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SCUTTLEBUTT No. 921 - October 12, 2001Scuttlebutt is a digest of yacht racing news of major significance; commentary, opinions, features and dock talk . . . with a North American emphasis. Corrections, contributions, press releases, constructive criticism and contrasting viewpoints are always welcome, but save your bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere.
ISAF ROLEX WORLD SAILOR OF THE YEAR Voting to choose the Men's and Women's Awards will be the 113 ISAF Member National Authorities. The Awards Presentation will be hosted by Mateusz Kusnierewicz of Poland, winner of the 1006 Olympic Gold Medal in the Finn Class and World Sailor of the Year in 1999. The nominees are: Female Sailors Sofia Bekatorou and Emilia Tsoulfa (GRE) - with wins at every Grade 1 event in the double-handed 470 Class in the past 12 months, this pairing currently sit firmly at the top of the world rankings, having taken the European title, and most recently (although outside the achievement period) the 470 World title to prove their dominance. Ellen MacArthur (GBR) - this extraordinary sailor proved that size doesn't matter by trouncing all, except the winner, in the Vendee Globe to become the fastest single-handed female circumnavigator (second fastest ever), completing the Vendee in 94 days, breaking the previous record by just over 30 days. Ellen went on to be co-skipper of the winning boat in the EDS Atlantic Challenge (a five-leg race including trans-ocean) and the Challenge Mondial Assistance. Sari Multala (FIN) - has taken the Europe Class by storm, having claimed the World Championship title, alongside numerous Grade 1 event titles, in the past 12 months and in so doing sits at the No 1 position on the World Rankings. Lee Lai Shan (HKG) - the boardsailor who made history by winning Hong Kong's first medal in any sport at the 1996 Olympics is back again, with an outstanding win at the Mistral Worlds and bullets at many of the graded events over the past 12 months, including several of the coveted Grade 1 events. Male Sailors Grant Dalton (NZL) - renowned over many years for his involvement in ocean races, Grant's nomination is in recognition of his win as skipper of 12 crew on the 110 ft catamaran Club Med in the inaugural "The Race", the no-holds barred non-stop round-the-world race, which he won in fantastic style in 62 days, 2 days ahead of his closest rival. Supporting this win was the new world record set on 7-8 February 2001 for the longest distance run in 24 hrs of 655.13nm (an average speed of 27.33 knots). Michel Desjoyeaux (FRA) - the winner of the Vendee Globe and sailing hero of the French nation, Michel broke all previous records by becoming the first person to sail single-handed around-the-world in under 100 days, and the fastest by completing the race in 93 days, and in so doing beating the previous Vendee Record by more than 12 days. Torben Grael (BRA) - a four-time Olympic medal winner, three in the Star and one in the Soling, Torben is nominated for his continued dominance in the Star Class. He is currently ranked number 2 in the World, having won 2 of the Grade 1 events over the past 12 months. On top of that, an America's Cup sailor, he will be sailing Prada in the 2002/3 Louis Vuitton Cup. Heiko Kroger (GER) - despite his left arm amputation and classification as a disabled sailor, Heiko manages to win both open and disabled events, with a Gold Medal at the 2000 Paralympic Regatta, followed by winning the 2.4mR World Championships, an open event with 89 entries. Fredrik Loof (SWE) - having sailed a leading position in the Finn Class for many years, he jumped ship 9 months ago to the Star Class and stunned all by immediately taking the runner up positions in the northern hemisphere's opening Grade 1 events, to be followed by an outstanding win at the Star Europeans and then the Worlds - outclassing even last year's male World Sailor of the Year title holders. Yves Parlier (FRA) - his determination to finish the Vendee Globe, despite enormous setbacks, was followed by many around the world. Using ingenuity most people would never need to call on, Yves improvised an oven to cure the resin needed to fix his broken mast and create a jury rig. Overcoming his setbacks, Yves completed the Vendee ahead of two of the competitors in just under 127 days. Robert Scheidt (BRA) - this man has dominated the Laser Class over the years to such an extent that any sailor would be hard pushed to match across any other class. He won his fifth Laser World Championship title in 2001, an addition to his collection of Olympic Medals, a Gold in 1996 and Silver in 2000. A sailor who aims to continue his domination to achieve a further Gold in 2004. See http://www.sailing.org/worldsailor for more information; tickets are still available for the Awards Ceremony.
VOLVO OCEAN RACE: LAND HO! Sailing in the same breeze at the same angle has meant that only the odd fraction of a mile has been exchanged between the leaders over the last day. "Once again the speed difference between the boats is scarcely measurable," commented Kevin Shoebridge, skipper of fourth placed Tyco. At the rear of the fleet, SEB, Amer Sports Too and djuice (sixth, seventh and eighth respectively) have yet to enjoy the light relief of the equatorial crossing ceremony, experienced by the other crews earlier today. These three continue their own race within leg one to Cape Town. "The leading pack is pulling away and the distance is now too big. No conventional sailing will bring that distance back," reflected Gurra Krantz from SEB this morning. The Volvo Ocean Race fleet is now established in the southeast trade wind belt. The leaders will continue to see stronger winds than those still north of the equator. The generally fair conditions are expected to continue, with only a small risk of isolated thundery showers. Latest Position Report - 2200 HRS October 11
Boat - Distance to Finish - Distance to Leader Complete information at http://www.volvooceanrace.org
BANG FOR THE BUCK
GREAT AMERICAN II ON TRACK TO BEAT NY - MELBOURNE RECORD Today the 53-foot trimaran with its crew of two was 205 nautical miles east northeast of Recife, Brazil. It's position was 6 degrees 58 minutes south, 31 degrees 42 minutes west. After crossing the Equator, 19 days and 22 hours out of New York, Great American II was one day ahead of the track of the clipper ship Mandarin, the vessel that has held the sailing record for the 14,000-mile voyage for nearly a century and a half. Sailors Rich Wilson, Rockport, Massachusetts, and Bill Biewenga, Newport, Rhode Island, are out to beat Mandarin's 69-day record, set as she carried prospectors to the Australian Gold Rush in the winter of 1855-56. Wilson reported a swift but strenuous passage through the doldrums, stretching east and west in a band just north of the Equator."The doldrums were challenging, with no wind one minute, and too much wind and the need to reef the sails the next. Mix this with 100-degree wind shifts, and with only one man on deck most of the time, and it makes for a real mental and physical workout." The website tracking the voyage of Great American II is http://www.sitesALIVE.com -- Keith Taylor
LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON * From Cam Lewis, Team Adventure: Knowing firsthand how hard the record business is, I want to congratulate Steve Fossett, Stan Honey and the crew of PlayStation for their incredible record run. 4 3/4 days will by very hard to beat as will 687 miles in 24 hours. Their TransAtlantic record is one of the most outstanding records in the last decade as can be attested by the many attempts over 11 years and their own 24 hour record of 584 miles set a couple years ago is now 100 miles further and four knots faster. Steve, you have set the bar mighty high for the rest of us. Goodonya! * From Eric Steinberg, re: type of laser used in yacht racing: I absolutely understand peoples sensitivities from recent events, but highly descriptive words that relate to "battle" ARE used aboard racing yachts, although certainly not all. AC, Volvo and grand prix events among others (J/105s here on SF bay for example!) are all highly charged, win or be beaten examples of where friends become "enemies" on the water. That is the essence of competition. It is the rules of our sport that separate us from the NBA or boxing where inflammatory language is common outside of competition! Here's information on one that we use: http://www.yachtwire.com/laserbro.pdf * From George Bailey: I wonder why I am such an ole luddite when it comes to racing? The current US Sailing Rules contain some strange things occasionally, such as a rule against flying flags (someone please explain the need for this rule), but what they really need is a rule against devices that do the thinking for the racer (compasses are a borderline case, and I agree with the arguments that they be allowed in bouy racing, though if you can see the bouy, I think they should not be used). Why do we allow devices that make your judgements for you in cases where you can develop the skill of doing it for yourself? Why don't we value more the notion of sailing-by-the-seat-of your-pants, as it were? Being a part-time photographer, I have some old-fashioned range finders made many years ago, but I do not use them when racing. I think I should develop my ability to judge range without this mechanical device just giving me the number. So my reaction is not to the electronic nature of the tool, but to how it replaces the brain in racing. Back to the brain (ur, uh, which appears to be just the opposite of "back to the future"). * From Louis VanVoorhis, Chairman, Sailor Athlete Advisory Board: (To Scott Ridgeway): I'm glad that you have taken an interest in the Sailor Athlete Advisory Board, (S-AAB). The S-AAB has been established to comply with federal legislation of the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act and to provide better sailor representation. As the national governing body of sailing US SAILING is required to come in compliance with these laws. The laws are very clear about what the definition of an athlete most contain. You can read these through the US Olympic Committee Web Site www.usolympicteam.com under documents. The S-AAB have tried to expand the interpretation of athlete to include a greater range of sailors than the strict definition implies. I think that is appropriate, because sailing is unlike many of the other Olympic, Pan-American and Paralympic sports. It has a much more diverse constituency. I have been sailing all my life and I am very enthusiastic about getting active sailors involved with the governance of our sport. As Chairman of the new Sailor Athlete Advisory Board, I would welcome the chance to discuss the definition with you or anyone else who wants to share constructive input on how we can build a system that will accurately represent sailors within US SAILING and comply with the Federal Legislation. The sailor athlete advisory board will be meeting at the Annual General Meeting in St. Petersburg this month.
THANKS DAVE
MORE ON THE TRANSATLANTIC RECORD The Blue Riband concept began in the 1860's. A company whose ship was deemed the fastest gained publicity and hopefully business from their achievement. Whichever ship was the fastest got to fly a long blue pennant from the masthead, hence the name Blue Riband. It is interesting to look at how the speeds of these steamship progressed in relation to how the sailing speed record has progressed. In 1838 a steamship crossed the Atlantic at a speed of 10.17 knots. In 1905 the schooner Atlantic set a sailing speed record of 10.02 knots. The 14-knot barrier was cracked in 1863 by the Cunard Line ship Scotia. This paddle steamer was 115 meters/373 feet, with a displacement of 2871 tons. The Scotia ceased to sail in a 1904 wreck in Guam. A 58.5-foot catamaran broke the 14-knot barrier for sail in 1984. Nearing the 17-knot barrier was the 8000 HP steamer Alaska in 1882. This 152-meter/494 foot ship crossed in 6 days 22 hours. Jet Services V set a record of 16.71 knots in 1988. 2 years later Jet Services pushed the speed to the current record of 18.63. The steamer Eturia achieved 18.4 knots in 1885. The current Blue Riband holder is Cat Link V a 295 foot/91 Meter water jet catamaran. In July of 1998 Cat Link V crossed from New York to England at an average speed of 41.2 knots.
AND ANOTHER RECORD ATTEMPT UNDERWAY Monnet's record of 151d 19h 54m 32s was set in January - June of 2000 on his Open 60 UUNet. Van Den Heede's first attempt was stopped when his boat was badly damaged in the Southern Ocean; for this attempt he has an aluminum hull that he believes will withstand the rigors. OffshoreChallenges.com has some information in English, the official website is only in French: http://www.vdh.fr
QUOTES FROM BOATS - Volvo Ocean Race * From Rudi Rudiger, ASSA ABLOY: You never know what kind of mood old King Neptune is going to be in. Fortunately for us, he was in a great mood. He not only kept the fair winds blowing and let our only first timer off easy, but because we have been such good lads, he let us each make a four-minute phone call on the sat phone. You should have seen the crew. Like a bunch of girls going to a slumber party. I awoke to all this commotion going on in my nav station, but once I learned what was up, I had to laugh. * From Jon Gunderson, News Corp: The rules require that we send, eight minutes of video and ten still pictures off the boat each week, in addition to the daily emails. One minute of video takes 15 to 20 minutes to send off the boat and the call costs USD $10 per minute - add that up for nine months of racing!ÊWhile the weather is nice and the sailing is easy, getting the required amount is manageable, however the minute things get a little more exciting the media station becomes hard work!Ê * From Stig Westergaard, djuice dragons: At long last we are through the doldrums. And have they been long! For us they were, unfortunately not for the leaders as they screamed through with only a few hours of pit stop, leaving us, the girls, and SEB behind in the parking lot. It was good for us, the more fluky the better, and we managed to take back the 120 miles the girls had stolen from us 5 days earlier, and make contact with SEB who at one stage were in pole position. So we are back in business. * From Ross Halcrow, illbruck: Today was a bit of a milestone for us; we finally reached the half way point of this leg passing within a mile of the island of Fernando de Noronha. As we went past the island we had to do a film and video drop, off Hooray's [Ray Davies] department. We did this exchange via the Brazilian navy. We were all looking forward to a nice exchange; the films for some pizza's or candy, actually anything other than freeze dried would have worked for us. But no, it was a one-way deal, very disappointing for us. Tomorrow the 12th is a special day for me that I am going to miss. My son Jake will have his first birthday, the toughest thing being out on the water for a month is missing those special times in your children's lives. * From Brad Jackson, Team Tyco: Food rationing carries on but we have a 2 full days of food starting tomorrow before we go back into saving again. A few of the boys starting to need belts for their shorts so Cape Town's food establishments should do well from this fleet.
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