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SCUTTLEBUTT #499 - February 8, 2000STAR MASTER'S REGATTA -- Larry SuterThe Star boat could be called the Sailing Class of the Masters. Just this week past Star World Champion Paul Cayard skippering America One was defeated by the Italian America's Cup Class yacht Luna Rossa, whose tactician, Torben Grael is a Star Class Olympic Medalist, coached by another Star Olympic Medalist, Rod Davis. The Masters (over 50 years old) of the Star Class gather each year in sunny Miami, Florida to see old friends, retell stories and obtain bragging rights for the next year. The Masters Regatta was the brain child of Frank Zagarino, past winner of the Bacardi Cup who thought that there should be a regatta for loyal Star Class sailors who could not compete against the younger Olympic aspirants, much like golf's Senior's Tour. "At first, you had to be 50 to sail," Zagarino said. "Then guys 60 started sailing and we called them Grand Masters. Then we got guys 70 and 80 and we called them Exalted (or exhausted) Grand Masters." The best part is that the younger guys stay around to crew, so you have Gold Medal and World Champion Mark Reynolds crewing for past Silver Star (South American Champion) Harry Walker, and current World Champion Tom Olsen crewing for Tony Hermann. The first day saw 82 year old 1947 World Champion and 1964 Olympic Gold Medalist Sir Durwood Knowles win one of the races, with 1972 Soling Class Silver Medalist Stig Wennerstrom winning for the day. The regatta was won by Jimmie Lowe of the Bahamas, with crew Andrew Higgs, who are trying to qualify to sail in the 2000 Olympics in Sydney Australia. In second was 10 time Masters winner and past Star World Champion, Ding Schoonmaker, with Star Class Olympic Class Gold Medal winner Hal Haenal crewing, and Stig Wennerstrom with Magnus Liljedahl crewing in third. One of the few other times Ding has not won the Masters was the year two-time Star Class World Champion Dennis Connor showed his heels to the fleet. For the 43 Star Boats sailing in the Masters, many father and sons, the weekend was one with perfect breezes on beautiful Biscayne Bay, and promises to be back next year. Full story: http://www.sailing.org/today/whatsnew.html EXPERIENCE COUNTS Lots of companies say they have an experienced staff. Perhaps you should ask, experienced at what? When you do business with Sailing Supply you're dealing with Brian Tehaar and Bill Bennett who have experience crewing for Star Class World Champion Eric Doyle. The staff at Sailing Supply also includes Laser sailors, 505 racers, and guys who race Melges 24s, Lido 14s and Etchells. The boss, Dick Roberts, won the Pacific Ocean Racing Conference in his new J/125, Snoopy. Give them a call -- you'll be dealing with people whose experiences will help you: (800) 532-3831 / http://www.sailingsupply.com/ THE BIG SHOW Russell Coutts and the Kiwis, take heed: by the end of the week there is going to be a thick file with your names in it. "I will set up a game plan to go against Team New Zealand the same way I set up a game plan to neutralise Paul Cayard," Rod Davis said in the midst of a riotous celebration at the Prada compound. "Don't you worry, our Gatling gun has turned from Paul to Team New Zealand. In my heart, I hope it doesn't go nine races, because I can't take it anymore." Preparing Prada to face AmericaOne, Davis functioned the way a coach from any team sport would -- by zeroing in on the opponent's weak spots. "Our focus from the semifinals has been on Paul, [although] we were scrambling to get into the finals at that point. Paul has strengths and Paul has weaknesses. We studied real hard ... his starts, his style, and Paul has a predictable style. He likes to lead into the starts. If he wants the weather end he gets hooked early and sits it out, and then takes the committee boat. If he wants the leeward end he leads in really early. "We were pretty good early on, then he adjusted his style and we adjusted our style to it." Davis also credited Cayard with firing up Prada's troops with his verbal gamesmanship. Coaches call it bulletin-board material. "We talked all about how Cayard belittles us, and we used it against him," Davis said. "I'm not gonna go into how." When Patrizio Bertelli hired Davis to coach his all-Italian (with the exception of Brazilian tactician Torben Grael) team in 1997, it seemed an impossible task. Francesco de Angelis was a superb big-boat sailor, but not a match racer. De Angelis says now, "We're lucky that Rod joined our team since the beginning. It was a very good relationship. If we are here, we owe him for sure." Davis said, "Francesco and I go way back. This has been a special relationship, a lot because I'm not a competitor of Francesco's. I can't sail the boat; I can't take his job. So what I say to him is totally honest and what he says back to me is totally honest. There's no threat either way." "We actually play better when we're losing, when we're behind on the scorecard," Davis said. "I Now Davis is focusing on the Kiwis for the Match starting 19 February. "Racing against Team New Zealand will be interesting. It's too early for me to tell you what's going to happen. Give me a week." -- Rich Roberts, Quokka Sports Full story: http://www.americascup.org/ LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON (leweck@earthlink.net) Letters selected to be printed are routinely edited for clarity, space (250 words max) or to exclude personal attacks. But only one letter per subject, so give it your best shot and don't whine if people disagree. -- From Jane Pegel -- I am very pleased to see Ron Sherry nominated for the Rolex Yachtsman of the Year award. All the nominees are very deserving, but Ron has reached the pinacle of iceboating by sailing with equipment that he built with his own hands, with the exception of the Harken blocks and the Sarns hardware. He even was instrumental in the perfection of the Doyle DN sails. Next to his love for his family, Ron's passion is squeezing the last ounce of speed out of a sail, whether on hard water or soft water. Ron has always yearned to compete, but now he has learned how to win. Ron's first DN regatta race win was at my expense when at age 12 he cleverly ghosted around the course at the Northwestern regatta. It has been a pleasure watching him develop his sailing skills and contribute to the sport we all love. CURMUDGEON'S COMMENT: Attention Rolex judges - it appears the lobbying has started. -- From Dave Benjamin -- I don't think we will regain the Cup until we reduce the number of teams competing for sponsorship dollars and of course the best sailors. Here in San Francisco we had America One competing against America True which kept Cayard out soliciting contributions instead of training. I truly think Paul was our best shot. Had he not had the America True campaign working against him in his own back yard we would be readying ourselves for a bout with TNZ. CONGRESSIONAL CUP Fresh from a stint in the Louis Vuitton Cup semi-finals, Peter Holmberg, representing the US Virgin Islands, will return to defend his title at the 2000 Congressional Cup, scheduled for April 8-14 at Long Beach Yacht Club. Holmberg leads one of the strongest, and youngest, field of skippers ever to compete for the Congressional Cup, now in its 36th year, according to Regatta Chairman Camille Daniels. Holmberg is a two-time Congressional Cup champion (1998-99), and most recently has sailed as strategist for Dennis Conner's entry in the Louis Vuitton Cup to decide the challenger for the upcoming America's Cup in New Zealand. Two other sailors from the current AC campaign will be sailing in Congressional Cup: Bertrand Pace, who skippered the French entry "Le Defi" and is ranked 13th in the world match racing ranks; and James Spithill, who skippered the underfunded but competitive Australian challenger. In addition, Congressional Cup will welcome the skippers ranked 1st, 3rd, 8th and 9th in the current world match race rankings, perhaps the most "top-loaded" field ever for the event. The total purse for Congressional Cup is expected to be $25,000. CONGRESSIONAL CUP 2000 ENTRIES:
Event website: http://www.lbyc.org WWW The website for the MEXORC Regatta (February 27 - March 3) in Puerto Vallarta is now up and running. Not only does it have everything you need to know about this year's event, you'll also find last year's results: http://www.mexorc.com.mx/ COASTAL & INSHORE SAILING They're absolutely ideal for coastal and inshore sailing. And they look and feel great onshore too! Check out Gill's new Tradewinds Jacket and coordinating Trousers. As part of Gill's "O2" line of breathable foul weather garments they feature lifejacket/safety harness attachment tabs, a peaked hood that stows in the collar pocket, a fleece-lined collar, and internal and external cuffs. The Tradewinds Trousers have a high cut back, reinforced seat and knees and Velcro ankle adjustment tabs, wide braces, an inner pocket and elastic waistband. http://www.douglasgill.com PRADA Patrizio Bertelli had had enough. Yesterday, the Prada boss let fly at rival America's Cup challenger Paul Cayard - tired of his allusions to the Italian team's wealth. As Cayard bowed out of the contest, taking America's hopes with him, he once again bemoaned the fact that he had not had as much money or time for his AmericaOne syndicate as the victorious Italians had. But Bertelli - who has funded the Prada syndicate alone from the fashion house he controls in Milan - hit out. "All of Paul Cayard's campaign has pivoted around saying we weren't the best challenger, just the richest," Bertelli said. "He even went as far as saying there was not much talent in this team. That was a gross mistake. Money is not everything in this - it's about passion and commitment." Where Cayard battled for a budget of $US30 million, Prada were comfortable with $55 million in their coffers. "Paul Cayard has said we have spent $100 million, but that is not true. "We spent our money on research and boat activities. Remember, we had to start from zero. "We are on the opposite side of the world to New Zealand, while it is only 12 hours from San Francisco. That meant the logistics and organisation was more complicated for us. "Paul Cayard was able to fly his second boat here. We couldn't have done that - it was too risky to fly a boat with two stopovers. "We kept a low profile and didn't have to enhance the Prada brand. Cayard had to support his patented brand and that took some time and energy away from his work." Prada design team member Doug Peterson joined in, adding "a lot of money was spent on the image - after all, we are Prada. "That's not directly related to going fast on the race course. When you look at it the amount of money spent on the boats was very similar to other teams." -- Suzanne McFadden, NZ Herald, http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sports/ AMERICA ONE Last night we attended the Louis Vuitton Awards Ceremony and dinner. As always, Bruno Trouble and Christine Belanger and their team put on a fantastic event at another unique location. Bused in to a private resort on an island in the Manakau Harbor, we dined on gourmet food and fine wine. After dinner there was a superb fireworks display. Everything was great until they showed the beautifully edited videos of the LV Finals racing. Every member of our team sat there with a lump in their throat watching the highlights of the nine incredible races. We were reminded of how awesome our boat looked and how well our crew sailed and most of all, how close we had come to being the winners. There was just no way to enjoy it. The pride is strong but is bitterly diluted by the disappointment. Well, there's nothing like a healthy dose of reality to begin the day. This morning we all showed up for work and, for a second, it felt like the normal situation, but the cruel reality that we were no longer racing settled over the compound. Everyone is handling it well and making the best of it. Coz cranked up the stereo and soon the yard was humming along as the crew began to break down the boats and get things ready for storage. Ralfie got everyone laughing with his jokes. Life could be worse. I disseminated our demobilization schedule at the morning manager's meeting. Approximately half of our 80 staff will be going home at the end of this week. Another 23 or so will be gone the week after. A core group of 17 will be left to staff the office and complete the pack up, load the yachts, masts, keels, rubber boats and containers. We will operate the office here at the base in Auckland throughout the America's Cup. We have ongoing sponsor hospitality obligations and will be operating our spectator boat for each of the America's Cup races. We have a large number of Kiwi vendors and we intend to make sure all the invoices are scrutinized and promptly paid. We will leave New Zealand with our vendors happy they did business with us looking forward to working with us in the future. We have ongoing fiduciary responsibilities as we have operated a New Zealand corporation in addition to our United States entity and we must leave a complete set of organized records on file here in New Zealand. The New Zealand office will close on March 4. We intend to reopen the San Francisco office in late March. I am making the arrangements now for a location. We will end up in San Francisco with a core group of eight people. AmericaOne has received strong encouragement from our sponsors to continue operating. We will see where the Cup will end up and immediately construct a plan of attack to do what we now know we are most capable of doing - bringing it back to San Francisco. Too bad we'll have to wait until 2003. Bob Billingham, COO, America One, http://www.americaone.org THE POOR MAN'S BALL As is traditional at the Match it is party time before the event commences. On the same day, at the same time as the 'Other Ball' the "Poor Man's Ball" will be held in Auckland on Saturday 12 February. Think friends, think crews, think drink, think dancing. Those who go back to '87 will remember the party at the old jail on the Fremantle waterfront, for those who don't it's time to find out what the Poor Man's Ball is all about. Now is the time to celebrate all of the effort of everyone involved over the past months, say thankyou...and most importantly PARTY!!!!!!! Limited tickets are available until Thursday 10 February AM NZ time (tickets are DEFINITELY NOT at the door).Cost:$NZ100. LOCATION: Theatro, Auckland, NZ. Champagne, beer, wine, food, great music, good friends and dancing. CONTACT: Maria Ryan - maria@voyager.co.nz; Jane Eagleson - joeagleson@aol.com. CURMUDGEON'S COMMENT: Regular readers know we never carry announcements like the above in Scuttlebutt, but it's payback time ... and I owe these folks a lot. As I've said so many times before, "There is no reason to have friends if you can't use them." Enjoy the party my friends -- I'll be there in spirit. THE CURMUDGEON'S COUNCIL Always Avoid Alliteration. |
