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SCUTTLEBUTT 1862 - June 17, 2005
Scuttlebutt 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.
OPENING DAY
With more countries than the America's Cup Challenger series has ever seen,
the immediate focus for the opening days of Act 4 and 5 will undoubtedly be
on the newcomers and the smaller teams. Among them two emerged from a day's
racing with a point on the score board that they hadn't expected. For the
United Internet Team from Germany, a win over the French K-Challenge was a
bigger success than they could ever have imagined. To add to the feelings
of success, today was the first time that a German team had ever taken part
in an America's Cup race and to win the second of their races after just
seven days afloat was clearly a huge boost to the team. "We never
anticipated a win in Act 4 or 5 but now we want more," said skipper Jesper
Bank. "Onshore the team celebrated like we had just won the event. It was a
good kick-start for our campaign."
Interestingly, the Spanish team Desafio Espanol were also celebrating an
early point, winning their match against the Bank and his team in the race
before the German victory. Ian Percy's 39 team appear to have put some of
the demons behind them from last season (where boat handling was their
biggest issue) and scored a point against the South African Team
Shosholoza. Unfortunately, the South African's appear to have taken a few
big steps backwards since learning so much last season. As the first team
to build a version 5 boat they appeared to have their plan under control. -
Excerpt from a story by Matthew Sheahan on the Yachting World website, full
story: http://tinyurl.com/bsvzc
FLIGHT 1
Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL 82) beat K-Challenge (FRA 60) - delta 0:50
Luna Rossa Challenge (ITA 74) beat Mascalzone Latino - Capitalia Team -
delta 3:24
Desafío Español 2007 (ESP 67) beat United Internet Team Germany - delta 1:59
BMW Oracle Racing (USA 76) beat Victory Challenge (SWE 63) - delta 0:51
+39 Challenge (ITA 59) beat Team Shosholoza (RSA 83) - delta 5:24
Alinghi (SUI 75) beat China Team (CHN 69) - delta 6:48
FLIGHT 2
Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL 82) beat Mascalzone Latino-Capitalia Team -
delta 2:27
United Internet Team Germany (GER 72) beat K-Challenge (FRA 60) - delta 1:02
Luna Rossa Challenge (ITA 74) beat Desafío Español 2007 (ESP 67) - delta 1:12
Victory Challenge (SWE 63) beat +39 Challenge (ITA 59) - delta 1:51
Alinghi (SUI 75) beat Team Shosholoza (RSA 83) - delta 3:34
BMW Oracle Racing (USA 76) beat China Team (FRA 69) - delta 1:39
POINTS LEADERBOARD
Alinghi - 2
BMW Oracle Racing - 2
Emirates Team New Zealand - 2
Luna Rossa Challenge - 2
Victory Challenge - 1
+39 Challenge - 1
United Internet Team Germany - 1
Desafío Español 2007 - 1
K-Challenge - 0
Team Shosholoza - 0
Mascalzone Latino-Capitalia Team - 0
China Team - 0
QUOTE / UNQUOTE
* "We know what our errors were, we will work on it to improve
immediately."- Dawn Riley, K-Challenge General Manager
* "We had no damage or dramas, although in both our matches the boats got
very close to each other in the pre-starts. There was no contact, but we
were pretty nervous at times." - John Kostecki, BMW Oracle Racing skipper
and tactician
* "I'd say we were quite lucky today because we had a good draw and the
pairing list put us up against some teams which have not had many
opportunities for practice yet, so we were pretty lucky today". - Peter
Holmberg, Alinghi helmsman
* "Races like this are tough mentally. We like to be able to control our
destiny. And in the light the boat in front is in control." - Dean Barker,
Emirates Team NZ Helmsman
THIS WAS NOT IN THE BROCHURE
Campbell River, B.C. - The sailors in the fifth edition of the Cadillac Van
Isle 360 were met with adverse conditions, 25 knots and extremely lumpy
seas made even getting to the start a challenge. For the first time ever in
the history of this event, the starting sequence was delayed by 15 minutes
to allow most boats to get out to the start. Unfortunately for the HMCS
Oriole, the wind kept her pinned to the dock and she was unable to complete
this leg under the rules.
When the wind picks up so does the carnage. Cheekee Monkee, modified F31
trimaran, lost two crew, the skipper, Kim Alfreds and Mike McGarry off the
aft crossbeam during an accidental gybe, leaving only two onboard to affect
a rescue. The two on board were highly experienced and even though the main
sheet got away and ran through the blocks they were able to get control of
the boat and recover the crew. It was a tense 15 minutes, however, and four
boats came to offer assistance. All four boats were awarded redress for
their efforts.
The ID 48, Flash had their gooseneck ripped off their carbon mast during a
gybe. Upon lowering the mainsail the balls from their batcar system rained
down upon the deck. Bad Kitty, 35 foot catamaran, lost a rudder but they
had two and still went on to take first place sailing on only one rudder
and currently stand in first place overall. - www.vanisle360.com
LINE STRETCH IN THE REAL WORLD
Do you know what the load is on a J/24 halyard, or how much it'll stretch?
New England Ropes knows. Like high-tech, low stretch products such as
Vectran and Dyneema. Their line stretch chart shows exactly how much
stretch a main halyard will see in 15 knots of breeze. Grand prix racing
can boil down to a game of inches. At New England Ropes, they design and
develop products that help you control that game. Visit www.neropes.com to
see the "real world" impact of stretch on line. Or contact them at
1-800-333-6679. Others make line. NER makes line perform.
ON TOP OF THE WORLD
British sailing, which has been on top of the world at Olympic level for
the past eight years, received another boost with the opening of a national
training centre in Weymouth, Dorset, that matches the best in the sport
worldwide. The Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy, which was
formally opened by the Princess Royal, will serve as a national centre of
excellence and will host the 2012 Olympic regatta, if London wins the right
to stage the Games. The Weymouth facility is on the site of a former Royal
Navy helicopter base, where £7.85 million, principally funded by the
National Lottery through Sport England and the South-West Regional
Development Agency, has been spent creating shoreside facilities, including
slipways, a boat hoist, storage areas, dinghy and car parks, lecture rooms,
a fitness centre, clubhouse and restaurant. - Edward Gorman, The Times,
full story: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,4041-1647937,00.html
FRANCO MANZOLI'S COTONELLA WINS OSTAR
At 0441 local time in Newport, Rhode Island, Franco Manzoli sailed
Cotonella through the finish line to win the Faraday Mill Ostar 2005,
completing the course in 17 days, 21 hours, 41 minutes. For virtually the
entire race, Cotonella has been in third place behind Spirit and the long
time leader Branec IV. But, Manzoli, who chose early-on to sail a northerly
course, has for the last week benefited from sticking to his course over
the closing stages - having wind on his stern all the way to the finish line.
Following the dawn arrival of Cotonella, there was only a gap of some nine
hours before the arrival of Roger Langevin in Branec IV. Roger was in turn
followed only two and a half hours later by Piere Antoine in Spirit. This
is one of the closest finishes in OSTAR history. The skippers of the two
French yachts had spent a frustrating final night plagued by fickle winds
offshore, whilst the Italian skipper of Cotonella, Franco managed to sneak
in from the North keeping closer inshore and finding a good breeze enabling
him to snatch victory from the two French rivals grasp. -
http://www.faradaymillostar2005.co.uk/
NEWS BRIEFS
* To help deliver his Andrews 70 Renegade from Vancouver, B.C. to the
Transpac Village in Long Beach, Dan Sinclair picked up nine amateurs
responding to an eBay offer to join the delivery crew for $1200 each. None
of them had been offshore before. It was quite a trip, with 15-foot seas
and 50 knots of breeze for 8-hours before it moderated to 30 knots. At
times the green water went all the way back to the mast. After the Transpac
Race, three professionals will take the boat from Hawaii back to Vancouver
- with a new group of recruits.
* Sail America Executive Director Scot West has given notice to announce
his resignation, effective July 31. West, who has served in this capacity
since November 2000, will be pursuing another venture in the sailing
industry. In his nearly five years of association management, West has been
directly involved in numerous initiatives. He was part of the successful
integration of the Sail America - NMMA affiliation, and oversaw the
recently united national branding of sail-only boat shows. The Sail America
Board of Directors is underway on a recruitment effort to replace West. -
www.sailamerica.com
* Zack Leonard, Ken Legler, Mike Kalin, Isabelle Kinsolving, Kevin Burnham,
Elizabeth Kratzig, Anthony Kotoun and Brad Read are among the 18 coaches
who will be working this weekend with 93 young sailors in 3 classes, picked
by resume from all over for the North America Sail Newport Advanced Racing
Clinic. The 3 ½ day program consists of lectures and on-the-water drills
with an emphasis on boatspeed, and will introduce the possibilities of
Olympic Class Sailing to this, the next generation of superstars in our
sport. The Sail Newport Advanced Racing Clinic is held in Lasers, Laser
Radials and Club 420's. - www.sailnewport.org
* Grupo Leche Pascual, the Spanish-owned dairy group, is now an Official
Supporter of the 32nd America's Cup. Grupo Leche Pascual is a family
company whose core business is the production and packaging of milk,
yogurts and other dairy products along with fruit juices, mineral water and
other foods and drinks. Grupo Leche Pascual will be the exclusive sponsor
for yogurts and fruit juices to the 32nd America's Cup. - www.americascup.com
* The Valencia-based porcelain company Lladró has become a sponsor of the
China Team for the 32nd America's Cup.
* Sir Francis Chichester's famous yacht, Gipsy Moth IV, is to sail again
after more than 37 years in concrete dry-dock at Greenwich, London
following Yachting Monthly magazine's two year campaign to save the famous
vessel. After a complete refit, costing £300,000 at Camper & Nicholson's
Gosport, where she was originally built in 1966. Gipsy Moth IV will be
re-launched next Monday. The yacht was craned out of her concrete dry-dock
at Greenwich on November 17 last year, after 37 years enduring London's
acid rain. - http://www.bymnews.com/new/content/view/14001/57/
* Anglo Irish Bank PLC today announced a one-year title sponsorship deal
with the Irish Sailing Association (ISA). Under the terms of the agreement,
Anglo Irish Bank becomes the title sponsor of the ISA for one year. Among
the events that the bank will host are the Anglo Irish Bank Topper European
Championships, the Anglo Irish Bank Etchells European Championships and the
Anglo Irish Bank Helmsman's Championship of Ireland. The ISA will use the
funds available through the sponsorship to develop the organization, build
the sport of sailing at a grass-roots level, and improve the marketing of
its products and services. - The Daily Sail subscription website,
www.thedailysail.com
* In June 1975 - 30 years ago - Eric Goetz Custom Sailboats came to life in
Bristol RI. Goetz build #1 was an Art Paine designed cold molded 28 footer.
Today, #96 Formidable (Lutra IRC56) is about to go race Cowes Week and #95
Pegasus Racing (Farr TP52) gearing up for the Transpac Race along with #97
& #98 to begin construction this August. - www.goetzboats.com
* Qingdao will be the sole Chinese stopover and will sponsor one of the ten
yacht entries for the Clipper 05-06 Round the World Yacht Race. The Chinese
stopover is scheduled for mid February 2006, with the fleet of identical
68ft racers berthing in Qingdao for eight days, before heading to the
Japanese port of Yokohama and onto Victoria BC in Canada on the fifth race
leg. Qingdao will also host the 29th Olympic sailing events in 2008. The
35,000 nm race begins on 18 September 18, 2005 from Liverpool (UK) and
returns some 10 months later. - www.clipper-ventures.com
OCKAM WIRELESS SOLUTION
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solution. The OS4 Eye Software for your pocket PC PDA. View multiple pages
of instrument data, control the system & track trends on stripcharts - all
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through the boats PC using WiFi to give you full control anytime, anywhere
on the boat. It's time to make your PDA more useful then ever. Limited Time
Special: Purchase a copy of the OS4 Eye software and receive a free EYElid
(weather proof PDA cover). Visit http://www.ockam.com or contact
mailto:lat@ockam.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 Brett Phillips: I don't know how it works in all sports but as a
former Collegiate Swimmer, "All-American" is based on your finish at the
National Championships! All-American is a quality issue - not quantity.
However, Scuttlebutt has elected Bryan Lake and Jennifer Warnock of the
University of Hawaii to All-American Status. In any other year, the
Champions would soon be forgotten, yet now, we have read their names over
and over and over. This alone will do more for them in the long run than
another faded certificate on the wall.
* From Scott MacLeod, AA in 83, 85, 86: So this kid won A division at the
Nationals for the third year in a row sailing from Hawaii?? Winning A
division is huge but should not be an automatic. However, you have to
weigh-in that he is sailing from Hawaii. There aren't many opportunities,
time or money to travel from Hawaii to the big intersectional on the East
coast. He's probably lucky he could fly the 10 hours to the Nationals and
he probably had to pay his own way. If he was sailing regularly on the
college circuit and didn't achieve anything then I would agree. However, it
looks like he came in and kicked everyone's 'butt for the third year in a
row. He should be acknowledged for that achievement alone.
* From Clifford Bradford: Is a satellite phone really an acceptable
substitute for an SSB? A sat phone can't broadcast can it? Surely that's
extremely useful in case of an emergency. If Minis can't carry SSBs then
race organizers should just make an exception for them. Regarding the 1988
America's Cup there was indeed a defender selection series as DC's team had
a soft-sailed catamaran trial going against the wing-sailed boat. There
wasn't formal racing but they sailed against each other extensively.
* From David Gill: I used a Satellite Phone on a Pacific crossing in 2001
and found that it worked fine in replacing the SSB. I had an SSB Receiver
and the Sat Phone. I never had any problems with reception on the Sat
Phone, but the SSB at times, had a very difficult time with reception. The
Sat phone is much smaller and I found it to be very reliable. Another added
advantage is that the Sat Phone was portable and could therefore be taken
onboard a life raft if necessary. The only draw back was the small number
of them being used, which made direct communication between vessels over
large distances limited. As the proportion of vessels that use Sat phones
go up and Sat phone costs go down, I see no reason to rely on, or require
an SSB for any race.
* From Ken Quant: Satillite Phones are certainly not a replacement for SSB
radios. During a recent crossing of the Atlantic from the Tenerife to
Antigua, we carried two Globalstar sat phones aboard as our only long range
communication equipment. After just one day of sailing we were unable to
obtain a usable satellite connection for over nine days. This caused
unnecessary concern at home and left us incommunicado for that entire
period. Thankfully it never happened, but if there had been a serious
problem we mine-as-well have been Columbus out there. Sat phone are great
when they're working, but don't count on them when crossing oceans!
* From Sean Duggan: I sail in Boston Harbor and live within site of the
Everett LNG terminal. Some of the "sky is falling" rhetoric on the issue of
LNG tankers sailing up Naraganset bay should be taken with a grain of salt.
I've read comments about bridges being closed for an hour, mooring fields
being cleared and the harbor being "closed" for extended periods of time. I
can tell you that in Boston, none of that is true.
The reality is that a LNG tanker arriving in Boston is not that much
different than any other large commercial vessel. Yes, the Tobin Bridge
closes but only for about 5 - 10 minutes. Yes, racing fleets must stop and
keep clear but that is true for any large commercial vessel passing through
the harbor. No, no mooring fields are cleared, despite what the regs say.
The reality is that it's just not that big of a deal. About once a week a
LNG tanker passes fairly quickly through the harbor and everyone then goes
about their business. It's been that way for years. If these facilities get
built in Naragansett bay it will not be the end of the world.
* From Edward Fryer: Again, we see a news story pertaining to be about The
Little America's Cup. Unfortunately, the LAC is sailed in C Class
catamarans. Now that the ICCT has abandoned these amazing boats, it no
longer has any moral right to use the name "Little America's Cup". It's the
ICCT, and nothing else.
Curmudgeon's Comment: This reference to the 'Little America's Cup' was in a
paid ad - we never refer to the ICCT as the 'Little America's Cup' in our
editorial copy.
* From Marilyn Mower: If you haven't written yet to members of the Senate
Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation to express concern over
Sen. Santorum's bill (S.786), please do so. I received the usual canned
mumbo jumbo from my Florida senators, but a pilot friend in Washington
State received a genuine response from his senator Maria Cantwell, who
happens to be on the committee that will review Santorum's bill. The
following is directly lifted from her letter:
"If enacted, this broad legislation would not allow NWS to provide a
product or service that can be provided by the private sector, unless the
information is necessary to protect "life and property," or the Secretary
of Commerce determines that the private sector is unwilling or unable to
provide such a product or service. For example, if the legislation is
strictly interpreted, there exists a potential that the NWS would no longer
be allowed to produce weather monitoring products for use by general aviators."
Can the general sailing public consider better treatment? No. We already
pay for the weather service employees -- keep free weather info accessible
to all!
Curmudgeon's Comment: This seems like a good place to end this thread …
which is now officially dead.
CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATIONS
"Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant.'
- Robert Louis Stevenson
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