SCUTTLEBUTT No. 951 - November 26, 2001
Scuttlebutt is a digest of yacht racing news of major significance; commentary, opinions, features and dock talk . . . with a North American emphasis. Corrections, contributions, press releases, constructive criticism and contrasting viewpoints are always welcome, but save your bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere.
AMERICA'S CUP
SEATTLE -The Aucklander accused of trying to peddle America's Cup secrets has promised to keep mum until his court case is heard. Sean Reeves had agreed to a temporary restraining order that prevented him selling or giving away confidential information about the OneWorld syndicate, said his Seattle-based lawyer, Guy Michelson.
OneWorld was attempting to have a court impose the restraining order on the former Team New Zealand member but in the end that was not necessary. Michelson signed the order a day after being hired by Reeves last week.
OneWorld is suing Reeves for allegedly trying to sell design secrets worth up to $US2.5 million ($6 million) to the rival Oracle syndicate after he was sacked from OneWorld. But Reeves denies any wrongdoing and has threatened to countersue OneWorld for defamation.
Michelson said Reeves had not mentioned taking action against the syndicate. "We haven't hit the point of discussing that," he said. "But no doubt we will explore all possible defences and counter- claims."
He said the legal order was valid throughout the US but would not necessarily prevent Reeves from selling information in other countries such as New Zealand. However, Reeves had no intention of selling any information, Michelson said. Reeves' position was that he had not done anything to violate or breach his agreements with OneWorld. - Nick Perry, NZ Herald
Full story: www.nzherald.co.nz/sports/
VOLVO OCEAN RACE
Leaving the cold and crazy sailing of the Southern Ocean behind, the Volvo Ocean Race fleet felt the first notable difference in climate. Temperatures are rising - a week ago it was freezing, the water now is up at 12 centigrade (54 F) and the air temperature peaks at over 20 (68 F). Sea life has changes as well. Birds have dominated the Southern Ocean, now the whales are back. News Corp sighted two big Humpbacks giving them a private show with the tails high up in the air.
"The survival suits are drying out and I am about to pack mine away, the sun is shining and we have a fantastic race one our hands - plenty to keep us busy between here and Sydney," said Jon Gunderson of Team News Corp.
That's the good news. The bad news is that the going is painfully slow. "Right now we're certainly not on a high. In fact it's downright depressing!" are Mark Rudiger's thoughts and he might well be speaking for the leading yachts - illbruck, SEB, News Corp and djuice as well. They all have virtually parked up, creeping along in variable light breeze with an old swell. This not only damages the sails when the boat jumps around, but the crashing noise of wild flapping sails has a devastating effect on people's mind.
Amer Sports One has definitely come back into the race, in six hours time they could well be within sight of djuice. For Amer Sports Too the stopping of the fleet might well not last long enough, but instead of days they will be hours behinds
POSITIONS on November 26 @ 0400 GMT: 1. Team SEB, 1987 miles to finish; 2. illbruck, 4 miles behind leader; 3. News Corp, 9 mbl; 4. Assa Abloy, 9 mbl; 5. djuice, 16 mbl; 6. Amer Sports One, 34 mbl; Amer Sports too, 255 mbl. - www.volvooceanrace.org
QUOTES FROM THE BOATS
"Scottie [Jeff Scott] and myself are recovering from back injuries that we suffered when thrown from the wheel of the boat by a huge wave in two separate incidents about two days ago. I have suspected cracked ribs and heavy bruising to my back and Scottie has suspected bruised kidneys. It was amazing the power of the wave that hit me - it completely flattened me. I was lucky that Barney [Walker] saw what was happening and leapt to the wheel as the boat was charging along at 20 knots with no-one steering." -Ross Field, Team News Corp
"The racing here seems closer than sailing the Etchells out of Lymington river on a Sunday morning race!" - Jason Carrington, Assa Abloy
WANNA SEE SOMETHING SLICK?
Sport boats are coming, that's a fact. Asymmetric spinnakers are becoming the norm, not the exception. Are there drawbacks to an A-sail? Gybing? Tearing on sets and take-downs? Getting the sail soaked in a douse? What the sport boat A-sail needs is a water shedding, high tear strength Fabric that gybes smoothly and quickly. Contender's proprietary DYNALITE spinnaker fabrics redefine offwind performance and handling. Dynalite Is the only spinnaker fabric on the market with 100% silicone coating. Results: fast, frictionless gybes. Water runs off in torrents. Dynalite meets minimum weights for most one-design classes. www.contendersailcloth.com
OLYMPICS
The International Sailing Federation (ISAF) confirmed that the Mistral Board will be supplied for the 2004 Olympic Regatta in Athens, and that no modifications or alterations to equipment permitted by sailors. Further that no redress or replacement of equipment will be permitted by competitors, except if it can be proved that it is no fault of the competitor. The various submissions requesting that ISAF identify now the equipment which will remain in the next Olympics and that which would be replaced did not get discussed. However, they provided the further impetus to challenge ISAF to consider the future events and equipment for 2008, and the Events Committee will give their preliminary report to the 2002 ISAF Mid-Year Meeting. - www.sailing.org
FOR THE RECORD
November 26, 2001 Ð Sailing aboard their 53-foot trimaran Great American II, adventure sailors Rich Wilson and Bill Biewenga remained on track to break the sailing record from New York to Melbourne tomorrow, with a predicted early afternoon finish. At 10:00 AM local time, Wilson reported they were about 190 miles from Williamstown in the Port of Melbourne where they will finish.
Calling from the boat today, Wilson was optimistic about their short-term chances. The boat was averaging ten knots speed under jib and mainsail with one reef, speeding down rolling six to eight foot seas, driven by an 18-knot southwesterly. - Keith Taylor, www.sitesALIVE.com
LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON
leweck@earthlink.net
(Letters selected for publication must include the writer's name and may be edited for clarity or space - 250 words max. This is not a chat room or a bulletin board - you only get one letter per subject, so give it your best shot and don't whine if others disagree.)
* From Kimberly Birkenfeld (edited to our 250-word limit): I write as an athlete who has competed in both IMCO windsurfing and the former "Professional Windsurfing Association." While the numbers of Olympic windsurfing racers in the US are low, outside of the US the IMCO numbers are impressive. Although Formula 4-2 sounds like a good alternative, but please add up the financial reality. Four Formula rigs cost at a minimum $650 each; two good boards cost at least $1,200 each. While racers register "4 sails and 2 boards" at the start of the regatta, in reality, the racer has brought an average of 3-4 boards, 7 sails, 7 masts and booms to the regatta site before 'choosing' which ones to race on. So, to be competitive, that sailor is packing around the world a minimum $8,000 worth of equipment, not to mention the cost and horrors of shipping it on airplanes.
In contrast, total cost of an IMCO package is around $2,000. The IMCO is certainly not perfect, but the beauty of it is that it can be sailed in winds from 5-30 knots. Racing IMCO teaches the art of sailing- not just windsurfing.
Yes, Olympic windsurfing needs something new for 2008. Hopefully, it will be financially obtainable and able to be sailed in almost all wind conditions. My dream board and rig? A high-tech lightweight longboard, with an upgraded mast, boom and sail design. Perhaps two sails, one board. If the industry can get this organized in the next year, it will be a reality for 2008.
CURMUDGEON'S COMMENT: That's the final word - this thread is now officially dead!
* From Gillian Launie: (edited to our 250-word limit): I would like to report on a club racing success story. The Santa Barbara Yacht Club Club Handicap Race Fleet (CHRF) just completed its 18-race season with a 21 boat turn-out. More than 30 different boats participated in our races, which are always in one class. Most of our races are on Sunday to minimize conflict with other races.
The handicap system is quite simple and based solely on performance. New boats must race 3 qualifying races to establish their handicap. For the first race they are given an arbitrary start based on their PHRF handicap or the club handicap of a similar boat. During qualifying the boat is not eligible for trophies.
We believe the success of our system is based on the "lets have fun first" approach of the fleet and our inverted starts. Many of our boats had never raced and were intimidated by a mass start. A boat's handicap is expressed in seconds per mile.
After each race the boat's actual time in sec/per/mile over the rated distance is calculated. This is adjusted by a factor based on average wind speed. The boat's rating for the next race is based on the last 5 races with the slowest time discarded. Heavy air favors one part of the fleet, light air another.
People wanting more information should check out our fleet's web page, www.sbyc.org, then click on CHRF Racing.
KILPATRICK UPDATE
Good news from Amer Sports One. Navigator and doctor Roger Nilson announced that he was amazed with sick crewman Keith Kilpatrick's recovery. "It's difficult to believe that only two days ago Keith was very, very sick. Today we discharged him from our on-board intensive care unit. He is still very weak and has not eaten any solid food since last Monday. We might try him on a little soup later today."
Kilpatrick's transfer off Amer Sports One is now planned to take place at Eclipse Island, five miles south of Albany on the southwest tip of Australia. He will then be taken by the pickup vessel to Albany. As Keith Kilpatrick's condition has improved over the last few hours, Nilson has decided that it will be better for his patient to remain onboard to the Australian coast.
Kilpatrick was well enough to speak to Volvo Ocean Race organisers earlier today. "I'm coming through now and feeling a quite a bit better. Today's been quite a big improvement. I'm off the needle and taking drinks orally, which is pretty nice. In some way, shape or form I have done something to my intestines. Whatever the trouble was, it has partially subsided," he explained.
Kilpatrick's transfer off Amer Sports One is now planned to take place at Eclipse Island, five miles south of Albany on the southwest tip of Australia. He will then be taken by the pickup vessel to Albany. The pickup vessel will remain on standby should an earlier rendezvous become necessary again. Onboard will be a doctor and a nurse from the emergency department of Fremantle's hospital. Best predictions are that Amer Sports One will be off Eclipse Island late Monday or early Tuesday Keith's wife will be in Perth to meet him.- www.nautorchallenge.com
SPONSORSHIP
The French Group AREVA confirmed that it was in talks with the French Challenge for the America's Cup, le Défi Français. It is understood that the company could contribute for around 15 million. The AREVA Group comprises COGEMA, the world nuclear fuel cycle specialist and FRAMATOME, the leader in nuclear power plant construction.
Nevertheless, a Press Release explained "Contrary to reports in the press recently and today, the AREVA Group has not finalized an agreement with Le Défi concerning participation in the 2003 America's Cup. Although talks on this matter were held with Le Défi, no agreement was concluded. No assumption concerning the AREVA Group's final position should be made on the basis of these talks". - Hauraki News, www.hauraki-news.com/LatestNews/LeDefi-LN4.htm
MORE AMERICA'S CUP
(The 2003AC website has a forum that's full of interesting tidbits. Cheryl, one of their regular contributors, posted some new material over the weekend. Following are just a few brief excerpts.)
Pete Montgomery interviewed David Barnes (GBR), Peter Gilmour (OWC) and Tom Dodson (TNZ) on RadioNZ this afternoon (Saturday). Excerpts are reported below.
David Barnes (GBR): "GBR will remain in NZ until the end of March 2002. The new 2003 generation IACC boat is in the process of being built and is scheduled to be finished in April 2002. It will be sailed in England for a few days to make sure the sea trials are OK, then put on a ship to arrive in NZ early June 2002. One of the Nippon 2000 generation boats will be modified, with one of the boats being used as a tune up boat to the new boat. Effectively, GBR will have a two boat testing programme going through to the start of the Challenger series."
Peter Gilmour (OWC): "OWC are considering staying in NZ over the winter. Based on historical data they will try to forecast whether it will be an El Nino or La Nina type of year and the type of winter. At the moment their leaning is to stay right through. From a campaign point of view it causes a lot less disruption; the team loves Auckland and enjoys living here given world events over recent times."
Tom Dodson (TNZ): "The new crew members have come on a lot faster than thought. It was thought it might take months but it took only weeks for them to be up to speed to race. We're out there pushing the boats as hard as they've ever been pushed. We've got to the stage that up into the high 20's does not seem so much to race in anymore."
Pete Montgomery mentioned that Oracle is having difficulty finding the keel they dropped in the Hauraki Gulf on 14 November. - Cheryl, 2003AC website
Full posting: www.2003ac.com
DAMAGE
A squall went through Richmond, California early Saturday morning that trashed a number of dry-sailed Farr 40s at the KKMI yard. See for yourself: www.sailpix.com/~carrel/GTF/turkey.html
MORE DAMAGE
Two of the leading line honours contenders for next month's 57th Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race, Brindabella and Grundig Xena, suffered damage in separate incidents on Sydney Harbour Saturday. Brindabella's owner/skipper George Snow was admitted to North Shore Hospital for surgery on a gashed left hand and badly bruised leg, but the damage to both boats appeared relatively minor.
The Brindabella incident occurred as she was coming alongside Noakes Rigging dock under motor in Berry's Bay early Saturday morning when reverse gear failed to engage. A crewmember said Snow had tried to fend off the yacht but squashed between the maxi and a ferry that moored further up the dock, his left arm going through a window on the ferry, his leg caught between the two boats. He is expected to remain in hospital until Monday evening.
Earlier in the morning, Brindabella had been re-launched at White Bay after extensive work at BoatSpeed's Somersby boat-building factory in which the hull was extended to make her an 80-footer and a new keel fitted. Brindabella's bow suffered only a minor dent in the incident.
Grundig, also recently extended from a 60-footer to a 66-footer, suffered a hole in the new stern "scoop" after being blown against the seawall at Garden Island. According to reports, the spinnaker wrapped around the forestay, then a line over the side fouled the propeller, with the colourfully-painted yacht drifting astern on to the lee shore at Garden Island. Fortunately, several nearby powerboats went to Grundig's assistance and she was dragged free without apparent major damage, other than the hole in the "scoop" at the stern. - Peter Campbell
OFFSHORE E-MAIL
On Thanksgiving day, the New York Times ran a piece by Charles Doane about the use of marine single-sideband (SSB) frequencies for inexpensive offshore e-mail. Interested 'Buttheads will want to check it out: www.nytimes.com/2001/11/22/technology/circuits/22SAIL.html
THE BIG FOUR
Boatspeed, Target Boatspeed, Wind Direction, and TrueWindspeed are very often considered the most important functions of an integrated instrument system. The "big four" rely on high quality sensor input from the paddlewheel, the wind sensor at the masthead (ideally on a wand 4' or more), and the compass. Accurate sensor calibration is vital, and systems which integrate heel measurement into the wind solution are capable of truly amazing wnd dection accuracy. The math behind accurate wind direction is complex, but when executed properly provides a powerful weapon on the racecourse. To download an Ockam system manual: www.ockam.com
I-14 WORLDS
Royal Bermuda Yacht Club, Sunday November 25th - Racing for the International 14 World Championships has been cancelled for today. Winds forecast to reach gale force and seas 3-5 feet high prompted the Race Committee to cancel today's scheduled Race 3. Looking ahead for the next few days the picture doesn't get any better, according to the local meteorological office. A deepening sub-tropical low is threatening to make for very windy conditions, through at least Tuesday. Following the hard racing of Saturday, which saw many damaged boats and long nights of work, the news was a welcome relief to many. - Kevin Blee
Standings after two races (54 boats): 1st Zach Berkowitz & Trvor Baylis, USA, 2pts; 2nd Jonathon Pudney & John McKenna, UK, 9pts; 3rd Zeb Elliott & Tim Hancock, UK, 10pts; 4th Kris Bundy & Jamie Hanseler, USA, 10pts, 5th James Fawcett & Bruce Grant, UK, 13pts.
Full results: www.rbyc.bm
THE CURMUDGEON'S DEFINITIONS
Buffet - A French word that means "Get up & get it yourself!"
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