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SCUTTLEBUTT 3228 - Monday, November 29, 2010Scuttlebutt is published each weekday with the support of its sponsors,providing a digest of major sailing news, commentary, opinions, features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus. Website: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com Twitter: http://twitter.com/scuttbutt Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/sailingscuttlebutt RSS: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/rss/index.xml Today's sponsors: Mount Gay, Kaenon, and LaserPerformance. SAILING COMPETITION: BUSINESS OR PLEASURE? By Carol Cronin, Author/Olympian The Snipe Women's World Championship was my final 2010 regatta, and after a slow start and a strong finish, we finished fifth. On the way home, I started wondering: Why do we compete, anyway? "Is your trip for business or pleasure?" the airline agent asks. Seems like an easy question, but for me (on my way to another international regatta), it's a complete conundrum. "Business" would imply I'm getting paid to go sailboat racing. And whatever my motivation for high level competition, money ain't it. "Pleasure," on the other hand, implies vacation. Sleeping late, a mid-morning breakfast that morphs right into an early lunch. Naps under a beach umbrella, afternoon cocktails. None of those will be part of the week ahead. "Is there a third option?" I ask the agent. (Hopefully this question doesn't automatically land me on some terrorist watch list.) Looked at rationally, the high level sailing I do makes no sense. I take off time from work and home life to travel to events that offer no financial reward, adding stress to my otherwise quiet life. The night before racing starts I'll have trouble slowing my heart rate below the revved-up thumping of a sneaker in a dryer. The next morning, I'll wake up way too early, my brain churning through stupid questions. Will we have time to get the boat launched ahead of the crowd? Will I get off the starting line? Will the new mainsheet run smoothly? Will the conditions be in line with the forecast? What should I wear? The thing is, all that lost sleep is totally worth it. Because only a few hours later when we push off the dock, those stupid questions will be left ashore with all other non-racing aggravations. My brain will start to tingle with the focus of sailboat racing, anticipating all the day's decisions - good, great and otherwise. I revel in pure single-minded potential, every race morning. -- Read on: http://www.boats.com/blog/2010/11/sailing-competition-business-or-pleasure/ Snipe Women's Worlds photos: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/10/1120 KIWIS VICTORIOUS AT LOUIS VUITTON TROPHY DUBAI Dubai, UAE (November 27, 2010) - Racing in its second home, Emirates Team New Zealand won the Louis Vuitton Trophy Dubai today, defeating the USA's BMW Oracle Racing in two straight races. The victory concluded an incredible performance by the team from Auckland, New Zealand, which over two years won four of five Louis Vuitton Trophy events and finished second in the other. Both finalists dispatched their semi-final opponents 2-0. The American team BMW Oracle Racing beat the French/German team All40ne while Emirates Team New Zealand defeated Italy's Mascalzone Latino Audi. Races. Before the knockout round, the American team was nearly faultless during the round robin series, going 13-2 with the second ranked Kiwis at 9-6. "We kinda saved our best 'til last," observed managing director Grant Dalton. "Oracle have been the form boat for the whole regatta. We came out today with determination knowing that on our day we are good enough but we would really need to produce." Asked about the secret to his team's success, Dalton said: "It's a team that lives on the smell of an oily rag. Everyone buys into the culture and the way we operate. We're not frivolous at all. You can't spend a hundred dollars without a requisition order for me. And in a funny sort of way that helps to build our culture." -- Full story: http://tinyurl.com/LVT-112810 Final Ranking: Louis Vuitton Trophy - Dubai (Team, Country, Helm, Tactician) 1. Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL), Dean Barker/Ray Davies 2. BMW Oracle Racing (USA), James Spithill/John Kostecki 3. Mascalzone Latino Audi Team (ITA), Gavin Brady/Morgan Larson 4. ALL4ONE (FRA/GER), Sebastien Col/John Cutler 5. Synergy Russian Sailing Team (RUS),Francesco Bruni/Rod Dawson 6. Artemis (SWE), Cameron Appleton/Iain Percy BACKGROUND: This was the final event of the Louis Vuitton Trophy series, which was launched in 2009 to be a cost-effective format for match racing competition in Version 5 America's Cup Class boats. Event website: http://www.louisvuittontrophy.com/home/ JUMP ON BOARD. LET THE WIND FILL YOUR SAILS! "You can't change the wind, you can however adjust your sails." Mount Gay Rum has launched Sailing Spoken Here, for sailors like you. Have you unleashed your passion yet? Well here's your chance to create and discuss a replay from the latest regatta you attended, or to connect with fellow sailors getting ready for the most notorious winter sailing events. Here you can receive the sailing tips that can advance your skills and prepare you for the unexpected. If you want to talk sailing, talk here. It's about time you joined the conversation: http://www.sailingspokenhere.com CREW WEIGHT RULES CONUNDRUM There was commentary last week in Scuttlebutt regarding how certain one design classes include a crew weight rule. The intent of such a rule is to allow boat owners to sail with the same crew regardless of the wind conditions. A classic example is the Etchells class, which had allowed crew weight to be unrestricted. But when Dennis Conner dominated the 1991 Worlds in San Francisco with a combined crew weight of 818 pounds (818/ 3 crew = 273 average), they soon instilled a 285 kilo maximum (628.3 lb). It was noted how competing teams in the Melges 32 class might diet before the crew weigh in, and then gain the body weight back during the regatta. Since the performance of a Melges 32 is closely connected to its crew's hiking ability, being a heavy crew is a bonus. On the surface this practice of sailing over the class crew weight maximum would seem unethical. But what last week's report did not note was how the class rules do not deem this practice illegal. Here are the two relevant sections in the Melges 32 class rules: --------------------------------------- Section C - Conditions For Racing The crew and the boat shall comply with the rules in this section before the preparatory signal and, when applicable, whilst racing. These rules may not be checked as part of fundamental measurement. It is the Owners responsibility to see that his boat complies with the class rules and relevant RRS at all times and that alteration, replacement or repairs to the boat do not invalidate the measurement certificate. C.7.2. Weights The total crew weight on board while racing shall not exceed 629kgs. This weight shall be taken with the crew dressed in normal underclothes only. Crews shall only be weighed during the registration period prior to racing. Re-weighing shall only take place if a valid protest shows that the pre-race weights were false. The Owner shall be allocated a weight of 104kgs., the Owner may choose to weigh in. --------------------------------------- As was noted last week, the 2010 Melges 32 World Championship allowed for crew weight to be measured as far as nine days before the first race, allowing teams with the opportunity to increase their crew weight before racing began. However, based on the rule, as long as the crew weight information was accurately recorded, and the scale equipment was not found to be faulty, the time of weigh in was the ONLY time a crew had to weigh no more than 629kg. There does seem to be a conundrum in the rules, as on one hand the class says there is a crew weight maximum, but on the other hand it states that it is in place only when the crew is weighed. As to one design regattas without a weigh-in, perhaps this rule is amended in the NOR or Sis. How PHRF handles it is less clear, as a Melges 32 using a class handicap would be expected to follow its class rules. Thoughts? -- Scuttleblog, http://sailingscuttlebutt.blogspot.com/2010/11/rules-conundrum.html DEATH - SUPPORT - OPPOSED - BUDGET - TRIBUTE - 2011 DEATH: Businessman Kevin Parry, who backed Australia's 1987 defense of sailing's America's Cup, has died in a motor accident. He was 77. Police said Parry, of Western Australia state, died Friday of injuries sustained when the vehicle he was driving rolled near his home at Bullsbrook, north of Perth. Parry funded the yacht Kookaburra III, which beat Alan Bond's Australia IV to earn the right to defend the America's Cup off Fremantle, West Australia in 1987. The defense ended in failure as Dennis Conner, sailing Stars and Stripes, reclaimed the America's Cup for the United States four years after losing it to Bond's Australia II. -- http://sports.yahoo.com/top/news?slug=ap-obit-parry SUPPORT: The Paris-based fashion house Louis Vuitton, continuing its 30-year long association with the America's Cup, will present the prize, the Louis Vuitton Cup, to the winner of the America's Cup Challenger Series, as well as serve as Official Timing for the 34th America's Cup. The Louis Vuitton Cup, which will be used to select the best challenger team, will be in the summer of 2013. The winning challenger will face the defender in the 34th America's Cup in early fall 2013. -- Full story: http://tinyurl.com/SUPPORT-112810 OPPOSED: Alinghi, two time winner of the America's Cup, will not enter a team in the 34th edition. After evaluating the protocol and other initiatives taken by the American Defender and its Challenger of Record, Alinghi considered the existing conditions would make it impossible for the team to participate in the 34th America's Cup. The Swiss team is the second prominent team to decline participation, as British TeamOrigin had been preparing three years to enter but determined that the 2013 event was not winnable. Emirates Team New Zealand, the challenger in the 32nd America's Cup, has not yet entered, stating that they cannot secure sponsorship support until the venue is selected. -- http://tinyurl.com/OPPOSED-112810 BUDGET: Some of the wind was taken out of the sails of an effort to hastily approve an America's Cup host city agreement when San Francisco lawmakers delayed a scheduled budget hearing by one week to allow themselves to consider an alternative that could be $27.2 million cheaper. The Board of Supervisors' Budget and Finance Committee had been scheduled to hold a hearing Dec. 1 about the proposed agreement, but the committee hearing was delayed this until Dec. 8 as more time was needed to consider the alternative proposal. -- Full story: http://tinyurl.com/BUDGET-112810 TRIBUTE: Following the 1988 America's Cup that saw the American 60-foot wing catamaran beat the New Zealand 90 ft monohull, a group of yacht designers gathered to create the successor of the 12 meter for the America's Cup. Their product was the International America's Cup Class (IACC), and it was this rule that would provide the platform for competition through five matches from 1992 to 2007. The IACC is now retired, with the recent Louis Vuitton Trophy event in Dubai likely to be its final moment in the spotlight. Scuttlebutt received over 200 images from Gilles Martin-Raget, Chris Cameron, and Sander van der Borch, and we painfully chose the very best ones for a final tribute to this class. Enjoy: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/10/1128/ 2011: It was revealed last week that the delivery for the first AC45 will be in January. There will be up to five America's Cup World Series events in 2011 using the AC45, beginning in late June/early July. Teams entered in the America's Cup are required to participate in these events. World Series event venues are expected to be confirmed beginning early in the new year. -- Full report: http://www.americascup.com/2010/11/from-the-media-roundtable-in-dubai/ THE HOLIDAY COLLECTION FROM KAENON POLARIZED Released last week and on store shelves now, Kaenon Polarized has created an exclusive and limited edition of White and Titanium color frame finishes in your favorite Kaenon Polarized styles: Rhino, Hard Kore, Jetty, Georgia and the new Klay, Kanvas and Burnet. Visit Team One Newport, Annapolis Performance Sailing, Point Loma Outfitters, Sailing Supply and Sailing Pro Shop to see the entire 2010 Holiday Collection, or locate an authorized dealer nearest you at http://www.kaenon.com. Every Kaenon sunglass features our patented, game-changing SR-91 polarized lenses. Also available in prescription. Kaenon Polarized. Evolve Optically. SAILING SHORTS * On March 3, 2010 a fire destroyed everything in the University of New Hampshire Sailing boathouse, but 8 months later the team has completed their new boathouse and new boats have been delivered. On December 3, 2010 the team is hosting a celebration at 3:30pm to unveil their new facility, and is encouraging alumni, parents, team members, the media and friends to join them. Directions can be found on our website http://www.unh.edu/sailing-club * The current Bahamian National Junior Champion, 17 year old Christopher Sands, beat his senior rivals on Montagu Bay last weekend to become 2010 National Laser Champion. Strong wind and big waves created challenging conditions, lots of capsizes and very competitive races. Sands handled the conditions well and won all but one of the races in the seven race championship regatta. - Full report: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=10893 * The World Match Racing Tour (WMRT) has unveiled a new scoring system for the 2011 season to give a more even spread for teams competing for a bonus prize fund which has been doubled to USD500,000. The 2011 Tour will consist of a minimum of nine stages kicking off at Match Race France from 10-15 May and once again finishing with the Monsoon Cup from 22-27 November. Details here: http://tinyurl.com/WMRT-112810 * Planning is well under way for the 2011 Audi MedCup Circuit season which for the first time will feature both the TP52 Series fleet, racing under the new measurement rule which will take the Series forward from 2011, and the new S40 one-design class. The 2011 season is set to follow a very similar schedule of dates as 2010, with one regatta in each of France, Italy, Portugal and two regattas in Spain. As yet most of the city venues have been decided, but final negotiations are continuing. The 2011 dates will be: http://www.medcup.org/news/?id=4185 * The Herreshoff Marine Museum has appointed Dyer Jones (Newport, R.I.) as its Chief Executive Officer. Well-known for his work in three recent America's Cup events - as Regatta Director for the 32nd America's Cup in Valencia, Spain, and as Chief Executive and Regatta Director for the Challengers in the 2000 and 2003 America's Cup events held in Auckland, New Zealand - Jones also spent close to 30 years in various positions with The Anchorage, Inc. (Warren, R.I.) which designs and manufactures Dyer Boats. -- Read on: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=10892 SCUTTLEBUTT SAILING CALENDAR Events listed at http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/calendar CONFLICT UPDATE Regarding my rant last week in Scuttlebutt 3227 - "Anglo-French Conflict" - I have come to learn that the organizers of the 3542 nm Route du Rhum from France to West Indies had always intended for the English translation to conclude on November 16th, regardless of whether the race was completed (and it wasn't). The reality is that English speakers should feel fortunate they got that much coverage. The race is French owned, the sponsor is French, the audience is overwhelmingly French, and the race was comprised of nearly all French entries. As a business decision, it was deemed not vital to spend the race budget to reach beyond the borders, though it clearly was a slap in the face for the Class40. As one of the five race fleets, the Class40 accounted for over half the race entries, and was the only fleet with a significant Anglo component. As for when the English race coverage stopped, it occurred before the first Class40 had crossed the finish line. Hopefully the Barcelona World Race, the doublehanded Open 60 round the world race that starts in December, will better serve the English audience. Considering that their key objective is to promote a forward looking cosmopolitan city and extend its global profile, the first language of the race is English. -- Craig Leweck, Scuttlebutt editor A LITTLE HELP FOR SANTA FROM LASERPERFORMANCE AND LP BUCK$ This holiday season take advantage of LP Buck$ when you buy a LaserPerformance boat! Get up to $450 LP Buck$ to use as a cash discount off the boat price or to replace that old sailing gear, you make the call. Check out the program at your local dealer or go to http://www.LaserPerformance.com for all the details. GUEST COMMENTARY Scuttlebutt strongly encourages feedback from the Scuttlebutt community. Either submit comments by email or post them on the Forum. Submitted comments chosen to be published in the newsletter may be limited to 250 words. Authors may have one published submission per subject, and should save their bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere. Email: editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com Forum: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/forum * From Andrew Hurst, Editor, Seahorse International Sailing: There is only one crew weighing rule that will ever stand up; random weighing of crews as they step ashore after a day's racing. No negotiation, simple exclusion. Soft law leads to bad events and bad feeling among competitors. * From Dan Tucker, Flexofold North America: Boat design has a lot to do with crew weight. All boats are weight sensitive to one degree or another, but a sportboat like the Viper 640 is self-limiting. Load up the rail with beef and you'll fly upwind, but you'll pay the price downwind. The boat's performance makes the crew weight pretty self limiting; 540-590 seems to be the sweet spot. With a crew of three, that makes a pretty reasonable allowance for differing body types and weights. No weigh-in necessary! * From Jim Whistler, Buffalo, NY: (re, 'Recognizing The Past' in SBUTT 3227) "Back in the day" sailboats were overbuilt; from the cloth to the resins, the rigging and the design, safety factors were more than twice what they are today. Not always by design but more often because of the adage "when in doubt, err to the side of caution". Having raced on the Admirals Cupper "Aries" for a number of years, she was built to survive; much more so than some of the compromised hulls today. Don't get me wrong, some of the new builds are well suited for "la vida loca" but as time passes they're not for survival as their daily usefulness extends beyond 20 years of age. For a few years, I raced on one of Ted Hood's old One Ton "Robin's"; she was a heavy hull, Frans Maas built and used hard, she was faster than all others and is still racing today at 39 years of age. An interesting feature of Ted's boats, they were typically heavier than the competition but always faster. The stability of these older boats was never a concern when the breeze topped 50 knots. Although the newer designs are lighter weight which equals less resistance and thus less loading, the hardware manufacturers have designed strong & light weight complimentary hardware to suit but the onus is on the buyer to make sure the proper (safe) choice is made. When setting sail on any distance race, the true test might be presented without warning and god knows, the hull, rig and hardware had damn well be stout. There are many well constructed new boats available today and many not. * From George Morris, Scotland: There has been some discussion recently on how to make more people watch competitive sailing such as the America's Cup and the Olympics on television. There is much to be learned from the current coverage of the Louis Vuitton event in Dubai. On the Louis Vuitton website, the sound is desynchronized by 15 seconds or so, while on the Sail TV site the sound is synchronized but the picture freezes from time to time, requiring the whole race to be watched again. And then there is the performance of the teams. I watched last Tuesday where three races ended with deltas of nearly a minute because of elementary failures by the tacticians. You don't, on a shifty day, when you are leading off the start line, allow an 800m split to develop! I know that because I read it in the Laser Manual and other beginners' books on yacht racing tactics. Will I devote three hours to watch the semi finals or finals? Perhaps, but if the TV feed plays up, it'll be back to doing some work! * From Laurence Mead: Nevin Sayre is 100% right (in Scuttlebutt 3225 and 3226). As a passionate one-design sailor I always assumed my kids would love it to. In fact they don't. My son hates heavy old Etchells and my daughter hates being a cog in an overstaffed big boat crew. Thanks to a smart wife however I learnt a LONG time ago to let them do what THEY wanted to do. They capsized Lasers in the sunshine and played pirates, they sailed around and around in a 29er we got (an old cheap one) and had LOADS of fun just going fast (and capsizing) and in the end my son Oscar came back to Etchells to learn how to race better but found his true sailing passion in solo offshore sailing, and my daughter was navigator on the HK boat "Mandarke" in the Commodores Cup in the Solent this year. The moral of the story is; don't push them into what we want them to do. Let them have fun enjoying the sport. After that they will likely stay in it. => Curmudgeon's Comment: If you missed Nevin's commentary, and have any interest in how youth sailing programs are organized, this is a must-read: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/10/1113/ CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATION "Whatever is begun in anger ends in shame." - Benjamin Franklin SPONSORS THIS WEEK Mount Gay - Kaenon - LaserPerformance - Ultimate Sailing Melges Performance Sailboats - Henri Lloyd - Team One Newport North Sails - J Boats - Ullman Sails - JK3 Nautical Enterprises Summit Yachts - Doyle Sails Need stuff? Look here: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/ssc/suppliers |
