|
SCUTTLEBUTT No. 1104 - July 1, 2002Scuttlebutt is a digest of yacht racing news of major significance; commentary, opinions, features and dock talk . . . with a North American emphasis. Corrections, contributions, press releases, constructive criticism and contrasting viewpoints are always welcome, but save your bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere.
AMERICA'S CUP McDonald replaced Dutchman Roy Heiner as skipper of Assa Abloy after the team suffered a chaotic first leg. With McDonald in charge, Assa Abloy came back to finish a clear second overall. GBR general manager, New Zealander David Barnes, said the door was wide open if McDonald, a trimmer, wanted to return to the syndicate. "We are still talking to him and we'd definitely be keen to have him back. But at the moment he just wants to have a break." - Julie Ash, NZ Herald, full story: www.nzherald.co.nz/sports/
INVERTED As Van Liew stood on the ceiling of his living module inside Tommy Hilfiger Freedom America, he contemplated the eerie nature of this exercise. "This is not a position I'm comfortable with, not here or in the Southern Ocean," said Van Liew. "At least in the Southern Ocean you have the waves to help push the boat upright. Here it is just my canting keel and I to make it happen." After 10 minutes of being inverted and checking for leaks, Van Liew used the manual pump to crank the canting keel to the yacht's starboard side. Van Liew was soon running up the curved insides of the hull as it rolled to an upright position. Peter Franzen, Boat Manager for Tommy Hilfiger Freedom America, was onboard with Van Liew as a witness. Official IMOCA measurers from France, Canada and the U.S. were onsite. A crowd of onlookers grew rapidly as they saw the uncommon situation evolve. As a Class II entry in Around Alone, Van Liew is required to certify Tommy Hilfiger Freedom America according to IMOCA (International Monohull Open Class Association) rules, which require that each skipper "must physically demonstrate that the boat, once capsized, is capable of self righting without outside help." Van Liew has already qualified for the race. He is the only skipper entered in the Around Alone race of 2002-3 that has finished the event previously. It will be his second solo circumnavigation. - Meaghan Van Liew, www.oceanracing.org
NEWS BRIEFS * After several weeks stuck in the port of Brest, Geronimo, the giant trimaran has finally left its berth for the Iroise sea. Geronimo had been awaiting this comeback since its forced return to land, following a problem with the rudder blade, which cut short its attempt to break the Jules Verne trophy record. This return to sea was delayed by a violent collision suffered by the giant multi-hull while docked. * Italian fashion house Prada Holding NV (I.PDA) Wednesday pulled plans to float just days before its roadshow - the third time it has postponed its proposed public offering in a year. "It would have been suicide to go ahead with such terrible market conditions," a London-based analyst said. Proceeds from Prada's IPO are aimed to help reduce a large debt pile of some 800 million euros, as well as give the company cash to open new stores and develop new lines. * On July 1 the distribution of Frederiksen Boat Fittings will handled by Ronstan's US office in Largo Florida. Frederiksen, which produces blocks, travelers, and batten car systems, was acquired by Ronstan last year. * After a weekend of challenging sailing in turbulent weather Yandell Rogers of the Lakewood Yacht Club, closed out the final day of match-racing (8-2) to take first place in the UBS Challenge Regional Qualifier held at the Texas Corinthian Yacht Club, Kemah. Skipper Rogers now advances to the UBS Challenge U.S. Championships, held in Newport, Rhode Island, on July 27 - 29.
ASK YOURSELF
LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON * From Duncan Wood: Dennis Connor and Kenny Read must be laughing all the way to the finish line. While most of the other teams are embroiled off the water shenanigans, Team DC is quietly going about the business of preparing for racing, away from the madding crowd. When the first starting gun fires in Auckland, they will be there with the best trained, best organized, best prepared program on the water. When the final finishing gun of the LV series fires, they will also be there fully prepared to take on the Kiwi's. Guess what? Stars and Stripes is the only American team with crew and support personnel that truly represents the good old US of A. And to think that they leave their ego's on the dock when they go sailing. * From Mike Ingham (Re Americas cup intrigue): I hate to admit it, but despite all the legal proceedings being disgusting, it really does make for good news leading up to the America's Cup. Since racing has not started, all the other news about the AC preparation is mostly bland compared to the soap opera we hear. The problem that it causes the rest of us is that it tarnishes our image. Most of us sail in small inexpensive boats and want nothing to do involving the legal process in our sailing lives. All my non- sailing friends think that the Americas Cup represents exactly what our weekend sailors do. They realize it is not on that scale, but they still picture a bunch of rich, bitter guys spending a lot of money on toys and lawyers. * From Steve Secor: I enjoy the reading about billionaires and their lawyers making asses out of themselves. Especially since the arbitration panel won't let them go to court, but the panel won't make a decision until they are sure they won't be sued either. I only wonder if the lawyers and rules people can see the knot they have tied. When the racing starts the sailors will take over, but until then keep I hope to enjoy the steady stream of crying and whining from the billionaires. * From Mike Hobson: I agree with Andy Green re the Americas Cup and soap operas, it's funny seeing the dirty tricks coming into play to catch the other team out. Reading about all the antics is just like reading the National enquirer or any other tabloid. The America's Cup Is not about real life, it's about big money, big ego's and fighting over a piece of silverware for a spot in History and fame. Just as Peter Harken said, there is nothing new in this, go look back at the history. Apart from the America's Cup stuff, I read all the time in Scuttlebutt that readers question why sailing isn't more popular, why cant we attract more sponsors and television to the sport, why can't we become a more mainstream sport. So I put the question: does anyone see a correlation between big money syndicates in the Americas Cup and the lack of sponsorship available to the sport? If you were the head of a Company looking for exposure through sport, would you put money into one of these syndicates? Would you put your company's money into sailing at all? So IS the America's Cup good or bad for the rest of us? * From David Scully: Bruce Farr makes an interesting point regarding the cost of a new, bigger, Volvo boat. It seems that by going bigger, you replace a slow boat with a more expensive slow boat. The cost of a campaign is already quite high. Why not invite maxi-multihulls to do the Volvo? The boats are on the cutting edge of tech, go really fast, and could easily fit into the Vovo 60 budget. From my point of view, as a maxi-cat captain for whom French is a second language, we need the race organization and global exposure the Volvo Race could provide. * From: "Rod Carr: 'Butt # 103 stated "an option that (Bruce) Farr fancies is the idea of having a one design rig and keel and keeping the rest open. "This would allow a freedom of building the boats, but controls some of the key performance issues." Radio controlled model yachtsmen have enjoyed just such a class for years. Called the International One Meter, the class rule specifies a closely controlled fin/bulb configuration, three one-design sail plans, and a maximum LOA of 1.00 meters. Minimum displacement allows homebuilts to complete with the carbon fiber high tech manufactured hulls, and tolerances on measurement allow homebuilding accuracy to be easily accommodated. The recently completed European Championship drew a fleet of 80 boats!!! * From Tony Castro: Could I add some fuel to the "what boat to have next Round the World Race" debate. There is no doubt that bigger boats would make for a bigger spectacle. There is also no doubt that costs if kept lower would attract a bigger fleet. One-designs are boring, except to the sailors who are only interested in measuring themselves against each other and for the Designer himself!! . So a compromise is required. The idea is not new and I remember debating it when the present rule was developed some years ago, but we could have elements of the new class "One Design" like the rig, sail sizes and appendages for example and let the hull be designed to a box rule. In my view this solution would allow costs to be contained more easily and help justify the bigger boats and give more designers a chance to compete as a result of smaller R&D budgets being required. * From Richard Hazelton: What goes around comes around. Sailing is now far removed from the "sportsmanlike conduct" that used to exemplify the sport. People complain about all the nit-picking and bending the rules of America's Cup, yet it's okay to kinetically propel yourself around the course "because everybody does it". It's okay to go over the boundaries in your class or ratings group if you can win. It doesn't begin at the top but at the club level where kids and ratings sailors learn that it's okay to cheat if you don't get caught. Unfortunately it's at a greater price than that of the trophey, it's at the integrity of the sport. Actually that's wrong - the sport is fine, it's the integrity of the sailors that's in question. The vast majority of sailors play fair, but it's always the few that screw it up for the rest. Enforce the rules or forget them. We can either use the rules to clean things up, or keep bending them until there's nothing left but window dressing. But it all begins at the club level. Sportsmanship and integrity is something learned early on by example. * From Joe Buck - In this day of rapid communications and internet web sites, some yacht clubs post race results on the internet, but it takes them two or three days to do so. In nice contrast, for the North Sails Race Week, by the time I drove home from the race, the results were posted on the net.
THE US YOUTH SAILING TEAM Brian Doyle (Darien, Conn./Hanover, N.H.), the head sailing coach at Dartmouth College (Hanover, N.H.) since 1993, will act as Team Leader. Full story: www.ussailing.org/pressreleases/2002/ywtcomplete.htm
ONE-DESIGN
GARY McPIKE McPike was a yacht racing rules authority and had been a National Judge and Umpire in the United States. Since living in Australia he had joined the CYCA and had been accepted here as an National Judge, also becoming a member of the Racing Rules Committee of the Yachting Association of New South Wales. He had been recently in the USA, umpiring at the Congressional Cup, one of the major match racing events in that country, and had applied for status as an International Judge and Umpire. - Peter Campbell
KIELER WOCHE American's Mark Reynolds and Magnus Liljedhal were in a league of their own in the Star fleet, winning four of their five races. They were the only American's in the 60-boat Star fleet and the only American's to score a podium finish. However, Betsy Alison took a creditable 6th in the 30-boat Yngling class. - www.kielerwoche.de
NORTH SAILS RACE WEEK Demetriades' sky blue Transpac 52, Yassou, outsailed the heavy hitters in PHRF 1 class for the biggest boats, which earned him PHRF Boat of the Week recognition. Carruthers, the two-time defending J/105 champion sailing Incorrigible, said going in, "If you see me on the podium again it'll be because I got lucky." But he earned the overall Boat of the Week trophy by winning the most competitive class---which also was the largest with 29 boats---by two points. Other notable winners included Brack Duker's Revolution in the celebrity studded Farr 40 fleet, with Dave Ullman as tactician; Ventura's Dave Klatt, who claimed a berth in the J/24 Worlds by winning these Western Regionals with no finish worse than second, and Argyle Campbell, who swapped wins with fellow Newport Harbor Yacht Club campaigner Bruce Ayres to win the Melges 24s by one point. A record total of 171 boats sailed in 13 classes on three courses. Forecasts were for stronger winds the last two days, but especially on Sunday a lingering marine layer may have discouraged the customary sea breeze. While 18 knots were expected, the wind hovered between 6 and 9 all afternoon. - Rich Roberts Other class winners included: PHRF 2: Cita (Schock 40), Cita Litt, PHRF 3: Pendragon II (Davidson 33), David Gray, PHRF 4: Defiance (B-32), Scott Taylor, PHRF 5: Intense(Olson 30), Allan Rosenberg, 1D35: Tabasco, John Wylie, J/120 North American championship, Indigo, Scott Birnberg, Schock 35 Pacific Coast championship, Whiplash, Ray Godwin, Santana 20, Altitude Sickness, Infelise/Bell/Infelise. www.Premiere-Racing.com
VIC-MAUI RACE Earlier, three other boats withdrew from the race. They are "Fastrack", a C&C 37/40R from the Royal Vancouver Yacht Club, "Time Bandit", a J120 from Orcas Island Yacht Club, and "Swept Away" (formerly "Joia"), a J120 from the Corinthian Yacht Club in Seattle. The remaining 15 boats are experiencing varying wind conditions. The leaders are sailing in about 20 knots of wind from the Northwest. Further back, many boats are struggling in light conditions, four logging less than 100 miles yesterday. "The Rusty Unit" deserves a special moment of sympathy for her daily run of 32 miles at an average speed just over one knot; at roll call she simply reported "no wind". - Peter Bennett, www.vicmaui.org
THE CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATIONS |
