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SCUTTLEBUTT 2615 – June 11, 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. THE BUSINESS OF YACHT RACING Bruno Trouble's name is intimately linked with the business of yacht racing. Founder of the Louis Vuitton Cup and organiser of the event for many years, Troublé has seen the business of yacht racing grow to become the third highest recipient of European sports sponsorship spending. * What are the main assets of sailing as a top level sport? TROUBLE: For me, sailing means freedom (no yellow lines), elegance, purity (by opposition to pollution), travels (that’s why Louis Vuitton is there), responsibility and team work. You need to understand that just five generations back, the only link between the continents – to deliver love letters or a declaration of war – was a sailing boat. We all have this somehow in our soul, whether we are sailors or not. * How do you consider the current state of our favorite sport? TROUBLE: Our sport suffers from its huge complexity and variety. There are as many world champions as participants! The public just can’t understand it, and the abundance of trophies increases year after year. We need to bring some order back; otherwise the media will just get tired of sailing. * What should be done to help promote our sport? TROUBLE: There should only be one world championship per discipline: Men’s dinghies / keelboats Women’s dinghies / keelboats Multihull Cruise-racers Offshore And perhaps a yearly Nations Cup with one boat per country in each discipline. And an America’s Cup every 3-4 years. =>>> In December 2008, the Principality of Monaco will be the venue for the first dedicated yacht racing business forum to debate and discuss the important issues critical to its future. Key topics will include broadcasting, successful race management, sponsorship value, composite technology, event management, safety, telecommunications, media exposure and much more. -- Details: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/08/0605a GUEST COMMENTARY – US SAILING MEMBERSHIP by Chris Welsh, Owner, 65-foot Ragtime Sadly, I don't believe it is possible for a non-representative national entity with a monopoly position to do the right thing in a politically correct era. The institution evolves into one of insiders, detached from the populace; there is no force of competition to stay the course, and correctness and a lack of juevos drives the organization to the fringe of what the average guy wants. Top that off with an organization where the hired staff tends to outlast the governing board and the problem intensifies, even with the best of intentions. US SAILING'S best measure of their success would be to keep membership voluntary, as they will get undeniable checkbook feedback every year as to whether they are serving their population well enough. Looking at the website description of the value US SAILING wants us to see is an exercise in how they are not delivering - if you have to convince people of the value, you are delivering the wrong package of goods and benefits. Mandatory anything is a sure sign that the content is not worth the price. So what's the solution? Here is my list: 1. Discourage rather than encourage judging at regional events, thereby lowering the cost of those events. This has been a disaster for regatta cost inflation, and to me, solely driven by a competition of YC's to have the "best" event, as measured by metrics like judges that the competitors and participants don't care about. The paperwork and bureaucracy of the sport continually grows, while the fun factor gets left behind. Reinforce the Elvstrom approach of avoiding the protest hearing. Read on: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/08/0609 HIGH SCHOOL SAILORS LEAVING LEGACY BEHIND Yarmouth, MA - The four high school boys who had the vision of a competitive sailing program for the Dennis-Yarmouth school district are graduating and leaving the now-successful program behind them. Ryan Lotti, Sam Lowell, Lathan Diog, and John Work all pushed for a sailing team in 2005 and thanks to the support of the Yarmouth Recreation Department (which supplied the boats) and Hyannis Yacht Club (which supplied the location), the program was launched that year. “All we did was practice that first year,” says Michael Lotti, the D-Y sailing club director. “We scrimmaged with Nauset and Barnstable a couple of times that year,” adding that there weren’t enough members to form an official team. The program has expanded from five team members in 2005 to 13 this year, but Lotti says the focus now is to recruit new sailors and continue fundraising efforts for the club. -- Read on: http://www.wickedlocal.com/yarmouth/news/x101655619/Sailing-on NO BIGGER BUZZ RIGHT NOW THAN IN NEWPORT The mad scramble for replacement gear at events is the dread of all sailors. To facilitate those last minute needs, Team One Newport has longer hours this weekend for the New York YC Annual Regatta on Friday (9a-7p) and Saturday (8am-8pm). The following weekend is the Newport Bermuda Race, with shoppers welcome on Thursday (10am-8pm) and for the start on Friday (open at 8am). All the Team One Newport reps will be in town for Bermuda, so come by the store and enjoy the “boat show” buzz. Also, be sure to cruise through town and get ‘Harpooned by the Atlantis Girls’ … trust us, it’s a good thing. – http://www.team1newport.com OLYMPIC COUNTDOWN: 59 DAYS TO GO * (June 10, 2008) The fleet at the 2008 ISAF Grade C1 470 Europeans on Lake Garda woke up early to get caught up on the race schedule, but the 9am planned start time was not in synch with the weather, robbing the 119 boats, 86 men and 33 women, of some valuable sleep time as they waited for the wind to develop. Americans Amanda Clark and Sarah Mergenthaler remain in the lead after three days, though they had a rougher go of it today with a 3-20-15. Qualifying has completed for the men, with top North Americans Stu McNay/ Graham Biehl making it into the Gold division in 27th place. Racing continues through to the Medal race on Sunday. -- Results: http://abe5.com/4v1 McNay/Biehl website: http://blog.teammb.org/?p=40 * From American Laser rep Andrew Campbell: “’Classic Caberete.’ Those are the words out of the local’s mouths when we come in off the water each day here on the north shore of the Dominican Republic…. ‘Classic Cab!’ The forecast looks like groundhog day: hot 88 degrees of air temp, 80 degrees of water temp, mostly to completely sunny, light easterlies before eleven o’clock, smoking south-easterlies from one o’clock to six followed by a possible shower. What does that mean for us? The training group Raul Aguayo (going to his first Olympics, one of 24 athletes from the Dominican Republic), Dave Wright (Canadian Sailing Team member and training partner leading into my trials in Newport), and our local host and masters sailor Ari Barshi leaves the beach around eight o’clock in the morning to get the light air and lump left over from the previous day’s breeze. We drill with coach Rulo upwind, downwind, and around the buoys for about three and a half hours and hit the beach for lunch at the sailing center around noon. After a bit of debriefing and talk about how the day went, we generally rig up the windsurfers and blast around in the afternoon breeze until we can no longer stand up and then head back to the apartment for recovery.” -- http://campbellsailing.com/index.php/2008/06/09/classic-caberete/ * American 49er reps Tim Wadlow and Chris Rast are back in Qingdao, China training everyday in preparation for the Olympic Games. Despite their boats being stuck in customs, they have been able to borrow the Canadians boat and the German's mast, and have been on the water working closely with their training partners from Germany. They have put together a very interesting slide show of life off the water: http://tinyurl.com/3jdhez * A countdown feature is on the Scuttlebutt website homepage from now until the first race begins at the 2008 Olympic Summer Games on August 9th. -- http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com EMERGENCY FLASHLIGHT SAVES COLLEGE CREW Sometimes the smallest things mean the most. For Steven Conway, during the 610-mile Regata de Amigos from Galveston to Veracruz, Mexico, that turned out to be an inexpensive emergency flashlight that could be attached to a life vest. He bought it at local sporting goods store. Not likely to really need it, but you never know when a waterproof light might come in handy. Then the keel fell off his boat Friday night and five guys suddenly were floating together in the Gulf of Mexico — five little dots bobbing in the water, all but invisible from an airplane or helicopter. Unless it's night, and there's intermittent blinking coming from the general vicinity of a capsized sailboat. Conway's little light helped U.S. Coast Guard rescuers spot the group early Sunday morning. Soon they were safely aboard a helicopter heading back to Galveston, all save Roger Stone, whose dedication to getting two students out from under a capsizing boat ultimately cost him his own life. As survivors, family, friends, fellow mariners and many of those connected to the extended Texas A&M family paused Monday to remember Stone and his heroic final acts, the school itself began looking for answers to the tragedy. -- Houston Chronicle, read on: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/hotstories/5828457.html *A funeral service for Roger Stone will be held on Thursday, June 12th at Clear Lake United Methodist Church at 5:00 PM. The address for the church is: 16335 El Camino Real, Houston, TX 77062. SAILING SHORTS * Cannigione, Sardinia (June 10, 2008) - The second day of the J/24 World Championship saw a steady easterly blowing 18 knots for the 76 boat fleet, with American Mark Hillman dominating the day with two first place finishes. However, not to be too outdone, Britain’s Malev Rossi rolled two deuces to become the new event leader. It was a day of doubles, with current World Champion Maurico Santa Cruz’s two sevenths moving him up to second overall, with Hillman in third. -- Daily report: http://tinyurl.com/4atd5n Results: http://tinyurl.com/5t7ojw * After validation at 35 knots of the high speed foiling trimaran, the 'Hydroptère team decided to do a complete verification of the boat and an analysis of all data recorded while sailing before further pursuing the 50 knot speed barrier. In order to get even more accurate measurements, load pins are being installed in the winches to measure the strain recorded by the mainsheet traveller’s winches and to know the stress exerted on the sails. Additional video cameras are also being installed on the mast. Following this, the team will move to Port-Saint-Louis-du-Rhône to begin speed trials. -- http://www.hydroptere.com/_en/ * A French company has taken about 1018 NOAA raster nautical charts (RNC/BSB/KAP format) and merged them with Google Maps to enable online viewing. -- http://demo.geogarage.com/noaa/ * The Waterfront Challenge is a national competition to encourage people who care about their local waterfront, to improve their local waterfront. The Challenge is designed for any group of three or more people who want to spend a minimum of two days of their lives improving their local waterfront and encouraging others to do the same. Projects should be new, and make some part of your waterfront an environmentally better place. Seven regional awards of $5,000 each will be presented, along with a separate grand prize of $25,000. -- http://www.wfchallenge.com * BoatU.S. Foundation's Environmental Leadership Award recognizes a group, organization, company, marina or individual who has made a significant contribution towards advancing clean boating and educating boaters on minimizing their environmental impact. The deadline for nominations is June 30, 2008 and the award includes $1000 for the continued support of the winner's environmental efforts. – Details at http://www.boatus.com/news/releases/2008/june/award.asp COMING SOON TO A RACE NEAR YOU Whether you’re in the Mediterranean, Newport, or in the middle of the ocean, you’ll be seeing a Goetz-built boat. PUMA’s new Volvo 70, Il Mostro, will be prowling the waves at the NYYC Annual Regatta and the Newport-Bermuda Race this month while preparing for the upcoming VOR. Platoon, the recently launched TP52 helmed by Jochen Schumann, has already begun a successful season on the MedCup circuit, and looks to build on her promising start. Stay tuned to http://www.goetzboats.com for updates on these two speedsters, along with information on the ongoing builds of an 85-foot European racer by Reichel-Pugh and an 82-foot fast cruiser from Rogers Yacht Design. 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 Brendan Lowry, New Zealand: A number of comments you have printed, in reference to the two parties involved in the latest dispute over the America's Cup, describe the antagonists as spoilt rich kids upset at not getting their way or words to similar effect. Just because someone is rich, does not mean any argument they have lacks legitimacy. I often feel annoyed at these comments, as in my opinion, Larry Ellison (owner of BMW Oracle Racing) stood up to bullying. Wherever bullying takes place, whether it be at school, in the workplace, or in sport, it is great to see someone stand up to it. * From Ralph Taylor: (Re: Gregory Scott’s article in ‘Butt # 2614) If the Canadian Yachting Association is really collecting only $10 per year per (reported) member, this is considerably less than US SAILING annual dues. Despite the collection system having the leaks he describes, perhaps the organization is more efficient – doing the same or more with less. Or, could it be that lower dues produce greater income? * From Andrew Besheer: Ever have the feeling that you were watching a train wreck or car accident happening in slow motion and there was nothing you could do about it? That is surely what it feels like watching President Jim Capron drive over a cliff towing US SAILING behind him. Jim, I’ve been a member since the days of the NAYRU and will remain a member long after this silliness has passed and it certainly won’t be because you’ve made it mandatory. Honestly, the fact that you would seek to make something “mandatory” seems to show a lack of understanding of the psychological makeup of your typical constituent. Have you ever noticed how much we Americans hate anything that’s mandatory? God forbid we should ever see Uncle Sam try to reinstate the draft, but even with the near certainty of being sent into harm’s way the all volunteer military finds the manpower that they need. Ever notice how American’s rail against death and taxes…the two “mandatory” things that no one’s discovered a reliable way of avoiding yet. Ask any wage slave about the “Sunday evening blues” as their weekend draws to an end – they may love their job, it may be very fulfilling but for most of us, it’s still “mandatory. Jim, you still have time to make this fiasco go away. Shame folks, sell folks, educate folks…do the tried and true things that American’s have always responded to but for heaven’s sake don’t do the one thing that’s guaranteed to set folks on a totally contrary path! * From Ralph Pombo: (edited to the 250-word limit) I have also been watching the discussion on mandatory membership in USSA with interest. In my mind, it always comes down to free will and free enterprise in regards to any subject within the United States, and in the end, this too will all be summarized into one question: What does US Sailing give me in return for my investment? I know, I know, this has been listed out in detail several times by USSA. The problem is that if it needs to be listed or if the question even has to be asked then the product, in this case a US Sailing membership, is failing to give the customer what he/she needs. Does Walmart need to list out why you should shop there? No! I wonder why people flock to the store then? Maybe they are giving the general public what they are looking for. If a new store offered a better product for a cheaper or equal price, would you go there? I think that most people would. The benefits should be so obvious to future members of the USSA that no one would ever question the value of a membership. If USSA continues at this pace without being aware of the simplicity of marketing, then they will die off and another organization will take its place. It is really just that simple. I have been a proud USSA member for several years, but this proposal should be looked at much closer before implementation. * From Frank Lawson, Port Ludlow WA: I wonder if US SAILING is in financial difficulty and wants to gain income through a larger membership. I say this because last week I went to the US SAILING website to acquire the 2008 PHRF Ratings handbook. Price? ONE HUNDRED AND SIXTY DOLLARS!! I declined the offer. * From Roger Marshall, U.S. Editor, The Yacht Report: (Re: Butch Ulmer's comments in #2612) Maybe we can kill two birds with one stone. When rule changes are promulgated, USSA could and should promote the changes more heavily with clinics and classes for members at major boatshows and at pre-regatta events. If USSA wants more members it needs to get out, or get spokesmen out, on the race course and boatshow circuit where they can be seen and heard and can demonstrate that USSA fills a need and has benefits to membership. We all know about USSA, but very few people can tell you accurately what USSA does or how the sport benefits from their participation. CURMUDGEON’S OBSERVATION You know you live in the 21st Century when every commercial on television has a website at the bottom of the screen. Special thanks to Team One Newport and Goetz Custom Boats. A complete list of preferred suppliers is at http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/ssc/suppliers |
