|
SCUTTLEBUTT 1232 - January 3, 2003Powered by SAIC (www.saic.com), an employee-owned company. Scuttlebutt is adigest of major yacht racing news, commentary, opinions, features and dock talk . . . with a North American emphasis. Corrections, contributions, press releases, constructive criticism and contrasting viewpoints are always welcome, but save your bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere. UGLY AUCKLAND - JANUARY 3, 2003 - Executive Director of Team Alinghi, Michel Bonnefous, today confirmed that Team Alinghi has made a complaint to New Zealand Police about threats against the children and family members of Team personnel. Mr. Bonnefous said that letters sent to the syndicate from what purported to be a group of patriotic activists had spelled out a clear intention to target the children and family of sailors. The letters identified team members who have young children. The letters warned that the group would damage team members' property and inflict violence on their families. They said they had tracked the movements of children and other family members, and gave personal details about one crew member. Mr. Bonnefous said the Team's security advisers and the Police took the threats very seriously, and as a result no further specific details can be given at this stage. He said the Team were now confirming the threats with the full agreement and support of the Police. Mr. Bonnefous said Team Alinghi urged anyone who might have information on the source of these threats to immediately contact their nearest Police station. He said: "Alinghi is an international team. We are open and want to share our passion for sailing. We want the focus to return to sport and to the action on the water. We came here, in New Zealand, to sail, not to have our children threatened." - http://www.alinghi.com/en/index.php NEW FORMAT Clipper Ventures plc, chaired by Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, announced new proposals for the 2005 Round the World Yacht Race at The Schroders 49th London Boat Show. Clipper 2005 will break with the established format of the company's four races run so far. New, faster yachts are being built, a new route has been planned and there will be a new boat sponsorship formula. The boats are from the drawing board of yacht designer Ed Dubois. At 68 ft long, they are 8 ft longer than the Clipper 60s in use since 1996. Yet, despite their larger size, thanks to their epoxy/foam sandwich construction, they weigh two tons less than the yachts they are replacing. The new yachts have a taller rig and larger sail area. While not trying to produce a Volvo or Open 60 class of boat, which is specifically for professionals, the new Clipper 68s will provide their amateur crews with the fastest round the world ocean racers in the non-professional field. Each of the new yachts has a capacity for 20 people but will race with 18 crew. The increased capabilities of the new boats have also allowed the introduction of a newly challenging and ambitious route for the 2005 race. The course starts start by following the traditional tea clipper route to Australia via Southern Africa, providing a sleigh ride through the Roaring Forties of the infamous Southern Ocean. The boats next boats head for Singapore, Hong Kong, mainland China and Japan before taking the passage across the northern Pacific to the west coast of Canada and the United States. The Panama Canal follows, then the Caribbean and New York, before the final dash across the northern Atlantic to Europe and home. This route is the longest of all the round the world races and crews that were novices at the start will have become seasoned veterans by the end of the challenge. A new boat sponsorship format means that city will still compete against city, but now they will represent their country as well. This means that cities around the world will have the opportunity of promoting themselves at each of the stopover ports as the fleet forges its way around the world. - www.clipper-ventures.com YOU ASKED FOR IT So here it is, back by popular demand, the Yale Sale. Annapolis Performance Sailing is gearing up to gear you up with the penultimate cordage and rigging in the industry. Need to replace halyards and control lines for Key West, SORC, or next season? Yale Cordage and APS are the answer. Select any in stock Yale cordage, have APS' Yale certified rigging department do the work and save big. Hurry, offer ends the 15th. Just in time to deliver for KWRW. For details, call APS' knowledgeable staff at 800.729.9767 or check out http://www.apsltd.com/scuttlebutt.asp AWARDS Ben Ainslie from Lymington, Hampshire is named as the 2002 Yachting Journalist Association Yachtsman of the Year. He wins this top yachting award for an unprecedented third time ahead of four other top British names in the sport - Route du Rhum Transatlantic Race winner Ellen MacArthur, four-time World Class 1 Powerboat champion Steve Curtis, Star Class world champions Iain Percy and Steve Mitchell, and Peter Harrison and his GBR America's Cup Challenge team. - Barry Pickthall, Yachts and Yachting website, full story: http://www.yachtsandyachting.com/default2.asp?section=11&article=8623 LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON (editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com) (Letters selected for publication must include the writer's name and may be edited for clarity or space - 250 words max. This is not a chat room or a bulletin board - you only get one letter per subject, so give it your best shot and don't whine if others disagree.) * From Trevor Lewis: Robert Baker criticizes the rule that requires protests to be found invalid when the requirements for hailing and flagging are not met. As he points out, the purpose of hailing and flagging is to try to make the other boat aware that you are upset, and that you reserve the right to take it further unless the other boat exonerates, where allowed. This goes a long way to stopping 'out of the blue' protests. Indeed, the withdrawal of the need to flag on boats under 6m is seen by many as a retrograde step. Since it is always possible that a hail will not be heard, my experience is that nearly every small boat protest has now to be found valid if the protestor claims a hail was made, however dubious the circumstances. Obviously though, it is a nonsense if a protest is thrown out for lack of hailing or flagging after a serious-damage incident - which was why rule 60.4, presumably exercised by the Jury against Valheru, allows the Jury to bring its own protest when a protest from a major coming-together is found invalid. However, it might have been better for ISAF simply to allow the Jury to waive the hailing and flagging requirements in such cases - less paperwork, quicker, and no chance for the jury to exercise its discretion not to protest. * From David Hagler: Mr. Baker should be comforted that juries do follow guidelines and are not making arbitrary decisions. As judges we follow the RRS and are guided by the published US Appeals (or other national authority guidance). I suggest you read Appeal 67 (from the old US Appeals book). We as judges are advised that the hail must be immediate and a flag should only be delayed for extreme cases related to safety or other extenuating circumstances. Senior judges advise me to not allow for more than 30 seconds for a flag. Imagine if a competitor could wait a minute or two to put up the flag. If you crossed tacks at 6 knots and waited for 60 seconds to put the flag up, the boats would be separated by 860 ft (assuming 45 degree sailing from windward for each boat). For a 30 ft sailboat, that is almost 30 boat lengths. Would you be able to see a small signal flag from almost a kilometer away? The rules were written so in cases like the one with Valheru a jury can protest a competitor due to 'serious damage' or 'serious injury'. Too many competitors continue to sail when they should retire (or take a penalty) hoping to 'win it in the room'. This wastes the jury's time and doesn't reflect well on the competitor (who doesn't understand the rules). Many of us judges are competitors who hear protests, not referees who just watch from the sidelines. * From Ralph Taylor: Many of us empathize with Robert Baker about the apparent injustice of requiring a boat in danger of sinking and with crew in the water to think first about protest requirements. And, we sympathize with skipper Vail. Protest committees and juries differently interpret the first sentence of rule 61.1(a): "A boat intending to protest shall always inform the other boat at the first reasonable opportunity." as well as the rest of the rule. Only in "reasonable" do the rules recognize the "shock factor" of a serious collision or the priority of saving lives. "Reasonable" is the squishy concept; some protest committees are tighter than others on what's reasonable. It's why I advise sailors to make the "Protest!" hail automatic. (One can decide later not to follow through, but once the moment passes without the hail the window is closed for good.) We should applaud the jury in looking to rule 60.4 ("report of serious damage") to reach a correct result with the messy fact of an invalid protest. Perhaps some wouldn't have gone beyond 60.3 which prohibits the jury protesting a boat as a result of information from a competitor or an invalid protest. Clearly, Peugeot needs to work on a couple of things in its racing program. One would be mastering the "duck" maneuver. Another would be the last sentence of rule 44.1: "However, if she caused serious damage or gained a significant advantage by her breach she shall retire." * From Chris Welsh: Canting ballast technology is great, and in terms of making sailing more exciting, I hope we see more of it every year. Having said that, mixing CBTF boats with regular boats on a fair handicap basis based even remotely on length or PHRF is virtually impossible because the polars on the CBTF boats are so unusual - in their conditions, they are light years faster than a conventional boat, and the next day in different conditions, they are just another 40 footer. The only possibly fair handicap would be one that included wind and sea state in order to correctly even the field. For the most part, CBTF boats should race each other, or have handicaps that reflect the conditions. Transpac is an example of a race where a fair handicap can be assessed, since the conditions are somewhat predictable. Around the buoys or especially in short ocean races with a predetermined course, good handicapping is not available. * From Craig K Yandow: If we are going to permit keels to cant using battery or engine power to move them, why don't we eliminate the middle man, and just apply the power directly to the propeller? I can't tell the difference anyway. * From Laurence Mead: The pages of Scuttlebutt are still going on about the America's Cup and all its associated politics and intrigues, most of which are boring in the extreme. For Christmas I was given a video called "Awesome Aussie Skiffs". Even having seen it before, it is truly amazing. Fantastic machines sailed to the limit with some great crashes and capsizes. Check out David Witt and is crew sailing their skiff downwind in 30 knots of breeze with the kite up...Wow! The next day my son and I had our 29er back on the water. In contrast, it doesn't seem like the AC is getting many "scut readers" on the water! PERSPECTIVE (In a story written by Sean McNeill for the Louis Vuitton Cup website, John Kostecki freely shared his thoughts about some of the issues associated with the present Cup Series. Here's a brief excerpt.) Kostecki also has been disappointed by all the legal issues dominating the headlines. From cheating accusations against OneWorld Challenge to public squabbling between challenger and defender, the America's Cup, as an event, has taken another broadside swipe by pundits who say it's just a rich man's game. "This time around, with the different protests and allegations, it's not making our sport look good," Kostecki says. "For a person that's very involved with the sport, I'm embarrassed. I feel the America's Cup has so much potential to be such a great event and (the contentiousness) kind of spoils it a bit." The most controversial issue regards OneWorld Challenge, which came under intense scrutiny one month ago when two challengers, Team Dennis Conner and Prada, reopened "Reeves-gate", the story of design secrets for sale. The two teams' actions forced the America's Cup Arbitration Panel to make a hasty trip to Auckland for two days of hearings. The panel had previously penalised OneWorld one point for six violations of the America's Cup Protocol in a decision handed down last August. The panel found OneWorld in contravention of the protocol again, but that decision, like the earlier one, came from OneWorld's admission that it possessed information that it shouldn't have. Despite the penalties, Kostecki feels OneWorld is the most honest team on syndicate row. "Every syndicate has done whatever they have done. I think it's pretty common," Kostecki says. "They just kind of got caught in a bad position. They ended up admitting something maybe they shouldn't have. That's where they got penalised. "I see them as being one of the cleanest campaigns on the block. Unfortunately they're getting penalised for it," Kostecki says. - Full story: http://www.louisvuittoncup.yahoo.com/story1592.html DEAR LAYLINE CUSTOMERS: Goodbye holidays - hello Key West. Who knows the effect El Nino will have on wind and weather, but two things are certain: (1) there will be a big white tent in Key West, and (2) Layline can erase your last minute bind by delivering Pre-Stressed halyards for your race week machine! See our new "Iron Maiden" on our website. Her specialty is the "medieval-ish" pre-stressing of "unruly" halyards. Samson Cordage writes about Pre-Stressing at: http://www.layline.com (scroll down). During January, Layline is offering free Pre-Stressing, 1-800-542-5463! See You In Florida ...Walt FOR THE RECORD Wild Oats 2003 Strathfield Pittwater to Coffs line honours record now stands at 18 hour 29 minutes and 14 seconds, a 2-½ reduction from The Office's 1984 time. Travelex has also broken the race record finishing at 08:24:13, 92 minutes ahead of the old number. Travelex crossed the finish line at 08:24:13 In third place on the water and second overall on IRC was Andrew Short Marine, having just rounded Smokey Cape, some 23 miles behind Travelex. Espresso Forte 9 miles north east of Tacking Point is third on IRC handicap overall. Fourth on the water is Future Shock 4 miles south of Korogoro Point. In the Sydney 38 One Design division Peter McNamara and Jamie McPhail have teamed to lead the One design fleet. At the morning sked they were 7 miles south of Camden Haven, a mile ahead of the Business. Teamsail Tassie 2 was four miles back in third place. The rest of the Sydney 38 continued their usual tight racing all within site of each other. The sensational new Reichel Pugh 30 Cone of Silence is 20 mile ahead of the Mum 30's and is second on PHS overall and division 2 leader. Leading her division by four hours on corrected time, her handicap will suffer considerably. - Al Constable, Sail-World website, full story: www.sail-world.com/pittwatercoffs2003 AROUND ALONE While the Class 1 boats rocket under Australia with the leader Bernard Stamm almost around Tasmania, the Class 2 boats, with the exception of Tommy Hilfiger Freedom America, are approaching the longitude of Cape Leeuwin on the southwest corner of Australia. Brad van Liew on Tommy Hilfiger Freedom America passed that famous cape, one of the five great southern capes, a few days ago. He has a substantial lead in his class and is sailing a fast, yet conservative race across the bottom of the world. - Brian Hancock, www.aroundalone.com STANDINGS 2200 UTC January 2 CLASS 1: 1. Bobst Group-Armor Lux, Bernard Stamm, 1558 miles from finish; 2. Solidaires, Thierry Dubois, 298 miles behind leader; 3. Hexagon, Graham Dalton, 549 mbl, 4. Tiscali, Simone Bianchetti, 676 mbl; 5. Pindar, Emma Richards, 821 mbl; 6. Ocean Planet, Bruce Schwab, 990 mbl. CLASS 2: 1. Tommy Hilfiger, Brad Van Liew, 2825 miles from finish; 2. Everest Horizontal, Tim Kent, 584 mbl. 3. Spirit of Canada, Derek Hatfield, 679 mbl; 4. Spirit of yukoh, Kojiro Shiraishi, 780 mbl, BTC Velocity, Alan Paris, 1213 mbl. EDUCATION Schoolchildren, parents and other visitors to the London Boat Show at Earl's Court (2-12 January) are invited to experience The HSBC Global Education Challenge, the official online education programme of the Around Alone round-the-world yacht race, on HSBC's interactive stand. The expected 170,000 visitors to the show will be welcomed to stand A3, where they can register for the Challenge, try out the website and claim a free learning pack that includes an Around Alone race route map, a HSBC Global Education Challenge pen, stickers and pin badge. The HSBC Global Education Challenge is a programme of 32 online weekly modules aimed at children aged between 9 and 12, and can be accessed through the website. The modules focus on the different aspects of the natural world that HSBC-sponsored skipper Graham Dalton and his yacht, Hexagon, will face during the Around Alone race, including weather systems and energy, wildlife, geography, nutrition and culture. - www.education.hsbc.com CALENDAR OF MAJOR EVENTS * January 9-12: Atlantic Sail, Atlantic City Convention. Seminars plus the latest in boats and gear from over 250 exhibitors. www.sailamerica.com * February 1: Women's Sailing Convention, Bahia Corinthian YC, Corona del Mar, CA. Water and land based workshops. www.scya.org THE CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATIONS An egotist is someone who is usually me-deep in conversation. |
