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SCUTTLEBUTT 2999 - Monday, January 4, 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. Scuttlebutt on Twitter: http://twitter.com/scuttbutt Scuttlebutt on Facebook: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/facebook Today’s sponsor is JK3 Nautical Enterprises and Summit Yachts. HAPPY NEW YEAR Welcome to 2010! We hope everyone’s New Year’s Resolutions include participating more in the sport - in any way possible. The fuel of the sport is in its members, whether they be competing, governing, event managing, or providing professional support. In the tug-of-war of making time for recreation, we should all be pulling on the same side of the rope. Scuttlebutt looks forward to pulling too, and in working with everyone along side us. Time to fill up our tanks, grab the rope, and start pulling! WILL ALINGHI GET PUNCHED AGAIN? Since the 32nd America’s Cup ended in July 2007, I know there are a lot of people getting tired of the BMW Oracle Racing (BOR) team. Like that one boat in your fleet - constantly with its protest flag up - BOR is always contesting something, never going with the flow. While it’s the defender’s role to organize the next Match, there are those who see BOR as wanting to run the show. I get a lot letters about the America’s Cup, and I know there are people who feel this way. But you have to hand it to BOR; if they’re going to piss you off, they do give fair warning. Much like the brother that says, “Keep it up and I am going to punch you,” when the actions of the Swiss defender Alinghi team are arguably inconsistent with the America’s Cup Deed of Gift, they get punched: * Alinghi partnered with a Spanish club as Challenger of Record - PUNCH * Alinghi chose Ras al-Khaimah as the venue - PUNCH The problem for Alinghi is that each time BOR punched them, the rules authority of the America’s Cup - the Supreme Court of the State of New York - said they deserved it. Now BOR is reminding Alinghi about an issue that was publicized 20 months ago, which is the section of the Deed of Gift which states that the “yacht or vessel’ used by the defender and challenger must be ‘constructed in the country’ of their Club. BOR claims the issue for the Swiss team is not so much their boat or masts, but their sails, which are allegedly being constructed - either entirely or in part - at the North Sails facility in Minden, NV, and not from a facility in Switzerland. However, there are two issues at play on this topic. So far, Alinghi has broken no construction rules, as they do not have to declare their equipment until the day of the race. Secondly, there is some uncertainty whether the sails are even included in this Deed of Gift requirement. When Scuttlebutt ran a two day poll on this specific question in May 2008, 69.53% said the Deed covered just the hull. However, after the first day of the poll, the results were approximately 60-40 in favor of the complete boat needing to be constructed within the country being represented. But then the Swiss club, Société Nautique de Genève (SNG), initiated an email campaign to affect the results of the Scuttlebutt poll on day two, and the Club’s membership voted in force... and in favor of only the hull needing to come from the club's country. Hmm… Perhaps this is all smoke, since the defender has stated that their boat, Alinghi 5, “complies with the Deed of Gift ‘constructed in country’ requirement, it was built in Switzerland and so are its sails.” One thing we should know by now is this dispute won’t be settled by the teams, and with the 33rd Match to start in Valencia, Spain, on February 8th, look for action soon by the appointed event jury or god forbid, the NY courts. -- Craig Leweck, Scuttlebutt Background information: SNG: http://tinyurl.com/yzwo249 GGYC: http://tinyurl.com/ylcy6t4 Scuttlebutt poll: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/polls/08/0505/ CNN Mainsail (3 videos): http://tinyurl.com/Scuttleblog-1-3-10 BOXING DAY CLASSIC The Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race 2009 started in Australia on December 26th, with 100 boats taking the test on the waters of Sydney Harbour, the Tasman Sea, Storm Bay and finishing on the Derwent River. Only six boats failed to complete the contest. After sailing a near perfect tactical race in extremely difficult conditions, with extremes from a testing 25-knot southerly, with a bumpy seaway through the first night, to a calm in the notoriously rough and windy Bass Strait, Neville Crichton's Reichel-Pugh designed canting keel 100-footer Alfa Romeo was first to finish on December 29th, with an elapsed time of two days, 9hrs, 2mins, 10secs for the 628nm course. Crichton previously won in 2002 with his first Alfa Romeo maxi, a water-ballasted Reichel/Pugh 90. Andrew Saies’ newly launched Beneteau First 40 Two True was declared the overall winner with an elapsed time of 3 days, 23 hrs, 49 mins, 3 secs after a protest against him over an incident on Sydney Harbour soon after the start was dismissed by the five person international jury. The protest was lodged by She’s the Culprit after a collision at the first turning mark in Sydney Harbour resulted in Todd Leary withdrawing Tasmanian boat She’s the Culprit from the race. The Beneteau First 40 was designed by Farr Yacht Design in 2008 to replace the highly successful First 40.7 also designed by Farr in 1997. The 40.7 won the IRC division of the 2003 race. -- Race website: http://rolexsydneyhobart.com => Curmudgeon’s Comment: Here is Ragtime owner Chris Welsh (USA) to provide some race background: “Having competed with Ragtime in the 2008 Sydney-Hobart, I have to say that competing again tugs at my heart to do again like no other race. The pre-race dock atmosphere is electric, the start like a illegal drug, and the race itself is a constant sprint push. Tasman Isle is one of the all time classic distance race marks to round. The Bass Strait is only 200' deep, so big swells start to steepen from the influence of the bottom. “And the post-race in Hobart is bullish sailing crew meets a quaint down under village and the bars are open. The Customs House Hotel's goal is to stay open until the police close them down - in 2008 it was something like 84 hours straight, with crew duct-taped to lampposts out front.” 2010 RESOLUTION IDEAS FROM JK3 Why not try something new this year!? Resolve to spend more time with family and friends out on the water. Have you always wanted to learn to race sailboats or cruise with confidence? Grab a friend or spouse and take a class at J World San Diego. Contact Lee for classes and availability (mailto:lee@jworld-sailing.com or 619-224-4774). If you’re ready to take your love of sailing to the next level and get your own boat, we have a large selection of quality brokerage listings. To see a full list of boats for sale, visit http://www.jk3yachts.com or call our California offices in San Diego (619-224-6200) or Newport Beach 949-675-8053. DISABLED SAILOR CLOSES IN ON HIS 'IMPOSSIBLE DREAM' Geoff Holt has just 700 nautical miles to go before becoming the first quadriplegic sailor to cross the Atlantic, skippering his boat, unassisted in the sailing. Geoff broke his neck diving into a beach at age 18. Now 25 years later he is returning to the same beach in the Virgin Islands, on his own terms. "This isn't about closure," says Geoff from Southampton, UK. "Since my accident I met my wife Elaine, and we have a gorgeous son Tim, both waiting for me in Cane Garden Bay. This is me reconfirming my love of the sea and my passion for sailing." Geoff is sailing a 60ft carbon catamaran called "Impossible Dream" which has been modified with hydraulic winches, wheelchair access around the deck, and push button navigation from Raymarine. He has a carer onboard, Susana Scott from New Zealand, to help him get in and out of his motorized wheelchair, and to help with his medical needs. "Lifting Geoff in rocky seas has been the hardest part," says Susana. "It's so tricky to find my balance. But I've coped when I've had to." Susana, 29, never sailed before this voyage and has suffered badly from sea sickness. She grits her teeth and grins when saying: "Everyone told me it would go away after a few days. They all lied! I've tried everything. Bring me land!" Also on board is cameraman Digby Fox, Live Producer of the last America's Cup, who is filming for the BBC. "What Geoff and Susana are doing is extraordinary," he says. "It's extremely tough for both of them, but there's something phenomenal about the human spirit going on here, and it's making superb TV." Digby is broadcasting live pictures and interviews back to BBC News and BBC Worldwide. A three minute feature he's edited sums up the voyage perfectly: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8437009.stm The boat's ETA is January 8th, wind depending. You can find out more about the voyage, the specially modified 60ft catamaran, track their position, watch the video blogs, etc. here: http://www.geoffholt.com REVITALIZING THE FARR 30 Deneen Demourkas and her husband John have been cutting a swath through the Farr 40 and Farr 30 (nee Mumm) classes with their Groovederci campaigns since they bought their first Farr 40 almost a decade ago. With the Farr 30 class struggling, its management has now been transferred from Stagg Yachts to the class itself, with Deneen elected as President. Said Deneen, “I think this gives us an opportunity to get [everyone] back into the fold of the international class and this is where our future is. Unless we want our investment to be absolutely worthless, we’ve got to get it together and put on some good events and get participation back.” As a class they have contemplated turboing the Farr 30, but Deneen says they have opted not to go down this route. "I had a discussion with Bruce Farr recently - I told him this was the best boat he had ever designed! We were looking at what we might do to market the boat and garner interest in it again. Do we make modifications? Do we put a sprit on it? We went through a little think session about it and ultimately it was ‘no’. You don’t put a sprit on it and an A sail because it wasn’t designed to sail at those angles. We could put a flat head main on it and split the backstay. But then you have the problem of too much pressure at the top and you already need snorkels when the wind is blowing and the flat head would only make it worse. So we look at the possibilities and ultimately the conclusion was that the boat wasn’t broken - so, don’t change it." -- Excerpt from story on The Daily Sail, complete story: http://tinyurl.com/yktc54j CHRISTMAS IN MIAMI (Miami, FL) - The Orange Bowl International Youth Regatta on December 27-30 hosted 722 sailors racing on 610 boats with 12 races per course. Host Coral Reef Yacht Club was packed with boats, sailors, families and coaches, and the weather cooperated with lots of sunshine and wind. Winners included Morgan Kiss/ Katia DaSilva (Intl. 420), Graham Landy/ Colin Murphy (Club 420), Just Van Aanholt (Laser 4.7), Mateo Vargas (Laser Radial), John Wallace (Laser), and Christopher Williford (Optimist). The Magnus Liljedahl Sportsmanship Award reviewed 60 nominations which had been submitted after the final day of racing. This year the award went to Opti Green Fleeter Carolina Mantilla from Miami, Florida. She was nominated 8 times for consistently finishing every race even though in last place most of the time. Magnus says, “It is totally an act of sportsmanship. Never quit a race because it is not fair to your competitors and it is not fair to yourself.” Daily reports and complete results: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=8775 SUMMIT 35 TOPS THE LIST The new Summit 35 was recently chosen by Sailing World Magazine as “Best IRC Racer” for 2010. The Mark Mills designed boat continues the same race bred pedigree as the successful Summit 40. “Overall it is a great boat for Key West Race Week,” says Chuck Allen, one of the BOTY judges. Two of the new 35’s will be making their Key West debut this month. Check them out at http://www.summit-yachts.com SAILING SHORTS * (January 3, 2010) - The 2010 CST Composites International 14 World Championship kicked off on Sydney Harbor in Australia, with defending World Champion Archie Massey blitzing the fleet in his first qualifying race but was black flagged in the second race. The black flag ruling also caught several top-flight British sailors including Robert Greenhalgh and Katie Nurton after a series of general recalls. The 108 boat fleet was split into two in order to physically fit all the boats into the confines of Sydney Harbour. The top 10 provision places were dominated by Australians, Britains and a lone American - Paul Galvez/ Simon Marks - in fifth. -- Daily story: http://tinyurl.com/yg3sq6a * Double Olympic medallist Rex Samuel Sellers has been recognised in the New Years Honours List for his services to New Zealand Yachting. Sellers was named one of New Zealand’s greatest contributors and highest achievers, when he was named a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit. -- Full story: http://www.yachtingnz.org.nz/NewsletterDetail.aspx?NewsletterID=291 * Royal Yachting Association performance director John Derbyshire has received an OBE for services to sport. Derbyshire attended his first Olympics as a coach in 1988 but was promoted to team manager for the 1996 Games in Atlanta. He continued with that job at Sydney four years later before his promotion to a role that oversees British sailing success at junior, youth and elite level. He also served as Ben Ainslie's personal coach for six years, helping the then teenager win the first of his four Olympic medals in Atlanta, a silver he upgraded to gold four years later. -- Full story: http://tinyurl.com/yzx6s6v * A 14-year-old Dutch girl may be allowed to set sail on a solo around the world voyage after all. A Dutch court has allowed Laura Dekker - who holds duel Dutch-New Zealand citizenship - to stay in her father's care following her disappearance on December 17th, and has laid out conditions to allow the teenage sailor to begin her trip, possibly within three months. Welfare authorities had previously forced Dekker to postpone her attempt to become the youngest person to sail solo around the world. Dekker was found on the island of St Martin in the Dutch Antilles, where she was trying to buy a boat. -- http://tinyurl.com/y8d2mgc EIGHT BELLS * Sparkman and Stephens is sad to report the passing of Robert Lee Garland (Jan 22, 1908 - Dec 22, 2009). Bob joined Olin, Rod and Drake in 1930 and served in the brokerage department, board member and president until his retirement in 1994. His 64 year service at Sparkman & Stephens, Inc. was only interrupted by his service to his country during WWII. Bob sailed on all of the famous S&S boats out of Oyster Bay including Baruna, Windigo, Gesture, Northern Light, Argyll and Tempest. He was a champion Shields sailor for decades and was known locally as “the Silver Fox”. Bob gave up his windsurfer sometime in the mid 1990’s. He was a member of New York Yacht Club, Cruising Club of America, and Seawanhaka Corinthian Yacht Club. -- Complete story: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=8778#8778 * William L. Miller Jr. (Bill), musician, teacher, husband, Father, sailor passed on Dec. 9, 2009 at the age of 85 after a long battle with Leukemia Bill was a major supporter & competitor in the International Fireball Fleet, serving as Commodore of the America`s, and travelling from Canada to Florida and to both Coasts as well and many lakes and adventures in between. Of his four sons, three still own and sail these boats. He managed to continue his adventures in the Fireball until just 4 years ago at the young age of 81. -- Complete story: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=8776#8776 * Mike Richey, who was born in England in 1917, died on December 22, 2009, aged 92. In 1964, to some extent encouraged by his friend or Francis Chichester who had won the just single-handed transatlantic race, Mike became committed to single-handed sailing. He edited The Sailing Encyclopedia (Stanford Maritime) and was for many years General Editor of the series of nautical books published by Hollis and Carter. In 1979 he was awarded the Gold Medal of the Royal Institute of Navigation and in 1986 the Seamanship Medal of the Royal Cruising Club. In 1997 he entered the Guinness Book of Records for having sailed single handed across the Atlantic and arriving at the age of 80 years 31 days. -- Complete story: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=8777#8777 * The World Sailing Speed Record Council announced with sadness the death of Council Member Bob Shiels, USA. Bob joined in 1978 as the first overseas member when it was still an RYA Committee and was a founder member of the Council when the IYRU, now ISAF, granted the WSSR Council recognition as the sole International body to ratify sailing speed records. Bob served the sport with diligence and commitment, being one of the members who drafted the original offshore record rules and was latterly closely involved in the development for the adoption of the GPS measurement system for speed recording. His accuracy and technical expertise will be much missed. He is survived by his wife Helen, a Brother and four Grandchildren. -- WSSR, http://tinyurl.com/ykm6pa6 SCUTTLEBUTT SAILING CALENDAR Events listed at http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/calendar LETTERS AND FORUM Please email 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 Taylor, Auckland, NZ: (re Scuttlebutt 2998) It's perhaps worth adding a little detail to the story of Onne van der Wal's introduction to the professional marine photography business, if only to note that it was the only time that the senior staff of SAIL did our three-men-in-a-boat routine around the moorings in Marblehead, fully suited. Actually, it may have been blazers but we were wearing ties! Don Macaulay, then the publisher, deserves the credit for the dinghy ride. He was conducting the magazine's annual sales meeting at the Boston Yacht Club. As the editor I was there to talk about issue plans, etc. At day's end Don suggested we grab a dinghy and learn about the big sloop moored out in the harbor. Dick Devlin, the associate publisher, joined us and out we went. Onne was unfazed by three suits in a small dinghy knocking on Flyer's topsides and invited us aboard for a tour. Then the slides came out, shots he had taken with a modest little Olympus 35mm camera that seemed like a toy in his big hands. At my invitation he visited our Commercial Wharf offices in Boston and blew us all away with a slide show of his onboard sailing shots. We always maintained a stock of slide film in an office refrigerator and I handed him a "brick" of Kodak film (20 36-shot rolls) with a suggestion that he finish it all by the end of the first leg of the Whitbread and mail it back to Boston for us to process. Some of SAIL's best covers came out of that arrangement. * From Clark Chapin: (re, country of origin in Scuttlebutt 2998) Bravo to Golden Gate Yacht Club for calling the Swiss bluff (concerning their sails). Did they think that nobody would notice? Let’s get this out of the way beforehand. * From John Harwood-Bee: I never thought I would rise to the defence of Alinghi but regarding GGYC’s request for conformation on compliance, may I refer to a letter of mine on the subject you published last year. CONSTRUCTION does not necessarily mean MANUFACTURE and therefore may I respectfully suggest that instead of trying to score points, GGYC drop it, just get on with it, get the farce over and done with and hopefully relegate the trophy to the shelves of New York Yacht Club for evermore. Then sailing can get on with a true sporting event; the Louis Vuitton series. * From Barry McNelly: I hope GGYC does NOT capitulate on the rules of in-house construction, etc. The opposition is well aware of the rules and I'll now bet they will be looking for a gimmee from the good old USA. We have been known to do just that and had it come back and haunt us. Our sense of fair play by ALL the rules is unparalleled in sports. As is our kindness and generosity. But enough is enough!! I will be very disappointed if GGYC gives in or even entertains a modification of the rule of in-house. The time for that is long past...at least two years long passed. The opposition has wanted it their way or no way. Well, it is the rule or no way. Let them forfeit! I would rather see this settled on the water, as you know, but enough is enough. CURMUDGEON’S OBSERVATION Keep learning. Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever, even ham radio. Never let the brain idle. 'An idle mind is the devil's workshop.' And the devil's family name is Alzheimer's. Special thanks to JK3 Nautical Enterprises and Summit Yachts. Preferred supplier list: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/ssc/suppliers |
