SCUTTLEBUTT #492 - January 28, 2000
YOUNG AMERICA UPDATE
Annapolis, Md. (January 27, 2000) -- Young America (USA-53), the Young
America 2000 syndicate's challenger for the America's Cup, suffered a major
structural failure while racing on November 9, following deck repairs that
were made at a time when neither the builder nor those involved in the
composite design were present.
This information is part of an update report prepared by Russell Bowler of
Farr Yacht Design, Annapolis, MD, the principal designer of Young America.
Bowler is Bruce Farr's long-time partner in the design company, and the
engineer responsible, along with other Young America team members, for the
structural design of USA-53.
Young America was built by Goetz Custom Boats of Bristol, RI. Farr Yacht
Design, Annapolis, MD, was the principal designer. Dirk Kramers of DKI
Structures, Tiverton, RI, was a member of the structural design team.
"This update follows eleven weeks of silence, on our part and on the part
of others, about the deck failure," Bowler said. "We made our decision to
provide details on the cause of the November 9 break in an effort to
correct speculations by competitors and journalists, and to provide
insights into USA-53's structural failure for boat builders, yacht
designers, and sailors. We are disappointed Young America's insurance
carrier has not yet released its independent report on the incident,"
Bowler added.
"Young America is working directly with international Chief Measurer Ken
McAlpine to convene a working party to draft changes to the IACC rule to
insure that designers and builders can produce robust and durable racing
yachts. We at Farr Yacht Design look forward to contributing to that
process."
Following the collapse and near-sinking of the boat, Bowler traveled from
Farr's Annapolis office to New Zealand and was able to conduct a thorough
examination of the damaged boat while assisting with repair work. He was
joined in Auckland by Eric Goetz who supervised the rebuilding and repair
of the boat. Bowler's update on the failure follows:
The IACC yacht Young America (USA-53) suffered a deck structural failure
and buckled and nearly sank while racing in the Louis Vuitton Cup Round
Robin Two on November 9.
In the week prior to the failure, Young America team members in Auckland
found areas of the side decks of the boat where the top skin was not bonded
to the core. This bond is essential for the sandwich construction of the
side deck to perform its structural function as a major critical member,
resisting fore and aft compression forces. The side decks were purposely
sized in their width and cross-section to give the boat excellent
fore-and-aft stiffness and more-than-adequate strength to resist the
compressive loads. This design had enabled the boat to sail in strong winds
and large seas in previous races and in practice sessions.
An on-site repair of the defective side deck was carried out on one side of
the boat at a time when neither the builder nor those involved with the
composite design team were present. The repair involved cutting out a large
area of side deck top skin and replacing it with a lamination. The
details of the repair were designed and carried out by Young America staff
on-site in Auckland at the working compound and scarfed into the existing
deck. It appears that the length of the scarf joint was inadequate to
carry the compressive loads.
During the November 9th race between USA-53 and JPN-44, with only two
minutes of upwind sailing remaining, the boat tacked into two or three
exceptionally difficult waves and struck them near head-on at an estimated
speed of more than nine knots. The impact of the waves added to the deck
compression loads. The repair was ineffective and the failure occurred at
the repair, approximately 1 1/2 feet aft of the front of the cockpit.
While no one would want this sort of failure to happen, it does provide the
engineer with a case study on how circumstances can arise beyond the
initial design effort that can lead to nasty failures in these carbon
composite structures. Contrary to a lot of speculation, the design was not
marginal or light in this area, but in fact had adequate material to resist
the given loading.
The lessons from this event are that when dealing with these high-tech
carbon fiber pre-impregnated materials and processes, it is essential to
follow-up with high-tech quality assurance at the building yard, plus
high-tech servicing and maintenance while the boats are in service. Any
short cuts in these areas can compromise the design and construction of the
boat and lead to disaster should critical circumstances transpire.
The problem of bad skin to core bonding is not uncommon in the industry,
but the impact of the defect depends on its extent and location. Vacuum
clamping techniques that are limited by the IACC rule to one atmosphere
sometimes do present problems that need to be addressed by builders and
process experts. More investigation is necessary to understand the full
cause of the incomplete bonding in the side decks.
It is clear that dedicating project funds to the specific function of
process quality control and post-construction testing represents a
sensible, if not essential, option for prepreg carbon structures. --
Russell Bowler, January 27, 2000
LOUIS VUITTON CUP FINALS
Crews and racewatchers waited in vain for suitable wind on the Hauraki Gulf
on Friday as light, uncertain breezes swung from 270 degrees to 015
degrees. The Louis Vuitton Cup Race Committee officially signalled the
abandonment of today's competition at 1440 hours.
Race Three of the Finals of the Louis Vuitton Cup will now be sailed
tomorrow, Saturday (Friday in the US), with the start scheduled for 1315
hours. Race Four will be sailed on Sunday, weather permitting. There will
be no Louis Vuitton Cup racing on Monday (Sunday in the US), a local public
holiday when over 1,000 boats are expected to sail on Auckland's Waitemata
Harbour in the annual Anniversary Day Regatta.
With the score 1-1 in the Finals, Italy's Prada Challenge, sailing Luna
Rossa (ITA-45) was out to avenge its defeat yesterday by the St. Francis
Yacht Club's AmericaOne (USA-61.
A high pressure area over the Tasman Sea was spreading over New Zealand
today, bringing Southeasterly gradient conditions to Auckland. The forecast
called for winds of 9-12 knots at 90 to 100 degrees but although the wind
switched from a Westerly to Southeast over the course of the afternoon it
never developed enough weight or authority to convince the Race Committee
to start a race. -- - Keith Taylor, Louis Vuitton Cup website
Full story: http://www.louisvuittoncup.com/
TV SCHEDULE
- Saturday, 1/29/00, 12:30am, ESPN2 -- Challenger Finals (Race 3)
- Sunday, 1/30/00, 12:00am, ESPN2 -- Challenger Finals (Race 4)
- Tuesday, 2/1/00, 12:30am, ESPN2 -- Challenger Finals (Race 5)
POLITICALLY CORRECT?
Her name's Violet, and the AmericaOne yachting crew aren't too sure if the
politically correct brigade will let her stay on board. She's the character
with long legs and tight dress painted on the inside of the hull, known as
the sewer, of the America's Cup boat.
Violet, based on the patriotic figures painted on United States Second
World War bomber planes, made her first appearance "pre-sewercam" - the
television camera installed deep inside the bow of the boat where the sails
are stored.
Since her first showing on television in the Louis Vuitton Cup finals,
AmericaOne have been gearing for the reaction, good or bad.
"We put Violet up as a good luck charm," bowman Curtis Blewett said. "We
were hoping to leave her there, she's been working so far." He said the
team were now waiting on the public reaction to see if she could stay, or
whether the image would have to be erased.
While the Americans have a girl on board, there is little chance of a
similar appearance from final rivals Prada. The superstitious Italians do
not allow women on board because they believe it is bad luck. -- Suzanne
McFadden, NZ Herald
Full story: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/ac2000/
HIGH PERFORMANCE
Ullman Sails have been world leader for years. Click onto
http://www.ullmansails.com and find out what so many winners already know
-- Ullman Sails are a solid investment. And a cost effective investment as
well. Big boats, small boat, heavy boats, light boats -- it really doesn't
make any difference. The professionals at Ullman Sails have broken the code
and can help move your program up to the next level. One more thing -
Southern Californians looking for insight about the happenings in Auckland
should swing by Ullman Sails Newport Beach loft next Tuesday evening at
7:00 PM. Dave Ullman will provide a competitor's insight about his
experience coaching the America True team in the Louis Vuitton semi finals.
For more information:
http://www.ullmansails.com/
FOR EUROPEAN 'BUTTHEADS
A Judging Seminar will be held in Vilamoura, Portugal (25 Km from the
international airport of Faro) from 25 to 27 February 2000. The Seminar
will provide opportunity for all National and International Judges who are
interested and currently involved in protest committee work to gain further
experience and widen their knowledge of protest panel work. It is also a
great opportunity for current National Judges wishing to upgrade to
International Judge and International Judges wishing to recertify under
system 1. -- Armando Goulartt, goulartt@mail.telepac.pt
LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON (leweck@earthlink.net)
Letters selected to be printed are routinely edited for clarity, space (250
words max) or to exclude personal attacks. But only one letter per subject,
so give it your best shot and don't whine if people disagree.
-- From Mac Manion -- It's pretty sad that the position of the spectator
fleet can interfere with the tactical decisions on the racecourse. They
should have scarecrows at the marks.
-- From Chuck Riley (Re. SF Bay) -- The "City Front" area of San Francisco
Bay would be fabulous for the 'Cup. Awesome for spectators. Commercial
Traffic could be re-routed as necessary. The currents replace the fickle
wind factor we are seeing in NZ. The emphasis would be more on boat
handling and crew work; less on straight line speed. And there's no chance
of seeing the boring 1,500 meter separation between boats that we're seeing
on the Hauraki Gulf!
Now if AOne can dig up a bit more speed...
-- From Heather Mull (re: America's Cup in SF) -- What about the Berkeley
Circle?
-- From Mark Gaudio -- All my buddies and myself are astounded by the
tactics aboard these trial A-cuppers. Stay between the comp and the
mark...Pretty simple really. In the light air I'm sure its hard to make
too many manuevers anywhere on the course, but when A-1's kite shreds at
the top mark conventional wisdom would dictate it being a nice time to
check in.(especially if your the leader having already been reeled in). I
know these are very obvious observations that the average wanker can't help
but figure out, but they are still noteworthy.. Don't even get me started
about the start and lack of staying close to the comp in race # 1 (shame on
you!)...
-- From Neil W. Humphrey -- Find it interesting that the spectator boats
are so close to the race that the competitors have to sail through them.
I don't know of too many sports where the fans get on the same playing
field as the competitors. In most other events the game is paused.
Should there be something changed? What sort of control is there? Are the
skippers of fan boats cleared by LVC & AC committees or do you just need a
boat.
-- From Frank Sticovich -- Interesting comments from Chris Law, if
AmericaOne's second boat is up to windward practicing on the same race
course and its attitude is capable of being seen (and heard!) from the
"official" race boat would that suggest that a window exists to obtain
"outside assistance"??????
NOTE TO READERS -- We are still getting lots of mail about the LVC
television coverage on ESPN2. Sorry - that thread has been closed for a
long time, but please feel free to write directly to ESPN or to Jobson
Sailing: http://espn.go.com/ http://www.jobsonsailing.com
MIAMI OLYMPIC CLASSES REGATTA
Top US Boats after two days of racing, at least one of which was in VERY
light conditions: EUROPE, Amanda Clark (3rd place) FINN, Mark Hermann (1)
LASER, John Torgerson (2) MISTRAL, Ben Barger (3) STAR, John MacCausland /
George Iverson (6) TORNADO John Lovell / Charlie Ogletree (1)
Complete results: http://www.ussailing.org/
LVC FINALS - AS SEEN BY TOM WHIDDEN
(Following are excerpts from an interview Quokka Sports did with Stars &
Stripes tactician, Tom Whidden.)
On Paul Cayard: "Personally, I have sailed a lot with Cayard and he is very
strong. He has a very strong personality, opinions, feelings about things,
and generally they turn out to be fairly right it's how he stays a step
ahead of many of his competitors. "A lot of this is experience. He has been
here before and he's still young enough to be highly motivated. But he has
never won, so even though he has been in the last two events -- once as
challenger [with Il Moro in '92] and once as defender [against Team NZ in
'95] -- he didn't win the Cup; hence, added motivation.
"Cayard has a very nice combination of experience, of having been here
before but not having won the Cup itself, and also being young enough to
not be burned out, not thinking this is a little old-hat, which is why some
choose not to participate again."
On the tactical team: "John Kostecki is extremely strong. He's rated by
many among the top five tacticians in the world. Some rank him No. 1. Maybe
Kostecki has sailed here before, I'm not sure, but I don't think it's a
problem if he hasn't. "Paul and John, together, are an extremely strong duo.
On Prada: "I don't know them as well as Cayard and Kostecki, and can't
comment to the same personal level, but having raced against them with some
success I can say they obviously know what they're doing. Francesco de
Angelis is an excellent helmsman. Torben Grael obviously has had a lot of
success and is probably one of the best sailors in the world. Ability-wise,
they have it right there, but they lack experience in the Cup. The pressure
in the AC is do or die. You can take it from someone who has been on both
sides, winning and losing, and how you deal with that pressure is pretty
important.
On Luna Rossa: "As far as their boat goes, speed may be a little suspect
downwind, but shouldn't be a problem. They have the fastest all-round boat,
especially upwind. From what I've seen, judged against Stars & Stripes,
AmericaOne is faster than Prada in light air and downwind. Prada performs
in medium breeze and stronger, is faster upwind, but slower downwind.
Medium breeze, I would say, is 11 to 12 knots. "But in Auckland you can
have light breezes and strong winds during the course of a day. It can be
like that sometimes during the same race!"
On the wind strength crossover: "I would say that if it's above 12 knots
Cayard will have to sail pretty darn well to keep up, and if it's below
then Cayard will win. When he was verbally active, during the last race
against Prada well, we'll see more of that to come, and we'll see Prada's
reaction to that pressure. They [Prada] now have more feeling of what
they're up against thanks to that experience, and it has allowed them time
to prepare for that, both mentally and in their sailing skills. It makes it
a little easier to cope with the next time."
On the first two races: "The only things we didn't know coming into the
finals were the changes made since the semifinals. I hear through the
grapevine that both boats went for more light-air performance. Prada made a
more positive change than AmericaOne. They gained toward AmericaOne in
light air. They did a good job with it because they looked competitive in
the first two races. I'm surprised Prada has done as well downwind as they
have. Even though AmericaOne had downwind gains in race 2, that was due
more to boat placement.
On the edge: "Experience and toughness under fire gives Cayard the edge
over de Angelis.
"Prada's edge would be on boat speed in breeze above 10 to 12 knots.
Certainly the team is very strong on sailing ability. Their crew looks
excellent and crew work generally has been pretty good.
"It's going to be a good series. I'm going to stick around to see the
finals and the Match myself."
(Tom Whidden won the America's Cup in 1980, '87 and '88 calling tactics for
Dennis Conner. He is president of the North Marine Group based in Milford,
Conn., which holds interests in North Sails, Omohundro Masts and Edgewater
Power Boats. He lives in Old Saybrook, Conn. with his wife, Betsy, and has
two children.)
Full story: http://www.americascup.org/
COOL RED SOCKS
Check out Quokka's latest goodiesthe AmericasCupStore.com *is* shopping
for Cup Groupies: Official AC and Team NZ apparel by Line 7, gear,
accessories and collectibles. Sir Peter Blake's legendary "Lucky Red
Socks" -- available now at http://www.americascupstore.com . Be cool, be
Natty Dread, be redder than red, or better dead than red? Who cares.
These will keep them toe digits warm and toasty in the nastiest
weathertheir lucky, too.
J/24 MIDWINTERS
Davis Island YC, Tampa, 65 boats - Results after three races: 1. PIPE
DREAM, G. MOORE (10.00 points) 2. MORE GRIEF, L. CONGER (15.00) 3. PATRIOT,
T. SITZMANN, (18.00) 4. RUNN ON EMPTY, R. HARDEN (22.00) 5. DAISYHEAD, R.
BORGES (27.00)
Event website: http://users.southeast.net/~bankstpa/2000index.htm
THE CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATION
Old Age Comes at a Bad Time
|
