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SCUTTLEBUTT 2680 - Friday, September 12, 2008Scuttlebutt is a digest of major sailing news, commentary, opinions,features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus. Scuttlebutt is published each weekday with the support of its sponsors. PARALYMPIC GAMES: AMERICAN LEAD IN 2 OF 3 EVENTS Qingdao, China (September 11, 2008) - Light and variable air forced extremely tight racing today in the Paralympic Regatta, but Nick Scandone (Newport Beach, Calif.) and Maureen McKinnon-Tucker (Marblehead, Mass.) and John Ruf (Pewaukee, Wis.) sailed well and ended the day leading the SKUD-18 and 2.4 mR classes, respectively. After three hour postponements, sailors were finally able to get in one out of three scheduled races today, but it was more like a crawl than a race. The SKUD-18s and 2.4 mRs endured challenging conditions today on their shared course, including low pressure and 3-5 knots of wind in a transitional current. “The conditions were the stuff they promised we wouldn’t have and it turned out that we did,” said McKinnon-Tucker. “It turns into a crap shoot because one little cat paw breeze or two waves crush you and you’re done. It is so difficult to get speed.” The 2.4 mR started racing after the SKUDs on their shared course, but experienced even lighter breeze than the first fleet, which forced another tight race. Fortunately for Ruf, he grew up sailing on inland Pewaukee Lake in Wisconsin, where the air is typically light. “It came in handy today,” he said. -- Complete report: http://tinyurl.com/SButt0911a Current Results One-person keelboat (2.4MR - 16 boats) 1. USA, John Ruf, 2-6-1-(9)-1-7, 17pts 2. CAN, Paul Tingley, 1-1-5-2-(9)-9, 18 3. NED, Thierry Schmiter, 5-3-2-(10)-7-1, 18 Two-Person Keelboat (SKUD18 - 11 boats) 1. USA, Nick Scandone/Maureen McKinnon Tucker, 2-1-1-1-(3)-2, 7pts 2. AUS, Daniel Fitzbibbon/Rachael Cox, (4)-2-2-2-2-4, 12 3. CAN John Scott McRoberts/Stacie Louttit, (3)-3-3-3-1-3, 13 Three-Person Keelboat (Sonar – 14 boats) 1. FRA, Bruno Jourdren/Larhant/Vimont-Vicary, 4-1-1-2-(7),-1 9pts 2. AUS, Colin Harrison/Boaden/ Martin, (8)-4-2-3-3-3, 15 3. GER, Jens Kroker/Prem/Mainka, 5-6-3-1-4-11, 19 8. USA, Rick Doerr/Tim Angle/Bill Donohue, 1-9-10-6-(11)-10, 36 10. CAN, Ken Kelly/Don Terlson/Marc Shaw, 10-11-(14)-10-9-4, 44 Racing concludes on Saturday. Results: http://www.sailing.org/24859.php LIKE WALKING ON THE MOON When the BMW Oracle Racing (BOR) team opened its base in Anacortes, WA to the media this week, it was the first time they had opened their doors to any scrutiny. While they were gracious hosts, they had no intention of revealing any specific details about their boat. However, what did become abundantly clear is that for the design of this boat, and now the sailing of it, there were and still remain many unknowns. Much like when Apollo 11 landed on the moon in 1969, the team is seemingly repeating Neil Armstrong’s famous saying each day: "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” Here are some of the more notable replies we did receive: * Team owner Larry Ellison has not yet sailed the boat, and it is looking like that won’t happen before the team relocates to San Diego. * There are two masts, and we were told they are identical. They are hollow and approximately 5 feet from front to back, and it appears possible for a person to transit from end to end on the inside. The masts were built from a female mould (two piece construction), and due to their size, it was more like building a boat than a mast. * The trimaran is viewed to be more versatile than a catamaran and a little lighter. The 90-foot width of the boat is deemed suitable for moderate conditions, though less beam might be preferred in very light or very strong winds. * Top speed is expected to be in the mid 40 knot range, and it is conceivable that the boat could break the absolute speed record (49.09 kts). Downwind apparent wind angle is approximately 30 degrees. * The hulls and beams are glued together (not bolted), which is why the boat is being barged to San Diego. -- Complete report: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/08/0909 POINTS OF DISPUTE During the course of litigation, dating back to when Golden Gate Yacht Club (BOR’s club) initially filed suit on August 22, 2008, there have been three significant disputes regarding the Deed of Gift boats: the BOR boat description, where the boats are constructed, and the certification of the BOR boat. These now appear to be non-issues based on the following: * In the GGYC challenge dated July 11, 2007, the document describes that they will be constructing a “keel yacht.” The Deed states that “Centreboard or sliding keel vessels shall always be allowed to compete in any race for this Cup, and no restriction nor limitation whatever shall be placed upon the use of such centreboard or sliding keel, nor shall the centre-board or sliding keel be considered a part of the vessel for any purposes of measurement.” The BOR trimaran main hull has a very heavy, very deep daggerboard (at least 15 feet below the boat) that can be raised and lowered. The construction team also refers to the keel as the structural element of the boat, which as Wikipedia states, “is a large beam around which the hull of a ship is built. The keel runs in the middle of the ship, from the bow to the stern, and serves as the foundation or spine of the structure, providing the major source of structural strength of the hull.” -- Read on: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/08/0909 PROFESSIONAL WIND FORECASTS: FREE SUBSCRIPTIONS! Want a competitive edge in your next regatta? Get a forecast from PredictWind.com - the worldwide specialists in high resolution weather modeling. For the first time ever, you can access a forecast using a model that calculates the wind at an incredible 1km resolution for your local area. High resolution equals better accuracy. The web based forecasts are easy to use, and available in maps, graphs and even a text format that is accessible on your mobile phone. It is the system that champion sailors rely upon, and until January 2009 the forecasts are free of charge: http://www.PredictWind.com WORLD'S LARGEST RACING TRIMARAN The largest racing multihull yacht ever built started testing on the waters in Lorient, France this week. Rather than taking it easy, and sailing her slow on the maiden voyage under sail, the crew of Banque Populaire V just couldn't help themselves from seeing what the new boat could do, and flying a hull in the ideal sailing conditions. Built to smash ocean sailing records, this yacht is made to test the limits. Just how large can a racing trimaran get? At 131 feet (40 meters), this giant boat is answering that question. Skipper Pascal Bidégorry took the helm of Banque Populaire V on Tuesday, for the first sailing of the new trimaran. Bidégorry and his team could not imagine better conditions for the long awaited event. For five hours, under superb conditions, the 21 member crew tacked and jybed the massive multihull, just to get a feel for the yacht under sail. A gorgeous indian summer day, 14 knots of wind, the thrill of being the first to test a new racing yacht while gliding on the water under the clear blue sky - the smiles radiated from the crew at the sheer pleasure of it all. -- YachtPals, read on: http://yachtpals.com/banque-populaire-3054 VOLVO RACE ENTRANTS DISPUTE DESIGN RULES (September 12, 2008) Storm clouds were gathering yesterday over the participation of the two leading contenders backed by the Swedish communications company Ericsson. A long-standing row over the interpretation of the design rules, which could blow a major hole in the race, is coming to a head as the first inshore contest of a race that takes the fleet round the world on a new route, is due to be staged off Alicante four weeks tomorrow. The stand-off is between the Ericsson design team, headed by Britain's America's Cup challenge designer Juan Kouyoumdjian, and the rule management group appointed by the Fareham-based Volvo Ocean Race. It concerns the construction of the keel and whether hollows in the fin can still meet the description of solid. The rules managers, headed by James Dadd, have so far refused to sanction the Ericsson design for its latest boat. -- Stuart Alexander, The Independent, full story: http://tinyurl.com/SButt0911b * (September 11, 2008) It was confirmed today that the Dutch yacht Team Delta Lloyd will be the eighth entry in the Volvo Ocean Race, which starts in Alicante, Spain on 4 October. The team will be sailing the winning boat from the 2005-06 event and will sail under the Dutch flag with sail number NED -1. The international crew will be skippered by Ireland’s Ger O’Rourke, and the team will be made up from a mix of Dutch sailors and Ger O’Rourke’s current Chieftain Racing Team, which won the Fastnet Race. -- Complete report: http://tinyurl.com/SButt0911c SAILING SHORTS * Clear Lake, IA (September 11, 2008) Day four of the Hobie 16 North Americans saw winds in the 20's and warmer weather. After a short on shore postponement due to potential thunderstorms, things got under way and five races were held over the day. Conditions were very difficult with strong gusts leading to lots of attrition as the day went on. Francisco Figueroa and Julliam Berrios from Puerto Rico (aka team Heineken) retained their lead with 57 points after 14 races. Their nearest competitors, Bob Merrick and Eliza Cleveland from Connecticut are 21 points behind. Racing concludes on Friday. -- Full report and results: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=6375 * Lake Minnetonka, MN (September 11, 2008) With three of four days of racing completed at the J/24 North American Championship Regatta, Tim Healy is leading after seven races, and can finish no worse than second overall with only one race left on Friday. Currently in second is John Mollicone’s team, who must win the final race to win the event. -- Results: http://www.j24northamericans.com/pages/J24Results.html * Harbor Springs MI (September 11, 2008) After the light winds cancelled the first day of the Star North Americans, conditions today permitted three races in just over 4 hours. Star Class veteran John MacCausland and crew Kevin Murphy put together strong finishes of 3-1-4 to build a eight point lead over Rick Merriman and crew Phil Trinter, who had two firsts and a fourteenth. Three more are planned tomorrow and two on Saturday to complete the championship. -- Complete report: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=6378 * Annapolis, MD (September 11, 2008) – Thirty boats at the Etchells North American Championships endured a light air day to begin the championship. With wind that rarely reached even 10 knots, it was all about the pressure. Early leader is Jud Smith sailing with Mark Johnson and Nik Burfoot ahead of local Allan Terhune, Jr in second. -- Full report: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=6381 * San Francisco, CA (September 11, 2008) - The 44th annual Rolex Big Boat Series kicked off with classic San Francisco Bay conditions of early fog and building breeze. Over 1,000 sailors on 111 boats completed the first of four days of racing in nine classes -- four for IRC-rated boats and six one-designs, Express 37, 1D35, Beneteau 36.7, J/105, J/120 and Melges 32. Highlighting a number of regatta improvements, regatta host St. Francis Yacht Club unveiled a new web cam where fans around the world can go to view racing live. Daily report: http://www.regattanews.com/pressrelease.asp?pid=1986&lang=1 Webcam: http://rolexbbsracecam.com * Porto Cervo, Sardinia (September 11, 2008) – Light winds on day three of the Rolex Swan Cup led to the abandonment of racing for the day. The scheduled lay day on Friday will now be used to get back on schedule. The overall leaders of the four competing divisions are Hendrik Brandis’ Earlybird (FIN) for the Swan 45s, Enrico Scerni’s Kora 4 (ITA) for the Club Swan 42s, Roel Pieper’s Swan 80 Favonius (BVI) among the Maxis and John Bainbridge’s Swan 48 Zen (GBR) in the Classic division. Daily report: http://www.regattanews.com/pressrelease.asp?pid=1984&lang=1 Results: http://www.yccsresults.com/swan08/results1.htm Audio: http://tinyurl.com/Pro-Sight-Sailing-SwanCup * Russ Robinson, a long-time San Francisco Bay sailor who has tackled many challenges facing recreational boating and the environment, has been named winner of the BoatUS Foundation Environmental Leadership Award for 2008. The award, along with a $1,000 prize, is given annually by the Foundation to a volunteer group, government organization, company or individual to recognize dedication and hard work in protecting the marine environment and promoting clean boating. -- Read on: http://www.boatus.com/news/releases/2008/september/environmental.asp EUROPEAN VACATION The Volvo 70 Il Mostro, sponsored by PUMA and built by Goetz Custom Boats, arrived in Alicante on September 5th following a successful transatlantic crossing from Newport. The crew now continues their preparation for the start of next month’s VOR in Spain. Elsewhere in Europe, Dan Meyers’ Numbers, chartered by Alinghi’s Ernesto Bertarelli, has won the Mini Maxi Division in the 2008 Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup in Sardinia, and Harm Mueller-Spreer’s TP52 Platoon continues sailing well with one regatta left in the MedCup series. For more information on these boats and other news, please visit http://www.goetzboats.com PHOTOS OF THE WEEK Some of the random photos from the sport received this week at Scuttlebutt include PUMA’s arrival in Spain, Paralympic racing in China, Moore 24 Nationals in San Francisco, Ragtime cruising in Tahiti, Extreme 40 glamour photos, Rosebud ‘trucking’ on the ocean highway, and cardboard racing in New Jersey. If you have images you would like to share, send them to the Scuttlebutt editor. Here are this week’s photos: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/08/0912 VIDEO OF THE WEEK The Volvo Ocean Race begins October 4th, where the fleet of eight boats will complete a race course that takes them around the world. Past races have utilized onboard crew to provide stories and imagery from each entrant, but for this event it is required of each boat to have a dedicated media member handling the duties, where it will be their sole responsibility to film and photograph all the action as it occurs. They are not crew, they are imbedded reporters. To prepare us for this heightened level of communication, this week we have two videos provided by the PUMA Racing Team, with one discussing their recent preparation prior to the team's Atlantic Ocean crossing this past week, while the other video utilizes footage from the 2005-2006 race to get us ready for the dramatic footage we should expect when the race begins next month. Enjoy: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/media/08/0912 * If you have a video you like, please send your suggestion for next week’s Video of the Week to mailto:craig@sailingscuttlebutt.com LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON Reader commentary is encouraged, with letters to be submitted to the Scuttlebutt editor, aka, ‘The Curmudgeon’. Letters selected for publication must include the writer's name, and be no longer than 250 words (letter might be edited for clarity or simplicity). You only get one letter per subject, and save your bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere. As an alternative, a more open environment for discussion is available on the Scuttlebutt Forum. -- To submit a Letter: editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com -- To post on the Forum: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/forum * From Ian Charles: In addition to racing NY 42’s and J 105’s with Team Lotz out of the NYYC, I am the Chairman for the 2008 Leukemia Cup Regatta at the San Francisco Yacht Club on Oct 4-5. I participated in the event last year and was one of the top fund raisers (raising over $30K). As a result, the committee asked me to chair this year’s event. I hesitated to accept due to the fact that I did not have a personal connection to cancer as the event’s prior chairman had (his son was battling Leukemia). I did accept the role and ironically I was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma in April. Myeloma is an incurable blood cancer that is treatable with chemotherapy and stem cell transplants, but my future is filled with uncertainty. Nevertheless, I set a $100,000 goal for my personal fund raising efforts this year and I’m happy to report that I have achieved and surpassed that goal. Although this has become personal for me, I am committed to helping others and raising the funds needed to find better and more effective treatments for blood cancers. Since my diagnosis I have been taking 4 chemotherapy drugs, 2 of which were directly funded and developed out of LLS funding (Valcade & Revimid). Those drugs are keeping me alive today and helping to battle the cancer. The funds we raise today will go towards the development of future treatments that will be need by patients who relapse or are newly diagnosed in the future. Please help me continue to raise money for the Leukemia Cup Regatta and the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society by going to my webpage at: http://www.active.com/donate/leukemiacupgsf/IanCharles * From Larry Chamberlain, Friday Harbor, WA: Sitting out on South beach on San Juan island where I live - beer in hand - watching Oracle's big tri tack up and down the strait of Juan De Fuca, I have to wonder: Could it be possible that two billionaires are intentionally setting up the greatest sailing spectacle ever to be staged? Remember Evil Knievel and the Snake River jump? * From Benjamin D Tice: (Regarding Mr Morgan's letter in #2679) At first appearance it does seem that BMW Oracle is trying to get an unfair advantage in the deed of gift challenge. However, when you consider that the Americas Cup is always based on designing a boat to the rule, it is always the case that the designers will try to make a boat with a secret advantage. This is apparent any time the boats are shrouded when hauled from the water. In this case, however, the boat is practically being showcased for all to see its design features well in advance of any possible race. It almost seems that the BMW Oracle team is going out of their way to allow the Alinghi team to build a competitive boat. In fact, the boat's design features are being explained in detail on the Scuttlebutt website. The BMW Oracle team has no choice but to exploit every possible advantage found in the design rule. If they don't, the Alinghi team might do it to them. * From Tony Newberry: Adrian Morgan ("Oracle is trying to pull a fast one..." - 'Butt 2679) appears to have conveniently forgotten that every boat designed with a hull overhang is trying to acquire a sailing waterline that is longer than its static waterline (when heeled). As far as I can ascertain, this applies to every J-Class, every 12-metre and every IACC boat. CURMUDGEON’S CONUNDRUM When we are in the grocery store and someone rams our ankle with a shopping cart and then apologizes for doing so, why do we say, “It’s all right”? Well, it isn't all right, so why don't we say, “That hurt, you idiot”? Special thanks to PredictWind.com and Goetz Custom Boats. A complete list of preferred suppliers is at http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/ssc/suppliers |
