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SCUTTLEBUTT 2143 - July 24, 2006Scuttlebutt is a digest of major yacht racing news, commentary, opinions, features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus.ROGUE WAVES The storm was nothing special. Its waves rocked the Norwegian Dawn just enough so that bartenders on the cruise ship turned to the usual palliative — free drinks. Then, off the coast of Georgia, early on Saturday, April 16, 2005, a giant, seven-story wave appeared out of nowhere. It crashed into the bow, sent deck chairs flying, smashed windows, raced as high as the 10th deck, flooded 62 cabins, injured 4 passengers and sowed widespread fear and panic. “The ship was like a cork in a bathtub,” recalled Celestine Mcelhatton, a passenger who, along with 2,000 others, eventually made it back to Pier 88 on the Hudson River in Manhattan. Some vowed never to sail again. Enormous waves that sweep the ocean are traditionally called rogue waves, implying that they have a kind of freakish rarity. Over the decades, skeptical oceanographers have doubted their existence and tended to lump them together with sightings of mermaids and sea monsters. But scientists are now finding that these giants of the sea are far more common and destructive than once imagined, prompting a rush of new studies and research projects. The goals are to better tally them, understand why they form, explore the possibility of forecasts, and learn how to better protect ships, oil platforms and people. The stakes are high. In the past two decades, freak waves are suspected of sinking dozens of big ships and taking hundreds of lives. The upshot is that the scientists feel a sense of urgency about the work and growing awe at their subjects. “I never met, and hope I never will meet, such a monster,” said Wolfgang Rosenthal, a German scientist who helped the European Space Agency pioneer the study of rogue waves by radar satellite. “They are more frequent than we expected.” Drawing on recent tallies and making tentative extrapolations, Dr. Rosenthal estimated that at any given moment 10 of the giants are churning through the world’s oceans. -- William J. Broad, NY Times, full story: http://tinyurl.com/q7ekm ADJUSTING TO A NEW RACE FORMAT With new regatta formats there are always drawbacks and kinks in the beginning. The new format used recently at the 2006 470 Europeans is a variance, or interpretation of the new Olympic top ten final race format. It consists of 5 days of qualifying followed by one day of finals. Fleets are not split into: gold, silver, bronze, emerald, until the last day. Additionally, the gold fleet is only the top ten. The new format presents new challenges due to the 5 days of qualifying. With the fleet split into three to four groups (depending on number of entries), and with the boats in each group changing daily depending on results, it becomes very difficult to race everyone equally as groups rotate racing against each other. It was very typical at the Europeans to find oneself either in very stacked groups or relatively weaker group. While this problem can be eliminated with enough races in qualifying, without enough races in qualifying it inherently becomes unfair (light winds at Europeans prevented completing the full race schedule). The old format used the same system of qualifying as the new format, but there were only three days of qualifying. These races determined the final fleet divisions (ie, gold, silver, bronze, emerald), which would remain unchanged for the next three racing days for the finals. Then, on the very last day there is a final race only for the top ten (aka, the Medal Race), which almost separate from the actual event… kind of like a bonus round. The new format provides added pressure on points throughout the series as scores are counting three to four times their actual value (ie, with 3-4 qualifying groups, multiple boats are getting 1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc.). As a result, conservative tactics to achieve consistent scores have been replaced by more aggressive, risky tactics to vie for only top scores. While we struggled in the Europeans to adapt to this new style of sailing, all teams - including ourselves - will need to make game plan adjustments to succeed at future events. - Mikee Anderson-Mitterling, #1 ranked US 470 skipper RACE WEEK AT NEWPORT NEWPORT, R.I. (July 23, 2006) – For the over 700 sailors who competed this week at New York Yacht Club Race Week at Newport presented by Rolex, today’s final races were an ideal ending to a perfect regatta. A variety of boats, nationalities and sailors were represented across seven one-design classes, where North American championships were determined in the Beneteau First 36.7, Farr 40 and J/109 classes. Additionally, those three winning skippers were also awarded a Rolex Steel Submariner timepiece for their overall performance: Takashi Okura (Tokyo, Japan) in the Farr 40 class; Tom D’Albora (E. Greenwich, R.I.) in the Beneteau 36.7 class; and Jon Halbert (Dallas, Texas) in the J/109 class. The newly named Farr 395 North American Champion is Roger Wagner of Upper Saddle River, N.J. And the inaugural Melges 32 National Championship was won by Jeff Ecklund (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) on Star. Tom Coates dominated the J/105 class with 18 points over second-place Indefatigable, owned by Phil Lotz. Over 160 boats competed in the fifth running of New York Yacht Club Race Week presented by Rolex. The biennial event hosted 66 entries in the four-day “first half,” devoted to IRC, PHRF, Classic Yacht and 12 Meter racing. Full results of each class along with photos can be found online at http://www.nyyc.org. Video produced by T2P TV can be viewed at http://www.t2p.tv compliments of Rolex Watch U.S.A., which has been the exclusive presenting sponsor of NYYC events since 1994. -- Media Pro Int’l COUNTDOWN TO KEY WEST … ONLY 175 DAYS Countdown the days and mark your calendar for Acura Key West 2007! Racing sailors around the world are making plans for the annual January reunion in sailing paradise. Premiere Racing has finalized the Notice of Race, and 2007 will be a very special year for North America’s premiere keelboat regatta. The 20th edition of Key West Race Week (Jan 15-19) will again feature top-tier competition, professional race management, and ideal conditions. Acura Key West 2007 highlights include the first-ever PHRF National Championship. For PHRF information, invited One Design and IRC classes, past results, forms, and planning details visit: http://www.Premiere-Racing.com MATCH RACING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP TOUR Chris Dickson pipped Magnus Holmberg within yards of the finish line to win the $100,000 Portugal Match Cup, Stage 1 of the 2005-’06 World Match Racing Tour. Shifty conditions with gusty 10- to 15-knot winds were challenging for the finalists. Dickson streaked to a 2-0 lead before Holmberg battled back to even the score 2-2, setting up a one race, winner-take-all finale. In a race with two lead changes, a penalty and slick boathandling, Dickson won by less than half a boat length. He won $35,000 in prize money and is the early leader in the World Championship standings. The 2006-’07 World Championship will be a series championship among the World Tour events. Dickson, skipper and CEO of the BMW Oracle Racing Team for the America’s Cup, raced with Zack Hurst, Jann Neergaard, Kazuhiko Sofuku and Paul Westlake. Reigning Tour champion Peter Gilmour won the Petite Final by 2-1 over Jes Gram-Hansen, Mascalzone Latino - Capitalia Team, which placed fourth. -- Sean McNeill Final Results: 1. Chris Dickson (NZL) BMW Oracle Racing, 13-4, $35,000 2. Magnus Holmberg (SWE) Victory Challenge, 11-6, $20,000 3. Peter Gilmour (AUS) PST, 8-6, $15,000 4. Jes Gram-Hansen (DEN) ML - Capitalia Team, 8-8, $8,000 5. Mathieu Richard (FRA) Saba Sailing Team, 8-7, $7,000 6. Chris Law (GBR) The Outlaws, 6-8, $6,000 7. Thierry Peponnet (FRA) Areva Challenge, 6-4, $5,000 8. Staffan Lindberg (FIN) Alandia Sailing Team, 3-6, $4,000 Event website: http://www.WorldMatchRacingTour.com SAILING SHORTS * King Harbor YC from Redondo Beach, California was the only US team in Semi-Finals of Balboa YC Governor’s Cup junior match race regatta, but they took the top prize. The last American teams to win this event were in 1999 and 2000, and both times the winning skipper was Colin Campbell from King Harbor YC. This year’s team from KHYC was made up of Steven Natvig, Alex Jacobs and Blake Smisko. Second place went to Australia’s Royal Perth YC, third to the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron, and fourth to the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia. http://www.balboayachtclub.com * Former Hobie 16 Open North American champion crew Tyler Myers sailing with Ryan Mazzeo has won the Hobie 16 Youth North Americans at Sandy Hook Bay Catamaran Club in Atlantic Highlands New Jersey. Matt Perkins, another Hobie crew all star turned skipper, finished second sailing with Mike Iames. T.J. Tullo and Niki Kennedy, past 420 North American Champions, finish third. The Women's Hobie 16 NAs result appeared clear from the beginning. Susan Korz, recent ISAF World Sailing Games Bronze medallist, sailing with Diane Bisesi won the event with all bullets. -- Full results and pictures will be posted at http://www.fleet250.org * More than 170 boat owners are losing their space at the Ala Wai Small Boat Harbor (in Honolulu) because of deteriorating safety conditions at three docks, officials said yesterday. "The docks are 40 years old and in disrepair, with patches on top of patches. They just can't be repaired anymore. They have to be replaced," said Richard Rice, state administrator for small boat harbors. Combined with other docks and berths either condemned or awaiting repair throughout the harbor, the latest closures mean more than 300 spaces in the 699-slip harbor will be unavailable for use. -- http://tinyurl.com/g62tx * Dutch skipper Peter de Ridder, resident in Monaco, and his mainly Emirates Team New Zealand crew of the TP52 Mean Machine-Mutua Madrilena not only won the top award in the Breitling Trophy Regatta, but now also head the overall standings on the season-long Breitling MedCup standings. Steve and Fred Howe’s Warpath, steered by Dean Barker, finished second overall, while the Russell Coutts steered Lexus of Jaime Yllera and George Andreadis finished third, marking their first podium finish of the season so far. * Last week it was reported that funding had been secured to complete the restoration of the 1885 schooner yacht Coronet at the International Yacht Restoration Schoo in Newport, RI. Thanks to D.B. Tanner, the Scuttlebutt website has some images of the 133-foot Coronet shortly after she moved into a building that the school had erected. - http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/06/0720/ * Nick Nicholson, Practical Sailor Editor-at-Large, member of the Volvo Ocean Race Rule Management Group, and international racing navigator, has been selected to chair the next (46th) Bermuda Race, starting from Newport Rhode Island on June 20, 2008. Nicholson served as vice-chairman for the record-breaking centennial race that saw 264 yachts at the start in Newport. * The Thistle Class Association is sponsoring a raffle for hull #4000. A maximum of 500 tickets will be sold for $100 each. The winner will receive a ready to race Thistle, with trailer and all rigging (without sails or covers). For rules and an entry form, visit the Thistle Class web site at http://www.thistleclass.com/articles/raffle.pdf * Kojiro (‘Koji’) Shiraishi, the sole Japanese entry in the Velux 5 Oceans is currently making last minute preparations before setting off on his 2000 nautical mile qualifying passage enabling him to be eligible for the race. Koji and his team have spent the last two months based in Normandy, where they took delivery of Koji’s Finot-designed Open 60, Spirit of Yukoh, from Dominique Wavre (the ex-Temenos). On Monday Koji plans to set sail from Cape Verde, on his single-handed qualifying passage to Cherbourg, France. He hopes to arrive in France around two weeks later. * With 95 teams from 24 nations due to contest the Group 4 Securicor 49er European Championships, The long range forecast suggesting the fleet will get a mixed bag of easterly and westerly breezes. With racing scheduled to take place both on the flat water of Portland Harbour and the rolling swell of Weymouth Bay, the regatta will provide an interesting insight into the sailing waters of the Olympic Regatta in 2012. Perhaps this is why so many non-European entries are converging on Weymouth, with teams coming from as far afield as Brazil, the USA and Hong Kong. -- For results: http://www.9erchamps2006.com * Thanks to Rich Roberts for providing images from the Lido 14 Nationals, which was held in one of the most sacred of California sailing sites Huntington Lake. Few lakes provide consistently great racing conditions as Huntington Lake, and when you add in the warm temperatures, mountain scenery, and the clean air you find at 7,000 feet, it makes for a great regatta. Photos: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/06/0722/ THE WORLD ISN’T ROUND Beginning on July 29th it will be Radial. The best Radial sailors in the world converge at the California Yacht Club, Marina Del Rey, CA for the 2006 Laser Radial World Championships. Vanguard is proud to be a sponsor and supplier of the event. For reports and results visit http://www.teamvanguard.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. You only get one letter per subject, so give it your best shot and don't whine if others disagree. And please save your bashing, and personal attacks for elsewhere. For those that prefer a Forum, you can post your thought at the Scuttlebutt website: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi) * From Adrian Morgan: Before we get too misty-eyed, let's examine America's record. How many serious races did she take part in? How many did she win? What was the competition? The answers: six; two and lousy. In 1852 she raced for the Queen's Cup; Mosquito, a 60ft cutter built in 1848, beat her. At Cowes in 1861 she was soundly beaten by the 20-year-old Alarm. In her last race under Baron Ardkill's ownership she trounced Sverige, built to challenge her, but only after the Swedish schooner, leading by nine minutes, carried away her gaff. This is not to decry her status. She routed a British fleet in the year of the Great Exhibition. But any handicapping would have resulted in defeat. Stevens then took Ardkill’s £5000 and ran, making a modest profit on his European gamble (literally). America was hardly tested. Stevens couldn’t believe his luck. As a boat she was a disaster: by 1859 she was rotten. Flat cotton sails? British sailmakers had been experimenting with flat cut flax sails for 20 years. When Madge was shipped to New York in 1881 local yachts replaced their cotton with loose-footed flax, so successful were they. When America was refitted in 1859, she was given flax sails. America was a wonderful sea boat, a fine pilot boat. But compare her record to the King's yacht Britannia’s. In 635 races over 40 years she won 231 firsts out of a total of 360 prizes. Please don't elevate America to a superstar without examining the facts. * From Ray Tostado: Add to Mr. Hoyt's comments the new sports reality show: Championship Daarts coverage on ESPN. I guess the cable sports network feels they can muster more sponsors than sailing programs because the program features on camera smoking and drinking. (Darts are generally played in pubs.) And, realistically, the logistics are at about a 300:1 cost ratio savings over a world class match race. Coverage: dart board; contestant #1, contestant #2; crowd. Oh, throw in a master shot of all of the above. * From Lenore Collins: Dr. Laura's 20 footers are Harbor 20's. They are in my opinion the best boat out there. I have raced and sailed with people from 2 months old to 86 years old, by myself or with half a dozen. You can put someone on the helm who has never been on a boat before and have them sailing in minutes. Obviously there is more to sailing but the fun starts immediately. You rarely get bruised or wet. The boats are sensitive and balanced, and fast. They were used for the Championship of Champions in 1996. Some of the sailors were concerned. "What do you mean we have to sail with cushions and cannot hike out," were comments heard around the dock. At the end of the day, they couldn't believe how even the boats were, how tactical and fast. That means fun.They are great boats for daysailing and racing. W. D. Schock has done a fantastic job. Some might think I am biased, I worked for Tom Schock, but come down to Newport Beach and race with us. Bring a friend who has never been sailing. * From Allan Johnson: While I have tremendous respect for Dr. Garry Hoyt, like his "Hoyt Jib Boom" and very much miss his "Need for Speed" articles from Sailing World, I must disagree that we need another single handed boat. The sunfish, laser radial or the other 15 similar boats should do just fine to get a singlehanded adult out on the water. What a singlehander wants is more singlehanders out sailing with him/ her, and we do that by building big classes. * From Peter O. Allen, Sr.: I saw OLN's program of ACT 12 and came away with mixed feelings. As an experienced racer I felt that the coverage was pretty good, if somewhat truncated to fit into the abbreviated format. But sailors with racing experience constitute a very, very small population. If my non-sailing brother or neighbor watched the program, I'm sure they would have been either overwhelmed or simply confused. In the end, I suspect that such a short show, trying to show the highlights of any sport's competition at the top levels, would be equally confusing. Ultimately, I hope that viewership was sufficient the justify the continuing support of advertisers and the efforts of OLN to justify carrying shows such as this. * From Bernie and Susan (edited to our 250-word limit): Surely the word "race" at the very least implies a contest of two entities that have something in common with the race emphasizing that specific commonality as the prime variable to be contested. When The America’s Cup was contested by the multihull versus the monohull you must have realized that this was not a race but a farce. The essence of racing involves people using their abilities (mental and physical) to compete against each other with all other variables equalized. Emphasizing" inequality" such as new sails frequently or dry-sailing for hull superiority enhances the probability of Winning rather than the fun of Racing. You can certainly construe the referenced advantages as technology and that this technology is most directly the product of a fat checkbook. But this "technology" you seem to admire has apparently caused Marblehead, Ma. the loss of more than 50% of its 1970's one design fleet. Seriously now ... would you really be thrilled if you won a "race" in your Etchells by "beating" me in my Interclub dinghy? I have to admit that I know people who would be thrilled to "win" since they seem to think that winning is the essence of racing and buying trophies still begets the trophy. How unfortunate. Finally, I've noticed an enormous decline in the post fun in various fleets since the 1970's which I believe can be related to the emphasis on winning and buying superior technology. CURMUDGEON’S OBSERVATIONS Beauty is only a light switch away Special thanks to Premiere Racing, Sailing Pro Shop, and Vanguard Sailboats. |
