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SCUTTLEBUTT 2882 - Thursday, July 9, 2009Scuttlebutt 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. Twitter updates: http://twitter.com/scuttbutt Today's sponsors are Ullman Sails and JK3 Nautical Enterprises. LOOKING BACK, LOOKING FORWARD Hosted by ESPN, the 2009 ESPY Award show on July 19th will commemorate the past year in sports by recognizing major sports achievements, reliving unforgettable moments and saluting the leading performers and performances. 2008 Paralympic sailing gold medalist Maureen McKinnon-Tucker is one of the four nominees in the "Female Athlete with a Disability" category. Competing in the SKUD 18 class, Maureen had sailed with Nick Scandone, who died shortly after the Games from his battle with ALS. Here is an update from Maureen: SBUTT: What is your most vivid memory from the 2008 Paralympic Games? MAUREEN MCKINNON-TUCKER: “Hoisting our stars and stripes spinnaker for the first time was a moment I will never forget. I looked over at Nick and over to our coach and it was moment frozen in time. It was also a moment when it sunk in pretty heavy that we were there, really there, on behalf of our country and there were so many people who helped get us there. “Literally hundreds of people contributed in hundreds of different ways. A truck was donated, friends drove the boat cross country, fellow sailors mowed our lawn while we were in treatments with chemo, my folks gave us countless hours of babysitting, donors from around the country supported our travel costs, and so many other ways large and small.” SBUTT: Was there ever a question that Nick would not either live long enough, or have sufficient strength, to compete in the Paralympic Games? MAUREEN MCKINNON-TUCKER: “When we were over a year out to ‘game time’, sure, we all worried and Nick was also. As we were approaching with just a few months to go, however, I had absolutely no doubts. Nick was living to make it to China and he was closely conserving his energy - sleeping, drinking and eating often when his body made it difficult to do so. “As for losing strength, our Coach, Mike Pinkney was closely monitoring Nick's needs and was making adjustments to the steering at every practice. The SKUD is an infinitely adaptable boat, and as Nick changed, so did the boat.” -- Read on: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/09/0708 => Curmudgeon’s Comment: ESPY Award winners are determined by fan voting. There is no easier way to support the sport of sailing than to vote for Maureen. The deadline for voting is July 12, 2009 at 11:59 PM EDT. Vote here: http://promo.espn.go.com/espn/specialsection/espys2009/#/vote/ TRANSPACIFIC YACHT RACE (July 8, 2009) - Since their Division VI start on June 29th, Relentless, the modified Nelson Marek One-Design 35 has crossed the most meridians in the 2,225-mile Transpac Race, but soon after this morning’s 0600 roll call, the Reichel Pugh 45 Criminal Mischief crew will say “Aloha! See you in Hawaii!” to Tim Fuller and Erik Shampain on Relentless, which were reporting to have 1033 nm to the finish compared to CM’s 1054 nm. Seeking the all out record, Murray Spence on the Reichel Pugh 100 Alfa Romeo reports, “Day 3 goes down as the day we reached the Trade Winds. The grey overcast skies have given way to sunshine and the wind has veered round to be east of north and filled in nicely. The downwind Code Zero has been doing good service and the remaining sails are all stacked on the weather rail giving us fast comfortable sailing. Our second day’s run was just on 400nm and our third should be much better than that. -- Race website: http://www.transpacrace.com * July 8th standings: http://tinyurl.com/knubhs RED AND BLUE OFFSHORE Whether crossing the English Channel, Bass Strait or the Pacific Ocean, the Ullman Sails logo is trusted by offshore competitors worldwide. As the 2009 Transpac fleet makes it way to Hawaii, boats like Per Peterson’s Andrews 68 “Alchemy” are racing with Ullman Sails downwind chutes. And in England, Chris Williams and his team on a Sigma 36 continue to dominate the Yealm Offshore Point Series, winning all four races so far in the eight-race series. Williams is competing with full upwind FiberPath race sails. Ullman Sails - Fast. Reliable. Performance. Contact a local loft and visit us at http://www.ullmansails.com OLYMPIC CHAMPIONSHIPS * Copenhagen, DEN (July 8, 2009; Day 3) - There is a new leader at the Finn Gold Cup, with Dan Slater (NZL) taking the top spot, though even on points with Zach Railey (USA), who rolled a 29-4 in today’s races. With six races now in the bank, the discard came into play, which brought Railey down from a four point lead to a tie with Slater. Race wins on Wednesday went to Eduard Skornyakov (RUS) and Marin Misura (CRO). Two more races are scheduled each day until Friday, with the medal race and the final race for the rest of the fleet on Saturday. -- Full story: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=7769#7769 * Kiel, GER (July 8, 2009; Day 3) - After five races at the 2009 Star Class European Championship, all three 2008 Olympic medalists are separated by just two points at the head of the leaderboard - and back in the familiar finish order that they stood on the podium in Qingdao last August. At the front of the 89-boat fleet are Brits Iain Percy/Andrew Simpson, Robert Scheidt/Bruno Prada of Brazil and Swedish Fredrik Loof/Johan Tillander. Two more races were completed amid the gusty, shifty conditions which have characterized the event so far continued, with the average wind strength was around 12-15 knots, but the rain clouds also brought squalls which pushed the pressure up to 18-20 knots. Remaining in fifth is Mark Mendelblatt/Mark Strube (USA), who earned a 17-3. Thursday is a scheduled reserve day, with racing to resume on Friday with two more races, and a final race on Saturday to end the series. -- Full story: http://www.starclass.org/artman/publish/article_427.shtml#3 STRONG SHOWING FOR AMERICAN WOMEN AT RADIAL YOUTHS (July 8, 2009; Day 6) - Three young female sailors from the USA have just proven once again that Team USA continues to be a dominant force in the Olympic Laser Radial class at the highest levels. Erika Reineke (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.), Claire Dennis (Saratoga, Calif.), and Emily Billing (Clearwater, Fla.) today finished second, third, and fourth at the 75-boat European Laser Radial Youth Championship in Charlottenlund, Denmark. For 15-year-old Erika Reineke, who only began sailing the Laser Radial earlier this year after moving up from the Optimist class, she has a brief trip home to Fort Lauderdale for some more training, followed by a trip to Japan for the Laser Radial World Championship scheduled for later this month. She is one of the youngest to qualify to compete in that regatta. Dennis and Billing are staying in Denmark to compete in the European Laser Radial Women’s Championship on July 11-16. -- Complete story: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=7771#7771 HARDESTY TO SEEK DRAGON WORLDS TITLE The twenty-four crews competing in the Dragon South Western Championship sponsored by Aberdeen Asset Management and hosted by the Royal Cornwall Yacht Club from 5-7 July 2009, enjoyed three days of challenging and closely fought sailing with eight of the ten scheduled races being completed. The regatta was also the warm up event for the Edinburgh Cup (the Dragon Open British Championship) which will be hosted by the Royal Cornwall Yacht Club from 8-11 July. America's Cup veteran and Etchells and Melges 24 World Champion Bill Hardesty from San Diego, USA, helming for Quentin Strauss of Medway, Kent, claimed the South Western Championship by a ten point margin. Said Hardesty, “For me it's been nice to meet a new group - classes like this can be very tight but the Dragon group is really open and welcoming. Quentin and I have sailed Melges 24s in the past and after I won the Etchells Worlds last year one thing led to another and we got together. We're looking to do the Dragon Worlds in Medemblik. Nigel looks after sails and the North Sails programme makes it really easy, Quentin does rig tune and all I have to do is start the boat and keep in tune. We'll just have to see if we can get through another four days at the Edinburgh Cup!'” -- Sail World, full story: http://tinyurl.com/l6gk9p BROKERAGE BONANZA The last month has been incredible! We have not been this busy since last year, and we are always looking for quality listings so give us a call and we’ll sell your boat for you! We currently have listed a J/65, 2x J/160’s, a J/124, a J/125, a J/122, 3x J/120’s, 2x J/105, 2x J/109’s, 2x J/32’s, and a J/80, along with numerous other makes and models. Our team of Jeff Brown and John Zagorski look forward to helping you sell your boat or find the boat that fits your needs. Give us a call at our San Diego office at 619-224-6200, or Newport Beach office at 949-675-8053. -- http://www.jk3yachts.com SAILING SHORTS * Applications are being accepted for up to 16 teams for the US Team Racing Championship. Entry deadline to apply is July 15th. Enter here: http://tinyurl.com/m7zjd7 * The Hampton Yacht Club (Hampton, Va.) will be the host for 37 teams competing at the 2009 U.S. Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship for the Ida Lewis Trophy, a US SAILING National Championship event sponsored by LaserPerformance. The regatta will be run in Club 420s on July 9-11 for competitors who range in age from 13 to 18 years old. -- Full report: http://www.ussailing.org/pressreleases/2009/USJWDC%20Preview.asp * (Vancouver Island, BC) - Intact Insurance will be the presenting sponsor for the CYA Canadian Youth Championships and CODA Canadian Optimist Dinghy Championships for sailors aged 18 and under. During these events, participants have the opportunity to qualify for positions on the Youth National Sailing Team and the National Optimist Dinghy Team Sailing Team. The CYA Youth National Sailing Championships are August 3-6 and the Canadian Optimist Dinghy Championships will be held August 23-28. -- Full report: http://tinyurl.com/ktzbtm * US SAILING and Sperry Top-Sider have announced that their partnership has been extended through the next Olympic and Paralympic Quadrennium which goes through 2012. Under the new agreement, Sperry Top-Sider is named an “Official Silver Partner of US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics” and the Team's official and exclusive footwear partner. US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics (USSTAG) consists of 66 athletes who are training for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Weymouth, UK. Additionally, Sperry Top-Sider continues to support the (US) National Sailing Programs Symposium and USSTAG athletes Zach Railey, Debbie Capozzi, Brad Nichol and Andrew Campbell, and several U.S. Championships. -- http://sailingteams.ussailing.org/News/Sperry_Partnership_Extended.htm * Samantha Davies (GBR), who sailed for Roxy during the Vendée Globe 2008, will be joining PUMA’s Volvo Ocean Race crewman Sidney Gavignet (FRA) for the next 6 months onboard Artemis Ocean Racing II for the key IMOCA race of the year, the two-up Transat Jacques Vabre Race in November 2009. -- Full story: http://www.artemisoceanracing.com/news/news.html?id=270 * Malcesine, ITA (July 8, 2009) - At the helm of Artemis, the kiwi sailor Dean Barker is unbeaten after three matches on day one of the Malcesine RC 44 Cup. The Swedish boat leads the Series ahead of No Way Back (Ray Davies), Ceeref (Sébastien Col), Organika (Karol Jablonski), and Team Aqua (Cameron Appleton). -- Full story: http://www.rc44.com/en/regattas/news/index.php?idContent=2082 WAVE PIERCER BOWS The multihulls that will vie for the 33rd America’s Cup are now in the water, and both Alinghi 5 and BOR90 are featuring the wave piercer bow. Sail-World asked multihull and high performance sailing guru, Steve Clark (USA) how these bows work and what the designers are trying to achieve with this style: “The raked back bows get called 'wave piercers' but that really is a misnomer,' he explains. 'The idea is to have the hull go right through the wave instead of rising over it. The notion is that you don't waste the energy making the boat go up and down ( heaving), and you don't incur pitching. The result is supposed to result net reduction in energy expended on sea-keeping thus making the vessel more efficient. “If you look at the INCAT fast ferries, these are true wave piercing bows, and they make the ride more comfortable for the passengers. “In sailing catamarans, the tendency has been toward wider waterlines and fuller bows and sterns. The NA (naval architecture) term for what you achieve with this is higher 'waterplane inertia’ (which means that the hull is less susceptible to trim changes.) That is to say it is harder to push the bow down.” -- Read on: http://tinyurl.com/ld9uea * (July 8, 2009) Alinghi, the Defender of the 33rd America’s Cup, launched its new 90ft catamaran today on Lake Geneva, Switzerland, by helicopter. Photos: http://tinyurl.com/nbgwzt Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnZ3IgqRJHM TWO HOLES TO DRIVE TRUCKS THROUGH Exploiting the rules is nothing new for gamers, and one would expect that a set of rules written in 1887 (and amended in 1956 and 1985) might have some areas to exploit. This would be the Deed of Gift (DoG) for the America’s Cup. Keep your eye on these two sections: * CUSTOM-HOUSE REGISTRY: The DoG requires this document from the Challenger of Record (CoR), which is to be provided to the defender “as soon as possible”. In the USA, it is a document that the US Coast Guard can issue when a boat is completed, and it effectively provides the defender with dimensional detail to confirm that the challenger has a proper boat. The current CoR, BMW Oracle Racing (BOR), has not provided this document, despite their boat having been launched in August 2008. Why not? The courts had not recognized BOR as the CoR until April 2, 2009, at which time the BOR boat was undergoing modifications. Now that BOR re-launched their boat July 6, 2009, will they be promptly providing the document? Probably not, as the document is to represent the boat BOR plans to challenge with, and any further modifications - either planned or implied - will have them delay this requirement as long as possible. * NOTICE OF RACE: The DoG is not very specific in this area, other than saying that the defender’s club, in this case the Société Nautique Genève (SNG), must run the races “…subject to its rules and sailing regulations so far as the same do not conflict with the provisions of this deed of gift…”. The issue of the event rules is surfacing because Alinghi’s newly launched boat is rumored to have electric winches, which is not permitted under the International Sailing Federation (ISAF) Racing Rules of Sailing (RRS), but can be amended if desired. The question then becomes what are SNG’s “rules and sailing regulations”. Since the DoG references how competing clubs are to have an “annual regatta”, the rules of the SNG Annual Regatta, which will be held in partnership with the International Yacht Club de Hyères and the Yacht Club de France on September 11-12, 2009, do state that the event will use the ISAF RRS 2009-2012 subject to changes, which include where Rules 49 to 54 are modified or deleted. It is Rule 52 that states how electric winches are not permitted (NOR: http://www.nautique.org/pdffiles/410.pdf). => Curmudgeon’s Comment: For their annual regatta in 2008, SNG partnered with the Yacht Club de Cannes and their Regates Royales. While I could not find the 2008 NOR online, the rules for the 2009 event do not specifically dismiss Rule 52. -- NOR: http://www.regatesroyales.com/index.asp?url=asp/event_index.asp&tab=1&ct=3 CALENDAR OF MAJOR EVENTS (Sponsored by West Marine) Is your event listed on the Scuttlebutt Event Calendar? This free, self-serve tool is the easiest way to communicate to both sailors and sailing media. These are some of the events listed on the calendar for this weekend: July 11-12 - Cross Border One Design (CBOD) - Mississauga, Ontario, CAN July 11-12 - US Shark 24 Championship - Dunkirk, NY, USA July 11-12 - US-IRC Great Lakes Championship - Port Huron, MI, USA July 12-17 - Whidbey Island Race Week - Oak Harbor, WA, USA View all the events at http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/calendar LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON Please submit your comments to the Scuttlebutt editor (aka, ‘The Curmudgeon’). Published letters must include writer's name and be no longer than 250 words (letter might be edited for clarity or simplicity). One letter per subject, and save your bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere. As an alternative, a more open environment for discussion is available on the Scuttlebutt Forum. -- To submit a Letter: editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com -- To post on the Forum: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/forum * From Keith W. Kenitzer: (re, Jack Sutphen story in Scuttlebutt 2879) I have another new hero. I love reading and hearing about guys like Jack Sutphen who continue to live life to the fullest, even as most people would think they would be slowing down. It's funny, as a teenager I used to love reading about great athletes at the top of their game. Now as a 47 year old weekend warrior who sails, plays hockey and occasionally a round of golf, it's guys like Jack Sutphen, and a host of others, who are still having fun in their so called senior years, that inspire me and give me hope that my best years are still ahead of me. Thanks for a great article. I printed it out to reread some day when I need a little extra inspiration. * From John Harwood-Bee: Regarding your excellent piece on the Island Goat Sailing Society in Scuttlebutt 2881, which was formed to protect the history and memories of the annual Chicago to Mackinac Island Race, should such a society be formed for the Americas Cup, may I respectfully suggest the following possible names: PRATS (Pretentious Arrogant Tossers) MMuTS (More Money Than Sense). If we are to keep with the animal theme then perhaps: SHEEP (Selfish Halfwit Egocentric Expendable Persons) - change ‘Persons’ as desired. * From John Deermount: Here's a naming suggestion....how about "The Olde Mugs"? * From Tony Strickland, Yachting Western Australia: (re, Curmudgeon’s Observation in Sbutt 2881) In the English-speaking world, this time event will occur on 12:34:56 on 7 Aug 2009. CURMUDGEON’S OBSERVATION Benign is what you be, after you be eight. Special thanks to Ullman Sails and JK3 Nautical Enterprises. Preferred supplier list: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/ssc/suppliers |
