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SCUTTLEBUTT 1879 - July 13, 2005Scuttlebutt is a digest of major yacht racing news, commentary, opinions,features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus. SCHNACK (Days after settling his lawsuit with Team New Zealand, design guru Tom Schnackenberg talks publicly for the first time about loyalty, Luna Rossa - and losing the America's Cup. Donna Chisholm did a story for New Zealand's Sunday Star Times. Here's an excerpt.) If Team NZ didn't want him, half a dozen other syndicates did. Luna Rossa was not only first with an offer, but had the added advantage of being regarded affectionately by New Zealanders after its 2000 loss. And Schnackenberg believes the syndicate has the potential to lift the cup. He will not be a designer at Luna Rossa - "they have plenty of designers. I help people to understand the various factors - they will be deciding on sails, appendages, hull shape, how to sail the boat and analyze weather. You could deal each team the same portfolio of designs, sails, tank tests, and a raft of stuff about keels and then leave them to their own devices and there would be more variety than you would realize in their choices." Schnackenberg is not surprised that other syndicates are lining up when he's unwanted at home. "One of my friends said it was the P factor - P for perception. The perception of your skill is proportional to how far away you come from." If Schnackenberg is bitter about his treatment, he hides it well. Being bitter, he says, "doesn't really help, does it? Now I have a future I can get very mellow about the whole thing". It's an understated description of the joyous atmosphere at his Auckland home overlooking Rangitoto. His wife, Annie, is almost dancing with delight at the prospect of moving to Spain and Schnack is animated about learning Spanish and Italian. "To be perfectly honest, I have mainly thought about getting on with life. This is part of life's cycle - the old lion has been taken out by one of the young ones. Your time has come." Was it about age, then? "I don't know. But now the old lion has another pride to join." Full story: http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/sundaystartimes/0,2106,3340542a6619,00.html A DIFFERENT FOCUS Team racing got a boost in June when the New York YC in partnership with American YC (Rye, NY), Larchmont YC (Larchmont, NY), and Pequot YC (Southport, CT) set up a series Tuesday evening races. Teams alternated venues and sailed at two clubs each evening with a "finale" evening hosted by Larchmont where all teams were together. One hundred different individuals participated in the series which focused on newer team racers with coaching from more experienced sailors, and the results were less important than the experience. The focus was having fun, making mistakes and correcting them during the next race or at the post-race debrief with beer and pizza in hand. Plans are to expand the program next year. - Chris Woods, chrisw@followup.net INVERTED The Spanish VO70 Movistar returned last week to the water after a thorough overhaul and tuning at the team's headquarters in Sanxenxo. The round the world race entrant was hoisted from its cradle and subjected to the safety righting tests demanded by Volvo Ocean Race regulations. A large crane was used to turn the 21.5 meter-long VO70 boat by hanging it from its keel bulb until it capsized completely (keel straight up). Four members of the crew including Skipper Bouwe Bekking and Bowman Pepe Ribes participated in the maneuver from inside the boat to check for possible flooding on the cabin and perform the self-righting of the hull. The members of the crew inside the boat activated the pivoting keel system to put the boat 'back on its feet.'. The keel movement righted the hull slowly and gradually in 5 minutes. MAXI-BOAT MATCH RACE (Andy Rice previews this year's Rolex Fastnet Race in a story posted on the Daily Sail subscription website. Here are a couple of excerpts.) The potential for a duel between two of the world's fastest Maxi yachts could see records tumble in this year's Rolex Fastnet Race. It will be a clash of antipodean giants, as the 100ft Maximus from New Zealand is expected to take on the Australian 98 footer Skandia Wild Thing, when the gun fires in Cowes on Sunday 7 August, for the start of this 608-mile offshore adventure. It will be interesting to see how the revamped Skandia performs against Maximus, Charles St Clair Brown and Bill Buckley's new canting-keeled wingmasted yacht that proved her offshore potential with a strong performance in the recent Rolex Transatlantic Challenge from New York to Cowes. Technology has come on a long way since 1999, when Ross Field and the 80ft Maxi RF Yachting set the current monohull record for the Fastnet course at 2 days, 5 hours, 8 minutes. If wind conditions are favourable, then both Maximus and Skandia are easily capable of beating that time. Then again, more often than not the Rolex Fastnet is a light wind race. The first priority for these teams will certainly be to win the race rather than the record, and even then they may have their work cut against some Volvo Open 70 teams, who are using the race to hone their competitive instincts before setting off around the world this November on the Volvo Ocean Race. Despite being 30ft shorter than the two big maxis, the VO70 design has already proven itself as a potent beast for offshore racing. - The Daily Sail, www.thedailysail.com CUSTOMER SERVICE LIKE NO OTHER!! The Team One Newport team was up at Boston Yacht Club in Marblehead for the start of the Centennial Marblehead to Halifax Race this past week and their customers were very happy. Not only were they selling the Official Marblehead to Halifax race gear but also delivering product to a great number of ecstatic people who were not as prepared as they thought for the cold Halifax breeze! Check out the Official gear and more from Henri-Lloyd, Musto, Gill, Patagonia, Dubarry, Kaenon, Camet, Magic Marine, and tons more awesome vendors at http://www.team1newport.com or call 800-VIP-GEAR for great customer service. TRANSPAC As the first day at sea dawned in the Centennial Transpacific Yacht Race to Hawaii, the leading boat in the forerunner fleet had sailed a mere 39 nautical miles in the 19 hours between Monday's start and Tuesday morning's initial daily roll call position reports. That was a 2-knot average for Plan B, a Peterson 48 entered in Aloha A class by David Johnson of Long Beach. Soap Opera, the Hobie 33 from Rockwall, Tex. Double-handed by Scott Self and Nigel Brown that appeared to be the early leader Monday, was slightly northwest of Plan B and marked a mile behind. Cruising World magazine editor Herb McCormick, sailing on Mark Schrader's Cal 40, Dancing Bear, reported by e-mail: "At this rate, we're confident of landfall in Honolulu sometime just before the 200th anniversary of the race. Grant Baldwin reported from the communications vessel Alaska Eagle that it had been "a long night without much wind and quite cold. Morning found the fleet in fog and wind in the 3-4 knot range. Seas are calm." But there was a note of hope. Baldwin also said, "AM forecast from Commanders Weather projects improved conditions with winds from [northwest to north at] 15-25 [knots]. - Rich Roberts, http://www.transpacificyc.org/ TRANSPAC QUOTES "When you can't shake the moth, fluttering in the stern light on a still and fluky evening, you know you're in deep. Real deep. It's slow out here, friends. We are currently making about 3 knots and have just passed Santa Barbara Island. Only one of the crew was physically restrained from leaping overboard and swimming for shore. For precautionary reasons, skipper Mark Schrader has informed us we will not be sailing close abeam any further islands until those associated with the 50th state. We are currently laboring under a murky sky which Californians helpfully call 'the marine layer.' Unfortunately, the marine layer currently looks to extend somewhere to the vicinity of downtown Honolulu. We had managed a mere 33 miles made good in the first 17 hours of the race. And some folks say yacht racing isn't exciting!" -- Mark Schrader, Cal 40 Dancing Bear ROUND THE WORLD The final leg of the Global Challenge round the world race sets sail Wednesday from La Rochelle bound for Portsmouth and joining the crews will be some extra special VIPs, affectionately known as the 19th man. All 12 race yachts have been sailed round the world by 15 Core Crew, a professional skipper and two leggers, but on the final sprint from La Rochelle to Portsmouth there will be a 19th man aboard each yacht made up of journalists, sponsor employees and other VIPs. Challenge Business confirmed that it has broken its Global Challenge charity target having topped the £300,000 mark for Save the Children, before the race has even finished! Save the Children has been the adopted charity of the Global Challenge since its inception in 1992 and so far a phenomenal amount of over £2.5 million has been raised for the charity. The funds raised have been used to support Save the Children's long-term projects for health, education and poverty relief around the world, helping to create a brighter future for the next generation. -- www.globalchallenge2004.com CALENDAR OF MAJOR EVENTS (Sponsored by West Marine) Events listed at http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/calendar BIG * There are 141 boats racing right now in the Formula 18 World Championship held in Hoek van Holland, Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Teams from France, Great Britain, Germany and the Netherlands are presently packing the top of the standings. -- http://www.f18worlds2005.com/results/f1801al123_2.htm * Helmut Czasny, the Austrian juror at the Formula 18 Worlds took the train from his home town to Rotterdam and was carrying the two Starting Guns for the event in his suitcase. At the German border the police came on board of the train and arrested him for possible terrorism.Helmut forgot to bring his license and was thrown in a German jail. After a debate of several hours he was released and send back to Austria. He couldn't get the guns to the race in time but arrived just in time to do his job at our event. The race committee is looking for policeman who like a day at sea shooting in the air. - Sailweb.com, full story: www.sailweb.co.uk/default.asp#795 NEWS BRIEFS * The 2005 US Snipe Nationals are underway at San Diego YC this week, with seventeen teams competing in the junior events last weekend. Florida sailors Brian Kamilar and Simon Sanders won the Junior Nationals, while Peggy Tautz and Steve Tautz from Colorado won the Junior/ Senior Nationals (junior skipper and senior crew). Fifty-nine boats are now competing in the open event, with 2004 Snipe National Champion Ernesto Rodriguez and Leandro Spina from Maimi, Fla. winning the qualification series. The championship series extends from Wednesday through Friday. Event website: http://www.sdyc.org/raceinfo/snipe/index.htm * The Pacific Cup Yacht Club (PCYC) announced the 2006 West Marine Pacific Cup Notice of Race (NOR) and the race entry form are now available on-line. New this year is the invitation to multihulls to participate in the race. Multihull entries will be required to comply with all applicable ISAF Special Regulations, Category 1, for safety equipment and seaworthiness features. "We have a limit of 70 starters, so I recommend filing an entry early to reserve a place on the starting line," stated Charlie Roskosz, commodore, PCYC. -- www.pacificcup.org * A team comprised of executives from Debevoise & Plimpton LLP (New York, N.Y.), a leading international law firm, won Shake-A-Leg-Newport's Wall Street Corporate Challenge Cup presented by Barclays Capital, in Newport, R.I. The event hosted nine teams of business leaders for racing aboard America's Cup 12 Meter yachts … and raised over $300,000 to support Shake-A-Leg-Newport's programs for people with spinal cord injuries and nervous system dysfunction. This is the oldest one-design sailing charity race in the U.S., raising over $2.5 million since its inception 14 years ago. - www.wsccc.org * Check out the new photo gallery we've posted showing Whidbey Island Race Week - the original Northwest adult summer camp: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/05/wirw/ * All is set for the start of the Rolex IMS Offshore World Championship which takes place in the Balearic island of Menorca for the first time. Forty eight yachts compete in the event, with crews representing Argentina, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Russia, Spain, Switzerland and Uruguay. The Rolex IMS Worlds, organized by the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda and the Club Marítimo de Mahón, runs over five days from July 13 to July 17 and includes both windward/ leeward races and a coastal/ offshore race in the waters off Menorca for a maximum total of seven races. -- http://www.regattanews.com/ * The 32nd America's Cup is building a collection of portraits of today's sailing stars. The project launched by Louis Vuitton is being orchestrated by independent photographer Jérôme Schlomoff. In addition to the biggest names in the America's Cup, the photo session featured a wooden star: the 50/60 format Polaroid chamber. The camera is the biggest of its kind in the world and only model in Europe, with its two twins living in the United States. The sense of uniqueness comes from the 1/1 format leaving no negative for later copies. This format guarantees a perfect image. -- www.americascup.com/en/ * The 100-foot maxi Maximus will cruise through Cowes Week, opting out of racing because of the risks for big boats sailing in shallow water in very large fleets. Instead the crew are schmoozing sponsors. -- http://www.crew.org.nz/ REVEALED: RECIPE FOR SUCCESS "No secrets! We share our tuning methods and speed advantage with the whole fleet. Getting off the line and deciding which way to go is challenging enough without having to worry about boat speed," says Doyle One Design sailmaker Jud Smith. Jud recently won the 45-boat Etchells North Americans, and Doyle-powered customers cruised to six of the top ten spots. Jud was thrilled to win, but he was just as satisfied to see Gary Jobson, with longtime sailing partner Gary Gilbert, hot on his heels in third. You can reach Doyle One Design at 781-631-0631, or online at http://www.doylesails.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 neither 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. And please save your bashing, whining and personal attacks for elsewhere.) * From Peter Huston: These sentiments by Tony Chamberlain ("It's Just Not the Same" - 'Butt 1878) aren't necessarily correct - "It will be good times for sure, but for old-time Cuppies sitting in the Black Pearl, weeping into their chowdah, it's going to be good times somewhere else for at least another decade". Both the Defender and Challenger have given up alot to make the America's Cup better, and more affordable for more teams. While bidding to host the event is new to the Cup, this trend is not likely to end - and it could be a great way for Newport to get back into the Cup business. Let's hope the State of Rhode Island sends a delegation over to Valencia to learn how they might become host for the event again. * From Robin Crawford ("It's Just Not the Same" - 'Butt 1878): Hard to believe I was reading a North American column lamenting the arrival of totally professional sailing and the end of keen amateurs sailing at top level for the fun of it. What hypocrites you Yanks are! Your owners and big money men are almost 100% responsible for the demise of Tom Wakeman's good old days. The cheeky Aussie observer might wonder if it is just a case of sour grapes because first some Aussies, second some Kiwis and third a very stylish and competent Swiss have beaten you at your own game. You set the rules, now you apparently want to pick up your bat and ball and slink home. * From By Baldridge: Tony Chamberlain and the rest of the Media should study the 2007 Cup Protocols. There are no United States teams just as there is no Swiss team. These teams are non-nationalistic entities that owe no allegiances except to the person paying the bills. * From Kurt Hoehne : Puget Sound sailing and racing is as great as Steven Levy describes. (The Shaw Island Classic is a hoot) The only thing wrong with sailing here, other than the occasional lack of wind, is that not enough people are active in it these days. Why try IRC? It's simple, internationally embraced, flexible, unprejudiced, encourages truly good new designs while also encouraging older and heavier boats. It takes the local committee aspect out and reboots the system so we can start fresh. It's not a high-tech dead horse. Of course, it's not perfect. As if that silly comment needs to be said. It can and should co-exist with other systems and one design. The goal is to get more boats out. Why oh why all the resistance? It might diffuse the fleets further? Please. They've just about lost critical mass already. Last Friday Barry Carroll of US-IRC spoke to Northwest sailors about IRC. Corinthian Yacht Club and Seattle Yacht Club are now working together to start offering the system this fall in addition to PHRF. Looking out at beautiful Puget Sound and its dwindling fleets, it seems to me it's time to reboot. * From Dave Hoy (In Reply to Nicole Weaver on PHRF): I think that's probably the way it should work, that PHRF ratings can be and are regularly changed based on observed performance. In PHRF-NE, it doesn't seem to work quite as immediate as that statement would seem to indicate. To correct or change the rating it requires a formal, procedural protest in writing backed up with accurate results obtained from at least twelve races. Nothing is done unless someone files a complaint and says, "this boat is not valued correctly." Few will take the time and trouble and will just say, "the boat's a rule beater!" By the time at least twelve races are accounted for plus other comparisons and the forms are filed and the committee has finally met and heard from the protested owner, come to a conclusion, the season is over and it is at least February. It's too late to effect the outcome, the boat has walked away with the season's silver. That said, it should be to all of our best interests, those using PHRF, to step up and protest a resurrected boat that obviously has a skewed rating and to do what we can to bring it properly into line any way that we can. PHRF, I believe, has within it the best basis for broadly "leveling the playing field." A little more immediacy would be desirable, however. * From Jack Mallinckrodt: Graham Kelly's observations on Americap include some truths but miss some more important ones. There can be little question that a system (PHRF, IRC) based on observed performance can be more accurate than a measurement system -- on the average. Trouble is, most races are not sailed on the average. Single number scoring systems (PHRF, IRC) can only be accurate at a single -- generally average -- condition. The handicap errors in such average condition handicaps under non-average conditions can be huge, much larger than the discrepancies between different handicap systems at average conditions. For a specific example, the SCORA web site, (www.scora.org "The Inherent Error in Single Number Scoring") shows a case comparing the two outlier (heavy vs. light weather) boats from our 1998 Southern California fleet (of 42 boats), where any single number system, if handicapped perfectly for a 20 knot wind, would be in error by 180 seconds per mile at 6 knots. That exceeds by an order of magnitude any reasonable estimate of the discrepancies among Americap, IRC and PHRF under average conditions. Graham states that Americap is type forming and favors "heavy cruising boats built to the rule". I think what he probably means is that heavy cruising boats rate more favorably under Americap than under PHRF or IRC. That may well be true, but absent a showing that the heavies win more races, that difference may better be explained by the fact that, by design, Americap alone does not favor any preconceived "best" prototype. CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATIONS In the 60's, people took acid to make the world weird. Now the world is weird and people take Prozac to make it normal. |
