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SCUTTLEBUTT 3075 - Wednesday, April 21, 2010Scuttlebutt 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. Scuttlebutt on Twitter: http://twitter.com/scuttbutt Scuttlebutt on Facebook: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/facebook Today’s sponsors: Team One Newport, Doyle Sails, and Henri Lloyd. A LITTLE DISORGANIZATION GOES A LONG WAY By Chris Caswell, SAILING I can remember it as clearly as yesterday, but it was actually in the early 1960s. “Caswell,” he said, “you may think that sailboat racing is all there is in the world. But they don’t.” His bushy eyebrows eased from the frown as he added, “Yet.” I was a young college student who, instead of taking my usual summer job rigging sailboats and giving sailing lessons for a local boat dealer, had been hired as the instructor for my yacht club junior sailing program. At the time, I was consumed with racing in both one-designs and ocean racers. I ate it, breathed it, lived it. And I brought that passion to the junior program. This was long before the sophisticated teaching programs now available, and so it was a blackboard and chalk. The beginners were separated until they had mastered the basics of sailing, but then everyone learned racing tactics and rules. And that was exactly why I was standing before the bushy-browed commodore and his board of directors. He was gently suggesting that my program step back from being purely racing-oriented and cut a little slack for kids who might just want to go sailing. I thought of this recently as I was sitting on the patio of another yacht club, watching some kids put away their Optimist prams after an afternoon on the water in the junior program. Two older boys were carrying their gear up the dock, while a younger one scuffed along in his little Topsiders, lugging a rudder that was nearly his height. The older ones asked the younger, “How did you finish in the last race?” “Who cares?” he replied, still scuffing along. Who cares, indeed. Have we become in this soccer-mom, Little League, uber-aggressive world so focused on competition that we’ve forgotten how to have fun? After nearly half a century of sailing, I can look back and pick out some of my great memories, and most of them aren’t about racing. They might have occurred aboard a racing sailboat, but they were moments of beauty or comradeship or laugh-until-you-cry fun. After that gentle advice from my commodore, I restructured my junior program, taking a page from how I had learned to sail in a city-sponsored sailing program run by a wise woman named Fran. Fran was a former teacher but, more important, she really understood what kids were all about. I realized that mixed in with her regime of chalk talks and twice-a-week races was a liberal dose of what you can only call “fun.” There was time for kids to just mess around on the water, doing what kids do best. There were water fights between boats using hand-powered bilge pumps, there was sailing to a faraway beach to squish around looking for clams, there was time sitting on the dock trying to think of something to say to that pretty girl. -- Read on: http://tinyurl.com/y6psc5z LARGEST LIVE GPS TRACKING INITIATIVE IN YACHT RACING In what may be the largest live GPS tracking initiative in yacht racing, the 2010 Round the Island Race in Cowes, Isle of Wight, UK in June will be using mobile phone technology to follow the fleet along the 50 nautical mile route. The system is being billed as a trial in its first year, although the race organizers believe that a large percentage of the 1700+ fleet will almost certainly want to sign up to being tracked and will have the mobile phone technology to take part. Competitors with compatible equipment will be able to download a small piece of software that will allow their mobile phone or laptop to become a real-time GPS tracking device. The device’s position will be periodically transmitted to the official Race website, where a simple, easy-to-use race viewer will allow visitors to monitor the progress of individual boats throughout the race. The tracking solution has been developed by the Race Technology Partner, Next Generation Results and funded by J.P. Morgan Asset Management. It will be one of the largest GPS event tracking initiatives ever undertaken with mobile phone technology, and possibly the largest in terms of yacht races. Website spectators will be able to search and select up to 10 boats that they want to follow at any one time through the Race Viewer. Boats will be searchable via their name and class. Each boat tracked will show its elapsed time from the race start and current GPS co-ordinates. The competitors also benefit from this tracking technology as they will be able to replay their race and compare their performance with their rivals to see where they got it right - or wrong! There will be areas of weak or no coverage as the fleet progresses around the Island, especially under the cliffs at the back of the Island and also if the boats move offshore. As a result of poor signal or expired battery life, boats may disappear from the viewer. -- Full report: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=9663 THE CELEBRATION CONTINUES WITH FREE SHIPPING... Team One Newport is celebrating 25 years of service to the sailing community! We will be offering different specials all year long. The 2010 catalog is in the mail and we want to offer Scuttlebutt readers a perk. For orders up to $149.99 the ground shipping is only $5 and for orders $150 and over, you will get FREE shipping! Be sure to put SSCFS in the Search Box (upper right hand corner). This offer expires May 2nd. Visit http://www.team1newport.com or call 800-VIP-GEAR (800-847-4327) for the best service, selection and expert knowledge in sailing gear! SPORTSMANSHIP AND THE RULES When a sport relies on the participants to oversee its rules while the game is played, the success of the sport places a significant responsibility on the player. Everyone in the game must contribute, everyone is vested, everyone has ownership. On this level, it is interesting to note how much sailing and golf have in common: SAILING: “Competitors in the sport of sailing are governed by a body of rules that they are expected to follow and enforce. A fundamental principle of sportsmanship is that when competitors break a rule they will promptly take a penalty, which may be to retire.” - Basic Principle, Racing Rules of Sailing GOLF: “Unlike many sports, golf is played, for the most part, without the supervision of a referee or umpire. The game relies on the integrity of the individual to show consideration for other players and to abide by the Rules. All players should conduct themselves in a disciplined manner, demonstrating courtesy and sportsmanship at all times, irrespective of how competitive they may be. This is the spirit of the game of golf.” - Golf Etiquette 101, U.S. Golf Assn. Scuttleblog: http://tinyurl.com/SPORTSMANSHIP-AND-THE-RULES PLAY BY THE RULES OR LOSE YOUR WINE By Owen Muyt, guest commentator I can relate to what Chris Laborde (in Scuttlebutt 3074) had to say about infringements and competitors getting away with a situation if no one else saw the infringement despite repeated calls to do turns. The situation arose during this summer in a mixed sport boat regatta that had a range of classes all sailing under handicap. It was a typical port/ starboard call with us in a smaller SB3 on starboard, against a much larger and faster Melges 24. And putting us into a situation where we had no choice but to dip sharply to avoid hitting amidships. It was a classic case of throwing out the rule book and no courtesy shown, especially as we started hailing three boat lengths away at the time. The very young owner/skipper of the Melges did not even acknowledge our calls and our flying of the protest flag, and only blank stares from his crew on the rail. And you guessed it, not another boat in sight at the time. And so they motored on. I watched them for minutes later and feeling very pissed about the whole matter. I finally lost them when the fleet merged together and we were on the layline several minutes later. And still no bloody turns from the Melges. Back at the club house when they were calling out the results for the weekend, the whole episode came flooding back. When first, the boat and the skipper in question won their division. And then collected several bottles of wine and a trophy. And then again backed that up by coming third overall in the regatta. More trophies and more bottles of red. Well that final result topped it for me. Especially seeing this cocky 17yr old thinking he is the ants pants to the yachting world and surrounded by half a dozen bottles of very good red wine that he can't legally even drink. So I took matters into my own hands and very casually walked up to his table and his crew and introduced myself. And then stated that by all rights we should still be in the protest room - right this minute - instead of enjoying his moment of glory. And that in hindsight, his was a very false victory, and he owed us big time, especially my skipper. With some subtle body talk and a persuading voice, I told him that payback was one of his bottles of wine. A couple of feeble protests from his adult crew followed, but I did not budge an inch and held his gaze. He started to select a bottle after breaking my gaze. But I already knew what I wanted from his booty as a strolled over, and I just casually grabbed a certain Cabernet Sauvignon that had taken my eye, saying how this one will do fine. Some big sighs were heard from the adults. I thanked him and walked off, and presented our consolation prize to my skipper and told him to enjoy. He just shook his head. I toasted him, and grinned. Payback is hell I said. I just hope the kid learned his lesson though. Please just play by the rules, especially when it can have a bad result in a big way. TACTICAL ADVICE Barking Mad tactician Terry Hutchinson regarding the team’s strategy to defend their title this week at the 2010 Rolex Farr 40 World Championship: “Inevitably, the beginning of the regatta, you sail for a chance to be in the regatta on Saturday. And so it’s about sailing smart, and sailing clean and not putting the boat in any high-risk spots. One of the things that’s unique about the fleet size this year is it’s easier to be controlled in a ten-boat fleet than in a 25-30 boat fleet. A lot of our success last year came in one race where we were able to battle our way out of a bad start but always sail fast, away from the fleet. I would suspect at this venue that it will be more difficult to get the necessary leverage to get around boats, because the fleet size isn’t as big and everyone is going relatively fast.” -- http://www.regattanews.com/pressrelease.asp?pid=100280&lang=1 GO FAT HEAD At Doyle’s recent Loft Technology Night, Tyler Doyle illustrated the use of cutting edge numeric simulations in sailmaking and the relationship between experience and scientific calculation that it takes to develop fast sails. While Doyle’s CFD analysis illustrates how powerful and efficient square top mains are, Tufts University is proving it everyday on Mystic Lake with their Fat Head Lark mainsails. See the Larks in action and listen to Ken Legler explain the switch to Doyle Fat Head mains, visit: http://www.doylesails.com/news CHANGE OF PLANS... The Semaine Olympique Francaise (April 23-30), or simply Hyères as it is commonly known, is one of the major regattas in the international Olympic sailing circuit and the fourth of seven events in the 2009-10 ISAF Sailing World Cup series. All top ranked Olympic athletes have this French event on their schedule, but as U.S. Laser sailor Clay Johnson explains, he will be headed elsewhere instead: “Well, the volcanic ash spewing from Iceland has gotten the best of my trip to Hyeres. After talking to the airlines for most of Sunday and not getting much hope for getting on a different flight this week, I bailed on my trip. I'm obviously bummed to not be going to France, but with the ash grounding thousands of flights each day, it seemed like a mess to get over there, let alone ensure that I could return after the event. “All is not lost, though. A bunch of Americans and Canadians were stranded in North America and have come together to train for the next 10 days. I'll be heading down to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, on Wednesday morning for training. I'll be sailing at the International Sailing Academy, a camp run by Canadians Chris Dold and Vaughn Harrison. I'm really excited to get down to sunny, warm Mexico. The breeze is supposed to be great this time of year. It's going to be a great alternative to southern France.” -- http://www.claysails.com SAILING SHORTS * (April 20, 2010; Day 13) - At 2030hrs UTC, Estrella Damm is 8.7 miles from the finish line of the Open 60 New York Barcelona Transoceanic Sailing Record challenge. They are currently making just 3.6 knots in very light winds, having covered only 12.5 miles over the last four hours. W Hotels still have 68.7 miles to cover to break the finish line and are going slightly quicker making 6.5 knots. -- Event website: http://www.ny-bcn.org/ * The newly-formed Offshore Racing Rule Owners Association (ORROA) debuts its new website designed for sailors interested in racing under the Offshore Racing Rule (ORR). The website features online registration for the Great Lakes Championship Racing Series (a series used as a model for the development of other such regattas around the U.S.), information on how to obtain ORR certificates, a racing series calendar and other information for racers. The Offshore Racing Rule Owners Association (ORROA) was created to promote and encourage offshore racing under the Offshore Racing Rule (ORR) by providing a more scientific, research-based handicapping system. -- http://www.orroa.org * Whether one is new to sailing or looking to sharpen racing starts or navigation skills, the ninth annual Women's Sailing Conference has something for everyone as the event returns to Corinthian Yacht Club in scenic Marblehead, MA, on Saturday, June 5. The learning event is for women only. Sponsored by BoatUS and organized by the National Women's Sailing Association, conference topics include introduction to sailing and racing, diesel engine troubleshooting, boat systems, knots, charting, crew overboard, night sailing, suddenly single-handed, spinnakers and more. -- Read on: http://www.boatus.com/pressroom/release.asp?id=497 * While the accumulation of garbage in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch in the northern Pacific Ocean is well recorded, now it looks like the Atlantic has a garbage patch as well. Although researchers are still trying to define the exact dimensions of the North Atlantic patch, some estimate it stretches between 22 degrees and 38 degrees north latitude. As is the case with the Texas-sized patch in the Pacific, the Atlantic patch is an areas containing countless tons of small pieces of plastic, the residue of bottle and other plastic refuse thrown into the ocean hundreds or even thousands of miles away. -- SAIL, full report: http://sailmagazine.com/news/atlantic_garbage_patch/ SHOP FOR THE BEST ... FROM THE BEST Upgrading your gear? If you’re looking for the newest and most extensive offering of Henri Lloyd technical clothing and Gore products, look no further than your closest HL Elite Dealer for a full range of styles, sizes and colors. Click here to locate an HL Elite Dealer near you: http://www.henrilloydonline.com/web/categories2.php?cat=dealer_styles LETTERS AND FORUM Please email your comments to the Scuttlebutt editor (aka, ‘The Curmudgeon’). Published letters must include writer's name and be no longer than 250 words (letter might be edited for clarity or simplicity). One letter per subject, and save your bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere. As an alternative, a more open environment for discussion is available on the Scuttlebutt Forum. -- To submit a Letter: editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com -- To post on the Forum: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/forum * From David Barrow: (edited to 250 word limit) Barry Dunning's letter (in Scuttlebutt 3074) got me to thinking what a professional sailor is. Has he achieved some sort of qualification in yacht racing, like a lawyer, banker or estate agent? Does he, or she, just wake up one morning thinking: "I've done a bit of yacht racing I think I will be a professional sailor now, and if people want me to sail with them they must pay me"? Sounds extraordinary doesn't it! Don't get me wrong, there are some superb professionals out there that have done their time developing their reputation and produced an excellent return for their sponsors or owners, performing in AC campaigns, etc; but are, or were, there a lot of others? It must be a funny life when you sail for money with a duty to perform to the highest level and show the relevant respect to your paymaster or sponsor. I guess if the regatta goes well everything is lovely, must be a bit difficult when it does not! I wonder if the bad results appear on the CV? Regarding the ISAF Sailor Classification Code, it does look like ISAF have lumped a lot of people into Group 3 (compensated category) that really should not be there. However, the application seems quite good as it asks a few probing questions, and seeks clarification if they think any sailor falls into gray areas between the two classifications. Donal Mc Clements got it right when I was before the Cork Week committee to decide classification some years ago. He simply told me that I was too bloody old to be Group 3. Don't you just love the Irish! (ISAF Sailor Classification Code: http://tinyurl.com/ISAF-Classification-Code) * From Barry Dunning: At the moment I know of many professional crews that are paid to sail but are still claiming to be Group 1 sailors (non-compensated under ISAF Sailor Classification Code). Would it not make sense for ISAF to establish a self-policing system for Group 3 sailors? What if every Group 3 was issued a certificate, and he/she then could only be paid by the owner or sponsor on production of that certificate? The Group 3 sailor, the owner or sponsor, would then make sure that other guys being paid also had Group 3 certificates; a bit like a union card. Anyone without a Group 3 certificate could not be paid; they could sail but not professionally. I wonder how many paid sailors would crawl out of the woodwork and obtain the correct ISAF certificate. Another way is to use the Irish system where anyone over 45 is a Group 1! * From Rich Gold: The Corinthian spirit must be reborn for sailboat racing to grow. I applaud Dr Jim Clark's decision in Antigua and the reason for it. Good on him! There was a time when professional sailors supported an owner's Corinthian effort, occasionally, for the reward of an order or to enhance the experience of new sailors. The "pros" helped spread the knowledge and joy of sailing. Until more owners protest paid sailors that staff a boat to race against Corinthians, our sport will remain stuck in the mud. * From Chris Savage, Kos Pictures: Mr Clark got me thinking about J-Class for the America’s Cup – one design hull and rig with modern appendages, sail design and yacht construction open. One large sponsor logo permitted on the spinnaker and crew gear only. Budget restrictions like F1. Events alternating San Francisco and Fremantle. Elegant. Impressive. Historic. Photogenic. Pedigree. Already a brand. Mixing known quantities with successful ingredients brings sporting success. The design and technology race of the 2010 Match was of little or no interest to the public, as are light wind and flat water venues brokered by the winner. CURMUDGEON’S OBSERVATION The Redneck Book of Manners states that ears need to be cleaned regularly, but it is a job that should be done in private using one's OWN truck keys. Special thanks to Team One Newport, Doyle Sails, and Henri Lloyd. Preferred supplier list: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/ssc/suppliers |
