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SCUTTLEBUTT 1760 - January 24, 2005Powered by SAIC (www.saic.com), an employee-owned company. Scuttlebutt is adigest 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. KEY WEST As dockside victory celebrations go, most were muted after Key West 2005, presented by Nautica, Friday as winners and losers alike hoisted their 295 boats out of the water and hustled home to 14 countries and 36 states. Hasso Plattner was met at the dock by his wife and yellow Lab, Claude, and quietly toasted his 61st birthday, which happened to coincide with his first place in the marquee Farr 40 class. "This is my first win in a big [Farr 40] regatta," he said after defeating world champion Jim Richardson's Barking Mad from Newport, R.I., by three points. Morning Glory won three of nine races and was fourth in the final. Plattner gave his tactician, Russell Coutts, ample credit. "The difference with Russell is that he doesn't put me in tough situations," Plattner said. "He stays calm in a critical situation. That helps me as a driver and also the crew not to get nervous and excited." Meanwhile, a couple of gangways away, there was a more spirited celebration among Deneen Demourkas' victorious Mumm 30 crew highlighted by champagne showers and crew dunkings. Even the skipper went swimming. The event's talent included 18 Olympic medalists representing 28 medals, including Kevin Burnham of Miami Beach, who won gold with Paul Foerster on a 470 dinghy at Athens last summer. This time, on a larger boat, Burnham won again as part of the crew for helmsman Bill Hardesty on Pegasus Racing's Melges 24, entered by another software giant, Philippe Kahn of Santa Cruz, Calif., developer of the cell phone camera. That team won the last race and three of nine and received the Key West 2005 Boat of the Week Trophy for winning the most competitive class. Kahn, from Santa Cruz, Calif. and Hawaii, drove his Farr 40 but prefers the Melges. "That's my new team," he said. "I have mixed feelings because Bill [Hardesty] was filling in for me [as helmsman]. Obviously, he did a good job." Other crew members were Sweden's Freddy Loof, an Olympic medalist; Mark Ivey of Newport Beach, Calif., a four-time collegiate all-American, and Midge Tandy of Pensacola, Fla. Tom Hill's R/P 75, Titan 12, the biggest boat in the regatta, came on in lighter winds the last three days to correct out on its PHRF-1 opposition in five of six races but couldn't overtake Makoto Uematsu's Transpac 52, Esmeralda. The Japanese entry, driven by Tom Lihan with Ken Read as tactician, enjoyed a four-point margin by winning the other four races. The International Team Competition for the Nautica Trophy matched a designated eight pair of Farr 40s and Melges 24s. The dogfight ended with four teams separated by two points, led by the USA East team composed of Barking Mad and Neil Sullivan's M-Fatic from Annapolis, driven by Olympic silver medalist Morgan Reeser. They edged Europe A (Mean Machine and Team SBAB) by one point, followed by Europe B (Atalanti and Joe Fly) and Italy (Mascalzone Latino and Blu Moon). - Rich Roberts, Complete story and results: www.Premiere-Racing.com OLYMPIC FOCUS For some sailors, the Miami OCR regatta is a way to get known. For others, it's a way to stay in the international nautical spotlight. The five-day event, which will begin tomorrow, is the first of three regattas that will determine the U.S. sailing team. It is a time to test new boats, cement partnerships and forge new ones. In the case of Kevin Hall of Bowie, it means a fresh start after his disappointing 11th-place finish in the Finn class at the Athens Olympics. "I'm pretty optimistic about next time," said Hall, a cancer survivor who battled International Olympic Committee bureaucracy and personal setbacks during the Summer Games. The Miami regatta will include the eight classes of boats that will be used at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing and two that will be used at the Paralympics. About 200 competitors, including 17 from Maryland, are expected. Registration will end tomorrow. Two members of Team Atkins, the U.S. Yngling-entry in Athens, will be competing against each other this time. Maryland-born skipper Carol Cronin has signed up Kate Fears of Washington and Jaime Haines of Newport, R.I. Cronin's former crew member, Naval Academy sailing coach Nancy Haberland, is working with two Californians: skipper Liz Baylis and Katie Pettibone. Baylis has chartered the back-up Team Atkins sloop for this regatta. Liz Filter, the third member of the 10th-place Atkins team, has retired from high-level competition to be with her young family. Baylis, the 2002 Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year, said the regatta is a "trial balloon" to determine if they like sailing the Yngling enough to spend the next three years training for Beijing. Another sailor familiar in Annapolis, Sally Barkow, also is in the hunt in the eight-boat Yngling field. Barkow, of Nashotah, Wis., will sail with her veteran team of Carrie Howe and Deborah Capozzi. Barkow won two Chesapeake Bay events, the 2004 ISAF Women's Match Racing World Championship and the 2003 Rolex International Women's Keelboat Championship. The two-man Star class is loaded with local talent, all trying to beat skipper Mark Reynolds, a three-time Olympic medalist from San Diego, who is teamed with Phil Trinter. Trinter and racing legend Paul Cayard finished fifth in Athens. One man to watch is Annapolitan Geoff Ewenson, who finished second to Hall in the U.S. Olympic Trials last year. This time, he is paired with Skip Dieball of Toledo, Ohio, in the 40-boat field. - Candus Thompson, Baltimore Sun, http://tinyurl.com/4tzqc LOOKING GOOD Bruno Peyron's giant catamaran Orange II and her 14 man crew cast off from Lorient Sunday - heading for the Jules Verne Trophy starting line off Ushant, which they plan to cross sometime on Monday in their attempt to establish a new round the world record. The weather window that they have been studying for more than a week looks good. "We want to be ready to cross the starting line at the right time," Pyron said. "We don't know exactly when that will be, but I want us all to be ready in race mode, so we can set out when the window is at its best." The Jules Verne Trophy has been held by Olivier de Kersauson and the crew of the trimaran Geronimo, in 63 days, 13h 59mins, since the 29th April 2004, while the absolute round the world record has been held by the American Steve Fossett, in 58 days, 09h, 32mins, since the 5th April 2004. - www.maxicatamaran-orange.com/ LEARN FAST Bicycles. Bobsleds. Sailboats. No matter what you race, you've got to be fast to win. If you race sailboats then you can learn the latest Fast at a North U Trim Seminar. Upwind, downwind, symmetric, asymmetric. But that is not all. North U Trim Seminars cover sail handling and boat handling technique for every manner of set, jibe, and douse as well. North U offers a full slate of Weather, Cruising and Racing Seminars. Learn Fast: Call 800 347 2457 or visit http://www.NorthU.com JUST 180 MINUTES Ellen MacArthur's 75-foot Trimaran B&Q has been trapped in a zone of light air that refuses to go away. Commanders' Weather expects Ellen to see little breeze much over 6 knots, close to the weak ridge of high pressure that is unfortunately drifting slowly northwards at the same rate as Ellen - it's like walking backwards up the escalator. There is a chance that as this ridge dissipates; wind pressure may increase to 10 knots by Monday night and into Tuesday. It is important for Ellen to try and get as much easting as possible to have a better wind angle and faster speeds by the time she reaches the Trade Winds in the middle of next week. Without doubt, MacArthur's lead is expected to turn into a deficit later today or tomorrow. MacArthur has held an advantage of the solo record time of Francis Joyon since day 7 of her attempt on 1.12.04 - during the first week of her attempt she took the lead on day 4, lost it on day 6, then reclaimed an advantage on the seventh day which she has not relinquished since. As the lead disappears, the bad news is that Joyon has an amazing run in this next 24 hours, a Southern Ocean style 425 mile day, followed by a 399 mile day tomorrow. The only good news is that he does actually slow down on Wednesday (162 miles) and Thursday (130nm). As Ellen said yesterday: "If we cross the Equator ahead of Francis, it will be a miracle." B&Q is currently just three hours ahead of the Joyon's record pace. - www.teamellen.com CALENDAR OF MAJOR EVENTS (Sponsored by West Marine) Events listed at http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/calendar HOME STRETCH Mike Golding Sunday revealed that early Friday evening Ecover's main halyard had broken for the third time in 12 days. "We have come to the conclusion after a lot of discussion that the failure is down to this particular halyard having gone beyond a certain mileage - it is just toast," he said. 'Whereas in the past we have been able to do this successfully with one halyard we're finding that possibly because of the increased loadings on the boat or the additional push in the Southern Ocean which wasn't part of the game plan; and possibly because any number of other factors, the entire length of this halyard has got to the point where it has said 'no more'." The solution they have come up with is to replace the halyard with a spare that Golding describes as his "bomb proof halyard". The normal main halyard is specified at 8 tonnes breaking load. The loads on the main halyard are usually no more than 1.5 tonnes. The 'bomb proof' halyard can carry up to 12 tonnes - the equivalent of ten VW Golfs. While the finish looks more and more likely to occur on the afternoon of Tuesday 1st February, the conditions in the Bay of Biscay will certainly be fresh to strong with 25 to 30 knot winds expected. In other words, they will be sailing close-hauled in choppy seas. This weather forecast is an ideal scenario for the start, but disastrous for the finish. There's no way to avoid it, and the three leaders will have to tack their way back up to Les Sables d'Olonne. It's all the fault of the Azores high, which is placed a long way north to the west of the British Isles, which is generating an east north easterly flow. Leaders at 1900 GMT January 23: 1. PRB, Vincent Riou, 2295 miles to finish 2. Bonduelle, Jean Le Cam, 118 miles to leader 3. Ecover, Mike Golding, 155 mtl 4. VMI, Sébastien Josse, 883 mtl 5. Temenos, Dominique Wavre, 918 mtl 6. Virbac-Paprec, Jean-Pierre Dick 2377 mtl 7. Skandia, Nick Moloney, 2822 mtl 8. Arcelor Dunkerque, Joé Seeten, 3082 mtl 9. Hellomoto, Conrad Humphreys, 3576 mtl 10. Ocean Planet, Bruce Schwab, 3895 mtl Complete standings: www.vendeeglobe.fr/uk/ SAFETY EQUIPMENT The capsize of the supermaxi yacht Skandia and the rescue of the crew in Bass Strait has led to a call by the yacht's owner, Grant Wharington, for satellite telephones to become an essential safety feature for future Sydney to Hobart races. Wharington used a Globalstar mobile satellite phone while trying to save the $4 million yacht. Later, when he and the 15-man crew were forced to take to the liferafts, he used the phone to call family and friends to assure them everyone was safe and awaiting rescue. As a consequence of his experience with the Globalstar system Wharington will propose to race organizers at the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia in Sydney that they accept satellite phones as part of the communications safety package for future Rolex Sydney to Hobart races, saying, "I can see this satellite telephone technology taking over from HF radio in the future." AHEAD OF THE CURVE The Team One Newport website now has a new section called… "New Products," which features a selection of items they have found to either provide new solutions or are just too cool to pass up. If you still need a calendar for '05, they have the best of the best on display. Or the Sperry Figawi Duck shoes, which will help you embrace the wet and snowy weather. How about aloha print belts, or better yet, belts with bottle openers? There are also middle layer options, accessory pouches, dry bags, etc. Call Team One Newport at 800-847-4327 or http://www.team1newport.com GOING, GOING, GONE The 62-foot wooden Transpac line honors winner Ragtime was sold at auction last Friday by a four person syndicate headed by Scott Zimmer. Huh? Zimmer already owned the boat, but had used it as collateral on a debt. When he defaulted, the boat was put up for auction in hopes of colleting $172,000 in debt and costs. And now it appears that Zimmer has the boat back (albeit with three new partners), but he also will have to clear up a deficiency judgment for the shortfall on the auction proceeds. There were five or six people bidding at the auction, but ranks thinned to just two when the bids got into the mid 80s. From there the bidding was 'ping-ponged' upwards in steady $500 increments by Brennan Moore and Allen Donald representing the Zimmer syndicate, which also includes Jon Richards and Chris Welsh. Donald's $120,500 bid silenced Moore, and returned Ragtime to Newport Harbor. AWARDS The United States Olympic Committee announced the nominees for its 2004 SportsMan, SportsWoman and Team of the Year honors. The nominees are the 2004 Athletes and Teams of the Year representing Olympic, Pan American and Affiliated Sport Organizations within the U.S. Olympic Movement. Honored last year for their accomplishments in 2003 were cyclist Lance Armstrong, figure skater Michelle Kwan and the U.S. Women's Gymnastics Team. Included in the 2004 multi-sports line-up are the following nominees. - 2004 Male Athletes of the Year: Sailing: Johnny Lovell - 2004 Female Athletes of the Year: Sailing: Paige Railey - 2004 Teams of the Year: Sailing: Men's 470 - Paul Foerster and Kevin Burnham Full story: www.sailing.org/default.asp?ID=j12Fht6/D NEWS BRIEFS * Lands' End is conducting a "Thrill of the Mac" essay contest, and the prize is a spot on board Lands' End new, 38-foot C&C 115 for the Chicago Mackinac Race on July 16. The essays are to be 500 words describing why the writer feel he or she is cut out to sail non-stop for approximately 60 hours up Lake Michigan to Mackinac. . Prizes include travel and lodging for the winner and three family members at the majestic Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island. For a complete set of rules: www.landsend.com/rules * The 2005 race Marion Bermuda Cruising Yacht Race will move to a single number, time-on-time (TOT) handicap system using the Americap II velocity prediction program. Race organizers feel that a TOT system makes more appropriate adjustments for an offshore race that involves current, such as the Gulf Stream and for the reaching which is typical for this race. The decision was made in consultation with Jim Teeters and US Sailing after modeling this change based on the 2003 race. * Former Boston school teacher and lecturer Richard Wilson of Rockport, Mass. received the Cruising Club of America's (CCA) Blue Water Medal. The award was made for a series of three voyages Wilson made between 1993 and 2003 in his 53' trimaran Great American II, to equal or beat the record passages of famous 19th century clippers. The Blue Water Medal was inaugurated by the Cruising Club of America in 1923 to "reward meritorious seamanship and adventure upon the sea displayed by amateur sailors of all nationalities, that might otherwise go unrecognized." - www.cruisingclub.org * Paralympic sailor Bradley Johnson (Hollywood, Fla.) has been elected as the summer Paralympic sports representative to the United States Olympic Committee Athletes' Advisory Council (AAC) for the 2005-2008 quadrennial. Johnson, a two-time Paralympian who earned a bronze medal at the 2004 Paralympic Games in sailing and who was a member of the 2000 Sitting Volleyball Team, will serve as the summer sports representative. He will be supported by seven-time Paralympian Trischa Zorn (Fishers, IN), who was elected as the summer sport alternative representative. Johnson's responsibilities will be to recommend and review USOC and related policies as they affect elite-level athletes. www.sailing.org/default.asp?ID=j1/Fht6/2 * Five weeks after leaving Bristol, England, Tony Bullimore and his 'Daedalus' crew arrived at Doha, Qater on Saturday 22nd January, in readiness for the start of Tracy Edwards' Oryx Quest non-stop round the world race. Tony's 102ft catamaran was the first of three race entries to reach the Gulf State and was followed a day later by the French rival 'Geronimo.' 'Cheyenne' is due to arrive by ship later this week, and 'Qatar 2006,' the former 'Club Med,' which has been undergoing a refit in Doha, will also be slipped back into the water ready for the race. - www.qisel.com/ ALMOST LIKE BEING THERE Key West Race Week is done for another year, but the photo gallery on the Scuttlebutt website may still keep the memories alive for a while. Thanks to photographers Onne van der Wal, Sue Bodycomb, Rich Roberts, and Cory Silken, images are available from each day of the event. Enjoy the event (again) at http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/05/keywest BASES FOR AC SYNDICATES The sites for America's syndicates in Valencia were allocated on a "first come - first served" basis so Alinghi had the first choice the BMWOR the +39 and so on. The point is there are 12 sites, which rather limits the number of participants. Now we know ACO has always been saying 12, but recent rumors have been pointing to a higher number. Let's look - going anti-clockwise from the new (projected) channel we have Alinghi, +39, Shoshloza, spare, BMWOR, Luna Rossa. Then there is the ACO area, press building, etc. then the bases in front of the sheds. Going from left to right we have ETNZ, K-Challenge, Desafio and three small bases not yet allocated. So that's 4 spare bases to share among whom? Well, latest thinking (Jan 21) is, in order of likelihood: Victory Challenge; Sausalito Challenge; Chinese Challenge; Mascalzone Latino; C7. Mariantic AC website, www.mariantic.co.uk/ac/six.htm#bases 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 Ted Livingston: 1973 doesn't seem so long ago, and the unhappy(?) end of the story of Ragtime seems hardly fitting As sailing coach at the University of Hawaii, I received a letter from Mort Haskell (one of the Long Beach Five) stating that after the race, she likely would be donated to the U.of H. The morning after her dramatic win over 'Passage, I walked down "Transpac Row", and there was Mort Haskell sitting in the cockpit. When he saw me, he jumped up, waving his arms, and shouting "Disregard my letter!" I hope the auction (at least partly) bails her out to race again the Transpac. CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATION Negligent (adj.): Describes a condition in which you absentmindedly answer the door in your nightie. |
