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SCUTTLEBUTT 2389 - July 16, 2007Scuttlebutt is a digest of major sailing news, commentary, opinions,features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus. Scuttlebutt is distributed each weekday with the support of its sponsors. LOUIS VUITTON QUITS IN AC SPAT Louis Vuitton's sponsorship of the America's Cup ended last Friday with a handbagging. The news that they are withdrawing from sponsorship of the Challenger trials was accompanied by carefully worded censure of the America's Cup Management's plans for the next Cup. The French luxury goods company has become synonymous with the America's Cup, which they have sponsored since 1983. But the news that they are dropping out confirms rumours that they are unhappy with the way the event is being run and the escalation in the costs of sponsorship and participation. The most intriguing element of the announcement is its criticism of the naked commercialism of the Alinghi-led management, and the power struggle that is brewing about how the next event will be run. 'Louis Vuitton have decided not to sponsor the next Challenger trials but will carefully observe the future evolution of the event,' they say. 'The new rules of the America's Cup imply a more commercial approach and the protocol is already disputed by some teams. In addition, there is a risk of a significant reduction in the number of teams taking part.' -- Elaine Bunting, Yachting World, full report: http://www.yachtingworld.com/yw/blog/20070614083344blog_elaine_bunting.html * Louis Vuitton is believed to be suing America’s Cup management for the return of some of the $60 million it paid for the sponsorship of this year’s series. -- Times Online: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/more_sport/sailing/article2072738.ece ISAF WORLDS Over 1,300 sailors from 76 nations competed last week at the 2007 ISAF Sailing World Championships, from 28 June-13 July in Cascais, Portugal. The Championships were the principal qualification regatta for the 2008 Olympic Sailing Competition, with 75% of all national places to be decided. Conditions during the event were far from ideal, with both wind strength and direction varying wildly. When the winds were strong, which were reported at times in the upper 30’s, large waves joined in to make for some extreme sailing. Perhaps the only similarity between the event and the Olympics, for which it is supposed to emulate, was the strong currents. Great Britain won the IOC Cup, which is awarded to the nation that has scored the highest medal tally. The Britons collected 6 medals; two gold and 4 bronze. A list of which countries have qualified in each of the eleven classes is available at http://www.sailing.org/default.asp?ID=j1fFnij7r&format=popup Top Three and Top North Americans Yngling (35 boats) – Final** 1. GBR - Sarah Ayton/ Webb/ Wilson, 2-3-4-2-3-(13)-11-4-6, 41 2. USA - Sally Barkow/ Howe/ Capozzi, 8-5-1-1-(DNF)-12-3-8-2, 42 3. GBR - Shirley Robertson/ Lush/ MacGregor, 1-2-3-9-10-(20)-2-3-9, 48 49er (78 boats) – Final** 1. GBR - Stevie Morrison/ Ben Rhodes, 1-2-1-1-4-1-3-1-4-8-1-(22)-4, 35 2. AUT - Nico Luca Ma Delle Karth/ Leopold, 2-4-2-7-1-1-4-3-6-3-5-(11)-7, 52 3. AUS - Nathan Outteridge/ Ben Austin, 9-3-10-3-2-3-1-1-5-(24)-8-4-5, 59 5. USA - Morgan Larson/ Pete Spaulding, 1-6-3-4-4-12-4-3-(15)-1-22-10-1, 65 Laser Radial (106 boats) – Final** 1. BLR - Tatiana Drozdovskaya, 6-7-3-6-(15)-5-6-10-2, 47 2. FIN - Sari Multala, 2-5-15-1-12-6-(19)-3-3, 50 3. GER - Petra Niemann, 9-9-2-5-5-6-1-(12)-7, 51 5. USA - Anna Tunnicliffe, 10-13-1-5-9-2-(31)-5-5, 55 Finn (73 boats) – Final** 1. ESP - Rafael Trujillo, 3-2-(15)-4-1-3-7-1, 22 2. NED - Pieter Jan Postma, 5-(13)-1-1-1-6-5-3, 25 3. SLO - Gasper Vincec, 4-6-3-2-4-1-(33)-5, 30 7. CAN - Chris Cook, 1-6-3-8-2-2-(DNF)-10, 42 Tornado (49 boats) – Final 1. ESP - Fernando Echavarri/ Anton Paz, 9-8-1-(11)-4-3-6-3, 34 2. BEL - Carolijn Brouwer/ Sebastien Godefroid, 5-10-3-3-8-(18)-5-6, 40 3. NED - Mitch Booth/ Pim Nieuwenhuis, (15)-13-2-5-1-15-3-2, 41 10. USA - John Lovell/ Charlie Ogletree, 23-2-9-8-17-(25)-15-9, 83 470 Men (112 boats) – Final** 1. AUS - Nathan Wilmot/ Malcolm Page 1-6-2-2-1-6-2-4-(30)-3, 30 2. NED - Sven Coster/ Kalle Coster, 6-14-2-1-6-3-8-2-(33)-6, 54 3. ISR - Gideon Kliger/ Udi Gal, 4-5-26-(39)-1-1-4-7-4-5, 62 10. USA - Stuart McNay/ Graham Biehl, 3-7-5-6-14-11-(17)-14-13-8, 89 470 Women (64 boats) – Final** 1. NED - Marcelien De Koning/ Lobke Berkhout, (4)-2-1-2-1-1-2-1-1-4, 19 2. FRA - Ingrid Petitjean/ Nadège, Douroux, 5-(25)-2-1-6-3-1-2-2-8, 38 3. GBR - Christina Bassadone/ Saskia Clark, (13)-1-1-8-3-13-4-7-3-1, 42 10. USA - Erin Maxwell/ Isabelle Kinsolving, (26)-19-4-3-13-10-3-19-11-10, 102 Star (62 boats) – Final 1. BRA - Robert Scheidt/ Bruno Prada, 2-4-3-1-1-1-(29)-1-2, 15 2. FRA - Xavier Rohart/ Pascal Rambeau, 3-1-1-2-3-3-(7)-2-4, 19 3. GBR - Iain Percy/ Andrew Simpson, 1-(8)-2-5-2-2-4-8-1, 25 12. USA - Mark Reynolds/ Hal Haenel, 5-6-17-11-14-6-(18)-7-14, 80 Laser (149 boats) – Final** 1. AUS - Tom Slingsby, (21)-1-1-2-1-1-16-9-6, 43 2. NZL - Andrew Murdoch, 23-2-3-1-8-9-(24)-2-2, 52 3. EST - Deniss Karpak, 8-(DNF)-12-1-7-6-8-3-5, 55 29. USA - Andrew Campbell, 13-7-9-(BFD)-7-24-23-13-18 - - 114 RS:X Men (113 boards) – Final** 1. BRA - Ricardo Santos, 2-(5)-1-3-1-2-1-1-5-7, 30 2. POL - Przemyslaw Miarczynski, 1-1-(12)-1-1-11-4-2-3-4, 32 3. GBR - Nick Dempsey, 4-1-(7)-1-5-3-5-5-2-5, 36 26. CAN - Zachary Plavsic, 11-19-15-7-14-15-29-4-(32)-13, 127 RS:X Women (73 boards) – Final** 1. POL - Zofia Klepacka, 1-1-6-3-1-(8)-3-2-2-1, 21 2. NZL - Barbara Kendall, 2-(26)-9-2-2-3-1-1-10-8, 46 3. AUS - Jessica Crisp, 3-6-4-2-14-2-5-18-7-4, 47 Note: No North Americans qualified for the Gold fleet Complete results: http://www.cascaisworlds2007.com/home.php?content=resultadoGeral.php ** For classes where the schedule permitted a medal race, the points for the final race position are doubled for determining the entrant’s total score (applicable only to entrants in top ten). SAVE ON NORTH SAILS PERFORMANCE! Now is the time to SAVE on new North sails. When you place an order by August 31 and trade in your old sail(s), we will send you a 20-25% rebate on the purchase price of your new North sail(s). Don't wait...the sooner you act the more you save! One-design classes and select Offshore OD classes are excluded. Offer valid for North American residents only. Other restrictions may apply... contact your North Sails rep for details. Join in on North’s most popular seasonal savings program: http://na.northsails.com/TITU.htm NO BREEZE, NO DISNEY FOR TRANSPAC'S FINAL START It was as if Roy E. Disney's 11th-hour decision to step off Pyewacket sucked the air right out of the final start of the 44th biennial Transpacific Yacht Race on Sunday. A few hours after his news flashed around the docks at Rainbow Harbor in Long Beach, the fleet met balmy southeast zephyrs of only 3 to 4 knots off the Point Fermin start line in San Pedro that left the high-powered racers gasping for air. With what little wind there was coming from 170 on the compass and the west end of Santa Catalina Island to the right at 215, all 23 boats quickly tacked to port after the gun. That tactical move also allowed them to avoid a flock of spectator power boats that had intruded well inside the starboard tack course, apparently unaware that sailboats don't sail directly upwind. Disney, unfortunately, won't be sailing at all in what would have been his 16th Transpac. "I just decided to let the younger guys do it," Disney, 77, said Sunday morning, "and I'm making a movie, anyway." The reference was not only to his regular crew---plus, for this race, New Zealand America's Cup skipper Dean Barker---on the powered-up Pyewacket but his team of young sailors ages 18 to 23 sailing the Transpac 52 Morning Light, a documentary movie tale in the making of dedicated youth at work. -- Complete story: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/07/0715 * Six of the 74 owner/skippers in this 44th Transpacific Yacht Race to Hawaii picked their crews from a short list---a very short list. They're racing with only one other guy on the boat to trim sails, help set spinnakers, operate the radio, make sandwiches, clean any fish they might catch and take over completely when you desperately need a nap. It's not necessarily that they can't afford to pay or provide for a full crew; most just prefer it that way. -- Full story: http://www.transpacificyc.org/07/news/tp07-press-rel-29.html * Regarding the analysis done by the Latitude 38 website concerning the highly-modified Pyewacket in this year's TransPac (included in Issue 2388), Latitude 38 has now posted a follow-up that peals off another layer of the controversy: http://www.latitude38.com/LectronicLat/2007/0707/July13/July13.html A FOGGY, SLOW RACE A few hours before presenting a brand new trophy in his namesake, legendary boat designer Olin J. Stephens confessed that the Marblehead to Halifax Ocean Race wasn’t really his cup of tea. "It doesn’t encourage the type of boat I really prefer… I like boats that go windward, and Marblehead-to-Halifax is always downwind," said Stephens, who turns 99 today. "Though I probably should be more polite." If it’s windward races he prefers, Stephens picked a good year to show up in Halifax. As sailors and organizers gathered for the prize presentation last Thursday, they closed the books on a rare upwind Marblehead race that proved to be one of the longest in recent memory. "It has been a foggy, slow race," said John Sutherland, commodore of the Royal Nova Scotia Yacht Squadron. -- The Chronicle Herald, full story: http://thechronicleherald.ca/Sports/846972.html PHOTO GALLERIES * Extreme conditions at the ISAF Sailing World Championships led to extreme moments, and thanks to shooters Gilles Martin-Raget, Guilain Grenier, and Fried Elliott, we have a generous helping of the action from Cascais, Portugal: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/07/worlds * Just when you thought it was safe to move on from Valencia, Spain, photographer Carlo Borlenghi brings the ‘buttheads back to the IX Trofeo S.M. La Reina Rolex Cup, organized by the Royal Club Naùtico de Valencia, where TP52s, GP42 divisions several IMS and RN classes frolicked last weekend in what looked to be some pretty nice sailing conditions. How come race boats in Europe look so darn cool? Enjoy: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/07/0714 * Photographer Amory Ross delivers to Scuttlebutt the Newport Regatta from Newport, RI, where eighteen one-design classes from Lasers to the Melges 32s filled Narragansett Bay and Rhode Island Sound. -- http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/07/0715 HOW OFTEN DOES A PRAM GO OUT SAILING JUST FOR FUN? Or does it sit on the rack unless it's an organized sailing class or race? Check out the new O'Pen BIC in last week's Video of the Week: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/media/07/0709 Share your passion with a boat your kids are dying to sail. The O'Pen BIC rigs in two minutes and no bailer is required. Tipping over is part of the fun - not devastating. Racing isn't everything for every kid... just blast around and have fun! Contact mailto:info@BicSportNA.com for information on Fleet Pricing, Dealer Inquiries, Industry Insider Offers, or to join the 2007 Energy Demo Tour. Energize your kid today! http://www.OpenBIC.com CHICAGO YACHT CLUB RACE TO MACKINAC (July 15, 2007) We are well into day two of racing in the Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac, as the 300 boat fleet progresses up Lake Michigan. Windquest is leading well ahead of the fleet, passing the 45th parallel at 11:57 CDT and is going steady 10 knots. Despite the extremely fast start and the steady winds, we don’t anticipate any records will be broken this year. The Great Lakes 70s, the fleet expected to finish early Monday morning, are nearing Point Betsie, with Mirage moving at 3 knots. The other boats in Section 1 are rounding Big Sable Point Light House. The Multihulls are also just past Big Sable Point Light House. We have three withdrawals during the race so far; Northern Light experienced a ripped main sail before the start of the race, forcing them to withdraw. Spitfire withdrew due to mechanical failure and Daybreak had a crew injury that required a hospital visit, although everyone is okay. This afternoon the north half of the lake is west winds around 10 knots becoming southwest with waves at 2 feet or less. For Sunday evening, variable winds of less than 10 knots with waves around one foot are expected. -- http://www.chicagoyachtclub.org/racetomackinac/index.cfm YOUTH WORLDS Kingston, Ontario, Canada (July 15, 2007) Day 2 of the 2007 Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship saw more than 220 of the world's best young sailors from 52 nations competing for seven gold medals in the Laser (boys), Laser Radial (girls), doublehanded 29er (boys and girls), RS:X windsurfer (boys and girls) and Hobie 16 with spinnaker (open). Leading the North American contingent is the American 29er duo, Emily Dellenbaugh and Briana Provancha, who posted a win and a fifth place on Sunday to put them in the lead, one point ahead of the British team of Sophie Weguelin and Sophie Ainsworth. Canada’s David Hayes also had a great day on windsurfer course with finishes of 2-1, moving him right up the order from 13th to third place overall at this point of the regatta. American Luke Lawrence, who needs to overcome an OCS in the first race of the event, helped his cause today with a 4-1, and currently sits in eleventh place. -- Complete results: http://youthworlds2007.org/results.shtml SNOW’S RALLY EARNS CROWN A glance at the results sheet would show that San Diego sailmaker Chris Snow easily won the J/24 North American Championship -- but that was certainly not the case. This was one tough win. Snow was tied on points for the regatta lead going into the final two races of the event. However, he finished in the bottom half of the fleet in Saturday's first race, and although that became his throw-out, it still moved him into third place going into the final race. And in that last race, he was early at the starting pin and had to bail out behind the fleet. Fortunately the fleet was a bit eager, and a General Recall gave Snow a second chance. He didn't waste it -- and he 'owned' the pin on the next start with regatta leader David 'Deke' Klatt squarely in his exhaust. He used that advantage strategically to push Klatt deep into the pack, while coasting home in third place to claim the NA crown. -- http://www.calyachtclub.com/cms/index.cfm?vNavID=35&vSubNavID=134&mainid=5 SAILING SHORTS * Newport, RI -- Claudio Recchi and his crew of Giovanni Puntello, Gabriele Benussi calling tactics, Federico Michetti, Emanuele Cecchini, Francesca Prina, Andrea Vigoni, Francesco Di Caprio and Enrico Pucci are the 2007 Melges 32 U.S. National Champions! The regatta series consisted of eight races in which Recchi delivered a 2-1-1-2-4-2-1-[17/DNC] performance was considered virtually unstoppable. Finishing second was Jeff Ecklund on 'Star', sailing with Harry Melges, III called tactics, Hans Melges, Jim Condon, Bill Freytag, Lindsay Bartel, and Colin Smith. -- Full story: http://www.melges32.com/?p=news&id=170 * (July 14, 2007) Raúl Rios (PUR) beat out the 185 entries to win the Optimist North Americans in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, adding this title to the open South American title he won at Easter. Bermudian James Anfossi finished second with Antoine Screve (USA) in third. Puerto Rico also won the team-racing event, with the United States in second, and the US Virgin Islands in third. – Complete results: http://www.optinam2007-mexico.org/Optinam2007 * The U.S. Senate on Monday, July 9, passed a resolution congratulating St. Mary’s College sailing team on winning the Inter-collegiate Sail Association (ICSA) Women’s National Championship and the 2007 ICSA Team Race National Championship. The resolution was introduced by Maryland's two U.S. Senators Benjamin L. Cardin and Barbara Mikulski. -- Full report: http://somd.com/news/headlines/2007/6122.shtml SEAMARSHALL HAS A BETTER WAY: Keeping your crew from going overboard is rule one. But all too frequently, man-overboards tragically occur. Only SeaMarshall’s water-activated beacons mated to our new, affordable, direction-finding receiver offer the world’s best system for locating a victim even in severe conditions. Prepare now for the worst case. Contact Chip Barber: mailto:admin@chabrber.com or http://www.chbarber.com/seamarshall.html LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON Letters selected for publication must include the writer's name, and may be edited for clarity or simplicity (letters shall be no longer than 250 words). You only get one letter per subject, so give it your best shot, don't whine if others disagree, and save your bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere. As an alternative, a more open environment for discussion is available on the Scuttlebutt Forum. -- Scuttlebutt Letters: editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com -- Scuttlebutt Forum: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/forum * From John Humphrey, Hanalei, Kauai: (regarding the story "Life altering experiences" in Issue 2386) We have all had incredible experiences at sea. Some are frightening, some beautiful, and some just magic. But "alligator tears" and "go ahead and cry"? That was over the line. Maybe there was some psychedelic mold on the smoked oysters and fine cheese. That was just too sappy! Come on guys! After all, this is Scuttlebutt, not Readers Digest. A little too "touchy feeley" for this fine publication. * From Damian Christie, Melbourne, Australia: My, my, doesn’t history repeat itself? In 1987, just months after winning the America’s Cup, the San Diego Yacht Club (SDYC) was served with Michael Fay’s rogue challenge from New Zealand for 1988 to the strict terms of the Deed of Gift. This was because SDYC failed to appoint a Challenger of Record and confirm the date, venue and race vessel for its defence. In 2007, Alinghi and the Societé Nautique de Geneve (SNG) appoint a bunny (Desafio Espanol) as a Challenger of Record, but are still served with a similar challenge within 12 months to the strict terms of the Deed by Oracle and the Golden Gate Yacht Club (GGYC). The reason? They were also deliberately vague about the date, venue, and race vessel for the next defence. While it is likely Oracle/ GGYC are attempting to bring Alinghi/ SNG back to the negotiating table to deliver a better outcome for all challengers, I suspect the Americans are quite prepared to carry out their bluff if the Swiss won’t play ball. And if the Americans do (with the Fay precedent and Larry Ellison’s money behind them, why wouldn’t they?), who will be to blame? Shame on Ernesto Bertarelli and his cronies for thinking more about lining their pockets than the good of the Cup. After such a great regatta in Valencia, another 1988-style mismatch involving another multihull (reportedly Oracle’s weapon of choice) will merely drive away the fans. The loser will then be the Cup and sailing in general, not Alinghi or Oracle. * From Phil Frost: Wow, Id love to see this new challenger (from GGYC). She must be some skimming dish breakthrough design - certified as 90 ft long (load waterline), and 90ft beam (load waterline). Interesting… * From Cory E. Friedman: Is GGYC challenging in a 90X90 catamaran? Brad did say they wanted a faster boat next time. That would fill the bill nicely. => Curmudgeon’s Comment: We have posted the Deed of Gift for the America's Cup on the Scuttlebutt website. We encourage you to read it as it is not long, and it provides important clarity to the challenge now presented by the GGYC. An pivotal point in the DoG is regarding the challenging club’s annual event, wherein the Spanish are claiming that they need not already have hosted an event, only that they intend to host one. That’s not how we are reading it, but the ‘buttheads can play lawyer and rule for themselves: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/07/dog * From Tom Hartmann, Newport Beach, CA: It was great to read of the successful youth sailors of Sea Scout Ship 6, in Suzanne Grosby's letter on Friday in Issue 2388. The Sea Scout program is a hidden gem, unknown to many in the sailing community, and even amongst Boy Scouts! I've had the privilege of being with Sea Scout Ship 711, the Del Mar, for 11 years now, since I was 14. Our Columbia 43 isn't a racer but she takes us out to the Channel Islands and proves a stable platform for learning. Out of our sea base, however, we've raced Santana 20s in Beer Cans, Harbor 20s in the Leukemia Cup, a Schock 35 in Long Beach Race Week and other offshore races, and a Reichel/Pugh 77 Scout Spirit in the Newport to Ensenada Race and Transpac. It’s great to see the faces of people when its announced that the winners of a particular race are Boy Scouts! Our ship has won the William Koch International Cup three straight times, in Chicago, Cape Cod, and Miami, and we plan to defend the Cup in Annapolis in 2008, though Sea Scouts from New Zealand are hoping to break their streak of three 2nd places in a row. Not all Sea Scout Ships are sailing/racing oriented though, as many ships in the San Francisco Bay area have ex-Navy and Coast Guard vessels, anywhere from 60ft to 230ft! The BSA Sea Scout program is the finest youth maritime program in this country, so support your local ship. * From Pete Sherwood: (in response to "Not The Happiest Place On Earth" in Issue 2388) What a sad and sorry tale. If that is not the best argument yet for the Transpac to come out of the dark ages and adopt IRC, then I'm not here. * From Bob Bausch: I couldn’t believe Brad Butterworth’s outburst against Grant Dalton and TNZ (in Issue 2386). I have heard of “sore losers”, but not “sore winners”. Where is he coming from? Trying to make up for his desertion maybe. Anyway, truly one of the most unsportsmanlike things I’ve ever heard of. I wonder if the sea gods were listening. I hope so. CURMUDGEON’S OBSERVATION The difference between a Harley and a Hoover is the position of the dirt bag. Special thanks to North Sails, O'Pen BIC, and C.H. Barber. |
