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SCUTTLEBUTT 2969 - Tuesday, November 10, 2009Scuttlebutt is published each weekday with the support of its sponsors,providing a digest of major sailing news, commentary, opinions, features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus. Scuttlebutt on Twitter: http://twitter.com/scuttbutt Scuttlebutt on Facebook: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/facebook Today's sponsors are North U and Camet. CHRIS LARSON: WINNING THE WORLDS Chris Larson lives in Annapolis, MD, and when both the J/24 and Melges 24 classes scheduled their 2009 World Championships on his home waters, he decided to be there too. He just missed winning the J/24 Worlds in the spring, but went on to dominate the Melges 24 Worlds, securing the title with a race to spare. Scuttlebutt checked in with the winner: ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- * How long have you been racing in the class? CHRIS LARSON: “I’ve been sailing on and off in the class for the past 10 years. My first serious campaign was back in 2006-7 with Scott Holmgren and the Rosebud team. We won the 2006 Melges 24 US Nationals and 2007 Pre-Worlds, and placed 10th at the 2007 Worlds in Santa Cruz. Since then, I’ve been sailing a couple of events a year. I love sailing the boat.” * Tell us about your team. CHRIS LARSON: “Sailing with me were three Canadians: Richard Clarke (Olympian - Finn 1996, 2000, 2004), Mike Wolfs - (Star Silver in 2004), and Curtis Florence - (current Farr 40 and Farr 30 World Champion bowman). Both Mike and Curtis sailed with me last year at the M-24 North Americans. We knew we needed to improve and become more tactically sound. Richard was a natural choice due his experience and time in the M-24 class. He was a key ingredient with Shark Kahn winning the 2003 M-24 Worlds. They spent something like 80 days preparing for the event which I knew would be very helpful to us. Richard came aboard and it was as if we had already sailed for years together.” * How much training did you do prior to the event? CHRIS LARSON: “Leading up to the Worlds we practiced for 10 days before the championship. Richard’s schedule was very tight and we only had 4 days on the water with him. He flew in for the Sail 22 Tune-Up event and we were fortunate enough to win that one. He then flew back the morning of the first race of the Worlds and it’s history now.” * Was there a defining moment for your team during the Worlds? CHRIS LARSON: “Strangely enough, I think Day 4/Race 7 was a turning point for us. It was our worse race, a 12th place, but we felt like we had survived the storm. The race was a very tricky, light air affair making it very easy to take a big score. I think the race committee called something like 22 boats OCS. We graveled very hard and came away gaining points on Gabrio Zandona’s Joe Fly team (second overall) and the rest of the fleet. It was a confidence booster.” Complete interview: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/09/1106b/ * While the 2010 Melges 24 World Championship will be held in Tallinn, Estonia, the 2011 Worlds returns to North America, hosted by Corpus Christ Yacht Club in Corpus Christi, Texas May 11-21, 2011. Event details: http://www.melgesworlds.com/ EXPERT VIEW ON BOR90'S AMERICA'S CUP WING MAST Steve Clark is widely acknowledged as one of the most astute and most experienced inshore multihull technologists and sailors on the planet. His is a family pedigree with his father Van Alan Clark being heavily involved C-class catamaran development in the early days of the Little America's Cup. From that upbringing, Steve has continued and led the team that developed the C-Class challenger Cogito, which broke the Australian domination of the Little America's Cup in 1996 at Macrae, in Australia, breaking the dominance of the Lindsay Cunningham designed succession of C-Class Yellow Pages. With the release of the first images of the wing mast for BOR90, Sail-World asked Steve Clark for his analysis of the largest wing mast ever built. Said Steve Clark, “The rig on BOR90 is a two element single slotted wing. This is a 'cleaner' configuration instead of a 'more powerful' configuration. You will not get the high lift coefficients without the #2 element (the flap in the slot that directs the flow through the slot.) This is probably not a big deal because they have the ability to set head sails for downwind work. It may or may not have twist capabilities. For one thing, the use of head sails makes this less necessary. For another, the majority of the wind gradient is in the first 30 feet off the deck, so given the scale of this wing, it may not be as big a deal as it is for the smaller C Class wings.” -- Full story: http://tinyurl.com/yepkn8p * The use of the wing will dramatically change how the team prepares to go sailing. The entire wing mast will be lowered when not sailing, with a mooring 200 yards off the sailing base for the boat when the mast is raised. As for the benefit of the wing, multihull specialist Cam Lewis notes, “The traditional wing mast and soft sail combination allow for an apparent wind angle at 11 to 13 degrees, while the solid wing sail gets you to 8 degrees.” The rig is said to have taken 20 weeks and about 20,000 hours to construct. While the wing remained inside the tent on Monday, it might be raised on the boat for the first time on Tuesday. -- Photos: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/blog/2009/11/wing-and-prayer.html VICTORY 2010 Now is the time to start planning for next season’s success. North U is ready to help with the new Learn the Rules DVD, the best Sail Trim and Tactics materials, and a full slate of offseason Sail Trim and Boat Speed Seminars. We’re also gearing up for our Tenth Annual Performance Race Week to be held next in Captiva next April. Next season’s success starts with special deals now at http://www.northu.com NEARLY ONE DAY AHEAD OF THE RECORD (November 9, 2009; 16:45 UTC) - Past the Cape Verde archipelago with a considerable lead over the reference time, skipper Franck Cammas’ team onboard the 105-foot maxi trimaran Groupama 3 is now preparing to negotiate the Doldrums, a very cloudy, turbulent zone which announces the entrance to the Southern hemisphere. The biggest concern of the trip so far has been the health of navigator Stan Honey, but even that now seems to be resolved. Noted Le Peutrec, "Our navigator is a lot better this morning and has a lot on his plate monitoring developments in the weather: it's reassuring to see that he's better as he really wasn't very well at all for the first few hours. We thought it was due to the violent introduction, but it was something else: after suffering with migraines and a fever, he's fighting fit now. The point of impact with the Doldrums is something he's been working on for what has already been two days, with Sylvain Mondon, our onshore router, but we're having to adapt to the direction and strength of the wind. We hope it'll be virtually inexistent!"-- Team website: http://www.cammas-groupama.com/en/ Current position as of November 9, 2009 (23:00:00 UTC): Ahead/behind record: +592.8 nm Speed over past 24 hours: 25.9 knots Distance over past 24 hours: 621.9 nm Tracking: http://cammas-groupama.geovoile.com/julesverne2009/?lg=en * Groupama 3 must cross finish line off Ushant, France before December 26th at 08:09:26 (UT) to set new record. PHOTO GALLERIES * Thanks to Glennon Stratton, the Scuttlebutt photo gallery now include images from the College Singlehanded Nationals held last weekend in Corpus Christi, Texas: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/09/1109 * For the past three years, Lauderdale Yacht Club has invited distinguished skippers and pitted them against the club’s finest representatives in a dinghy event to see who would survive. Held last weekend, the regatta used Cape Cod Mercuries and saw the likes of Brad Funk, Dick Tillman, Moose McClintock and Jeff Linton competing against local stars Tom Lihan, Peter Commette, Bill Benz, John Ulbrich, Sharon Johnson, Craig Cadwalder, Peter Grimm, Jr., and junior entrant, Dominique Wright. -- Photos and event details: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=8557#8557 LIGHT WINDS PLAGUE INAUGURAL SERIES Nice, France (November 9, 2009) - Challenging winds continue to haunt the Louis Vuitton Trophy Nice Cote d’Azur in its third day, with only two matches completed to put the event further behind schedule. While both pairs of boats were available today for the first time, the only matches completed were Azzurra (ITA) defeating BMW ORACLE Racing (USA), and Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL) defeating Synergy (RUS). BMW Oracle strategist Cameron Dunn commented on their race, “They got the first good shift and we were behind from there. We were happy coming off the line where we were (on starboard), but the conditions were changing very quickly. When we came back at them the wind shifted right and they were wound up to layline. From there it was a soldier’s course, marching along.” Regarding their victory, Emirates Team New Zealand skipper Dean Barker noted, “We’ll take the point, but it’s not the kind of conditions we want to sail in.” While Principal Race Officer Peter Reggio is hopeful on Tuesday he can complete four flights, or eight races, the forecast is for light air to continue. Racing continues through November 22nd, with Virtual Eye playback of each race on the event website. Current Standings Competing teams - Country - Skipper - Record Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL) - Dean Barker, 3-0 Artemis (SWE) - Paul Cayard, 1-0 TeamOrigin (GBR) - Ben Ainslie, 1-0 Azzurra (ITA) - Francesco Bruni, 1-0 BMW ORACLE Racing (USA) - Russell Coutts, 0-1 ALL4ONE (FRA/GER) - Jochen Schuemann, 0-1 Synergy Russian Sailing Team (RUS) - Karol Jablonski, 0-2 Team French Spirit (FRA) - Bertrand Pacé, 0-2 BACKGROUND: The Louis Vuitton Trophy Nice Cote d’Azur is the inaugural event of the World Sailing Teams Association. The WSTA event is designed to be a cost-effective format for the teams, with the four America’s Cup class boats being used in Nice on loan from three teams: ALL4ONE (FRA-93), Mascalzone Latino (ITA-90, ITA-99) and TeamOrigin (GBR-75). The boats have been equalised as much as possible to create a level playing field. Event website: http://www.louisvuittontrophy.com/home/ Video interviews: http://www.youtube.com/user/btsbroadcast CAMET INTRODUCES "NANTUCKET" ITS NEWEST SAILING SHORTS These shorts will be fully released to dealers in 2010. However, a limited number of shorts will be available at our dealers for the Holidays. What better way, is there, to say Happy Holidays! These are the best looking, top quality shorts with a New England style. Made of lightweight nylon fabric for fast drying and comfort. They are reinforced with and abrasion resistant seat pocket. Optional foam pad insert. The shorts feature two-side cargo pockets with a Velcro® closure flap, as well as two deep inside pockets. The Nantucket Sailing Shorts are made in America. -- http://www.camet.com/?Click=1400 WHERE ARE THEY NOW? It still hasn't been determined quite how the plaque will read. But JJ Fetter is going into the Breitbard Hall of Fame next February as the first female sailor in the San Diego shrine. “It's quite an unexpected honor for me,” said the native San Diegan who sailed to two Olympic medals, four world championships and four Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year honors over the past two decades under her married name of JJ Isler. Fetter won a bronze medal in the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona while sailing with crew Pamela Healy in the 470 class. Eight years later, she won the silver at the Sydney Olympics in the same class sailing with Pease Glazer as her crew. Fetter also served as the tactician and starting helmsman during much of the 1995 America's Cup campaign on the all-woman crew of the Bill Koch-backed Mighty Mary. After the 2000 Olympics, Fetter pulled back from her sailing to concentrate on raising her two daughters Marly (16) and Megan (11) Isler. “I'm getting back into sailing,” said Fetter. “For a few years, I didn't get into the water at all. I was driving the girls to events.” Including sailing. Marly races 29er and 420 dinghys and is a member of the Francis Parker High team, which JJ coaches. Megan sails Sabots during the summer at San Diego Yacht Club. “Marly is sailing as much as I did when I sailed for the Olympics,” said Fetter. -- Union-Tribune, read on: http://tinyurl.com/yebjp4a WHAT REALLY HAPPENED TO J/WORLD With the conclusion of the Baja Ha-Ha (cruising rally) on Saturday night, the Grand Poobah/Publisher of Latitude 38 finally got some time to review the coverage of the loss of J/World (the J/120) and the Coast Guard's helicopter rescue of her crew - skipper Eugenie Russell, instructor Barry Demak, and students Raymond Quinn, Mark McKinnon, and Judy Land - 200 miles southwest of San Diego. There was a significant amount of misinformation in the initial Latitude 38 report (reprinted in Scuttlebutt 2962) and the mainstream press, but the ignorance and groundless speculation that appeared on some sailing bulletin boards was nothing short of world class. There are often errors in breaking news stories when the newmakers themselves can't be contacted directly. It's like the game of Telephone, where the information becomes more inaccurate with every person who passes it along. In the case of the loss of J/World, captain Eugenie Russell called owner Wayne Zittel to explain what happened. There was some kind of misunderstanding between the two, because Zittel then told Latitude's LaDonna Bubak - and others - that the J/120 had sunk in about seven minutes. But as Russell told Latitude in a three-hour first-person interview in Cabo San Lucas on Saturday, she knows for certain that 45 minutes passed between the time the boat and the whale collided, and the time J/World's masthead Windex passed 18 inches in front of her face on its way to the bottom. -- Latitude 38, read on: http://tinyurl.com/ya9xv9o SAILING SHORTS * (November 9, 2009) - The crew of a US Coast Guard C-130 rescue plane are missing and considered dead 11 days after their aircraft collided with a US Marine Corps helicopter. The seven-member crew was searching for a missing boater near San Clemente Island in California. According to US Coast Guard statistics, the Coast Guard carries out tens of thousands of search and rescue cases each year for recreational and commercial vessels. In 2006 (latest available figures), the Coast Guard reported 28,288 search and rescue cases, and estimated it saved 4,403 lives that year. Since 2000, according to its figures, the agency has saved more than 33,000 lives. -- IBI Magazine, full story: http://www.ibinews.com/ibinews/newsdesk/20091009114506ibinews.html * Florida yacht broker Robert Moran was last week sentenced to two months in prison for offshore tax evasion. Moran was given the relatively light sentence, according to Bloomberg News, after cooperating with prosecutors investigating other individuals who set up offshore bank accounts to evade taxes. He had faced three years of possible prison time. As a convicted felon, Moran will lose his Florida license to sell new yachts. -- IBI Magazine, full story: http://www.ibinews.com/ibinews/newsdesk/20091009145228ibinews.html * CORRECTION: In Scuttlebutt 2968 there was a list of Americans that had won World titles in 2009. Our apologies for omitting Matt Struble and Barney Harris from this crowded collection of U.S. champions. Struble won the DN Iceboat World Championship in February at Torch Lake, Michigan, while Harris won the Albacore International Championship this summer in Largs, Scotland. HOLIDAY WISH LIST To help the ‘buttheads with their holiday gift ideas, and to assist businesses wanting to showcase their goods, Scuttlebutt now has a ‘Holiday Wish List Forum’. Here are some of the early offerings: - Personalized cutting boards - Coffee table picture books - Nautical Silks - Optimum Time Sailing Watches - Nautical Luxuries This complimentary service is for businesses and individuals that have legitimate gift ideas. Information on how to use the self-serve forum here: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/Discussion_C6/Holiday_Wish_List_F54/ LETTERS AND FORUM Please email your comments to the Scuttlebutt editor (aka, ‘The Curmudgeon’). Published letters must include writer's name and be no longer than 250 words (letter might be edited for clarity or simplicity). 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 James Stevralia: To follow up on Mark Eustis comment about Stan Honey (in Scuttlebutt 2968) -- what became of Etak and where did it lead? Etak was purchased by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. It was at News Corp that Stan became involved in sports broadcasting enhancements, met Bill Squadron and Jerry Gepner and together they started Sportvision (remember the glowing hockey puck?) funded by Roy Disney, Fox Sports and Fred Wilpon. Mr. Murdoch, always and still a sailor, then approved a Volvo Ocean Race team for News Corp. A critical role in the News Corp entry was executed by Stan's college roommate and sailing team member, Pedro Isler (an All America team that also included Steve Benjamin and Dave Perry). While Stan can plot a course across the earth, the course of connections, friendships and relations twists and turns like an Opti starting line! * From Bruce Munro: Mark Eustis is right about Stan Honey and Etak. What he left out is the fact that Stan Honey and Nolan Bushnell are the two fathers of the modern car navigation systems so many of us have in our cars today. Conception took place in the middle of the Pacific Ocean during the 1983 Transpac aboard the Holland 67 ft. yacht Charley. Stan was the navigator and Nolan owned Charley. Nolan was a video fanatic having invented the first commercially successful video game (remember "Pong"?) and founded Atari. Stan was an engineer at Stanford Research Institute and a certifiable genius in navigation and digital engineering. I introduced the two and it was a match made in heaven. Nolan had the idea for a vehicle video navigation system and Stan told Nolan he knew how to make that happen while we sailed across the Pacific on our way to a first to finish victory. After the race, Stan and Nolan co-founded Etak and the rest is history. For those of us who were on board for that race 26 years ago, it is really great to see all that Stan has accomplished since then. CURMUDGEON’S OBSERVATION From the Redneck Book of Manners: Even if you're certain that you are included in the will, it is still considered tacky to drive a U-Haul to the funeral home. Special thanks to North U and Camet. Preferred supplier list: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/ssc/suppliers |
