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SCUTTLEBUTT 3630 - Wednesday, July 11, 2012Scuttlebutt 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. Website: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com Twitter: http://twitter.com/scuttbutt Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/sailingscuttlebutt RSS: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/rss/index.xml Today's sponsors: Point Loma Outfitting, Vineyard Race, and Pure Yachting. PENALTY DECIDED Newport, RI (July 9, 2012) - The International Jury for the 2012 Newport Bermuda Race has penalized the yacht Carina 15 minutes in elapsed time because a professional sailor briefly steered the boat during the race. The rules of the St. David's Lighthouse Division in which Carina sailed (and which the boat won) require that only amateur sailors steer while racing. The ruling does not affect the race standings. The penalty trims Carina's margin over the second-place St. David's Lighthouse boat, the U.S. Naval Academy's Defiance, to 16 minutes, 22 seconds from 34 minutes, 34 seconds. Carina also remains winner of Class 3 under the IRC rule. The International Jury made its decision after a hearing on Sunday, July 8, in which Carina's owner and captain, Rives Potts (Westbrook, Conn.), participated. The Jury determined that Carina's crew list as provided by Potts before the race listed all of the boat's 12 crewmembers as Category 1 amateur sailors under the International Sailing Federation (ISAF) sailor classification code. The rules for the St. David's Lighthouse Division permit a boat the size of Carina, a 48-foot sloop, to have as many as three professional sailors in the crew with the condition that none of them steer while the boat is racing. One of Carina's crew was Kit Will, whose ISAF Category 1 classification had expired in April 2010. Two days before the race start, Will applied to ISAF and was classified as a Category 3 professional sailor. (There is no Category 2 in the ISAF code.) Will did not inform Potts that he had been reclassified as a Category 3 until after Carina finished the race in Bermuda. By then Carina had been presented with the Corinthian Trophy for top boat with an all-amateur crew. Potts returned the trophy to the Bermuda Race Organizing Committee, which runs the race for the Cruising Club of America and the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club. While the Bermuda Race has no official overall winner, the top boat in the St. David's Lighthouse Division is generally regarded as the winner because this is the largest division and features amateur sailors. -- Full report: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/12/0710/ Original disclosure: http://tinyurl.com/NB-071012 SAVE THE DATE: The next Newport Bermuda Race will start on Friday, June 20, 2014. NEW PUBLISHED APPEAL #107 The US Sailing Appeals Committee recently published Appeal #107 which dealt with the role of parents on protest committees when their child is competing. Here were the relevant rules: Rule 63.4, Interested Party Rule 71.2, National Authority Decisions Definitions, Interested Party Situation... A protest committee member whose child is competing in a race that includes the parties to the protest is an interested party, because the relationship between the parent and child is a "close personal" one. The protest committee member therefore will have a close personal interest in the protest committee's decision, and therefore must not take part in the hearing. Facts and Decision of the Protest Committee... In a regatta involving International Optimists, the fleet was divided into three sub-fleets for final scoring purposes, but all boats raced together and were scored as one fleet. In the last race, the boat finishing second protested the boat finishing first concerning an incident near a windward mark, and the protest committee disqualified the protestee. The protestee appealed, on the grounds that a member of the protest committee was an interested party. The protest committee member was the father of a competitor in the race who was neither a party to the hearing nor in the same sub-fleet as the protestor and the protestee. Read on for the decision of the Appeals Committee: http://raceadmin.ussailing.org/Assets/Race+Admin/Appeals/Appeal+107.pdf CONGRATS TO GROUPAMA 4 AND SLAM Having already won at the America's Cup with BMW ORACLE Racing, SLAM has expanded its prestigious laurels in winning the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12 with Groupama 4. This sponsorship was crucial to continuing the development of the "OFFSHORE" technical line, specifically designed to overcome the difficult tests set by the oceans and extreme, long-lasting regattas, and it has brought about new improvements both in terms of fabrics and details. The regatta was extremely difficult, with terrible marine weather conditions alternating with equatorial calms and flat seas. Gusting winds and towering waves lashed the decks of the boats that were pitched at terrifying speeds. The combination of these factors tested all the crews and vessels to their limit. http://www.slam-shops.com REMAINING FOCUSED The eyes of a nation watched as top-ranked British tennis player Andy Murray failed to win the Final at Wimbledon last Sunday. The media spotlight was bright for Murray, and with the 2012 Olympics fast approaching, it makes one wonder how British sailing star Ben Ainslie will fare. As his country's most successful Olympic sailor with three gold medals and one silver, Ainslie is a heavy favorite in the Finn event. But according to Ainslie, he deflects the distractions by focusing on his greatest rival. Here he explains: ---------------------------------------------------------------------- In terms of preparations, the Sydney Games (2000) - my second on the water - was definitely the most intense. I had a big rivalry with (Brazilian) Robert Scheidt, which was a challenge in itself, but I also had to get my head around sailing in Sydney, which was incredibly difficult. We went there straight after the Atlanta Games, in the winter of 1996, the Australian summer. I was only 19 and we were racing in this regatta on what was supposed to be one of the Olympic course areas and it was a complete joke: the harbour, the land, the buildings, the incredibly shifty wind. I had a bit of a meltdown and I said to my coach, John Derbyshire: 'This is absolutely ridiculous. There's no way they can hold an Olympics here, it's just a joke.' He replied: 'You may think that but, like it or not, the Olympics are going to be held here so you can either get on with it and learn to sail in these conditions or go home now.' That was one of the best bits of coaching advice I've ever had. I was at that age in life when I thought everything was going to be perfect, but you soon realise things rarely are. So I took his words on board and decided: "Right, it is really ---- conditions but I'll learn them." At that stage in my career, before races I was pretty locked away as an individual. My parents were there so I ended up staying with them rather than the team. I just tried to stay super focused and not have any distractions. It was very different to the way things are now with all the commitments I have in terms of sponsors and media. I didn't have any of that then. I was very insular and tucked away from everything. The one thing I did have, though, was a rival in Scheidt. I think, in terms of preparing for races, it's useful to have a target like that. Scheidt was that for me - a guy I knew would be incredibly tough to beat. It was important to map out a strategy to beat him because he had a sort of aura in the fleet. I felt like I was the only person who took him on and said, 'No, I'm going to try to beat you'. He didn't like that, and the more I did that the more effect it had. -- The Telegraph: http://tinyurl.com/T-071012 SCUTTLEBUTT TRIVIA What do the past four winners of the Volvo Ocean Races have in common? TIRELESS DUO Sailing for Spain, Iker Martinez and Xabi Fernandez won Olympic gold and silver medals in the 49er class at the Olympics in 2004 and 2008. And they hope to reach the podium again at the London Olympics, but first they had to complete a previous engagement... the 2011-12 Volvo Ocean Race. Team Telefonica skipper Martinez and trimmer Fernandez have been pretty busy since the race started in October, and were challenging hard for overall victory right up until suffering multiple rudder breakages on the second to last offshore leg. After finishing a disappointing fourth overall, they now turn their attention to the Olympics. "The aim now is to be as prepared as possible for the Olympic Games and to fight for medals," said Martinez. "We'll be training for a week at the Marina Rubicon in Lanzarote (Canary Islands) in strong winds, which is what we want and it's perfect for training as conditions are very similar to those we'll get out on the racecourse at Weymouth." While Lanzarote is expected to deliver the appropriate winds, the Spaniards will be spoiled with the warmer climate. The ten day forecast for Weymouth is high 50s/ low 60s while Lanzarote expects high 80s/ low 90s. But no one should doubt the duos ability to handle colder weather. Enduring the 6705 nm leg through the Southern Ocean should make the Olympic venue look like a playground. Source: http://tinyurl.com/VOR-071012 NINETEEN SEVENTY-SIX It's not normally like this! When the typical 'lake breezes' failed to materialise for most of the 1976 Olympics on Lake Ontario, Canada, the local reaction was doubtless as common as it would be today. But there was plenty more to report on at this event where famous names were in the making. Back when Americans John Kolius and Dennis Conner were winning medals, and a guy named Vince Brun was crewing on a Soling for Brazil. Back when there was an East Germany and a West Germany. Back when there were only six events, and none specifically for women. Interestingly, what wasn't mentioned was the dramatic Viking funeral for one of the Tempests, although the reasons for the crews' dissatisfaction were. So here's what happened in pictures and words - 9 quads and 36 years ago - as reported by Yachting World: http://tinyurl.com/YW-071012 WHY SHOULD YOU ENTER THIS YEAR'S VINEYARD RACE? Take part in an East Coast classic. Three courses; huge awards party; cruising division; multihull division; race tracking; Corinthian challenge; NORT qualifier and much more. Join Bruce Nelson at our skippers' meeting. Start date: August 31. Register today: http://www.stamfordyc.com. Follow us @vineyardrace REACHING OUT Hundreds of young Bahamians who otherwise would likely not have had the opportunity to have learned to sail in New Providence during the summer months, have been able to do this through funds raised by the Bahamas Sailing Association's (BSA) Sponsor A Child program. The first summer sailing program was launched in 2005, and since then hundreds of students from 38 schools in New Providence and Long Island have learned to sail in seven summer programs and a number of the youngsters developed a real affinity for the sport, and have gone on to represent the country in international competitions. Junior Bahamian sailors are now participating each year in the International Sailing Federation's (ISAF) Youth World Championships, Laser North American Championships, Orange Bowl Regattas for Lasers and Optimists and international sunfish events. Also this year, three junior sailors, ages 12 and 13, will be participating in the Optimist World Championships being held in the Dominican Republic. "We found it unfortunate that in a country surrounded by some of the most incredible waters in the world, so many of your youngsters were denied an opportunity to learn a sport that is such a natural fit for the country because of their financial situations," said Robert Dunkley, director of the National Sailing School with responsibility for fundraising. "It's obvious that if we can get our kids involved in activities that build self-esteem and teach discipline, we can help them grow and mature and that is something that's positive for them and positive for the country." In the years since the program was initially launched, a total of 12 Bahamian sailing instructors have been certified, two Bahamian sailors are now on the College of Charleston's sailing team (one of the top teams in the United States) and a number of others are working today in the marine industry - one of which is training to be a ship captain. -- Full story: http://tinyurl.com/BAH-070212 SAILING SHORTS * (July 10, 2012; Day 11) - Following the finish Monday morning of the Singlehanded TransPac Race elapsed time winner Alex Mehran's Open 50 'Truth', Brian VanderZanden's Hobie 33 'Turbo Camper' leads a pack (485.5 nm to finish) that has leverage the southern track but is now aiming back toward the finish line in Kauai, Hawaii. Each boat is fitted with a tracker that can be viewed here: http://singlehandedtranspac.com/race-viewer/ * (July 10, 2012; Day 4) - The frontal system fueling the KRYS OCEAN RACE fleet since Saturday night continues to deliver favorable conditions. Before leaving New York, initial predictions suggested that the five MOD70's would benefit for at least three to four days, but as the leaders now negotiate the north east side of the Azores high pressure system, it now seems likely they will progressively curve towards the finish line in Brest, France with hardly any reduction in speed. With just over 1000nm remaining, Spindrift Racing skipper Yann Guichard (FRA) is averaging nearly 30 knots, growing a lead of 56.9nm. Race website: http://www.krys-oceanrace.com/en/ * (July 10, 2012; Day 3) - Luc Coquelin's Open 50 Sainte-Pierre en Bessin was the elapsed time winner of the 350 nm Route Halifax Saint-Pierre Ocean Race, also taking honors in the IRC division. Finishing second on elapsed time and winning PHRF 1 and Overall was Mike Sutton's Soto 40 Helm's Deep. Race website: http://www.routehalifaxsaintpierre.com/new_site/home.html * Chicago, IL (July 10, 2012) - The Alpari World Match Racing Tour takes to the water on Lake Michigan this week as Chicago Match Cup, the newest event on the world's premier sailing series, welcomes the sport's top talents to the fourth stage of the season. Qualifying rounds commence at 1000 CDT on Wednesday July 11 with the Finals scheduled for 1400 CDT on Sunday July 15. -- Full report: http://tinyurl.com/WMRT-071012 * The US Coast Guard reports that recreational boating fatalities rose to 758 in 2011 - a 12.8 percent increase over 2010 and the highest number on record since 1998. Boating under the influence of alcohol (BUI) is a major cause, accounting for a disproportional number of deaths. Alcohol ranked seventh as a contributing factor in boating accidents overall, but was the #1 contributing factor in fatal accidents, where it figured in 16 percent of deaths. -- http://www.pcicom.com/USCG/fatality_pie-chart.html * Chicago, IL. (July 10, 2012) - In contrast to the lighter conditions on day one of the US Junior Women's Singlehanded Championship, choppy seas forged from a northeastern breeze of 12 to 15 knot set the stage for the second day of racing. Four races were completed today, with the change in weather shuffling the standings. Hanne Weaver of Seattle Yacht Club posted a 1-5-2-2 to now hold a five point lead with two more races to go on Wednesday's final day of competition on Lake Michigan. -- Full report: http://media.ussailing.org/Latest_News/2012/USJWSC_D2.htm TRIVIA ANSWER According to the August issue of Seahorse magazine, Irish boatbuilder Killian Bushe has built or supervised every Volvo Ocean Race winner for the past four editions: 2001-2 - illbruck (VO60), skipper John Kostecki 2005-6 - ABN AMRO ONE (VO70), skipper Mike Sanderson (NZL) 2008-9 - Ericsson 4 (VO70), skipper Torben Grael (BRA) 2011-12 - Groupama (VO70), skipper Franck Cammas (FRA) PREFER YESTERYEAR'S OLDSMO-BUICK OR CITROEN? We thought not. A lot of RIB designs are really old. PURE YACHTING offers all new custom RIB's built in the USA. Multi-purpose YC RIBs. Coach boats for all programs. SuperYacht Tenders. Harbormasters. Police & Fire. Call RIB legend Whitey Russell now at 401-338-7457. Info at http://www.pureyachting.com GUEST COMMENTARY Scuttlebutt strongly encourages feedback from the Scuttlebutt community. Either submit comments by email or post them on the Forum. Submitted comments chosen to be published in the newsletter may be limited to 250 words. Authors may have one published submission per subject, and should save their bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere. Email: editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com Forum: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/forum * From Markus Schwendtner, International Kiteboarding Assn: ISAFs decision to drop windsurfing in favor of kiteboarding has led to a major upset in the windsurfing community, and many articles have been posted about this in Scuttlebutt (most recently in #3629). Most of the arguments brought forward are presenting a biased viewpoint, and do not accurately represent the discipline of kiteboard racing, and even make exaggerated claims about Olympic windsurfing. We would highly appreciate Scuttlebutt publishing the position paper which takes a brief look at some of these "facts"; do they stand up under scrutiny and unbiased questioning - are they fact or fiction? The position paper is online here: http://tinyurl.com/IKA-071012 * From Paul Mathews: Given the commercialization of the Volvo Ocean Race, re-routing the fleet through the horrific sailing grounds of Asian countries for the benefit of sponsor objectives, it was nice to read in Scuttlebutt 3629 that the final port was selected for its celebratory offerings. Can you imagine the race ending in a city like Miami that could fulfill a corporate purpose but provide no public display of affection? * From Wally Henry: I must admit that I haven't paid much attention to Scuttlebutt's Greatest American Sailor contest until I read that the two finalists were Dennis Conner and Buddy Melges. How fortunate and honored I feel to have sailed two America's Cups with each of these men. If Scuttlebutt runs a Luckiest American Sailor contest, I believe that I might win that one. EDITOR'S NOTE: Wally is giving Scuttlebutt too much credit. While we advised on the original list of 64 American sailing living legends, the tournament is organized by US Sailing. The finals between DC and Buddy is proving to be a slugfest, with a mere percentage point separating them on Tuesday afternoon. Voting remains open until July 15, 2012 at 11:59 PM EDT. Details: http://membership.ussailing.org/sweeps.htm FREE CLASSIFIED ADS The Scuttlebutt Classified Ads provide a marketplace for private parties to buy and sell, or for businesses to post job openings. Here are recent ads: For Sale - * 1980 35' aluminum twin grove Gemini foil * Anchor-Forfjord 8 Now Hiring - * Sales and Service Manager at Quantum Sails * Waterfront Programs Coordinator - Univ. of South Florida View/post ads here: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/forum/classified_ads CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATION A thunderstorm is never as bad on the inside as it appears on the outside. It's worse. SPONSORS THIS WEEK Kaenon Polarized - Vineyard Race - North Sails J Boats - Point Loma Outfitting - Pure Yachting Ullman Sails - APS - New England Boatworks Need stuff? Look here: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/ssc/suppliers |
