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SCUTTLEBUTT 2576 – April 16 2008Scuttlebutt is a digest of major sailing news, commentary, opinions,features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus. Scuttlebutt is published each weekday with the support of its sponsors. US WOMEN’S WINDSURFING: CASE CLOSED… OR IS IT? (April 15, 2008) US SAILING announced today that the jury for the U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Sailing in the RS:X Women’s event rendered its final decision in requests for redress brought by Nancy Rios (USA 323) and Farrah Hall (USA 3), which were heard last week in Newport, RI. As a result of these decisions, Nancy Rios (Miami, Fla.) will be nominated to the United States Olympic Committee to represent the United States at the 2008 Olympic Games. At issue in both hearings were a tear in Ms. Rios’ sail and time Ms. Rios lost recovering from a collision at the start of the 16th and final race of the U. S. Olympic Trials in October 2007. Ms. Hall argued, however, that Ms. Rios’ fourth place finish in the 16th race was not affected by the tear or the time Ms. Rios lost recovering her sail. The jury heard nearly nine hours of testimony on April 8, 2008 on Ms. Rios’ request for redress. After considering all of the testimony, and 414 photos and other written evidence presented by Ms. Hall, the jury determined that Ms. Rios was entitled to redress. Ms. Hall then filed her own request for redress, claiming that the jury was wrong. The hearing on Ms. Hall’s request for redress commenced at 9 AM on April 9, 2008 and concluded at 10 PM the same evening. On April 14, 2008 the jury issued its decision on Ms. Hall’s request for redress. The jury concluded that Ms. Hall was not entitled to redress and confirmed its decision that Ms. Rios’ finishing place in Race 16 was made significantly worse through no fault of Ms. Rios by the tear in her sail and the time lost recovering her sail. The redress awarded was Ms. Rios’ average finishing place in the preceding 15 races. -- Complete statement from US SAILING, along with the jury findings and filings: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/08/0415a Here are the final results from the October 2007 US Olympic trials: RS:X Women (6 entrants; after sixteen races) 1. Nancy Rios, 2-(4)-1-3-2-2-4-4-1-1-1-1-1-1-2-2, 28 2. Farrah Hall, (4)-1-4-1-3-3-1-1-2-2-2-2-3-2-1-1, 29 3. Monica Wilson, 3-3-3-2-1-4-3-3-3-3-4-4-2-3-4-(5), 45 * Curmudgeon’s Comment: While this is closure in the realm of US SAILING, the Hall camp now will be taking their case to the United States Olympic Committee. They have filed Article 8 and 9 grievances, with the former going to the USOC Review Board to demonstrate that US SAILING’s rules do not meet the minimum due process standard guaranteed by the USOC and federal law, and the later going to the American Arbitration Association to prove that the Jury decision was wrong. The AAA date is already scheduled for May 21-23, with the USOC Review Board to consider the case later this week. AMERICA’S CUP: MORE CONVOLUTED BY THEN EVER It seems that with each legal maneuver that is made to resolve the terms of the 33rd America’s Cup, the possible scenarios get ever more convoluted. Fortunately, legal consultant Cory Friedman is here again to walk us through the quagmire, but we suggest you get a good grip on his hand for this arduous stroll. Here is Cory’s report: (April 15, 2008) Societe Nautique de Geneve (SNG) went to the Appellate Division, First Department, of the Supreme Court of the State of New York on April 15, 2008, seeking a stay of Justice Cahn’s March 17, 2008 Orders pending resolution of its appeal of those Orders. SNG went away empty handed. It did succeed in getting an expedited appeal, but that was something Golden Gate Yacht Club (GGYC) wanted just as much as SNG did and immediately agreed to. Thus, as it now stands, the Deed of Gift (DoG) Match will go forward on the date to be set by Justice Cahn when he enters an order on the summary judgment motions decided on November 27, 2007. SNG does get a second shot at a stay in a formal motion, but is likely that that motion will not be decided until the main appeal is decided in June – unless the appeal is dismissed, which is entirely possible. This is a game changing event. If SNG does not prepare for the DoG Match, it does so at its peril. -- Read on: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/07/cf/#p21 SNG’s statement: http://www.alinghi.com/en/news/news/index.php?idIndex=200&idContent=15453 GGYC’s statement: http://www.ggyc.com/08-15_04_PR_GGYC_Court_Expedites_Appeal.pdf PROOF OF COMPETENCY The Honourable Lawrence Cannon, Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities, has sent out a press release "urging" Canadian boaters to obtain a "proof of competency" before the boating season starts. "Our government wants Canada's several million recreational boaters to enjoy increased safety on the water," said Minister Cannon. "We believe that requiring proof of competency will help reduce the number of incidents and deaths that occur on our waterways every year." The statement was more than just a friendly public relations move. The Canadian government already requires any boater born after April 1, 1983 to have proof of competency - either in the forms of a Pleasure Craft Operator Card; proof that one passed a boating safety course in Canada before April 1, 1999; or a Completed Rental Boat Safety Checklist. But by September 15, 2009, approximately all six million boaters in Canada will be required by law to show proof of competency. -- IBI Magazine, read on: http://www.ibinews.com/ibinews/newsdesk/20080315151450ibinews.html DISCOVER: THE NEW 2008 ATLANTIS COLLECTION The best combination of performance and style just got even better. Boats are starting to go into the water here at the boatyard in Marblehead, which means it must be time for the launch of the new 2008 Atlantis line. Whether you're a hard core performance sailor or you just like to spend time around the water, we've got the gear you're looking for in colors and styles you'll love to wear. Visit our website at http://www.AtlantisWeatherGear.com or call us at 877-333-SAIL. If it's a nice sailing day, leave a message. We'll call you back when we get in. STAR WORLDS Miami, FL (April 15, 2008) -- It was a wild and windy day on Biscayne Bay for the 102 boats racing the fourth of a six race series in the 2008 Star World Championships at Coral Reef Yacht Club. The race start was delayed almost an hour and three boats were black flagged at the start after a postponement and a general recall. Some 27 boats did not finish, more than eight masts were lost, one boat capsized, and one of the top three finishers fell out of his boat just seconds before the finish line. What a day! Defending World Champion Robert Scheidt/Bruno Prada grabbed the lead and crossed the finish line five boat lengths ahead of everyone else. Second place Hamish Pepper/Carl Williams (NZL) and third place Mateusz Kusznierewicz/Domink Zycki (POL) were neck and neck to the finish. According to Kusznierewicz, who had been in the lead since the first weather mark, “We made a very tight tack behind the Committee boat and I missed my hiking strap. Dominik’s reflexes were brilliant; he grabbed me and we only lost a few seconds.” -- Event website: http://www.starworlds2008.com Preliminary results (Top ten of 104) 1. ITA, Diego Negri / Luigi Viale, 3-3-25-9, 40 pts 2. POL, Mateusz Kusznierewicz / Dominik Zycki, 1-1-44-3, 49 3. SWE, Fredrik Loof / Anders Ekstrom, 27-8-9-5, 49 4. AUS, Iain Murray/ Andrew Palfrey, 11-11-5-24, 51 5. BRA, Robert Scheidt/ Bruno Prada, 37-12-2-1, 52 6. FRA, Xavier Rohart/ Pascal Rambeau, 26-21-1-4, 52 7. USA, John MacCausland / Kevin Murphy, 15- 4- 8-28, 55 points 8. USA, Mark Mendelblatt / Mark Strube, 2-6-32-17, 57 9. USA, Carl Buchan/ Jamie Buchan, 31-7-12-16, 66 10. JPN, Kunio Suzuki / Daichi Wada, 9-15-10-33, 67 Results: http://www.starworlds2008.com/ResultsFiles/Star_Worlds_2008.html Video: http://www.sailing-tv.tv/sailingtv.html * Correction: It was reported in Issue 2574 that a drop race would occur with four races; in fact, it will be with the completion of the fifth race. SAILING AFTER COLLEGE For many US youth sailors, they work hard perfecting their pram skills, then move up to either Lasers or doublehanded boats, perhaps do some high school sailing, and then off to the university and four years of collegiate sailing. However, when they graduate from college, what do they do? What boats do they sail then, or can even afford to sail? Big props to the 5o5 class for pursuing these prospects. Read on... “Dear College Sailors: If anyone has an interest in pursuing their sailing after college on an international level, there is no better time to get into the 505 class. The 2008 and 2009 schedule of events in the United States is loaded with top quality events on both the East and West Coast. “There has been a recent influx of younger sailors at many regattas in the past year. The biggest deterrent currently is the lack of quality used boats and the high exchange rates making new boats expensive. Keep in mind that quality 505's do not get soft and wear out like the boats we normally sail. It is not rare to see boats 20+ years old in the top 10 at a World Championship. The purchase price of a used boat may seem high, but the re-sale value of boats does not decline, resulting in minimal financial risk. Also the class is unique in the fact that the senior members are eager and willing to help younger sailors improve. There are now two unique opportunities to get into a boat in time to compete in these upcoming events.” -- Read on: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/blog/2008/04/sailing-after-college.html MORE OLIN STEPHENS * The New York Yacht Club Race Week Classics Weekend this year will honor centenarian Olin Stephens on July 19-20, 2008. The weekend will include a Birthday Celebration for Olin on Saturday, July 19, 2008 at Harbor Court (NYYC, Newport, RI). Additionally, the Marblehead to Castine Race and the Castine Classic Yacht Race will include a party celebrating Olin’s 100th birthday at Eastern Yacht Club of Marblehead, Massachusetts on Saturday, July 26, 2008. Details at http://nyyc.org/nyycraceweekjul19 * To celebrate Olin Stephens’ 100th birthday, T2P.tv is re-airing their interview with him. -- http://www.t2p.tv/guide/ostevens.php SAILING SHORTS * An 11:04 minute audio pre-game show is available for the Farr 40 Worlds, which begins in Miami, FL on Wednesday for the 33 entered teams that represent 10 countries. Matt Ciesicki and Dave Scott (North Sails Farr 40 One Design Manager) discuss what they expect to see prior to the start of the event. Racing will continue through Saturday. -- Listen here: http://tinyurl.com/5yh8na * The world’s top professional sailors and many America’s Cup skippers are preparing for another season of the World Match Racing Tour. The first event will begin on April 22nd in Vitória, Brazil with the Brasil Sailing Cup. The nine event series takes place in nine different countries, in four continents, and with seven different types of yachts. It culminates in the crowning of the ISAF World Match Racing Champion at the Monsoon Cup in Terenganu, Malaysia this December. This year marks the beginning of a new season schedule that remains in a calendar year, wherein previous tour seasons had begun and ended during the European summer. -- http://www.worldmatchracingtour.com * St. Petersburg, Fla. (April 15, 2008) -- Sandy Hayes (Scituate, Mass.) and her team won the 2008 Rolex Women’s Match, hosted by the St. Petersburg Yacht Club from April 10-13. A total of 10 teams competed in the International Sailing Federation (ISAF) Grade 3 match-racing regatta, which was created in 2002 to improve opportunities for women sailors specifically interested in match racing. With the win, #25 world-ranked Hayes, along with second-place finisher Katy Lovell (New Orleans, La.), gained an automatic invitation into the Rolex Osprey Cup, an ISAF Grade 1 regatta, to be held October 21-25, at the St. Petersburg Yacht Club. -- Complete report and results: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/08/0415b * A new format has been established for Del Ray Yacht Club's 2009 Marina del Rey to Puerto Vallarta Race, to start January 31st. There will now be four separate and complete races for spinnaker and non-spinnaker divisions to PV: from MDR to Cedros Island; Turtle Bay to Santa Maria; Mag Bay to Cabo; and finally, across the Gulf to Puerto Vallarta. There will be parties and trophy presentations after each race, with the grand trophies--Corum Admiral's Cup Watches-- awarded to overall winners of the entire series. Additional information is available at http://www.pv09.com DISCOVER THE LATEST IN BOAT EQUIPMENT MyBoatsGear.com is a free online magazine dedicated to finding and reviewing the best boating products. When choosing the best products to review we look through hundreds of products. This week’s favorite piece of equipment was found in Scuttlebutts own New Product Announcements. Port Shields stop water getting below through your opening ports, when it’s raining (http://myboatsgear.com/mbg/product.asp?prodID=1241). With gear organized into 20 easily-accessible categories, our aim is to promote boating products in an unbiased format. MyBoatsGear.com stores product information for access anytime, anywhere. -- http://www.MyBoatsGear.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 Rick Best: While much has been said about the survival rate of the different classes on the Titanic, what is rarely discussed is the chivalry shown in the survival rates of men, women, and children. When the iceberg was struck, onboard there were 1,690 men (885 of whom were crew), 425 women (23 were crew), and 109 children. The survivors were 338 men or 20% of the men onboard; 316 women or 74%; and 57 children or 52%. Let's break it down by class. Of the men saved: first class 33% of 175; second class 8% of 168; third class 16% of 462; and crew 22% of 885. For the women saved: first class 97% of 144; second class 86% of 93; third class 46% of 165; and crew 87% of 23. As for the children saved: first class 100% of 6; second class 100% of 24; and third class 34% of 79. There has been much written about the fate of the third class passengers, many of whom were trapped below and never reached the decks. The second class women survived at about the same rate as first class and crew women, and all the first and second class children were saved. But it would appear that the second class men stepped back from the life boats, as their survival rate was only 8% or 13 of 168. Let's raise a glass to those brave souls who actually did let the women and children go first. * From Bruce Munro, San Francisco: (re, story in Issue 2575) The oil spill incident on San Francisco Bay is one of those stories that gets badly reported in the press because of the need to understand navigation in the fog by use of a GPS chart plotter. For clarification, I suggest that all buttheads who are interested in this subject and have a GPS chart plotter, to zero it in on the San Francisco Bay bridge. It shows a series of markers of different colors and shapes across the bridge. One color and one shape denote the bridge towers. The other color and the other shape denote the center of the span between the towers. Do you think the pilot and/ or the captain got confused over which shape showed the towers and which shape showed the center of the spans? Of course, a radar would just show the towers, but it appears that the radar may not have been working that day. * From Tania Mckenzie: With regards to Tom Hulme’s comment (butt 2575), he has his facts wrong. The “Olympic Committee” did not vote out the Multihull, it was the “ISAF Council”. It is not only the multihull community that is upset but many National Authorities. This is evident as the ISAF Executive has put this on the agenda for the Mid Year M06-08 due to the degree of correspondence since the Council decision in November 2007 plus the submissions lodged by 15 MNA and 2 Class Associations. When you read some of the submissions sent to ISAF, it is clear who is responsible for the voting. That the decision recorded at item 13(d), Selection of Events for the 2012 Olympic Sailing Competition, of the Minutes of the ISAF Council Meeting held on 8/9 November 2008 in Estoril, Portugal, based on a motion from the floor by Charley Cook (USA), be reconsidered by a meeting of the ISAF Council at the earliest available opportunity. If, in reconsidering this motion, the ISAF Council decides that a revote is appropriate, there should be either a runoff vote between: a) Multihull (Open) and the Keelboat (Men) b) Two Person Dinghy High Performance (Women) and Keelboat Match (Women) or the list of Events for the 2012 Olympic Regatta, as decided in Estoril in November 2007, should be set aside and a new vote taken, using the voting process as recommended by the Events Committee without the change that resulted from the motion made by Charley Cook. This is not a multihull versus keelboat question but an issue on what is best for the Olympics and future of sailing. => Curmudgeon’s Comment: Along with her letter above, Tania sent a detailed report from Yachting Australia on the process that was used to select the 2012 events. What was interesting to learn in their report was how the Events Committee started in May 2007 to devise the most suitable voting process for determining the 2012 Events, and provided it to the ISAF Council prior to their November meeting. So, not only did the ISAF Council stray from the Events Committee’s recommendation on what events to select for the 2012 Olympics, they revised their plan on how to select them. It all reminds of a Curmudgeon’s Observation from the past: “Meetings: Dark alleys into which good ideas are led and strangled.” Here is the Yachting Australia report: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/08/0415 * From Rick Dominique: Regarding Olympic events, how about cutting the redundancy of the 47 athletic events and/ or the 34 swimming events?! I have some running experience, and the differences between sailing singlehanded, doublehanded, dinghy, keelboat, catamaran, sailboard, team racing and match racing are all far more varied than the differences between running 100m, 200m, 400m and 800m. Likewise with the swimming events of 50m, 100m, 200m, 400m, 800m in each style!!! The mere fact that one runner or one swimmer can win gold medals in three to four of these disciplines, illustrates VERY CLEARLY the redundancy of these events. How many sailors can you imagine that could win a gold medal in three or four of the existing sailing classes...or in this proposed fleet (only men's for illustration purposes): Laser, 49er, Melges 24 (fleet, then match racing), Tornado, and team racing in Vanguard 15's? * From Bob Webbon: Concerning the Olympics. I wish you guys would ask US SAILING how they intend to vote in the upcoming re-look in May. With so many countries now accepting they made a mistake, will the US follow suit? => Curmudgeon’s Comment: We asked, and they said that it will be the same US contingent attending the ISAF Mid-Year meeting in May that voted at the annual meeting last November. They weren’t, however, as forthcoming on whether they would vote to reaffirm the current 2012 event list, and if needed, whether they would vote to change the mens or womens events. CURMUDGEON’S OBSERVATION It's not his "CRACK" you see hanging out of his pants; it's "REAR CLEAVAGE." Special thanks to Atlantis WeatherGear and MyBoatsGear.com. A complete list of preferred suppliers is at http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/ssc/suppliers |
