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SCUTTLEBUTT 2950 - Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Scuttlebutt 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 Team One Newport and Doyle Sails.
RECIPE FOR PERFECTION
By Mark McNamara, Landfall/Dinghy Locker
The whole concept of the high performance dinghy is pretty fundamental when
you break it down: sailors strive for more speed all the time and High
Performance Dinghies are the tools we utilize to satisfy that need. Some of
these HPDs include the F-18 Catamaran, A-Cat, Viper 650, RS K6, International
505, the Foiling Moth, Flying Dutchman, and a Portsmouth class of Fireballs,
Canoes, Contenders, Tempest, and I-14. Pair these classes with an awesome
weather pattern on Long Island Sound, outstanding race management by the
American Yacht Club and all the cold Heineken beer you can drink, it is no
secret to why the Heineken High Performance Dinghy Open has gained such
traction in the past few years.
As an open event, the HPDO welcomes all HPD Classes drawing sailors from as
far off as the UK and Canada. The 2009 HPDO drew over 100 entrants looking to
fulfill that compulsion for speed. Long Island Sound is one of the most
amazing sailing venues in the world. Racing began on Saturday in a brisk 18-20
knot northwesterly, which usually means flat water on the Sound. Well, not
this time my friends. By the start of the last race the winds were topping 30
knots and wave heights exceeded five feet. In IRC racing, those conditions are
considered perfect but for an A-Cat or a Foiling Moth, the words challenging
and strenuous come to mind. Overall, I can only describe this event with one
word - SPECTACULAR!
In a constant quest for speed, one constantly lives on the edge of control and
physical stamina. Day one brought some entertaining moments to the mix
including an unmanned A-Cat cruising at 12 knots, and a Moth sailor commenting
he was “practicing his swimming” when asked about his present situation
overboard. Day two brought more of the same and the northwesterly laid down a
bit providing for three great races.
Looking back over the weekend’s event evokes smiles. The effort and enthusiasm
of the competitors, event organizers and volunteers are what makes this such a
great event. Combined with perfect conditions, breakneck-speed sailing, an
amazing regatta venue and some cold green soda, and you have perfection! The
HPDO kicks off on Columbus Day weekend annually at the American Yacht Club in
Rye, NY. Fall in New England is perfect for sailing. See you there next year.
Complete results: http://www.yachtscoring.com/emenu.cfm?eID=276
Photos: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/09/1013/
GUEST COMMENTARY
By Eric W. Sponberg, President/N.A., Sponberg Yacht Design
In response to Scuttlebutt readers Zlot, Miller, and Kriese regarding too many
design classes (letters in Issue 2948 and 2949), I think the Millers are
closest to the mark with their opinion.
It is a rare naval architect or boat designer indeed that will design AND
build AND market his or her own boat design. In general, we don't have the
financial wherewithal to do that. We design boats for our clients. Our clients
have the money, resources and dreams to build and market the boats they
commission us to design. All clients have great dreams that their new boat
design crafted by their favorite designer of the moment is just going to be
the Bee's Knees of the sailing market. Sometimes it works, but most of the
time it does not. The path to oblivion is paved with the blueprints of old
boat designs. The Miller's touched on it--new boat designs and classes suffer
from inefficient, or I would say, ineffective and incomplete, class management
and promotion.
One has to be tremendously lucky that any given boat design will "take off" in
the public interest. That has to be fed constantly with great doses of
marketing commitment and support, to arouse interest, to maintain it, and to
make sure that you have enough manufacturing capacity to supply whatever
demand you create. All of that costs tremendous amounts of money (remember, to
make a small fortune in boat production, one usually starts with a large
fortune.)
Also, boat designs are highly individual things--they reflect the personality
of the client, much more so than the designer. There are almost as many
different sailboat designs as there are sailing enthusiasts. They all work,
most sail pretty well, but one person's sticky bun is another person's lima
bean. The world is a big place, it supports a lot of variety, and technology
is always changing. There are always going to be new boat designs and new
classes because some people (our golden clients) are able and willing to pay
for it. That's just the way it is.
SUBLIMATION COMES TO TEAM ONE NEWPORT
Team One Newport has been embroidering and screen printing for 25 years and
now they are able to sublimate your technical tees in house. This new process
infuses ink into the fibers of a technical shirt allowing the maximum
breathable and wicking process of each garment. You have to use a white or
light colored shirt or pinny. Call 800-VIP-GEAR (800-847-4327) and ask for the
Embroidery crew uniform department. Team One Newport is renowned for its
ability to make a crew look their best and stay warm, dry and comfortable.
They also sell the best sailing clothing around. Visit
http://www.team1newport.com
HULL COATINGS
By Stu Johnstone
I read with some degree of amusement the article in Scuttlebutt #2948 - WILL
THE RIBLETS RETURN? In particular, because the ISAF RRS-53 has allegedly been
dismissed for America's Cup #33? Riblets from 3M were one thing. "Hydrophilic
coatings" are quite another -- e.g. the mythical "artificial dolphin skin".
There's a lot more to the story on coatings and intrigue in the America's Cup
than just the "riblets".
In 2002, I was working with friends at a major Midwestern university on the
use of nano-particle technologies in batteries, capacitors, fuel cells and
combinations thereof. One of the most remarkable "chance" meetings took place
when after contacting George David via "Tomac" (Tom McLaughlin at North
Sails), I was put in touch with United Technologies then Chief of R&D -- UTC
was researching how to make better "inorganic" fuel cell membranes.
What came out of the discussion with our team and the UTC R&D guys was the
fact that our nanoparticle coatings (consisting of 8-10 nanometer size
particles made in my basement lab) were extremely "hydrophilic"-- e.g. the
opposite of hydrophobic (like beads of water on wax). We then tested a
hypothesis that our coatings might make water flow faster and perhaps also
produce a thin coating on a boat that would act like the mythical
"dolphin-skin"- the ultimate sailboat coating. Here's what happened and why it
got mixed up in the America's Cup 2003 challenge in Auckland, New Zealand. --
Read on: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=8414
SAILING SHORTS
* Newport, RI (October 13, 2009) - Sail Newport announced that Sail for Hope
raised over $20,000 for food charities last weekend. Fifty-two boats turned
out despite dismal forecasts for the 19-plus mile race around Jamestown
Island. The funds from the regatta were split between Newport’s Seamen’s
Church Institute and the local food bank. Eighteen crew members on Interlodge
won the top fundraising trophy. The regatta was founded in the wake of 9-11,
and has raised over $350,000 since the first event for various charities. --
Complete report: http://www.sailnewport.org/npt/m/_general/09sfhresults.asp
* Australian-owned textile manufacturing firm Charles Parsons has confirmed it
is the new owner of Kiwi outdoor-wear brand Line 7. Receivers were appointed
to Line 7 in July after foreign exchange problems and the recession caused the
sportswear, outdoorwear and casual clothing maker to run aground. Charles
Parsons is a family-owned textile maker with 700 staff in 20 locations in
Australia, New Zealand, China, Hong Kong, Singapore and Fiji, and had been a
supplier to Line 7. -- Full story:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=10603044
* The world's top Paralympic sailors have gathered in Athens, Greece for the
start of the 2009 IFDS Disabled Sailing World Championships, where the
competition gets underway Wednesday. Sixteen nations are competing amid the
three classes. Representing North America is Bruce Miller (CAN) and Mark
Bryant (USA) in the Single-Person Keelboat - 2.4mR (26 entries); John Mc
Roberts/Brenda Hopkin (CAN) and Scott Whitman/Julia Dorsett (USA) in the
Two-Person Keelboat - SKUD18 (4 entries); and Paul Callahan/David
Burdette/Michael Hersey (USA) and Rick Doerr/Brad Kendall/Maureen
McKinnon-Tucker (USA) in the Three-Person Keelboat - Sonar (12 entries). --
http://tinyurl.com/ykl38kv
* The US Sailboat Show in Annapolis, MD concluded Monday, with preliminary
attendance reports indicating an increase over the 2008 show, which was the
third best year in the show's history. --
http://www.usboat.com/us_sailboat_show.php
* Jeanneau officials say they are encouraged by a report of up to 10 confirmed
boat sales ranging in size from 36 to 57 feet at the United States Sailboat
Show, which was held Oct. 8-12 in Annapolis, Md. Company president Paul Fenn
believes the sales are a combined result of the start of a long-awaited
economic upswing and Jeanneau's strategy during the downturn. -- Soundings,
read on: http://tinyurl.com/ykzhf8p
* Visitor numbers fell 11 per cent compared to 2008 at this year's Genoa
International Boat Show, which closed after a nine-day run on Sunday. A total
of 280,500 visitors attended the 49th edition of the show, which had 2,400
boats and 1,450 companies present at the show. -- IBI Magazine, full story:
http://www.ibinews.com/ibinews/newsdesk/20090913121030ibinews.html
* Stephan Kandler, CEO of K-Challenge from France and three times Olympic
Champion and two times America’s Cup winner Jochen Schümann from Germany have
teamed up to create the sailing campaign ALL4ONE. Said Kandler, “This is an
important step in our history after 20 years of investment and involvement in
sailing first through K-Yachting our charter company created in 1989 and then
K-Challenge who has participated in the last America's Cup.” Also involved in
the team is Sebastien Col (FRA), who is currently fourth in the world match
race rankings. ALL4ONE plans to compete at the Louis Vuitton Trophy in Nice
this November. -- http://www.all4onechallenge.com
PROTECT YOUR INVESTMENT
Take care of your sails during winter lay-up. To extend the life and
performance of your sails, bring your sails to your local Doyle loft to be
inspected and washed. Doyle Sailmakers offers the most experienced sail
maintenance and repair services available. The sooner any chafe, mildew or
rigging problem is detected, the easier and less expensive the solution. Let
Doyle help protect your investment! Contact your local Doyle loft or visit
http://www.doylesails.com/service
ENGINE NOW ADDED TO CUP CHALLENGER
(October 13, 2009) - Following three weeks of modifications, America’s Cup
challenger BMW Oracle Racing trimaran BOR 90 emerged today from the
boatbuilding tent at the team base in San Diego. The latest iteration of the
giant trimaran the team will use to challenge for the 33rd America’s Cup
boasts new features which will be worked up on shore, before the boat hits the
water for more testing near the end of the month.
Most significantly, and in response to the new rules issued earlier this year
for the 33rd America’s Cup by the Defender, SNG/Alinghi, the team has modified
the BOR 90 cockpit to accommodate an engine. For the first time in the history
of the America’s Cup, the Defender has altered the racing rules to allow using
an engine to replace human power on board the race boats. Since the Cup’s
inception in 1851, and in almost all other yacht racing, only manual (human)
power may be used to trim sails and do other work.
On BOR 90, the engine will primarily be used to drive hydraulics for trimming
the enormous sails - the mainsail alone measures nearly 7,000 square feet -
that propel the boat. Alinghi’s insistence on the use of engines has resulted
in the team having not only to add an engine and related gear, but to redesign
the boat’s cockpit on the center hull. With the engine, there is no longer a
requirement for the grinding pedestals and sailors (“grinders”) who until now
provided the human power for the boat, so the cockpit has been reconfigured.
-- Read on: http://tinyurl.com/yjjy5ed
“UNTRUE AND UNFAIR”
(October 13, 2009) - Today, the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah (RAK), one of the
seven United Arab Emirates (UAE), filed an amicus curiae brief defending its
suitability to hold the 33rd installment of the America’s Cup sailing
competition in February 2010. The submission is in response to a motion filed
on October 1, 2009 in New York State Supreme Court by the Golden Gate Yacht
Club (GGYC) alleging that the emirate lacks necessary infrastructure for such
an event and cannot guarantee the safety of the crew of the GGYC
representative team, BMW Oracle Racing.
“Ras Al Khaimah is surprised and offended by GGYC’s attacks both in this
litigation and publicly, which have been widely reported,” stated Dr. Khater
Massaad, CEO of the Ras Al Khaimah Investment Authority. “Because these
accusations about RAK are untrue and unfair, we felt it was necessary for us
to present the court with a full and accurate picture of the safety and
security of RAK. We also felt compelled to inform the court about the numerous
infrastructure improvements RAK has undertaken in preparation for the
America’s Cup and defend our international reputation,” he added. -- Complete
story: http://tinyurl.com/yg2ldkv
WHO’D SPONSOR AC33?
In Scuttlebutt 2949, there was a Letter to the Editor that commented on the
lack of branding being displayed by the America’s Cup defender, the Alinghi
team. This letter prompted YachtSponsorship.com to review the situation, and
as they state in their report, “Were we in the lucky position of having a
large corporate who wanted to use sailing as a platform to promote their
brand, the 33rd America’s Cup would not even make our Top 10 places to invest
in sailing.” Here are some of the reasons why - in no particular order:
The Venue.
As regular readers will know, the market in which the event is taking place
has a huge impact on securing sponsorship budget. Not only does the venue
affect activation at the event, including entertainment of guests, but it also
determines the crowd numbers and has an impact on live coverage timings. That
there is still a question mark over where the event will take place would
deter many Marketing Directors from sponsoring the event.
Media Coverage.
To our knowledge, Alinghi and ACM are still trying to shop the TV rights for
the 33rd America’s Cup. If the event happens in RAK, then the majority of the
audience for the Cup will be on TV (ignoring internet streaming for now). The
organisers of the America’s Cup have been given the dates by the New York
Courts, which means that they can’t place the event in a quiet part of the
global sporting calendar. The event will clash with the NFL superbowl and the
beginning of the Winter Olympics in Vancouver. A sponsorship director would
need to take a big punt that anyone will be watching.
Brand Association.
Both teams involved in AC33 have had some pretty bad publicity. Whoever you
think is right or wrong - the associations that are usually attributed to
sport have been sullied by the acrimonious nature in which this event has been
handled. Words and phrases like unsportsmanlike, Machiavellian, greed,
cheating, tawdry and dereliction of duty have been used to describe various
parties. What brand would want to be associated with these perceptions?
Complete report: http://www.yachtsponsorship.com/2009/10/whod-sponsor-ac33/
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 Fritz Mueller:
Years ago, as a student/sailor at Tabor Academy (in Marion, MA) and so far
away from home (as I am originally from South Florida), I remember being
invited to my dear friend and roommate’s house for a holiday at his home in
Barrington, RI. I would spend many great times with Will Waterman (my roommate
and sailor too) and his family. We didn’t go home or call home in those days
when time was free ...the situation was different.
Will said, "Well, there is something else going on this weekend, and it's a
regatta that is the called the ‘Championship of Champions’, and we're supposed
to be a ‘part’ of the Race Committee. This had to be in the early 70's, and
just the same, I was always gung-ho to be on the water anyway. What a thrill
to be there, even if I spent most of my time in a Whaler moving marks or
handing out lunch.
What I didn’t know about this long weekend away from prep school was that
another house guest at the Waterman's for this regatta would have been none
other than Gary Jobson - ‘The Man’ in college sailing at the time....and I
found out, ‘The Man’ in terms of a great guy. There were certainly so many
luminaries there - for me as a young competitor it was really an incredible
experience. How cool it was to be there with the best; it carried me in many
ways.
* From David Barrow:
It will be interesting to see if the gentlemen who say there are too many
classes are also the ones who would say sailing is over regulated if classes
were restricted. Further to the above, how on earth do we stop someone from
designing and building a boat to sell in a free market?
* From D. Randy West:
I have found Halsey Herreshoff's 43' "Dunende" stashed away in a not well
known French boatyard in the West Indies. She was built by and for Halsey in
1972, the boat remains in great shape so I have decided to do a refit with the
help of OKK Boats and get her back sailing, hopefully for the "Alliance
Regatta" between St. Martin, Anguilla, and St. Barth at the end of November or
if not by then, certainly in the "classic/plastic" class of the" St. Maarten
Classic Regatta" in January. Does anyone out there know anything more than
that about this yacht? I would appreciate some good stories to tell about her.
Please contact me at mailto:drandywest@yahoo.fr
CURMUDGEON’S OBSERVATIONS
All those who believe in psychokinesis, raise my hand.
Special thanks to Team One Newport and Doyle Sails.
Preferred supplier list: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/ssc/suppliers
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