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SCUTTLEBUTT 1624 - July 14, 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. ACCELERATED RACING WITH NO TRAFFIC JAMS - Brad Read The Curmudgeon asked me today if 'Accelerated Racing with No Traffic Jams' is just a catch phrase or is it a way that we run the Volkswagen Newport Regatta and other events. Well, it is a bit of both. "Less Waiting … More Racing" was our motto until this year. When we shared that with the very smart marketing people at Volkswagen and Money Magazine, they changed it to "Accelerated Racing with No Traffic Jams". Hey, it fits the philosophy. In 1998, we found ourselves in a situation where the Newport Regatta had lost all sponsorship and was losing participation. We made some tough decisions. We (temporarily) cut out PHRF, cut most of the expenses out of the party area and concentrate on three things. More quality racing, timely scores and cold beer. Yes, Cold Beer. Since that time, the regatta has grown back to nearly 300 boats (including PHRF) and 850 + sailors sailing in Newport on the second weekend in July. We also have attracted a loyal group of outstanding sponsors. We attribute the growth to the unwavering commitment to the philosophy of no waiting between races. Our Race Officers have bought into this in a big way and have a competition among each other in who can run the most High Quality races. Volkswagen has also seen this as a positive message and, on their own, came up with the "Full Throttle" award for the RC that has the most races in their division. Sue Reilly and her Division 5 volunteers from Sail Newport and Frostbite YC won the award this year with 65 Races run for 134 boats in 6 classes. During the 2 days of racing for the dinghy circle, Sue's team took 1,504 finishes! How do we do this? 1) We use what I call the "Peter Craig Course" (if he didn't come up with it, he certainly made it famous at Key West Race Week). We use Windward/ Leeward Courses with the Leeward mark(s) upwind of the Start / Finish Line. The Start Line is on the Left Side of the Signal Boat and the Finish Line is on the Right Side of the Signal Boat. The Dinghy Circle uses a start/ finish in the middle, but on different sides of the boat. 2) When one class finishes, we do not wait for all classes on that circle to finish. We immediately communicate our intention to go with another race immediately for the class that has finished either on a loud hailer or VHF (depending on the classes in the Division). Two years ago, we actually got some heat from one competitor that "their team did not have time to pee" between races. I guess we were doing it right then. 3) Scoring is key and again we took the lead from KWRW and have all results called in from the water to scorers on land. Using 4 scorers for the 5 divisions, we can split up the load and assure timely results posted under the party tent. 4) Cold Beer. Self Explanatory. Multi Class Regattas are difficult to manage due to many logistical reasons. The parties, registration, hauling and launching, protests and arbitrations, sponsor fulfillment, coming up with 5 circles of RC gear, volunteers and safety boats, etc. While these items are important and receive high priority, we are committed to more racing and less waiting above all. It is about the sailors and the sailing. - Brad Read, Executive Director, Sail Newport - www.sailnewport.org/ GOING TO COURT Genesis International has filed a complaint of patent infringement against Quantum sailmakers for violating their "Composite Thread Line Sails" patent No. 4,708,080 (known informally as the '080 or Genesis patent). Also named in the complaint are Quantum loft head Larry Leonard and his principals, Glen Peck (CEO of Quantum), Per Andersson (VP, senior sail designer), Doug Stewart (operations manager), as well as loft owners Farley Fontenot (Texas), Ed Reynolds (Michigan), Tom Kinney (Connecticut), and Bob Pistay (Washington). Genesis International is asking that the court force Quantum to stop infringing the '080 patent with its FusionM sails, award Genesis International triple the damages found or assessed, and pay all attorney and court fees. - Tony Bessinger, Sailing World website, full story: http://www.sailingworld.com/article.jsp?ID=34139&typeID=102&catID=587 The entire complaint is posted on the Elvstrom Sobstad website: http://www.elvstromsobstad.com/Tools/Archive/PDF/Complaint.pdf A TECHNOLOGICAL TOUR DE FORCE How important is a jacket's fabric when it comes to performance? Supremely, and Schoeller® Dry Skin is the ultimate. Used in Henri Lloyd's Dynamics Jacket, Schoeller® Dry Skin is a revolutionary fabric with a four-chamber fiber uniquely designed to promote moisture movement. By maximizing the evaporation surface, Schoeller® Dry Skin not only speeds the evaporation process but enhances the subsequent cooling down process too. The result? Less energy depletion and better performance, proving that when it comes to the Dynamics Jacket…you are what you wear. http://www.henrilloydonline.com/dynamicsjacket.asp YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIPS Gdynia, Poland - Looking at form for the Nations' Trophy, which will be presented to the top performing nation at the Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship, the defending holder Australia is looking good with three sailors currently in medal positions. However, the Australian sailors will be keeping their eyes closely trained on Great Britain and France. Team GBR currently leads three of the seven events, and holds medal positions in four events, whilst France holds medal positions across four events. Tuesday July 13 was a layday for the 353 competitors from 52 nations, before going into the final three days on Wednesday. North Americans in the top 10 after seven races include, 420 Girls: 8. Elizabeth Leigh Kempton/ Kaitlin Storck; 420 Boys: 8. Zachary Brown/ Graham Biehl; Single handed Dinghy- Girls: 3. Paige Railey. - http://www.worldyouthsailingpoland.com/ MACARTHUR'S PLANS FOR THE FUTURE By mid-August Ellen MacArthur's B&Q trimaran will return to her French base in Lorient, NW France, to undergo further sea trials before a possible attempt on the Round Britain and Ireland record. The course is notoriously difficult, with strong tidal currents and variable weather conditions as well as some of the busiest shipping lanes in the world. In September, the 75-foot trimaran will be based in Lorient for a refit prior to the round the world voyage and will go on Standby Mode Red from early November. "The long-term goal of this project has always been to go solo around the world and following the half circumnavigation back from Australia and our solo attempt across the Atlantic, we are now ready to take on this huge challenge," said MacArthur. - www.teamellen.com TRANSAT QUÉBEC-SAINT MALO After some fabulous hull flying at the head of the fleet Tuesday morning, the action has slowed considerably as they empty into the Atlantic Ocean and find themselves facing some light, erratic winds. In pole position are Groupama and Tim Progetto Italia. Quite an achievement considering both boats are sailing with broken rudders. With each position report Tuesday we have seen a huge transformation though the most significant change in the last two has been the progress made by Giovanni Soldini and his crew, who have moved from seventh to second place in the last 12 hours. www.quebecsaintmalo.com SAILING IN 2004 WITH 1984 TECHNOLOGY? "Vintage" Ockam systems still handily outperform other brands - even brand new ones. Imagine then how well your Ockam system will work after upgrading to 2004 level components. Our Trade Up programs offer big savings, whether rev'ing up your 001 CPU with Unisyn firmware, swapping outdated interfaces for e/Series type, trading tired clip-in card 005 displays for the amazing Matryx, networking a computer with OckamSoft 4 and a wireless PDA running Eye software, or stepping up to a full Tryad system. Contact Tom Davis (tom@ockam.com) or visit http://www.ockam.com BURGLARY San Diego, CA - Burglars made off with an estimated $8,000 worth of vital office equipment when they broke into the offices of Challenged America, San Diego's nationally recognized sailing program for the disabled, during the early morning hours of July 7. Challenged America's program coordinator, Greg Scott, said that the thieves gained access to the offices, located at Shelter Cove Marina in America's Cup Harbor, by breaking the glass inset of the main door. Items taken include two laptop computers, a desktop computer CPU, a digital camera used to create photos for the organization's Web site, and five submersible hand-held radios that had just been donated to the organization by West Marine, Inc. According to Scott, a liveaboard resident of the marina heard a loud noise around 2:30 a.m. but did not see anything or investigate, assuming it was cleaning crews working in the offices at the marina during the night. "The monetary value of the equipment is around $8,000," said Scott, "but the value of the information on the computers is priceless to the organization. We have basically lost the entire administrative arm of the organization." Scott said that the computers would be of no value to the burglars, since the information stored on them is password-protected with a sophisticated utility program. They are of additional value to Challenged America because they contain accessibility software programs designed for use by the disabled, including the reading-impaired. "These programs are expensive," said Scott, "often costing as much as a laptop unit." - Jean Quist, The Log, full story: www.challengedamerica.org NEWS BRIEFS * Olympic TV update: Televised sailing coverage will appear on the Bravo cable network. In 2000 we had 80 minutes on CNBC. This time there should be 6-8 hours of coverage on Bravo. The plan is to feature one or two races each day, often with on board cameras. The other classes will have some, but not complete coverage. We will rotate featured classes every day. Programming times coming soon. - Gary Jobson * The United States Sailing Center-Long Beach, CA and the Long Beach YC Sailing Foundation have combined resources to teach children from the Long Beach chapter of the NAACP the basics of sailboat racing. The LBYC Sailing Foundation provides the boat, while the US Sailing Center administers the program and provides training staff and racing crew for the boat. The children are participating in the Long Beach YC's Wet Wednesday races, a summertime midweek series that attracts many of the regions best sailors. * After Race No.11 in the 30-boat Tour de' France à la Voile series raced in Mumm 30s, Deneen Demourkas' Groovederci, the only American entry in the past seven or eight years, is now in third place in the General Rankings, just half a point from second place. In the Challenge AGF ranking, Groovederci holds onto its leader place ahead of Theoule Mandelieu and Defi Partage Marseille. www.tourvoile.fr/ * Mix together sixteen huge Perini Navi high technology mega yachts from 36 to 56 meters in length, the exquisite coasts of Sardinia, throw in a few races and a few more parties, and we begin to realize that there are some people that just get to have all the fun: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/04/perininavi/ * 49 boats from 15 states came to Boston Harbor for the Thistle Atlantic Coast Championship last weekend at Cottage Park Yacht Club in Winthrop, Massachusetts. The two day, five race series, offered a complex variety of wind and current conditions resulting in only a 4-point spread between the top 3 finishers. 1st place: Erik Goethert, Bob and Linda Bryant with 34 points; 2nd place: Greg and Suzanne Griffin, Mark Reddaway with 37 points; 3rd place: Lloyd Kitchin with his two sons Doug and Brian with 38 points. Complete results: www.cpyc.org/thistle/2004ACC/results.htm * In Race two of Cork Race Week, Roy Disney's Pyewacket and Hasso Plattner's Morning Glory finished 1-2. The two maxZ86s are now tied with 12 points each in fifth and sixth place respectively in the IRCO class - six points off the pace. - www.corkweek.com/cw2004/home.htm * The minutes of the ISAF Events Committee from the Mid-Year Meetings in June are now published online, and are available via the ISAF Minutes Database. www.sailing.org/meetings/minutes/default.asp?Action=Display A NEW SPIN ON THE TRADITIONAL DECK SHOE Dubarry's newest additions: Conquest, a slip-on, modern, leather & fabric deck shoe with a unique elastic lacing system for added security. Outrigger, a lace-up, sporty, moccasin-style with exceptional ventilation for added comfort. Superior non-slip grip and stability. Dry-soft, dry-fast, look and feel great on deck or on shore! http://www.DubarryNA.com LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON (editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com) (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 Peter Harken: One of the best training grounds for life is collegiate sailing: Resourcefulness, responsibility, athleticism, quick thinking, preparation, big can do attitude with little money, no whinging, get on with it and too much fun from dawn to dawn! What a hoot! College bound? Do it! The best! * From Steve Paschoal: Here here on the college sailing stories. The smaller programs can even be very successful. One Peter Holmberg, himself sailed for Sonoma State back in the day along with his brother. Fundraising is always a challenge as a club sport. At SSU, our boats were all donated by local wine maker, Dry Creek Vineyards. As such the boats were named Zinfandel, Chardonnay and Fume Blanc. Even more fun was when the PCIYRA decided to mandate new full top batten mains. In order to raise funds, we came up with a t-shirt that only we could get away with. All it said was "Blow Me" on the front with SSU Sailing on the back. Worked wonders. * From Mike Esposito (re: the Kimball Livingston mentions of college sailors "driving all night to regattas" and "red-eyeing home for exams on Monday"): Recognizing that until age 25, humans are 10 feet tall and bulletproof, I'd like to play adult for a moment and wag my finger in warning about driving all night on little sleep. A young friend of mine and another passenger died (three others were injured) in 2002 on their way to a regatta. It was a single-car accident at night and they'd been on the road since that morning. I've often wondered if a stop at a rest area mightn't have changed things. These days his name is on memorial trophies, but not for having won them. * From Chris Upton: The two major differences between yacht racing and horses are that yachting is a team sport and horses can be trained. A claiming race is predicated upon appreciation. Aside from a few classics and a couple of Hinckleys, does anyone know of a boat that appreciates? Boats wear-out. Horses learn skills. How hard would it be to attract crew if they thought the boat was going away next weekend? Let's spend our time on issues that matter. Curmudgeon's comment: Well said Chris - this thread is now officially dead. * From Tom Hansen: Just a small note to say Eric Schlageter still takes the time to write a twelve year old, (my son, Erik )answering his questions and suggesting a curriculum; encouraging his budding interest in naval architecture. Whether it's the US Navy or yet another Mac aboard Goblin, Eric is a wholesome facet of the real world of sailing * From Laura Winters (re Mumm 30): I wonder, is having a class of boat branded by a consumer packaged goods company such a good thing? Exactly what did Mumm do to gain the naming rights to the two classes with which they enjoy association? The Mumm boat naming sponsorship was one of the best deals in the history of marketing, followed closely by Volvo. Imagine the glee with which the marketing department at Mumm must have had when they realized they would get wealthy people to buy floating billboards for them. Wasn't the Mumm boat naming deal part of an attempt to save the Admirals Cup? Even with that event diminishing in stature, those two classes, particularly the 30, have enjoyed healthy competition for a certain period of time. But exactly what is it that Mumm has done for a group of wealthy people who include the designer, builders, sailmakers, and owners that they couldn't have done for themselves? * From Chris Ericksen: I think I finally understand ISAF President Paul Henderson: his vision of his role in our sport is fundamentally different than mine. I think he, as the president of ISAF, should be the chief servant of our sport; I think he thinks, however, that sailing is his sport to rule as he sees fit. He thinks the America's Cup is too much a rich man's event, that it should be done in a less costly manner and done in one-design boats. But wait a minute, sir: who's regatta is this, yours or theirs? While I understand his comments about the Star class remaining in the Olympics, I think them unseemly. The Star Class may have been less than cooperative with the IOC than an Olympic class might. But wait a minute, sir: who's class is it, yours or theirs? If the IOC has a beef with the Star Class, the IOC should dump 'em--but, as a servant of the sport, I would think ISAF should be a neutral--and discrete--go-between. Paul Henderson should be applauded for his service to our sport: his candor has let us all into the inner sanctum of ISAF and told us what they have been thinking. But I will cheer if his successor turns out to be one who thinks the sport is his--or hers--to serve and not to rule. * From Kris Anderson: Yes the sport of sailing is waning in this hemisphere. Our primary competition being power-boating, golf, little league, soccer, homemaking, etc., etc. The solution, however, is not very close at hand and, then again, I'm not even sure there is a need for a solution. The sport is what it is to those that partake. As for the America's Cup; that race belongs to whoever can afford to race it. It never did belong to the public and if you want a race that is more accessible to more people then start your own. Leave the Cup to be what it evolves to be. Celebrate it for what it has done for the sport. * From David K. Anderson: I completely agree with Vince Brun when he says Star sails are huge compared with hull size, but one has to visit Great Sound in Hamilton Harbor and see a Bermuda Fitted Dinghy to see the largest. They're very scary in anything over 5 knots true, and really fun to watch. THE CURMUDGEON'S CONUNDRUM Are we getting closer to the time when we'll see child care at high schools proms? |
