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SCUTTLEBUTT 2857 - Wednesday, June 3, 2009Scuttlebutt 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. Twitter updates: http://twitter.com/scuttbutt Today's sponsors are Melges Performance Sailboats and MyBoatsGear.com. SOMETIMES IT TAKES LOSING TO GET BETTER (June 2, 2009) During their last three international regattas, Americans Erin Maxwell and Isabelle Kinsolving have been steady contenders on the Olympic 470 women's scene: First at the 2008 Worlds, second at the 2009 Miami Olympic Classes Regatta, and last week they were third at the 2009 Delta Lloyd Regatta. However, it was at the U.S. Trials for the 2008 Olympics where they failed to advance. Scuttlebutt checked in with Erin to learn what wrong then, what is going right now, and to get her insight into women’s sailing in the U.S. * Have you analyzed what went wrong at the Trials? ERIN MAXWELL: “It is hard to pinpoint any one thing that caused us to fall short at the Trials in '07. “We had trained incredibly hard with all of our hearts every day leading up the event, had been performing really well in practice against top international teams, were in great physical shape, had a boat that was finely tuned, a great coach, great team dynamic, I could go on… “But, I can say one thing with certainty, Amanda Clark and Sarah Mergenthaler, who came up the winners, sailed an amazing event. It was probably the best I have ever seen them sail. People have asked me if I regret not sailing full-time sooner before the Trials and if I thought the outcome would have been different if we had trained as a team for longer before the Trials. But, I think the result at the Trials would likely have been the same. We sailed a good regatta, I wouldn't say it was our best, but we sailed well. It just turned out that the Trials was "their event," and not ours. “There were definitely things about our performance that could have been improved that would have gotten us closer to a win. I think Amanda and Sarah had a better understanding of determining the large persistent shift on windward legs than us. And, our risk management skills could have been better during the event. I think to some extent, it took losing the Trials and reliving each race in our heads in the months following to really fully appreciate the risk/reward of some tactical situations. We are better racers today because of it.” -- Read on: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/09/0602 ST.MARY’S RETAINS LEAD AT COLLEGE NATIONALS San Francisco, CA (June 2, 2009) - While there was only a slight improvement in the air temperature at the 2009 ICSA/Gill National Championship, the competition certainly heated up on day two of racing for this championship title. After eight races were sailed by both A- and B-Division on day one, St. Mary’s College (St. Mary’s, Md.) had ascended to the top of the leader-board with a 27-point cushion over second-placed Georgetown University (Washington, D.C.). Over the course of the six races sailed by each division today, the overall lead made a dizzying swing back and forth between St. Mary’s and Yale University (New Haven, Conn.) before settling back on St. Mary’s. As both the breeze and current picked up, Yale dominated A-Division under the focus of junior skipper Thomas Barrows (St. Thomas, USVI), as he alternated crew between sophomore Blair Belling (Newport Beach, Calif.) and junior Marla Menninger (Newport Beach, Calif.), to take the top spot in that fleet with a total of 54 points after 14 races. St. Mary’s junior skipper Jesse Kirkland (Warwick, Bermuda), posted his first double-digit finish of the series in the second race of the day, and while rotating crew between sophomores Madeline Jackson (Bainbridge Island, Wash.) and Megan Magill (San Diego, Calif.) and junior Mike Kuschner (San Francisco, Calif.) kept the pressure on Yale to place St. Mary’s second in A-Division with 69 points. -- Read on: http://2009icsa.blogspot.com/2009/06/st.html Standings after 14 complete sets: 1. St. Mary's College, 130 points (A-2, B-1) 2. Yale University, 137 (A-1, B-3) 3. Georgetown University, 184 (A-4, B-2) 4. Old Dominion University, 204 (A-3, B-6) 5. Roger Williams University, 245 (A-16, B-4) Complete results: http://www.collegesailing.org/nas/spring09/coedresults.asp Event website: http://www.collegesailing.org/nas/spring09 SailGroove video: http://www.sailgroove.org/sc/icsa2009spring Kattack tracking: http://americanregatta.com/regattas/2009/icsa * Noted sailing commentator Gary Jobson will produce a program on the ICSA/Gill National Championship for ESPNU set to air Saturday, June 20 at 3:00 p.m. and Wednesday, July 1 at 3:00 a.m. MELGES 32’S RACING WEST The International Melges 32 Class is racing west for many championship events this summer and fall. The Melges 32 National Championship will be at the California Yacht Club in Marina Del Rey (Los Angeles) this coming July. Then the Melges 32 fleet heads up to San Francisco Bay for the North American Championship in early September with Sausalito Yacht Club hosting this prestigious event. Then the fleet will race out of St. Francis for the Rolex Big Boat Series later that month. Great West Coast Racing! For more information please go to http://www.melges32.com DAMIAN FOXALL: PROUD DRAGON "I think on every front, it's been above and beyond everyone's expectations," says (Green Dragon crewman) Damian Foxall, a note of pride in his voice. He's speaking about the (Volvo Ocean Race) success of a Galway (Ireland) stopover that has seen 115,000 people stream through the stopover village at the Docks over the past weekend, along with nearly 200,000 others lining the waterfront along Salthill and Barna over the bank holiday. "It's been great," he continues, fresh off giving yet another tour of the Green Dragon boat to some friends of the team. "I grew up on the west coast of Ireland and started sailing almost straight away - whether it was windsurfing or in dinghies. But it wasn't until I got away that I realised the potential of yachting and the sailing industry as a profession.” -- Read on: http://tinyurl.com/VOR-6-2-09 * VOLVO OCEAN RACE: Began in Alicante, Spain on Oct. 4, 2008, crewed around the world race in VO 70’s, with ten distance legs and seven In-Port races. Finish is in St Petersburg, Russia on June 27th. The next event is Leg 8 from Galway to Marstrand, Sweden (950 miles), which starts on Saturday, June 6th and is expected to finish by June 10th. -- http://www.volvooceanrace.org/schedule/ Event website: http://www.volvooceanrace.org Race tracking: http://volvooceanrace.geovoile.com Overall scores: http://www.volvooceanrace.org/rdc/#tab4 REGATTA DEBRIEF: BOATU.S. SANTA MARIA CUP Genny Tulloch, currently ranked as the top women’s match racing skipper on the US SAILING Team Alphagraphics, provides a recap from last week’s ISAF Grade 1 BoatU.S. Santa Maria Cup women’s match race event: “The Santa Maria Cup in Annapolis was unfortunately not shined upon by the wind gods, and we had four light air days where the breezes were fighting with each other rather than cooperating on our behalf. Sadly I had caught a pretty bad cold on the flight to Annapolis, so while many of the other teams were sunbathing in bikinis, I was still in a jacket, sneezing anytime a zephyr of 2 knots came through. “We knew the weather was bad when we were told Thursday night (after 2 days) that the Santa Maria Cup had never been this far behind in races before, and then we went out and were only able to get one race the next day. We finally finished the first round robin, racing its final race on Saturday, which left us ranked second on a tie-break, as we had beaten both Katie Spithill (last year’s Match Racing World Champion), and Liz Baylis (last year’s second place in World Champs) in the round robin races. “The breeze then died again and we sat out there for about 6 hours as our Northerly gradient fought the Southerly seabreeze, neither one staying long enough to actually get a start off for our semi-finals, though the other match raced one race with three different 180 degree shifts—kites up on the downwind, then sailing upwind on the downwind leg and kites back up for the upwind leg, etc. We were happy not to have raced in that. They finally moved us straight to the finals matches at four, so we were up against Claire Leroy (currently ISAF ranked #1 Women’s Match Racer) to see who would get the win.” -- Read on: http://getsailing.org/?p=195 DESERT GAL READY TO BRING IT There are as many ways to participate in the sport of sailing as there are boats ever made. One of the boats du jour on the Grand Prix racing scene is the TP52, and the 2008 Audi MedCup series champion Quantum Racing is hosting a contest this season to fill a crew position at their circuit event in Portimao, Portugal. To win, contestants will be submitting written or video essays on why they deserve to be onboard. Here is an early entry: “So, you are looking for crew? Can you handle having a desert sailor chick on the boat? That's right, desert! As a member of the Arizona Yacht Club, (no really, Arizona Yacht Club!), my first season of skippering in the local Merit 25 fleet saw that I won the class back to back (fall/spring), beating the pants off all the boys. Not too shabby for a sailor chick! “I've raced everything from Lasers to Olson 40's. Lately I've been crewing on a Viper, locally, regionally, and nationally. I'm not talking about lying around on deck sipping drinks and catching rays either, I'm talking about working hard, staying focused and making things happen. “From the pointy end to the helm, I take care of business! That's why I get called back time and time again. I've even delivered a J 35 up the coast from Los Angeles to San Francisco, just for the fun of it! So, fast and wet is the norm for me, and it's what keeps me smiling. Our first trip to the San Diego NOODs on the Viper this last spring brought us a win there. Again, not too shabby for a chick from the desert! “Banging around the cans is not the only kind of racing that I've done. I have been involved in plenty of Southern Cal coastal racing too. It's those fast, wet, fun boats that have me hooked though, no matter what the conditions are, I'M ALWAYS READY TO GO!! “So now you have to ask yourselves, are you ready for a hot young sailor chick that'll hang with the boys and then some? Or are you going to leave me on the dock along with your big boy pants? Man up and pick the chick that can run any spot on the boat, anytime, anywhere!” Contest details: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=7596 ETHANOL CONCERNS With concerns about the levels of Ethanol in fuel for boaters we take a look at what Ethanol and E 10 gas means for you. There is a move afoot to increase ethanol levels to 15% which would not be good as engines and Fuel systems will not cope without modification. To learn more about Ethanol and boating, click here: http://myboatsgear.com/newsletter/2007620.asp SAILING SHORTS * Genmar Holdings, the second-largest boatbuilder in the US, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Monday. A petition filed in the US Bankruptcy Court in Minnesota listed the assets of the company as US$237.5m, with liabilities of US$216.5m. -- IBI Magazine, read on: http://www.ibinews.com/ibinews/newsdesk/20090502030728ibinews.html * Tabarly, a profound film on a life spent at sea, will screen at the Newport International Film Festival on Sunday, June 7 at 7:30 pm. Pierre Marcel’s new documentary Tabarly (France) is a moving portrait of Éric Tabarly, one of the greatest, most innovative yachtsmen in the history of sailing, whose humility and soft-spoken nature belied his passion for competition and the rigors of a life at sea. -- Details: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=7623 * Bonnier Corp announced that it had acquired Boating magazine, as well as four other specialty magazines, from Hachette Filipacchi Media US. Bonnier Corp is the US division of the Bonnier Group, which is based in Sweden. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. With the acquisition, Bonnier will now own 19 magazines that cover boating, fishing and other water sports, which includes Sailing World. The news follows the recent announcement that Source Interlink Media, publisher of Boating's two biggest rivals, Sail and Power & Motor Yacht magazines, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in May. -- IBI Magazine, full story: http://www.ibinews.com/ibinews/newsdesk/20090502142303ibinews.html * Michael Vorce, a Michigan boat broker who allegedly defrauded banks of US$27m for phantom boat purchases, has decided to plead guilty to criminal charges rather than going to trial. The Grand Rapids Press reported that Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy VerHey filed new papers noting the change in Vorce's plea. -- IBI Magazine, read on: http://www.ibinews.com/ibinews/newsdesk/20090502144418ibinews.html * A Frenchman trying to row from Cape Cod, Mass., to his home country failed for the third time in his quest - and cost U.S. taxpayers about $80,000 in the process. -- Trade Only, read on: http://tinyurl.com/Trade-6-2-09 * Gyeonggi, South Korea (June 2, 2009) - In an unprecedented quick turnaround, competitors, coaches, and organizers alike have all boarded planes immediately following Monday’s exciting conclusion to Match Race Germany to fly halfway around the world to South Korea, the site of Stage Three of the World Match Racing Tour. With just hours between landing at Incheon, boarding buses to Hwaseong City, and getting in an hour or two of practice, racing will begin tomorrow among the 12 teams assembled to take their share of the 300,000,000 Won (US$ 240,000) prize money purse at the Korea Match Cup. -- Read on: http://www.worldmatchracingtour.com/da/98198 EIGHT BELLS Richard "Skipper Dick" Elliott passed away peacefully Saturday May 30th after dealing with Parkinsons and Dementia. We are grateful he did not suffer for any length of time. His yachting adventures started at a very young age, spending his summers aboard the family yacht, Julio, between Cherry Cove and Avalon at Catalina Island. His passion for sailing continued throughout his life, competing in several Transpacs - including the 1989 race in the inaugural Cruising Class Division - and Mexican races. His favorite yacht was his 60-foot motorsailer, "Jamboree", which cruised the Pacific Northwest and Baja several times. His finest hour with Jamboree was his decision in 1995 to re-visit every island and battle area he had seen while aboard the Destroyer, USS Mugford during WWII. Departing in January, and arriving in Nagasaki, Japan, mid May, celebrating the 50 year anniversary of the end of the war with Japan. Skipper Dick will be missed by many who had the opportunity to go offshore with him. -- Kirk Elliott TAKING ON THE PLASTIC VORTEX Sitting in the North Pacific Ocean, just north east of Hawaii, lays a veritable garbage patch, estimated to be twice the size of Texas. Its contents are as varied as the people and nations from where the stuff has traveled, including plastic bags, to fishing nets, to tires, to discarded kids toys, unbelievable numbers of plastic bags, hundreds of odd flip flops, tennis shoes and the list continues. The area is known by several names - the Plastic Vortex, the Eighth Continent, the Great Garbage Patch, yet it's surprising how little people know of the issue and the devastating threat it poses to our oceans. Mary Crowley, who has owned the Sausalito-based business Ocean Ventures for 30 years, plans to take on the Plastic Vortex this summer through Project Kaisei, a not-for-profit group she has organized. -- Marin Independent Journal, read on: http://www.marinij.com/sports/ci_12492451 VOLVO YOUTH SAILING ISAF WORLD CHAMPS Here is the latest tally for the Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship, the elite event for youth sailors under the age of 19 years in 2009, to be held July 9-18 in Buzios, Brazil: 283 sailors 208 boats 97 coaches 59 nations 9 International Race Officials All boats are supplied. The seven classes are: Boy’s One Person Dinghy - Laser Radial Girl’s One Person Dinghy - Laser Radial Boy’s Two Person Dinghy - 420 Girl’s Two Person Dinghy - 420 Boy’s Windsurfer - RS:X with 8.5m2 sail & 60cm fin Girl’s Windsurfer - RS:X with 8.5m2 sail & 60cm fin Open Multihull - Hobie 16 with Spinnaker Event website: http://www.youthworlds2009.org PASSING ON A TRADITION (Newport, RI) - Matthew Barnes’s love for the sailing life is tattooed into his skin, with the latitude and longitude of his home port at Connecticut’s Thimble Islands on his forearm. He knows in this struggling economy there is a shrinking demand for the boats he builds, but he says his decision to study at the International Yacht Restoration School was not motivated only by finances. "I want to be happy in 40 years with what I’m doing, regardless of the pay," he said as he took a break from restoring an old Beetle Cat, a small New England-style sailboat. "I can wake up every day and be proud of what I’m doing and pass a tradition on, which is dying, and I can be part of the historical community of boatbuilders in this area." -- Boston Herald, read on: http://tinyurl.com/BH-6-2-09 CURMUDGEON’S OBSERVATION On anniversaries, the wise husband always forgets the past but never the present. Special thanks to Melges Performance Sailboats and MyBoatsGear.com. Preferred supplier list: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/ssc/suppliers |
