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SCUTTLEBUTT 1341 - June 2, 2003Powered by SAIC (www.saic.com), an employee-owned company. Scuttlebutt is adigest of major yacht racing news, commentary, opinions, features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus. Corrections, contributions, press releases, constructive criticism and contrasting viewpoints are always welcome, but save your bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere. DISPUTE It's well known that the International Sailing Federation is in dispute with those managing Swedish Match Tour. ISAF President Paul Henderson has written a lengthy position paper about this dispute, and that paper is now posted on the ISAF website: http://www.sailing.org/Article_content.asp?ArticleID=4607 SWEDISH MATCH TOUR Split, Croatia - The final day of the Swedish Match Tour's ACI HTmobile Cup was another difficult day for the race committee with the sea breeze failing to behave in the expected manner. Principal Race Officer Alen Kusic had set a deadline of 1500 (local time) to complete the semi-finals, but in this time only one flight had been run. This proved disastrous for Polish competitor Karol Jablonski who going into today was clear leader of the rankings. Jablonski lined up against fourth placed skipper Jesper Radich and following an OCS at the start, lost to the young Dane. The wind died and with the 1500 deadline passed, Jablonski was unable to rectify this situation and found himself lining up in the petite-finals against former Swedish Match Tour winner Magnus Holmberg. In the Finals, three races were held between 24-year-old Australian James Spithill and Jesper Radich. Spithill won the first race while the Dane took the second and third races. With the wind once again failing, the race committee opted to call it a day, leaving the win to a delighted Radich. For James Spithill it has been the second time in consecutive events on the Swedish Match Tour that he has claimed the runner-up spot. However The 20 points he has scored in each of the last two events is enough to make the former OneWorld helm the new leader in the Swedish Match Tour. - Shawn McBride, www.swedishmatchtour.com. ACI HTmobile Cup Final Standing: 1. Jesper Radich (DEN/Team Radich) 2. James Spithill (AUS/Team Spithill) 3. Magnus Holmberg, (SWE/Team Holmberg) 4. Karol Jablonski, (POL/Jablonski Sailing Team) 5. Chris Law (GBR/"The Outlaws") 6. Paolo Cian (ITA/Riviera di Rimini Sailing Team) 7. Mattias Rahm (SWE/Team Stena Bulk) 8. Jes Gram Hanson (DEN/Team Victory Lane) 9. Johnie Berntsson (SWE) 10. Allan Coutts (NZ/Alinghi Team) 11. Frane Brate (CRO). Swedish Match Tour Rankings: 1. James Spithill, AUS/Team Spithill, 86 2. Jes Gram-Hansen, DEN/Team Victory Lane, 84 3. Jesper Radich, DEN/Team Radich, 78 4. Chris Law, GBR/"The Outlaws", 51 5. Magnus Holmberg, SWE/Team Holmberg, 50 6. Paolo Cian, ITA/Riviera di Rimini Sailing Team, 47 7. Karol Jablonski, POL/Jablonski Sailing Team, 46 8. Ed Baird, USA/Team Musto, 42 SNIPES INVADE PACIFIC NORTHWEST David and Susan Odell of San Francisco bested a fleet of fifteen Snipes in the District 7 Championship held on Whiskeytown Lake in Oregon. Snipe participation has been growing in the Pacific Northwest in anticipation of the 2003 North American Championships which will be held August 22-24 on the Colombia River Gorge. There's still time to find a boat and make arrangements to join in the fun. Look for contact names and regatta information, plus the latest results and photos from the District 7 Champs, the Colonial Cup, the Southerns and other events around the U.S. at http://www.snipeus.org SANTA MARIA CUP Annapolis, MD - Fresh and forceful southerly and southwesterly breezes sent the sailors flying around the courses for the final day of the 2003 BoatU.S. Santa Maria Cup women's international match racing regatta, and allowed for the final two flights of the double round-robin to be completed in the morning before the semi-final and final rounds were sailed. At the end of the round-robin phase of the competition, Liz Baylis had emerged as the clear leader, with Paula Lewin in second, Giulia Conti in third, and Betsy Alison fourth. In the best-two-of-three semi-final round, Baylis defeated Alison in straight sets, while Lewin bested Conti in a similarly efficient fashion. Using a best-two-of-three format, the finals were sailed between Baylis and Lewin, with the victory going to Baylis in two straight races, while the petit finals were contested between Conti and Alison. Alison beat Conti in their two races, moving herself up to third overall in the process. Sailing with Baylis on Team San Francisco were fellow Californians Aimee Hess and Karina Shelton, and Annapolitan Nancy Haberland. - www.santamariacup.org Final Standings: 1. Liz Baylis 2. Paula Lewin 3. Betsy Alison 4. Giulia Conti 5. Klaartje Zuiderbaan 6. Carol Cronin 7. Deborah Willits 8. Malin Kallstrom 9. Marie Faure 10. Arabella Denvir. FOR THE RECORD * Norfolk, VA - With the wind blowing at just over 21 kts and coming from just west of south, skipper Steve Fossett and crew sailing aboard the 125 foot catamaran PlayStation began their attempt to regain the 24 Hour Record Saturday at 1800 EDT. "We've been waiting a month for the right weather," Fossett said. "This is potentially the best system of the season - an intense low-pressure system with a fast-moving front, hopefully at up to 30-35 kts." However just a little more than seven hours later, Fossett reported that the weather had won this round. "We are turning back," Fossett reported. "After a fast start, the winds shifted 15 degrees and dropped from 26 knots to 20 knots. This greatly slowed our progress and a 24 Hour Record is not feasible this time. We are turning south and bracing ourselves for a pasting by the storm front following closely behind us. It will take at least two days to get back to Norfolk Virginia." www.fossettchallenge.com RANKINGS On Friday, the International Sailing Federation (ISAF) released the latest world ranking of the sailors racing in Olympic classes. Following are the rankings of the North Americans who broke into the top 20 in their respective classes: - Yngling: 1. Betsy Alison/ Suzy Leech/ Lee Icyda, USA; 5. Hannah Swett/ Melissa Purdy/ Joun Touchett, USA; 7. Carol Cronin. Liz Filter/ Bridget Hallawell, USA; 9. Paula Lewin/ Carola Cooper/ Leatrice Roman, BER; 14. Jody Swnson/ Cory Sertl/ Elizabeth Kratzig, USA - Star: 2. Mark Reynolds/ Magnus Liljdahl, USA; 5. Peter Bromby/ Martin Siese, BER; 19. George Szabo/ Brad Nichol, USA; 20. John MacCausland/ Phil Trinter. USA - 49er: 12. Tim Wadlow /Pete Spauling, USA; - Europe: 16. Meg Gaillard, USA; 18. Tania Elias-Calles, MEX - 470 Women: 15. Jennifer Provan/ Nikola Girke, CAN 17. Katie McDowell / Isabelle Kinsolving, USA - Tornado: 19 John Lovell/ Charlie Ogletree, USA No one from North America made the top 20 in the Mistral Men; Mistral Women; 470 - Men; Laser or the Finn classes. Complete rankings: http://www.sailing.org/rankings/ YOU WON'T GET ALL STEAMED UP Not if you're decked out in Henri Lloyd's advanced marine technology-our High Performance GORE-TEX, TP3, TP2, and Pulse waterproof breathable foul weather fabrics keep you performing to the max while your competition gets steamed. Check out the right fabric for you at http://www.henrilloydonline.com NEWS BRIEFS * The 2002-03 Around Alone Race officially ended when Derek Hatfield on board Open 40 Spirit of Canada crossed the finish line off 10:56:25 local time Saturday in Newport RI. Hatfield hopes to build upon this success and field a Class 1 entry in the next event. "I'd like to blow up my boat into a 60, it was right on target for this race, but I would change a few things. It can be better and given time on the water and the right budget I could be very competitive, perhaps even win the next race." http://www.aroundalone.com/ * Frenchman Bruno Trouble, Louis Vuitton's representative in the America's Cup for the past 20 years, is about to become an honorary officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit. Trouble received the Queen's Birthday honour for enhancing relations between New Zealand and France. This is not Trouble's only honour this year. After the America's Cup, he returned home to receive la Legion d'Honneur (the Legion of Honour) for his services to sailing during a career which included two Olympics, three America's Cups and a handful of world titles. - From a story by Suzane McFadden in the NZ Herald, http://www.nzherald.co.nz * Nine classes raced on two separate courses at the California YC's Cal Race week in 7-10 knots of breeze under bright sun. Doing well generally meant picking the proper side of the course, but that was never easy. Sometimes boats would get 'rich' on the left, but other times it was the right side that produced the class winners. Scott Birnberg never did win a race in the 20-boat J/105 class, but his 3-3-5-3-3 series was enough to win in the regatta's biggest class by a single point. - www.calyachtclub.com * Some 70 keelboats are expected to take part in the June 6-8 Chartering International IRC Championship - an inshore series organized by the Royal Ocean Racing at Cowes. The series of eight inshore races has attracted a large number of top racing yachts from around the UK, including three Admiral's Cup challengers who will be using the series as part of their training programme. * Correction: The top three places in the 505 Pacific Coast Championships went to 1. Howie Hamlin and Peter Alarie, 16pts; 2. Doug Hagan and Stuart Park, 23; 3. Nick Adamson and Alan Norman, 32. DETROIT NOOD The 2003 Sailing World Detroit NOOD regatta ended on a high note Sunday, with more than 180 sailboats in 17 classes making up for a day lost due to big breeze on Saturday by racing either two or three races under a cloudless Michigan sky. A northwesterly wind of 15 knots greeted sailors as they arrived at the three race circles, and never dropped below 9 knots, despite a right shift in the early afternoon. The largest class at the Detroit NOOD, the Tartan Ten class, with 24 boats on the line, was topped by Dixie Normous, owned by Jeff Sampson. http://www.sailingworld.com/sw_article.php?articleID=1847 CRACKED PODS? Older Ockam systems are performing well and going strong around the world - but time hasn't been kind to many of the plexiglas display boxes on the mast. Is your mast display enclosure looking shabby? We now have in stock black anodized aluminum mast pods for 4 standard Ockam displays: fully back-protected, strong, lightweight, easily installed and remarkably cost effective. We offer a complete line of anodized aluminum and high performance carbon fiber mast display pods. For more information, contact your Ockam dealer or email Tom Davis (tom@ockam.com). http://www.ockam.com LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON (editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com) (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 Mike McKissick: Regarding John Rumseys' comments on the Great American II record: If they forgot the 400 tons of tea, they must have forgotten the extra 139' of boat length and God knows how many sq. ft. of extra sail area. Not to mention the second watch that would allow them to get a little uninterrupted sleep. * From Roger Widmann (Re John Rumsey's letter about Great American II): Right, they forgot 400 tons of tea, but they also "forgot" about 140' of LOA. The two Richards should not have to defend an adventure which had at its heart an educational mission. Performance against the tea clipper was a terrific hook to inspire interest lasting throughout the voyage. There would have been no event at all if they had to build a replica, of course. * From Tom Farquhar: The story excerpted in Butt 1340 about the Mini Pavois perpetuates a common misunderstanding of a race committee's authority. If a boat fails to sail the course as required by RRS 28.1 (the "string" rule), the race committee does not ordinarily have the authority to disqualify or otherwise penalize her. The RC may protest her for breaking the rule, but only the protest committee can penalize her. * From Russ Lenarz (In response to Richard Johnson's letter about unplugging the life support system for Americap - and edited to our 250-word limit): First, US Sailing and many Regatta orgainizers have tried to use the Americap system for both local and regional events, but in many cases it has been the sailors themselves who have not embraced the system and therefore the sparse distribution of use for this system. The Americap system could provide an option for rating boats as compared to PHRF. With virtually no IMS fleet here in the US there in reality only exits two types of racing. One - Design and PHRF. I think that the current title of the June issue of Seahorse International and the editorial by Andrew Hurst should be read by all. Mr. Hurst talks about how numbers in participation continue to grow in events that cover a much greater spectrum of our sport. The use of IRC has fostered greater numbers in both new development in design and greater numbers in event participation. I would tend to agree with Mr. Johnson in that the time might have come and gone for putting Americap into motion as we would be the only country to use this system since IRC is currently being used as the premiere system everywhere else, but what it really comes down to is, if people are unsatisfied with what is being offered to them in our sport here in the US in the form of lack of diversity, then it is up to the sailors themselves to make the difference. * From Bruce A. Eissner Chairman, Offshore Committee (Re. Richard Johnson's comments on Americap II): The number of boats with valid certificates continues to increase, from only 100 in 2000 to more than 500 in 2003. The number of events using Americap II also continues to increase. They include Big Boat Series, Chicago-Mackinac, Marion-Bermuda, Newport-Bermuda, NYYC Cruise, NYYC Regatta, Transpac, and Liberty Cup. The Americap II rating technology is getting better and better. We are grateful for the events that were early adopters of the much-revised Americap system, as they have been proving grounds for those improvements. Johnson is right in saying that there's no interest in using Americap for local week-night racing. Yet. But his statement about Americap's death simply doesn't reflect the facts. * From Jan Visser (edited to our 250-word limit): Regarding Ginny Lovell's comment on our young Olympic Aspirants, she could not have hit the nail on the head any better. Being a member of a Foundation that has assisted a number of aspiring young sailors in the past I see a lack of enthusiasm for the present day sailor. My son is on an Olympic Campaign and when the brochures went out that I created on my home computer the response was what I would call poor. Our Canadian friends to the north enjoy a level of commitment from their government and other entities that I would love to see for our young folks. Thinking about becoming a landed immigrant has crossed our minds. Wherever you are in the country, what ever club you belong to, if you have a future Olympian within 500 miles, support that sailor generously. The competition in the European arena just makes them better and better. Being able to sail continually without worrying where your next meal is coming from or sleeping in you truck to conserve funds so you can continue the campaign can be a bit hard on one. Pick someone off the US Sailing Team and support their efforts, give until it hurts and then give a little more, the rewards will be immense. Remember you don't have to be a rich kid to be an Olympian, good sailors come from all walks of life and the beginning for these youngsters can be found in Junior Programs all over the country. * From Ross Cameron: In 'Butt 1340, Zane Murdock expressed a long time reality for North American sailors and regatta organizers. CORK was established in 1969 to be a regatta where Canadian and North American sailors could 'rub shoulders' with Europeans in Canadian waters. We've done pretty well at meeting that objective but it continues to be very hard to get Europeans to North America and it continues to be hard to explain the huge sizes of the countries on this continent. Maybe some geography classes? * From Brian Hill: As the director of a large sailing program I could not disagree more with the negative comments regarding U.S. Sailing getting into the Powerboat Business. In the world of small boats and junior sailing proper operation of a safety boat is critical. I have come across far too many superb sailors who could not operate a R.I.B. and, thus, their performance as an instructor was reduced and safety of a class was compromised. I need sailing instructors who know how to approach and right a capsized dinghy. I need sailing instructors who know how to tow eight novice Opti sailors. Now who do you want teaching these things, sailors who are also excellent power boaters (i.e. U.S. Sailing) or the U.S. Power Squadron? To me the answer was simple and that is why I'm now one of U.S. Sailing's newest Powerboat Instructors and my school now offers powerboat certification (in addition to U.S. Sailing Keelboat and Small boat certification). The motivation behind U.S. Sailing offering Powerboat Instruction is to make better and safer sailing instructors, plain and simple. If I had a child out on the water, I would want to know that the instructors operating the powerboats knew what they were doing. * From Scott Diamond: All I can say about US Sailing's Power Boat Course is, it is about time. I have been racing dinghies and doing RC work for years and cannot count how many incompetent power boat operators I have seen who are responsible for the safety of others. It is all part of the big picture. Curmudgeon's Comment: And on this note, we declare this thread officially dead. CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATION If raising children was going to be easy, it never would have started with something called labor. |
