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SCUTTLEBUTT 1778 - February 17, 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. RENAISSANCE MAN On September 11, 2001, the world changed. And in the midst of the destruction, one block from where the World Trade Centers stood, was the North Cove - New York City's mega yacht marina. The yachts inside the marina scattered and with them went some of the hopes and dreams of this waterfront community known as Battery Park City. Before 9/11, North Cove had been the crown jewel of the Manhattan waterfront. North Cove had been the glamorous marina where the J/Boats Endeavor and Shamrock docked when they visited the Big Apple together in 1989. North Cove was where mega yachts parked, where celebrities gathered and where deals got done. People who rode bikes or roller-bladed along the waterfront esplanade would stop when they reached North Cove. It was a favorite destination of people out for an evening stroll. At lunchtime, corporate workers would come to the marina and enjoy the view. After 9/11, the future of North Cove was in turmoil. The company running the marina did not stabilize the facility. Docks fell into disrepair. Soon the managing company fell into financial difficulty and defaulted on their lease. In April 2003, the Hugh L. Carey Battery Park City Authority ("BPCA"), the governmental agency which owns the marina, took over operation. BPCA kept the North Cove open and began work to restore the facility. In June 2004, BPCA issued a "Request for Expressions of Interest" to find a new operator who could help North Cove regain its former glory. On January 11, 2005, the BPCA Board of Directors designated North Cove Marina Management, Inc., as the new operator of Battery Park City's North Cove Marina. And who is the Renaissance Man behind the North Cove Marina Management? None other than Dennis Conner, America's most famous sailor. For the complete story on Dennis' latest adventure: http://tinyurl.com/67d3x RECKLESS? MacArthur broke the world record by taking 71 days to sail around the world solo in her hi-tech £1.3m trimaran. But Ken Appleby of Northumberland, a former merchant navy captain, claims she broke regulations for the prevention of collisions at sea. He says solo sailing should be banned, as all boats need a proper crew. "All vessels must have a lookout at all times by sight and hearing - but if someone is on a boat for 71 days, it's not possible. It is a basic rule of the sea - if someone falls asleep on watch they can end up in court and be fined or lose their jobs. I think her achievement is good but these races should be stopped - there should be at least two or three people on board. No matter how many gizmos you've got you cannot cover the unexpected." A spokesman for MacArthur's Team Ellen would not comment on Captain Appleby's concerns about the 1972 International Regulations for the Prevention of Collisions at Sea. But he did say that under racing conditions it was not always possible to adhere to all health and safety regulations. - BBC News, http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/derbyshire/4266729.stm LIQUIDATION One of the world's leading shipyards, Marten Yachts of Auckland, New Zealand, has filed for liquidation. Over the years, the yard has been responsible for building some of the world's best known race boats, including Ellen MacArthur's Kingfisher, America's Cup yacht KZ 1 and various performance cruisers such as the 19.8m (65ft) Spirit of Adventure and the 20.1m (66ft) Pinta Smeralda. In a separate development, Paul MacDonald, managing director of Marten Spars Ltd, has announced that he is in the final stages of completing a management buyout of the company, which will see his share of the spar production business increased to 100 per cent. According to MacDonald, the liquidation of Marten Yachts will have no impact on the business of Marten Spars, which has operated as an independent company since it was first formed in 1999. - IBI Magazine, http://tinyurl.com/47qh7 SCYA J/BOATS MIDWINTERS Three J/Boat classes descended on Dana Point for the California Midwinter's, and all three had more in common than just their builder - the winners had Ullman Sails. J/120: 1. Caper, John Laun; J/105: 1. Javelin, Doug & Pam Werner; 2. Indigo 3, Scott Birnberg; J/109: 2. Commotion, Tony Wetherbee; 3. Persistence, Bryce Benjamin. The 2005 racing season is upon us, and it's not too late to upgrade your inventory to a set of the "Fastest Sails on the Planet" (ask about the speed advantage of FiberPath sails). Contact your local Ullman Sails loft by phone or online at http://www.ullmansails.com ORANGE II Orange II, the maxi-catamaran attempting to beat the Jules Verne Trophy record and the absolute round the world record, has had to ease off on the throttle a little over the past 24 hours. Rough seas with six to seven metre troughs are forcing Team Orange to hold back. The crew, skippered by Bruce Peyron, have already had two failures with a running backstay winch and a boom block that exploded. Fortunately, these two incidents weren't serious, but the skipper's decision to slow down is wise. A front ahead with 50-knot winds is creating tough conditions but Orange II is still managing to maintain an average speed of almost 23 knots. Orange II is now more than 2000 miles ahead of the two records and passed the halfway point today (Wednesday 16 February) after 24 days of sailing. Bruno also spoke about the looming New Zealand ice zone. "We haven't had any information over the past month concerning the ice zone, which lies ahead. We don't have any radar or security system on board, so we're going to have to take the long way around." - Yachting World, full story, http://tinyurl.com/6b3bu Wednesday at 03:10 GMT, the distance covered in the previous 24 hours was 524nm, with 12,344 nm to go. Orange II is 2,064 ahead of the Jules Verne record, and 2,084 ahead of the absolute record held by Cheyenne. - http://www.maxicatamaran-orange.com HOUSECLEANING A reminder for those that receive Scuttlebutt by email is to make sure that any old email addresses have been removed from the distribution list. If you have changed jobs or internet providers, and think that you may have added your new email address but forgot to unsubscribe the old one, please take a moment to help us with some housecleaning: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/subscribe ORYX QUEST 2005 The yachts are sailing upwind in nasty conditions as they skirt the edge of a large high pressure system located directly to the south of them. Multihulls are probably the worst boats for sailing to windward and the conditions on board are grim. Olivier de Kersauson and his tactical team on Geronimo are using the upwind superiority of their trimaran, and have been able to sail a slightly higher course than Doha 2006 while matching their speed. The result is at the 20:50 UTC Wednesday, Geronimo had stretched their lead over Doha 2006 to 100+ miles. At the same time, Cheyenne and Daedalus were nearly even, but trailing the leader by over 400 miles. - Event website, http://www.oryxquest.com NEWS BRIEFS * Online applications are now being accepted for the U.S. Youth Sailing Championship, scheduled for June 24 -30, 2005 at Cedar Point Yacht Club, Westport, CT. Racing will be held in the Laser, Laser Radial, and Club 420 classes. Application and Notice of Race are available at the US Sailing website: http://www.ussailing.org/youthchamp * Wednesday was a layday for the 2005 Star Worlds, currently being held in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Two races remain, beginning again on Thursday. Results after four races: 1. Xavier Rohart/ Pascal Rambeau (FRA) 12 points; 2. Torben Grael/ Marcelo Ferreira (BRA) 16; 3. Fredrik Loof/ Anders Ekstrom (SWE) 18; 4. Philippe Presti/ Jean-Phillipe Saliou (FRA) 21; 5. Robert Scheidt/ Bruno Prada (BRA) 24. Event website: http://starworld2005.com/en * A proposal has been put forth to create a platform in the middle of Long Island Sound to facilitate the transfer of natural gas to the area. The proposed site is in the broadest part of Long Island Sound in New York State waters (about 9 miles from the closest New York shoreline and about 11 miles from the closest Connecticut shoreline). This floating industrial complex would be nearly 10-stories tall, four football fields long, 180-ft. wide, and would add more than 25 miles of new undersea pipeline to the sound. For information on the project: http://www.savethesound.org and http://www.broadwaterenergy.com * Competitors reached the mid-point of the International 14 Worlds in Auckland, New Zealand on Tuesday, with four races completed and three more remaining when racing commences on Thursday. British sailors Stevie Morrison/ Ben Rhodes and countrymen Alister Richardson/ Ian Barkerare presently lead the overall rankings in that order. Canadians Peter Hayward/ Norm Pavey stand in 10th, while Americans Zach Berkowitz/ Steve Bordow are presently in 18th. Results: http://tinyurl.com/3verz * The Grow Boating Initiative is a cooperative effort among recreational boating industry leaders to assess the state of the industry and explore ways to improve sales and participation by actively promoting the boating lifestyle, improving product quality and improving industry statistics. Since early December 2004, more than 600 companies have contributed nearly $2 million for the Grow Boating Start Up Fund, which is being used to pay for the creative development and production of the marketing campaign that was rolled out at this week's Miami International Boat Show. Additional program and donation information is available at http://www.growboating.org * Photographer Onne van der Wal recently returned from the LaSource Grenada Sailing Festival 2005, and has provided us with images of the unique flavor found during the event's Work boat regatta: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/05/grenadasf V-100: SOLID TO THE CORE New England Ropes popular V-100 product line is now available with color-coded cores! V-100, the leading high performance line for grand prix sailors, has a durable polyester cover in black, red, green, and blue with racing-inspired gold flecks for easy identification. The core is 100% braided Vectran treated with a proprietary pigment-infused coating enhancing the product's durability, performance, and visibility when tapered. V-100 is the ultimate racing sheet or halyard, combining the best in ultra low stretch, zero creep performance. Look for V-100 and other grand prix racing products from the NER Regatta Support Team at Miami SORC. - http://www.neropes.com 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 Michael Silverman: (Regarding GPS for determining OCS) Where would the transmitter/receiver be located? If it is anywhere but the bow, then it cannot appropriately judge OCS. If it is mounted on the bow, it could very easily become damaged by lines, sails, people, waves, collisions, et cetera. In my humble opinion, this doesn't seem like the best solution. * From Tony Newberry: A regular Scuttlebutt reader, I am interested in the correspondence about LNG ships. In a former life I was an engineer on LNG tankers, and in my present life I review LNG terminals for their insurers (who are a very cautious bunch of people). The idea that LNG can explode is a complete myth. LNG is the liquefied form of natural gas (methane), and is transported as liquid because it occupies only one six-hundredth of the space it would as a gas. LNG as liquid doesn't even burn. Natural gas can burn only when mixed with air in a 5% to 15% ratio. In the history of transporting LNG by ships (about 45 years), there has never been an explosion or cargo fire. Other types of ships don't have the same safety record; there are many recorded cases of oil tanker explosions, and I remember from my student days in the 1970s a cargo of bananas spontaneously combusted on a ship in Plymouth Sound. I understand the concerns of Brad Read ('Butt 1775) as the moving prohibited zone around the ship seems very large. Having said that, in the Solent we live with a moving prohibited zone for every ship over 150m long of any type, although this zone is smaller, at 1000m (3280 feet) ahead and 100m (328 feet) each side. This zone ranks as an obstruction for the Racing Rules, and boats may use their engines to keep clear - provided they declare it and gain no advantage. * From Karen Kelley: In response to Kurt Bianculli's letter (Scuttlebutt #1777) regarding LNG tankers in Boston harbor: Regular frostbiters at Boston Sailing Center and Courageous Sailing Center, who use Boston's inner harbor as a racing venue, know that LNG tankers don't always come through late at night - they often sail right through our race course in broad daylight. Second, the greatest danger from an LNG accident is not from the LNG itself. LNG is natural gas in a cryogenic (frozen) form. When exposed to ambient temperatures and pressures, it rapidly evaporates into a vapor cloud. When the right mixture of gas vapor and air is achieved, the cloud is extremely explosive. For more information on LNG safety, check out the following website, or do a little research on the web: http://www.energy.ca.gov/lng/safety.html It is sobering. Marcel Nyffenegger (#1777) is correct when he categorizes these ships as "monsters" - they look every bit as big as the downtown buildings they pass by on their way through Boston. * From Robert Hill: Responding to Kurt Bianculli, having sailed in Boston Harbor for several years, I can say that it is not true that deliveries of LNG are always scheduled at night. I have been out on the water at least twice when they have come in during daylight hours, at least once on weekend when the harbor was filled with recreational boaters and at least one sail club regatta. This may well be dictated by tidal conditions, as the LNG tankers barely clear the Tobin Bridge. I also disagree with your estimates of the safety of the tankers - in a college class on Terrorism (in 1987!) we discussed the option of attacking a LNG tanker, and I think we were very confident that it would devastate the city center. The only good news is that they appear harder to detonate than one might expect. * From Tom Fischbeck: After hearing of Shosholoza's whale incident I am curious if there will be any problems or concerns in the upcoming Mexico races. I was surfing and fishing in central Baja Mexico many years ago in the month of March, and could not believe how many gray whales in the Punta Abreojos - Scammon's Lagoon area. My concern lies in that the gray whale's population has grown rapidly, and has made a substantial comeback and I think is off the endangered species list. I hope and pray we don't have any problems with race boats and whales in the central Baja Mexico region. Boats have gotten faster, lighter, and with smaller keels, hitting a gray whale in one of those boats is like hitting a submerged container on a Superyacht! * From John Sutherland: Regarding the post by John Glynn, who was surprised that the venerable New York Times expressed interest in sailing only when it ran the story about Shosholoza hitting a whale. Isn't there an old axiom about news stories; "When a dog bites a man that is not news, but when a man bites a dog that is news." - Charles Anderson Dana, 'What is News?', The New York Sun 1882. Same goes for boats attacking whales, don't you think! * From Sam North: Is David Gill (Scuttlebutt 1777 - Regarding Golfballs) suggesting that Albatrosses might try and catch (and ingest) the golf balls being driven (at somewhere in the region of 200 km/h) into the Hauraki Gulf by ETNZ? If so, none of us could be in any doubt about the negative impact the past time could have on the bird's lively-hood and I for one call for it to be halted immediately! * From John Dayton Fraser, Santa Cruz, California: (re: yesterday's Conundrum) There are many of us out here who truly do love horribly burnt toast, lathered with melting butter in the morning. I have all my life and will continue to read my beloved scuttlebutt while consuming before mentioned ghastly uneatables. You don't know what you're missing. * From Ron Rezac: Regarding the Curmudgeon's Conundrum on why do toasters always have a setting that burns the toast to a horrible crisp that no decent human being would eat? Answer: For the same reason they have a setting that warms the toast to nearly room temperature. CURMUDGEON'S CONUNDRUM Is it my imagination, or do buffalo wings taste like chicken? |
