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SCUTTLEBUTT No. 720 - January 2, 2001THE RACEThere is no denying Cam Lewis' gung-ho approach to The Race. Before the start, he had been supremely confident about Team Adventure's chances of leading the charge out of the Med. After the opening 24 hours of racing, Lewis finds himself back in front, having led for the first 12 hours until the first major decision of The Race was taken. About 01:00 GMT on Monday, Lewis continued on a starboard tack - which all the yachts had kept with from the start - while the three chasing boats, Club Med, Playstation and Innovation Explorer, all changed to a port tack. Failing to change tack seemed to work against the overnight leader, Team Adventure slowly slipping back down the pack into fourth place at 09:00 GMT. Having enjoyed a 16km/10-mile lead, Lewis appeared to have made a tactical error. But, as the morning continued, the American skipper had obviously spotted a favorable weather pattern which the others had missed. Approximately 95km/60 miles southeast of the leading trio, Team Adventure slowly pulled back ground. At 13:00 GMT, she once again found herself leading The Race. - Colin M Jarman, NOW Sport website. Positions January 1 at 13:00 GMT: 1: Team Adventure 23,020 miles to finish, 2: Club Med, 12 miles behind leader, 3: Playstation, 15 miles behind leader, 4: Innovation Explorer 62 miles behind leader, 5: Warta Polpharma, 161 miles behind leader, 6: Team Legato, 265 miles behind leader. Full story: http://www.now.com/feature.now?cid=997704&fid=1098044 MORE ABOUT THE RACE The on-and-off saga of Team Legato was finally left on Barcelona docks as Tony Bullimore's boat crossed the start line at 09:00 GMT on Monday. The past few days saw Bullimore stretched to breaking point as he personally battled The Race organizers about qualification and safety procedures, faced uncertainty over his own crew and was pilloried by the world's press. Team Legato left Barcelona harbor at 21:30 GMT on Sunday evening, and set out on her 241km/150-mile round trip to complete the qualifying requirements before she could officially start The Race. Team press officer Barry Pickthall said: "The overnight run was really good. A 28-knot wind helped the run and brought the boat back to the start line ahead of schedule." Pickthall sailed out to meet Legato as she approached the start line. He said: "The crew are in very good spirits. They met quite light winds on the way to the start and motored the last few miles. The wind then picked up and they should have a strong wind all the way to Gibraltar." Starting some 19 hours behind the other five yachts, Legato could well make up some time on the boats ahead, as she will encounter more favorable conditions on her way out of the Med. Pickthall added: "When Legato crossed the start line, she was 160km/100 miles behind the nearest yacht, Warta, and only 274km/170 miles behind leader Club Med." - Colin M Jarman, NOW Sport website Full story: http://www.now.com/feature.now?cid=997704&fid=1098039 IMAGES Tom Zinn has posted images of the start of The Race on his website, Adrenalin Images Photography: http://adrenalinimages.com/The_Race_Start/index.html VENDEE GLOBE - By Philippe Jeantot The complex weather systems currently reigning in the South of New Zealand are giving the leading skippers in the Vendee Globe a nasty bout of insomnia. They all donned their navigator-tactician hat rather than their party hat over the New Year to negotiate their way round, with half an eye on the competition in front and behind at the same time. Everyone is now focusing on Cape Horn. A deliverance of sorts, as rounding this infamous landmark means escaping from the hell of the Southern Ocean; the bitter cold, isolation and boat-hammering winds and waves. A page will turn soon. In fact there is only 2800 miles to this point. This translates into nine days sailing, thus the 10th January as an ETA for the leading boats. Four years ago Christophe Auguin passed Cape Horn on the 9th January after 67 days at sea. Provisionally, the Vendee Globe leader in 2001 could have three days in the bag on the previous winner's record setting pace, and round Cape Horn on the 64th day of the race. The weather will be the deciding factor here. - http://www.vendeeglobe.com Standings: 1 PRB, Michel Desjoyeaux, 2. Sill Matines & La Potagere, Roland Jourdain, 214 miles behind leader, 3. Kingfisher, Ellen MacArthur, 250 mile behind leader, 4. Active Wear, Marc Thiercelin, 507 mile behind leader, 5. Sodebo Savourons la, Vie Thomas Coville, 840 miles behind leader. MORE VENDEE GLOBE The first and second placed Open 60's in the Vendee Globe, Michel Desjoyeaux (PRB) and Roland Jourdain (Sill Matines La Potagre), are both powered by Bainbridge Internationals SCL Laminates. This cloth has dominated the world of single handed offshore racing for a number of years because it is strong, tough, low in stretch and above all, dependable. Manufactured from a scrim of Spectra fiber protected by two ultra durable layers of woven spectra it is also used extensively for Super Yachts and, in lighter weights, for cruising yachts over 45ft. For more information: http://www.sailcloth.com LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON (leweck@earthlink.net) (Letters selected to be printed may be edited for clarity, space (250 words max) or to exclude unfounded speculation or personal attacks. This is not a bulletin board or a chat room - you only get one letter per subject, so give it your best shot and don't whine if others disagree. We don't publish anonymous letters, but will withhold your e-mail address on request.) * From: Guy Gurney gurney@optonline.net I agree wholeheartedly with Rich Roberts' piece ('Butt 718?) and was very happy to see Olin Stephens' subsequent comment. I'm afraid that the further we get away from the idea of real national identities of America's Cup challengers and defenders, the less attractive the event will be be to the mainstream press. As a good newspaper journalist, Rich understands this. Do you realize that Sports Illustrated did not publish a report on the 2000 Cup series, for the first time ever? Not a word. They no longer consider it a serious sporting event, and this dates back to the shenanigans in San Diego when the Defender Series rules were suddenly changed to permit three yachts to compete in the "Final." If you take away the nationalistic aspect of the event it becomes just another yacht race. From: Andrea Watson agwatson@usa.net Gary Jobson, moderator for the Rolex 2000 International Year in Sailing program aired on ESPN 2 was incorrect when he said that the Congressional Cup "was the only ISAF grade 1 match racing regatta held in the US in 2000." On October 3 - 7, 2000, the Knickerbocker YC hosted the 19th International Knickerbocker Cup, the only OTHER ISAF grade 1 match racing event. The Knickerbocker Cup is the brain child of America's Cup Hall of Famer, Ed du Moulin, and his long time friend, the late Arthur Knapp. After watching the Congressional Cup, they decided to create an East Coast Match Race Series, the first of which took place on Manhasset Bay on Long Island Sound in 1982. The boats sailed were J36's. Since then, The Knickerbocker Cup has gained status as a leading Match Racing Event as part of The World Match Racing Conference, and is a ISAF grade 1 event. Due to the leadership of Knickerbocker YC Past Commodore Ted Weisberg, who is the newly-elected President of the Match Racing Association, and with the help of most of the membership, the KYC has successfully hosted this event for the past 19 years. SYDNEY TO HOBART RACE Two past winners of Australia's most famous Bluewater ocean classic were once again announced divisional winners of the 2000 Telstra Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race in a public ceremony at Hobart's famous Constitution Dock. * The South Australian entry SAP Ausmaid, a Farr 46 owned by Kevan Pearce, and winner in 1996, has taken out the IMS Overall and IMS Division A trophies. * AFR Midnight Rambler, the Hick 35 owned by Ed Psaltis and Bob Thomas from Sydney, and Overall winner in 1998, has been confirmed as winner of IMS Division B. Also, Tom and Vicky Jackson, climaxed sailing 30,000 nautical miles around the world in their classic 35-year-old yacht, Sunstone, by winning IMS Division C. This was a very tough race with 24 of the 82 starters retiring. Complete results: http://www.syd-hob.telstra.com.au/index.cfm & http://s2h.tas.gov.au/ HISTORY LESSON Established in 1961 by US SAILING and sponsored by Rolex Watch U.S.A. since 1980, the Yachtsman and Yachtswoman of the Year awards recognize outstanding on-the-water achievement within the calendar year. These prestigious awards are viewed by the sail-racing industry as among the nation's top sailing distinctions. A slate of nominees, determined by the membership of US SAILING, is presented to a panel of accomplished sailing journalists, who together discuss the merits of each nominee and then vote by secret ballot to determine the ultimate winners. Former Winners 1999 Eric Doyle/Dawn Riley 1998 Paul Cayard /Betsy (Gelenitis) Alison 1997 Chris Larsen/JJ Isler 1996 Dave Ullman/Courtenay (Becker) Dey 1995 Ed Baird/Cory Sertl 1994 Ken Read/Danielle Brennan 1993 Cam Lewis/Betsy (Gelenitis) Alison 1992 Kevin Mahaney/Julia Trotman 1991 Ed Adams/JJ Isler 1990 Jim Brady/Courtenay Becker 1989 Larry Klein/Jody Swanson 1988 John Kostecki/Allison Jolly & Lynne Jewell 1987 Ed Adams/Susan Dierdorff Taylor 1986 Dennis Conner/JJ Isler 1985 Ken Read/Kathy Steele & Heidi Backus 1984 Bill Buchan/Betsy Gelenitis 1983 Dave Curtis/Wendy Thomson 1982 Randy Smyth/Betsy Gelenitis 1981 Dave Curtis/Betsy Gelenitis 1980 Dennis Conner/Lynne Jewell 1979 Ted Turner/Nell Taylor 1978 Buddy Melges/Bonnie Shore 1977 Ted Turner/Jan O'Malley 1976 Lowell North/Allison Jolly 1975 Dennis Conner/Joan Ellis 1974 Ted Hood/Sally Lindsay 1973 Ted Turner/Sally Lindsay 1972 Buddy Melges/Jane Pegel 1971 Ding Schoonmaker/Jane Pegel 1970 Ted Turner/Jan O'Malley 1969 Robert F. Johnson/Jan O'Malley 1968 Lowell North/June Methor 1967 Bus Mosbacher/Betty Foulk 1966 Bill Cox/Jerie Clark 1965 Dick Tillman/Timothea (Schneider) Larr 1964 Bob Bavier/Jane Pegel 1963 Joe Duplin/Leggie Mertz 1962 Bus Mosbacher/Sue Sinclair 1961 Buddy Melges/Timothea Schneider Source: http://www.ussailing.org/faces/rolex_history.htm EXPERIENCE COUNTS For over 28 years Sailing Supply has helped the best sailors in the world prepare for big events. Having a very experienced staff helps. This year alone our staff has won the Etchells 22 world championship, Key West, SORC, Big Boat Series, Santana 20 Nationals, Volvo Inshore Championship, SD Yachting Cup, plus many more local regattas. Our staff is on the water, year round, trying new products and rigging ideas. Please give us a call and let us help you rig your boat to win. 1-800-532-3831 or visit our website at www.sailingsupply.com STILL MORE ABOUT THE RACE (On the SailNet website, Veteran ocean racer and navigator Bill Biewenga sizes up the weather scenarios that will face the six teams in The Race as they wend their way around the globe. Here's just a taste of his analysis.) As the entrants in The Race blast off into the blue unknown, the salt-spray fire hoses will be unleashed aboard six radically massive multihulls. Shooting back from the bows, the sea spray won't be turned off for two months-even on the nicest days. Finding those nice days might be the trick that determines the overall winner in this odyssey. And the bad days could mean the road to ruin. Make no mistake, these boats are fast-wicked fast! That can be both good and bad when it comes to managing the global, climatological weather patterns. Day-to-day forecasts will vary, as will their accuracy, but the overall patterns have been thrashed around for some time now. The afterguards aboard most of the entries in this contest are composed of mariners who have raced around the planet before. These sailors know the racetrack pretty well, but their monster multihulls are new, largely untested animals, and the way these beasts will handle the weather patterns remains an unknown at this point. Once clear of the starting gate, the competitors will encounter a vast number of climatological hurdles as they speed around the world. Slipping along the northeast trades they will see how effectively their machines go downwind. Few, if any, of these six programs have reliable, real-world polars (information regarding how the boats will perform). If anyone has a handle on this, it's the brain trust aboard Club Med. But on this portion of the course, between the Canary Islands and Madeira, the competitors' actual routes will be determined by the real-time weather patterns here, dictating where the boats enter the doldrums and how they best make these speed titans move down the track. - Bill Biewenga, SailNet website. Full story: http://www.sailnet.com/collections/racing/index.cfm?articleid=biewen0004&tfr=fp IT'S FREE You'll be able to watch The Race on Virtual Spectator on a special version available for download from the official website courtesy of France Telecom. This version is available free of charge and includes the leaderboard and 3D animation allowing you to zoom in and out on the fleet, change your camera angles and select the boats you want to watch. For the first time in an offshore race, the data will be updated every 4 hours - so you will be able to be right with the boats and watch their every move. - http://www.therace.org CALENDAR OF MAJOR EVENTS January 5-14: The J.J. Giltanan trophy regatta on Sydney harbor. This regatta is considered to be the world championship for the exciting and growing 18 foot skiff class. Every winner from the past 5 years will be in attendance. Australian and foreign competitors from Great Britain, Switzerland, Italy, France, and Americans Howie Hamlin, Mike Martin, and Andy Zinn will be competing for the title. THE CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATION Age doesn't always bring wisdom. Sometimes age comes alone. |
