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SCUTTLEBUTT #477 - January 7, 2000NATIONAL SAILING LEAGUESuccessful businessmen like Doug DeVos have a knack for making things happen. Take for example, the One-Design 48 class, which although somewhat short-wicked, filled an important niche outside of the America's Cup where mostly professional teams could regularly battle in big, one-design boats at major sailing venues. The 48s have been collecting dust since their last gathering in Baltimore last spring, but DeVos has devised a loftier plan-the sport's first National Sailing League. Could this be sailing's equivalent of the NFL, the NHL, or the perhaps NBA? Others involved with NSL organization include its president and CEO, Linda Lindquist. Linquist's consulting company will lead the formation of the league and its organizing body. Hartwell Jordan, serves as vice president of operations and industry relations. According to Jordan, the league's 2000 circuit will feature eight teams competing on 1D48s. Three of those teams, which will be announced in the coming weeks, have already signed three-year deals. The deals, organizers say, will provide the continuity necessary for the league's long-term growth. -- Dave Read, Grand Prix Sailor CURMUDGEON'S COMMENT: If I print any more of this story, Sailing World editor John Burnham will undoubtedly take me off of his Christmas Card list. However, this is a story you want to read in its entirety, and you can. It's up now, or will be soon, on the grand Prix Sailor website: http://www.sailingworld.com BTW -- I've already taken Hart Jordan off of my Christmas Card list for not sending 'Butt a release on this. OPEN CLASS In the 1996/7 Vendee Globe Challenge there were three instances when boats capsized and remained fully inverted with their keels intact. So what were the factors involved in these last three capsizes? Why did they occur? And what can be done to help prevent it happening again? For their length the Open class boats (either Open 60s or Open 50s) are the most powerful monohulls afloat. The most high tech examples are built completely in carbon fibre/Nomex sandwich. The lightest, Yves Parlier's Aquitaine Innovations, is said to weigh just 7 tonnes (compared to 13.5 tonnes for a Whitbread 60) and their acreage of sail is huge - Aquitaine Innovations flys around 280sqm upwind and 480sqm downwind, compared to 200sqm and 417sqm for the Whitbread 60s. The hull forms and keel arrangements of the top boats are also very 'powerful' with beams of up to 6m and drafts of up to 4.5m (compared to 5.25 beam and 3.75m draught for a Whitbread 60). In addition to this Open class boats derive a considerable amount of additional horsepower from their movable ballast. The Open class has pioneered the use of this - be it the recent hydraulically-operated canting keels or water that can be pumped up to large tanks in the boat's beam ends. Again the Open class has allowed more extreme use of this: the 7 tonne Aquitaine Innovations can have 4 tonnes of water pumped up to weather while a 13.5 tonne Whitbread 60 is only allowed 2.5 tonnes. Open 60s are unquestionably more powerful than Whitbread 60s, but this in itself does not make them more dangerous. They are lighter and therefore the loads are less than on a Whitbread 60 and considerable work has also gone into making the deck layout suitable so that they can be handled with relative ease by one person. However saying this, in Formula One motor racing, there came a point in their history when the cars became too powerful, too uncontrollable, too dangerous and so to prevent further deaths, the organisers behind the sport decided to limit their power. There is a strong argument that this moment has arrived with the Open classes. -- Yachting World magazine Full story: http://www.yachtingworld.co.uk/ LOUIS VUITTON CUP SEMIS If you're looking for close racing, go no further than Race 4 of the Louis Vuitton Cup semifinals. Fantastic weather conditions returned to the inner Hauraki Gulf today and produced two excellent match races featuring tacking duels, lead changes and penalty turns. Revelling in the 10- to 12-knot winds, today's matches -- AmericaOne vs. Nippon and Prada vs. Le Defi Bouygues Telecom-Transiciel -- were decided by a total of 41 seconds. AmericaOne skipper Paul Cayard has made a living out of turning slim margins into big wins, and did so again today with a 23-second victory against Japan's Nippon Challenge. AmericaOne's third win of the semifinals moved the team from San Francisco into a tie with idle Team Dennis Conner for the top spot in the semifinals. Both teams have three points. In the day's other match, Italy's mighty Prada Challenge returned to the winners' circle after a two-race losing streak, with its come-from-behind victory against Le Defi BTT. Prada overcame two penalties and a 14-second deficit at the second windward mark to keep alive its chances of advancing to the Louis Vuitton Cup finals. The Italians evened out their record at 2-2, pulling into a tie with Nippon (whom they are scheduled to race tomorrow), while France remains winless in four races and saddled with a negative .5 total after being penalised by the international jury last night. Amid the exciting action on the water, Team Dennis Conner remained backed into its shed on syndicate row as repairs to the transom scoop continued. Although AmericaOne pulled even points-wise, Team DC still has an undefeated record at 3-0. The two teams are slated to square off tomorrow for the outright lead. -- Quokka Sports website, http://www.americascup.org/ AMERICAONE BEAT ASURA - DELTA 00:23 This was a great match, especially early on. After the traditional dial-up, Peter Gilmour on Asura (JPN-44) led Paul Cayard's AmericaOne (USA-61) on a reach away from the Committee Boat. Gilmour broke back for the start line first to start on the left side, but Cayard hit the line with more speed. It was a real fight to the top mark with neither boat able to cross clear ahead. AmericaOne carried a small lead around the weather mark by virtue of tacking on the layline earlier. On the first run, Gilmour pressed hard, at times establishing an overlap, but he couldn't close enough and Cayard still led at the bottom mark. AmericaOne benefited from a small left shift on the second upwind leg and stretched a little further downwind. The final circuit was more comfortable for Cayard, who was never really threatened, although he never pulled more than 30-seconds ahead. LUNA ROSSA BEAT LE DEFI - DELTA 00:18 Bertrand Pace on Le Defi (FRA-46) and Francesco de Angelis on Luna Rossa (ITA-45) had an almost even start. Bertrand Pace started on starboard tack to windward of Luna Rossa. On the first beat Luna Rossa defended the left. At the top mark the Italians led by 13 seconds. On the first run the French showed better speed and after a split gybe converged clear ahead, gybing to windward of Luna Rossa. The Italians then came up from leeward, and clear astern, creating an overlap with both boats on starboard tack. De Angelis luffed Pace but he had no rights, and the Umpires assessed a penalty under rule 17.1 to the Italians for holding the French from gybing for the bottom mark. Luna Rossa was given a second penalty in accordance with rule C10.3b because they gained such a big advantage from the first incident. Luna Rossa had to take one penalty turn immediately allowing Bertrand Pace to take the lead. The French defended that lead on the second beat with success. It was still a very close race, the French defending their lead by 14 seconds at the top mark. On the next run Luna Rossa did a good job of fighting the French downwind speed advantage. The Italians stayed close and at the bottom of the third beat Luna Rossa split to the right of the course. At the next cross Luna Rossa, with the right of way, was in the lead by half a boat length, the French suffering from trim tab failure. Torben Grael, Luna Rossa's tactician, picked the shifts well and with Le Defi damaged, the Italians showed superior boatspeed. He first defended the right and later switched to the left side, increasing his lead significantly. Three quarters of the way up the final beat, Luna Rossa had enough of a lead to unwind its second penalty turn. On the final run to the finish the French were unable to really threaten Luna Rossa, despite Bertrand Pace's best efforts. -- Peter Rusch, Simon Keijzer, Louis Vuitton Cup website, http://www.louisvuittoncup.com/ INTERNATIONAL JURY -- Dennis Conner's Stars & Stripes won the first race of the Louis Vuitton Cup Semi-Finals with a rudder built in Australia, the International Jury learned at a protest hearing last night. The Jury convened after Japan's Nippon Challenge lodged a protest alleging that Stars & Stripes had contravened Article 19 of the America's Cup Protocol which essentially requires that appendages be constructed in a challenger's country of origin, or in New Zealand. Nippon Challenge's Asura, skippered by Peter Gilmour lost the opening match to Stars & Stripes. The same night, the Jury was told, Conner's shore team exchanged the offending rudder, which had been installed after the end of the Third Round Robin, and replaced it with one of American manufacture. The rudder was built at McConaghy Boats in Sydney Australia, to a design by Stars & Stripes designers Reichel/Pugh, with materials shipped from America, the Jury learned. It was originally intended to be used during Round Robin Three, but it did not arrive in time Addressing a press conference this afternoon, Bryan Willis, Chairman of the International Jury said: "We will handle the procedural matters in relation to whether the protest is valid. If there is a matter to be interpreted, we would pass that to the Arbitration Panel. I have been informed that they will act expeditiously in getting a quick answer. All the members happen to be in town." Gilmour refused to be drawn on whether he wanted a point for the disputed race, or whether he wanted it resailed: "We're not sure what will come out of that," he said. "We really just want to find out what the situation is going to be. It is up to the Jury themselves to decide what the outcome will be." Questions about the changes to Stars & Stripes first emerged a day after the boat had been remeasured. Afterguard member Peter Isler deftly parried media questions then by saying: "We knew this question might come up so we had a couple of flippant answers but the real answer is you have to talk to DC (Dennis Conner). It's a very subtle change and hopefully it will pay off in the long run." The question now before the Arbitration Panel, and ultimately the International Jury, revolves around Article 19 of the Protocol. It reads: "Providing a Challenger's yacht arrives in New Zealand with appendages (including foils, bulbs, canards, etc.) designed by a national and manufactured in the country of the Challenger, further appendages may be constructed in New Zealand for that yacht provided they have been designed by a national of the country of the Challenge." -- Keith Taylor, Louis Vuitton Cup website, http://www.louisvuittoncup.com/ SEMIFINALS STANDINGS (1 point per win) 3 pts - USA 55 (Stars & Stripes) 3 pts - USA 61 (AmericaOne) 2 pts - JPN 44 (Asura) 2 pt - ITA 45 (Luna Rossa) 1 pts - USA 51 (America True) -.5 pts - FRA 46 (6eme Sens) NEXT SCHEDULED RACES: Prada / Nippon AmericaOne / Team Dennis Conner France / America True LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON (leweck@earthlink.net) Letters selected to be printed are routinely edited for clarity, space (250 words max) or to exclude personal attacks. But only one letter per subject, so give it your best shot and don't whine if people disagree. -- From Bill Menninger -- Love the Americas Cup Coverage, as far as the coverage goes. The photography is great. It's also great to hear the onboard comments from the sailors. I wish we could hear more. Gary Jobson could ad a little more color on the match racing rules. For instance, there was no comment on the leeward mark rounding with Stars and Stripes and the French. Did the Stars and Stripes force it's way into the mark outside of two boat lengths on port tack? The issue was never brought up. I agree with David Voss that the A Cup ads could be an exciting montage of the actual racing highlights. A little frustrating as the producers cut away from the racing at critical times. Something that would be interesting in my view would be to hear from some of the crewmembers of the boats. Ie. what sort of sacrifice they made to be there in New Zealand for the last year and a half. Are they bored or excited? Just how hard are these boats to sail. Where has their sailing improved, what sailing will they do after the cup, what are the lodgings like, do they stay together as a team off the water, etc. If they spent a little time with the crewmembers, they wouldn't have to screw up the coverage at 2 minutes before the start with a list of the crew names emblazoned on the screen blocking the most interesting maneuvers of the race -- From Stacie Straw -- I agree with Dave Voss' comments about ESPN's promo, it's truly embarrassing! Non-sailing friends of mine have laughed outright at it. I was inspired by Dave's message and sent ESPN my comments this morning -- a montage of the Hauraki Gulf carnage -- sails blowing out, collisions, masts breaking. -- From Anna Stockel -- Thank you so much for saying something!!! It's worse than dumb, it's ignorant too. How about showing some of the great match racing sequences where the boats are smacking each other? There has been so much great action that there is plenty to chose from. -- From Alan Trimble -- Two quick notes from the ESPN compound in Auckland: First, many of us here working hard to deliver our best work cringe when we see the ads that David Voss mentioned. Big companies often have very different groups building different things; the team down here builds all the show elements live - and works very hard on blending the NZ culture and feel into the racing. Our daily "tease" blending the Maori haka with daily racing highlights is a three hour project from 5-8pm each race day... for less than two minutes of air time. The advertisements came from another group back in the States - and we saw them for the first time after we got down here to work. There is no connection between how this event is covered and how it is promoted. Second, we will air a short feature tonight showing the kids down here, in their P Class boats, crawling all over the Team NZ ACC boats in an impromptu chance of a lifetime. We sailors in the US should look at this and think very hard about how we need to change our junior programs; Team NZ provided complete access to their top secret boats to a huge crowd of very, very happy young sailors as a spontaneous act of goodwill on a race day where everyone was floating around with no wind. -- From Joe Dervin (re 'Do people in Australia call the rest of the world "up over"?') Yes, they absolutely do. Having traveled to Oz for both business and pleasure, and having had the good fortune to be able to get out on a race (or at least an evening sail) on every visit, I count many friends down there. I communicate with several regularly by e-mail, and usually begin my messages "Greetings from Up Over". VENDEE GLOBE 2000 Record breaking, round the world yachtsman, Mike Golding, and 1998 BT/YJA Yachtswoman Of The Year, Ellen MacArthur, have both confirmed their entries into the Vendee Globe 2000, single-handed, non-stop, round the world yacht race, the most extreme yachting challenge known to man. They are up against top professional skippers such as France's Catherine Chabaud, but both MacArthur & Golding are favourites to win. The first Vendee Globe was in 1989/90. Since then the race, held every four years, has been dominated by French yachtsman and yachtswomen. On 5th November 2000, in Les Sables D'Olonne, France, twenty of the world's top professional skippers from 6 different countries will set sail, singlehanded, to race non-stop, around the world, attempting to beat Christopher Auguin's existing record of 105 days, 20 hours, 31 minutes set in 1996/97. Mike Golding, 39, has a sailing career spanning more than 20 years. In 1993/4 he beat Sir Chay Blyths solo, non-stop, circumnavigation record by 125 days, setting a new and still existing world record of 161 days. In 1996/7, as skipper of Group 4 in the BT Global Challenge round the world race, Golding and his crew won five out of the six legs and took the Princess Royal Trophy for winning the race overall. Golding will compete in the Vendee Globe 2000 on board Team Group 4, a state-of-the-art Open 60', designed by Groupe Finot and built of pre-preg carbon and Nomex sandwich by JMV Industries in Cherbourg. Most recently in October 1999, with co-skipper Ed Danby, Golding competed in the Transat-Jacques Vabre race from Le Havre to Cartagena, Columbia finishing in third place overall and beating the existing record by over four hours. Ellen MacArthur, 23 year old, 1998 BT/YJA Yachtsman of the Year, will be the youngest and only British female entering the Vendee Globe with her Kingfisher Challenge 2000 campaign. Her yacht, the principal designers of which are the Owen Clarke Design Group, will be the last and most awaited Open 60 footer to be built for the Vendee. Named 'Kingfisher', Ellen's Open 60' is currently under completion at Marten Marine in Auckland, New Zealand, and due for launch in the Spring. Ellen shot to fame when she won her class in the 1998 Route du Rhum transatlantic race in an Open 50' monohull 'Kingfisher', the same boat raced by Pete Goss in the 1996/7 Vendee Globe. Honoured in France and in the UK as 1998 BT/YJA Yachtsman of the Year, in 1999 Ellen won the Round Europe race with French solo professional Yves Parlier, and competed in the Fastnet, Laser 4000 Eurocup and Transat Jacques Vabre. -- Mark Turner Websites: http://www.kingfisherchallenges.com or http://www.offshorechallenges.com BOTY Newport (R.I.) January 6, 2000 - On Wednesday, January 19, the winners of the 2000 Boat of the Year (BOTY) Awards--the "Academy Awards" of sailboat design and construction, presented annually by Sailing World and Cruising World magazines--will be revealed at an evening gala at the Ocean Life Center at Historic Gardner's Bay (Atlantic City, N.J.). For the first time, a website splash will simultaneously announce the BOTY Award winners. The 2000 BOTY presentation takes place on the eve of the opening of Sail Expo, an all-sail boat show held January 20-23 at the Atlantic City Convention Center. Beginning last fall, an independent panel of experts conducted a rigorous round of sea-trials and dockside inspections to select the standout designs launched this year. Candidates ranged from 12 to 55 feet in overall length. On January 19, the 2000 Cruising World Overall Cruising Boat of the Year and the 2000 Sailing World Overall Performance Boat of the Year will be revealed to gala attendees and website visitors. Eleven other designs will also be recognized as the best of the year. To follow the awards announcements via the web, visit http://www.sailingworld.com or http://www.cruisingworld.com on Wednesday, January 19, beginning at 8 PM. -- Cynthia Goss RACE INSIGHT Mark Rudiger, winning navigator in the 1997-1998 Whitbread Round the World Race, will share his racing experiences as they happen during the upcoming 3545 mile from Capetown, South Africa to Rio De Janeiro, Brazil ocean race. The start is scheduled for January 8th, with Mark calling into his TeamRudiger website every day as he navigates onboard the 75-foot sailing yacht 'Zephyrus IV'. Reporting while racing across oceans has become Mark's trademark, telling it like it is, whether he is winning or losing. During last summer's Los Angeles to Honolulu Transpac race there were over 2500 TeamRudiger website accesses daily, with viewers listening to Mark explain why they had lost the lead and how they were battling back. Mark and TeamRudiger have been tuning up their website for visitor enjoyment, not only for the audio reports, but also as the online headquarters for Mark's official challenge in the next Volvo Ocean Race Round the World (formally the Whitbread). To follow Mark on the 'Zephyrus IV: http://www.teamrudiger.com Official race website: http://www.capetorio.com QUOATE / UNQUOTE Peter Gilmour, skipper of Asura, on AmericaOne's starting abilities: "AmericaOne, we have noticed, has a very good style in the pre-start and they can accelerate very easily from a slow speed up to full speed very quickly. That's the nature of their boat." Francesco de Angelis, on the advantages of onboard Umpires: "I believe in some situations they can help. At least you know what the Umpires are thinking. So, you can play in the most conservative way. Also sometimes, the situations happen so quickly that it also takes time to receive the point of view from the Umpire on the boat. And maybe the time you have to make a different choice is already gone." Bryan Willis, on Umpire review sessions: "After every day's racing the Umpires come in and prepare a computer program which describes all the interesting incidents of the day and then we invite all the representatives of all the challengers and the defenders to come and attend that debrief when we run through those scenarios and we answer questions, and so on. The defender's representatives have been there since the beginning of Round Robin One. Part of that agreement is that when we umpire the defender races, albeit practise races, that we will do the same thing, we will put the scenarios up and both challengers and defender will be debriefed in the same way." More quotes on the Louis Vuitton Cup website: http://www.louisvuittoncup.com/ FITTING TRIBUTE Here's a website that pays fitting tribute to Laser Great Grand Master Peter Milnes who passed away last July: http://www.roostergraphics.com/drlaser/indexPM.html THE CURMUDGEON'S CONUNDRUMS Why do they lock gas station restrooms? Are they afraid someone might clean them? |
