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SCUTTLEBUTT 1906 - August 19, 2005Scuttlebutt is a digest of major yacht racing news, commentary, opinions, features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus.EURO2005 ANALYZED (The following is an excerpt from a piece by Richard Gladwell just posted on www.kiwispy.com) The European Championships for six of the 11 Olympic classes have been concluded in the past week. This presented a snapshot opportunity to undertake some analysis of the results and maybe gain an insight as to the relative state of the Five Ring Circus heading into 2008, and the Qualifying that will begin a year earlier. There are a couple of statistics that are interesting to bear in mind. First that in 2004, 20 countries shared 33 medals across 11 classes. We'll see if this trend is continuing. Second, that of the Olympic medal winning countries in 2004, 80% qualified in the first round (2002), 17% in the second round (2003) and 3%, or one medal winner from the third round of qualifying in 2004. This gives us some indication of potential 2008 medallists and 2007 qualifiers. Most pundits would also be aware that in Athens 2004 GBR won the most medals - five - the same as they did in Sydney 2000. Spain was the second most prolific medal winner in Athens 2004 with three medals. In Sydney 2000, USA and AUS were second placegetters with four each. Athens 2004 was also notable for the fact that several of the powerhouses of Olympic sailing failed to medal - being NZL, NED, GER and AUS. It is also interesting to note that in the past 20 years (1984-2004), only two countries have medalled in each year USA and GBR - who are first and second respectively on the 20 year medal table. NZL was in this elite group until 2004, when it failed to win a single medal. AUS was fourth equal along with ESP after Sydney 2000. For the purposes of this analysis the top ten results of the European Championships sailed in 2005 have been compiled into a table. Boards have been excluded due to the hiatus awaiting the arrival of the new equipment; Yngling Worlds have been included in lieu of a European Championship. So have the 470 Mend and Womens which had their Europeans earlier in the year. The purpose of the analysis is a two-fold indicator. First to see if countries which failed to fire in Athens 2004 have got their Olympic programmes back on track, and second if those countries which had a good level of performance in Athens are maintaining this benchmark. First glance at 2005 shows the obvious - GBR are doing it again, with five podium places, including three wins. In several classes GBR appear to be running effective squads and have obtained multiple placings in the top ten in some classes. The conclusion is that GBR have continued to build on their 2000 and 2004 results, and have held the position in classes in which they have been strong in the Olympic/World Championship arena. USA is the other one doing well, with "new" talent in two classes, and three podium places - they are second equal on the Euro2005 "rankings", along with FRA - who have also done very well in the "top ten" rankings for Euro2005. NZL is in a group of three with two podium placings (the others being SWE and ISR). ISR look to have a good 470 program running with a 3rd in the 470 Mens and a 2nd in the 470 Europeans. -- There is much more to this story by Richard Gladwell: http://www.kiwispy.com/ "WE RAN OUT OF TIME" Team Shosholoza will be counting on the expertise of three world class yachtsmen to help them start winning races at the next Louis Vuitton qualifying races which start in Sweden on August 25. Speaking at a press briefing in Cape Town on Wednesday, Team Shosholoza managing director Captain Salvatore Sarno, said it had been a big mistake to try and gloss over the huge commissioning problems experienced with South Africa's new yacht Shosholoza RSA 83 at the Valencia regattas two months ago. "We thought we had to show the world that South Africa could be the first to launch a new generation, super hi-tech, all carbon Version 5 America's Cup class yacht. But we ran out of time. The yacht was far from ready and we sailed her for just one and half hours before racing. It was crazy." "At the last minute we also had to buy a second hand mast from Cup defenders Alinghi as we found there was something wrong with our new mast. This meant that none of our new sails fitted the Alinghi mast. We also had no on-board hydraulics, which are critical on a hi-tech vessel like this for changing the shape of the sails. Sailing without hydraulics on an America's Cup class yacht is like trying to race a Formula One racing car with only one gear," he said. "But like typical South Africans we were too proud to admit that we were having such huge problems. We went out sailing every day, finished every race and even when we kept on losing we kept smiling. It was a big mistake". said Capt Sarno. John Sweene, a former America's Cup sports director for the BMW Oracle Racing Team and America True challengers would be in Sweden as sports director to advise on all aspects of racing and sailing performance. Chris Law, a four-times British Olympic sailor and match racing champion, would remain with the team as match racing coach but would also come on board as starting helmsman as success in the pre-start maneuvers was critical for winning a race. Steen Moor, a former world match racing champion from Denmark would also join the team in Sweden as match racing coach and an expert in tactics. -- http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=6&click_id=39&art_id=qw112435020124S163 THE TWELVES The World Championships for the International 12-Metre Class Association's will take place on September 14-18 in Newport at the New York YC's Harbour Court clubhouse and sponsored by The Jibe wines of New Zealand. Expected are 16 entrants divided into divisions for Grand Prix (Hissar, Kiwi, Kiwi Magic and US 61), Modern (Challenge 12, Courageous, Freedom, Intrepid, Lionheart and Valiant), Classic Traditional (American Eagle, Nefertiti, Weatherly) and Classic Vintage (Gleam, Northern Light and Onawa).. This will be largest collection of 12-Metres racing together since the last World Championships in 2001 at the America's Cup Jubilee in Cowes, when 34 of the 12-Metres were on the line. Bill Koch explained that he has made significant changes to Kiwi Magic to remain competitive and that this is the trend in the class. "When I bought KZ7 (Kiwi Magic), I was thinking it was the fastest in the world under all conditions, and I wouldn't have to spend a fortune modifying it. Our first and second years, we won virtually all our races," said Koch. "Now I've spent probably 150% of the value of the boat in modifying it. But I joined this class because it's small and friendly. It keeps me connected to the America's Cup and keeps my foot in sailing. I also use it as a reunion for the sailors from my America3 campaign." -- www.nyyc.org A WINNING COMBINATION! Ockam offers integrated instrument solutions with proven race-winning performance for all boat types. The powerful Tryad processor supplies a smarter, faster & lighter platform that includes built-in RS-232, GPS & NMEA ports and a polar module. All of your data streams unimpeded throughout the system's simple "daisy chain" network eliminating the need to purchase a separate processor. Add the Teeter-Todter 3D compass and get the most stable, accurate numbers available. And take advantage of the versatile Matryx display's 18 user defined pages including graphical stripcharts of any function. Jump to the front of the fleet, contact Ockam. mailto:lat@ockam.com SWEDISH MATCH TOUR St. Moritz, Switzerland (Aug. 18, 2005) -- Day 2 of the St. Moritz Match Race ended with two of the five flights of Round Robin C complete. The top four finishers in the round advance to the semifinals of Stage 3 of the 2005-'06 Swedish Match Tour. Ben Ainslie (GBR), Emirates Team New Zealand, and Ian Williams (GBR) lead the round with 2-0 records. Mark Mendelblatt (USA), the event's two-time reigning champion, and Staffan Lindberg (FIN) are both 1-1. The two most experienced skippers in the group, Peter Gilmour (AUS), of PST, and Ed Baird (USA), of Alinghi, stand 0-2 after the round was suspended late this afternoon due to shifty winds. Gilmour and Baird finished 1-2 in the Swedish Match Tour standings last season."It's so random out there," said Ainslie. "It's a fine line between winning and losing." "It's hard to see the shifts coming down the course," said Williams. Friday's schedule calls for Round Robin D for the six crews that were eliminated in Rounds A and B including Holmberg, Sebastien Col (FRA), K-Challenge, Mark Bradford (AUS), BMW Oracle Racing, Mathieu Richard (FRA), Marcel Walser (SUI) and Eric Monin (SUI). Time permitting Round C will be completed afterwards. The final two days of St. Moritz Match Race, Aug. 20-21, are planned to be broadcast live on the Tour's broadband Internet channel, www.SwedishMatchTour.tv. -- Sean McNeill, www.swedishmatchtour.com St. Moritz Match Race Standings Group A Round Robin (After 5 of 5 scheduled flights) 1. Ian Williams (GBR) Team Musto, 4-1 2. Peter Gilmour (AUS) PST, 3-2 3. Ben Ainslie (GBR) Emirates Team New Zealand, 3-2 4. Sebastien Col (FRA) K-Challenge, 3-2 5. Peter Holmberg (ISV) Alinghi, 2-3 6. Mark Bradford (AUS) BMW Oracle Racing, 0-6 Group C Round Robin (After 2 of 5 scheduled flights) 1. Ben Ainslie (GBR) Emirates Team New Zealand, 2-0 T. Ian Williams (GBR) Team Musto, 2-0 3. Staffan Lindberg (FIN) Alandia Sailing Team, 1-1 4. Mark Mendelblatt (USA), 1-1 5. Ed Baird (USA) Alinghi, 0-2 T. Peter Gilmour (AUS) PST, 0-2 (Top four advance to semifinals) CALENDAR OF MAJOR EVENTS (Sponsored by West Marine) Events listed at http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/calendar STAFFING UP Spanish born Guillermo Altadill, 43, formerly a member of Team Brasil 1 has also been announced as joining the Ericsson Racing Team under Neal McDonald. Altadill was reported as having left the Brazilian team after he broke his leg while racing in Italy. The 12 week convalescence period meant that he wasn't able to join the rest of the South American crew in training, but he seems to have recovered sufficiently for McDonald to take him on. "Guillermo has been round the world six times and will definitely be someone whose opinion I will be constantly listening to in the Volvo Ocean Race. The Ericsson Racing Team also named Magnus Woxen (SWE) as a crewmember of their entry in the Volvo Ocean Race 2005-06. Veteran of two round the world yacht races, Woxen competed onboard Swedish Match in the 97/98 Whitbread and on SEB in the last Volvo Ocean Race. The entire Ericsson racing team is currently in Gothenburg having successfully completed its 2000 nm qualifying sail. -- www.ericssonracingteam.com WISDOM FROM BEFORE THE MAST "The true art of doing the bow is to never be on the bow. Obviously you have to go up there, but you plan it out: On a take-down you throw everything down the hatch -- kite, sheets, guys, and halyard, everything attached. You put the pole down on the deck, wherever it may be. No clean-up until later on, when you're out of the trauma of the bottom mark. You sit on the rail, wait a couple minutes, look up the course and see if there are light spots up there, or less chop on the course. You absolutely never stand up and go to the bow unless the boat is going full speed. The pitman should also be a good bowman; he needs to know what the moves are up on the bow, so that he can help you. When you run forward to put a halyard on, or bring it around the jib, and the pit isn't staying with you enough to have the jammer open and have slack in the halyard, that'll slow you down big-time." -- Greg Prussia, from a story posted on the Sailing World magazine website, full story: http://tinyurl.com/7aqng NEWS BRIEFS * The International Committee for Fair Play has honored US Disabled Sailing Team-member Keith Burhans and US Disabled Sailing Team Coach Betsy Alison for the 2004 Fair Play Awards. The two sailors were nominated for the awards by IFDS and the International Paralympic Committee. Keith Burhans was honored in the 'Act of Fair Play' category, receiving Letters of Congratulations, while Betsy Alison has received a Fair Play Diploma in the category 'Sport Career.' Find out more about these impressive honors by visiting http://www.ussailing.org/News/2005/fairplayawards.htm. * Rockland, Maine -- This year's third Annual Maine Boats and Harbors Show exceeded the organizers expectations. Attendance was up over last year 12,000 are estimated to have visited the show grounds over the three-day event. Attendance in previous years was around 10,000. The show itself was 20% bigger than last year with 325 total exhibitors including 80 boats in the water. * The St. Petersburg Yacht Club is accepting requests for invitations to the Rolex Osprey Cup, a Grade 1 women's match racing event. It will be held October 26-30 in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Notice of Race is available on the event website at www.rolexwomensmatch.org SOME OLD SAILS AREN'T SLOWER Colt 45 won the GL70 (sled) class in both this year's Chicago Mackinac and Bayview Mackinac races (where she was also top IRC boat). Her inventory is 100% UK-Halsey, but not 100% new. Hardly! Her UK-Ultra main is 2003, jib top 2004, jibs 2000. Her last four Bayview-Mackinac finishes: 2, 1, 2, 1. And no boat is faster when Colt 45's UK-H VMG spinnaker is flying. Next time some smark-aleck says fast sails don't last, tell them that's a matter of brands. Then give UK-Halsey a call. Check out the nearest UK-H loft at http://www.ukhalsey.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 George McCroskey: Skip Boston will be sorely missed on the water, around the docks, in the loft, and in the yacht clubs from Put-in-Bay on Lake Erie to The Lauderdale Yacht Club. Having sailed against him in my earlier years, (and later as a shipmate with his son Mike on various yachts) one of my great pleasures was to talk with Skip after a regatta. He was a sailor, a teacher, a mentor, a "counselor," a Corinthian, and a friend. Sail on, Sailor. * From Blaine Pedlow: If some sailors cannot see the value of communicating with a starboard-tacker, or don't see the potential in telling a port-tacker to cross, then they'll have trouble competing at the top-end of any fleet. This is not an issue of sportsmanship, nor of the rules - it's an issue of racing common sense. A real-life example: When cars are at a four-way stop sign, what's the fastest way through? Just like on the racecourse, if the drivers communicate who goes first (who crosses), all of you get to go through the intersection as fast as possible (get to where you want to go on the course). If you say nothing, most of the time it works out OK, but every once in a while you end up with a couple thousand bucks of bodywork(an un-prepared port-tacker having a slam tack - or even worse, a port tacker who does a great lee bow and forces you to the wrong side of the course!). As a dinghy and keelboat sailor and coach, I feel it is important to communicate all around the course. Upwind, downwind and at mark roundings, smart and fast sailors talk to their competitors so they can get around the course as fast as possible. I think that we can all find this is helpful to our finishes and to our relationships to other sailors, who now value us as sportsmen and as great competitors. * From Enrico Ferrari: Why Race Sailboats?Yacht racing holds a fascination for those who are bored with trite and easy activities. One can rarely achieve perfection in this sport of yacht racing because of the extreme number of variables involved, much like ballroom dancing (try it for a year if you don't believe me). The best analogy I heard, years ago, is that the captain of a race yacht is like a conductor of symphony getting the best notes at the proper time and volume, in concert with the rest of the orchestra and venue. I believe that Russell Couttes has come closest to perfect harmony with his 15-0 AC record. The rest of us do it because it is an endless challenge! * From Ray Tostado (re Why Race Sailboats?): Why sail at all is the more accurate question. Every day the pages of published scientific peer reviews astound us with evidential research results that man's modern day conduct is very deeply embedded in our ancestor's genetic history. Yeah, that's what I mean; our genetic ancestors discovered floating makes sense; then went on to design better and better ways to float. Then to float faster, further, and ever faster. Even floating fast in circles counts. In fact we have for some time ceremoniously rewarded sailors for the fastest times floating in a circle. Albeit, an elliptical circle that is. After a youth burned up in racing motorcycles, then skis, when I arrived at a late age into sailboat racing it was like discovering a sense of my heritage forgotten in my genetic history. I awoke to a feeling of return and closure to my ancestor's quest to float faster and further. I have concluded that my activity on the water is indeed a heritage fulfilled. * From Rick Ermshar (Re Roy Disney's comments about the Ala Wai): As I'm sure you know it's been a hot topic here in the islands for a long time, and frustrating as hell. On one hand we have local government who make third-world countries look like advanced civilization, and on the other hand we have boat owners paying roughly $3 to $4 per foot for a slip in the very heart of Waikiki and who, of course, scream mightily about any proposed increase. Privatization is clearly the only answer to Hawaii's marina problems. Every time the Ala Wai rips out more unsafe docks, the phone at my marina phone rings off the hook from people seeking slips. Some of them end up waaaaay over in Hilo on the Big Island. Congrats to Roy for speaking out loudly and publicly although he had nothing to gain for himself or his boat and crew. He won't be doing any more TransPac races himself, but still made the effort on behalf of everyone else. CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATION Talk is cheap ... except when Congress does it. |
