|
SCUTTLEBUTT 1850 - June 1, 2005Scuttlebutt is a digest 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, whining and personal attacks for elsewhere. COMING SOON The new Neil Pryde RS:X to be used in the Olympic 2008 windsurfing events, will be racing soon. A handshake between ISAF President Göran Petersson and Neil Pryde marked the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on the production and supply of the Neil Pryde RS:X at the ISAF Mid-Year Meeting in Stockholm, Sweden. The final details on the key issues of price control, production, distribution and availability for the new board were earlier in the day approved by the ISAF Council, ISAF's final decision making body. At the 2008 Olympic Sailing Competition in China, the Neil Pryde RS:X will be supplied equipment. With it's wide hull and centerboard the RS:X offers competitors a combination of sailing, with the Formula style alongside an excellent upwind performance, providing stimulating windsurfing for the competitor and spectator. The first 500 boards have been allocated to an ISAF Approved Distribution so that there is equitable worldwide distribution based on representation at the 2004 Olympic windsurfing event. The 14 Neil Pryde Worldwide distributors will handle the distribution of the boards, with a target production of 1,535 boards by the end of the year. www.sailing.org/default.asp?PID=14949 NOT A PRETTY PICTURE On the eve the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season, forecasters at Colorado State University predicted it would be "very active" with 15 named tropical storms and eight hurricanes. In a report released Tuesday, CSU's Tropical Meteorology Project (TMP) forecast half of those hurricanes will develop into major hurricanes ranked as Category 3 or higher on the Saffir-Simpson scale of hurricane strength. A Category 3 storm has winds between 111-130 mph and can cause extensive damage. The worst storm, a Category 5, has winds greater than 155 mph and can cause catastrophic damage. Hurricane season officially runs from June 1 to November 20. The 2004 hurricane season saw four destructive hurricanes making landfall in the United States during a seven-week period in August and September -- three of them crossing the Florida peninsula. It is believed the four storms caused more than $40 billion in damage. During all of 2004, the entire Atlantic basin saw nine hurricanes, with six of them reaching major hurricane status. There has been an "overall increase in Atlantic basin major hurricane activity of the past ten years (1995-2004)," the forecast said. Six hurricanes -- Alex, Charley, Frances, Gaston, Ivan and Jeanne -- hit the United States in 2004. Three tropical storms also made stuck the United States. Charley also hit western Cuba, while Frances and Jeanne also hit the Bahamas -- all were major hurricanes at the time. - Ed Payne, CNN, full story: http://tinyurl.com/aqlfg MAXI MERGER Roy Disney and Pyewacket will soon be gone from the grand prix sailboat racing scene, but a new player made a move toward the spotlight in the inaugural First Team Real Estate Invitational Regatta May 20-22. In fact, Disney announced in accepting the title trophy for Class 1 that runner-up Randall Pittman, a San Diego-based biotech entrepreneur sailing Genuine Risk, will soon inherit Disney's sailing master Robbie Haines and much of the Pyewacket crew - if not its legacy - when Disney closes his sailing career in the Centennial Transpacific Yacht Race to Hawaii in July. Pittman said, "We'll be basically merging the Pyewacket and Genuine Risk crews. 0ur goal is try to carry on with the tradition Roy has established." - Rich Roberts, full story: http://thelog.com/news/newsview.asp?c=159921 WHERE'S RICHARD? Why is Doyle Sailmakers head sail designer, Richard Bouzaid, heading across the pond on the super maxi, Maximus? Doesn't Richard know this is our busiest time of year? A bit inconvenient for those of us left behind at work, but such continuing challenges are the way that Doyle sailmakers learn how to make our products even better. Richard brought onboard a new asymmetrical designed specifically for the conditions expected in this race. We've got our fingers crossed that Maximus will win the grand prix class and break the schooner Atlantic's record. Meanwhile, call us at the loft: 1-800-94-DOYLE; http://www.doylesails.com ABOUT TO BE OBLITERATED Owner Robert Miller (Hong Kong/New York, N.Y.) and his crew on board the 140-foot (43m) schooner Mari-Cha IV are at present on course to pass Lizard Point tomorrow morning to better Charlie Barr and the schooner Atlantic's 100-year-old race record by more than two and a half days. "This is my seventh transatlantic crossing, and I can safely say that it has been by far the toughest one for me," Robert Miller confided. "Not only has the weather been in our face for the first six days, making life extremely difficult, but since then we have always been sailing close to the limit, which means that there is the risk of hurting the boat and the crew. "At times, I've felt that perhaps the ghost of 1905--Charlie Barr--is looking down on us and enjoying every bit of hardship we are encountering. But there is not time to dwell on that, as we have a race to win. The competition has also been tough, but I must say enjoyable--Maximus and ourselves have spent the whole race running close together and have been, at times, only 15-20 miles apart." Despite Mari-Cha IV being 40 feet (12.1m) longer than the newly launched Maximus, the two boats have remained together as if attached by elastic, with the giant schooner regaining the lead on Sunday for the first time since sustaining damage to her rig. At 12:48 UTC Tuesday, Mari-Cha IV had Maximus still 30 miles astern with 390 miles to go to the Lizard. According to navigator Jef d' Etiveaud, she was making 20 knots, broad reaching/running in 20 knots of southwesterly wind. "We are pushing the boat. We know that on this point of sail we and Maximus are very even," he said, adding that despite last week's rig problems, they have once again been pushing the boat to 100%. Given their present speed and separation, tomorrow morning might see the two boats finishing between 90 minutes and two hours apart on the water. A majority of the fleet, from the front runners back, are now enjoying favourable 20-30 knot southwesterly winds, making for a much faster run than they have experienced to date. - www.transatlanticchallenge.org COLLEGIATE SAILING The Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association (ICSA) North American Championships - a triple-header of the college sailing year - starts Wednesday with the ICSA North American Women's Dinghy Championship (June 1-3), followed by the ICSA/Layline North American Team Race Championship (June 5-7) and the ICSA/Gill North American Coed Dinghy Championship (June 8-10).The racing will take place on Lake Travis, the 65-mile-long artificial lake created on the Colorado River. Hosted by the Southeastern Intercollegiate Sailing Association and Austin Yacht Club, competitors will rotate FJs from docks located at the end of Beacon Point where water is deep enough to sail within 15 feet of shore, providing spectators a close view of the action. For the first time in the history of college sailing, the championships will be filmed for coverage on ESPNU, the network devoted entirely to college sports. Emmy-award winning sailing journalist Gary Jobson will cover the competition and produce two half-hour-long programs that will air back-to-back, one covering the ICSA/ Layline North American Team Race Championship, and the other covering the ICSA/ Gill North American Dinghy Championship. The programs are scheduled to air July 2, July 6, and July 21. For local air times: www.jobsonsailing A QUESTION OF FORMAT Two weeks before the 11 challengers for the next America's Cup begin racing for points the challenger group has blocked an attempt by the defending cup holder, Ernesto Bertarelli, of Switzerland, to exploit the new race format. A full agreement was due to be announced yesterday in Valencia. Under it, points would be accumulated from the six regattas this year and three next. With 24 hours to go, Bertarelli's Alinghi syndicate wanted a high-scoring fleet race before the knock-out series for challengers, thus forcing his opponents to show their true strength. The Challenger Commission has drafted a modified agreement to scupper Alinghi's initiative. - Stuart Alexander, The Independent, http://sport.independent.co.uk/general/story.jsp?story=643038 20 YEARS OLD AND GROWING!! Team One Newport, world renown as "The Foul Weather Gear Experts, From Head to Toe" is celebrating 20 years of business. The crew at Team One Newport continues to educate sailors from around the globe on the proper way to dress for all types of sailing and climates. They bring the customer the "Best of the Best" including Henri-Lloyd, Musto, Gill, Patagonia, Railriders, Camet, Sailing Angles, Kaenon, Native Eye, Extrasport, Lotus, Dubarry, Harken, Magic Marine and more. Call 800-VIP-GEAR for a catalog or visit http://www.team1newport.com - look for the "Ask Martha" link for specific questions. NEWS BRIEFS * Former U.S. Olympian and cancer survivor, Kevin Mahaney, will ride all 2,241 miles of the 2005 Tour de France route this July to raise money for the Tyler Hamilton Foundation (THF) and the Lance Armstrong Foundation (LAF). Mahaney, 43, is no stranger to athletic challenge. In 1992, he won an Olympic Silver Medal in sailing and the prestigious title of Rolex Yachtsman of the Year. In 1995, he founded and skippered the America's Cup defense team "Young America." - www.emediawire.com/releases/2005/5/emw244001.htm www.active.com/donations/campaign_public.cfm?key=tdfchallenge2005 * There were 151 boats in 17 divisions racing at the ABYC Memorial Day Regatta on Saturday and Sunday, May 218 and 29, the largest turnout for a Memorial Day Regatta since 1981. Almost half of them were juniors in Naples Sabots, Laser Radials and Bytes, and the names of the kids read like a "Who's Who" of notable Southern California racing families: Driscoll, Reynolds, LaDow, Snow, Melvin, Glaser, Golison, Shadden, Jorgensen, Alter, McLean, Flam, Hogan, Newton, Ramming. Photos by Rich Roberts and results are available on the ABYC website, www.abyc.org * They're back. Jay and Pease Glaser recently launched Glaser Sails with a new loft in Huntington Beach, California. They will be to focusing on a small number of classes that they know really well - 505's, Intl 14's; Ultimate 20; as well as all small cats, especially A-Cats, as well as Tornado, F18, F18HT, Prindle, etc. Additionally, the Glasers - both Olympic medallists - are spending quite a bit of time coaching and are enjoying the opportunity to pass on some hard won lessons. - www.glasersails.com * On June 4, the International Yacht Restoration School (IYRS), a school and center for maritime restoration based along Newport's waterfront, will have a graduation day unlike the ceremony at any other school. After keynote talks are made and certificates are handed out, the crowd will migrate to the school docks for a launching of the historic boats restored by students. Eleven boats will be launched - nine 12' Beetle Cats, an 18' motor launch designed in the early 20th century, and a 31' George Lawley sloop originally launched in 1896. - www.iyrs.org * North Sails has partnered with expert meteorologist Chris Bedford of Sailing Weather Services to provide free weather forecasts for the Lands' End Detroit NOOD Regatta from June 3-5 2005. Detailed forecasts will be emailed to subscribers each morning by 0730 local time.Sailors can sign up for forecasts by logging on to the North Sails Weather Center at: http://na.northsails.com/ew/ew_main.taf * All of the leaders of 12-boat Global Challenge RTW fleet are now less than 1000 miles from the Boston finish line of Leg 5. BG spirit is launched, with a 200+ mile lead over VAIO. However, a bit further back, the battle for the remaining spot on the podium is contested by six boats which are now separated by just 14 miles "After coming through moderate winds in the last 24 hours, we are experiencing lighter conditions yet again before the possibility of gale force headwinds," said Spirit of Sark skipper Duggie Gillespie. - www.globalchallenge2004.com/en/ * Point Loma High School (San Diego, Calif.) has won the National Interscholastic Sailing Association's High School Team Racing Baker Trophy (Baker Trophy) hosted by US Sailing Center of Martin County, Fla. - http://highschoolsailingusa.org/NationalsResults/05BakerResults.htm * After five races in the finals of the 25th International Catamaran Challenge Trophy (ICCT) sailed in F-18HT catamarans in Rimini, Italy, the Italian team of Daniele Saragoni and Teo Batiste holds a 3-2 edge over John Lovell and Charlie Ogletree (USA). - http://icct.seacliffyc.org/press/release05302005.htm * San Francisco Bay is one of the premier racing venues in the US due partly to their strong, dependable thermal winds. However, don't look for those winds during the winter, as the temperature differential isn't large enough between the inland valley and the coast to get the winds blowing. However, winter is now over, and these famous thermals are alive and well in the latest photo gallery of wipeouts from this past weekend on the bay: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/05/0531 IN MEMORIAM Pasquale Landolfi died at the age of 76 in Rome of a hearth attack. After a very successful career in the oil business, he became a strong offshore sailor for the last 25 years. He sailed his many impeccable dark blue "Bravas" at the highest international level, winning several times prestigious trophies as the One Ton Cup in 1989 in Naples and in 1992 in Skovshoved and the Admiral's Cup with the Italian team in 1995. He involved in his campaigns a couple of generations of the best sailors of the world, getting the highest respect and continued affection from them all. His strong and loyal character was well known in the International Organizations; he served as an ORC Congressman for many years, always fighting very hard for the Classes he was representing, the One Tonners first, then the ILC 40 and the 50 footers. His repeated claims to send a "clear message" to the sailors will not be forgotten. EXPEDITION TO TIERRA DEL FUEGO In September, Skip Novak's expedition vessel, "Pelagic Australis" will be sailing south to Cape Horn from either Alaska or New Foundland depending on success or failure in transiting the Northwest Passage. 50 days, cost $5,000.00 USD per person. For details contact mailto:skipnovak@pelagic.co.uk or http://www.pelagic.co.uk LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON (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 nor a bulletin board - you only get one letter per subject, so give it your best shot and don't whine if others disagree.) * From Tom O'Keefe: Is anyone else of the opinion that the television programming guru's should be looking hard at the Med TP52 series. Between the players that can't or won't be in the next AC, the performance level of the TP52s in general and the close competition of its box rule - it's got to be a better value than the next AC. * From Frederic Laffitte: I am a long time sailboat racer and a cruiser as well. Four years ago my three boys and I took on kiteboarding while cruising in the South Pacific and are now enjoying both sports. Kiteboarding is here to stay so sailors and windsurfers in the bay will have to deal with them and whether they are racing or not will not make a difference. A perfect example of what to do is what happened in a windsurfing hot spot, Hood River Oregon. During the early days of kitesurfing there was a lot of territorial fighting between the windsurfers and the kiters, and what it became obvious that kitesurfing was not going to die, they learned to work together and separated the launch sites to avoid problems. Now many windsurfers in Hood River are also kiteboarders, they just choose their sport according to the wind range of the day. That being said, as in any new sports a few hot heads spoils it for the other, so the sport needs to police itself and teach the hot heads the rules of the road... the same way the early windsurfers taught others to respect other crafts on the water. Sailing, powerboating windsurfing and yes kiteboarding need to share the waters the best way they can. I'm in am in favor of racing kiteboards as this will give an avenue for teaching the rules to those who do not understand them. * From Bob Brenac: Could someone please explain how it is possible to optimise a yacht's IRC "rating" without knowing how that "rating" is devised in the first place. I was under the impression that IRC "ratings" are calculated from a closely guarded secret formula. Or is this secret a bit like a secret between desperate housewives? * From Louie Bartos: It doesn't matter what "rating" or handy-capping system is used in the U.S. racing environment, people will continue to bitch, because they're not "winning". Whichever system or method that is used you will always have racers trying to beat the system in some way or other to maintain a technically "softer" rating as in PHRF. If you are doing very well under PHRF, the next year's ratings come out in your club and you get hit with a real hard rating, and the next year the same happens, how would you then feel about IRC? In one-design your hard work is rewarded, not so in PHRF, you get hit with yet harder rating - believe me. * From Rees Martin: The case for IRC was best put in a great read: Peter Johnson's "Yacht Rating: 170 Years of speed, success and failure against competitors - and the clock". His summary of the successes and failures of the many attempts to 'level the playing field' are succinctly put, and his input into CHS the precursor to IRC, says it all. Sadly Peter died in 2003. His respect for the International Rule was constant and I am sure he would be pleased to see that the growing 6 Metre fleet in the Solent also now sail in IRC races. IRC is a great system; we 6 metre owners can actually mix it with you all - competitively. This coming July, the UK Metre fleet has been invited to compete in the British Classic Yacht Club Regatta at Cowes. And to make those purists squirm, we are being joined by two very beautiful 12 Metres! And the fees are the price of a decent dinner for two - well, in London... * From Warren Anderson: Mr. Tostado feels that the hull shape alone should generate lift and directional stability. One might observe that in contrast most aircraft use appendages (wings and empennage) rather than the fuselage to sustain controlled flight. The "flying wing" is in fact an extreme oddity rather than the norm. I don't wish to draw absurd parallels between an aircraft and sailing yacht, each operating as it does in a different realm of fluidic viscosity and engineering constraints. However, the foils below the surface seem as important as the sail plan for optimized upwind performance. Yacht design is in the midst of a revolution in methods and materials. I wouldn't discount the possibility that a decade hence the run-of-the-mil but progressive racer/cruiser may sport retractable canards, asymmetric daggers, lifting tip foils and variable ballast along with its rotating wing mast, carbon sails, PBO rigging and kite chute. CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATIONS Only in America do banks leave both doors open and then chain the pens to the counters. |
