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SCUTTLEBUTT 2371 - June 22, 2007
Scuttlebutt is a digest of major sailing news, commentary, opinions,
features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus. Scuttlebutt is
distributed each weekday, with support provided by UBS, main partner of
Alinghi, Defender of the 32nd America's Cup (http://www.ubs.com/sailing).
REVENGE REMATCH
It is the revenge rematch everyone in New Zealand has been waiting for. Four
years ago, the Kiwis lost the America's Cup after a 5-0 rout by Alinghi - a
boat from land-locked Switzerland crewed by many New Zealanders. It hurt. On
Saturday they meet Alinghi again in the 32nd America's Cup, hoping to turn
the tables and take sailing's most glittering prize back to Auckland. "We
want to win, yes. Grudge match, no," NZ team manager Grant Dalton said.
Team New Zealand have steadily improved since 2003, when the young crew left
over after six team members defected to Alinghi floundered in the Hauraki
Gulf. Their new boat, NZL92, has been honed consistently over this year's
challenger play-offs and the crew is slick, brushing off Italians Luna Rossa
5-0 in the finals of the Louis Vuitton Cup. "Compared to 2003, this is a new
team," 34-year-old helmsman Dean Barker said. "There is no sense of
revenge … but we are hungry for victory."
Alinghi, the first European team to win the America's Cup in its 156-year
history, showed they were still the ones to beat in April, when they
streaked past the challengers in a fleet regatta. Since then they have been
sidelined, training in-house while New Zealand won their battle scars in the
LVC. "The thing about being the defender is that we don't have the same
intensity of racing," Alinghi's Grant Simmer said. "That's a risk we
face." -- Sydney Morning Herald, full story: http://tinyurl.com/3yy7ff
AMERICA’S CUP MATCH
First team to win 5 races in the 9 race series
Challenger: Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL) _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_ = 0
Defender: Alinghi (SUI) _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_ = 0
* Race schedule: Racing begins Saturday, June 23rd, with the second race on
Sunday before the first rest day on Monday. -- Complete schedule:
http://www.americascup.com/en/americascup/program/calendrier.php
* TV schedule: VERSUS (USA) and TSN (Canada) will provide live coverage of
the Finals from 8:30 a.m.–11 a.m. ET. VERSUS will also have replays from
12-2:30 p.m. and 7:30–10 p.m. ET. --
http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/calendar/shows/#6
* Weather report: The forecast for this weekend is for sea breeze conditions
in the afternoons. On Saturday, a lighter northerly gradient becomes an
easterly sea breeze by mid afternoon at 12-16 knots, with clear skies and
warm temperature at 25ºC (77ºF). On Sunday, slack pressure over the
Mediterranean means no gradient breeze, making for a lighter easterly sea
breeze in the afternoon at 8-12 knots, with clear skies and warmer
temperature at 28ºC (82ºF).
* The Vote: The ‘buttheads are swimming upstream on the latest Scuttlebutt
poll as to which team would win the 32nd America’s Cup. With every expert
analyst predicting a successful defense for Alinghi, the ‘buttheads are
living in the Kiwi corner: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/polls/07/0620
* The Other Vote: It would appear that your opinion of the America’s Cup
nationality rule for sailors might depend on where you sit. If you are
amongst the ranks of the sport’s professional sailors, than you likely don’t
want it changed as it will surely affect business. However, if you consider
yourself a spectator of sailing, than you want to re-establish the rule for
the event so you can cheer on your country much like one does for the World
Cup or the Olympics. Given that there are far more spectators than pros
would explain why the Scuttlebutt vote was so tilted (82.49% in favor of the
nationality rule). The BOR blog provides an excerpt from the pro angle:
http://blog.bmworacleracing.com/stories/3318567
* Happy Birthday: Oracle celebrated its 30th anniversary this past week on
June 16, 2007.
* Coutts-watch: The America's Cup's most successful skipper, Russell Coutts,
is making his first trip to Valencia to honour New Zealand yacht designer
Laurie Davidson. Coutts will introduce Davidson at a dinner on Sunday to
induct Davidson into the America's Cup Hall of Fame. He will also do some
commentary for TVNZ's coverage. --
http://yahooxtra.net.nz/sport/0,,14606-7522157,00.html
STATE OF THE UNION
Here are a few excerpts from an interview The Daily Sail had with Russell
Coutts:
* On the differences between the five brand new Judel-Vrolijk TP 52 boats
launched this year: "I think there is a lot in the building of the boats and
the finishing of them," says Coutts. This is partly a weight accuracy issue
but also one of alignment - almost a one design approach. "...making sure
the boat is nicely symmetric and the appendages are put on properly and
haven’t got twists in them. And making sure the rig is in the right place
and on centre line. It all adds up."
* Unlike previous years where Coutts' TPs have been fitted with Quantum
Sails, this year they are almost exclusively North. So are TP 52 sails
standardising? Not to the Coutts eye. "There is still a lot of difference,
particularly in the downwind sails, just the way they fly on the boat, where
you are putting the area - that can transform into quite a big performance
differences."
* Regarding the boat for the Coutts-Cayard promoted World Sailing League: "
They are talking about building 19 boats actually at this point, but if you
build 14 with 12 teams, it is a huge investment so you want to make sure the
design is correct." One can imagine that even getting a small item wrong on
a boat such as this and having to change it on 14, let alone 19 boats would
be time poorly spent. Instead Coutts is forging on with the idea of a
prototype to put through its paces ready next year. -- Complete interview:
http://tinyurl.com/2ply3m
WHO WILL WIN THE CUP?
Eleven America's Cup teams exclusively equipped with North Sails inventories
have taught us how to make your next North Sails faster, more durable, and
easier to trim. So, who will win the Cup? You will. Call your North Sails
representative today and take your performance to a higher level. Or visit
the North Sails website at http://www.northsails.com
FRESH BREEZES BRING NEW LIFE TO RACING
Block Island, R.I. (June 21, 2007) -- Things got back to normal when 2000
sailors were greeted by a brisk northwest breeze this morning at the Storm
Trysail Club's Block Island Race Week XXII presented by Rolex. After
Wednesday’s fog and rain and the prior day's current and wind shifts,
today's game was more straightforward for the 183 teams competing in IRC,
PHRF and One-Design classes. The smallest boat in the fleet, David German's
(Tampa, Fla.) J/24 Mad Cow in PHRF class 5, loved it when the wind
transitioned smoothly to a south-southwest seabreeze that reached a robust
16-18 knots by the second of two races.
"Finally a breeze and we were able to do something," said German back at the
docks, thinking he had won the second race. "Light air and choppy water are
not great for a J/24, so we've been finishing third a lot. We were resigned
to the fact that we would be in trouble all week with 5-10 knot forecasts,
so we were real excited when it came up." When handicaps were tabulated,
however, German had a 3-2 to add to his score line and maintained his
third-place overall from Wednesday. Beating him out today with two
first-place finishes and also to lead on the scoreboard was Lincoln
Schoenberger (Shelton, Conn.) aboard the Wyliecat 30 One Up, one of the more
unusual designs here, looking more like a giant windsurfer than a sailboat.
"It's a wishbone cat rig with only one sail, a racer body, eliptical rudder
and bulb fin," said Schoenberger. "It doesn't point as well with jib boats
but it points remarkably well for a cat boat." Trailing by only one point in
second place is Chris Fesenmeyer's (Norwalk, Conn.) Air Express, a San Juan
30.
* With seven races completed, PHRF classes were allowed a throw-out. The IRC
classes, however, have only sailed six races and will have to get at least
one race in Friday before they can discard their worst race. With that, the
race for the inaugural Rolex US-IRC National Championship has heated up. Bob
and Farley Towse's (Stamford, Conn.) Reichel/ Pugh 66 Blue Yankee and Colm
Barrington's (Dublin, Ireland) Ker 50 Magic Glove are both leading their
classes-- IRC Super Zero and IRC Zero, respectively -- and are obvious
contenders, but Randall and Matt Baldwin's (Ridgefield, Conn.) Taylor 42
Cabady, which posted two bullets today to lead IRC class 5, has a shot at
what tactician Rich Long (Norwalk, Conn.) calls the "big guys." -- Complete
report:
http://www.blockislandraceweek.com
PHOTOS OF THE WEEK
Scuttlebutt will be starting a new feature where we post random photos from
the sport at the end of each week. Until then, here are some great photo
galleries from recent events:
* Laser North Americans in Hyannis, MA by John Payne:
http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/07/lna
* International Twelve Metre Assn, Centennial Tour 2007 in Valencia, Spain
by Daniel Forster: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/07/12m
* TP 52 MedCup Circuit in Alicante, Spain by Thierry Martinez:
http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/07/alicante
* The Superyacht Cup in Palma, Mallorca by Ingrid Abery and Kos:
http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/07/sc
* Catalina Island Fire Pictures submitted by Taylor Grant:
http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/07/catalina
If you have images that you want to share, send them to
photos@sailingscuttlebutt.com
THE BIGGEE OUT WEST
Long Beach, Calif. -- The U.S. West Coast's largest inshore keelboat regatta
ushers in the first weekend of summer when Acura presents Ullman Sails Long
Beach Race Week Friday through Sunday, co-hosted by the Long Beach and
Alamitos Bay Yacht Clubs. Among the headliners is the title sponsor's
namesake, Dave Ullman, who will be seeking his third consecutive win in
Melges 24s---this time as the reigning world champion following last month's
wildly dramatic victory at Santa Cruz, Calif. Ullman will share his secrets
in a boat speed talk at Long Beach YC Friday at 10 a.m., followed by a
competitors' briefing at 10:30. There will be as many as 130 one-design and
PHRF entries from 24 (the Melges) to 68 feet (Mike Campbell and Dale
Williams' Kernan 70, Peligroso, and Al Schultz's Andrews 70, Vicki). All are
scheduled for seven races on three courses, one inside and two outside the
breakwater. Racing will start at 1 p.m. Friday and at noon Saturday and
Sunday, conditions permitting. -- Full report:
http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/07/uslbrw
GENTLEMEN DON’T SAIL TO WEATHER
David Caso will take home the Gosling’s Rum Founder’s Trophy for 1st overall
in the monohull fleet to be awarded to for the first time this Saturday at
the 30th anniversary Marion to Bermuda Cruising Yacht Race. The new trophy
is a wood tower with brass trim featuring an etching of the western Atlantic
with a compass rose over the Bermuda area. Caso’s Cherubini 50 Silhouette
from Duxbury MA finished at 19:15:47 on Tuesday and has taken 1st place
overall and 1st in Class D in the 30th Anniversary Marion to Bermuda
Cruising Yacht Race. Kathleen, a classic 72-foot yawl sailed by Jim Feeney,
finished 1st in Class A and 2nd in Fleet.
Silhouette is a ketch and looks much like a classic Herreshoff design.
Herreshoff said that gentlemen don’t sail to weather and since the race was
a run and a reach, this boat really sailed. They piled on the mizzen, mizzen
staysail, main, staysail and jenny or asymmetrical spinnaker. And they hit
every puff just right. Kathleen, a yawl, followed suit and had a battle with
Preston Hutchings’ Morgan’s Ghost (Club Swan 42) and Peter Savage’s Venture
(Oyster Marine 62) for first to finish on elapse time. Kathleen sailed
non-spinnaker, and in the reaching conditions that prevailed for most of the
race, she powered along at an even pace with Morgan’s Ghost. A wind shift in
the final hours of the race allowed Morgan’s Ghost to fly her chute for 5
hours, gain needed speed and take the honors.
Since the wind died Tuesday, many boats turned on the 'iron genny' and
motored to Bermuda for the festivities at The Royal Hamilton Amateur Dinghy
Club. By late Wednesday morning only 22 of 72 boats had finished. It was a
slow race for the smaller boats that couldn’t finish before the wind dropped
out. Results, stories and photos are on
http://www.marionbermuda.com/index.shtml
FLAGSHIP MOVES EAST
The flagship of J Boat, the J/65 “Brand New Day,” is currently en route to
Rhode Island for the summer and will be available for showings. “Brand New
Day” displays exceptional performance under non-overlapping headsails,
double-handed ease of operation, minimum on-deck maintenance, luxurious
accommodations, and stunning aesthetics. To set-up an appointment to view
the J/65, call Jeff Brown at 619-709-0697. To take a virtual tour of the
boat, click on the following link
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7922479841303055047&hl=en
SUMMER HABITS
Four distinguished-looking gentlemen in fine blue blazers with race
committee patches firing off a cannon from the second deck of the Annapolis
Yacht Club. An attractive young professional woman expertly outfitted in
sailing attire and carrying a Musto backpack races down the dock to meet a
boat before it departs. Slack-tied businessmen and their dates jockey for
the best tables in the cocktail bar of The Charthouse and on the outdoor
patio of Carroll's Creek Cafe in order to catch the beauty and grace of
large sailboats racing into Annapolis Harbor at sunset. A 5-year-old boy in
a life jacket uses a hose to wash down the deck of a J/30 berthed just below
the Spa Creek Bridge while his father oversees from the cockpit.
These are the sights and scenes that play out weekly from early May through
late August during the Annapolis Yacht Club Wednesday Night Races. It has
become an Annapolis tradition like no other and after 30 years has developed
its own rituals. "It doesn't matter what is going on at work or other
aspects of my life, I know that come five o'clock on Wednesday night I'll be
climbing aboard this boat to go out sailing," said Steve Siska, who has been
crewing on the J/30 Cannonball for nearly 25 years. -- Bill Wagner, Capitol
Online, full story:
http://www.hometownannapolis.com/cgi-bin/read/2007/06_02-24/CAN
SAILING SHORTS
* Block Island, RI -- Part-time island resident Richard DuMoulin has been
named to receive the first “1BI” award for lifetime achievement, the Block
Island Maritime Institute said Wednesday. DuMoulin was selected for his
volunteerism, his achievements in professional and recreational sailing,
sailing education and maritime safety, his promotion of maritime history,
and his dedication to preserving the natural beauty of the island, its Great
Salt Pond, and the oceans, the institute said. -- Complete story:
http://www.pbn.com/stories/26039.html
* Over 70 boats will be at the Moth Worlds in Lake Garda, Italy for racing
on June 23-30, with all eyes in the being on the performance of the new
production Bladerider. 2005 world champion Rohan Veal is leading the charge
behind this new entry in the foiling class, where he is hoping for a good
performance to aid his responsibility for the worldwide marketing and sales
of the Bladerider. -- http://www.moth-sailing.org/worlds/2007_italy.xml
* Summer Sailstice is the global holiday celebrating sailing held annually
on the summer solstice and the weekend closest to it (June 23-24, 2007), the
longest sailing days of the year. This international event was founded to
connect the global sailing community in a fun, creative, multifaceted,
multi-location sailing holiday. Additional details at
http://www.summersailstice.com/
* This week’s Volvo Sailing Podcast catches up with Alinghi's General
Manager Grant Simmer along with veteran sailing journalist Bob Fisher who
takes a typically trenchant look at the America's Cup. Additionally, the
Royal Yachting Association (GBR) talks about their Blue Green environmental
initiative, while Star sailor Andrew Simpson chats about the fast
approaching ISAF World Championships in Cascais, Portugal. --
http://www.volvooceanrace.org/podcast
* With less than two months until the start of the Rolex Fastnet Race,
interest has been running high and the entry cut-off of 300 has now been
reached well before the official closing date for entries. In consequence,
organisers, the Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC), have set up a waiting list.
The 608-mile race has long been a favourite of offshore sailors and offers a
true test of seamanship, skill, and preparation. First contested in 1925 and
run biennially since the early 1930s, the 2007 start will be on August 12
from the Royal Yacht Squadron line off Cowes, Isle of Wight. --
http://www.rorc.org/content/view/255/1/
* Bob Oatley, the owner of the supermaxi Wild Oats XI, has confirmed that he
is to establish an annual international superyacht regatta at Hamilton
Island, on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. Oatley, whose family company
bought the island four years ago, has made the announcement after racing his
30-metre supermaxi Wild Oats XI in the Superyacht Cup and Millennium Cup in
Palma this past week. -- Complete release:
http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/07/0621
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 Frank Lawson, Port Ludlow, WA: While the father-son were first to
finish in the 2007 Marion-Bermuda race (as reported in Issue 2370), the
father-daughter team of Sam and Eleanor Lawson, along with Sam's brother
Ned, crewing aboard Silhouette, a Cherubini ketch, won class and fleet on
corrected time. The posted results show Silhouette doing something of a
horizon job, correcting better than 15 hours ahead of the second boat in her
class.
* From Tom Williams: Regardless of the results in the America’s Cup match,
you got to hand it to Grant Dalton for running an unbelievable campaign.
First the big turnaround from the 2003 debacle, to positioning himself to
take all the heat off his sailing team (a strategy that Dickson failed to
employ), to minimizing any media snafus in the final week of the event. The
Alinghi team had been quiet during the challenger event, but once they were
permitted back into the spotlight, they have clanged their cowbells with a
vengeance. They may still win, but hopefully they won’t be so arrogant to
think that the applause will be for them alone. Their win keeps the Cup in
Europe, which for most of the self-interested participants, will keep them
employed for another cycle.
* From Jim Fitters: Pretty funny to think about what might be good for the
Cup, as it is long on optimism and short on realism. When it comes to the
America’s Cup, the inmates are running the asylum, and while some of the
changes for the 32nd edition are good, you would be naive to think anything
other than the greatest benefit of these change being for the inmates… and
not the asylum.
* From Peter Hopkins: So refreshing to read the story about the father-son
duo (in Issue 2370) racing to Bermuda. In this era of high caliber youth
sports, it was nice to see William Hutchings, the 16-year old son of the
boat’s owner, Preston Hutchings, make a life decision that will benefit him
in the long term. As Scuttlebutt has so dutifully covered in the past,
unless the youth sailors of today expand their horizon beyond youth events,
high school, college sailing, their bubble will soon burst and they will
have left the sport without even realizing it.
CURMUDGEON’S OBSERVATION
I thought I wanted a career, but it turns out I just wanted a paycheck.
Special thanks to North Sails and JK3 Nautical Enterprises.
Scuttlebutt is also supported by UBS, main partner of Alinghi, the Defender
of the 32nd America's Cup.
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