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SCUTTLEBUTT 2370 - June 21, 2007Scuttlebutt is a digest of major sailing news, commentary, opinions,features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus. Scuttlebutt is distributed each weekday, with support provided by UBS, main partner of Alinghi, Defender of the 32nd America's Cup (http://www.ubs.com/sailing). COMING ON THE CUP Yep, old George Schuyler caused a heap of bother. He could have followed the custom of just melting the thing down—that gaudy silver trophy that the schooner America won in England—but ooh no, not our George. As the last surviving owner of America, he went and donated the thing under a Deed of Gift as "a perpetual Challenge Cup for friendly competition between foreign countries" and thus created the America's Cup. So now, 156 years later, we're here in Valencia, Spain where the old saw about yachting as, "standing under a cold shower tearing up thousand-dollar bills" has been escalated to million-dollar bills, and in late June it's hot enough that you could use about three cold showers a day. At one level, America's Cup 32 is a battle for the future. The America's Cup is in Europe now because a Swiss billionaire hired a bunch of Kiwis—the same ones who won the Cup for New Zealand in 1995 and defended it in 2000—to win it for him in 2003. That went against the grain of traditionalists, and it greatly offended the Kiwi Nation that someone could walk in and buy a winning team, much less theirs. And having won the Cup, Ernesto Bertarelli then went even further, putting the venue out to bid instead of proudly defending it at home (given an agreeable challenger of record, Bertarelli could have defended on a lake in Switzerland, but then, it probably would have been a lousy regatta). By adding pre-event competition, and dropping all nationality requirements save for building the hull in the country of challenge, Bertarelli took giant steps toward turning the America's Cup into the nonstop, grand prix parade that professional sailors want, for obvious reasons. If Alinghi wins, expect continued development on the same character arc. If the Kiwis win, well, that's less clear. -- by Kimball Livingston, SAIL, complete story: http://sailmag.com/AmericasCupPreview CAST YOUR VOTE For the 32nd America’s Cup there were many changes, among them was the revision of the Americas Cup Class rule to Version 5. This rule change was partly done to give the boats a bit more hop for the more moderate Valencia winds, and also to narrow the design scope – theoretically minimizing the chance for a breakthrough design. At the time, it had been widely speculated that this Cup, more than any others, would come down to the sailors. This forecast proved true during the Louis Vuitton Cup, where the challengers were more evenly matched than ever before. Various teams would get on a roll to rack up successive wins, with Emirates Team New Zealand coming out as the sole survivor – just as the ‘buttheads had predicted over 3 weeks ago in a previous poll. Now it’s time to ask whether the Kiwi team has what it takes to knock off Alinghi in the 32nd America’s Cup match. Cast your vote here: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/polls/07/0620 AMERICA’S CUP MATCH First team to win 5 races in the 9 race series Challenger: Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL) _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_ = 0 Defender: Alinghi (SUI) _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_ = 0 * Race schedule: Racing begins Saturday, June 23rd, with the second race on Sunday before the first rest day on Monday. -- Complete schedule: http://www.americascup.com/en/americascup/program/calendrier.php * No surprise: Alinghi announced Wednesday that the team will race SUI100 in the 32nd America’s Cup match. SUI100 is the latest of the four America’s Cup Class yachts that Alinghi has built since the team was created in 2000, and it is the last ACC yacht built for this edition of the America’s Cup. * Backstaygate: The BOR blog digs deeper into the protest that Alinghi filed against the Measurement Committee, which has everything to do with the defender’s desire to take their topmast backstays forward to the mast to reduce windage when sailing upwind. Enjoy: http://blog.bmworacleracing.com/stories/3318482 * NOR: The final rules for the America's Cup were (finally) set Wednesday, and they include a coin toss on Friday to determine which team will have the coveted starboard entry starting position for the beginning of the series. -- http://tinyurl.com/2r5r76 * Nationality rules: The ‘buttheads were polled whether the nationality rules for the sailors - which were removed for the 32nd America’s Cup - should return for the next edition. The defender and challenging teams ultimately represent a country, and the overwhelming sentiment was that the sailors should be citizens from the country too. The comments were very interesting, with well over a hundred opinions provided on the subject, many offering possible solutions for the future. Here is a sample of one idea from Bob Billingham: “We need to return Cup teams to enough nationality represented to re-ignite attention without killing professional sailing community, allowing single team countries to lock out good sailors and give start up countries a chance to put a competitive team on the water - why not have a certain % of true, passport carrying sailors required and the balance open to any nationality, say 65% of crew on racing boat must be proper citizens of the flag they fly. No nationality limitations on designers, design facilities, tune-up sailing crews, shore team, boat builders, or other staff.” -- To read the final vote and comments, click on http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/polls/07/0619 VISITING MAINE? CHECK OUT MORRIS YACHTS’ SUMMER EVENTS! Thursday Nights in Northeast Harbor: July 12 and 26, August 2, 9 and 16 at 5:30pm. Topics include round-the-world-sailing tales, the latest surveying techniques, whale watching tips, Cuyler Morris’ family cruising tips, and Tom Morris’ favorite itineraries. Also, the Morris Yachts Boat Show, July 20-22 in Northeast Harbor. An incredible opportunity to board more than a dozen privately owned Morris Yachts ranging from the M36 and M42 to Ocean Series yachts from 34-52 feet. All brokerage boats will also be available for your inspection. Don’t miss this opportunity to see the widest selection of Morris Yachts! For more information: http://www.morrisyachts.com/news FOG FAILS TO FOIL RACERS Block Island, R.I. (June 20, 2007) -- Fog mixed with rain dampened the air but not the racing atmosphere at the Storm Trysail Club's Block Island Race Week XXII presented by Rolex. After yesterday's around-the-island race, the event's 2000 sailors competing on 183 boats were anxious to get back to buoy racing to add bulk to their score lines. Though the southwest winds generally blew lightly, the race committee managed two races for 17 of 18 classes on three courses: White (One-Design), Red (IRC) and Blue (PHRF). Though the first-ever Rolex US-IRC National Championship will be decided this week, competition in the one-design classes is every bit as intense. The largest one-design class at the event is the J/105 with 24 entrants. The leader in this class, Brian Keane (Weston, Mass.) aboard Savasana, is the defending champion here and says Block Island Race Week is one of the better J/105 regattas in the country. With a 1-8 today, Keane is nine points ahead of his closest competitor Paul Strauch (Douglaston, N.Y.) aboard Andiamo. His strategy going into tomorrow is simply to stay clear. "We're sailing pretty quick; just don't make the big mistakes," said Keane. The newer J/109 class is at its historical high for this event at 19 entrants. The majority of the J/109s are fresh off their East Coast Championships, where Stephen Tedeschi's Tastes Like Chicken (St. Petersburg, Fla.) won. TLC was leading its fleet as of yesterday but struggled in today's race one, being "caught between two winds." After posting finishes of 4-2, TLC slipped in the overall standings to one point behind David Jannetti's (Southampton, N.Y.) Jibber Jabber, which scored 2-1. -- Media Pro Int’l, complete report at http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/07/birw/wed.asp MAKING FAMILY TIME The first of approximately seventy entrants in the 30th Anniversary Marion to Bermuda Race crossed the line at about mid-day on Tuesday. Morgan’s Ghost, the scratch boat for A Division, not only took line honors, but it was the first Bermuda boat to finish. It has been two months since it was delivered and Morgan’s Ghost, hull #5 of the NY 42’s had another first. It was the first crossing of the Gulf Stream and first offshore race for William Hutchings, the 16-year old son of the boat’s owner, Preston Hutchings. William has been sailing since he was nine and the family has had a keelboat for as long as he can remember. His family lives in Bermuda yet William attends Milton Academy in Massachusetts where he is on the sailing team. William is used to sailing double-handed dinghies and had the choice to sail the US Youth Sailing Championships, which start on June 22nd, or sail the Marion to Bermuda Race. He chose the Marion to Bermuda Race because it’s not often that you can sail a long distance race with your father. -- Lynn Fitzpatrick, complete story and results: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/07/0620 VIDEO OF THE WEEK Some of the most horrific ocean racing stories stem around the rogue wave knock down, turtling and flipping long distance racers through a complete 360-degree spin. To ensure that the modern boats can right themselves, many of the races have a mandatory rollover test, where the boat is manually turned upside down and must prove that it can right itself. This week Canadian Derek Hatfield had the test for his Open 60 ‘Spirit of Canada’ in Toronto Harbour, which he will be racing in the Vendee Globe around the world, single-handed, non stop race that starts November 09, 2008. Pretty amazing footage. Also, if you have a video you like, please send us your suggestions for next week’s Video of the Week. Click here for this week’s video: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/media/07/0618 OLYMPIC UPDATE (June 20, 2007) Weather conditions varied within the first half of Kieler Woche 2007, but finally the Race Committee succeeded to finish the racing on all courses of the Olympic Classes and the top-ten teams of each class sailing exciting and media attractive Medal Races along the waterside of the Schilksee Olympic harbour. From June 21-24, the second half of Kieler Woche will see 16 international classes continue to race on 8 different courses. In 2008, Kieler Woche (June 25-29) will be the last regatta series of the newly invented ISAF Sailing World Cup. The top North Americans were: in the Laser Radial (62 entrants) is Tania Elias Calles (MEX; 5th); in the Star (26 entrants) is Rick Merriman/ Rick Peters (USA; 2nd), George Szabo/ Magnus Liljedahl (USA; 5th), and Peter Bromby/ Bill McNiven (BER; 6th); in the RS:X Men windsurfer (48 entrants) is Benjamin Barger (USA; 3rd) and Robert Willis (USA; 10th). -- Complete results: http://vivawasser.kielerwoche.de/flash/ergebnisse.html * Security: The cost of policing the sailing events for the 2012 London Olympics is estimated to be at least £21m ($42m) of the £600m ($1.2b) that has been earmarked for Olympic policing needs. -- http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/dorset/6766697.stm ULLMAN SAILS & 2007 SIR THOMAS LIPTON CUP! For the 4th year in a row, the winning Yacht Club chose Ullman Sails to win or defend the Sir Thomas Lipton Cup trophy. Six highly talented Southern California Yacht Club teams competed for the prestigious trophy with boat speed being a dominant factor. Again, Ullman Sails delivered! Congratulations to San Diego Yacht Club for successfully retaining possession of the Cup, June 9 & 10 with a full inventory of J/105 Ullman Sails. If you and your team are ready for the Fastest Sails on the Planet, contact your nearest Ullman Sails loft and visit http://www.ullmansails.com THE ‘OTHER’ MATCH RACE EVENT Match Cup Sweden on 2-8 July will be crowded with the best match racers in the world. Peter Gilmour yesterday announced that he will compete in Marstrand 2007. Swedish Magnus Holmberg, Victory Challenge, and Gavin Brady of BMW Oracle Racing have also both given the green light to their participation. Seven of the world’s top ten-ranked male sailors will be there, as well as three of the world’s best female sailors. "We are very pleased that heavy weight sailor Peter Gilmour, coach of European top team Alinghi in America’s Cup, has announced that he will race," states Erik Centerwall of the Royal Gothenburg Yacht Club (GKSS), project manager of sports in Match Cup Sweden. Gilmour won the last Match Cup race as well as the complete world tour in 2005 and has furthermore won Match Cup Sweden five times. Now he comes to Sweden to defend his title, just like Alinghi who is defending the America’s Cup title." – Complete report: http://www.worldmatchracingtour.com/default.asp?m=da&id=56039 Entry List (ISAF Rankings in Open/Women’s list as of May 07) Ian Williams (O1), Great Britain Peter Gilmour (O4), Australia Eric Monnin (O15), Switzerland Jenny Axhede (W7), Sweden Sebastien Col (O3), France Gavin Brady (AC), Nya Zealand Björn Hansen (O8), Sweden Magnus Holmberg (AC), Sweden Claire Leroy, Frankrike (W1), France Malin Millbourn (W13), Sweden Simon Minoprio (O21), Nya Zealand Eugeniy Neugodnikov, (O6), Russia Mathieu Richards (O2), France Johnnie Berntsson (O14), Sweden Jesper Radich (O88), Denmark Mattias Rahm (AC), Sweden SAILING SHORTS * Boston, Mass. June 20 – In a move designed to strengthen the editorial direction of one of the world’s most highly respected and authoritative navigational reference guides, publisher Jerald Knopf of Thomas Reed Publications, Inc. today named veteran marine writers and editors Herb McCormick and Greg Jones to take the editorial helm of Reed’s Nautical Almanacs. McCormick, the former editor of Cruising World magazine, will become the new editor-in-chief of Reed’s, while Jones, who served as editor of SAILING magazine and senior editor of Blue Water Sailor, has been named executive editor at Reed’s. -- http://www.reedsalmanac.com * Etchells sailors from Italy, Australia, Sweden, Ireland, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Bermuda, the USA, and Britain are congregating in Cowes, England in preparation for the 2007 Etchells World Championship. Among the forty-six entries is current World Champion Jud Smith from Marblehead, with his crew of David McClintock and Steve Girling using a boat chartered from Cowes based Etchells builder David Heritage. Another top American team to watch is Tom Hughes, Ron Rosenburg, and Bill Bennett, whose combined experience in major Etchells regattas makes impressive reading. Racing runs from Monday 25th to Saturday 30th June with 9 races scheduled. -- http://www.etchellsworlds2007.org EIGHT BELLS Clearwater, FL (Tuesday June 19, 2007) – It is with deep sadness that we share the news that the founder of The Moorings, Charlie Cary passed away on June 14, 2007 in Vero Beach, Florida where he has resided for a number of years. Charlie was 89 years old upon his passing. Charlie and his wife Ginny (also deceased) founded The Moorings on July 4, 1969 in the British Virgin Islands with six 35-foot Pearson yachts. The Cary ’s vision and passion for sailing successfully provided the opportunity for hundreds of thousands of people to realize their dreams of cruising in exotic locations. With his leadership, the company grew to over 850 yachts in more than 30 locations and operating in over 20 countries worldwide. -- Complete release: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/07/0620a CALENDAR OF MAJOR EVENTS (Sponsored by West Marine) Here are a few of the events that are coming up: June 21-24 - NCESA E Scow Nationals - Charleston, SC, USA June 22-24 - 11th Annual Charles River Open Team Race - Cambridge, MA, USA June 22-24 - Ullman Sails Long Beach Race Week - Long Beach, CA, USA June 23-July 1 - Cleveland Race Week - Cleveland, OH, USA June 23-24 - Thistle Great Lakes Championships - Vermilion, OH, USA June 23-July 1 - WAVES Race Week 2007 - Vancouver, BC, Canada View all the events at http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/calendar 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 John Tormey: I loved the comment about the possibility of the ISAF Worlds website crashing. It either will - because the Curmudgeon said it would – or a webhost somewhere in the world just made some extra bank as the event organizers scrambled to up their capacity. While I hope no ill will, I kind of would like to see it crash just so the Curmudg could say “I told you so.” * From John Greene: In Scuttlebutt 2369, Gary Jobson gave an excellent and comprehensive comparison of Team New Zealand vs Alinghi's strengths and weaknesses. It is well worth checking out if you missed it (see Who Will Win the Cup - http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/07/0619). One omission was the relative sail programmes. We saw the difference Team New Zealand's mail sail change made during the LV finals. I would be interested to hear some comment on that. His bottom line, however, is similar to other pundits in that he believes that although Alinghi appears to be slightly favoured on paper, it may come down to wind speed with Team New Zealand being favoured in light air, and Alinghi in the heavy. In moderate air it could get really interesting. Hopefully we will see more of Gary's comments in the near future. * From Frank Silvers: Too bad that the 125th anniversary of Kiel Week had to get squeezed this year by the ISAF Worlds. The event is so historic, and was probably eager to throw a heck of a party. Of course, Olympic sailors don’t party, so it would have been cool to be there just to drink all the extra German beer. * From Jackson Williams: Pretty sly of the inventor of the OneTouch winch handle to license Lewmar to build awareness of this great innovation, but to retain the rights to the composite version of the product. What would you rather want - Lewmar’s metal version or a lightweight fibre version, particularly since I understand that the price point is to be similar? CURMUDGEON’S OBSERVATION Make it idiot proof and someone will make a better idiot. Special thanks to Morris Yachts and Ullman Sails. Scuttlebutt is also supported by UBS, main partner of Alinghi, the Defender of the 32nd America's Cup. |
