest possible tolerances. But we are on track to achieve a great result and I can't wait to see the first boat out of the yard in the end of June 2013. * What are the other key advancements that you would like to see in the Race for the next edition? KNUT FROSTAD: Apart from growing the fleet slightly, the biggest change must come in television and online video. There is so much untapped potential there and so much to tell - we have worked hard on this and will work even harder next race. To bring the race and its sailors to a wider audience in a compelling way. I think we can make a giant step next time - giant! Another area is getting more and some new nations involved - in particular I am hopeful of seeing a South American team again. That also has an impact on what further we can build the race to become. Full interview: http://tinyurl.com/VOR-010113 NOTICE OF RACE: Teams will be allowed an extra crew member for In-Port Races in the next edition of the Volvo Ocean Race in 2014-15, in one of a series of rule changes announced in the Notice of Race which was released on December 21. Details: http://tinyurl.com/NOR-010113 HAPPY NEW YEARS FROM POINT LOMA OUTFITTING We at Point Loma Outfitting wish all of you Happy New Years and that all of your sailing goals for 2013 be had. If you need any clothing remember us. Not only do we carry the best products (Musto, Patagonia, SLAM, Kaenon, etc.), we pride ourselves for our service and knowledge. Best of luck this New Year. http://www.pointlomaoutfitting.com NEW YEARS AT CAPE HORN (January 1, 2013; Day 53) - Racing in his first ever Vendee Globe, Francois Gabart (FRA), the youngest skipper in the solo nonstop around the world race, passed the longitude of Cape Horn this evening at 1820hrs UTC, setting a new record for the passage from the start line in Les Sables d'Olonne of 52 days 6 hours 18 minutes. Gabart, 29, solo skipper of Macif, broke the existing record, which was set in January 2009 by his mentor Michel Desjoyeaux (FRA), by a significant margin, 4 days 8 hours and 50 minutes. As he passed Cape Horn the young French skipper lead second placed Armel Le Cleac'h (Banque Populaire) by around 25 miles, approximately two hours. "I exchanged text messages with François, very short messages," said Desjoyeaux, the only skipper to win the Vendee Globe twice, and whose company manages Gabart's campaign. "He told me the visibility was under two miles, he's sailing ahead of a (cold) front and approaching Cape Horn. So he has his hands full right now. "It is a very emotional moment, but I'm afraid he doesn't have time to enjoy it because the data collected by CLS shows there's ice all over the area. It's hard to tell exactly what type of ice blocks there is - growlers or icebergs - but they definitely need to be out on the deck and visually check. You need to stand next to the helm, even if the autopilot is on, because you can grab the helm if necessary or work on the sails if you need to change the heading of the boat very quickly. Radars aren't enough because they can't detect smaller objects." Tracking: http://tracking2012.vendeeglobe.org/en/ Top 5 of 20 - Rankings as of Tuesday, January 1, 2013, 20h00 (FR) 1. Francois Gabart (FRA), Macif: 7012.2 nm Distance to Finish 2. Armel Le Cleac'h (FRA), Banque Populaire: 24.9 nm Distance to Lead 3. Jean-Pierre Dick (FRA), Virbac Paprec 3: 468.9 nm DTL 4. Alex Thomson (GBR), Hugo Boss: 928.0 nm DTL 5. Jean Le Cam (FRA), SynerCiel: 2092.7 nm DTL Full rankings: http://www.vendeeglobe.org/en/ranking.html BACKGROUND: Twenty skippers began the Vendee Globe, a solo, non-stop around the world race in the IMOCA Open 60 class. Starting in Les Sables d'Olonne, France on November 10, the west to east course passes the three major capes of Good Hope, Leeuwin and the Horn before returning to Les Sables d'Olonne. Michel Desjoyeaux (FRA) set the course record of 84 days in the 2008-9 edition. -- http://www.vendeeglobe.org/en/ QUOTE / UNQUOTE "(Gabart & Le Cleac'h) have sailed an amazing race, it's almost like they've been glued together. I've never seen anything quite like the changing places, the continuous high speeds - they seem to have another layer of performance that we have not seen before. We have seen 19, 20, 21 knot averages which we have never seen that before; it is quite extraordinary." - Mike Golding, competing in the 2012-13 Vendee Globe race KIWIS TO BOYCOTT AMERICA'S CUP WORLD SERIES Team New Zealand will boycott the 2013 America's Cup World Series pre-regattas as the team believes it will be a distraction from the main event. In what is certain to create further tension between Grant Dalton and Oracle chief executive Sir Russell Coutts, the mastermind behind the new-look event, the Kiwi team will instead concentrate on their AC72 programme. Three America's Cup World Series events, which are sailed in the scaled down AC45 catamarans, are scheduled for next year - one in Naples in April, and two in an as yet unconfirmed venue in the United States, believed to be New York. Emirates Team New Zealand have decided to bypass these events as Dalton believes they are an unnecessary distraction when they should be focusing on sailing their AC72 - the boat the Louis Vuitton Cup and America's Cup will be contested in. After launching their first AC72 in July, Team New Zealand's performances in the ACWS events dropped away as the team struggled to balance their testing and development programme in the AC72 with staying race-sharp in the smaller boat. Under the protocols governing the next America's Cup, Team New Zealand are required to take part in the pre-regattas but Dalton has a plan to circumvent the rules - he will send their youth team, led by Olympic silver medallist Peter Burling. "The AC45s are not the main event anymore, so it's a bit of a pain trying to juggle the two boats," said Dalton. "There's two (ACWS events) towards the end of May, which is absolutely a distraction and although under the protocol we can't sail our 72 while the event is on, there's little chance that Dean (Barker) and co will do that regatta. The boat will - it has to - but we will likely send a youth team up there." -- NZ Herald, read on: http://tinyurl.com/NZH-010113 MORE: TNZ skipper Dean Barker reflects on 30 days of sailing the AC72: http://tinyurl.com/SW-010113 ROLEX SYDNEY HOBART YACHT RACE The Reichel/Pugh 100-foot Wild Oats XI, owned by Bob Oatley and skippered by Mark Richards, cemented their place in history as the first to twice claim the 628 nm Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race treble; line honours, first overall and the race record. As the overall winner of the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia's 2012 edition, the yacht shaved 16 minutes and 58 seconds off her 2005 record when she crossed the finish line on Friday 28 December at 07.23.12 AEDT. They completed the course in 01:18:23:12 for an average speed of 14.8 knots. Seventy-one yachts completed the race with five yachts retiring. "There are only a couple of boats competing for line honours, but the Tattersall's Cup - it's nearly the whole fleet - it's a big deal," Richards said. "You get close to something like that and it becomes a real goal for us. I'm sure there'll be bigger and better boats out next year, so we'll just see what happens." Only one other yacht has ever won the trifecta; Captain John Illingworth's Rani in the inaugural race in 1945. This is Wild Oats' sixth line honours victory. Only one other yacht Morna, later re-named Kurrewa IV, has done better. She won line honours seven times, but never won the race outright. -- Race website: http://rolexsydneyhobart.com/ Carlo Borlenghi photos: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/12/1231/ NEW YEAR, NEW SAILS! If you're in the market for new sails, consider this: North Sails is committed to making innovative sails that are faster, lighter and longer lasting than any other sails in the world. It's why all four AC 72s are 100% North equipped and five of six Volvo Ocean Race boats chose North. Whether you race or cruise, North Sails will design and build sails that are just right for you! All new North sails come with one year free sail care & repair* throughout our worldwide network of sail lofts, so whether you're 10 or 10,000 miles from home, we've got you covered. When performance counts, the choice is clear: http://www.northsails.com. *Restrictions apply. SAILING SHORTS * The Orange Bowl International Youth Regatta in Miami, FL on December 27-30 attracted 577 boats in six events from across the continent and throughout the world. Winners were Optimist - Max Clapp (GBR); Optimist Green - Cesare Allocco (USA); Club 420 - Will LaDow/ Nikki Obel (USA); Laser - Avery Fanniing (USA); Laser Radial - William Marshall (USA); Laser 4.7 - Alexander Boite (FRA). Complete results: http://tinyurl.com/OB-010113 * (December 29, 2012) - The International Jury for the 34th America's Cup has deducted five sailing days from Oracle Team USA as the final decision in the espionage case brought against the defender by Italian syndicate Luna Rossa Challenge 2013. The International Jury determined that Oracle Team USA had breached part of the Protocol by being within 200 meters of the Italian AC72 during a training session in New Zealand in early November. Oracle Team USA has returned 10 photos as instructed and was also fined approximately $15,200. Details: http://tinyurl.com/ACUP-010113 * Russell Coutts income of $13.4m NZD ($11.1m USD) from America's Cup defender Oracle Team USA has made Coutts the 2012 highest paid sportsman in New Zealand. -- Full report: http://tinyurl.com/Stuff-010113 * Italian Giovanni Soldini and his eight crew on the VO70 Maserati began on December 31 an attempt to establish a 13,225 nm New York to San Francisco record. There is no current monohull record, but a benchmark was set in 1998 by skipper Yves Parlier aboard Aquitaine Innovations of 57 days, 3 hours and 2 minutes. -- http://maserati.soldini.it/?lang=en * Ben Ainslie, the most decorated Olympic sailor of all time, has capped off his record-breaking 2012 with a Knighthood (CBE) in Britain's New Year Honours list. 'Sir Ben' claimed his fourth straight Olympic gold - and fifth Olympic medal in total - on the waters of Weymouth and Portland this summer. In addition to Ainslie, honors were also extended to his coach David Howlett and Paralympic sailing gold medallist Helena Lucas, who were both named as Members of the Order of the British Empire (MBE). -- Full report: http://tinyurl.com/RYA-010113 * The World Sailing Speed Record Council ratified new Open and Women's 500 meter World Records in the 10 square meter Windsurfer Division. Antoine Albeau (FRA) set a new open record in Luderitz, Namibia on November 21 of 52.05 knots. Zara Davis (GBR) set a new women's record in Luderitz, Namibia on November 17 of 45.83 knots. The previous records were 49.09 and 41.25 knots, respectively. -- Full report: http://tinyurl.com/WSSR-010113 EIGHT BELLS - HENRY STRZELECKI Henry Strzelecki, co-founder of Henri-Lloyd marine apparel, died on Boxing Day (Dec. 26) at age 87 years. Universally known as "Mr. Henri", he devoted much of his life to the benefit of others. Born in Poland, he became as English as the next man in his adopted city of Manchester. The transformation was neither easy nor immediate, but it was determined; he did not, however, shun his native land as could be evidenced by some of his later business developments. Born in Brodnica, midway between Warsaw and Gdansk, he fled occupied Poland, the scene of much human suffering, after making himself a nuisance to the Nazis, to join the Polish 2nd Corps in Italy; it became part of the British Eighth Army. He fought with Corps in many campaigns, notably in the liberation of Bologna, earning recognition in the form of medals from both the Polish and the British authorities. He was demobilised in Britain and opted to stay here as by then his native Poland was in the hands of the Communists. He worked and studied in the textile industry. It was while working in the Double Two shirt factory that he met and married his wife, Sheila, a strong-minded Yorkshire woman, in 1952. She became the rock at home so that he could devote all his energies to the clothing business he was to start ten years later when he felt he had absorbed as much as he could of the essential details of every aspect of the trade. He only needed a suitable "cause" to develop. It came from one of his recreational activities. "Henri" was a keen sailor and knew as well as any that the available clothing for that sport was woefully inadequate. Materials constructed from man-made fibres were in their infancy, but true to the traditions of the garment industry, "Henri" uncovered those that were suitable for his purpose - that of producing wearable weather-proof clothing - among them Bri-nylon, which was to become the base cloth of his early foul-weather gear. Entering a partnership with Angus Lloyd in 1963 to form Henri-Lloyd Limited, he devoted the rest of his working life for the benefit of others. -- Read on: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=15020 EIGHT BELLS - LYNN WATTERS It is with great sadness I tell the sailing world that my dad, Lynn Watters, died on Christmas day at the age of 96. He made significant contributions to the sport we all love. During his tenure as head of the IYRU (ISAF) Rules Committee he shaped the way we all race today. He created the International Judging system which is now universally used for all major regattas. As an International Judge himself, he officiated at almost every major regatta worldwide at one time or another. The list is far too long but some standouts are the America's Cup and the Olympics. Dad sailed in two Olympics, 1960 and 1964 in the Dragon class. He was universally known as one of the great tacticians in our sport. Dad called a number of Royalty his friends; he was one of a select group of 400 invited guests (including the Queen Mother) who attended King Olaf's 80th birthday. He gave much to the sport and the sport gave back to him. -- Alex Watters NO AUTHORIZATION REQUIRED Whether you're a newbie, pro or in between, you'll find all your performance sailing needs at KO Sailing - parts, gear, charters and boats. Save 10% off online orders of $75 or more with code SB612 at checkout (exclusions apply). And, please visit us at the South West International Boat Show (Booth 3015)! http://kosailing.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 Steve Lopez As a long time competitor and friend of Moose McClintock, I read with interest his article in Scuttlebutt 3740 about professionalism in youth sailing. I am at least partially responsible for this. My son came through the Opti class when these "now standard training techniques" were developing. At that time training was only provided to those who made the National Team. It was obvious to anyone paying attention that it worked well. The best got better and the rest wanted the same. This growth in training devolved into what we have today: huge sums of money on coaching, travel and equipment. Phony antisocial elitist "Teams" that do nothing to actually encourage "team playing". It has done the opposite. When the kids are part of the "team" they are encouraged to stay with the team, eat with the team, sail with the team, etc. They hardly socialize with the other sailors. The thing is, this is going on everywhere, not just sailing. I see hundreds of 8-10 year old kids in the neighborhood playing lacrosse. By the time they're 12, there is travel teams and the number is reduced to 40 or so. By the time they get to high school, maybe 10 can make the team. At college level you're lucky if two are still playing. A kid these days has every waking second scheduled with adult supervised activities. It's simply a different world now. The times of simply messing around with boats down by the river are over forever. Those born in the 50s lived the last golden era to grow up in this country.....and it was great. COMMENT: The "soccerization" of sailing may have helped to grow youth sailing, but there seems to be unintended consequences for growing lifelong sailors. I was born in 1962, and my last U.S. Youth Champs was in the newly released Laser 2. Was this the point in time when 'youth sailing' was splintered off from 'open sailing'? - Craig Leweck, Scuttlebutt * From Chris Wentz: Reporting in Scuttlebutt 3744, it says the titanium keel on Safran broke during the 2012-13 Vendee Globe Race due to metal fatigue. While it certainly did do just that, the most significant thing the report said was. "...the loads experienced by the keel were undoubtedly far higher than the standard values used by the design teams..." Put another way, the engineers designing the keel have but little idea of what the keel loadings will be. That is no surprise given that these boats are built to a development rule. What does surprise is that the designers evidently don't cover their ass and their skipper's ass with a healthy safety factor, aka factor of ignorance. More is learned from one failure than from 100 successes but that can't ease the minds of the skippers deep in the Southern Ocean who know beyond doubt that the designers of their boats are merely guessing. HAPPY NEW YEAR The publication of Scuttlebutt sailing news occurs only through the support of our loyal sponsors, and we are pleased to announce that the limited advertising opportunities in the newsletter and website are nearly sold out for 2013. We are exceedingly proud of the quality companies that have joined Scuttlebutt this season. Please join us in supporting our new team: Allen Insurance and Financial, APS, Atlantis WeatherGear, BIC Sport North America, Bruce Knecht, College of Charleston Sailing, Contender Sailcloth, Dieball Sailing, Doyle Sailmakers, Farr 40 Class, Gladstone's Long Beach Restaurant, GMT Composites, Gowrie Group, Hall Spars & Rigging, Harken, Henri Lloyd, J Boats, JK3 Nautical Enterprises, Kaenon Polarized, KO Sailing, Lemon & Line, Line Honors, Marion Bermuda Race, McMichael Yacht Brokers, Melges Performance Sailboats, Mount Gay Rum, New England Ropes, North Sails, North U, New York Yacht Club, Newport Shipyard, Ocean Racing, Point Loma Outfitting, Premiere Racing, Pure Yachting, Ribcraft, Sail to Prevail, Samson Rope, Southern Spars, St Thomas Yacht Club, Storm Trysail Club, Team McLube, Team One Newport, The Pirates Lair, UK Sailmakers, Ullman Sails, Ultimate Sailing, US Sailing, US Sailing Team Sperry Top-Sider, UsedBoatEquipment.com, and Waterline Systems. I am looking forward to an epic sailing season and I hope you are too. Best regards and smooth sailing, Craig Leweck Scuttlebutt editor/publisher CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATION "An optimist stays up until midnight to see the New Year in. A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves." - Billy Vaughn SPONSORS THIS WEEK Point Loma Outfitting - North Sails - KO Sailing Ullman Sails - Block Island Race Week - North U Doyle Sailmakers - International Rolex Regatta Need stuff? Look here: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/ssc/suppliers |
