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SCUTTLEBUTT No. 812 - May 10, 2001Scuttlebutt is a digest of yacht racing news of major significance; commentary, opinions, features and dock talk . . . with a North American emphasis. Corrections, contributions, press releases and contrasting viewpoints are always welcome.
WORRELL 1000 - By Zack Leonard The race for the leg victory showed just how important the approach to the beach can be. Brian Lambert and Jamie Livingston of Alexander's aced out Rod Waterhouse and Katie Pettibone of Guident by 11 seconds after Guidant led along the approach to the beach but overstood the finish. "We went to the wrong flag," sighed Waterhouse, "we were aiming for the orange flag on the lifeguard stand instead of the finish line." The error forced Guidant to gybe for the finish, getting dangerously sideways to the surf in the shallow water. Lambert pumped his main and Livingston slid out on the bows to facilitate surfing as they approached on a perfect angle and slipped across the line to take their fourth straight leg victory. The race was extremely close at the top. The lead changed many times and at least 5 boats claimed the top spot at some point in the race. Nigel Pitt and Alex Shafer of Tommy Bahama sailed a solid leg to finish third, just nipping Team Tybee sailed by Steve Lohmayer and Kenny Pierce. Katie Pettibone was upbeat about her first day sailing with Rod Waterhouse. "I feel honored to sail with him. The big thing with someone like him is that he's such a good driver that both of us could trap, it was huge. It's amazing how tweeky these boats can be, one small change and all of a sudden you can point 3 or 4 degrees higher." After much of the fleet had finished, disaster struck team Bay Wind as they attempted to surf to the finish. An 8 foot wave spun the boat sideways and flipped it violently snapping the mast. It is unclear if they have a spare available. The shore team's view of this race is vastly different from the ocean-side view that the racers experience. On shore the race is a blur of check-ins and check-outs, followed by hassles with internet hookups and associated techno-nightmares. Once the logistics are sorted out the days blend together. Shore crews and race officials spend long hours sitting on indistinguishable beaches that blend together like the faces of strangers. As the race winds on the shore-side group becomes a big family, supporting each other and sharing jokes to pass the time. Tomorrow the breeze could get lighter. The pressure map is turning ugly quickly and the once-packed bars are parting ways in a hurry. Some of the sailors won't mind. Les Bauman and Craig Callahan were one of the five that finished yesterday's leg. "We needed an easy one," said Callahan, "a little slower is fine after yesterday."
OVERALL RESULTS: Complete results: - www.worrell1000.com
LEWMAR CARBON FIBER WINCH HANDLE
VOLVO OCEAN RACE The testing phase in Miami has been highly successful. Paul Davis, sail manager says, "We have achieved what we wanted with the geometry of the sails. We have determined the sizes and the crossovers in the inventory and made a plan for the 2nd and 3rd generation sails to be tested this summer." The Christening djuice will be christened on June 16 in a highly publicised and dramatic ceremony to be held at Aker Brygge, downtown Oslo. Around 10,000 people are expected to attend the christening during which some of the biggest names in the Norwegian music and entertainment industry will perform. Who will be the godmother is still a highly guarded secret. * In the run-up to its Volvo Ocean Race 2001-2002 challenge, Team SEB moved its training base from Portugal to the Swedish west-coast port of Gothenburg. Gothenburg's quayside "Nya Varvet" commercial estate will be home to the team's new training and testing base until mid-August of this year. * Work on Nautor Challenges' two V.O.60 yachts proceeds successfully within time schedule at the yard in La Ciotat, near Marseilles in France. One of the yachts is designed by German Frers Jr and the other by Farr Yacht Design. The deck is now on the Frers boat. The next step is to fit out below and get the systems working. Launch date is June 5th. The Farr hull is now turned over. The internal structures for the boat will now continue. Website: www.VolvoOceanRace.org
SORRY ABOUT THAT But there's another problem that may not be as easily repaired. It's the increased negativity I'm seeing in our letters section. Personally, sailboat racing is something I do for enjoyment. It's my hobby - my recreation. Lord knows there are improvements that can be made, and should be made to this game, but it's hard for me to believe that incessant bashing will help to make those improvements. In the past, I've pretty much allowed the letters section to become an open forum with few guidelines. That's not going to happen anymore. While I will always make room for personal viewpoints and constructive criticism, those who have nothing positive to offer will have to find another forum because they will not see their letters published here. I started this newsletter as a hobby - as a way to help my sailing friends gain more enjoyment from the sport. Scuttlebutt is going back to its roots. - The Curmudgeon
LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON * From Kevin Reeds: As the Trimble Sales Rep in the 1990s, I saw GPS technology grow to become reality for everyone from weekend warriors to Americas Cup champions. Mr. Bulter is correct that GPS receivers are now very inexpensive and should be in every navigators sea bag. However, owning a GPS is not a replacement for navigation skills. The Transpac race is a Navigator's race. The boat with the best Navigator usually wins. Personally, I applaud the Transpac committee for continuing the celestial requirement. * From Mike Van Dyke (Response to George Benson) What's a plastic sextant gonna hurt? What happen to better safe than sorry? When GPS goes down, you won't need an extra, cost the same as sea boots GPS, your gonna need a satellite, and that is the "real" problem. That is a danger of going to sea. I'm sure the safety equipment list does not start and end with Sextant required. * From Mark Dolan (In response to the letter from George Butler in your #809 issue, and edited to our 250-word-limit): Having not yet sailed the Transpac and assuming that your letter is correct in that celestial nav is required, I applaud the committee for their continuing the use of c-nav. In a state where rolling brownouts look to be a reality in the not to distant future and with energy becoming a more valuable commodity, take a quick look at a boat. We leave the dock with limited resources even for favorable conditions. The need to be self-sufficient IS the safety requirement. We have all these modern electronics but without good batteries or a recharging source they are totally useless. It is completely within the realm of possibility that a vessel is damaged and her mechanical systems fail. If the battery in your EPIRB is poor as well as the battery in your satellite phone, nobody is going to come get you. If this were to happen I trust people would have the knowledge and fortitude to become active in their own survival. You don't even need a calculator for the calculations - a slide rule will do. Celestial nav and dead reckoning are the ONLY methods of navigation that have stood the test of time and should be in every offshore sailors seabag of skills. One last thought on c-nav, I hope that all sailors learn this valuable process for our quest to race the oceans on our "time-consuming ... throwback(s) to the dark ages" mode of transportation we call sailboats.
AMERICA'S CUP When I asked Rod Davis at the Congressional Cup what he thought about the nationality issue in the America's Cup, his response caught me by surprise. This is a man who has sailed the event's premier event for three countries-the U.S., New Zealand and Australia-and figures to make it four with Italy's Prada when the Louis Vuitton Cup challenger trials start in the autumn of 2002. And yet he said, "Maybe it should just be the first country you sail for, unless if you want to change you can sit one out." * Olympic rules require a sailor switching countries to sit out one Olympiad, which Davis suggests might be justified in the America's Cup, where free agency is making it difficult to identify the players without a program. The roots of the rule are in the America's Cup Deed of Gift written in the century before last by George Schuyler when he gave the pewter mug to the New York YC in 1887. Schuyler's idealistic notion was "for friendly competition between foreign countries." Well, "friendly" blew out the hatch about a hundred years ago, and "between foreign countries" now applies mostly to the location of the yacht clubs the syndicates represent, not the demographics of the crew, designers or bottle washers. John Cutler, a native Zealander who has sailed the America's Cup for Japan and the U.S., may have a better idea. It's bogus," Cutler said. "They should either make it a pure nationalistic sport or eliminate the rule. I think if George Schuyler saw what was happening now he'd agree." Cutler called tactics for Peter Holmberg in the Congressional Cup. They now work for Larry Ellison's Oracle team, but the rest of the Congressional Cup lineup illustrated the new America's Cup kaleidoscope. Besides Davis bunking with the Italians, France's Bertrand Pacé, now with Team New Zealand, had a Kiwi crew and Australia's James Spithill sailed for Seattle's OneWorld team. Cutler said, "I've been a professional sailor since 1990 and I've sailed on one boat that had NZL on its sail. It's a professional sport we're doing now and you want to get the right people onto the team. The way it is now, anyone can get anybody to sail on their team." Holmberg said, "It's a good old tradition, but it's 2001 now. If we had enough teams in our country we'd prefer to sail for our own country. The way it is, it costs the syndicates more money, which is bad for the sport." Of course, if it became purely nationalistic, Cutler said, "We would have to find some other way to make a living." More likely, future organizers will do what may be the sensible thing and scuttle the rule. It's a new era. There is good money available for good sailors. But Corinthian traditions die hard, as they should. There should be good reasons for discarding historic ideals. Maybe now there are. - Rich Roberts, The Log Full story: www.thelognewspaper.com
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