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SCUTTLEBUTT 1770 - February 7, 2005Scuttlebutt is a digest of major yacht racing news, commentary, opinions,features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus. Corrections, contributions, press releases, constructive criticism and contrasting viewpoints are always welcome, but save your bashing, whining and personal attacks for elsewhere. HEROES WELCOME It might have been a rather dejected and slump-shouldered Mike Golding that sailed across the finish line of the Vendee Globe in the early hours of this morning, if the keel had still been attached to his Open 60 yacht Ecover. But having been forced to nurse his boat for the last 14 hours across the Bay of Biscay - with only his flooded water ballast tanks and twin daggerboards as barely adequate stabilisers for the stricken yacht - it was an elated and jubilant Golding that reached Les Sables d'Olonne Friday. He is the first person ever to have finished an ocean race without a keel. He thrust his arms aloft and fired off red flares, very much as Vincent Riou had done little more than 24 hours earlier in celebration of his Vendee victory. After what Golding had been through the previous afternoon, faced with the prospect of retiring from a 24,000-mile race just 50 miles from the finish, he too was celebrating victory - victory simply in having completed the course. "Having this happen to me has made me realise just how important third place is to me," smiled Golding at his press conference today. "It's made third feel pretty good." Golding returned to rapturous applause in the French port Friday morning. The crowd hung on his every translated word as he recounted the extraordinary events of the previous afternoon. "I was sailing in 20 to 25 knots of wind, with two reefs in the mainsail and the Solent. So the boat was well loaded, well powered up. Suddenly I felt the boat lean over from what I thought was a gust of wind. I jumped into the cockpit to release the mainsheet." When releasing the mainsheet failed to bring the boat more upright, Golding was concerned. He went through the boat, trying to find the source of the problem. "I tried to dial the keel up, I checked I didn't have water ballast in the wrong tanks. Then I went to the edge of the boat to look for the keel and couldn't see it." This is when Golding got really concerned. He went down below to peer through the endoscope that allows him to view the keel below the hull. "I looked through the endoscope at the top of the keel, but that was inconclusive. So then I opened up the escape hatch underneath the boat, put a diving mask on and put my head under water. That was interesting, because the boat was still doing six knots at the time. I looked under the boat and there was a keel there, but it was in a strange position." Golding was scratching his head in bewilderment, not quite able to compute what had happened. "You expect your keel to be attached to the boat. It's something that you take for granted," he said. But when he looked underneath the boat again, the keel really had gone. In retrospect, Golding believes that the first time he looked the keel "was hanging by a thread". The next time he looked, it had snapped off altogether, almost flush with the bottom of the hull. "Suddenly the boat was three tons lighter, and I thought 'Great, here we go,' joked Golding. The reality was that the skipper was seriously worried, not only for the boat but for his own safety. "My immediate thought was retirement. I thought there was no option about carrying on." But having dropped the sails and flooded the ballast tanks with water, Golding had time to weigh up other options. He decided to hoist some a staysail and a fully-reefed main - a virtual handkerchief of cloth compared with his normal sail plan. To get his head round this new way of sailing, Golding said: "I imagined I was on a Thames barge with daggerboards and no keel, just that instead of carrying a cargo of 10 tons of coal I was carrying a few tons of water." Gradually the 'Thames barger' gained confidence with his new set-up and even unfurled the Solent sail to generate more power. The boat picked up in speed and was averaging 7 knots, even touching 9 knots at one point. When Golding crossed the finish line at 03 hours 17 minutes GMT, the relief was palpable, the reward immense. - www.mikegolding.com Updated Vendee Globe gallery: www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/05/vendee/ THE WINNER (Vincent Riou, winner of the Vendee Globe, spoke exclusively to Sue Pelling from yachtingworld.com about the Vendee Globe Race and his views on the current keel dilemma. Here's a brief excerpt.) Avoiding weather systems is one thing but experiencing a disaster such as losing a keel is something that's surely on the minds of most yachtsmen as they head south. The recent spate of keel loses particularly during the Vendee Globe is a big issue right now and one that undoubtedly needs dealing with before the situation gets worse. Commenting on how the issue could be dealt with and whether there should be some sort of working party set up within IMOCA to address the situation, Riou said: "Interestingly they have tried to do that before. The architects agreed but the builders didn't want to do it. Maybe now after so many problems with keels in the Vendee Globe, they will. I too think they should work together using the knowledge of everyone, allowing everyone to talk about the various experiences and come up with an agreement. "There is actually a rule in other classes such as the VO70s where they have to agree on certain coefficients. I say why not to that but I'm conscious that it's virtually impossible to check it and it would cost a lot of money because each competitor would have to give their keel plan to the IMOCA, and the IMOCA would have to pay someone to do the calculations in structure. "I think the architects should make the most of each other's experiences and we could force them to communicate where each one has to say the situation they are in to enrich the collective so we don't do anything stupid. In an effort to defend his title and become the first ever two-times winner of the Vendee Globe Riou is adamant he'll do the next race in four year's time. Thoughts on a new boat? Riou concluded: "Yes, if I did it again it would definitely be in a new boat." - Sue Pelling/Yachting World, full story: http://tinyurl.com/4nuk8 JAMIE BOECKEL MEMORIAL FOUNDATION The Jamie Boeckel Memorial Foundation was established in 2002 shortly after the sudden and tragic death of Jamie in a yacht racing accident while performing bowman duties aboard Blue Yankee on Long Island Sound. The mission of the fund is to preserve Jamie's memory through various charitable endeavors that reflect his adventurous and generous spirit. Team One Newport is offering the Jamie Boeckel Mystique PFD that has Jamie's initials on the back in code flags, wherein a portion of the proceeds are donated to the Jamie Boeckel Foundation. Call Team One Newport at 800-847-4327 or view at http://www.team1newport.com/store/products.asp?dept=115 ELLEN There is less than 250 miles to go for B&Q skipper, Ellen MacArthur as she heads eastwards towards the Bay of Biscay, looking for potentially the one final wind shift that will see her home to the finish. Her lead has been falling quickly from 2 days, 6 hours Saturday morning to 1 day, 16 hours as her course takes her away from the direct route to the finish combined with the fact that Francis Joyon, on his 90ft multihull IDEC, was super fast towards the finish, clocking up average 400 mile days over the last four days direct to the finish. But for MacArthur, barring any major incidents or technical failure, her goal of setting a new solo, non-stop round the world speed record looks to be within her grasp. Latest estimated time of crossing the line is still looking possible for Monday. Ships, exploding hard drives and Vendée Globe boats add more action to the unfolding drama over the last 12 hours: "A few ships around, alarms going off all around me. I put the radar on and could see really clearly. On deck you can't look forward, the spray stings your eyes too much. Although I did clean the windows the other day, and I can see more from inside than on deck to the water hurling over the deck." Shipping will become a more hazardous threat as Ellen gets into the Bay of Biscay and moves north in the busy shipping channels. - www.teamellen.com CALENDAR OF MAJOR EVENTS (Sponsored by West Marine) Events listed at http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/calendar AMERICA'S CUP The Challenger Commission for the 32nd America's Cup ("CC") met in San Francisco on February 1-2. Here is a summary of the primary decisions reached by that group: 1. The CC will be incorporated as Spanish Company with each Challenger holding one share and one vote. 2. A detailed format and scoring system for the Challenger Selection Series for the "Louis Vuitton Cup" was unanimously approved, subject to discussion with and confirmation by ACM. Details of this "San Francisco Plan" should be announced no later than the final challenger deadline of 29 April 2005, hopefully sooner. The San Francisco Plan calls for two or three rounds-robin (depending upon the final number of challengers) for all Challengers starting in mid-April 2007, followed by a knock-out semi-finals for the top four boats from the rounds-robin, and a two-boat final. Results among the Challengers in the thirteen Louis Vuitton pre-regattas or "Acts" in 2004-2007 figure significantly in the Plan - an America's Cup first. 3. The Regatta Director asked the CC's guidance on a number of draft rules for the six Acts in 2005. The CC unanimously recommended that: + as a cost-cutting measure, teams be limited to using ("carding") a maximum of 26 sails for the six 2005 Acts, except that sails carded by teams in the 2004 Acts and that "old sails" measured prior to the end of the 2003 America's Cup Match would be permitted in addition to the 26; + windward-leeward courses of four legs be used, but with slightly longer legs than 2004 (depending on wind strength, 2.5 to 3.0 miles instead of 2.0 to 2.5), and maintaining a target length of 90 minutes per race with, normally, two races per day. + racing be conducted when the wind is in the range of approximately 7 to 23 knots (as measured by the Race Committee at six metres above the water), and that the starting times, at least in Valencia, be pushed back to 1400 by when the sea breeze is normally well developed. Full media statement: www.challengercommission.com/ QUOTE / UNQUOTE - Tom Ehman "I would say that the venue, Valencia, itself is very potentially very good. And if it doesn't end up costing the teams a lot of money - which is a potential problem, we could have the best of everything we have ever had - all in the one place. It's sunny, the wind is good; the local people are very interested; if the television coverage is good; and the shore-side crowds are good; then that is 90% of the battle." - Tom Ehman, Chair of the America's Cup Challengers Committee, from a story by Richard Gladwell, Pacific Motor Yacht. The complete story will be online Tuesday at www.pacificmotoryacht.co.nz THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE NUMBERS What makes Ockam data better? Almost 30 years of research as well as utilizing a scientific approach to solve the issue of instrument accuracy. Ockam allows for the calibration of sensor inputs to ensure more reliable and accurate data into the CPU while also providing a simple way to refine your numbers using the Matryx display. This combined with up to 8 times per second processing by our proven Pentium-powered Tryad CPU means your race winning decisions will be more reliable than ever. Break away from the middle of the pack by contacting Ockam: mailto:lat@ockam.com VENDEE GLOBE Monday evening finish for Dominique Wavre (Temenos), and Tuesday morning for Sébastien Josse (VMI). These are the latest ETAs on this, the ninety-second day of the race. Meanwhile, the two skippers are not having an easy time of it, as they enter the Bay of Biscay. Squally showers over the past 36 hours, heavy to mountainous seas, cargo ships and fishing boats scattered around, and tonight they are going to have to deal with a change in wind direction to get back to Les Sables d'Olonne. In other words they don't have much time for sleeping at the moment. Further back, in the middle of the Doldrums to be precise, the American Bruce Schwab (Ocean Planet) was seriously thinking of going for a dip, just like Karen Leibovici (Benefic), who is slowly moving through a high-pressure area that was impossible to avoid. Leaders at 1900 GMT February 6: 1. PRB, Vincent Riou, Finished 2. Bonduelle, Jean Le Cam, Finished 3. Ecover, Mike Golding, finished 4. Temenos, Dominique Wavre, 236 mtf 5. VMI, Sébastien Josse, 298 mtf 6. Virbac-Paprec, Jean-Pierre Dick 1434 mtf 7. Hellomoto, Conrad Humphreys, 2243 mtf 8. Arcelor Dunkerque, Joé Seeten, 2276 mtf 9. Ocean Planet, Bruce Schwab, 2838 mtf Complete standings: www.vendeeglobe.fr/uk/ Check out the exciting finish line photos: www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/05/vendee/ NEWS BRIEFS * The Marion Bermuda Race Organizing Committee is providing every boat entered with a GPS transponder. This transponder will track every boat during the 645 mile race as well as their return home. The GPS transponder will be provided to each boat at no cost to the entrant except for a fully refundable deposit on the transponders return. The internet based iBoat Track program will show position and speed, standing within the fleet and position in class. This also provides a safety factor as the organizing committee will know the location of every boat in case of an emergency. *After a rip snorting night sailing at speed toward the Strait of Hormuz, the leading yachts in the Oryx Quest 2005 non-stop RTW race ground to an abrupt halt. The wind in the Strait went light and Sunday morning the three bigger yachts find themselves drifting in foreign waters. Foreign only in a sense that for the first time ever three of the fastest sailboats in the world are doing battle off the coast of Iran. Current data on the website have Geronimo out in front followed by Daedalus (34 miles) Doha (46 mi) and Cheyenne (86 miles). www.oryxquest.com/ * Bruno Peyron's maxi-catamaran Orange II has been swallowing up miles. On Sunday morning she'd logged 686 miles for the 24-hour period - just 20 miles short of the absolute record. Since starting 14 days ago she has averaged 22.1 knots and covered 7180 miles. Bruno Peyron and his crew are nearly 1600 miles ahead of Cheyenne's RTW record. - www.maxicatamaran-orange.com/ * Update: In Issue 1760 we reported on the Lands' End "Thrill of the Mac" essay contest, where the winning essay would garner the writer a ride in '05 Chicago Mackinac Race along with a prize package including airline tickets, lodging and cash. At the time we reported the contest, the link provided did not include the rules. Well, it does now. For a complete set of rules: www.landsend.com/rules * Three former Bacardi Cup champions -- seven-time winner Mark Reynolds of California, two-time Cup winner Peter Bromby of Bermuda, and 2004 defending champion Afonso Domingos of Portugal -- are among the early registrants for the 2005 event. Competitors from Italy, Australia, Germany, Switzerland, Canada, the Bahamas and the United States have also signed on early. The six-race Bacardi Cup Star Class Regatta runs March 6 -11 in Biscayne Bay. It is co-hosted by the Coral Reef Yacht Club and the U.S. Sailing Center, both based in Coconut Grove, and is sponsored by Bacardi U.S.A. - www.bacardicup.com/ * Wellington delivered 20 knots of wind for the start of Leg 3 of the Global Challenge 2004/05 from Wellington to Sydney. The yachts had an upwind beat to the top of the harbour and then a big spinnaker run out through the entrance. On the dawn of the second day, the fleet was averaging around 5 knots as they headed west - still within sight of one another. BG Spirit was out in front followed by Team SAIC La Jolla, and VAIO. - www.globalchallenge2004.com/en/ VANGUARD TEAM RIDERS AT THE C420 MIDWINTER'S Orange Bowl Champs Adam Roberts/ Nick Martin and Charlie Buckingham/ Chase Ayres will be competing at the C420 Midwinter's at the US Sailing Center, Stuart, FL, February 18-21. Winning teams will represent the USA in Korea at the 2005 Volvo Youth ISAF World Championship this July. Results and news, http://www.teamvanguard.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 not 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.) * From Carol Boe: Wow. As a somewhat irregular reader of the 'butt, I was pleasantly surprised to catch the article about Gary's (Jobson's) victory over Hodgkin's Disease. Like most, I'd hoped for the best but expected the worst. Having been in the sailing industry for some time and often reading about passings, it's nice to hear good news for once. * From Bryan Sundholm: I guess I have to put my two cents worth in on the canting keel thread. It would only take two flip up dogs one one each side of the keel that could be used if the rams failed. They would otherwise lay flat on the hull or the support structure for the keel. Cheep and easy and a added safety device if the rams failed. * From Bruce Thompson: Having attended a seminar describing the IRC rule, I think this may be a great step forward! It seems it might now be possible for a smaller boat to win first in fleet on a windward-leeward course. This is nearly impossible under PHRF! I am having discussions with Barry Carroll by email, so we'll see if my hunch proves correct. CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATIONS You know you've grown up when you hear your favorite song on an elevator. |
