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SCUTTLEBUTT 1337 - May 27, 2003Powered by SAIC (www.saic.com), an employee-owned company. Scuttlebutt is adigest of major yacht racing news, commentary, opinions, features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus. Corrections, contributions, press releases, constructive criticism and contrasting viewpoints are always welcome, but save your bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere. GOAL-ORIENTED MISSION Hull number one of the new Governor's Cup 21 class, a 21 foot racing sloop designed by Alan Andrews of Long Beach, California, has just completed a successful sea trial. This is the first of an initial fleet of eleven boats built by Bravura Yachts of Costa Mesa, California, all of which will be owned by Newport Balboa Sailing and Seamanship Association and used for training and regattas, with an emphasis on junior sailors. The class is named after the initial regatta in which the fleet will be used, Balboa Yacht Club's annual Governor's Cup. The Governor's Cup is a 36 year old junior match racing series which has been designated the United States Junior Match Racing Championship by US Sailing, the governing body of the sport. For many years, Santana 20s owners have loaned their boats to BYC for use in the Cup. Last year, a group of BYC members led by former two time Governor's Cup winner Andy Rose decided to develop a new, purpose built class for use in the Cup which would not only assure equality of the fleet, but also provide more excitement to the sailors. Ten of the boats are expected to be available for the 2003 Governor's Cup, August 12-17. The boat has an overall length of 21 feet, with a waterline length of 18 feet 5 inches, a draft of 5 feet and the beam is 8 feet 1 inch. Displacing 1670 pounds, it has a sail area of 326 square feet in the main and 100% jib and an additional 368 square feet in the masthead spinnaker. "These will be modern racing boats, well suited for match racing and for the typically light airs of Newport Beach," Andrews explained. "However, the boats have enough strength and stability to work well when the breeze kicks up." The deck plan of the boats is very simple and winches have been eliminated in favor of ratchet blocks and jam cleats. Although the boat was designed to be sailed by a crew of three, the wide cockpit and deck areas will easily accommodate a fourth person. The boats will be chartered by Balboa Yacht Club from NBSSA for the Governor's Cup and other events sponsored by BYC on a long term basis, and will also be available for charter to other yacht clubs and organizations for events that are consistent with NBSSA's mission. Additional boats will be available for sale from Bravura Yachts after the initial fleet is completed. http://www.andrewsyacht.com/deshome.htm SPA REGATTA Medemblik, The Netherlands The US Yngling team of Betsy Alison /Lee Lcyda /Suzy Leech took the gold medal in the SPA Regatta for Olympic class boats by finishing with scores in the top four places in each of the last five races - enough for a six point win in their 28-boat class. The third place finish by Bermuda's Peter Bromby /Lee White in the 54-boat Star class was the only other podium finish for North American Teams at this ranking regatta. Great Britain won the gold in four classes and took home bronze medals in two other classes, while the Netherlands collected the most points for the Nations Cup. North American teams were unable to break into the top 20 places in four of the eleven classes. - http://sparegatta.org/2003/ Following are the North American sailors who finished in the top 20 in their respective classes: - 470 Men (71 boats): 5. Paul Foerster/ USA - 470 Women (38 boats): 15. Erin Maxwell/ Jen Morgan, USA - 49er (55 boats): 6. Tim Wadlow/ USA; 18. Morgan Larson/ Adam Koch, USA - Laser (143 boats): 12. Mark Mendelblatt, USA - Star (54 boats): 3. Peter Bromby /Lee White, BER; 5. Mark Reynolds /Magnus Liljedahl, USA - Tornado (39 boats): 14. Oskar Johansson/ John Curtis, CAN; 18. John Lovell /Charlie Ogletree, USA; 18. Eric Holden /Mark Coakley, CAN - Yngling (28 boats): 1. Betsy Alison /Lee Lcyda /Suzy Leech, USA; 10. Hannah Swett /Joan Touchette /Melissa Purdy, USA; 12. Jody Swanson /Cory Sertl /Elizabeth Kratzig, USA; 13. Carol Cronin /Liz Filter /Bridget Hallawell, USA THEY JUST KEEP GOING AND GOING At all the regattas around the world, just look at what the crews are wearing. It is no surprise that the Camet 3000 Shorts, Bermuda Shorts, Cargo Shorts Aruba Shorts and Pants are everywhere from Opti sailors to the Farr 40's, Maxi's and cruisers. The comfort of the pads, the reinforced Cordura seat, the quick drying breathable Supplex fabrics and the 97.5% UV protection is the solution to hours on the water. Check out the Shorts, Coolmax shirts, Neoprene Hiking pants, Bubble Tops, Rash Guards and Mylar bags on the Camet web site: http://www.camet.com PEOPLE IN THE NEWS One of yachting's superstars, Rod Davis was at the Olympic regatta in SPA, Holland. Not wearing the haute couture of Prada or Team New Zealand as he was last seen in, but sporting the colors of Denmark's Olympic Sailing Team. The nationalized kiwi, who was born in the United States, has a total of nine Americas Cup campaigns under his belt, but it is also his experience with four Olympic Games that will benefit the Danish sailors over the next year. Rod Davis has taken up a position as supervisor for especially the team coaches. He will follow the team closely at regattas and in their general preparation for next years Olympic Games, sharing his experience with long campaigns involving aspects of working as both individuals and as a team. MATCH RACING Five of the world's top-10 ranked women match race sailors are among the competitors set to duel in J/22s May 28-31 in the BoatU.S. Santa Maria Cup, hosted by Eastport Yacht Club and held on Annapolis' Severn River. This year's event will also takes on the added significance as a dress rehearsal for the 2004 Women's World Match Race Championship, which will be held in lieu of the Santa Maria Cup in 2004. Those accepting invitations to race include: Marie Fauré #4 (France); Giulia Conti #6 (Italy); Klaartje Zuiderbaan #7 (Netherlands) and Elizabeth Baylis #8 (USA). Others accepting include 97' Cup winner Betsy Alison #11 (USA); Paula Lewin # 25 (Bermuda), Malin Kälström #26 (Sweden) and Carol Cronin #34 (USA). The last slot goes to the winner of the annual Sundance Cup regatta, won this year by Deb Willits, currently ranked #16. - Colleen Wright, www.santamariacup.org THE NEW AQUASPORT RANGE FROM DUBARRY New from the leaders in Marine Footwear...The Fiji and Coral models utilize Dubarry's award winning Cup Sole, dual stitched to a combination Dri-lex and leather upper; providing superior traction and lateral stability in an athletic styled deck shoe. Visit http://www.dubarryna.com/aquasport.htm HIGH SCHOOL SAILING Point Loma High School secured the Triple Crown of High School sailing by winning the Baker Team Race Nationals this weekend on Mission Bay. 12 schools representing the districts of ISSA showed up to compete and after a 66 race elimination series Saturday, Newport Harbor & St. George's qualified for the final four with a 3-way tie sail-off between Corona del Mar, Point Loma and Southern High School (MD). St. George's and the California schools made the cut. 36 races were held in 6-10 knots for the finals with the decision coming down to the last race between Pt. Loma and St. George's. Pt Loma went undefeated in the finals with Newport Harbor winning the tie-breaker for 2nd over St. George's and Corona del Mar 4th. Winning team: Pt Loma: Adam Roberts, Parker Shinn, Graham Biehl, Donald Lockwood, Melanie Roberts, Bryan Rigby. 1. Pt Loma High School: 14 W, 3 L 2. Newport Harbor High School: 13 W, 4 L 3. St. George's: 13 W, 4 L 4. Corona del Mar: 8 W, 9 L Full results at: www.highschoolsailingusa.org NEWS BRIEFS * Russell Coutts, skipper of the victorious Swiss team Alinghi in the America's Cup, said Naples is his favourite to host the next event. "Naples can dream. The Gulf is indeed exceptional and Bagnoli is a worthy place for the America' s Cup", the skipper said. "If it depended on me I would carry the Cup immediately here". Obviously, the Coutts' words are not enough to decide the venue for the 32nd America's Cup, as the New Zealander admits himself. "The problem is that I do not decide, but Ernesto Bertarelli, the boss, and Michel Bonnefous", underlined Russell Coutts. - Cup in Europe website, full story: http://www.cupineurope.com/LatestNews/Where5.htm * Joseph Dockery's 81-foot Reichel Pugh sloop Carrera was first to finish in the Storm Trysail Club's 58th annual Block Island Race this weekend, while his old Farr 60, now named Harrier sailed by Steve Munger, was handicap winner in the International Measurement System [IMS] Class One. With 52 boats in contention, the Harvey Conover Memorial Trophy for the overall winner was awarded to John Santa's Swan 46 Galadriel from Bridgeport, CT, winner of Class 6 in the Performance Handicap Racing Fleet (PHRF). http://www.stormtrysail.org * Line honors for this year's Charleston to Bermuda Race went to Dr. Mike Finn's J/160 Kativa out of Slidell, LA, finished in a time of 133 hours, 54 minutes, and 57 seconds, slightly more than 60 hours longer than the course record. The only other vessel to finish before the time limit elapsed was Rex Conn's Newick 48 trimaran Alacrity out of Still Pond, MD, which finished just under three hours after Kativa. Teddy Turner, Jr.'s Condor 40 trimaran Troika, based in Charleston, SC, finished just over an hour after the time limit elapsed. http://www.sailnet.com/c2b/index.cfm * After 2,734 miles on the water, 9d 15h 4m 22s on the clock at an average speed of 11.68 knots, Frank Cammas and the crew of Groupama crossed the line at the port of Rimini to win the Challenge Mondial Assistance. In less than 5 hours later the next three places were filled - Banque Populaire (Lalou Roucayrol) and Bonduelle (Jean le Cam) followed by Geant (Michel Desjoyeaux). - http://www.challenge-mondialassistance.com * The Rodman 42 Telefonica Movistar steered by Pedro Campos won Class A at the Rolex IMS Offshore World Championship hosted by the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda. Class B was won by Italtel, a Gd Soleil 42R (Orlandi/)Vascoti) with Di Mare/Vaimo, a First 36.7 (DiMare-Cuomo) taking Class C. http://www.orc.org/world03.htm * The 2003 Sunfish US Masters Championship was sailed at Ninnescah Sailing Association, on Lake Cheney, near Wichita, Kansas. Greg Gust, of Rockwall, Texas, didn't have to sail the last race, having cleanly swept the first six. By winning the overall championship he has qualified for the 2004 Sunfish World's Championship and also was the winner of the Masters age group (age 50-59). The Apprentice Masters age group winner (age 40-49) was Hank Saurage, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, who was a close second overall. Third overall was the defending champion, Rich Chapman, of Libertyville, Illinois. - www.sunfishclass.org * Somehow the letters printed in Friday's 'Butt tripped the "dirty word" filter on a number of corporate e-mail systems, so many of our readers never received issue 1336. For those who missed it, it's available online, along this issue and all of our back issues: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com FOUR OUT OF TEN PREFERRED MUSTO What did four out of the ten boats in the Louis Vuitton Cup and the America's Cup have in common? They all chose Musto Performance Clothing in their plight to win sailing's most prestigious trophy. Why did they choose Musto? Because the combination of lightweight and stretch fabrics with exceptional breathability and durability put Musto at the front of the fleet. And unlike most AC technology, the Hula for example, it's available to you, today, at your nearest Musto stockist (you don't have to have an IACC boat to qualify!). http://www.musto.co.uk SIR PETER JOHNSON On Saturday May 24th Sir Peter Johnson died in his Lymington Hampshire, home after a long battle against cancer. Johnson was a leading figure in the world of yacht racing and held a number of senior posts in clubs and organisations, playing strong roles in the yacht rating development, and establishing the World Speed Sailing Record Council. He was a prominent journalist and yachting historian, contributing thousands of articles to the leading sailing journals, and wrote 15 books on yachting. In 1976 he became the 7th Baronet of New York, an inherited title that was established in 1755. LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON (editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com) (Letters selected for publication must include the writer's name and may be edited for clarity or space - 250 words max. This is not a chat room or a bulletin board - you only get one letter per subject, so give it your best shot and don't whine if others disagree.) * From Nigel Cherrie (re "The Brits seem to be doing something right at the SPA Regatta): They are a group of amazingly talented sailors with a system (the RYA) that helps them achieve the best of their abilities. * From Brad Ruetenik: (re the Brits doing so well in all the classes at SPA): Don't you think maybe it has to do with Briton's extensive sailing in small boats. We certainly don't have that type of system in place here in the US. Here everyone just gets on Big Lead mines, you don't learn to sail very effectivly or effecintly on those things. Maybe we should emphasize and support the dinghy parks a bit more. * From Kimberly Birkenfeld (edited to our 250-word limit): Congratulations to Team GB for showing so well at SPA, which is traditionally a very challenging and cold regatta! The success witnessed at SPA is certainly not just based on a familiarity with and a propensity for training in cold and rainy weather like that often experienced in the UK and Holland - neighbors across the stormy English Channel/North Sea. This success can largely be attributed to adequate training funds allocated from the UK National Lottery fund to worthy Olympic hopefuls. A few years back, while working in London, I had corporate business dealings with the British Olympic Association. I had opportunity to observe how "World Class Performance Programmes" are nurtured with large support from the National Lottery. During my travels as a US Olympic hopeful, this knowledge was further augmented from discussions with British friends during regattas. Yes, the Brits are doing many things right in the stated objective to earn Olympic medals for their nation, which can in turn lend itself to a boost in nationalistic pride and morale. Is an Olympic program the right place for government funds to be allocated? I don't know, I'll let you decide. However, at least they are achieving success in their stated objective! Of course, living on an island has got to help with developing sailing skills too! Check out how organized the British Olympic effort is at these websites: UK Sport: http://www.uksport.gov.uk Royal Yachting Association: http://www.rya.org.uk/Racing/Olympic/ British Olympic Association (Sailing Pages): http://www.olympics.org.uk/sports/summer/sailing.asp * From Ted Beier: Friday's issue had a number of items deserving comment other than the origins of our favorite four-letter word. The UKs success in Olympic sailing, much of the answer is in the level of funding. Fred Hagadorn can provide more detail, but I suspect if the US spent as much preparing their sailing team as the UK does, our success would improve proportionately. A major advantage that Great America II has over Sea Witch is the availability of 21st century weather forcasting and routing along with internet communications. All the Sea Witch had would have been Lt. Matthew Maury's "Explanations and Sailing Directions to Accompany the Wind and Current Charts". The charts were his as well. The evolution of weather routing with Maury's information as an origin would make quite a lesson for the schools with whom Great America communicates. Looks like New Zealand did not learn the lesson about the devastating effects of dithering over decisive action. This time, looks like they will be loosing their sponsors instead of their top sailors. * From Barry Auger: To give credit where due: Jonathan McKee is truly an amazing sailor and he comes by it honestly. In the early 1970's we were all campaigning Solings up and down I-5 from Vancouver to San Diego and poits East. We would often see Jonathan and his brother Charlie, together with their dad, enthusiastically sailing their Soling, and winning... even then. They were both runny-nosed little kids, always with a smile on their faces and there was their dad making it all happen. I hope he's as proud as he should be: he gets a pocket full of points from me for what he did with those kids. * From Andy Rose: I was very sorry to hear of Noel Robins death. I was honored to be his tactician in the 1977 America's Cup and have seen him "around the waterfront" a number of times since then. He was a great guy and a great sailor. One story I'll always remember which says a lot about Noel. As many know, the tow out to the America's Cup course in Newport, Rhode Island (the good ole days) was a long one. Going out to that first race in '77 our usually talkative and funny crew was pretty much silent with all of us huddled down below thinking our own thoughts and dealing with nerves. Finally we break out into the protected starting area and still no one has said anything until Noel very quietly asks, "so, what do you guys do for fun?" Needless to say, the tension eased considerably after the laughs that followed. I will miss Noel a lot. * From Howard W. Macken: Hear, hear for Commodore's Fortenbaugh comments re drinking. One of the reasons I stopped racing and got out of the sailing industry, was because of some of the really obnoxious "yachtsmen" one had to deal with, especially when sailing and drinking mixed. The BS is bad enough, but when it is mixed with alcohol.... well you know! I took up amateur sports car racing, where there is no drinking until the last checked flag of the day is dropped, that goes for everyone involved. CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATION As you get older, your back goes out more than you do. |
