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SCUTTLEBUTT 3070 - Wednesday, April 14, 2010Scuttlebutt is published each weekday with the support of its sponsors,providing a digest of major sailing news, commentary, opinions, features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus. Scuttlebutt on Twitter: http://twitter.com/scuttbutt Scuttlebutt on Facebook: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/facebook Today's sponsors: Flexofold, JK3 Nautical Enterprises, and SailFast. KEN READ - PREPPING FOR ANOTHER LAP (PART 3) PUMA announced last week that it will participate in the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-2012 after placing second overall in the 2008-2009 competition. Led by skipper Ken Read in the last race, Read is again in charge of the PUMA Ocean Racing team, and here in Part 3 of this four part interview, shares his thoughts about the team, the lessons learned in the last race, and how they seek to improve for the next race. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- * What is your opinion of the new route for the 2011-12 Volvo Ocean Race. KEN READ: The new route is what it is. Everybody has an opinion, but somebody else makes up the rules, and if you want to play the game, you abide by them. I would say among the big changes is the leg from Cape Town to Abu Dhabi. lord only knows. I don't even know where to start about that leg. I don't think we are going to have USA 1498 on our sail for that route. It's going to be interesting. I haven't talked to race management specifically about safety measures going up either past Somalia or Iran. It certainly isn't a very popular place in the world to go cruising, but at the same time, when we get up to the area where we are finishing, I haven't been there but I understand it to be just gorgeous. So part of me says this is a cool new adventure yet there is for now a slight amount of apprehension. From there on, not having to go all the way north into the winter of China was obviously a pretty good move. Stopping half way in Auckland on what was a very long leg in the last race (from China to Brazil) was in my opinion a very good move too. On picking Miami over Newport, I wouldn't be human if I didn't say I was disappointed by that, but PUMA purposely did not get into any of the politics of stopover decisions. We just decided that wasn't our game and for PUMA, it didn't really matter between Miami and Newport. In fact you could probably make a case commercially that Miami was better for PUMA. But at the same time, with PUMA being based in Boston, it would have been nice to have that hometown feel for both our sponsor and, of course, our program (the team will be training out of Newport). Sailing into Newport would have been a pretty fun experience. But, it didn't happen, that's life, and we move on and try to turn Miami into a hometown feel. * You noted that your budget for the next race will be about the same as the last race. With the new route reduced from 10 legs as in the 2008-9 race to 9 legs for the 2011-12 race, will this change provide a cost savings for each team? KEN READ: Well, I know that in the last race each stopover cost us a minimum of a quarter million dollars. * Other than the route, what are some of the significant changes made by the race management for this race compared to the last race? -- Read on: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/10/0411/#3 SIR DURWARD KNOWLES INJURED IN CAR CRASH Nassau, Bahamas (April 13, 2010) - Olympic gold medalist Sir Durward Knowles is in hospital after his car crashed into another vehicle Monday morning. It is believed that the front right tire of Sir Durward's car blew out causing him to swerve and collide into an oncoming car around 7 am. The sports hero and philanthropist was taken from the crash with cuts to his face and a bruised chest, and was expected to remain in hospital for several days. At last report, Sir Durward's condition was listed as "serious but stabilising." Sir Durward was driving alone when he crashed. He was returning to his home in eastern New Providence after dropping a friend, American yachtsman Paul Cayard, at the airport to catch a morning flight back to the US when the accident occurred. The crash has nixed the 92-year-old's plans to sail in one of the training races that are to precede this week's Star class Western Hemisphere Championship, hosted by Nassau Yacht Club on Montague Bay April 14-17. Sir Durward, the first Olympic athlete to score gold for the Bahamas in the 1964 Tokyo games, also brought home an Olympic bronze medal from the sailing races in Melbourne in 1956. He is also a Star Class World Champion, a title he won in Los Angeles in 1947. Sir Durward is currently Commodore of the International Star Class Yacht Racing Association. -- Full story: http://www.tribune242.com/sports/04132010_tt-sirdurward_news_pg1 SAIL MORE, MOTOR LESS! Are you dragging a fixed prop around under your boat? If so, you might as well be dragging a bucket while you're sailing; it's nearly 100 pounds of drag! A low-drag Flexofold propeller will allow you to keep sailing more, increasing your boatspeed, particularly while the winds lighten. With only 5% of the drag of a fixed prop under sail, and equivalent or better performance under power, you can have the best of both worlds. When performance matters, the choice is clear. Flexofold Sailboat Propellers. To learn more and spec a prop for your boat, click now: http://www.flexofold.com/Spec_A_Prop.php HOW DO I REMOVE VC-17 FROM THE BOTTOM? Dear Boat Doctor, What is the best way to remove VC-17 from the bottom of my J/105? There are some blisters that are forming between the layers of paint, and I would like to remove it all. J/Boats indicate that sanding the gelcoat will void the warranty. I have looked into soda blasting, but it is pricey. Any advice would be appreciated. -- Brian Ebner, Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan Dear Brian, You have a few options for removing your old bottom paint: chemical stripper, soda blasting or sanding. They all have their pros and cons. Stripping can be messy and you need to be careful with the materials.Peel Away is nice in that the stripper and stripped material is somewhat contained by the paper material. There are other alternatives like Interlux Interstrip 299E (www.yachtpaint.com, 800-468-7589). Soda blasting is a nice alternative and a little kinder to the environment but, as you mentioned, can be expensive. Don't be tempted to use traditional sandblasting, as there is some evidence that abrasives can get embedded into the hull material and cause future blistering. Sanding is always an alternative but a lot of work. You will need to be careful not to damage the gelcoat, as evidenced by J/Boat's warning that sanding may void your blister warranty. Once the hull is stripped you'll need to assess if you want to apply an epoxy barrier coat before repainting. Barrier coats provide good protection against blistering and act as a primer between the gelcoat and bottom paint. If you did happen to damage the gelcoat by sanding, a barrier coat would be a really good idea. Regardless of what method of stripping you choose, be sure to discuss the project with your yard before you start. Many yards have strict regulations regarding bottom paint and its removal. * Bob Pingel is the Boat Doctor for Sailing magazine. Here is a complete index of his How-To articles: http://www.sailingmagazine.net/how-to/boat-doctor-index MADSTREAK TO BE SHOWN AT STRICTLY SAIL PACIFIC The West Coast's largest all-sail show comes this week to San Francisco Bay at Jack London Square in Oakland, California on Thursday through Sunday. Scuttlebutt editor Craig Leweck joins an all-star series of seminar presenters, and on Saturday he will showcase a very special movie, MADSTREAK, which is the story of Stonington, CT sailor Clay Burkhalter's quest to win the 2007 Transat 6.50 Race. This film sets a new standard for presenting the sport as it captured the story of Burkhalter competing in the 4,240-mile singlehanded race from La Rochelle, France to Salvador de Bahia, Brazil (with a stop in the Canary Islands). The awareness of this race was heightened in 2003 when Jonathan McKee nearly became the first American to win the race before losing his rig 700 miles from the finish. "It takes a madstreak to race across the Atlantic Ocean in a 21-foot boat," said McKee. Professional footage taken during Clay's preparation, along with a narrative by Paul Cayard, is edited with onboard film from cameras at the top of the mast and in the cabin, along with a third that Clay could move around the boat. This is truly a timeless story of adventure, and one which captures the personalities of Burkhalter and several of his supporters and competitors. -- WindCheck review: http://tinyurl.com/yylvpww * Scuttlebutt has FOUR FREE TICKETS to the show to give away. Anyone who posts a reason to attend Strictly Sail Pacific 2010 in the Forum will qualify for all the tickets in a drawing on Friday: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=9617#9617 * Discount tickets for Scuttlebutt readers. Save $5.00 here: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=9604 GERMAN COURT UPHOLDS ISAF REGULATIONS The International Kiteboarding Association, which is designated by the International Sailing Federation (ISAF) as the world wide governing body of kiteboarding, had to recently defend its authority in a German court. The ruling also focused on ISAF Regulation 18, which controls how the word "World" can be used in the title of an event or in any of its promotions. Read on: ---------------------------------------------------------------------- The Kiteboard Pro World Tour (KPWT, official name: Globe Pro Firm LLC), a limited liability company based in Delaware, USA with its management in Brasil, served a court injunction on the International Kiteboarding Association ( IKA), a not for profit International Association based with headquarters in Germany, on the 15th of January, 2010. The court order was to prevent the IKA from making statements about the validity of KPWT events. These statements include that "KPWT(...) is not entitled to use the terms 'world cup', 'world championship' etc" and "Competitors taking part in unsanctioned events of KPWT will fall under ISAF regulation 19 and will be excluded from participation in future official ISAF and IKA events". The hearing took place on the 1st of March, 2010 at the 12th Civil Division District Court of Darmstadt, Germany. A decision was then published on the 30th of March, 2010. The court declared, that these statements in the context in which the statements have been made, are true and do not constitute anticompetitive conduct. The KPWT having lost the court case will have to cover the full costs of the lawsuit for both parties. -- http://tinyurl.com/y2x9ktz ISAF Regulations: http://tinyurl.com/ISAF-Regulations JK3 AT THE NEWPORT BEACH BOAT SHOW Come join us at the upcoming Newport Beach Boat Show, April 15th - 18th. On display we will have the flag ship Back Cove 37 for viewing as well as a beautifully equipped J/124 available for purchase. Please make sure to stop by our booth to get the latest information and updates on the exciting new J/111 coming this July and the new Sabre 40, as well as a complete list of quality late model brokerage boats we have available. For more information, contact either the Newport Beach office at (949)675-8053 or San Diego at (619)224-6200 or visit us online at http://www.jk3yachts.com PHOTO GALLERIES * Bring together 104 boys and girls ages 14 to 18 from 14 states spanning Hawaii to the East Coast, tell them they will be trained by some of the elite coaches in the U.S., and you have California International Sailing Association's 33rd annual Advanced Racing Clinic at Alamitos Bay Yacht Club in Long Beach, CA on April 8-11. Scuttlebutt's new favorite photographer Jacqueline Schmitz was there too with these images: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/10/0413/ * The 15th edition of Charleston Race Week last week provided three days of quality racing for the 184 teams competing, with the Charleston Harbor Resort & Marina providing a central site for dockage, accommodations, and beachside evening festivities. Also in attendance was the team from PhotoBoat.com who have provided Scuttlebutt with an event gallery: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/10/0413a/ NEW YORK TO BARCELONA TRANSOCEANIC RECORD New York, NY (April 13, 2010; Day 6) - Strategic options have been limited for the two IMOCA Open 60's Estrella Damm and W Hotels as they approach a theoretical half way point of the New York Barcelona Transoceanic Sailing Record Challenge. And for the foreseeable future, certainly to the entrance to the Mediterranean, it will continue to be hand-to-hand combat for the crews, a straight test of trimming and producing the boats speed. W Hotels has constantly been snapping at the heels of Estrella Damm, with both teams making excellent progress today on a fast, bumpy and wet - again - fetch on a SE'ly heading towards the low pressure system that is generating the 20 knot NNE'ly winds and mounting seas. For American crew Stan Schreyer on Estrella Damm and Peter Becker on W Hotel, these Open 60 newbies are long on energy but running short of superlatives. Both cannot get enough 'helm time' and clearly this could be the start of an Open 60 love affair which could endure the test of time. -- Full report: http://tinyurl.com/y3bdj2u Positions report (as of 20:30 UTC): Estrella Damm - 1749.7 nm from NY; 1916.8 nm to Barcelona W-Hotels - 1732.7 nm from NY; 1933.9 nm to Barcelona SAILING SHORTS * (April 13, 2010) - The Transatlantic Race 2011 and the Atlantic Ocean Racing Series 2011 were announced today by their organizers: the New York Yacht Club and the Royal Yacht Squadron, in association with the Royal Ocean Racing Club and the Storm Trysail Club. The Transatlantic Race, from Newport, RI to the Lizard, west of Plymouth, England, will offer staggered starts from June 26th-July 3rd, 2011 and is for Racing, Racing/Cruising and Classic monohull yachts. There will be eight races in the Atlantic Ocean Racing Series. Three races, including the Transatlantic Race 2011, will be required to qualify. -- Full report: http://nyyc.org/home/article_717/ * The latest Volvo Sailing Podcast includes Kenny Read discusses the success of Rambler, Puma Ocean Racing coming back to the Volvo Ocean Race, and the tragic death of Peter 'Spike' Doriean. Grant Dalton chats about the Camper/Team NZ team-up for the next Volvo and Stan Honey comments about navigating Groupama 3's successful Jules Verne campaign. -- http://tinyurl.com/y5kqxj8 * The National Sailing Hall of Fame & Sailing Center, Anne Arundel County Public Schools and Hudson River Community Sailing are partnering to teach math and science through sailing in Anne Arundel County Public Schools to further develop an adaptive STEM-sailing model for use around the country. Based on the premise that students would find math and science more interesting and less abstract if concepts were tied to the practical applications of sailing, Hudson River Community Sailing developed and implemented a successful afterschool accredited program in New York City. -- Read on: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=9622 * The Royal Cape Yacht Club and South Atlantic Race (Pty) Ltd are re-establishing the legendary Cape to Rio Yacht Race with a scheduled to start in January 2011. The Cape to Rio Yacht Race is a direct route, 3,320 nm downwind race between Cape Town and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Open to both mono and multi-hulled racing and cruising vessels. -- Details: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=9537#9537 FOLLOWING SCUTTLEBUTT ON TWITTER Scuttlebutt uses Twitter to provide early updates on news stories, or to provide stories that won't fit into the newsletter. Do you follow Scuttlebutt on Twitter? If not, this is what you missed on Tuesday: - Coast Guard defends response policy after boater death. - Twitter unveils plans to draw money from ads. - Annapolis changes from sailing capital to lover's capital. - Schools seek to teach math and science through sailing. - Four free tickets for Strictly Sail Pacific 2010. Enter drawing here. - Durward Knowles, the first Bahamian gold medalist in any sport, was in a car accident on Monday. - Grant Dalton thinks Alinghi will sail the Volvo. In an e-mail Sunday, Paul Cayard says, "I am off to Geneva." Hmm . - Scuttlebutt's newest favorite photographer Jacqueline Schmitz 'shooting' youth sailing in Long Beach, CA. - Sailing a Laser downwind is... complicated. - This thank you card from UNH is for all the 'buttheads that contributed to this Scuttlebutt fundraiser. Follow Scuttlebutt on Twitter here: http://twitter.com/scuttbutt A LITTLE RELIEF FOR YOU ON TAX DAY Taxes suck. Sailing doesn't. We created our own stimulus package for Buttheads - 25% off SailFast Performance Shirts until midnight on April 15th. Don't miss this chance to outfit your crew with performance shirts that offer wicking and UV40+ protection. Use promo code "Scuttlebutt" at checkout. Visit http://www.isailfast.com for the full line. LETTERS AND FORUM Please email your comments to the Scuttlebutt editor (aka, 'The Curmudgeon'). Published letters must include writer's name and be no longer than 250 words (letter might be edited for clarity or simplicity). One letter per subject, and save your bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere. As an alternative, a more open environment for discussion is available on the Scuttlebutt Forum. -- To submit a Letter: editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com -- To post on the Forum: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/forum * From William Tuthill, Jamestown, RI: I cannot help but notice that the Volvo Ocean Race seems to be usurping the America's Cup legal battle [uh- excuse me- I meant sailboat race] in relevance. Here's hoping that the acrimony surrounding the Cup fades back and makes way for the cooperation that is apt to be needed to keep the oldest yachting race alive and well. * From Walt Gonzales: It' sad to see the Newport to Ensenada race competing with the new Border Run, that ends in San Diego, for entries. Recently I've been getting numerous e-mails from Border Run, inviting me to enter that race. I am loyal to the old traditional Newport to Ensenada Race, as are many other racers. Also, I believe the bad economy has had a negative impact on the number of entries overall. It's too bad some folks still believe all the stories about the violence in Baja, when in fact, I haven't heard of, nor have witnessed any violence in Baja, since I've been going down there, every month, since December of 2008. I even keep my boat at the Puerto Salina Marina, in Baja, between Rosarito and Ensenada. I have heard of situations in Tijuana between the police and the Cartels, but the military and policy have made the travel to Ensenada very safe and by boat even safer. I have never heard of pirates or boardings on the way to or from Ensenada. I have to admit that not all entries to the Border Run sail are "chickens", but I believe the majority are influenced by the media. I love the tradition of the Newport to Ensenada Race, and apparently so does Dennis Connor, who has entered his boat for another run for best time. He placed second in his class, last year. Having placed in our class, in the last five years, with a 3rd, 4th, 2nd and a 1st place last year, my crew and I are ready for another great race, come April 23,2010. * From Howard Bentley: (re, letter in Scuttlebutt 3069) Yes Ed Vincent, but to do so in any attempt to further the pursuit of being the youngest is still ignorant, full of hubris, and worthy of total and complete condemnation. The award should be the "moronic egotistical parental retardation award" given to the misguided parents who send ever younger children to sea in pursuit of a pseudo record that will someday get someone killed by its very name and intent, "The youngest to...." Now we have some 13 year old attempting to be the Youngest to climb Everest. Where will it end? In death! Wake the f@&% up people. Sending mature children sailing singlehanded in a limited capacity is one thing, POSSIBLY, worthy of support depending on each individual. Pursuit of such ANY such record to be the "youngest" to do something that is potentially life threatening and possibly requiring the life sacrifice of others is egotistical, ignorant, and to be completely and totally condemned. Any sponsor, parent, or commercial interest that contributes to this madness should be held financially accountable for the foreseeable rescue costs once some child starts screaming "I want my mommy" from the open ocean. The lawyers are waiting, and they are hungry!! Imagine how awfully fun it will be in court defending your profiteering against the death of some 12, 13, 14, or 15 year old, especially if that child was your flesh and blood. You will not be spared in your time of grief but put on display for your ignorant ego driven ignorant pursuit of fame. CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATION Acupuncture is a jab well done. Special thanks to Flexofold, JK3 Nautical Enterprises, and SailFast. Preferred supplier list: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/ssc/suppliers |
