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SCUTTLEBUTT No. 739 - January 29, 2001Scuttlebutt is a digest of yacht racing news, commentary, opinions, features and dock talk . . . with a North American emphasis. Corrections, contributions, press releases and contrasting viewpoints are always welcome.THE RACE * January 28 - Already holding the fastest 24-hour run by a sailing vessel, the Club Med catamaran has now broken the Indian Ocean Record, this for the route between the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa and Cape Leuwin in Western Australia. The record, held until now by Olivier de Kersauzon's trimaran Sport Elec, taken on the occasion of his last successful Jules Verne Trophy attempt, stood at 8 days 23 hours and 17 minutes until this morning. The International Team on Club Med have smashed it and taken just 7 days and 14 hours to do the same distance, about one day and nine hours less. - http://www.catamaran.clubmed.fr/ *Off the back of a record-breaking run from Cape to Cape, Club Med found she had only added two nautical miles (nm) to her lead over Innovation Explorer in the last 24 hours. Grant Dalton's lead cat covered 546 nm at an average of 22.7 knots, matching pace with Loick Peyron in second place. With an unfavorable forecast for his approach to the Cook Strait, Dalton found himself in a 50-knot squall laced with driving rain and hail earlier today. - Colin M Jarman, NOW Sports website, http://www.now.com/feature.now?cid=997704&fid=1230183 * From Skip Novak, Innovation Explorer: "The repaired gennaker went back up mid-morning and is once again flying near the upper limit of its range. I suspect it will be down again before long for more ongoing repairs, as the cloth at the leech and luff junctions with the tabling seems to be breaking down. Not a good sign. We have ordered another small reacher/gennaker to replace our pile of rags and the sailmaker in Brittany says it will be waiting for us in Wellington IF we stop, which is not totally out of the question. Without major gear failure on Club Med it is obvious to my mind we will not have a hope of beating them unless we stop for the new sail - but [skipper] Loick and [navigator] Roger are not so convinced." * Team Adventure had gained 100 miles today on the Polish catamaran Warta Polpharma and was sailing ten knots faster than her rival at the 11:00 PM GMT report. The two boats were almost level on a north-south axis but Warta, which was further south, enjoyed a 150-mile lead due to her shorter distance to the finish line. Both boats were riding the 18-knot reaching breezes of a southwesterly wind, ahead of an area of high pressure, but their crews were closely monitoring an advancing major low pressure area with storm force winds further south and west. - Keith Taylor, http://www.teamadventure.org/ POSITIONS - January 29 @ 04:21 GMT: 1. Club Med, 2. Innovation Explorer, 854 miles behind leaders, 3. Warta Polpharma, 3659 mbl, 4. Team Adventure, 3822 mbl, 5. Team Legato, 5375 mbl. Event website: www.therace.org AMERICA'S CUP January 27, 2001 Š St. Francis Yacht Club (St.FYC) and Oracle Racing, intended challenger for America's Cup 2003, announced today that they have ended talks aimed at mounting a challenge for America's Cup 2003. For the past six months, the St.FYC and Oracle Racing have been engaged in negotiations evaluating scenarios on how to best join forces for Americas Cup XXXI. Talks concluded when it became apparent that St.FYC could not satisfy Oracle Racing's requirements. St.FYC has been involved in two previous America's Cup campaigns, most recently in 1999-2000 with AmericaOne. AmericaOne succeeded in making it to the challenger finals of the Louis Vuitton Cup. Steve Taft, Commodore of St.FYC expressed disappointment that they were unable to reach an agreement. "Many members of Oracle Racing are members of St. Francis Yacht Club. It seemed like a perfect fit but we were not able to structure an agreement that would benefit both parties," he remarked. Bill Erkelens, Oracle Racing's COO, said that talks are continuing with other clubs that have expressed interest in challenging with the syndicate. Oracle Racing intends to have a challenge filed by March 1, 2001. - Gina von Esmarch, Oracle Racing. PROTECTOR BAY Yes, Baywatch is using a Protector as their new rescue boat, but the rumors are false about a spin-off TV show in SF. People aptly named the turning basin behind the StFYC during Big Boat Series, Protector Bay. With friends and wives and girlfriends and data analyzers all onboard, Protectors were out everyday day blasting up and down SF Bay. Find out why these boats perform so well in adverse conditions at www.protectorusa.com or 877.66.4BOAT Drive a Protector today! VENDEE GLOBE * The remarkable 24-year-old British solo sailor Ellen MacArthur, who won the hearts of the French nation with her win in the Solo Transatlantic Race last year, is set to break all records this year with her Vendee Globe performance. When she crossed the Equator at 0907 GMT yesterday morning in her 60ft monohull Kingfisher after 81 days at sea, MacArthur had closed to within 12 miles of race leader Michel Desjoyeaux in PRB. Good tactics and great determination have recovered a deficit of over 600 miles at Cape Horn to bring her almost within touching distance of the Frenchman. - Jason Holtom, Daily Telegraph, UK, http://sport.telegraph.co.uk/sport * The two sailors are now fighting hard, and it's ruthless. The unexpected behaviour of the Doldrums is surprising everybody and it seems like the Vendˇe Globe 2001 is turning a page in its history. The first to escape the zone will be the first also to catch the North Easterly trade winds and increase the distance which might be enough to cross the finish line in Les Sables d'Olonne as the big winner. In the Doldrums, itÕs not a question of tactics, strategy or match racing anymore. The only goal is to escape as Michel Desjoyeaux was telling us : " When you go at 15 knots, you can control a competitor and anticipate the weather. When you are only going at 2 knots you can't do anything and you can only try to escape as quickly as possible. It's a lottery. There is no rule to apply. The satellite photos, the only ones to show the reality, are difficult to read. There is only one sure thing for the sailor : he has to hunt any small trace of breeze. He must stay on the deck permanently to tweak the sails, steer the boat, and just thinking of the miles he is winning in latitude, going North being the only escape. When this situation lasts for several days this can become an obsession, the skipper is losing track and only sees the speedometer and anemometer needles. With the stake of the game being the finish line, only 3200 miles away, the tension onboard was evident during the radio chat. The two skippers both had to stop the conversation to go and trim some sails on the deck. - Philippe Jeantot, http://www.vendeeglobe.com GETTING CLOSER: Updated Standings@ January 28 at 17:00 UT: 1. PRB, Michel Desjoyeaux 3133 miles to finish, 2. Kingfisher, Ellen MacArthur, 4 miles behind leader, 3. Active Wear, Marc Thiercelin, 432 mbl, 4. Sill Matines & La Potag¸re, Roland Jourdain, 500 mbl, 5. Union Bancaire Privˇe, Dominique Wavre, 1154 mbl, 6. Sodebo Savourons la Vie, Thomas Coville, 1263 mbl. - http://www.vendeeglobe.com LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON (leweck@earthlink.net) (Letters selected to be printed may be edited for clarity, space (250 words max) or to exclude unfounded speculation or personal attacks. This is not a bulletin board or a chat room - you only get one letter per subject, so give it your best shot and don't whine if others disagree. We don't publish anonymous letters, but will withhold your e-mail address on request.) * From: John Longley <john@fremantlechamber.com.au> After nine months of negotiation with the Western Australian State Government and the West Australian Maritime Museum an agreement has been signed that will enable Australia II to come out of retirement and compete in The America's Cup Jubilee Regatta to be held in Cowes in August of this year. The famous yacht, which won the America's Cup in 1983 and ended the New York Yacht Club's 132 year grip on the event, has been on display at the Australian National Maritime Museum in Sydney since the unsuccessful defense of the Cup in Fremantle in 1987. Earlier this year the yacht was shipped to Fremantle WA where it will be the centrepiece of a new $39 million maritime museum being built there. This museum will not be completed until 2002 which has created the window of opportunity for Australia II to sail in Cowes. Many of the original crew have expressed an interest in sailing on her in Cowes including skipper John Bertrand. The only remaining obstacle is money. The group coordinating the effort to take her to Cowes, led by Warren Jones the mastermind of the 1983 Challenge, is only allowed to use the hull and must find US$350,000 to rig and complete a mast that was being built for her in 1986, build a basic set of sails and campaign the yacht. The crew will be paying for their own airfares and accommodation. Time is very short and there is much to do. * From: Alan Johnson <flyercanvas@juno.com> It is not the boat; it is the venue. The most exciting America's Cup was Perth. Any big boat in 20 to 25 knots of wind is a handful. The perils of boat and sail handling in that breeze make it challenging for the competitors and exciting to watch for the spectators. I had hoped that New Zealand would provide those conditions, but sadly it was as big a snoozer as Newport, RI. * From: "Will Hagon" <hagonvoice@healey.com.au> In Scuttlebutt no. 738 you quote a crewman abandoning Team Adventure, Rick Deppe as saying nothing had prepared him for the staggering speeds (of these enormous cats). "It's inherently dangerous. I'm a monohull sailor. I'm used to going ten knots. I can't deal with this. In the Whitbread (Volvo) you know if the you get knocked down, the boat will right itself. In this I kept thinking if you flip it won't come back up." All of which is true. Except that it shows we become comfortable with what we know. There are other factors he's ignoring. 1. If he hits something in a monohull it will sink. A cat probably won't. I'd therefore rather be in iceberg territory in a boat which can survive the conditions and be sailed, down if necessary, to what the crew think is a safe speed. 2. As has been proven recently, in races from harbours, to America's Cup boats and round the world, not all monohulls do "flip up" - especially if they've lost their keels. 3. Holed or inverted, his catamaran will float. As a satisfied catamaran owner once said "there are cats, cats and a half - and half cats". * From: Scott Greenawalt <sgreenawalt@oktax.state.ok.us> On Scuttlebutt's response to the ISAF ELIGIBILITY CODE: This one is genius, pure genius!! Thanks for taking the time to concoct this perfectly silly response to the complete stupidity of the new ISAF eligibility code. I will make sure all my crew become members of SSC. You made my day! * From: John McBrearty <mcbrearty@earthlink.net> BRAVO! You solved the problem with the SSC. Brilliant! My hat's off to you. * From: Peter O. Allen, Sr., <pquorum@aol.com> I have signed up for membership in the Scuttlebutt Sailing Club and have printed my membership card. I'm honored to be a member, but I refuse to submit to a daily weigh in. * From: Carol Newman Cronin <Cansail@aol.com> Although I am already a member of USSA, Sail Newport, and the Woods Hole Yacht Club, I will proudly display my SSC card to all who ask for any credentials. Just one question; does SSC membership come with a discount on car rentals, bar or shower privileges at Harbor Court (NYYC's Newport home), or any other fringe benefits you haven't told us about? Curmudgeon's Comment: We'll be announcing discount programs soon, but until that time be assured you have full reciprocal privileges at every other virtual yacht club on the planet. * From: Ed Stygar <EStygarIII@aol.com> Maybe crew limits are too restrictive? I crewed in an offshore one design fleet that had weight restrictions. I was unable to sail with a good friend and good sailor because of his weight and also had the lovely experience of being sick during a regatta from trying to make weight. When my skipper asked a class rep about the restrictive weight limits, the class rep replied that the class demanded "athletes." Does this mean that 200lb+ individuals such as Ray Lewis, Shaq, and Eric Lindros are not athletes? I am 220lbs and consider myself more of an athlete than a seasoned sailor. Which brings up another point, if there are crew weight maximums shouldn't there be crew weight minimums? Minimums would be nice when I race my Vanguard 15 in light air (there are no weight limits in the V15 class, which is the way it should be). I agree that weight limits may be needed for equality but don't think they should be as restrictive. I now race with my well-fed friends in a class without weight limits and am having more fun than ever. ISAF ELIGIBILITY CODE A free membership in the Scuttlebutt Sailing Club satisfies all of the requirements of the Racing Rules' new Eligibility Code that takes effect in April: http://sailingsource.com/scuttlebutt/ You'll need Adobe Acrobat to download and print the card, but it's available free at: http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep.html VOLVO OCEAN RACE Four additional race crew have been named to the illbruck Challenge Volvo Ocean Race sailing team, following an intensive training and racing session in the Southern Ocean, illbruck Challenge skipper John Kostecki announced: - Richard Clarke, helmsman/trimmer, a native of Canada, is a three-time Olympic campaigner in the Finn class. A Finn gold medallist in the 1999 Pan American Games and seven-time Finn North American Champion, Clarke is switching gears to big boat offshore racing. - Noel Drennan, 17 years with North Sails, is a 17-time veteran of the Sydney to Hobart Race and the No.1 ranked helmsman on the Etchells world rankings from 1997-2000. He was sail coordinator for the 2000 Stars & Stripes America's Cup campaign. - Jamie Gale, mast, a native New Zealander, competed in the 2000 Olympic Games in the Star class and 1996 Games in the Soling class. A veteran of three America's Cup campaigns, Gale was part of the winning 1995 Team New Zealand program. - Ian Moore, navigator, originally from Ireland, has earned a reputation as a respected navigator and tactician in world-class offshore events such as the Fastnet Race, Admiral's Cup and Newport-Bermuda Race. Holding a Masters Degree in Naval Architecture, Moore designed high-speed catamarans before becoming a professional sailor. The new crew named today join illbruck Challenge Volvo Ocean Race team members Stuart Bannatyne, watch captain; Stuart Bettany, bow; Mark Christensen, watch captain; Ray Davies, helmsman/trimmer; Dirk de Ridder, trimmer; Ross Halcrow, trimmer; Tony Kolb, bow; and Juan Vila, navigator. - Jane Eagleson, www.illbruckChallenge.com SEARCH SCUTTLEBUTT ARCHIVES The Sailing Source has just added a complete site keyword search function that includes the Scuttlebutt back issues all the way back to #194 (October 5 1998). Use the "Advanced Search" function, type in Scuttlebutt as a keyword, set your dates, and voila! Or search by keyword, over 5000 pages from all the Sailing Source's hosted sites are all indexed. http://sailingsource.com ONE-STOP SHOPPING When you need the good stuff for your boat, have you noticed it can be hard to find? At Performance Yacht Systems in Annapolis, we are constantly searching, locating and delivering products that our competitors will tell you are out of stock. How do we do it? We work directly with manufacturers and every major independent marine distributor in the United States. Why can't they do it? They work only with manufacturers, and compete with the independents that collectively hold more inventory. Check out our website at http://www.pyacht.com, or call 1-877-3PYACHT to speak with someone who cares. CALENDAR OF MAJOR EVENTS * February 10-11: InterClub Midwinters hosted at Severn Sailing Association: http://www.interclub.org/ * June 16: Annapolis to Newport Race. IMS, PHRF, one-design and Americap. http://www.annapolisyc.com/annapolisnewport/ IMAGES Photos of Key West Race Week: www.regattaphotos.com INDUSTRY NEWS Mr. Charles Curran the Chairman of Bashford International Pty Ltd manufacturers of Sydney Yachts announced the completion of a management buy out of the company by David Kellett, Darren Williams and Iain Murray. Kellett and Williams took over the management of the company in May 1999 and have been running the operation since. Iain Murray has been a Director of the company since 1996. MIAMI OLYMPIC CLASS REGATTA Class Winners: 470 Men: KEVIN TEBOREK & TAL INGRAM, 470 Women: COURTENAY DEY / GLEASON/WENNEERSTROM, 49er: ANDY MACK & ADAM LOWRY, Europe: MEG GAILLARD, Finn: LARRY LEMIEUX, Laser: PAUL GOODISON, Mistral Men: PETER WELLS, Mistral Women: DOMINIQUE VALLEE, Star: JOHN MACCAUSLAND & PETER BROMBEY, Tornado: SEAN MCCANN & JOHN CURTIS http://www.ussailing.org/olympics/MiamiOCR/2001/results.htm THE CURMUDGEON'S CONUNDRUM Why is the third hand on the watch called a second hand? |
