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SCUTTLEBUTT 2247 – December 20, 2006Scuttlebutt is a digest of major sailing news, commentary, opinions,features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus. Scuttlebutt is distributed each weekday, with support provided by UBS, main partner of Alinghi, Defender of the 32nd America's Cup (http://www.ubs.com/sailing). IN REPLY (Tom Ehman’s commentary in Issue 2246 stirred up the ‘butthead letter writers, of which several are included below in the Letters section. One such letter came from past ISAF President Paul Henderson, who provides his perspective on past events and future decisions.) While Match Racing has never been in the Games as an independent discipline, Tom was very involved when ISAF put into the Olympic Games the hybrid Fleet/Match event. When ISAF got the 11th Event from the IOC to get the Star back after it was deleted for 2000, the agreement was that ISAF would put a Women's Keelboat into the Games for 2004. ISAF voted out the Soling in favour of the Star, which had the effect of deleting Match Racing. This vote was very close with the UK and USA, with 20% of the votes, opting for the Star since that had both medalled in Sydney. This was clearly a self-interest vote on their part, and it helped lead to the loss of the Soling and therefore Fleet/Match Racing (and not because ISAF was dumping Match Racing “to preserve yet another fleet-racing dinghy discipline”). The IOC also said that ISAF must drop the 11th event for 2004 with a reduction in sailors from 400 to 380 but that was delayed until 2012 with some good lobbying. All summer sports are being cut back. ISAF must adhere to the IOC rules as they make the rules that ISAF must follow. The Olympic Games are nationalistic and there are very strict IOC regulations to ensure this which governs all sports. It should also be noted that ISAF does not qualify sailors, only countries. National Sailing Authorities do so with the agreement of their National Olympic Committee, so there is no way to guarantee that the so-called "Big Names" will be sent. It should be noted that at the Sydney Olympics with Match Racing in Sydney Harbour beside the Opera House, the TV Ratings were the same as the Athens Olympics with no Match Racing. So that is not the issue as Sailing, along with over 14 of the 28 sports, get minimal ratings while 6 of the 28 sports get over 50% of all coverage. Having said all that, ISAF must face the IOC decree that for London 2012, Sailing will be cut back to 10 events and 380 competitors. If Match Racing is going to be a discipline, then put full Match Racing for Men and Women. Design a proper class, and I am told that the boat must have the same speed upwind as down. It would be impossible to get more than 4 crew. To keep the numbers down there would have to be a pre-trial to cut the entries down to 6 per event. This would take up 48 of the 380 allowed, which is doable. If ISAF in their wisdom decides to do this, then 3 of the now classes must be replaced and that will be interesting to watch that process. In conclusion, ISAF should not change the classes or the format because of dream of getting more Olympic TV because it will not happen for Sailing. Change the disciplines for the health of the sport. SIX METER BUG Once you get bitten by the Six Meter bug - especially one as striking as the 1934 Fife-designed and -built Saskia - the attraction quickly escalates into a love affair. That’s the way it’s gone for Saskia’s Vancouver, B.C.-based owner, Rainer Muller; Mark Wallace, the shipwright who lovingly restored her; and Dave Miller, of North Sails, Vancouver, who built her sails. In 2001 Wallace discovered the much-neglected Saskia and, hewing to the designer's original drawings and preserving as much of the original fine detail and craftsmanship as possible, restored the yacht from her planking to her silicon bronze floors. The result is a Six Meter that is truly classic yet competitive. When owner Muller asked Miller to create a suit of sails for Saskia that would not only be fast but also complement the yacht's looks, he found another Six Meter aficionado. "I grew up on Six Meters, and I love them," says Miller. "My dad and uncle brought a Six Meter over from Denmark, and the boat was sailed by everyone in our family for many years." To get as close as possible to the look of her original 1930's cotton sails, Miller started with "classic cream"-colored woven polyester, split the panels for a narrow-panel look, and gave the genoa a miter cut. "Building sails for Saskia has been a lot of fun. She's a dream to sail, and she turns heads wherever she goes." Meanwhile, Rainer Muller has acquired another venerable Six, the Fife-designed 1933 Fintra II, and Wallace is poised to restore her for the right new owner. Interested? Watch out - the Six Meter bug is contagious! -- North eNews, see photo: http://tinyurl.com/yadevv LAST MINUTE GIFT IDEAS JK3 Nautical Enterprises has the answer to your last minute gift challenge. We have just listed an incredible J/145 just in time for Christmas and in time to do the March 2007 Newport Beach, CA to Cabo San Lucas Yacht Race. The 2003 J/145 "Baraka" (ex "Stark Raving Mad") is by far the best equipped and maintained J/145 available today. The entry deadline for the race is January 1, 2007, so call Jeff Brown today @ 619-709-0697 to get more details on the boat. Additional information on “Baraka” is also available online: http://tinyurl.com/yhkeoo DEAR ABBY I've never written to you before, but I really need your advice on what could be a crucial decision. I've suspected for some time now that my wife has been cheating on me. The usual signs... phone rings but if I answer, the caller hangs up. My wife has been going out with the girls a lot recently although when I ask their names she always says, "Just some friends from work, you don't know them." I always stay awake to look out for her taxi coming home, but she always walks down the drive. Although I can hear a car driving off, as if she has gotten out of the car round the corner. Why? Maybe she wasn't in a taxi? I once picked her cell phone up just to see what time it was and she went berserk and screamed that I should never touch her phone again and why was I checking up on her. Anyway, I have never approached the subject with my wife. I think deep down I just didn't want to know the truth, but last night she went out again and I decided to really check on her. I decided I was going to park my sailboat trailer next to the garage and then hide behind it so I could get a good view of the whole street when she came home. It was at that dreadful moment, crouching behind my boat, that I noticed a large area of tiny little de-lamination blisters on my keel. Is this something I can fix myself or should I take it back to the boat builder? -- Thanks, Fred Submit advice here: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=3782#3782 SAILING SHORTS * Paul Cayard's book, 'The Black Pearl - A Pirate Ship', is now available. Read about the adventures of the Pirates of the Caribbean team as they raced around the world in the Volvo Ocean Race 2005/06. All proceeds from the sale of the book will go to support youth sailing in the San Francisco Bay Area. Printing was made possible, through the combined support of Belvedere Cove Foundation, St Francis Yacht Club and Cayard Sailing. Books can be purchased at http://www.cayardsailing.com * Newport, RI - Organizers of the very popular Jimmy Fund Regatta in Newport announced that they have moved the event from June to take place September 8 and 9, 2007 out of the Newport Shipyard. The regatta is open to all boats including mega-yachts, handicap classes, one-designs and classics and benefits Boston's Dana-Farber Cancer Institute for research and treatment. Classes may request three days of racing by contacting mailto:sarah_curtis@dfci.harvard.edu -- http://www.jimmyfund.org/regatta * The 2007 List of Prohibited Substances and Methods is now available to view via the ISAF Medical and Anti-Doping microsite. The List will come into effect from 1 January 2007. -- http://tinyurl.com/yhy9zm * The Women’s Sports Foundation has named Sally Barkow, (Nashotah, Wis.) as a finalist for the 2006 Sportswoman of the Year Award in the team sport category. Each year, the Women’s Sports Foundation honors two exceptional athletes, one individual and one team sport athlete, for extraordinary performances. Athletes were considered for the 2006 Award based on their athletic achievements between August 1, 2005, and July 31, 2006. Previous recipients of this award include Sue Bird, Bonnie Blair, Natalie Coughlin, Chris Evert, Mia Hamm, Sarah Hughes, Juli Inkster, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Michelle Kwan, Lisa Leslie, Martina Navratilova, Sheryl Swoopes, Serena Williams and Venus Williams. -- Sailing Breezes, full story: http://tinyurl.com/yfr5kx EIGHT BELLS It was with great sadness that we learned of the passing of John Stanley (Bertie) Reed, who died Monday of liver cancer at a hospital outside Cape Town, South Africa. He was 63. Bertie Reed's extraordinary career in single-handed sailing began in 1982 when he placed first on handicap (second to finish overall) in the inaugural BOC Challenge and subsequently logged over 100,000 miles of single-handed ocean racing. In 1992 he received the South African Wolraad Woltemade Decoration for Bravery, a Presidential Citation for Outstanding Seamanship, Brave Action and Sportsmanship and was entered into the Cape Town Civic Book of Honours after rescuing fellow competitor John Martin in the Southern Ocean approaching Cape Horn. Bertie competed in the BOC Challenge in 1982, 1986, and 1990, completed three solo-circumnavigations, and logged over 170,000 miles at sea during his remarkable sailing career. We were honored to host Bertie and his wife Pat last July at The Museum of Yachting as they traveled from South Africa to Newport for his Induction into our Single-Handed Sailors' Hall of Fame. Fair Winds to a true legend of Single-Handed Sailing. -- SallyAnne Santos, The Museum of Yachting BETTER WATCH OUT I’m telling you why . . . Key West Race Week is just around the corner. Hall Spars & Rigging has everything you need to prepare. It’s going to be windy, so bring an extra winch handle, a spare jib and spin sheet, and an extra halyard. Use a Windex? Bring a spare. It’s all available now in our online store. Your preparation will pay off with no downtime and lower stress, and plenty of time to visit us in the Industry Partner tent to see the new products we’ll have on display all week. http://www.hallspars.com LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON Letters selected for publication must include the writer's name, and may be edited for clarity or simplicity (letters shall be no longer than 250 words). You only get one letter per subject, so give it your best shot, don't whine if others disagree, and save your bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere. As an alternative, a more open environment for discussion is available on the Scuttlebutt Forum. -- Scuttlebutt Letters: editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com -- Scuttlebutt Forum: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/forum * From Barrie Harmsworth, ISAF Youth and Devlopment Committee member: (regarding story in ‘butt 2246) I could not agree more with Tom Ehman who, in passing, is also a mean guitar player. At the last ISAF conference the topic of how we can promote our sport through heroes was a common theme. He is quite right when he says that Joe Public at large could not care less about what boats are sailed and that includes AC boats as well. This probably also goes for junior sailors who would like to see the names mentioned in Tom’s comments racing at close call in Optimists if it were possible. I hate to compare our exciting sport with others but it is the rare sport that relies on its equipment in its promotion whilst ignoring the human element. As Tom and many others know, if there is a will there is a way but I'm afraid the will in ISAF is not immediately obvious. * From Jay Cross, New York Jets LLC: With all due respect to Tom (Ehman), it seems to me he is missing the point (in his commentary in Issue 2246). The general public ("and hence TV audiences) are right not to care about what classes or events are in the Olympics and for that matter do they care about any Olympic sport? I say no and we should just move on. The general public likes sports which with broad TV coverage which is predominantly spectator sport and even that is local - not too many people in Australia (except Olympic sailor Jamie Wilmot who is a Jets fan) watch the NFL and not too many people here watch Aussie Rules football. In both cases though, the football ratings far exceed any Olympic sport. Skiing, track, swimming, even tennis (the Tennis Channel is struggling to get cable carriage) all have very limited television audiences. Our sport is, as the marketers say, "part of the long tail" which fortunately as a result of the internet now allows us all to connect. Hence the popularity (only relatively speaking) of the Volvo and those events which purposely produce themselves for the web. We should put the classes and events in the Olympics that 'sailors want' and produce our own broadcasts 'for sailors' over the web - which is to say kudos to Sail.tv, it's the future and damn the general public. * From Malcolm McKeag. Magnus Wheatley (to whom congratulations on his recent marriage) writes in ‘butt 2245: “Sailing [when viewed on television] is dull, boring and uninspiring for the majority [of viewers] and if we don't change, it will be canned from the Olympics.” And, not for the first time, I ask: “and the problem with that is…?” * From Virginia Jones: The issue, as I see them (and yes I've sailed many thousands of offshore miles in all kinds of weather) surrounding the loss from the Picton Castle is not that Ms. Gainey did not have a life jacket on, but that she apparently wasn't wearing a safety harness. It is difficult to do so aloft, although not impossible, but on deck, at night, in bad weather, and with a lot going on, it would have kept her tethered to the vessel. The truth of the matter is that sailing is often a very dangerous occupation and no matter what you do there are always risks; people will be injured and people will be lost at sea; storms and other vessels and hazards will threaten and boats will be lost at sea without a trace. You try to lessen the odds of that happening in any sensible way possible. If you cheat you do so at your own peril. * From Mark Eustis: (regarding Team Tsunami story in ‘Butt 2241) You know, we should all be so lucky to live in a town where some decent guy with a pile o' gelt gets loopy and makes a pledge to buy the kids a boat. And then does it! How many readers of this fine circular have ever had such a besotted notion? And then didn't, of course. I wonder how many boats in the rest of the Tsunami fleet brought their kids out after seeing them sail past...repeatedly? So what if maybe the Tsunami kids grow up and can't afford a boat like that of their own. Would they ever try to own such a boat if they never knew what it was like? What a gift. What a selfless, decent, great thing to do. And what a screaming hoot for the kids.One can only surmise Roger ain't Jolly because the good kids on Tsunami whupped his whining butt. Note to 'buttheads...see http://www.team-tsunami.org/awards.php for some results to savor. Which race was it, Rog? Or was it more than one? So let's all send a heartfelt Tsunami farewell to the not-so-jolly-Roger. Repeat after me: Dude!...chill. (now shake your head slowly, in disgust) Or, if you prefer: What...everrrrrr. (now exhale loudly and roll your eyes, in disgust) * From one of the Team Tsunami Coaches (name withheld; edited to the 250-word limit): Juniors spend endless hours on Optis, 420s, FJs, etc, then after four more years of college racing, many become burned out. Team Tsunami is providing some balance to their sailing activities, and is much more than what you’re reading. Tsunami has Team A, B and C with juniors from each level on board. The junior that drives comes up with a plan with the coach of the day as to who will perform what jobs, jobs are rotated so that all the juniors eventually learn every position. They don't go to the same schools, so thus they are learning how to work together as a team. It's not about just sailboat racing, it's to promote the love of sailing as a sport, whether it be cruising or racing. The juniors are working to raise money for the US Sailing National Hall of Fame, which is part of the learning curve, giving back to their community. Roland Queen is a graduate of the local charity "Box of Rain", a sailing program that helps develop life skills for local at risk youths, and sails regularly on Tsunami. He just made honor roll in high school for the first time as a result of how sailing has changed his life. Team Tsunami represents the big picture - the love of sailing - not just winning sailboat races. I think this program can be built up as a national level program, and may enhance the sport for years to come. CURMUDGEON’S OBSERVATION You know you’ve grown up when you only eat breakfast food at breakfast time. Special thanks to JK3 Nautical Enterprises and Hall Spars & Rigging. Scuttlebutt is also supported by UBS, main partner of Alinghi, the Defender of the 32nd America's Cup. |
