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SCUTTLEBUTT 3756 - Thursday, January 17, 2013Scuttlebutt 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: Storm Trysail Block Island Race Week and Ullman Sails. KEN READ - EXCITED ABOUT MULTIHULLS After skippering the past two Volvo Ocean Races, Kenny Read is looking forward to sleeping in his own bed, and getting connected with his local sailing scene in Newport, RI. However, despite all the existing boat options on Narragansett Bay, Kenny has organized something different...the Marstrom 32 catamaran. Here Ken explains: ---------------------------------------------------------------------- My friend Hakan Svensson from Berg Propulsion, which had sponsored my last Volvo ride, got hooked on the Marstrom 32 about a year ago, and he wouldn't stop talking about them throughout the Volvo race. After the 2011-12 race was over, we had a pretty big party that Hakan threw for his company and the team. The "Berg 100th Anniversary and PUMA/Berg finish's a successful Volvo Ocean Race" party, near Gothenburg Sweden, was a week after the race ended and we even got the Volvo 70 there on time. His plan was not only to have a party, but to have his Marstrom 32 and an additional Marstrom 32 owned by Goran Marstrom to be at the party. He would then have our Volvo team crew on the boats along with his party guests during an afternoon of match racing for fun. Thank the lord that there was no wind because if there had been any breeze it would have become a "death match". We were talking about it for months. Creating strategies for pretty much ruining the two boats as well as the lives of all ten of the crew who had successfully navigated the world's five oceans. All fueled by just a bit of alcohol as you might imagine. Anyway, I met Goran and the other guys from Marstrom the morning of the party and they asked if I wanted to go for a quick spin just to tune up one of the boats and amazingly I said yes. Imagine wanting to go sailing after just completing 50,000 miles? But not only did I go but I stayed out there for three hours just sailing around for fun. I had a blast. It brought me back to my old Formula 40 days, and to be honest, I couldn't remember the last time I just went sailing for fun. So that is where it started. I came home, decided that if I was to go racing again for fun I just wasn't psyched to jump back into one of the current local one design classes. So I sent out an email to 20 or so local racers to see if there was interest in starting a new multihull class. And of course there was, based on the recent success of the America's Cup World Series event in Newport. Multi's (as I am writing about for next month's Sailing World magazine) are becoming "in" finally because of the ACWS. I contacted Marstrom about the M-32 as well as the folks who sell the SL33 and the GC32 (the other new competing brand catamaran designs) and decided the simplicity, price and flat out excitement of the M-32 was for me. As it appears to be for a lot of people! So we have five locals here in Newport who have already bought a boat, many others are interested, and there seems to be a buzz around North America to make this into a great new class... read on: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/13/0116/ EDITOR'S NOTE: There is a demo day for the M-32 in Miami on Feb 1-15. Details: http://tinyurl.com/Demo-Feb1-15 WHAT SAILING CAN LEARN FROM SURFING American professional surfer Kelly Slater (41 years) is an 11-time winner of the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Tour. He is the most successful champion in the history of the sport, with career earnings estimated at 3.4 million dollars. But based on a recent interview, he would be willing to give it all up. You see, professional surfing relies heavily on sponsorship. There are no ticket sales and there is very limited television (just like sailing). As Kelly states it, he loves surfing for surfing, and while he has gained wealth from the professionalism of surfing, he is not a fan of how it has become a tool for commercial interests. As the sport of sailing seeks to grow its professional side, there may be lessons to be learned from surfing. Here Kelly comments about how professional surfing events have progressed to being on major television networks getting broadcast to a wide non-surfing audience. "I don't actually care," Slater bluntly admits. "It doesn't really matter to me. I know what surfing is. Surfers know what surfing is. I don't care if surfing becomes the biggest thing in the world or disappears and there is no pro surfing. "Basically our sport is run by the sponsors, and it is a really strange and peculiar set-up. The sponsors have a duty to the companies ahead of surfing. My point being that surfing has never had an independent organization that runs surfing, yet surfing has this professional sport. It has been propped up by the sponsors. Because of that, it has become a marketing project for all these companies. "Imagine Nike, Adidas, Puma and other companies all coming together to run a major sport association. It's not going to happen, and it shouldn't happen, but that's what we have in surfing. However, there is an opportunity now where the surfing association will be run separately from the sponsors, which it should be, and once that happens we will actually see what kind of a sport we have. "Whether that goes good or bad, I don't really care because I know that my experience going surfing isn't based on either of those things happening." Source: Shane Corwin and TransWorldSURF (http://tinyurl.com/STW-011613) COMMENT: The Volvo Ocean Race route will soon be disclosed, and it will be no surprise to see the course decisions having more to do with sponsor needs than sporting needs. - Craig Leweck, Scuttlebutt STORM TRYSAIL BLOCK ISLAND RACE WEEK, JUNE 23-28, 2013 The Storm Trysail Club plans a bang-up race week celebrating the 25th running of the East Coast's premier five day race week. Compete for the Rolex in the 'Round Block Island Race; North American Championships in IRC, HPR and J80's; East Coast Championships in PHRF and J109's. Swan 42 New England and Beneteau 36.7 Northeast Championships. Navigator-style courses for Double Handers, Cruising and Classic classes. Don't miss out! Get your crew together, book your house, make your ferry reservations and enter now. Details on Block Island travel, accommodations, marinas and Block Island Race Week at: http://blockislandraceweek.com COMPRESSION AT THE DOLDRUMS (January 16, 2013; Day 68) - Forty-eight hours ago Francois Gabart (MACIF) was 269 miles ahead of a stalling Armel Le Cleac'h (Banque Populaire) and some had begun crowning the young king. However, it was a different picture today as the doldrums - and their 100 degree (F) temperatures - have pulled Le Cleac'h back within reach. Gabart is technically now north of the doldrums and Le Cleac'h is still in them, but weather files and what one finds on the water are not always the same, especially in this dreaded part of the ocean. "The weather files aren't always reliable in this complicated area," Le Cleac'h said. "So we also use satellite images to see how different reality is." Seeing Gabart's struggles from before he entered the doldrums, Le Cleac'h headed slightly east, only 30 miles, but perhaps enough to find a passing lane. Tracking: http://tracking2012.vendeeglobe.org/en/ Top 5 of 20 - Rankings as of Wednesday, January 16, 2013, 20h00 (FR) 1. Francois Gabart (FRA), Macif: 2911.8 nm Distance to Finish 2. Armel Le Cleac'h (FRA), Banque Populaire: 61.9 nm Distance to Lead 3. Jean-Pierre Dick (FRA), Virbac Paprec 3: 486.2 nm DTL 4. Alex Thomson (GBR), Hugo Boss: 788.6 nm DTL 5. Jean Le Cam (FRA), SynerCiel: 1994.3 nm DTL Full rankings: http://www.vendeeglobe.org/en/ranking.html BACKGROUND: Twenty skippers began the 24,000-nm Vendee Globe, a solo, non-stop around the world race in the IMOCA Open 60 class. Starting in Les Sables d'Olonne, France on November 10, the west to east course passes the three major capes of Good Hope, Leeuwin and the Horn before returning to Les Sables d'Olonne. Michel Desjoyeaux (FRA) set the course record of 84 days in the 2008-9 edition. -- http://www.vendeeglobe.org/en/ ONE-DESIGN LEADERS HONORED Five awards were recently presented by US Sailing to recognize outstanding individual and organizational achievements in one-design sailing. * Fletcher Driscoll (Saint Paul, Minn.) has received the John H. Gardiner, Jr. Trophy for Service award. The award recognizes distinguished service and exceptional leadership in the promotion of one-design sailing and class organization. Driscoll is responsible for the tremendous resurgence of the A Scow class on White Bear Lake over the past decade. His restoration of a classic fleet got more people involved in sailing, especially women. Driscoll was instrumental in building one of the largest A Scow fleets in the world. * Mike Martin (Mill Valley, Calif.) was the recipient of the Creativity Award for his contributions in the development of the new electronic umpiring system used in the America's Cup World Series. This innovative system uses positional data displayed in real-time to enhance the accuracy of race officiating, improving the performances of the Umpires and sailors. This technology is now positively influencing other sailing events around the world. * Kathleen Tocke (Newport, R.I.) won the Leadership Award for her efforts in the development of the Miami Snipe Invitational. The event was a huge success in attracting new sailors 30 years and under to the Snipe class, while providing quality instruction in a fun, exciting atmosphere. * The Bayview Yacht Club (Detroit, Mich.) won the Regatta Award for the first annual Bayview One-Design Regatta they held last summer. The new regatta replaced a longstanding event with fresh ideas including options for classes to choose between a two or three day event, addition of a dinghy circle, lowered entry fees, discounted food and drink specials, and improved shore-side activities. They increased participation by over 100 boats from the previous year's event. * The Pewaukee Yacht Club (Pewaukee, Wis.) received the Club Award for the display of administrative excellence, fleet growth, creative programming, regatta support and member contributions. The club hosted eight events this past season, including the A Scow National Championship and US Sailing's Championship of Champions. The PYC was successful in running these first class regattas, largely due to the high level of volunteers they utilized in various roles. The club's members often sacrificed their own racing to provide other local and national sailors with top notch events. Full report: http://media.ussailing.org/Latest_News/2013/ODSS_Awards_0113.htm "MADE IN SANTA CRUZ" RACE WEEK For nearly three decades, from the mid 60s to the early 90s, Santa Cruz (CA) was the innovative epicenter of the Ultra Light Displacement Boat (ULDB) movement. That is to say, building sailboats that plane on top of the water, which is much faster going than digging a hole through the water. This iconic era of yacht design led to many boats whose names are sailing staples: Magic, Pacific High, Summer Time, Eclipse, Panache, Chutzpah, Grendel, Blondie, Summertime Dream and the infamous 70 footer Merlin. Many of the cutting-edge boat building techniques that were developed and perfected in Santa Cruz during that era are still used in the industry to this day. Cored hulls and decks, elegantly simplistic interiors, the use of vinylester, epoxy, S-glass, carbon, and vacuum-bagging were all perfected in Santa Cruz by the various sailboat builders. It is said that Grendel, the precursor to the famous Moore 24, was the first boat to use a computer to aid its design. Santa Cruz was on the forefront! Inspired by surfing, and fueled by the well-established and flourishing surfing industry of the time, it was inevitable that Santa Cruz would become a hotbed of sailing development. The blue blazer establishment scoffed, at the "hippies" from Santa Cruz when they came to town to race, only to be dismayed at seeing nothing but the hippies' transoms as they blasted around the racecourse. Tales from the era read like Tom Wolfe novel, and in true sailing fashion the stories kept getting better as the years went by. The cast of characters is long, with names like the Moore Brothers, Lee, Olson, Spruit, Tuttle, Alsberg, Laurela, Tracy and Wortanen, at the top, and about a million others fleshing out the list. The family tree of Santa Cruz boat building is vast and incestuous to say the least; Santa Cruz has always had an ethos of unconventionality. By the early 90s, due to changing times, high costs, and a host of other factors, boat building in Santa Cruz had all but halted, with just a few straggling builders hanging on. The innovative spirit, and friendships that were spawned during the SC boatbuilding heyday lives on to this day; if you've ever sailed, raced, or crossed an ocean on a Santa Cruz built boat, you're a part of the family! The Santa Cruz Yacht Club figured that it was time to have a family reunion, and the "Made in Santa Cruz Race Week" has been launched for this spring on May 25-June 2. -- Read on: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=15079 NO MORE EXCUSES - GET ON THE WATER Make 2013 a BIG year for sailing! Whether you're jumping into the fast-growing J/70 class, preparing for Transpac or just need to get the boat off the mooring, Ullman Sails will help you get on the water. Our lofts worldwide offer a complete range of quality sails and comprehensive service. We also host sailing seminars, provide on-the-water support, and invest in sailing in our local communities. We share your passion for the sport, so we'll take the extra steps to get you on the water. It's going to be a big year - make sure you're a part of it! http://www.ullmansails.com SUNFISH BY THE NUMBERS This past year the venerable and yet forever young Sunfish marked its 60th year and 50th North American Nationals regatta. Since Alex Bryan and Cortlandt Heyniger first created the 129lb, 13ft 10in lateen-rigged boat in 1952, it has introduced untold thousands of sailors to the sport and provided countless hours of fun. Some other numbers to consider: 320,000: total number of Sunfish sold 838: distance in miles if every Sunfish ever made was lined up bow to stern 300: number of Sunfish fleets in the United States 74: number of sailors at the 2012 Sunfish Worlds in St. Petersburg, FL 16: number of countries with active fleets 5: the value in pennies of the coin that was reportedly traced to make the first Sunfish logo--just add a tail and fins and, presto! Source: Sail Magazine, http://www.sailmagazine.com/racing-news/sunfish-numbers QUOTE / UNQUOTE "Regarding the first generation AC72 boats, the targets of the three design teams are quite different, with TNZ/LR on the flying side and Artemis Racing on the all-arounder one. Oracle seems to be somewhere in between. (Ultimately) I think conditions will be important, but maneuvering and accelerations (will be important) as well." -- Gonzalo Redondo, former member of Artemis Racing design team, http://www.catsailingnews.com/2013/01/design-dynamics-gonzalo-redondo.html SAILING SHORTS * (January 16, 2013) - The 38th Annual Fort Lauderdale - Key West Race got underway today with 32 boats competing in IRC, PHRF, and Multihull classes. As of press time, Hap Fauth's J/V72 Bella Mente was leading the fleet at near the approximate midpoint of the 160-mile route. Race website: http://www.keywestrace.org * The list of the International Sailing Federation Committee Members for 2013-2016 have now been approved by the new ISAF Council and are available to view on the ISAF websie: http://www.sailing.org/news/33810.php * (January 16, 2013) - Piracy on the world's seas has reached a five-year low, with 297 ships attacked in 2012, compared with 439 in 2011, the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) International Maritime Bureau (IMB) global piracy report revealed today. Worldwide figures were brought down by a huge reduction in Somali piracy, though East and West Africa remain the worst hit areas, with 150 attacks in 2012. -- Full report: http://tinyurl.com/ICC-011613 * Montego Bay, Jamaica (January 16, 2013) - The 31st biennial Pineapple Cup - Montego Bay Race Presented by Appleton Estate Rum is living up to its reputation as one of the marquee offshore sailboat races in the world by, once again, welcoming a fleet of high profile boats, both newcomers and veterans, to compete. Starting on February 8, just outside Fort Lauderdale, Florida's Port Everglades, this ocean racing classic will take competitors on a challenging all‐points‐of‐sail course, stretching 811 nautical miles to the legendary destination of Montego Bay, Jamaica. -- Read on: http://www.montegobayrace.com/sheets/2013%20PR-Jan16.pdf * Cooper Capital Specialty Salvage LLC is hosting an online auction of storm-damaged boats from Hurricane Sandy, which made landfall Oct. 29 near Atlantic City, N.J., packing hurricane-force winds in a rising tide that created an unprecedented storm surge. Cooper Capital expects to list several hundred Sandy-damaged boats for auction on its website, which is updated daily. -- Soundings, full report: http://tinyurl.com/TOT-011613 INDUSTRY NEWS UPDATES The Industry News category of the Scuttlebutt Forum provides an opportunity for companies to announce new products and services. Here are some of recent postings: * Super lightweight Teflon B&G mast cable * SUDDENLY OVERBOARD: True Stories of Sailors in Fatal Trouble * Team McLube Announces The World's First Antifoul Alternative Speed Polish View updates here: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/forum/industry_news 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 David B. Ginsburg, Annapolis: Whenever I see a mention of Wayne Bretch (Scuttlebutt 3755) and his service as PRO, I cannot control the urge to hit the send button to share in the chorus of attaboys. A great sailor and a great guy who still enjoys a great cigar. Wayne is simply the best! * From Bill Sandberg: It's time for US SAILING to change the name of the award for their top sailors to the Sailor of the Year. They got rid of the name Yachting in their own title years ago. Even ISAF uses Sailor of the Year. Congratulations to the panel that elected this year's winners. Kiteboarding is cool and here to stay. Johnny is the best n the world. My friend Jen French is not only a great sailor but one of the most inspirational people I know. Both Johnny and Jen are great ambassadors for our sport. CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATION Celebrate Ben Franklin's birthday today: Go Fly a Kite. SPONSORS THIS WEEK New York Yacht Club - Harken - North Sails - North U KO Sailing - Doyle Sailmakers - US Sailing UsedBoatEquipment.com - Block Island Race Week Ullman Sails - Hall Spars & Rigging - Mount Gay Rum Need stuff? Look here: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/ssc/suppliers |
