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SCUTTLEBUTT 3483 - Tuesday, December 6, 2011Scuttlebutt 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. Website: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com Twitter: http://twitter.com/scuttbutt Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/sailingscuttlebutt RSS: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/rss/index.xml Today's sponsors: North Sails, North U, and Morris Yachts. MAKING LEMONADE The key to success in world-class sailboat racing, according to 51-year-old Andre Rademaker of the Netherlands, is to train with the best, train hard, and "make it fun." He should know. For the past seven years, Rademaker has been training with fellow Dutchman Thierry Schmitter, 43, who is the best in the world. The strategy seems to be working. In the 2011 International Association for Disabled Sailing (IFDS) World Championship, held last summer in Weymouth, England, Schmitter finished first and Rademaker second in their event, the singlehanded 2.4mR. However, Jan. 7-15, 2012, when the Worlds will be held on Charlotte Harbor, Florida, training time will be over and a fierce duel will take place. That's because the one who bests the other will go on to represent his native Holland in the 2012 Paralympics, to be held next summer, again in Weymouth. Rademaker said he learned to sail at 14 on a lake. He hoped to make Holland's Olympic team. However in 1979, he was struck by a car and seriously injured while riding a motorbike across a street. He was 19. Rademaker spent the next three years in a hospital. He underwent 48 surgeries. A turning point came in 2001, after he finally had an infected leg amputated. "It was a relief, actually," he said. "It was the end of a long story and a start all over again." He soon began competing in wheelchair basketball. As a consequence, he ran into an Olympics sailing coach. The coach suggested he give sailing a try. "When I was dreaming, I was always dreaming about sailing," Rademaker said. "I was in the boat. It's the kind of feeling that you get. I was always trying to get back to it, you know." Schmitter also has lived a life rich in challenges. As a youth, he enjoyed windsurfing and catamaran racing. As a young man, he became a mountaineer and an extreme skier. In 1995, he participated in the Dutch K2 Expedition, climbing above 24,000 feet. In November 1998, however, Schmitter fell some 90 feet while climbing a frozen waterfall in the Swiss Alps. He broke his back and was paralyzed. -- Read on: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=12962#12962 NORTH SAILS GEAR'S GIFT TO YOU! With Christmas only 19 days away, North Sails Gear is giving you the gift of free shipping on all orders placed before December 9th. With awesome gift options like North Sails jackets, hats, shirts, belts & more... (not to mention great stocking stuffers like coffee mugs, mouse pads, key chains, etc.) get your shopping done now & don't delay! This will be the last free shipping offer from NS Gear this year! Surface shipping within the US only, enter S-BUTT-2011 in comments box during check-out and shipping charges will be deducted when your order is processed. http://www.NorthSailsGear.com HOW READY WILL THEY BE? Before the start of the 2011-12 Volvo Ocean Race, it was observed that while the fleet was small at six boats, it was likely the most competitive group top to bottom that the race had ever seen. So when favorites PUMA and Abu Dhabi dismasted on the first leg, and longshot Team Sanya suffers hull damage, the question has to be asked: "Can they still win?" All three appear to be on course to complete repairs before the start of the Cape Town In-Port race on December 10th, but there is a big difference between being able and being ready. If all goes according to plan, which is razor thin for PUMA and Team Sanya, the three injured teams will not be nearly as rested or prepared as the three teams that were able to complete the leg. "The time between legs has been cut down by a week, which makes it very hard to do everything that's needed on a boat like this, and even though we got here first, we are running low on time all the same," says Horacio Carabelli, Team Telefonica's technical director. "This change in the regatta isn't favourable when it comes to getting the boats ready and it makes it even more tough for those who come in further behind". Since finishing the leg to Cape Town in third, the Groupama 4 shore team has been working flat out to work on improvements to their boat. Pierre Tissier, head of boat construction: "These past six days have seen us checking the carbon and mechanical structures and we also unstepped the boat's mast, daggerboards and rudders. We also cleaned the hull beneath the waterline and checked over the whole structure. Some slight repairs and modifications have been required to improve life for the sailors onboard." Arriving in second position, CAMPER skipper Chris Nicholson sees reliability as a bigger factor than ever in the Volvo Ocean Race. "Ultimately I was not hugely surprised by the level of attrition we've seen to date. These are not the same Volvo (Open) 70s of previous races and any comparison to earlier races is a bit pointless. I'm not saying that we're any better or any worse than the others but we have done everything that we possibly can to ensure that the type of breakages we've seen so far don't happen to us." -- Source: Event and team media * With PUMA in transit to Cape Town, skipper Ken Read reflects on their Leg 1 dramas and being plucked from the ocean off Tristan da Cunha: http://tinyurl.com/VOR-120511 * Photos of the hull reconstruction on Team Sanya: http://www.teamsanya.com/en/news/repair-work-is-underway * Leg 1 of the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12 began with one of the most dramatic first nights in the race's 38-year history and continued in epic mode on the way to the finish in Cape Town. A 52-minute video documentary and written review provide a recap of the first leg: http://tinyurl.com/VOR-120411 * Live coverage of the Cape Town In-Port Race on Saturday, December 10 is at 1300 GMT and the start of Leg 2 to Abu Dhabi is the following day at the same time. Follow the action at http://new.livestream.com/volvooceanrace Overall Standings (In-Port 1 and Leg 1) 1. Telefonica (ESP), Iker Martinez (ESP), 31 points 2. CAMPER (NZL), Chris Nicholson (AUS), 29 3. Groupama (FRA), Frank Cammas (FRA), 22 4. Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing (UAE), Ian Walker (GBR), 6 5. PUMA Ocean Racing (USA), Ken Read (USA), 5 6. Team Sanya (CHN), Mike Sanderson (NZL), 3 Tracking/Standings: http://www.volvooceanrace.com/en/racetracker/rdc.html Video reports: http://www.youtube.com/user/volvooceanracevideos BACKGROUND: During the nine months of the Volvo Ocean Race, which started in Alicante, Spain and concludes in Galway, Ireland during early July 2012, six professional teams will sail over 39,000 nautical miles of the world's most treacherous seas via Cape Town, Abu Dhabi, Sanya, Auckland, around Cape Horn to Itajai, Miami, Lisbon, and Lorient. Teams accumulate points through nine distance legs and ten In-Port races. - http://www.volvooceanrace.com HOT AND LIGHT AT ISAF WORLDS Perth, Australia (December 5, 2011) - The first day of fleet racing in Perth was held in light, fluctuating breezes as four classes took to the water on Day three of the ISAF Sailing World Championships. With only the lightest of sea breezes reaching just over ten knots, the temperature in Perth soared to 93F degrees. This was the third day for Women's Match Racing, where the 29 teams are divided into two groups for the first round robin series. The top two teams from each group automatically advance to the quarterfinals, while teams ranked 3rd through 10th in each group come together for a 16 team round robin. The top four teams from the second round robin complete the quarterfinal stage. Both American teams (Anna Tunnicliffe and Genny Tulloch) are in contention for the automatic quarterfinal bid. Racing commenced for the Women's RS:X, Laser Radial, Finn and Men's 470 classes, which begins with a qualifying round to determine which teams advance to the gold round, with the top ten teams then advancing to the medal race on the final day. Leading the charge for North America are Americans Zach Railey (3rd-Finn), Paige Railey (4th-Laser Radial), and Stuart McNay/ Graham Biehl (13th-470 M). The forecast is for light winds to continue on Tuesday with an increase thereafter. Here is the racing schedule: Women's Match Racing (Elliott 6m), December 3-16 Women's Windsurfer (RS:X W), December 5-11 Women's One Person Dinghy (Laser Radial), December 5-11 Men's One Person Dinghy Heavy (Finn), December 5-11 Men's Two Person Dinghy (470 M), December 5-11 Men's Keelboat (Star), December 11-17 Men's Windsurfer (RS:X W), December 12-18 Men's One Person Dinghy (Laser), December 12-18 Women's Two Person Dinghy (470 W), December 12-18 Men's Skiff (49er), December 12-18 BACKGROUND: The ISAF Sailing World Championships are held every four years, bringing together the Olympic class organization to host their most prestigious event. The 2011 edition will see over 1,100 sailors from 78 nations coming to Perth, Australia to compete in their class World titles and to qualify their nations for the London 2012 Olympic Sailing Competition. -- Event website: http://www.perth2011.com ON THE OLYMPIC TRAIL - ZACH RAILEY American Olympic medalist Zach Railey shares with Harken.com his training for the 2012 Olympics, his superstitions, his future goals, and what it's like to share his Olympic dreams with his sister, USSTAG Laser Radial representative Paige Railey. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- * Can you tell me about your training program? ZACH RAILEY: Physical fitness has become a major part of any Olympic campaign. My training week consists of five days on the water, between two and four hours, Monday through Friday. Then, I do four cardio sessions. Two of these are on rowing machines; the other two focus on running and agility drills. And I also lift weights six times a week. * Am I correct that you didn't sail in college? ZACH RAILEY: No, I didn't. I was too big for the 420 or the FJ - I was 6'3" and 185-190 pounds. So I made the decision to go to the University of Miami. It's a great school and the US SAILING Center Miami is right there, so this gave me the opportunity to train full-time and work towards the Olympics while I was in school. * Is it intimidating to race against four-time Olympic medalist Ben Ainslie in the Finn class?? ZACH RAILEY: "Intimidating" isn't the right word - "motivating" is better. A lot of people would be discouraged to race against Ben, but it encourages me to sail harder. The primary reason that I wanted to do an Olympic campaign was because I wanted to race against the best sailors in the world. * I've heard that you're superstitious - any truth there? ZACH RAILEY: I'm as superstitious as you can get! I have three things: I always wear my University of Miami hat when I race; I have a song that I've been listening to for years before I go out sailing - nobody knows what it is, not even my family - and the last thing is the shaving. I'll shave the night before a regatta, but then I don't shave during the event, unless I qualify for the medal race - then, I'll shave the night before. * How do you apply your game face? ZACH RAILEY: I use visualization practices to go through an entire race and visualize what I want to do that day. I visualize myself having a good start and executing the important things. Then, I listen to that one song right before I launch, and my coach and I check out conditions. The biggest thing is the visualization. Read on: http://www.harken.com/Interviews/Zach-Railey.php BLUE TUESDAY GIFTS Racing, Match Racing, Cruising, Weather, Seminars, Webinars & Race Weeks... Order your holiday gifts and gift certificates now with FREE Shipping and a FREE large (one size only, while supplies last) BLUE North U Tactics Tour Long Sleeve T-Shirt for Scuttlebutt readers (North America Only). Use Coupon Code: SBUTT667848 at checkout. You can spend a lifetime learning to be a better sailor. Accelerate the process at North U: 800-347-2457, http://www.northu.com SUMMER IN THE SOUTHERN OCEAN (December 5, 2011; Day 14 - 23:00:00 UTC) - After a 24 hour run of 703.8 nm, Loick Peyron (FRA) and his team on the 131-foot maxi trimaran Banque Populaire V are now 1777.1 nm ahead of the current non-stop circumnavigation Jules Verne Trophy record of 48 days 7 hours 44 minutes 52 seconds set by Franck Cammas on the 103-foot Groupama 3 in 2010. Humming along at an average of 29.3 knots over the past 24 hours, their easterly route across the Southern Ocean has them slipping further south too. Brian Thompson, helmsman/trimmer, comments on the summer weather in the southern hemisphere: ---------------------------------------------------------------------- The water has dropped from 10C to 7C...it's the water temp that makes the difference. We are on an equivalent latitude to La Rochelle in the north, yet it's feeling distinctly wintry. I am sure La Rochelle is balmier today, even in mid winter! Another gybe southwards likely tonight, so it may be soon time to put the boots on for the first time this trip, and get the gloves ready, just in case. I have not got wet even once, am in the same thermals I had at the start, though had lighter gear for the tropics. The key is to put on the right outer layers, so you don't get the inner layers wet. The latex seals on the neck and cuffs of the foul weather top are keeping all the salt water out. I do remember very well having water wicking up the arms in gear years ago - those days thankfully have passed. -- Full report: http://brianthompsonsailing.blogspot.com/2011/12/day-12-report.html Tracking: http://tinyurl.com/PB-Tracking-2011-12 Videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/VoileBanquePop GIVING THOUGHT TO THE NEXT STEP By Craig Leweck, Scuttlebutt US SAILING's Junior Olympic Sailing Program is a nationwide series of sailing regattas for youth ages 8 to 21. The Junior Olympics were started in 1997 to draw more young sailors to the sport through this nationwide family of events. In 2011, 23 events were held throughout the U.S. I have no idea whether the program has achieved its long-term goal of "giving young sailors a foundation they can build on for a lifetime of enjoyment on the water". I know other sports have Junior Olympics, which are more of a feeder for the elite group of athletes and not so much to grow the grassroots. The 'Olympic' brand does infer excellence. I received a report from this past weekend's Junior Olympic event where 136 juniors participated at the US Sailing Center of Martin County in Jensen Beach, FL. What caught my interest was that the Open BIC and Techno 293 Windsurfer - two classes new to the U.S. youth scene - were among the three fleets. The other class was the Optimist. Most of the JO's have the prominent junior boats such as the Optimist, Laser, and Club 420. But depending on the location, there is some diversity. One event had a Thistle fleet, one had a Flying Scot fleet, and another with an N10. There were a few that had 29ers, and a few more with Open BIC and Techno 293 fleets. Two years ago, the same JO event in Jensen Beach had only prominent junior boats. I'm not sure if there is a growing trend toward diversity, but if there was it would seem to be a good thing. Every class of boat comes with its own culture. And every kid is a little different. This is all so different from my junior experience. When I aged out of Sabots, there was no youth doublehanded boat. Instead I windsurfed and sailed Hobie 16s, Snipes, and keelboats. And I still do. Now that there are many more youth boat options, young sailors tend to participate in youth events for more years. If the long-term goal of the JO's is to build "a lifetime of enjoyment on the water", hopefully someone is thinking of how to extend a young person's enjoyment on the water beyond these junior boats. Otherwise, the future 49 year olds may not still be in the sport. US SAILING's Junior Olympic Sailing Program: http://racing.ussailing.org/Junior_Olympics.htm SAILING SHORTS * Palm Beach, FL (December 2, 2011) - Jim Swartz's IRC-class Vesper won first-to-finish honors in The Sailfish Club of Florida/Cruising Club of America's 2011 Wirth M. Munroe Memorial Fort Lauderdale to Palm Beach Yacht Race, held 2 December 2011, with an elapsed time of 3h 42m 11s over the 50nm course. Carinthia, skippered by owner Frank Kern, won first on corrected time in the PHRF classes. -- Full report: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=12960 * The Notice of Race for the 2012 Newport Bermuda Race is now available, which includes new requirements for crew training, satellite telephones, and life jackets and safety harnesses. The 48th Newport Bermuda Race will start on June 15, 2012 off Castle Hill, Newport, RI and finish 635 miles and several days later off St. David's Head, Bermuda. Details at http://www.bermudarace.com * The Melges 32 is the big skiff for the keelboat crowd, with the class providing racing for the pro- and semi-pro sailors. And like most elite racing, they tend to schedule their events in good places. Like South Florida. In the winter. With sunscreen. Big breeze met with the 18 boat fleet, and photographer John Payne was there to capture it all. Enjoy: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/11/1205/ TOM MORRIS LIBRARY DEBUTS WITH WALTER CRONKITE COLLECTION Morris Yachts is proud to announce that the soon-to-be-built National Sailing Hall of Fame (NSHOF) in Annapolis MD is dedicating their library to Morris Yachts' founder, Tom Morris. The library makes its debut with The Walter Cronkite Collection - a generous donation of over 225 books by the estate of Walter Cronkite. The Tom Morris Library is now online as a Virtual Library. It will exist in physical form at the NSHOF building when it is built on the Annapolis waterfront adjacent to the U.S. Naval Academy. The Library is being made possible through generous donations by family and friends of Tom Morris, who passed away in December 2008. Visit: http://www.morrisyachts.com/news FREE CLASSIFIED ADS The Scuttlebutt Classified Ads provide a marketplace for private parties to buy and sell, or for businesses to post job openings. Here are few for sale boats ad: * Cal 25 Annapolis $3000 * Flying Scot * 50' Nelson/Marek "Goblin" (ex Idler) View/post ads here: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/forum/classified_ads SCUTTLEBUTT FORUM: AN INAPPROPRIATE MOB HAIL Yesterday, a boat loudly hailed, "Man Overboard" during a starting sequence while a couple of boat lengths from the committee boat and a couple of other boats. All 3 of us on the committee boat immediately started looking for the MOB and assessing the need to abandon the race, haul anchor and make an announcement over the radio. As PRO, I made the assessment that the 2 boats nearest the hail had the best opportunity to retrieve the MOB and the RC should stay out of the way. However, as no one was visible in the water, the fear of someone under the water welled up quickly. The other boat nearest immediately changed direction to lend assistance. The boat on which the crew hailed MOB immediately turned to retrieve the MOB. After the Captain of the boat asked his crew to point to the MOB, the crew who hailed told his Captain, it was merely his beer coozie that went overboard. The Captain said he would not return for the coozie. The crew then made two more MOB hails. Of course 3 loud MOB hails were heard from much further away than the comment to his skipper that it was just his coozie. No boats were materially harmed in the starting sequence by the immediate actions taken. However discussions following the inappropriate MOB hail were a distraction. The hail was not made to gain an advantage over another boat. Question: * While this is obviously a safety issue, is it a violation of Rule 2, as would be an inappropriate starboard hail as in Case 41 of the current appeals? * If so, did the RC have an obligation to lodge a protest? Posted by B Keim in the Forum: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=12958 SCUTTLEBUTT ADVERTISING IN 2012 Scuttlebutt provides a limited amount of text ad slots in each newsletter, and these are often sold out well in advance. Most of these ad slots for 2012 will be booked in the next two weeks, so if you are interested in advertising, contact us for details: 619-299-5678 or advertising@sailingscuttlebutt.com CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATION Be nice to nerds. Chances are you will be working for them. SPONSORS THIS WEEK Ultimate Sailing - Summit Yachts - North Sails - North U Morris Yachts - Atlantis WeatherGear - Melges Performance Sailboats The Pirates Lair - Point Loma Outfitting - Ullman Sails - LaserPerformance Team One Newport - JK3 Nautical Enterprises Need stuff? Look here: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/ssc/suppliers |
