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SCUTTLEBUTT 2449 – October 9, 2007Scuttlebutt is a digest of major sailing news, commentary, opinions,features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus. Scuttlebutt is distributed each weekday with the support of its sponsors. US OLYMPIC TRIALS (October 8, 2007) The US is the only country in the world that selects its Olympic and Paralympic sailing candidates by hosting a single trials event, and it is all on now for 176 entrants in 13 of the 14 classes (Yngling has a separate system). From October 6th through the 14th, there will be a 16 race, one throwout series for all classes except the 49er, which has scheduled a 24 race, two throw-out event. Here is the report from the third day of racing: * The west coast trials in California were battling wimpy winds that left the Finns in Newport Beach without any racing and the Stars in Marina del Rey with only one race completed. Light winds were sufficient in Long Beach (470 and RS:X) to remain on schedule, with scores getting tighter in all classes except for the 470 Men, where the resounding consistency of Stuart McNay/Graham Biehl have helped to foster a 12-point lead. The San Diego site (Tornado and 49er) got all their races in as well, with the top Tornado teams remaining deadlocked after six races, and the top ranked but “left for dead” 49er team of Morgan Larson/Pete Spaulding rebounding with a triple bullet day. -- Complete report: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/07/1008.htm * The east coast trials in Rhode Island rattled off two races on all courses, which were marked by strong teams exerting themselves on the competition. Andrew Campbell (Laser), Anna Tunnicliffe (Laser Radial), and Nick Scandone/ Maureen Mckinnon-Tucker (SKUD 18) all enjoyed a double bullet day, which has significantly improved their chances at claiming the trials title. Winds on the Laser/Radial course were in the teens with a surfable swell, but the winds faded hard at the end. The Paralympic course saw slightly lighter winds. There is promise of a front coming through Monday night and a forecast that calls for north winds on Tuesday in the high teens at noon with gusts as high as 25 knots. -- Complete report: http://www.ussailing.org/olympics/OlympicTrials/news/news_11.html * It was reported in Issue 2448 that the 470 Men and Women would be racing together but scored separately. This was wrong, as both divisions are racing together AND being scored together. Racing continues Tuesday before the reserve day on Wednesday. Olympic Trials West - preliminary results Star (19 entrants; after six races) 1. Mark Mendelblatt/Magnus Liljedahl, 3-3-1-8-1-3, 19 2. John Dane III/Austin Sperry, 1-10-6-2-8-1, 28 3. George Szabo/Andrew Scott, 2-1-11-7-3-4, 28 49er (13 entrants; after nine races) 1. Tim Wadlow/Chris Rast, 1-2-1-1-3-1-(4)-3-3, 15 2. Dalton Bergan/Zack Maxam, 2-4-3-4-1-2-2-2-(14/OCS), 20 3. Morgan Larson/Pete Spaulding, (14/OCS)-1-2-2-9-14/OCS-1-1-1, 31 Tornado (6 entrants; after six races) 1. John Lovell/Charlie Ogletree, 2-1-1-2-2-1, 9 2. Robbie Daniel/Hunter Stunzi, 1-2-2-1-1-2, 9 3. Colin Merrick/John Sampson, 4-3-5-3-4-4, 23 Finn (42 entrants; after four races)* 1. Darrell Peck, 4-4-1-3, 12 2. Zachary Railey, 1-2-12-1, 16 3. Geoffrey Ewenson, 2-3-10-4, 19 * Light winds prevented races on October 8th 470 Men (8 entrants, after six races)* 1. Stuart McNay/Graham Biehl, 2-2-2-2-1-2, 11 2. Mikee Anderson-Mitterling/David Hughes, 5-1-6-3-4-4, 23 3. Keith Davids/Brad Rodi, 1-9-8-8-5-7, 38 * 470 Men and Women race and get scored together 470 Women (5 entrants; after six races)* 1. Amanda Clark/Sarah Mergenthaler, 4-3-1-6-3-3, 20 2. Erin Maxwell/Isabelle Kinsolving, 9-7-5-5-2-1, 29 3. Molly Carapiet/Molly O'Bryan, 7-8-4-7-7-8, 41 * 470 Men and Women race and get scored together RS:X Men (7 entrants; after six races) 1. Michael Gebhardt, 2-3-1-2-1-2, 11 2. Benjamin Barger, 8/RAF-1-2-1-2-1, 15 3. Robert Willis, 1-2-5-3-6-3, 20 RS:X Women (6 entrants; after six races) 1. Lisa Kremer, 1-2-2-4-4-1, 14 2. Nancy Rios, 2-4-1-3-2-2, 14 3. Farrah Hall, 4-1-4-1-3-3, 16 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Olympic Trials East - preliminary results Laser (33 entrants; after six races) 1. Brad Funk, 3-2-2-9-4-2, 22 2. Andrew Campbell, 4-4-1-20 -1-1, 31 3. Clay Johnson, 1-1-4-15-2-8, 31 Laser Radial (22 entrants; after six races) 1. Anna Tunnicliffe, 1-1-1-3-1-1, 8 2. Paige Railey, 2-2-2-1-2-2, 11 3. Sarah Lihan, 3-3-3-4-4-6, 23 Paralympic Trials - preliminary results 2.4mR (4 entrants; after five races) 1. Mark Bryant, 2-1-2-3-2, 10 2. Mark LeBlanc, 4-2-1-1-3, 11 3. John Ruf, 3-3-3-2-1, 12 SKUD 18 (5 entrants; after six races) 1. Nick Scandone/ Maureen Mckinnon-Tucker, 3-1-1-1-1-1, 8 2. Karen Mitchell/ JP Creignou, 1-4-2-2-2-2, 13 3. Scott Whitman/ Julia Dorsett, 2-2-3-3-3-3, 16 Sonar (6 entrants) 1. Rick Doerr/Tim Angle/Bill Donohue, 1-1-1-7/DSQ-3-2, 15 2. Paul Callahan/Roger Cleworth/Tom Brown, 4-2-3-1-1-4, 15 3. David Schroeder/Keith Burhans/John Pucillio, 3-4-2-3-2-5, 19 => Complete Results: http://tinyurl.com/38sxec => Complete Report Index: http://tinyurl.com/3cwatb => Photos: http://tinyurl.com/2kmaoj * For those readers that have become accustomed to Scuttlebutt’s typical distribution time of 6pm PT, delays are anticipated during the course of the US Olympic trials so as to provide the most current information from each day. SALUTING THE US OLYMPIC AND PARALYMPIC COMPETITORS Harken and McLube wish to congratulate all athletes competing in the US Trials. We admire your commitment to excellence, your drive to constantly improve and to ultimately realize your full potential. We at Harken and McLube are so grateful to have you as our partners as we continue to focus on the cutting edge of product development. We greatly appreciate your input, your opinions, and valuable feedback. Good luck to all athletes competing in the US Trials, and may you achieve your “personal best” performance in this great regatta. For athlete interviews and feedback, please click on http://www.harken.com/speedteam/speedteam.php CANADA’S CUP AT A GLANCE The Canada’s Cup will see Royal Canadian Yacht Club in Toronto, Ontario attempt to defend the cup against challenger Macatawa Bay Yacht Club, led by Bob Hughes of Michigan, in a match race event held at RCYC on October 12-15. This edition of the event will be sailed in Farr 40s, and will be for the supremacy of match racing on the Great Lakes between Canada and the U.S. Here is a report by the defender: The 2007 Team RCYC defender boat Honour will be skippered by Alek Krstajic, with a crew made up of an excellent combination of top young high performance Club sailors and world renowned professional sailors. Such high performance sailors will be shortly announced. The professional sailors are the America’s Cup sailors - Gavin Brady (Team Oracle), Cameron Dunn (Team Mascalzone Capitalia), John Ziskind (Team Oracle) and John Cutler (Team Desafio Espanol) who will be involved but not racing. This year’s defense is founded on the great legacy of the Cup, the future for new high performance match racing sailors in our Club and an all out effort to win. In making all this happen, Alek Krstajic views the most important factor to the success of the program is coming up with the right combination of sailors and support staff/ volunteers. He has selected the professionals, not only for their impressive sailing resumes, but also for their commitment and dedication to the objectives of Team RCYC’s program. They will be ambassadors for the cause and coaches, mentors and crew for Team RCYC, especially for the future advancement of our new high performance Club sailors who are very important for our Club’s longer term success in subsequent Canada’s Cup Championships. “I believe it is crucial for the Club, as a leading yacht club, to continue our great Canada’s Cup traditions and to have our next generation in the forefront of the future Canada’s Cup history,” Alek remarked. -- Read on: http://tinyurl.com/2tmcwx OPTI-MAZATION Little Johnny and Susie wanted to learn to sail, and you did the right thing by enrolling them in your club’s sailing program. They met friends, enjoyed summer days on the water, and over time, progressed through the ranks of the program. You weren’t much of a racer, mostly spending time gunkholing about the local coves, but you would join your pals for an occasional beer can race. Your kids, on the other hand, were really into it. They trained with the Optimist racing program at your club, and starting to travel to local events. They were getting pretty good, but their gear was holding them back. While at dinner one night, Johnny said, “Dad,” I think I need a new Optimist boom. I am getting killed in the breeze, which makes no sense since I am heavier now. My coach thinks that the 32mm section is bending too much now, and that for my weight I need a stiffer tube. The way I am growing, I am now worried that moving up to the 40mm isn’t going to last too long either. Can we call up the dealer and get a 45mm section on order?” Dad had dropped his fork, hearing his son talk metric, and wondering whatever happened to this simple, four-cornered, junior trainer that his kids had learned to sail in. Au contraire my dear, the Optimist has gone high tech, with boom stiffness now being matched to sailor size. Here is the scoop from the McLaughlin Fall 2007 Newsletter, which discusses the reasoning why they offer four different diameters of booms: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/blog/2007/10/opti-mazation.html PREPARING FOR THE BIG EVENT Recently, many people have asked me my thoughts on the voodoo of winning pre-events. This year my team and I were fortunate enough to win the Lightning Europeans, and a week later, we got second in the Worlds. Later this summer, we won the flight qualifiers for the Lightning North Americans before getting second again at the NAs. Was it a jinx? After the Europeans and qualifiers, we felt ready to win the big regatta. These pre-events got our game ready, earning us confidence in both our skills and our familiarity with the sailing site. We sailed them as we would the big event and we sailed the big event the same way we did the pre-events. But did these pre-events use up our Mojo before the big dance? I really don’t think we did. The difference between winning and second was only a few points. I was/ am very pleased with how we sailed in those four events. We sailed with amazing intensity and focused very hard to sail as well as we could. Winning the Europeans was an accomplishment in itself. One thing we focused on was to sail each race the same, work hard, and do the best we could. In 2006, Matt Burridge, won the North Americans qualifier and won the event going away, all while defending his title. Was he afraid of the jinx? I guess not, and neither were we. -- Allan Terhune, Jr. ON THE WATER AT THE OLYMPIC TRIALS As the Olympic hopefuls battle it out in the Lasers and Laser Radials off Third Beach in Middletown, RI, a sight that has repeated itself hundreds of times this summer continues. Ever present, but always in the background, Ribcraft RIBs are there supporting the sailors - from the mark boats and the US SAILING Team's coach boat, on down to the private coaches and spectators. Providing the optimal platform for setting marks, coaching, or just watching the races, Ribcraft is the official RIB of US SAILING and the US SAILING Team. Ribcraft wishes all the Olympic hopefuls the best of luck! http://www.ribcraftusa.com SAILING SHORTS * One of Australia's veteran sailors and a medal prospect ahead of next year's Qingdao Olympics, Yngling keelboat class sailor and two-time Olympian Nicky Bethwaite has been dealt a blow after breaking both arms in a mountain bike accident last Friday. The Australian sailing team for Beijing will be announced in Sydney on October 18 and Bethwaites name was expected to be amongst them. 'Nicky Bethwaite's situation is an unfortunate accident. The Australian Sailing Team is currently seeking medical advice to ascertain the extent of her injuries,' Yachting Australia chief executive Phil Jones said. -- Sail World, full story: http://tinyurl.com/3xwlx9 * The minutes of the GBR IRC Committee meeting on September 21st are published on the RORC website: http://www.rorcrating.com/IRC%20Committees/GBRmin70921.pdf * Trieste, Italy -- Ten one-design RC 44’s will line up on the starting line of the Barcolana Cup on Wednesday October 10, for what will be the biggest and most competitive RC 44 regatta to date. Participating in the seventh regatta of the RC 44 Championship Tour will be internationally known sailors such as James Spithill, Dean Barker, Cameron Appleton, Russell Coutts, Mateusz Kusznierewicz, Adrian Stead, and Jesper Radich. Designed by three-time America’s Cup winner Russell Coutts, together with Slovenian naval architect Andrej Justin, the RC 44 is a light displacement, high performance One Design intended for fleet and match racing events. -- http://www.rc44.com/en/regattas/news/index.php?idContent=677 * Trapani, Sicily - Against a star-studded line-up of skippers from the last America’s Cup, including the two Danish helmsmen, Jes Gram Hansen and Jesper Raddich, the Australian James Spithill and the Italian Paolo Cian, TEAMORIGIN’s Ben Ainslie, Iain Percy, Matt Cornwell and guest Gabriel Bruni competed in and won the 2007 Trapani Cento Cup, a Grade One ISAF Match Race Regatta held last weekend. Trapani, on the extreme western tip of the Italian island of Sicily, was the site in October 2005 for Acts 8 & 9, a pair of build-up regattas used for the last America’s Cup. -- Full release: http://www.teamorigin.com/da/62076 * The Sailing World College Sailing rankings as of October 2, 2007 find Boston College moving up from third to lead the Coed division, while St Mary ’s continues their hold on top of the Women’s division. -- Full rankings: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/07/1008 * T2P.TV was in Annapolis, MD for the US Sailboat Show 2007, the largest in water sailboat show in the world, where their footage (12:38 minutes) includes a look at the boats, the products, and the people. -- http://www.t2p.tv/guide/freeviewers/usss07b.php * North Point Yacht Sales is the new mid-Atlantic dealer for new J Boats and for the MJM powerboat line. North Point is led by Annapolis-based sailors Ken and Jennifer Comerford, taking over the sales organization formally known as J/Port Inc. -- Complete story: http://bluesailboat.typepad.com/floatline/2007/10/north-point-ram.html RECORD-SIZED FLEET FOR J/105 NORTH AMERICANS The boat that ignited the spritboat revolution in 1992 continues to sparkle with record turnouts at one-design events across North America. Sixty-six boats are entered for the class championship hosted by Annapolis Yacht Club, November 1-4. New 2008 model J/105s are available for spring delivery. http://www.jboats.com LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON Letters selected for publication must include the writer's name, and may be edited for clarity or simplicity (letters shall be no longer than 250 words). You only get one letter per subject, so give it your best shot, don't whine if others disagree, and save your bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere. As an alternative, a more open environment for discussion is available on the Scuttlebutt Forum. -- Scuttlebutt Letters: editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com -- Scuttlebutt Forum: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/forum * From Hugh Elliot, Alexandria, VA: I am not sure that the America's Cup is a great sailing event, but it is an absolutely top class soap opera. Keep up the coverage. * From Ed Lenihan: I think Cory Friedman should be the mediator!! * From Karl Keesling: Should EB and LE agree to mediation, which is unlikely, who better to be the mediator than Cory Friedman? * From the Forum: I'm intrigued by the Cal 32, a 1936 design by Nicholas Potter. The boats are close, but not the same as the S&S NY 32. There were eight built, but I know of the existence of only six. Anyone know where Tempest and Escapade are and their condition? -- Post all replies here: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=5369 * From Michael Rosenauer: As a prior owner of USA 57, I read the piece on renaming the Mumm 30s with great surprise (in Issue 2448). To some of us in San Francisco, the great boat design will not be renamed or rebranded in much the same way that some still call the 49ers’ football stadium south of the city Candlestick and the Giants’ baseball park PacBell. * From Richard Roberts: Here are my two cents on the number of races issue. I’ve been a Laser sailor since 1972 and, in our world (I know we can be complainers), I think the biggest problem is RCs wasting time. A few years ago, I decided to put my money where my mouth was and volunteered to run our annual weekend dinghy regatta. I felt people wanted their money’s worth – as many quality, fair races as you could get in. Here is what I have found works: 1. Get the RC on the water with the course set by the scheduled start time 2. Don’t waste time trying to set a perfect line – get it close and go! 3. Give them one try at a start and then move to the Z flag. 4. Give a short break between races and get the next one off. 5. Have a separate finish line (we use the trapezoid course with an upwind finish that I learned from the Laser Master Worlds) 6. Do things with a sense of urgency – e.g. move marks quickly The last few years we’ve managed to get 7 races in for 4 classes over two days and I haven’t had a tiller chant yet. * From Chris Ericksen: Paul Nardone, Jr., asks some good questions in 'Butt 2448 about the racers who think the race committee is wasting time between races. As a regular racer and an equally regular race officer, I can say unequivocally that most race committees are happier when the racing is underway; if we have enough staff to take finishes without having the entire committee writing, we can use the time of the last leg to reset the course and get ready for the next race. And the good ones do what Mr. Nardone apparently does: we ask the racers what kind of race they want and do our level best to run the races they want. Mr. Nardone wonders about the sailors who condemn the race committee for starting just before a shift, or didn't read the NOR and SI's. I don't know who the sailors on his courses are, but I find the most vocal complainers are often those who rarely, if ever, give up a day of racing to serve on the race committee. I invite every single racing sailor to do just that: not only will they get a chance to understand better what happens on the race course when they are racing, they'll get a good idea of the challenges faced by the race committee--and maybe even the right to complain. * From Sir David Tompkins QC, member of the Arbitration Panel for the 30th and 31st America’s Cups: (regarding the report in Issue 2444) The decision of the America’s Cup Jury in case ACJ036 against Simon Daubney is unfortunately lacking in several respects. First, it does not set out the charge against Daubney nor does it contain the rule he is alleged to have breached other than referring, without specifying its contents, to the Anti Doping Rules of the 32nd America’s Cup as amended on 9 April 2006. Secondly, although it refers in some detail to the burden of proof, it does not set out what must be proved to establish a finding of breach of the relevant rule. Thirdly, although the decision records that the Jury has jurisdiction to assess whether Simon Daubney breached the Anti-Doping Rules, it does not state whether he did breach those rules, ie whether he is guilty or not guilty. Fourthly, it concludes that the Adverse Analytical Finding was not caused by the negligence of Simon Daubney, but does not state whether that finding means that he should be acquitted of the charge. Finally, it states that the ISAF has jurisdiction in respect of a penalty, which seems to imply, although there is no express finding, that he is guilty of the charge. These defects suggest that it is unsatisfactory to have such a serious charge determined by a Jury that appears to be lacking in judicial experience. -- Post any reply or additional comments here: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=5363 CURMUDGEON’S CONUNDRUM If you had X-ray vision, and you could see through anything, wouldn't you see through everything, and therefore actually see nothing? Special thanks to Harken and McLube, Ribcraft RIBs, and J Boats. |
