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SCUTTLEBUTT 2636 - Friday, July 11, 2008
Scuttlebutt is a digest of major sailing news, commentary, opinions,
features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus. Scuttlebutt is
published each weekday with the support of its sponsors.
SPOTLIGHT TURNS TOWARD ISAF YOUTH WORLDS
Arhus, Denmark - Sixty nations are prepared to do battle in the Bay of Arhus
for the 2008 Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship, with 252 talented
young sailors aiming to make their mark on the world stage when racing
commences on Saturday, July 12th. Entrants are divided across seven events
as well as the Volvo Trophy, which is awarded to the top-performing nation
at the championship.
Brand new Laser, Laser Radial (from Performance Sailcraft) and International
29er dinghies (Ovington Boats in cooperation with Børresen Boats), SL 16
multihulls (Sirena Voile in cooperation with Børresen Boats) and RS:X
windsurfers (NeilPryde International in cooperation with NeilPryde
Scandinavia A/S) lie sparkling in the boat park, having been supplied
directly from the manufacturers to ensure a completely level playing field
for the competitors.
US SAILING will be sending nine members to the Youth Worlds, earning the
right through a first-ever designated qualifying event in Long Beach, CA,
much like how the country selects its Olympic team. In the past, youth
sailors in each class were chosen by having won a class regatta that had
been predetermined as the qualifying event. Under the new system, all nine
of these sailors gained their Youth Worlds eligibility at the Alamitos Bay
Yacht Club’s Youth World Qualifier held in January, which attracted 82
sailors from around the country.
The members of the 2008 Youth World Team are:
Laser: Luke Lawrence (Palm City, FL)
Laser Radial: Anne Haeger (Lake Forest, IL; East Troy, WI)
29er Boys: Judge Ryan (San Diego, CA) and Hans Henken (Coronado, CA)
29er Girls: Julia Paxton (Sebastopol, CA) and Karoline Gurdal (San
Francisco, CA)
SL-16: Andrew Mason (Newport Beach, CA) and Chris Segerblom (Costa Mesa, CA)
Windsurfer Boy: Cody Shevitz (Santa Barbara, CA)
Event website: http://www.youthworlds2008.org/
U.S. Team info: http://www.ussailing.org/olympics/YouthWorld/2008/team.asp
COVILLE ENJOYING RECORD PACE
(July 10, 2008) Since Thomas Coville began his single-handed North Atlantic
record attempt Wednesday, July 9th at 0747 hours local time (11:47 UT), his
105-foot maxi trimaran Sodeb’O is enjoying a record pace. Coville has
covered 546 miles in his first 24 hours (an average of 22.8 knots), building
a 192 mile lead over current record holder Francis Joyon’s time in 2005. As
forecast, Thomas Coville has benefited from relatively flat seas for the
first 24 hours and a very steady 20 knot SW’ly. These conditions have
enabled him to sail under full mainsail and small gennaker for the majority
of the time. During the night, he reduced the sail area a little and hoisted
the solent due to a large amount of shipping and a pea-souper fog that
prevented the skipper from seeing either the top of the mast or the bow of
the boat.
Since he has gotten into deeper waters, the famous fog generated by the
Nantucket banks has lifted, which should enable Coville to get caught up
with his sleep, as the poor visibility provided for only two 20 minute
catnaps. To beat the record set by Francis Joyon in 2005 of 6 days, 4 hours,
1 minute and 37 seconds, Coville will need to average over 19.75 knots for
2,980 miles, finishing at Lizard Point (SW tip of England) prior to Tuesday
15th July, 1545 UT. Coville is the current 24 hour speed record holder
aboard his maxi Sodeb’O, having covered 619.3 miles at an average of 25.8
knots. -- Team website: http://www.sodebo-voile.com/actu/news-eng.html
* It was on June 29th that Mike Sanderson and his team onboard the Juan
Kouyoumdjian designed 100 foot 'SPEEDBOAT' began their attempt to beat the
current crewed monohull record set by
Mari Cha IV that stands at 6 days, 17 hours, 52 minutes and 39 seconds.
However, by June 30th they were forced to drop out after one of their
daggerboards broke. The team returned to Newport, RI for repair and
evaluation, with the team now announcing they are ready to go again, and are
seeking a suitable weather forecast to begin their attempt. -- Complete
update: http://www.mike-sanderson.com/da/83014
GREEN LIGHT ARRIVES AT MOTH WORLDS
Weymouth, UK (July 10, 2008) - With the first four days of the CST
Composites 2008 Moth World Championships cancelled due to excessive winds,
the fleet was finally able to begin the event today, sailing as one group
for the first 4 races of the series. Seventy-three boats (down from the
original 95 entrants) went out in the morning for the first 2 races in
conditions averaging 18 knots gusting to 24. After lunch, winds started out
stronger at an average of 21 knots, then dropped back to 18 for the final
race of the day, of which only 35 boats competed. At the end of the first
day's racing, the overall leader is John Harris (AUS), who put together a
string four seconds, with the top North American Bora Gulari of Detroit,
Michigan in eighth. In order to secure a World Champion for 2008 they must
finish a minimum of 5 races in the series. Conditions for the final day of
competition on Friday are forecast to be similar to today but with increased
showers. -- Results:
http://www.wpnsa.org.uk/results/entriessofar/Mothworlds1.htm
WAREHOUSE SALE - PART 2
Following the very successful Warehouse Sale in May, Team One Newport has
pulled their wagon of bargains to the Mule Barn in Fort Adams State Park
(Newport, RI), and will be hauling special deals on Friday through Sunday
from noon to 4pm. If you are competing this weekend in the 2008 Coastal
Living Newport Regatta hosted by Sail Newport, the event’s Hospitality Tent
will be located next to the Mule Barn, with all social events and awards
held in the tent. You can’t miss it! For those of you not making the trip,
the Team One Newport website continues to be the #1 source for the best and
coolest sailing gear. -- http://www.team1newport.com
CATCHING UP WITH TERRY HUTCHINSON
Here are excerpts from an interview by Bill Wagner that was in The Capital:
* Your focus this summer has been on skippering the Quantum Racing entry in
the Audi MecCup. What do you think of the Audi MedCup? Clearly, it is
high-level yacht racing.
HUTCHINSON: It is awesome! The level of racing is incredibly high and our
success is based on the complete team not just what we do on the water but
how the entire team performs and functions. With the absence of the
America's Cup, you have fully sponsored teams that run very much as an AC
team would run so for us it is great to be racing at such a high level.
* For many years now, you have been filling the role of tactician aboard
most big-boat programs in which you are involved. What has it been like to
return to the role of skipper and helmsman?
HUTCHINSON: It is outstanding. I was a helmsman first and so going back to
my roots is a lot of fun. I also believe that, inevitably, it will make me a
better tactician. Understanding all the inputs the helmsman needs to do the
job well is equally as important. The helmsman role is tough as my view of
the race course is a lot more limited now and so I have to always remind
myself that we will be as smart as we are fast and to keep focused on the
driving.
* When we ran into you in Newport, R.I., you mentioned that you were
commuting back-and-forth from Europe to the United States. That must be
extremely difficult. How is your family handling this current setup?
HUTCHINSON: It is what it is... the travel is part of the job and like any
professional athlete I have to do it in order to do my job. It is straining
on the family in the fact that a lot of the day to day responsibility falls
on Shelley to manage our kids and home. I am lucky in that Shelley is a
great wife and mother who understands that travel is part of the job.
Complete interview:
http://www.hometownannapolis.com/cgi-bin/read/2008/07_10-50/SAL
QUOTE / UNQUOTE
Geoff Eisenberg, Chief Executive Officer of West Marine, said, "Now that we
are in the peak boating season, we continue to see softness throughout our
U.S. markets. Fuel prices and the weak economy have absolutely affected boat
usage, which in turn negatively impacts traffic to our Stores and website."
-- http://xrl.us/kkk68
VOLVO OCEAN RACE TEAM HELPS WITH RESCUE
(July 10, 2008) Two of the entrants in the 2008-2009 Volvo Ocean Race,
Telefonica Black and Telefonica Blue, were sail testing off the coast of
Almeria (Spain) when they encountered a six-metre boat with over 30 people
including young children on board. Authorities confirmed that some of the
occupants, believed to be of African origin, had died during the ill-fated
journey after the engine on the craft had broken down.
Both Spanish Volvo Open 70s abandoned testing to assist the vessel. Having
notified the Spanish Coast Guard the crews stood by until rescue teams
arrived. The incident was logged at 18.15 hours (GMT) last night and
occurred 30 miles south of Almeria (36.13N 02.44W). The rescue, by the
Spanish Coast Guard, took place at 20.10 GMT. The Telefonica boats were
cleared to resume training and headed for the Atlantic 20 minutes later. –
The Volvo Ocean Race begins October 4th. -- Complete report:
http://xrl.us/kkk7a
PHOTOS OF THE WEEK
Some of the random photos from the sport received this week at Scuttlebutt
include an O'pen Bic in a 4th of July parade, spectator sailing in Sweden,
aerial action in France, groundbreaking in Nantucket, multihull for disabled
sailors in Portugal, sailing pioneers in New York, mast dipping in M 30’s,
and module sailing store in Newport. If you have images you would like to
share, send them to the Scuttlebutt editor. Here are this week’s photos:
http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/08/0711/
CALENDAR OF MAJOR EVENTS (Sponsored by West Marine)
Here are a few of the events that are coming up:
July 10-12 - Edgartown Regatta - Edgartown, MA, USA
July 12 - Bayview Mackinac Island Race - Port Huron, MI, USA
July 12-20 - International 14 World Championship - Rostock-Warnemünde, GER
July 13-17 - I-LYA Bay Week Junior Regatta - Put-in-Bay, OH, USA
View all the events at http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/calendar
CARBON FIBRE HIKING STICK – BUY IT AT APS
Sally Barkow, the skipper of the U.S. Olympic Yngling team, will be steering
her boat with a Forespar carbon fiber “Big Stick” this summer in China. In
her words, “The Big Stick is incredibly light and stiff, it provides a great
feel in light air and doesn’t flex in a breeze.” Buy a Big Stick (7/8” dia)
or bigger brother Giant Stick (1 1/4” dia) from APS
(http://www.apsltd.com/BSPG.asp?toURL=BigStickPromo) at a great price and
get a Free Forespar racing decal with all the flags and signals. The decal
is a perfect to have onboard as an easy reference for racing. For more
Forespar products: http://www.forespar.com
SAILING SHORTS
* Sausalito, CA (July 10, 2008) - Thirty-three teams from across the country
are competing in the U.S. Junior Women's Doublehanded Championship (JWD) for
the Ida Lewis Trophy, hosted by Sausalito Yacht Club (Calif.) and sponsored
by LaserPerformance. Sailed in Club 420s over three days, the Southern
Californian team of Sydney Bolger/Caitlin Beavers (Long Beach, CA/Newport
Beach, CA) have jumped to an early lead after winning the first two races.
-- Event website: http://www.ussailing.org/championships/youth/usjrw/double
* (July 10, 2008) Already two Spanish teams resume the lead in the Tutima
J80 Worlds at Kiel, with Ignacio Camino Rodriguez (ESP) on top and Carlos
Martinez on second place. From a position far behind yesterday, the German
team of “Needles and Pins” with Uli Münker and Peter Hecht celebrated their
comeback into the tops today. With a series of 1, 3 and 5 today they take
the third place in the fleet of 63 boats in Kiel. Top North American is Jeff
Johnstone in seventh position. With seven races now completed, the fleet has
five more on the schedule through the final day on Saturday. Event website:
http://www.j80-worlds.de
* Malcesine, Italy (July 10, 2008) - BMW ORACLE Racing won the match racing
regatta of the RC 44 Malcesine SLAM Cup here today in an epic round robin
battle with four teams tied on points going into the final flight of matches
today. With Larry Ellison at the helm and Russell Coutts calling tactics,
BMW ORACLE Racing won six of their eight races to finish tied with BMW
ORACLE Racing helmsman James Spithill onboard Team Ceeref, with Ellison’s
previous win over Spithill breaking the tie. Tomorrow starts the three-day
fleet racing regatta. -- Complete report:
http://www.rc44.com/en/regattas/news/index.php?idContent=1014
* Sydney, NSW, Australia - Wot Rocket will officially attempt to break the
500m world speed sailing record of 49.09 knots next month with pilot and
creator Sean Langman nominating August for the 28 day window granted by the
World Sailing Speed Record Council to coincide with the winter westerlies
that traditionally prevail. -- Read on:
http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=6053
* Marine hardware specialist Southco has opened a new manufacturing facility
in Concordville, Pennsylvania, to better serve its North American clients.
The new Injection Molding and Rapid Prototyping Center of Excellence is
housed at Pennsylvania's Concordville Campus and is the result of several
million dollars of investment. Southco offers a wide range of locks,
latches, hinges, handles and captive fasteners for the marine and other
markets. The group serves more than 70,000 customers in 70 countries with
3,000 employees worldwide. -- IBI Magazine, complete report:
http://www.ibinews.com/ibinews/newsdesk/20080610104547ibinews.html
* The Port of San Diego officially launched its megayacht mooring yard along
San Diego’s bayfront Embarcadero. Up to eight spaces are now available for
megayachts sized 100 feet and longer, up to 400 feet. The location includes
more than 200,000 square feet of water between the Grape Street piers and
the San Diego Maritime Museum. Using a system of docking popular in
Mediterranean megayacht marinas, the large, luxurious vessels can berth in a
parallel formation alongside each other - the traditional European manner
favored by large yachts in such ports as Monte Carlo, Monaco, and Antibes,
France. -- Complete story: http://xrl.us/kkk7i
* Long Beach, CA (July 10, 2008) The fourth annual Mayor’s Cup hosted by
Long Beach Yacht Club got started Thursday, with eight ranked female
skippers from around the world competing in identically prepared Catalina
37s in this International Sailing Federation (ISAF) Grade 2 event. Liz
Baylis (USA), currently ranked fifth in ISAF Women’s rankings, is well
positioned to defend her 2007 Mayor’s Cup win, finishing the first round
robin series with a perfect 7-0 record. Next in the standings is Samantha
Osborne (NZL) at 5-2. Racing continues Friday with the start of the second
round robin. -- Complete story: http://xrl.us/kkmsx
* Watsonville, CA (July 10, 2008) - West Marine, Inc. (Nasdaq:WMAR) today
reported net sales for the thirteen weeks ended June 28, 2008 of $226.7
million, a decrease of $20.4 million, or 8.3%, from net sales of $247.1
million for the same period a year ago, primarily due to a $16.4 million
decrease in comparable store sales. Comparable store sales for the second
quarter decreased 7.8%. -- Read on: http://xrl.us/kkk68
* Eighty of the world’s top Sea Scout Sailors will be competing in the
William I. Koch International Sea Scout Cup July 13-19, 2008 at the U.S.
Naval Academy. The event is held every two years and is open to young men
and women between the ages of 14 and 21 who actively belong to a Sea Scout
Ship. The 2008 event marks the fourth Koch regatta and the strongest
international field to date, with teams from New Zealand, Australia,
Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Brazil, Trinidad and Tobago, Germany, and the U.S.
to be competing together in the academy’s fleet of 420’s. --
https://seascoutcup.org
* Correction: The World Match Racing Tour event in Troia, Portugal,
originally scheduled on July 15-20, 2008, has been postponed by the event
organizers. The Troia Portugal Match Cup was to be the next event on the
tour schedule, but competitors will now be heading to the Danish Open in
Frederikshavn, Denmark on Aug 27-31, 2008. -- Tour site:
http://www.worldmatchracingtour.com/da/68487
WHEN EAST MEETS WEST
by Nick Voss and Tom Fink
The United States is a big country, so big that parts of the country are as
different as they are alike. Such was the case when a group of youth sailors
came to San Diego, CA to compete in a U.S. qualifier for the 2009 Snipe
Junior Worlds. During a clinic in advance of the event, the practice races
quickly showed the East versus West mentality that would envelop the whole
weekend. The Boston Celtics having just won the NBA Finals over the Los
Angeles Lakers seemed to cause some resentment from the West coast teams.
Two teams traveled out from the East coast eager to prove that the Celtics
victory was in fact legitimate. The sailors awoke Saturday morning to find
the usual lack of breeze that Southern California is known for. This was
especially unfortunate for the East coast team as there crew weight was
similar to that of two NBA centers. We were towed out that morning into the
ocean for some sailing that was sure to be as competitive as any good
basketball game. Every race that day seemed to favor the right side of the
course. Ordinarily this should be taken as a sign that the Right coast
should prevail but the Left coast was the first to figure it out. Left
coasters Judge Ryan and Willie McBride stole the day showing the speed of
Kobe minus all the controversy. When we reached the dock after sailing, the
West coast in typical fashion began to question some calls the referees made
regarding check in failure. -- Read on:
http://www.snipeus.org/news/news.asp?nk=96
* The second qualifier for the 2009 Snipe Juniors Worlds for sailors under
22 years old in the year of the Championship will be held in San Francisco
August 1-2. The top two slots qualify for the 2009 Junior World
Championships to be held the following August in San Diego.
CURMUDGEON’S OBSERVATION
Life Insurance: A contract that keeps you poor all your life so that you can
die rich.
Special thanks to Team One Newport and Forespar.
A complete list of preferred suppliers is at
http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/ssc/suppliers
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