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SCUTTLEBUTT 3789 - Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Scuttlebutt is published each weekday with the support of its sponsors,
providing a digest of major sailing news, commentary, opinions, features
and dock talk . . . with a North American focus.
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Today's sponsors: Block Island Race Week, North Sails, and Waterline
Systems.
PATHWAY TO THE PROMISED LAND
The Red Bull Youth America's Cup is a new event under the umbrella of the
America's Cup Event Authority, to be held in San Francisco during the break
between the start of the 2013 America's Cup Finals and the conclusion of
the Louis Vuitton Cup (Sept. 1-4, 2013).
Among the ten international teams (sailors aged 19-24) that will be
participating, Scuttlebutt intends to provide a monthly update for the two
North American teams selected to compete. Here's what they are up to in
March:
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American Youth Sailing Force (USA) -
We're launching into our first month of concentrated on-the water training,
with our biggest week to be the training sessions onboard Oracle Team USA's
AC45 mid-month. We'll be on the water for three days with daily briefings
and after practice debriefs with Oracle Team USA coaches and sailors. This
practical help with speed and maneuvers was invaluable when we did the US
Trials in November and we look forward to getting more hard information in
this cycle.
We've also secured our training boat for when we aren't on the AC45. We'll
be practicing on the SL33 Bridge Runner. This boat was designed
specifically as a scaled down AC45 so what we learn on this boat will be
directly applicable to the sailing we'll be doing in the Youth America's
Cup. Our goal is to be out on the water three days a week, every week with
our own coaching staff doing debriefs after each session.
We'll be doing a lot of outreach during March. On March 6 to 8, we'll be
presenting the video we made of the US Trials at the San Francisco Ocean
Film Festival's Education program for more than 600 students. We're also
going to be starting up our work with the San Francisco Downtown High
School's boat building program for at risk youth. That should be
challenging but rewarding. We're also firming up our plans with Treasure
Island Sailing Center for their summer community boating program for youth.
Team website: http://americanyouthsailingforce.com
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USA45 Racing (USA) -
March is a big month for USA45 Racing. Many of the team members are
competing in the heat of their college sailing seasons, while Helmsman
Charlie Buckingham and Grinder Matthew Whitehead train full time in the
Olympic Laser and Nacra 17 catamaran, respectively.
The team will host its first fundraising event on March 12 at San Diego
Yacht Club, where teammates Jake La Dow and Jake Reynolds will introduce
the keynote speaker, Oracle team USA helmsman James Spithill! The night is
designed to increase awareness and garner support for the team, as well as
raise money for the campaign. A big thanks to Point Loma Outfitting for
sponsoring the evening!
After the event in San Diego, the team will travel to San Francisco on
March 14 to train in the AC 45's out of Oracle's base with local RBYAC team
American Youth Sailing Force. It should be a great time to get back in the
boats, and get the team all back in one place. One other big piece of news
is the announcement of USA45 Racing's coach. The team will be under the
guidance of catamaran veteran and Olympic medalist Charlie Ogletree through
to the competition in September! The team is excited for things to start
ramping up for the big event.
Team website: http://www.usa45racing.com
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Note: All information is provided by each team. Further details here:
http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=15279
SCUTTLEBUTT UNIVERSITY
How smart are you feeling today? Let's find out...
Does anchoring a boat cause the sea-level to be:
(a) higher
(b) lower
(c) no change
Answer below
STORM TRYSAIL CLUB BLOCK ISLAND RACE WEEK XXV, JUNE 23-28, 2013
Come for the competition and there'll be lots of it, but don't miss the
parties and more at the Storm Trysail Club 25th Block Island Race Week, the
premier East Coast five day race week. Extra exciting competition for
yachts sailing for regional championships: North Americans in US-IRC, HPR
and J80; East Coasts in PHRF, J109 and J105; Swan 42 New England and
Beneteau 36.7 Northeast Championships. Navigator-style courses for Double
Handed, Cruising, Classic and Gunboats. All PHRF-rated yachts, racing or
navigator, will compete for the US Sailing East Coast Championship on a
relative best-in-class basis. http://www.blockislandraceweek.com
2013 TOUR LINE-UP ANNOUNCED
London, UK (March 5, 2013) - The Alpari World Match Racing Tour has
announced the names of the eight professional match racing skippers
selected to compete on the 2013 Tour in a bid to be crowned 2013 ISAF Match
Racing World Champion.
Four-time Tour Champion and British sailor Ian Williams returns to defend
his title for a fifth time under the familiar colours of his GAC Pindar
team.
"This year is a quality line up of skippers on the Tour", commented
Williams. "The list was well oversubscribed and that shows the high level
of demand and competition that the Tour attracts. There will be some very
close racing this year.'
Eager to snatch the title from Williams is 2012 runner-up Bjorn Hansen
(SWE) with his Hansen Sailing Team, and 2012 podium finisher Phil Robertson
(NZL) sailing with WAKA Racing. Robertson finished 3rd in the final Tour
rankings at the end of 2012 following an impressive second place finish at
the Tour finale event, the Monsoon Cup in Malaysia.
US Match Racing champion Taylor Canfield and his USone team was the lone
North American team to receive a Tour Card. "Getting to the Tour has been a
3-year goal for us, so we're really pleased to have reached this milestone
and the chance to defend our titles from 2012," said 24-year old Canfield,
a native of St Thomas in the US Virgin Islands. "We are thankful for the
opportunities we have had at the Chicago Match Race Center to train,
compete, and lay the foundation for the return of a US-based team to the
World Tour."
Canfield is joined on USone by the talented trimmers and Midwestern natives
Matt Clark (Chicago, IL), Dan Morris (Minnetonka, MN), and Mike Rehe
(Detroit, MI). Three-time Match Racing World Champion Rod Dawson of New
Zealand fills the team's tactician role. Hayden Goodrick, a fellow Kiwi and
veteran AWMRT bowman rounds out the team.
Also competing on the 2013 Tour...
Adam Minoprio (NZL), 2009 ISAF Match Racing World Champion
Pierre-Antoine Morvan (FRA)
Johnie Berntsson (SWE)
Keith Swinton (AUS)
James Pleasance, Executive Director of the Alpari World Match Racing Tour,
was impressed with the level of interest from teams noting that 17
applications for Tour Cards were received but with only 8 places available
the selection process had been very challenging.
"The Tour Card system is a means to provide event promoters with access to
a consistent pool of the world's top match racers and this year demand for
the Tour Cards has remained very high," he explained. "This ensures high
quality racing at events but at the same time, a regular group of skippers
allows the Tour to build profiles via PR, media messaging and television
coverage. The level of interest this year is outstanding, proving that the
Tour provides first class competition and exceptional value to sailors and
sponsors."
The 2013 season will consist of seven stages, with the opener in Germany on
16 May on the waters of Lake Constance. Other non Tour Card skippers will
also have the opportunity to compete on the Tour through wild card entries
to events or by competing at qualifying events for each of the official
Tour stages. -- Full report: http://tinyurl.com/GoZags-030513
ANOTHER REASON TO HAVE FUN AT YOUR CLUB
By Glenn McCarthy
Members Only. It sounds exclusive; it conveys a message where commoners who
wish to climb the ladder of success can become part of this exclusive
group. Otherwise, commoners are to stay away - that's the message at least.
But is there something else underlying that binds a yacht club to Members
Only? Oh-yes there is, in the case of tax-exempt yacht clubs.
Most yacht clubs are tax-exempt corporations in the U.S. and many of
them--from coast to coast--sit on public land on long-term leases. They
have long-term leases on the land from a local government authority and p
art of that agreement is that they remain a not-for-profit corporation. If
or when a yacht club violates the agreement, most likely, they'll be
removed from the land. How hard can it be to remain a tax-exempt
organization?
In today's economic climate, yacht clubs are searching for new revenue
sources, hosting seminars, relaxing rules to let non-members eat or drink
at certain times, open public days, bringing in weddings, flea market s,
and more. While these revenue enhancements sound simple, they must be
accounted for separately in the yacht club's tax return.
What does the IRS say about this?
A yacht club receives its tax-exempt status under IRC 501(c)(7) as a social
club, which is created for the purpose to bring members together to share
facilities, socialize, and for camaraderie. Think about it. A yacht club is
on an expensive piece of waterfront real estate and if it opens its doors
to the public, not paying taxes, how does that compete with a for-profit
corporation? The IRS figured this out long ago and made it so non-member
revenue is subject to for-profit taxation. As a result, the IRS limits
non-member income of 501(c)(7)'s in order to avoid unfair competition. --
Read on:
http://www.lmsrf.org/lmsrf/images/stories/newsletters/2013_03_LMSuRF.pdf
WHAT'S BETTER THAN FREE?
To celebrate the approach of spring, NorthSailsGear.com is offering free
shipping** on all orders for the rest of this week. We've added hats with
fun graphics, ladies vests and men's long-sleeve shirts perfect for spring
layering, new tee shirt colors and more. You're certain to find something
for everyone in your crew. ** Surface shipping within the US only. Offer
expires March 10. Mention SBUTT in comments box during check-out and
shipping will be deducted. When fashion counts, head North!
http://www.NorthSailsGear.com
SAILING SHORTS
* Miami, FL (March 5, 2013) - Breeze just into the double digits made the
second day of racing for the 86th BACARDI Cup a test of experience and
persistence for the 56 Star teams racing on Biscayne Bay. Two races were
completed as the sunshine warmed temperatures into the low 70s, and, with
three races scored a drop race now comes into play. While Lars Grael and
Mario Lagoa (BRA) remain first overall with two points net after adding
today's finishes of 12-1 to their win of Monday's lone race, less than 12
points separate the top-five teams. Racing for the Stars continues daily
through March 9. -- Full report:
http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=15290#15290
* Miami, FL (March 5, 2013) - After triumphing with a consistent display in
Key West in January, Argentinean skipper Guillermo Parada's Azzurra team
continued their winning ways today when they made the strongest opening to
the Gaastra 52 World Championships in light and very challenging conditions
off Miami Beach. Posting a 1-2, Azzurra holds a lead of four points ahead
of the three times world champions Quantum Racing, helmed by Ed Baird
(USA). -- Full report:
http://www.52superseries.com/2013/03/06/azzurra-re-opening-day-stars/
* Buzios, Brazil (March 5, 2013) - Light winds prevailed for the final day
of open sailing at the RS:X World Championship, with the top ten men and
women proceeding to the medal race on Wednesday. In the women's division,
Israeli-Lee El Korsiz is already celebrating another title, the third in a
row, as her 21 point lead cannot be contested. Among the men, Dorian van
Hijsselberghe (NED), the Olympic champion in London, struggled with the
conditions, dropping to second place, nine points behind the British Nick
Dempsey, who won the silver in London 2012. -- Event website:
http://tinyurl.com/RSX-030313
* Muscat, Oman (March 5, 2013) - Champagne sailing conditions kick-started
a glamour first day for the 2013 Extreme Sailing Series. Leigh McMillan and
his crew on The Wave, Muscat start the 2013 Series where they left off in
2012, winning the first race and sitting at the top of the leaderboard
after seven races. Roman Hagara and his men on the energy-fueled Red Bull
Sailing Team finished the day just one point shy of The Wave, Muscat, with
Ernesto Bertarelli's Alinghi squad in third. Racing continues through March
8 with online live video streaming beginning on March 6. -- Full report:
http://tinyurl.com/Gonzaga1-030513
* Sail Canada is collaborating with the award-winning inshore sailboat
racing and training game SailX.com to co-host the first ever "Virtual
Sailing Canadian National Championships". This free-to-play online regatta
will kick off on the 18th March 2013 and continue for a total of six weeks.
SailX is a unique online game that enables users to race virtual sailboats
against others from all over the world in real time and in strict
accordance with the Racing Rules of Sailing and with each race lasting only
5-7 minutes. -- Details:
http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=15289
* An unplanned incident at sister company Scuttlebutt Europe has caused an
interruption in the daily publication of that newsletter. Editor David
McCreary expects distribution to tentatively resume by March 8. --
http://www.scuttlebutteurope.com/
ANCHORING ANSWER
To the question, "Does anchoring cause the sea-level to be (a) higher, (b)
lower, or (c) no change", the answer is (b) lower.
First consider that FLOATING things displace a volume of water EQUAL to
their mass. The anchor sinks because when it's in the water, it displaces
LESS volume than the water it's competing with. So while the anchor is in
the boat, it's displacing MORE water than the anchor's volume. So tossing
out the anchor, the anchor now displaces water EQUAL to the anchor's
volume, so the sea-level FALLS by that difference in volume.
Corollary: if civilization is in danger because climate change will cause
seas to rise, we all need to go out and anchor to compensate.
SPECIAL MARCH OFFERS FROM WATERLINE SYSTEMS!
Get a free Waterline Systems T-Shirt during the month of March when you
order parts online at www.waterlinesystems.com. Please remember our
USWatercraft Rendezvous is March 9th, where we will raffle off one half
hull model and one New England Ropes halyard to one of our guests. Event
details here: http://tinyurl.com/WaterlineSystems-030513
GUEST COMMENTARY
Scuttlebutt strongly encourages feedback from the Scuttlebutt community.
Either submit comments by email or post them on the Forum. Submitted
comments chosen to be published in the newsletter may be limited to 250
words. Authors may have one published submission per subject, and should
save their bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere.
Email: editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com
Forum: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/forum
* From Tim Dempsey, SKUD 18 class president
As a follow-up to the report in Scuttlebutt 3787, the SKUD18 is eager to
get more universal use, more able-bods sailing the boat. That is definitely
what the Class wants to see.
It is an OPEN class. For IFDS and Paralympic competition, there are a range
of restrictions in terms of disability classification and actions of the
crew within the boat, but the class rules enable the boat to be sailed with
two or three crew members and with a combination of centreline seating,
sailors transferring to the gunwales or even using trapeze. The SKUD 18 is
an incredibly versatile, easily managed two or three person sports boat.
To highlight this, the SKUDs were sailed in open configuration at Sail
Melbourne and Sail Auckland in December and February with mixed crews. In
Melbourne there were two boats with wheelchair users helming from canting
centreline seats and their crews on trapeze racing against a SKUD with two
sailors transferring gunwale to gunwale. In Auckland all three helms were
using centreline seats with crews on the wire.
I was on the organising committee for Sail Auckland and from the outset we
pushed for the SKUD to be sailed in open configuration. I sailed in the
regatta with Stephanie Hazard who helmed for the New Zealand women's match
racing team at the 2012 Olympics we did this to show how well the boat
sails in an open format. Personally I think the SKUD should be sailed in
this format at the Olympics then we would truly have an inclusive sporting
event like no other. Compared to the Paralympic two on the centreline
configuration, the performance is simply amazing.
The Class wants to encourage more sailors (with and without disabilities)
to enjoy the SKUD 18 in its varied configurations. Class website:
http://www.skud.org/default.asp?Page=18384&MenuID=Classes/13153/0/
* From John Lambert:
Having read several follow-up comments to Mr. McCarthy's "How expensive is
sailing?" (Scuttlebutt 3785) and his conclusion that it's for millionaires
- but don't admit it, I am unable to resist noting the irony of that
edition also announcing the Rolex U.S. sailors of the year; not the Timex
or Casio sailors of the year, but Rolex. We associate our "sailor of the
year" with conspicuous consumption?
Despite the sport of sailboat racing (not sailing, really a different
activity) struggling to sustain its numbers at the adult level, our sport's
stewards seek out branding opportunities like Rolex to reinforce the
association of racing and wealth (It ain't the "Kia Melges 20", it's the
"Audi Melges 20").
Stewardship is not, however, content with only such branding. Just weeks
ago, it was announced that the U.S. Youth Championship, now governed by the
Olympic Development Cmtee - part of the Olympic development process - a
path that less than 1% of US sailors have chosen - will include even more
expensive classes and that, in at least one instance, virtually nobody owns
(the F16 US Class Assn doesn't even have a website).
Hey, here's a plan to grow the sport: for kids, let's use expensive boats
that are hard to find in the US or better yet, boats like the F16 that
nobody owns. Sure the plan will disenfranchise many kids, but it will make
it more likely that those who do race, will be kids who can buy Rolexes.
As for the other kids, let them eat cake.
* From Eric Sorenson:
I know what my boat (Catalina 42) costs and it is too much, but the boat
adds a purpose to my life since I don't have kids. You cannot take it with
you and I take a large crew out racing with me as much as possible. We had
12 bodies, mostly under 30, for the Winter Shaw Island race here in the San
Juans.
Winter racing in the NW breeds a tough set of sailors as that is when the
wind blows and it is cold. The summers are all about light winds and
getting boat speed from nothing. I contend that an hour of racing equals
2-3 weeks of cruising for learning how to make one's boat go.
More cruisers should get out on the race course and enter into the regattas
and distance races or at least the beer can races in the evening. Take out
your friends, spouses, and shore support to allow as many as possible
exposure to one of life's greatest pleasures, sailing.
PREPARE FOR THE SHIFT
The Scuttlebutt newsletter was launched in 1997, and the website followed
in 2003. A lot has happened since then, and it is time for these two
platforms to reflect the changes. While our focus will remain on North
America, and our mantra - Credible, Reliable, Responsible - will be
unchanged, the delivery is getting a well needed makeover. Look for the
newsletter to be more vibrant and the website to be more dynamic. Prepare
for the shift on Monday.
CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATION
"You may live in Canada if you carry jumper cables in your car and your
wife knows how to use them." - Jeff Foxworthy
SPONSORS THIS WEEK
Gowrie Group - Harken - North U - Grand Ambition -
Gladstone's Long Beach - Block Island Race Week - North Sails -
Waterline Systems - APS - Ullman Sails - Hall Spars & Rigging -
Need stuff? Look here: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/ssc/suppliers
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