SCUTTLEBUTT #510 - February 21, 2000
AMERICA'S CUP: IT'S ALL LOOKING BLACK FOR PRADA TEAM
New Zealand opened the 30th America's Cup with a crushing 1min 17sec victory
over Prada of Italy - and there will be similar defeats to come.
All black for Prada: First blood to Team New Zealand. A cold analysis of
yesterday's first race suggests that Prada could suffer a similar 5-0
humiliation to the one which the New Zealanders inflicted on Team Dennis
Conner, in San Diego, in 1995.
Russell Coutts' crew started better, were tactically astute, exhibited all
round slicker boat and sail handling and never looked anything less than an
irresistible force. Afterwards, Francesco de Angelis, the Prada skipper, and
his tactician, Torben Grael, looked drawn and numb.
Not even a 24-hour delay in getting the first race away, thanks to a
windless Saturday, diminished the stunning spectacle of New Zealand's first
defence. The huge crowds thronging the Cup Village were swelled by 1,500
boats, probably carrying in excess of 40,000 people.
For once, sailing was a stadium sport and the Hauraki Gulf had never looked
finer. Prada face an awesome task in finding a way past Team New Zealand.
Yesterday's 8-12 knot winds were right in Luna Rossa's sweet spot yet the
Kiwis gained on five of the six legs. - Tim Jeffery in Auckland
LAY DAYS: A LOST TRADITION
Match racing is a game of chicken. How close do you push that port-starboard
cross? How close do you push that windward-leeward situation? How close are
you willing to risk collision in the course of trying to draw a foul on your
opponent?
In the 1983 America's Cup Match, Liberty skipper Dennis Conner and Australia
II skipper John Bertrand played a game of chicken, but not on the water.
After racing each day, the American and Aussie teams eyed each other across
the Newport, R.I. waterfront to see which one would blink first and call for
a "lay day," a day off from racing.
"They'd play chicken, waiting up to the final seconds before time expired to
hoist their signal flags," recalled Dyer Jones, president of the current
America's Cup Challenge Association, who was a member of the New York Yacht
Club's race committee that year. Calling for a lay day was a critical part
of each team's strategy. The best-of-seven series, which began on a
Wednesday, was scheduled for consecutive days. But if the weather forecast
was not favorable to one of the boats -- Liberty liked a breeze, Australia
II favoured lighter air -- their respective skippers could call a lay day
and hope for more favorable conditions the following day. -- by Larry
Edwards, Quokka Sports Full story at http://www.americascup.org
ST. PETE NOOD
On the final day of racing, northerly winds backed and settled in at
approximately 340 degrees. Winds in the morning were lighter, approximately
4 to 7 knots; the breeze built to 10 knots by afternoon. The bulk of the
races on Friday and Saturday were sailed in afternoon seabreeze ranging 7 to
10 knots.
First place by class:
Henderson 30 - Scott Liebel, Sarasota FL
J/24 - Peter Bream, Jacksonville FL
J/29 - Paul Andersen, Urbanna VA
J/80 - Martin Kald, East Elmhurst NY
Level 130 - Bill Buckles, Lorain OH
Melges 24 - Bill Rogner, Punta Gorda FL
S2 7.9 - Michael Elliott, Linden MI
Sonar - Christian Obenshain, St. Petersburg FL
SR Max - BIll Embree, St. Petersburg FL
Ultimate 20 - Gene Hinkel, St. Petersburg FL
Viper 640 - Dan Phelps / John Landingham, Annapolis FL
Wavelength 24 - Richard Karran, Apollo Beach FL
Full story and results at www.sailingworld.com
CLASS GROWTH AND PROMOTION
Does membership slowly trickle out of your class? Does your fleet
effectively recruit new members? Are you looking for a way to boost
participation at your sailing club? If these concerns affect sailing in
your area, join the One Design Class Council for a panel discussion on
"Growth and Promotion" during the US Sailing spring meeting in Chicago.
Learn proven techniques and helpful tips to improve participation and class
growth at the Chicago Yacht Club on Friday, March 24 from 4-6 pm.
For more information contact Patty Lawrence at PLLawrence@aol.com or Dick
Martin at richard.h.martin@worldnet.att.net.
HIGH PERFORMANCE
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http://www.ullmansails.com and find out what so many winners already know --
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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.
LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON (scuttlebutt@boats.com -- note temporary address
for guest editor)
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 John Fracisco
The San Diego to PV race that Tom Leweck is racing in is on the web at:
http://www.sdyc.org/raceinfo/pv2kC.htm
It looks like a slow, heinous race, with even the sleds and turbo-sleds
putting in low mileage days (a 160 mile day for Pyewacket or Magnitude is
atypical for a Mexico race). Some of the reports indicate strong headwinds
rather than light air -- yuck!
-- From Bruce Parsons
I wanted to thank Jim Teeters on his comments about the winglets. While
much has been made of their position on the TNZ bulb, what seems relevant is
that they have shorter chord length and less wetted surface area, and by
having them on the fat part of the bulb, greater effective span for their
extra wetted surface area than if they were at the back. Tank tests and CFD
can only go so far, and if TNZ found this was fastest through two boat
testing I for one am sure they are right. The refreshing thing about the
TNZ design team is just this ability to trust their own research and break
from "conventional" thinking. As expensive and difficult as it is, two boat
testing does seem to be the final word.
-- From Neil Humphrey
You won't believe this response that The Sports Network posted on the
Couchmasters Corner web site in response to the Canadian sailing communities
complaints about poor AC coverage. Below is a copy of the web site content
that can be found at
http://www.tsn.ca/george/
LET THE CARNAGE BEGIN...
And I thought soccer fans were nuts!!
During France '98 I was bombarded by thousands of comments from unsatisfied
soccer fans regarding our coverage of the World Cup. Even though TSN
broadcast each and every game - for some reason that just wasn't good enough
for the fans of the, so-called, beautiful game.
But it turns out they were mere amateurs in comparison to America's Cup
fans. Yachting fans - believe it or not - are down right scary! For the
challenger series between the U.S.'s AmericaOne and Italy's Prada, the
scheduling of the races on the network was a daunting task, to say the
least, because the schedule can change, literally with a puff of breeze.
And when the sched did change, blue blazer with brass button clad maniacs
bombarded us with tons of sophisticatedly worded but nonetheless terrifying
missives letting us know exactly what they think of us as a network and what
exactly we should do with the guy who makes the schedule. (His name is
Lester - and he's currently in the witness protection program)
And now we're preparing ourselves and donning protective gear - because the
finals are finally upon us.
-- From Rick Hatch
I drive a Volvo 855T (the T stands for the nickname my crew gave me when I
showed up with it), and my wife drives a Ford Windstar, and not just
because they both sponsor the sport (the V70 T5 and the S80 T6 drive like a
cheetah in suburban clothing!). Seriously, why drive the rig of some
foreign manufacturer that's never sponsored anything to do with sailing?
STAR CLASS BISCAYNE TROPHY
The final day of the regatta started after a delay of 2 hours waiting for
the forecast 5-10 knots of wind from the east to fill in. First place: Ian
Walker and Mark Covell, GBR, Second Place: John MacCausland and Phil
Trinter, USA, Third Place to Flavio and Renato Mavassi, SUI.
On March 5th the Bacardi Cup, which had its origin in Havana, Cuba will
start with 125 Stars sailing on Biscayne Bay. This will be for many a last
big fleet tune up before the Worlds in Annapolis, which is the last chance
to qualify one's country in Stars for the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney,
Australia in September. -- Larry Suter
DON'T DO IT!
You don't have to spend a lot of money to have the best looking custom crew
attire at the regatta. Honest! Frank Whitton at Pacific Yacht Embroidery can
give you the quality stuff designed by California artists ... at really
affordable prices. Call Frank for quotes and a free apparel catalog. (619)
226-8033 (pacyacht@aol.com).
US LASER MIDWINTERS
Top Ten Final Results, total of 104 competitors
Laser (Standard Rig)
1. Bill Hardesy, USA, 39 points
2. Nathan Cowan, CAN, 40
3. Bernard Luttmer, CAN, 41
4. Brett Davis, USA, 41
5. Mark Mendelblatt, USA, 48
6. Charles Meade, USA, 68
7. Andrew Scrivan, USA, 71
8. Oskar Johansson, CAN, 78
9. David Wright, CAN, 80
10. Marty Essig, CAN, 88
Full results (including Laser Radial and Laser II) www.panamsail.com
-- Luis Baron
THE CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATIONS
I wouldn't want to belong to any club that would admit people like me as
members -- Groucho Marx
Note: Nelson Weiderman has created a "Curmudgeon Server" at
http://noeticharbor.com/curmudgeon/. It randomly pulls Curmudgeonly wit from
a database loaded with past 'Butt Observations, Counsels, etc. Check it out!
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