|
SCUTTLEBUTT 3501 - Monday, January 9, 2012Scuttlebutt 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: APS and RIBCRAFT. SHATTERED (January 7, 2012) - Three and a half years after being launched in August 2008 and after her second attempt, the 131-foot maxi trimaran Banque Populaire V has entered records' history by taking the Jules Verne Trophy at the end of a circumnavigation of 45 days 13 hours 42 minutes 53 seconds around the globe. By crossing the Jules Verne Trophy start/finish line between Ushant (France) and Lizard Point (England) at 22hrs 14 minutes 35 seconds GMT on Friday January, 6th, Loick Peyron and thirteen crew members, including eight rookies, have completed an unprecedented exploit, covering 29,002 miles at an average speed of 26.51 knots. On the morning of November 22nd, the Team Banque Populaire triggered the countdown by crossing the starting line to attack the reference time of 48 days 7 hours 44 minutes and 52 seconds held since March 2010 by Franck Cammas and Groupama 3. With remarkable conditions south through the Atlantic Ocean, she made her entry into the Indian Ocean less than twelve days after kicking-off, reaching a lead of 2,364 miles of advance, what would be the largest delta on the entire race. Her final lead over Groupama 3 would be 1,649.30 nm. -- Read on: http://tinyurl.com/BP-010812 Brit Brian Thompson was the lone non-French member of the crew. Here are some comments from the helmsman/trimmer: Q: What were the high points of the voyage? A: Seeing an iceberg as big as half of the Isle of Wight, seeing a new comet on Christmas Day and sailing with a fantastic team! Q: .and the lows? A: Losing two days due to weather delays both in the Pacific and North Atlantic and missing Christmas and New Year ashore with family and friends. Q: Did you notice any major environmental differences this time around? A: There was a distinct lack of birds in North Atlantic compared to rest of the oceans and I am not sure what the reason was for this. Thankfully we did not come across too much rubbish pollution except when passing the coast of South America in Atlantic Ocean, which was sad to see. WHO'S WHO: Who did what among the crew of the Banque Populaire V? Here's the list: http://tinyurl.com/Telegraph-010812 Follow their track: http://tinyurl.com/BP-JV-Tracking-2011-12 BACKGROUND: The Jules Verne Trophy is a prize for the fastest circumnavigation of the world by any type of yacht with no restrictions on the size of the crew provided the vessel has registered with the organization and paid an entry fee. The start/finish line is between the Creach lighthouse on Ouessant (Ushant) Island, France, and the Lizard Lighthouse, UK. Circumnavigate the world leaving the capes of Good Hope, Leeuwin, and Horn to port. In 2004 Steve Fossett sailed the Jules Verne Trophy course on the catamaran Cheyenne, setting a circumnavigation record of 58 days 9 hours 32 minutes 45 seconds. However, he did not pay the fee to qualify for the Jules Verne Trophy beforehand. He did try to pay the fee to be awarded the Trophy a week before arriving but was declined. Fossett's record was acknowledged by the World Sailing Speed Record Council, while the Jules Verne trophy was awarded to Geronimo for its five-days slower time. SIGN OF THE TIMES (January 7, 2012) - As the "Everest of Sailing" reached its third port of call in Abu Dhabi last week, major international media outlets aren't the only ones covering the Volvo Ocean Race action. They will soon be joined by a small bevy of bloggers set loose by one of the competing boats' sponsors to give documentation of the race a new twist. Ten handpicked Tumblr and Instagram users will arrive in Abu Dhabi on Monday, transported and lodged there for a week by the sportswear company Puma to photograph and post updates as the competing sailors rest and recharge while participating in short sprints before departing on Jan. 15 for the race's next stop in Sanya, China. Puma says the sponsored bloggers will have "free reign" to cover and document what they wish, and the trip reflects the growing mainstream recognition and validity of bloggers' influence over public opinion and what is considered hip or interesting. They will also document their experiences via Twitter and Facebook. "The idea is to fly in these prominent bloggers and Instagramers and just have it be known that they're there because of Puma and because they deserve it," Andrew Schmidt, Puma's manager of digital media projects, says. Schmidt says Puma was inspired by Tumblr itself sending groups of bloggers to New York Fashion Week the past two years. Tumblr has long attracted fashion-focused users and, as a sportswear company, Puma's involvement makes sense. But the Volvo Ocean Race junket also represents a new step to major brand-sponsored blogger coverage of an international sporting match. "I think it's a really good model for showcasing events," Schmidt says. Puma gains goodwill from the bloggers and increased visibility at the event. The race itself gains exposure to unlikely online audiences. And bloggers eager to turn their Tumblr and Instagram passions into full-time work could find their big breaks in Abu Dhabi. -- Full story: http://mashable.com/2012/01/06/puma-sends-bloggers-to-sailing-race/ UPDATE: Team Sanya resumed racing the first stage of Leg 2 on Saturday, sailing shorthanded with a crew of six sailors and their Media Crew Member. They expect to reach the loading/unloading port in the Indian Ocean, which is not being named due to the threat of piracy, in less than two weeks. Assuming Team Sanya reach the safe haven port under racing conditions, they will collect four points for sixth place for the first stage of Leg 2 and then automatically add one more under race rules for the second stage and a further two points for the Abu Dhabi In-Port Race. Overall leaderboard after Leg 2 1. Telefonica (ESP), Iker Martinez (ESP), 6-1-1-1, 66 pts 2. CAMPER (NZL), Chris Nicholson (AUS), 3-2-2-2, 58 pts 3. Groupama (FRA), Frank Cammas (FRA), 5-3-5-4, 42 pts 4. PUMA Ocean Racing (USA), Ken Read (USA), 2-DNF-3-3, 28 pts 5. Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing (UAE), Ian Walker (GBR), 1-DNF-4-5, 19 pts 6. Team Sanya (CHN), Mike Sanderson (NZL), 4-DNF-6-6-0**, 4 pts ** Still racing Tracking/Standings: http://www.volvooceanrace.com/en/racetracker/rdc.html Video reports: http://www.youtube.com/user/volvooceanracevideos Course details: http://tinyurl.com/Piracy-121111 RACE SCHEDULE: The five teams will are in Abu Dhabi now preparing for the Pro-Am Race on Thursday (Jan. 12), the In-Port Race on Friday (Jan. 13), and the start of Leg 3 to Sanya, China on Saturday (Jan. 14). As in Leg 2, Leg 3 will be similar with a Stage 1 short sprint to meet the ship which will transport the five boats to the safe haven port. If all goes to plan, Team Sanya will join the fleet there, and all six boats will compete in Stage 2 to Sanya. - http://tinyurl.com/VOR-2011-12-schedule BACKGROUND: During the nine months of the Volvo Ocean Race, which started in Alicante, Spain and concludes in Galway, Ireland during early July 2012, six professional teams will sail over 39,000 nautical miles of the world's most treacherous seas via Cape Town, Abu Dhabi, Sanya, Auckland, around Cape Horn to Itajai, Miami, Lisbon, and Lorient. Teams accumulate points through nine distance legs and ten In-Port races. - http://www.volvooceanrace.com 2012 JANUARY RIGGING SALE - ACHIEVE THE SPEED APS, the World Leader in Outfitting Performance Sailors, wants 2012 to be your fastest year of sailing yet. Boat handling is significantly influenced by quality of rigging onboard. It's the feel of the lines, how quickly they cleat, release, and run - and the crew's overall confidence in the equipment. For the month of January, APS wants you to rest assured you are doing everything you can to achieve top speed. Update your rigging now, and get 25% off all Rigging Services, 20% off in-house One Design Rigging Packages, and 15% off Cordage and Wire. Click here to view details: http://bit.ly/SaleFastAPS GETTING ORGANIZED America's Cup race organizers say they have fulfilled their first mandate to raise $12 million in 2011. To cover the city's costs for the regatta, the America's Cup Organizing Committee, a newly formed team of local entrepreneurs and philanthropists, pledged to raise $32 million over three years. The 2011 funds came from two streams. The first source was pledges from at least 16 individual donors and four organizations, according to fundraisers. Donors include the family foundations of late philanthropist Warren Hellman and Silicon Valley investor Ron Conway, venture capitalist Tom Perkins, San Francisco Ballet trustee Lucy Jewett and philanthropist Wendy Schmidt. Another, less conventional source took the form of a deal with the Event Authority, which is the marketing arm, fundraisers said. Under an initial arrangement, the Organizing Committee had the rights to solicit sponsors within the local market, while the Event Authority had access to national and international sponsors. The two later agreed to combine those efforts into a single outreach campaign to advertisers. The Event Authority paid the Organizing Committee an undisclosed sum of money for its set of rights. The city is obligated to pay for the basic services for the event. But if fundraising falls short or the bill exceeds the projected costs, the city will have to find money elsewhere, according to Michael Martin, the city's point man on the project. That could be tricky. When San Francisco was negotiating to host the America's Cup, one of the event's main selling points was there would be no costs to the city. This month begins a mad dash to finalize preparations for the races. The Board of Supervisors is planning to consider two appeals filed against the project's final environmental impact report, which the state requires be completed before construction can begin. SF Chronicle, full story: http://tinyurl.com/SFC-010812 SCUTTLEBUTT SAILING CALENDAR Events listed at http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/calendar SAILING SHORTS * Miami, FL (January 8, 2012) - This past weekend was the Sidney Doren Memorial, the second event of the 2011-2012 Etchells Jaguar Series. Wind conditions on Saturday failed to materialize for the 51-boat fleet, with Sunday proving slightly better at 6-11 knots for the two races. Rolling a 3-6 for the win was Californian Argyle Campbell with Dwight Beldon and Jamie Hardenbergh. Rounding out the top five was Ernie Pomerleau, George Andreadis, Shannon Bush and Jud Smith. The Florida State Championship (Feb 4-5) and the Mid-Winters East Regatta (Feb 24-26) complete the Jaguar Series. -- Full report/results: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=13106#13106 * Napier, New Zealand (January 8, 2012) - On the penultimate day at the Optimist World Championship, the 210 fleet race participants fought through strong winds, rain, and fog. Tomorrow is the last day of the event, with winds between 11 and 19 knots expected. The provisional leader board (for the individual racing) after 11 races shows: 1. Kimberly Lim (SIN), 2. Bart Lambriex (NED), 3. Ryan Lo (SIN), 4. Javier Arribas (PER), 5. Francisco Ducasse (CHI), 6. Ahmad Syukri Abdul Aziz (MAS), 7. Wade Waddell (USA), 8. Gabriel Elstrodt (BRA), 9. Rodrigo Luz (BRA), 10. Leonard Takahashi-Fry (NZL). -- Event website: http://www.optiworldsnz.org.nz/ * (January 6, 2012) - After eight races in the nine race series, Glenn Ashby, seven times A Class Catamaran World Champion, has won the 2012 John Cootes Furniture A Class Australian Championships being sailed on Lake Macquarie, NSW. The 70 boat fleet was a whos-who of the class and world sailing. In second was 49er World Champion Nathan Outteridge and 2011 A Class Wolrd Champion Steve Brewin in third. From the Oracle Racing America's Cup Syndicate was Darren Bundock and James Spithill in fourth and fifth, respectively. -- Complete story: http://www.event-systems.org/newsfeed_show.cfm?nfid=52&nid=92639 * A Team Racing summit meeting/conference will be held in Annapolis, MD ON January 21st at Annapolis Yacht Club. This summit will focus on keelboat team racing and specifically growing team racing in the Chesapeake Bay region. The panel of speakers and presenters will have extensive experience in the success and growth of keelboat team racing programs at their home clubs around the country. -- Details: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/12/0108.pdf EIGHT BELLS Last Friday the sailing community learned that Rob Moore had lost his courageous battle with lung cancer. He passed away peacefully at his home in Mill Valley, California, surrounded by his family. The outpouring of comments on Facebook provides some insight into the loss people felt: - "A 'good one' has left the room." - "Sailing in San Francisco just got a lot less friendly." - "One of the greats, on and off the water." - "A source of much encouragement in my sailing career." - "Always interested in others, their lives, and their perspective." - "Never had more fun sailing then a late night watch with Rob!" - "A prince among men and always helpful, not to mention genuine." - "Treasured and wonderful memories." - "Probably one of the nicest, kindest men I would ever call my friend." - "Always interested in others, their lives, and their perspective." - "One of the nicest people on Earth." - "TRULY one of the good ones!" Many people got to know Rob through the racing column that he wrote for Latitude 38 for 18 years. San Francisco Bay was where Rob honed his racing skills, and those skills coupled with his unfaltering enthusiasm opened up endless opportunities for him to sail on high-end programs all over the world. Offshore to Hawaii, Mexican races a plenty, the Caribbean, the Med a bunch, Europe, the East Coast - Rob did it all. But there is little doubt that the unending stream of race invitations he received had as much to do with who Rob was, as they did with the obvious skills he brought to any program. He was warm and caring, with solid values and not a trace of ego. Rob always made you feel like you were the most important person in the room. Always - which probably has a lot to do with why so many of us will forever cherish the memories of time we spent with him - both on and off the water. Rob was 58 - far too young to be taken from us, and from his very devoted wife, Leslie Richter. Perhaps Laura Priest said it best in her Facebook posting, "Rob - the world was a better place with you in it!" - Tom Leweck MORE: The family will be planning a celebration of life in the not too distant future, and 'Lectronic Latitude has posted an excellent tribute to Rob on their website: http://tinyurl.com/L38-010812 SPECIAL PRICING ON COACH BOATS, MARK BOATS, AND SUPPORT BOATS For the month of January, RIBCRAFT is offering special discounted pricing to all sailing programs and yacht clubs. Organizations that order a new RIB by January 31st will receive a 5% discount off the total sales price and will be guaranteed delivery for the start of the 2012 sailing season. Providing the optimal platform for setting marks, coaching, or just watching races, RIBCRAFT is at the center of every great sailing community. For more information on the complete line of RIBCRAFT RIBs and how they can best meet your sailing needs, visit us at http://www.ribcraftusa.com 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 Ken Legler: I had to laugh when I saw Dave Perry's rules question about a man overboard (in Scuttlebutt 3497). I wondered what made him think of this case (Rule 41 - Outside Help). Was it the time he slowed his Soling at Kiel to assist a Swedish sailor who had fallen off his boat while he (we) dragged the poor fellow gibbering in Swedish until a coach boat came to assist? Or was it the time Dave was lecturing in Japan and a guy asked, in his best choppy English, "5-0-5 dinghy sailing into gybe mark, crew falls off, skipper rounds mark, then picks up crew. Can boat continue racing?" * From Steve Schupak: On the thread started by Dave Perry's rule discussion in Scuttlebutt 3497, maybe I'm just naive and becoming apathetic towards racing, but can someone please tell me what the big deficiency in our life would be if we dropped out of a race to help someone on the racecourse without a complete guarantee of immunity and compensation for our actions? I know from personal experience in "the room", and anytime someone has come in to my hearing looking for redress for giving aid they were first treated as hero's, then given the most equitable outcome available, as well as being thanked by the jury for their actions. As a sport we need to encourage and reward doing the right thing, and if at the end of the day you give up a race and there's no way to get credit on the podium then so be it. There will always be another race, unless in pursuit of a "pickle dish" you pass up the opportunity to lend aid, is that dish worth the lifetime of anguish from losing a competitor forever you could have helped? Let's try and keep sailing in perspective. * From John McNeill: With all respect, I believe that it is VERY important that Scuttlebutt revisit this issue to prevent the possibility of daunting the primary rule, of saving a life. It would actually be even better if ISAF or another such body would comment to the same intent. The law of unintended consequences, eh? * From John Evans: According to the Royal Yachting Association, Rule 41 (Outside Help) will be changed in January 2013 so that the situation envisaged by Dave Perry (in Scuttlebutt 3497) will not result in a DSQ. The rule has already been changed by the RYA Prescriptions. COMMENT: Let's hope John is right. It is interesting to note that Rule 41 was changed at the 2011 ISAF Sailing World Championship due to shark concerns in the waters off Fremantle, Australia. Getting people out of the water was deemed vital for safety. This thread is now dead in the newsletter, but all the comments are in the Forum... where more can be posted if desired: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=13088 CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATION For every credibility gap there is a gullibility fill. SPONSORS THIS WEEK APS - Ribcraft - North Sails - Harken Melges Performance Sailboats - IYRS - Mount Gay Rum Ullman Sails - Amazon.com - North U. - New England Boatworks Need stuff? Look here: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/ssc/suppliers |
