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SCUTTLEBUTT 1813 - April 8, 2005
Scuttlebutt is a digest 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, whining and personal
attacks for elsewhere.
APATHY AXES ADMIRAL'S CUP
The Admiral's Cup, the famous and long-established Cowes-based series, has
been cancelled due to lack of interest. The Royal Ocean Racing Club chose
to make a decision now rather than delay until entries formally closed on
May 3. By yesterday only Australia and Britain had challenged the move.
Ireland had three boats ready to race but hit sponsorship problems, and the
chances of additional countries fielding a three-boat team were slim.
The Admiral's Cup was created in 1957 and became one of the world's great
regattas, distinctive in its combination of inshore Solent racing with
offshore events in a three-boat, national team format. The Cup has been in
a prolonged decline since its Seventies heyday, when there were three
series with 19 teams, and culminated in the cancellation of the 2001 Cup
while the competition's format was changed. - Ernest Gardner, The Daily
Telegraph, complete story: http://tinyurl.com/42ovz
WHAT ABOUT THE FUTURE?
Now that the Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) has canceled this year's
Admiral's Cup, what about the future? The RORC website reports, "As one of
the stakeholder partners in the Rule Working Party (RWP) to develop the new
Grand Prix Rule for international yachting events, the RORC sees the
development of the new Rule as fundamental to the staging of a successful
Admiral's Cup series and other similar style events internationally."
Commenting on the decision to cancel the 2005 Admiral's Cup, Chris Little,
Commodore of the RORC, said, "…we shall continue to discuss the new Grand
Prix Rule vigorously with the ORC and others to ensure there is a clearer
and more competitive rule for the Admiral's Cup in years to come. I am sure
that a revitalized Admiral's Cup will be possible under a new Rule and I
look forward to seeing our many international friends back racing in the
Solent for this famous trophy." - www.rorc.org
MEANWHILE IN THE US - DUELING RULES
Yes, IRC how has a firm footing in the U.S., but don't think you've heard
the last of Americap. This home-grown, mid-level rule's proponents argue
that it was making slow, steady progress even without effective marketing
on the part of US Sailing, and they have formed a nonprofit they hope will
take over development, promotion, and race management training.
Administration stays with US Sailing, where new Offshore Committee Chair
Bill Lee is aboard as a proponent of velocity prediction program (VPP)
based rules. Lee's career is intertwined with transpacific racing; he also
helped develop the Transpac 52 box rule, a very different animal from Americap.
The squabble stems from dissatisfaction with the IMS ("deserves to be
curtailed," says Teeters) and a lack of agreement over the best way
forward. A number of the clubs that led the way to bringing IRC to the U.S.
from abroad first led the way to experimenting with Americap. They've since
come to see IRC as a viable, already-worldwide rule with an existing
constituency, and they ask, why not go with something that's working. Their
collective experience with Americap did not compel them to any other
conclusion. Americap supporters counter that it will do a better job of
accounting for variables, stability in particular. - Kimball Livingston,
Sail magazine website, full story: http://sailmag.com/duelingrules/
ANOTHER RULE
Storm Trysail Club (STC) Commodore Rich du Moulin announced that the Storm
Trysail Club has set in motion the creation of a set of rules and bylaws to
launch a new "Storm Trysail 65" box rule class. "The boat will be along the
lines of the very popular Transpac 52 in style yet will have a bit more
offshore friendliness," said du Moulin, who added that "speed and safety"
is the club's motto in the planning of this new craft. "There is a very
strong interest, especially among big boat owners in the northeastern
United States, for a boat that has similar performance characteristics to
the Transpac 52 but in a larger size. This box concept will reflect these
owners' wishes."
One clear directive from owners was to produce a high-performance boat with
tight enough parameters within the box rule to minimize quick obsolescence.
With this in mind, Storm Trysail member Bill Tripp has been appointed to
the Storm Trysail 65 Board as Technical Chairman. He will oversee a
Technical Committee of fellow well-known yacht designers, including Bruce
Nelson, Mark Mills, Jim Pugh and Jim Schmicker, to aid in creating the
blueprint to achieve the owners' wishes. The draft rules created by this
committee will then be circulated to a wide number of other designers and
experts for further review and comments.
From an administrative standpoint, STC board member Eric Kreuter has been
appointed Class Chairman and will serve to coordinate efforts between the
technical group and the owners while spreading the word with regard to this
new class. Kreuter is an active sailor and past commodore of the Riverside
Yacht Club who two years ago co-chaired the Race Committee for the 97-boat
Etchells World Championship. Finally, STC members Ken Read and Steve
Benjamin have been appointed to serve with du Moulin, Kreuter and Tripp on
the Storm Trysail 65 Board.
"Given that the Ocean Racing Council has announced three additional box
rules smaller than the 52, we decided to get in the game and help with a
box rule larger than the 52," said du Moulin. The Storm Trysail 65 will be
an IRC-friendly boat, so it can compete within its own class and also in
the tremendous number of IRC events planned in America and around the
world." The goal is for the rule to be written by early summer 2005, so
that any prospective owner has the chance to build a new boat to the rule
by the spring of 2006. Yachtsmen potentially interested in joining the
Storm Trysail 65 owners group and offering input to the technical committee
on the final box rule parameters, should contact Storm Trysail Club
Commodore Richard du Moulin (stormtry@aol.com) or any member of the Storm
Trysail 65 Board.
YALE CORDAGE STANDS BEHIND THE PROFESSIONALS
When Brian Fisher of RigPro/Southern Spars needed a custom double braid for
a customer, Yale built it with Dyneema core and an abrasion and
heat-resistant cover. When Jonathan McKee needed a torque-transmitting luff
rope to furl his Code Zero, Yale combined a Vectran core with a special
copolymer sleeve. When you need critical lines for your boat, where do you
go? Contact a Yale rigging professional and get the job done right. Yale
has supported the performance demands of racing sailors and rigging
professionals for years. Ask for Yale Cordage, and put the cordage
professionals on your team. http://www.yalecordage.com
SCHOLARSHIPS
Sailors from all across the world will be racing in Korea for the title of
Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Champion this July with many of them there
thanks to ISAF's Athlete Participation Programme (APP) - a development
program which assists sailors with funding to participate in specific ISAF
Championships. Introduced by ISAF three years ago, the APP aims to assist
athletes from developing sailing nations with Travel Costs and Entry Fees
for the ISAF World Sailing Games and Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World
Championship, as well as providing coaching expertise during the event.
Despite being in operation for only three years, the program has already
assisted almost one hundred sailors from every continent to attend the ISAF
Youth Sailing World Championship and the ISAF World Sailing Games.
The program is specifically targeted at sailors from nations new to the
ISAF Youth Sailing World Championship and the ISAF World Sailing Games and
in this area it already has a couple of successes in 2005. For the
forthcoming Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship 2005 in Busan,
Korea, APP funding has been offered to 21 sailors from eleven nations, a
significant percentage of the 200 or so who will be competing at the
Championship. In 2004 with a budget of £15,000 the APP helped 29 sailors
from 14 different nations attend the Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World
Championship in Poland. Last year, ISAF also introduced the Long Term
Funding Program to enable developing countries to plan, prepare and
participate in future Championships with the knowledge that funding would
be confirmed at least a year in advance. - ISAF website, full story:
http://www.sailing.org/default.asp?ID=j1lFhyzvD
ON STAND BY
Moored just a short distance from the Statue of Liberty since Wednesday,
the Idec trimaran - preparing for a single-handed trans-Atlantic record
attempt - has been attracting a lot of attention from curious pedestrians
walking alongside the Manhattan Sailing Club Marina. Francis Joyon arrived
in New York without any hitch, bringing the boat here all by himself. For
the moment, the skipper is tidying things up on board, while on the
quayside, people are gathering to take a look at the big red trimaran. "I'm
surprised," Francis added, "as lots of people are coming to see me, and
clearly, they know about the boat." The official stand-by period will begin
as planned on the tenth of April, but for the moment, after talking things
over with his router, Jean-Yves Bernot, it would appear that it is unlikely
there will be a window of opportunity for the time being.
GLOBAL CHALLENGE
With four of the seven legs of the Global Challenge 2004 now nearing
completion thoughts are turning to the impact this leg will have on the
overall leaderboard. Although results are provisional at this stage - the
overall results table has produced some interesting analyses. Despite not
yet having won a leg, consistent performance has pushed BP Explorer into
the overall lead with 50 points, having relegated previous leading yacht BG
Spirit to 3rd place and 46 points. With another Southern Ocean win under
their belts, Duggie Gillespie and his team onboard Spirit of Sark have
moved from 4th to 2nd place with 48 points overall.
Overall Leaders: 1. BP Explorer, 50 points; 2. Spirit of Sark, 48; 3. BG
Spirit, 46; =4. Samsung, 41; =4. SAIC La Jolla, 41; 6. Barclays Adventurer,
38; 7. Me to You, 36; 8. Team Stelmar, 33. - www.globalchallenge2004.com/en/
CALENDAR OF MAJOR EVENTS (Sponsored by West Marine)
Events listed at http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/calendar
ORYX QUEST 2005
Doha 2006 is approaching the Strait of Hormuz, the final turning mark of a
long and varied course around the world. Despite their proximity to Doha
Brian Thompson is not giving a firm ETA. The weather is just too fickle to
attempt to nail down an exact time but it's likely to be Friday afternoon,
Qatar time. Or maybe Saturday morning. It all depends on the wind gods. For
now they have wind. That's the good news. The bad news is that once again
it is coming from the same direction they are trying to head, blowing
directly down the Strait, funneling between Oman and Iran.
At 0021 UTC Friday, Brian Thompson's Doha 2006 was 251 miles from the
finish and 1809 miles ahead of Tony Bullimore's Daedalus. - Brian Hancock,
www.oryxquest.com
STAR WESTERN HEMISPHERE CHAMPIONSHIP
Nassau YC, Bahamas - For those of you who have seen the movie "Groundhog
Day," that's what the weather feels like here in Nassau. It was another
perfect day with a bit more wind and a bit bigger waves. Today we ran
course #1 twice - triangle, windward, leeward. Unfortunately, the results
of races 3 & 4 were not posted at our distribution time. You might check:
http://www.nassauyachtclub.org/html/star1.htm
MIGHTY MO COMES TO MOTOR CITY
Ah, momentum. It's the unstoppable forward motion that occurs when people
click and technology works. It's why veteran Detroit sailmaker Al Declerq,
formerly UK Detroit, has joined the Doyle Sailmakers team as Doyle Detroit
(Tel: 586-790-7500). And it's why Doyle Sailmakers, with 50 lofts in 30
countries, is now the world's second-largest sailmaker. Why the growth?
Other sailmakers are starting to notice Doyle's proprietary
sail-engineering, sail design, sailcloth, and unbeatable commitment to
local service, and they want to be a part of it. We're ready to put our
momentum to work for you, too. Call us at 1-800-94-DOYLE;
http://www.doylesails.com
LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON
(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 nor a
bulletin board - you only get one letter per subject, so give it your best
shot and don't whine if others disagree.)
* From Clark Chapin: Gene McCarthy is a long-time friend, but we have
different perceptions of the action by the US Sailing Board. The central
concept of the proposed reorganization (previously endorsed by the Board)
is the transition from a legislative model to a business model. That is,
Board members will be nominated not for representing a specific
constituency (geographic, size of boat, or type of sailing activity) but
for their abilities and sailing experiences. The nominated Directors will
be elected not by the constituent representatives, but by the individual
member-shareholders. Compromises introduced at the Spring meeting include
one third of the new Board being nominated for unopposed election by the
constituent-based House of Delegates, so that the Regional Sailing
Associations and other Councils would continue to have a conduit to the Board.
The Structure Review and Bylaw Committees made significant concessions in
other areas. Those, including a former Executive Director, who believes
that the US Sailing should only be based upon a legislative model, are
going against the recent experiences of the Royal Yachting Association, the
US Olympic Committee, and several other US National Governing Bodies.
The current organizational members will be asked to vote the new structure
up or down at the Annual Meeting in Scottsdale, AZ in October. (Note that
America's sailors will have no direct vote in the matter.) The Directors
met their responsibility to choose the best future direction for US
Sailing. It's different, it's scary, it's not perfect, but it's the best
choice.
* From Jervis Tilly: Dave Perry sums up his dismissal of the lee-bow effect
by saying. "… if you're sailing on a boat with apparent wind strength and
direction instruments, they'll read the same on both tacks because the boat
is affected in the same way by the current on either tacks." Ah, the moving
carpet effect. So true - but not sufficient. To get to his conclusion, Mr
Perry assumes away important variables. Consider current differentials
across the track and my favourite ... wind shifts.
Example - Current from 225, breeze oscillating from 260 to 270 and its
light so your Etchells is tacking through 80 degrees. At the right end of
the wind oscillations you will be lee-bowing the tide on starboard tack. As
your bow is above the current angle of 225, you are being swept up and will
be making gains with an increase in apparent wind speed and amplified right
hand direction - this is the time to be going left. With the breeze middle
or left, you are being swept away on either port or starboard so you may as
well go right (to save more left up for later!)
Lee-bowing is not dead; the real world is more complex. BTW - I wander if
the guy who went faster when he took his kite down because it was blowing
back on the mast could have tried putting his jib up. Do we call this going
to windward?
* From Barry Dunning (re lee bow effect): I remember having this same
debate at breakfast many times with messrs Isler, Perry & Tucker at the
Soling Worlds in Puerto Rico in 79. We decided that the mathematicians were
wrong! Remember that they also proved that a bumblebee cannot fly! I
suggest that Dave Perry comes to the Solent and sails a 6 metre racing in
IRC to really see the lee bow effect in action!
* From Steve Pyatt, Auckland [With reference Dave Perry's views on
no-lee-bow (Scuttlebutt 1811) and Mark Jardine (a Solent tidal expert) and
others' responses (1812)]: Just analyze Dave's comment "...no clue that
there even was current unless ...perhaps from the surface condition of the
water" Exactly! With no other references (land buoys etc) we still see an
effect. It is the relative movement of the two elements (wind and water)
that makes the 'sticks in river' example irrelevant as in that scenario
there is no wind effect, only current. We, as sailors are concerned with
rigs in the air as well as boats in the water. 'Anchoring' the boat in one
medium (air) with the sails, whilst suffering the effect of another
(current) on the hull is what produces an imbalance.
If anyone still doubts it, even after the good counter explanations
yesterday, try a practical demo somewhere with 6-8kts of current. Then the
effect is so graphic, you can see and feel the apparent wind changes. Put a
flag on a captive 'flying ferry' (a ferry that moves along a tight wire by
angling to the river current - both ways!) and you see the same effect. In
that example the flag flies in different directions depending on which way
the ferry is pointing, using current power alone (apparent wind shift)!
* From Mike Ingham: I agree with Dave Perry and others that the lee bow
effect is only perceived, but I sure could use some help with another
current question. Last year we did the J24 Nationals in Annapolis. The
current was running across the course, and it was ripping. After racing,
Josh Kerst went around asking; "assuming the line is square to the wind,
which end is favored?". Every tactician had a radically different answer
for a radically different reason. The best we could come up with was a
practical approach: ignore the true wind and try our best to square the
line to the apparent wind. For example: if the line is square and the
current is running left to right, there is an apparent right shift, so you
want to start at the pin (down current) because the apparent wind is right
of square. This seems counter intuitive, so maybe some vector mathematician
can set us straight. If our approach is right, can we just do a head to
wind and see which end our bow points closest to?
* From Chris Ericksen: Mark Jardine's tongue-in-cheek comment in 'Butt 1812
about Dave Perry's article saying there is no lee-bow effect might actually
contain a kernel of truth. He jokes about "telekinesis" and "extra sensory
powers" he has used. What is more likely is the "psych factor" at work.
When I have been lee-bowed, I find myself worrying 'way more than I should
about the guy on my lee bow and 'way pinching more than I might otherwise.
Maybe the real lee-bow effect is more an issue of psychology than of physics.
CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATION
The real art of conversation is not only to say the right thing at the
right time, but also to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment.
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