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SCUTTLEBUTT 1246 - January 23, 2003Powered by SAIC (www.saic.com), an employee-owned company. Scuttlebutt is adigest of major yacht racing news, 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. BRAD BUTTERWORTH (The Yachts and Yachting website has posted a blockbuster interview done by Magnus Wheatley with Brad Butterworth. Butterworth candidly discussed many aspects of the Alinghi campaign, including the real reasons why he, Coutts and the others left Team New Zealand. Here's a small excerpt from this important story.) Magnus Wheatley: Let's go on to the controversy about you leaving TNZ…You guys are the best sailors in the world, even if I look at the top estimates the sums are laughable compared with top-flight American sports for instance. Did you go for the money? Are you guys underpaid? Brad Butterworth: Yes…Let's set the story straight we never left for the money. Russell and I worked for three years, and a little later on Tom Schnackenberg as well, to have a seamless transition between the management and the owners of the team from 95-00 to a new management organization for 2003. We actually worked on for several months after the Cup was won, the problem was that the owners and the sponsors never wanted us to carry on with it. Peter Blake had moved on… MW: Hold on you're saying that there are owners of TNZ - who are they? BB: John Lusk, Tom Clarke, Jim Hoare, Roger France, Richard Green. They weren't the trustees, they owned it along with the sponsors that were there last time. MW: And why didn't they want you there? BB: I don't know. They made it impossible for us to carry on and we worked for three years to sort this out because we knew that if we won in 2000 we'd have a lot of problems funding the thing this time and also keeping a team. We couldn't wait a year and then say to these guys 'come on let's do it again' as they (the crew) were all getting job offers before the Cup started. So the night of winning in 2000 should have been one of the best times of my life but I was actually bitterly disappointed at the attitude of these guys that had made it impossible for us to carry on. So I could see the whole thing falling apart. So it's just a lie that we went for the money. It's a lie that we were the first to leave, we were the last to leave. MW: You and Russell have often said that when the whole story comes out everyone will understand. Is this the whole story? BB: It's so complicated, the whole story is three years and Russell wants to take his own timing to do this so that we do the right thing by the last team that we were with. At that time it wasn't going to work for us and we just wanted to move on although we still have quite an affection for the team that we won twice with. MW: It all became clear after that? You say the day that you won was a disappointing day, was it all clear then? BB: It was a disappointing day because most of the crew were taking offers from other syndicates and we were powerless, because we weren't the owners, to do anything. We were just two sailors in that team. - Yachts and Yachting website, full interview: http://www.yachtsandyachting.com/default2.asp?section=11&article=8767 KEY WEST Melges 24 leader Bruce Ayres had to return from an OCS and finished in 21st-place, which opened the door for defending champion Flavio Favini to slide into first place of the Terra Nova Trading Key West 2003 with a fourth place finish. Favini is now four points ahead of Ayres' Newport Beach, Calif. colleague Argyle Campbell, with Ayres another 10 points back. Favini blitzed the fleet last year when the prize was the delayed 2001 class Worlds title, but he hadn't sailed a Melges since while participating in the America's Cup. Wind shifts - including one of 100 degrees - shuffled the fleet. While the Division 1, 3 and 4 courses managed one race, the biggest boats on Division 2 called it a day when the wind swung so far, principal race officer Bruce Golison said, that "there was no way to get a finish line [placed] due to the rocks." That left Rosebud, Roger Sturgeon's Transpac 52 from San Francisco, in command of PHRF 1 ahead of Bill Alcott's Andrews 70 turbosled, Equation, from Detroit. The Farr 40s remained muddled as George Andreadis' Atalanti XII (Robbie Haines on tactics) from Greece and the Scott Harris/Alexandra Geremia Crocodile Rock (Vince Brun), Santa Barbara, swapped spots on the leaderboard. John Kilroy's Samba Pa Ti (Paul Cayard), appeared to be running away until the monster shift kicked it back to seventh place. Atalanti XII struggled from the start and was recovering nicely until the shift dumped it into 15th place in the race and second in the regatta, two points behind Crocodile Rock. The day's Farr 40 winner? Stuart Townsend's Virago (Steve Benjamin) from Chicago finished first, but opted for a 20% alternative penalty on the water rather than risk a DSQ on a protest by Alex Krstajic's Honour (Tony Rey), which claimed leeward rights at the start. That made John Coumantaros' Bambakou (Chris Larson) the day's low scorer in second place, although still in mid-fleet overall. There is only one unbeaten boat remaining---Mike Carroll's Henderson 30, New Wave, with four wins in PHRF 4, which was unable to race Wednesday. Thursday's weather forecast looks gnarly. It calls for ideal breeze to 15 knots in the morning followed by a cold front bringing a sustained blow of 20-25 knots in the early afternoon when the second race should be under way. - Rich Roberts, Complete results at www.Premiere-Racing.com CARBON SAILS? YOU NEED PROGEN II Progen II is the ultimate performance line. This ultra-high strength PBO line has very low stretch and is perfect for halyards connected to carbon sails. These sails put a lot of stress on the halyards and, as Scott Easom of Easom Racing and Rigging says, "... we can set the halyards at their marks and that is where they stay...." Look around the docks at Key West; if you see boats with black covered halyards pay attention, they are the competition. http://www.samsonrope.com AROUND ALONE Tauranga, New Zealand - 22 January - American skipper Tim Kent on Open 50 Everest Horizontal came smoking across the line in second place at 02:09:04 hrs local time (13:09:04 GMT) The inside of Tim's boat was painted thick black from the engine fumes, which had leaked uncontrollably during most of his leg. Kent has now established himself in second place overall behind Class 2 leader Brad Van Liew on Tommy Hilfiger Freedom America after three legs out of five. Canadian Derek Hatfield on Open 40 Spirit of Canada has been his nemesis since the very start of the race, and they were on equal points starting this leg from Cape Town. Shortly before lunch the Canadian flag could be seen snapping in the wind as Derek Hatfield sailed Spirit of Canada towards the finish line. His official finish time was 12:10:06 local time (23:10:06 GMT on Wednesday). Sailing one of the smallest boats in the fleet, Derek has pushed and coerced every inch of performance from his boat at times threatening Everest Horizontal ahead of him. - www.aroundalone.com KEY WEST SIDE BAR It was clear that the race committee had its hands full on Wednesday, but the sailors seemed satisfied that the difficulties were handled as well as possible. Gavin Brady, the tactician on Jim Richardson's Barking Mad, Newport, R.I., has raced in the top level all over the world and had high praise for Division 1 PRO Ken Legler, although he didn't know his name. "The race committee guy on that course is the best I've ever seen," Brady said. "He doesn't make it a mystery for the competitors. He talks to us [by radio] and lets us know what's going on: 'Hey, guys, I'm only going to do one race today . . .' He needs to write the book on how to run a race committee." - Rich Roberts THE FRENCH (The Daily Sail talked with K-Yachting's visionary boss Stéphane Kandler, about his 2006 America's Cup campaign to be headed by Dawn Riley. Here's a brief excerpt from that story.) An obvious man to get behind the drawing board is Juan Kouyoumdjian. "Yes we have a long history with Juan but for sure we will try and attract people who have the same philosophy," says Kandler. Personnel-wise aside from Dawn Riley, top French match racer Thierry Peponnet is on board and Nicholas Charbonnier, who has already proved himself on the junior match racing stage, is also likely to be involved. "Bertrand Pace, we have a very good relationship with him. We think he is a very strong guy," says Kandler. "He is one of the best in the world, but in France nobody knew him before he started to sail with Team New Zealand. "After that we want to have a very good architect who has a good view of the America's Cup boats, who has a good view of the America's Cup boats and Dawn has many many relationships so we hope to get some people who are involved now in other campaigns, so it is difficult to say who will be there." No firm decisions on personnel will be made until the Cup is over at the end of February. - The Daily Sail website, full story: http://thedailysail.com/ISM/articles.nsf/Interview/A3E9C83B5FB2823A80256CB4007DEB5E?OpenDocument&Login FUND RAISING Last America's Cup it was the red socks campaign. Now Team New Zealand has embarked on a new campaign: $10 "loyal" car aerial flags. The famous socks, used as a tool to raise funds and national pride during the past two regattas, are not being sold this Cup after the murder of syndicate head Sir Peter Blake. * But a public fundraising campaign has begun, with the sale of "loyal" flags which are part of Team New Zealand's advertising campaign promoting key crew who stayed with the team, turning down lucrative contracts with foreign syndicates. The sale of the flags, which fit on to car aerials and cost $10, was announced a day after the Swiss team Alinghi, brimming with New Zealand talent, won the right to challenge Team New Zealand for the Cup next month. Half the proceeds from the sales will go to Team New Zealand. The rest of the money will cover manufacturing costs. Team New Zealand's budget is estimated at about $80 million, while Alinghi's is thought to be US$70 million ($127.7 million). Helen Tunnah, NZ Herald, full story: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/storydisplay.cfm?thesection=news&thesubsection=&storyID=3097443&reportID=4 MORE KEY WEST Essential gear for a regatta this big includes: boat, wind, crew, beer and another t-shirt. The Pirate's Lair provides the best graphics, tees, polos, fleece and caps for the sailing world. The Pirate's Lair is also the official supplier for merchandise at Key West Race Week. For a free catalog and widget, call them at (888) SAIL-BUM or log on at http://www.pirateslair.com/sailing NEWS BRIEFS The Midwest Collegiate Sailing Association will be leading a casual panel presentation on College Sailing at Strictly Sail Chicago at Navy Pier on Saturday, February 1, 2003, at 3:00 p.m. Central Time. Youth and junior sailors, parents, coaches, The program is geared to Junior Program Directors, current college students or staff wanting to start a club/ team, alumni, and anyone interested in what college sailing has to offer. The MCSA will have a small table at the Harken booth at the show all four days. www.sailamerica.com. QUOTE / UNQUOTE - Dennis Conner "It's sad not to have the U.S. in the final but hopefully we'll see Larry (Ellison) back. It's in my blood but talk's cheap and I have to go and raise the money. Until I have it I can't really raise my hand." - Fox Sports website, http://foxsports.lycos.com/content/view?contentId=865680 LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON (editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com) (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 or a bulletin board - you only get one letter per subject, so give it your best shot and don't whine if others disagree.) * From Peter Huston: One of the unique - maybe bizarre - things about the America's Cup is the time honored tradition of a Commodore from a pre-selected club handing a challenge to the Commodore of the Cup winning club as the first boat crosses the finish line in the last race. This year will be no different, but with the current structure of the Cup which leads to an unreasonable business equation, who would want the hassle that comes with being the Challenger of Record? Perhaps more interesting will be watching lawyers hired by billionaire team owners leap off of team tenders and on to TNZ after the last Cup race, while heaving bags of cash towards Dean Barker and crew in an attempt to acquire their services for the next Cup. Clay Oliver will no doubt be swarmed by shoreside team agents, again, with wads of cash being thrust at him. The only question now is whether an American ex-pat like Oliver will take the money and run, and whether or not young Dean understands the economic principle behind the present value of money. Now that we have determined what you are boys, we are just talking about the price, because all loyalty programs aside, you are being paid by TNZ aren't you? Before signing up with TNZ again for chump wages, why not ask your banker if they will accept your loyalty to New Zealand as collateral for house, car or college education for your children. Does loyalty equal chump? * From Steve Wells: I wonder if most people feel as I do, the AC is now between the rich NZ crew (Swiss) and the poor NZ crew (local). Or as some have suggested the morally correct vs. the immoral rich. Anyway, the AC is now just a local Auckland race now as far as I'm concerned. Is there a place to get a good picture of the offending appendage? I can't really understand anyone's explanation and I haven't seen any really good pictures. CURMUDGEON'S COMMENT: Daniel Forster has several excellent photos of the Kiwi appendage on his website: http://www.yachtphoto.com/skirtsaway03.html * From Michael Leneman: The critique of multihulls usually comes from those who have never sailed on them. To call them only marginally faster than the monohulls is to mis-represent their speed, and to call them "not real boats" is to revel in the prejudices of the last four decades. Sail on them, watch them, and experience their thrill. No one freaked out when a number of open 60's (monohulls) went upside down and stayed there on previous 'round the world races. They just made them safer, and that's what the Formula 60's gang will do as well. * From Steve Greene: With regards to comments on monohull vs. multihull and what is or isn't a "real boat" (Butt 1245), I would submit that Polynesian proas were making safe ocean voyages long before the monohulls of European explorers hit the seas. My sailing background includes Snark, Laser, Force 5, Hobie, Stowaway 15, Ensign, International 500, WindRider, Sweet 16 and many others. Next I might try Scows. I hear they are a blast, though my own bigotry says a scow isn't a real boat because real boats should have pointy bows! But I understand that a squared bow is what defines a scow, just as multiple hulls define a multihull. There will always be a divide between factions with regard to boat preference, but there is room for growth, understanding and acceptance. Agreed, the last Route du Rhum was rough on the multihull fleet, but no more so than the Sidney/ Hobart was on the monohull fleet a few years ago which ended in serious loss of life! No one perished in the Route du Rhum. The Sidney/ Hobart tragedy led to big changes in safety protocol, boat design, and manufacturing- all for the better just as the last Rhum will surely lead to innovations in multihulls. Overall, if multihulls are good enough for Ellen MacArthur, they are good enough for me! Um, excuse me Ms. Mac Arthur, you aren't sailing a real boat? Give me a break! If a multihull isn't a real boat, I don't know what is. * From Tony Hammer: So Phil Olbert would hate to see multihulls in the Volvo Round the World because there not "real boats" and go too fast. He must be rather disappointed that the Americas Cup boats aren't still gaff rigged. And Gad!, The crew aren't wearing white flannel pants either! He's right about last year's Route du Rum though, it was a fiasco, but that was mainly because the boats were single-handed. * From Dick Katz: Everyone's moaning and groaning about team New Zealand's so called "hula" appendage - well - it's been tested and measured and declared fast AND legal...just like the "knuckle" bow was...so we must live with it... I for one, would like to see some input as to their radical bulb design - this thing is long and sleek and would seem to help balance the boat fore and aft which would mean less time moving up and down in the waves and more time sailing in a straight line. * From Kyle Clark: I remember growing up sailing Sabots as a kid and the first time I ever was exposed to video-taped races. We were racing in Alamitos Bay and someone's dad brought a camera to tape the regatta. Saturday night all the sailors and families gathered around a TV set upstairs in the clubhouse to watch the action. Half-way through the first weather-mark rounding one of the fathers ran to the TV and turned off the sound because of all the foul language ... mostly high-piched obsceneties from the girls! CURMUDGEON'S COMMENT: Let it be known that Kyle has had the last word. This thread is now officially dead. THE CURMUDGEON'S CONUNDRUMS Why do we play in recitals and recite in plays? |
