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SCUTTLEBUTT 1709 - November 11, 2004Powered by SAIC (www.saic.com), an employee-owned company. Scuttlebutt is adigest of major yacht racing news, commentary, opinions, features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus. Corrections, contributions, press releases, constructive criticism and contrasting viewpoints are always welcome, but save your bashing, whining and personal attacks for elsewhere. AN OVERVIEW OF THE US-IRC - Barry Carroll One can argue the subjective and technical pros and cons of any handicap rule indefinitely. Here is a fact: the principle clubs and event organizers who established the US-IRC Management Committee did so for one reason. They saw the continued decline in participation among IMS and Americap rated yachts at their events. They saw nothing on the horizon that would indicate a reverse of this precipitous decline. They had two choices: keep their head down in the bunker, cross their fingers, and hope for the best: or take action and try to reinvigorate their events and their sport. They chose to act and exercise leadership. They looked at the world sailing scene and saw one bright spot, IRC. It has been accepted in more and more countries, it is growing while other rules are declining, it has a proven professional organization behind it, and it promises the possibility of a return to international racing at classic events like the Fastnet, Sydney-Hobart, Admiral's Cup and Kenwood Cup. They chose to establish the US-IRC Committee and to use IRC for their events in 2005. Both initiatives are only tools to achieve their goals. The clarity of the situation was so obvious to objective observers that several more clubs and events immediately joined in. American YC, Annapolis YC, Boston YC, Stamford YC, Larchmont YC, Southern YC, Northern Ocean Racing Trophy, The Annapolis-Newport Race, The Marblehead-Halifax Race, and The Key West Race all decided to change. Many other clubs and race organizers have indicated interest and have been invited to join US-IRC so that their voices may be heard. Among them are: Ida Lewis YC, Bayview YC, the Marion-Bermuda Race and Premiere Racing. US-IRC established a professional management team, and many of the member organizations have pledged their financial support. US-IRC and the RORC have teamed with Dan Nowlan and his staff at the Offshore Office of US Sailing to devise innovative ways to ease the certification process for new IRC boats. Regional measurement stations are being established. Regional seminars are being held to train new measurers, and member organizations are cooperating to ease the burden for owners to get an IRC certificate in 2005. US-IRC and US Sailing have already posted web pages that along with the RORC web page will be a ready source of interesting and accurate rating and event information. There is an unprecedented level of cooperation between the US-IRC member organizations, US sailing, and the international sailing community. - Barry Carroll, Director, US-IRC, barry@us-irc.org CALENDAR OF MAJOR EVENTS (Sponsored by West Marine) Events listed at http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/calendar AWARDS The 64th meeting of the International Society for the Perpetuation of Cruelty to Racing Yachtsman (ISPCRY) was held on Sunday, October 31 at American YC (Rye, NY). Founded by two local commodores and a sailing journalist in 1941, ISPCRY, fondly known as the Mooseheads, honors race committees for finding new ways to torment competitors. This year's winners included Riverside and Indian Harbor Yacht Clubs, who interestingly enough were just awarded the St. Petersburg trophy by US Sailing for race management excellence in 2003. Full Mooseheads and other animal parts are awarded in ten categories for bad management and two categories for excellence in race management. 248 area Race Committee members attended this year's luncheon. The Moosehead Supreme award for 2004 was well earned - here's the story: The senior advisors to the juniors gather the youngsters prior to the start and tell them that the race is meant to be fun, and a learning experience and, above all, the primary objective of night racing is safety. The word safety is stressed again and again. Unfortunately, the Race Committee fails to check the local weather. The local TV forecasts already show thunderstorms surrounding the area. This warning could be further checked by radar on the boats. The juniors assume that this august group knows what they are doing. And so, with sublime ignorance as their guiding light, the RC proceeds to send the juniors to sea. Before the committee boat can drop anchor the fleet is deluged by rain, battered by fifty-knot winds and pounded by wicked thunder and lightning. Four boats are struck. Extensive and very expensive damage to three of the boats force them to retire before starting. Quite fortunately, no junior is toasted. And when the squalls pass through, the race is sailed without further ado. For failing to adhere to its announced plans for safety in racing and sailing safely, and for the creation of yet another definition for the term "child abuse," the Moosehead Supreme for 2004 was awarded to Beach Point Yacht Club. UPGRADE TO MATRYX Turbocharge your Ockam system. The amazing Matryx display offers more information and control than any other display: 1,2,3, or 4 lines of data per page (up to 18 user defined pages), system control (cals, averages, night light level, stopwatch and log switches, etc), plus graphical wind/current stripcharts (hit the shifts like never before), and much more. Trade-in credits for working condition 005 displays (clip-in card type) are available. Strong, light, cost effective aluminum mast brackets for Matryx displays are in stock. Contact Lat Spinney (lat@ockam.com) or visit http://www.ockam.com VENDEE GLOBE During Thursday night, after five days of racing, the frontrunners should be level with the Canaries. Four years ago Yves Parlier took 145 hours (6 days 01h) to reach the islands, at an average of 9.2 knots. This record will inevitably be smashed even though the north-easterly wind is set to drop off between now and then. The latter has been blowing strongly since Cape Finisterre. Hervé Laurent (UUDS) describes waves of 4 to 6 metres in height and most of the fleet have seen their anemometers flirting with 35-40 knots. Were it not for the increasingly mild outside temperatures, the 20 skippers may well believe that they were in the southern ocean with several of them broaching at 90 degrees in big seas and big winds. Standings at 0400 GMT November 11: 1. PRB, Vincent Riou 2. Sill, Véolia, Roland Jourdain, 12.9 (distance to leader) 3. Ecover, Mike Golding, 45.6 dtl 4. VMI, Sébastien Josse, 56.6 dtl 5. Bonduelle, Jean Le Cam, 66.0 dtl 6. Hugo Boss, Alex Thomson, 69.1 dtl 14. Ocean Planet, Bruce Schwab, 164.7 dtl Event website: http://www.vendeeglobe.fr/uk/ QUOTE / UNQUOTE "The first Vendee was seen as the ultimate race and the race you were supposed to do at the end of your career. You were supposed to race for years and years and then do the Vendee. And that has changed because the Vendee is now a race. The first Vendee was more of an adventure. Now it is really a race, so you find some young skippers like Vincent [Riou] - he is experienced but not like someone like Philippe Poupon or whoever. So this has changed the spirit of the race. But it is okay. I am pretty confident that these new young people, they have learned very quickly than we did by doing the Figaro and all the training at Port la Foret and they have more efficient quicker than we were able to." - Open 60 legend Isabelle Autissier, The Daily Sail, www.thedailysail.com FROM THE VENDEE GLOBE SKIPPERS "Right now we're in 30 knots of breeze, we're hanging in at 26 - 27 knots boatspeed. I think the reason why there is this separation in the fleet is just that the guys ahead are pushing harder, this is the difference and not the boats themselves. I'm sure some of the French guys are trying to fly the kite in this, but there's a fantastic seaway, which makes it too difficult to fly the kite, the waves peak at 15 -18 feet so it's very demanding to sail in this. I've got the Code 5 and 1 reef in the mainsail right now." - Conrad Humphreys, Hellomoto "No wipeouts yet, but had some big nose-dives. We're doing 27 knots right now, -nice - we are stuffing the bow in every 5 minutes or so - you're doing 14 knots, then you are accelerating down the wave - ploughing in to it square on." - Nick Moloney, Skandia "Occasionally it drops down to 22 which keeps leading you to think you should put some more sail up. But with the sea state it is quite difficult to manage with more sail. It is a lot warmer since the start. It has been a really fast transition but then I have never ever come south so quickly. I had a fish on the deck during the night, not a flying fish, just a fish." - Mike Golding, Ecover "There are still a number of projects to deal with when the conditions are smoother. I would like to try to bring the backup auto-pilot back to life, but don't have a spare control head for it. There are some rigging tasks to look after, some of which it would be nice to do at anchor. If we get some smoother conditions in the next week, I can hopefully take care of them while sailing." - Bruce Schwab, Ocean Planet "Last night, the boat took a great nose-dive and before you could say Bob's-your-uncle, my freeze-dried dinner had hit the radar screen. I had the genoa up and one reef in the main. Can't dare to imagine what would've happened had I had the gennaker up!" - Jean-Pierre Dick, Virbac-Paprec LOOK FOR IT IN THE HIGHLIGHTS FILM For the first time in a major ocean race, spinnaker-replacement kites will be flown on a maxi racing yacht, Sean Langman's 66-foot AAPT (ex Grundig), in the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race. The OutLeader(tm) kite flies in the stronger stable wind well above the level of the boat's masthead, providing enormous pulling power. The kite looks like half of a giant parachute, but measures as a spinnaker. Unlike a normal spinnaker, it is sheeted only from the deck, so it doesn't contribute to heeling the boat, burying the bow or uncontrolled spinnaker wipe-outs. AAPT's 420 square meter OutLeader kite is being designed and built by KiteShip Corporation of Martinez, California, who have been developing sailing kites for more than 25 years. Although more than 40 yachts are now using OutLeader(tm) kites, AAPT is the first big boat to race offshore with one. - www.kiteship.com NEWS BRIEFS * The Neil Pryde RS-X hybrid windsurfer- received unanimous support of the ISAF Executive Committee as the new Olympic board. The equipment proposed is the Neil Pryde RS-X, using: two sails, with maximum areas of 9.5m and 8.5m (men) and 8.5m and 8.0m (women); two fins, one maximum depth 65cm and the other shorter for slalom racing. Two sail areas have been specified to allow for slalom racing and for racing from 5-30 knots. www.sailing.org/Article_content.asp?ArticleID=8326 * Having set off on his Route of Discovery record Wednesday morning, Francis Joyon has put his maxi-trimaran IDEC through an about turn and is sailing back to Cadiz to repair a stripped genniker halyard. "It will set off again tonight, in agreement with the WSSRC," said Joyon at 16:30 Wednesday afternoon. "It will take one hour to repair and then I will set out again at once. I have warned William, my shore crew who was on the road and is now returning as is Roger Waggott, the time keeper for the WSSRC." - The Daily Sail, www.thedailysail.com * Cowes Combined Clubs (CCC), the organisers of Skandia Cowes Week and the event's title sponsor Skandia have streamlined their media & PR resources for Skandia Cowes Week through one central source. Peta Stuart-Hunt has been appointed as Event Press Officer, and Jo Rimmer, Skandia's in-house PR manager and Amanda Ashworth, Skandia PR executive, will work closely with Peta and her team. * US Sailing's Executive Committee recently approved a new trophy for excellence in race administration. The Harman Hawkins Trophy, named after a former US Sailing President, will be awarded annually (the first award will be presented at the 2005 Spring Meeting in Newport, RI) to an individual who has made outstanding contributions to the sport of sailing in the field of Race Administration (Judging, Race Management, Appeals and Racing Rules). Nominations for this award are currently being accepted. www.ussailing.org/raceadmin/hhawkins.htm ULLMAN SAILS - PERTH Ullman Sails International is pleased to announce that Sheridan Sails in Perth, Australia has joined Ullman Sails. The staff includes Brad Sheridan, Jodi Earnshaw, and Keith Swinton. Brad started Sheridan Sails in 1986, while supporting the Kookaburra defense of the America's Cup. His sails have won numerous State and National titles. To better serve our Australian customers, we are delighted to have lofts in Perth, Moffat Beach and Sydney. Contact information for all Ullman Sails lofts is in the "Loft Locator" section of our Web page. For the "Fastest Sails on the Planet" visit http://www.ullmansails.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. This is not a chat room nor a bulletin board - you only get one letter per subject, so give it your best shot and don't whine if others disagree.) * From Craig Davis: Folks I think we are missing the point. If Tiger has in his contract that the yard is not to publicize his name with the boat, then they can't! The boat is in virtually every magazine at the moment. Most of these magazines will not divulge and go to great lengths to not do so if the owners request anonymity. So someone has not been doing their job. A contract is a contract. * From Philip Thorn: To all 'celebrity' crybabies who complain about intrusions into their 'private' lives I have only two words to say: "boo-hoo." * From Chip Johns (Re getting younger people involved in US Sailing): US Sailing is a member based organization, in no way is the organization restrictive in who may be involved or how to get involved. Show up, speak up, and be counted. I am not young (almost 45), but I was when I started to get involved (under 30). All it takes is time and effort. The problem is that time is very dear to younger members and between work, family, and sailing it is hard to find the time to attend meetings and do the work that needs to be done. Older members are more able to afford the time and money to travel to the meetings. Many different committees within US Sailing need volunteers to get the jobs done. If you are interested in doing something contact the committee chair and volunteer. If you can't travel to the meetings, often other accommodations can be made. Remember that the world belongs to those that show up, speak, and debate the issues. * From Doran Cushing: Sailors who snivel about the cost increases for transiting the Panama Canal should stay home and happily pay $5/gallon for designer bottled water. When I transited the Canal in 1989 the end cost was less than $100 for a 35-foot boat, including the pilot. Current fees may be as high as $500 for the same boat now. The alternative is Cape Horn...go for it! Some cruising sailors need to be reminded they are guests in foreign countries and should participate in the economy and culture, not seek ways to circumvent both. The Panama Canal experience is worth far more than fees collected. * From Mike Funsch: Before praising or criticizing the path a person or organization takes, you must first understand their intended goals. If the aim of the AC is to hold an event for those wishing to advance the technological envelope of sailing and their own skills, then so be it. By implicitly raising the primary participation requirements (time and money) to the extremes, that path will limit the number of players, but increases the opportunity for the greatest breakthroughs. However, if a goal is to expose sailing to the greatest number of spectators, then we must observe Metcalf's Law, where the value of a network (the AC) grows by the square of the number of endpoints it touches (boats, sailors and, by extension, sponsors and spectators). Two people tell two people, who tell two people… Achieving this compounding effect implies a need to ratchet back the "primary requirements" that limit broader participation, namely time and money. Nine times out of ten, attempting to achieve somewhat mutually exclusive goals simultaneously impinges upon the level of success achieved toward one and/or both metrics. The direction taken by AC management clearly tilts towards pushing the envelope, and we are seeing the ensuing fallout (few entries racing every four years), and benefits. This does not mean that more successful promotion and larger audiences cannot be achieved through better management and execution. It merely means that the path chosen creates structural impediments toward what many desire: the use of the AC to promote sailing to a larger audience. * From Gregory Scott Kingston: I can't get past the number of times we see a reference, to TV in the letters to 'Butt as some holy grail or validation of our activity. For as many of us that make sailing a sport, there are many more who participate as an activity. I wonder if those people who play bridge feel the same as we seem to in questioning and pining over, the lack of TV coverage of their activity. I certainly enjoy seeing sailing on TV when it comes my way but, it is no substitute for being on my boat whether sailing or just messing around. I think more of my friends who aren't sailors would have more fun if I asked them to join me for an afternoon on the water than they would sit watching it on TV. As recently as 50 years ago most sailboats were carvel planked mahogany over bent oak frames. Then along came fiberglass, and aluminum, and more recently Kevlar and carbon fiber. There is probably nothing that would stop an IACC boat from being built with carvel planked mahogany over steam bent oak frames, and using cotton sails...except that while it might win the Nostalgia Trophy...it would almost surely not win the America's Cup. * From Fietje Judel (Answer to the letter from Holger Hinsch): Good that a few American sailors still note how accurate IMS works and how close the results are specially in a diversed Cruiser/Racer fleet. But the hope that IRC will do a similar job is somewhat blue-eyed. Neither IRC nor any other single number system can create such good results as IMS , just because their restricted capabilities. I'm afraid that the American sailors will have a hard time to realize that. * From Dick Neville, Storm Trysail Club Commodore: In response to Holger Hinsch's comments in 'Butt 1708, I was part of the race committee last weekend and I too found it ironic that we were having such a successful IMS regatta while promoting the change to IRC for 2005. IMS was a good rule but attracted only a limited number of boats willing to endure the cost and complexity. We hope IRC will provide fair sailing for many more boats. IRC is not the ultimate solution but will improve handicap racing for the next few years while a widely accepted measurement rule is developed. I share your hope that IRC will yield similar results at next year's Storm Trysail Club IRC Regatta (November 5, 6, 2005) but that we will have more boats than the 25 IMS boats we had this year. CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATIONS Experience is the comb that life gives you after you've lost your hair. |
