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SCUTTLEBUTT 2009 - January 16, 2006Scuttlebutt is a digest of major yacht racing news, commentary, opinions, features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus.ANOTHER KEEL PROBLEM The pre-race favorite in the Volvo Ocean Race, movistar, suffered another setback when one of two hydraulic rams controlling her keel failed to work on Saturday. Given that movistar pulled out of the first leg, the threat of a major problem on the second leg appeared to worry not only Bouwe Bekking, the skipper, who was forced into makeshift repairs, but also Glenn Bourke, the race's chief executive, who issued a defensive statement about the reliability of the new Volvo 70 class yachts, which he introduced as the key part in the revamping of the race. However, repairs by Bekking's crew appeared to have worked as he considered diverting into Albany, south-west Australia, which is quite close to the scoring gate at Eclipse Island. A crucial factor in Bekking's decision will be the possibility of fresh easterly headwinds across the Great Australian Bight for the 1,300 miles to the second-leg finish in Melbourne, which will pose a severe test on the repaired keel system. Bekking said the repairs, which involved scavenging bolts from parts of the keel mechanism, had gone "OK", though they needed to find larger bolts. But a new worry was that their scavenging had involved removing a sealing box cover, which is crucial in preventing water flooding through an aperture in the hull and into the yacht. ." - Tim Jeffery, the Daily Telegraph, UK, http://tinyurl.com/8644t * Mike Sanderson, whose ABN Amro One leads the Volvo Ocean Race, has said the next stopover in Melbourne must be a time to remedy the structural problems and mechanical breakdowns that have blighted the race. "The race management will have to give us the two weeks to do only the changes the teams and designers think are necessary to make the boats tough enough," he said. "Then we have to re-weigh and take lead off our keels accordingly. It is the only solution I can see that is going to get this fleet around the world." - Tim Jeffery, the Daily Telegraph, UK, http://tinyurl.com/9ry77 * Following the loss of their huge lead and the surrender of first place to ABN Amro Two, Mike Sanderson's ABN Amro One has broken through the high pressure ridge into the new wind, is up to speed and back in the lead. The weather pattern should now favour One on their run towards the scoring gate at Eclipse Island. Race meteorologist Chris Bedford said, "There was no avoiding a ridge of high pressure which has been nearly stationary southwest of Australia for the last week. This weather pattern is providing for a near re-start as the boats jockey for position to arrive at the Eclipse Island scoring gate first. But it's not all bad news for ABN Amro One. It looks like they will be first to break through the light wind zone and the winds will turn back in their favor - but, only just! Volvo Ocean Race Positions at 2200 GMT Sunday 1. Team ABN Amro One, Mike Sanderson, 1477 miles to finish 2. Team ABN Amro Two, Sebastien Josse, +27 miles 3. Movistar, Bouwe Bekking, +54 miles 4. Pirates of the Caribbean, Paul Cayard, +144 miles 5. ING Real Estate Brunel, Grant Wharington, +999 miles 6. Brasil 1, Torben Grael, +2065 miles 7. Ericsson Racing Team Neal McDonald, retired Event website: http://www.volvooceanrace.org/ QUOTE/ UNQUOTE * "Quite clearly with these boats we are seeing some load cases that the models that are used to design them can't predict. We have broken parts both during the race and more so pre-race which I know that Juan (Kouyoumdjian) and his team just say isn't possible. Our tiller arm on the first leg was one case, and the canting keel system break that we had on the white boat pre race has had, until quite recently, plenty of people scratching heads." -- ABN Amro One skipper Mike Sanderson * "It is starting to smell like a kennel onboard. There is no time when you can go on deck and not get wet pretty much to the skin so there are a lot of wet clothes and socks laying around that are starting to smell pretty bad." -- Paul Cayard. The Black Pearl skipper YOU CAN SPEND A LIFETIME LEARNING TO BE A BETTER SAILOR NorthU accelerates the process with Seminars, Books, CDs, Race Weeks and an Online Quiz. Sample quiz question: W was slow approaching the line at the start. L sailed into W's lee. After starting, L pinched up to give W bad air. W pinched up to match L's course. The boats hit beam to beam. Was there a foul? Answer this and other quiz questions (you could win a prize!) and learn more about their Racing, Cruising, Weather, Performance Software and Suddenly Alone Seminars at http://www.NorthU.com STARK RAVING MAD Scuttlebutt joined Jim Madden on his first sail of his new 66-foot canting keel Reichel/Pugh design named "Stark Raving Mad," built by Westerly Marine. The boat is in the midst of sea trials in San Diego, and will be trucked to Florida for the 2006 Acura Miami Race Week in March. Wandering around the boat, it is easy to be impressed with the new reality of high-tech racing boats in general, and canting boats in particular. The large box on the cabin floor - housing the canting ram - is hard to miss. Sitting by it, and watching it shift the keel from side to side, the complexity of the canting concept is evident. Surrounded by hydraulic plumbing and computer boards to control it, you get the feeling that this new technology has spawned a cottage industry of specialists to support it. The deck winches have the option of either being manual or motorized to abide by the varying handicap rule systems. The forward board (more of a trim tab than a rudder) can be raised and lowered, and is hydraulically steered rather than on cables. The rig was designed without running backs for simplicity, and the curve in the swept-back spreaders would appear to provide for maximum sized jibs. Push button controls are placed by the helm to adjust the keel and board, and an adjacent electronics panel displays the angles of the keel, heel, rudder, and board. While the winds were light, the usefulness of the canting ballast was quickly evident as it was moved to windward during a puff. Something akin to the crew of a dinghy moving from the leeward side to out on the trapeze wire, and quickly flattening the boat to accelerate in the puff. Additionally, the use of the canting system during a light air tack is much like the use of crew weight when roll-tacking a dinghy. Move the ballast too fast and you come out of the tack heeled to windward. But used effectively, you can come of a tack with a slight heel, and then roll the boat flat to gain dinghy-like acceleration. - There is a lot more to this story and photos too: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/06/srm/index.asp BLOWING KOALAS OUT OF GUM TREES The 2006 Australian Nationals leading up to the Worlds just completed here in Melbourne. It can blow koalas out of gum trees down here in OZ. The first day was a wild day. While we waited for the wind to materialize, it never completely died, but instead marched all the way around the compass rose and then some (390deg). We got a nice race off, then half way through the second race the wind started to build (as it shifted left even more). When we say build we mean build Australian style. I don't know what the unofficial wind limit is for calling off a race is, but the bar is now raised. The RC said that it was a steady 40kts and the gusts were well into the 50's. I don't remember actually racing in that much wind before, it was surprising that more than half the fleet made it. The rest of the week was spectacular sailing, ranging from under 10 up to 22kts or so. -- boring in contrast to the first day. The Japanese were leading, but dropped out of Fridays racing leaving the win to Brazilian Mauricio Santa Cruz and his crew, followed by the USA's Mike Ingham's Team Brain Camp, then Australian Sean Wallis. Results: http://sailmelbourne.com.au/raceresults/2006/j24-aus-champs/index.htm FAIRLY SLOW Unlike last year, no racing records were broken in the Storm Trysail Club's 2006 Fort Lauderdale to Key West Race. In fact, it was a "fairly slow" affair for the 45 boats that departed at 1:00 p.m. from Ft. Lauderdale on Wednesday, January 11, to traverse the 160 nautical miles to Key West, with the last finisher arriving shortly before midnight on Thursday, January 12. Under a high-pressure weather system that was weakening through Thursday, while slowly moving east, there would be no opportunity for a new course record in 5-15 knots of breeze. First-to-finish the 2006 Ft. Lauderdale to Key West Race, with a time of 18 hours, 45 minutes, 54 seconds, was Sjambok, the TP52 owned by Michael Brennan (Annapolis, Md.). Placing first overall in the 37-boat PHRF fleet was Sea Turtle, the Beneteau 38 owned by Jim Miller (Melbourne, Fla.) which last won overall honors in 2004. PHRF Class B was won by first-time competitor Bill Bollin (Sylvania, Ohio) on Stand Aside, a Thompson 870 sportboat built in New Zealand and the smallest boat in the race. Taking overall multihull class honors was Condor, a Corsair 31, skippered by Todd Hudgins (Jensen Beach, Fla.), the first multihull to cross the finish line. - Jan Harley, www.keywestrace.org REGATTA TEES CAPS VESTS AND GRAPHICS The Pirate's Lair. Right now is the best time to capitalize on deals by booking your event. Request our 300-page catalog or ask questions by logging on to http://www.pirateslair.com/sailing KEY WEST Acura Key West 2006 has attracted 286 boats from 14 countries and 37 states. The racing begins on Monday and competition in 19 classes will be held on four courses over the next five days with organizers from Premiere Racing planning to get in as many as nine races. The Swan 45 class is conducting its inaugural world championship as a part of the event with 16 entrants from four countries. The 25-boat Farr 40 class is once again heavily loaded with name sailors -- Russell Coutts, Mark Reynolds, John Kostecki, Vince Brun and Tom Whidden are just some of the 'rock stars' who will calling tactics in this class. The Transpac 52 class, with eight boats on the line, is another pro-laden class, with names like Ed Baird, Adrian Stead, Ian Walker and former Olympian John Bertrand on the crew lists. All the teams are preparing for the inaugural class world championship, being held in conjunction with Acura Miami Race Week. The Melges 24 class is once again the largest with 60 boats. New this year is the IRC rating rule with IRC 1 (10 boats) and an IRC 2 (7 boats) classes. All 17 boats will be vying for the inaugural US-IRC National Championship Trophy, which will be awarded to the top finisher in the combined fleet. -- Bill Wagner, www.Premiere-Racing.com View and post comments: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi View daily dockside report at the Scuttleblog: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/blog NEWS BRIEFS * Team New Zealand is deep into preparations for moving their new boat to the America's Cup base in Valencia. But Grant Dalton was cagey about racing it at regattas in Spain this year. He does not want to show his hand if others do not. Chris Dickson refuses to confirm whether America's BMW-Oracle will race their new boat, the Swiss defenders, Alinghi, are considered highly unlikely to do so, and that could lead to Italy's Luna Rossa keeping their cards close as well. -- http://sport.independent.co.uk/general/article338666.ece * All ten boats in the Clipper 05-06 Round the World Yacht Race have crossed the finish line at the end of Race Five. The finish line was brought forward by around 750 miles after the fleet were becalmed in the Indian Ocean with no hope of arriving in Singapore in time for the planned stop-over celebrations. Durban won its second consecutive race to move them into second place in the overall standings behind westernaustralia.com who maintained their 100% podium finish success-rate with second place on this race. New York finished in third place to complete the podium. -- www.clipper-ventures.com * Tom Ehman has posted some new photos and information on the BMW Oracle Racing blog outlining the considerable development in Valencia's Port America's Cup. It's coming together: http://bmworacleracing.twoday.net/stories/1415630/ * The ISAF Grade 1 Sail Melbourne Olympic and Invited Classes Regatta came to a conclusion today and winners were announced following the first use of the new Olympic Competition Format which will be used at the 2008 Olympic Sailing Competition. The top ten competitors in each of the ten Olympic events competing in Melbourne carried their series scores (i.e. total of race scores after one discard) through to the Medal Race, with double points for their result in the final race. -- http://www.sailmelbourne.com.au/ EIGHT BELLS Stu Linder, waterman, died Thursday in Los Angeles. Stu was the heart and the soul of the West Coast crews that raced Sunset Boulevard, Solution, Olinka, Red Rooster, Zaca, Princessen, and many others. He was also a godfather at the birth of the Southern California surf culture. Stuey's intensity was always hidden behind his quiet humility in all he did so well, including his Academy Award-winning film editing. Aloha, Linder we're glad we knew you. (If any Scuttlebutt reader wants to be notified of an intended memorial for Stu, please send an e-mail to ABMac@aol.com) CHARLESTON RACE WEEK PRESENTED BY SEABROOK ISLAND Online registration is now open! The 11th edition of this rapidly growing event will be held April 6-9, 2006. The best sailors will be challenged by tricky wind and current conditions, and enjoy the charm of Charleston's hospitality. Free storage for trailered boats, free dockage for first 50 entries. http://www.charlestonraceweek.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. You only get one letter per subject, so give it your best shot and don't whine if others disagree. And please save your bashing, and personal attacks for elsewhere. For those that prefer a Forum, you can post your thoughts at the Scuttlebutt website: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi) * From Ken Legler: Armchair prediction for Acura Key West - 171 races, no general recalls, no Z flags and no Black flags. Small classes will have a port-line boat spotting OCS's, while large classes (60 Melges 24s, 29 J-105s, 25 Farr 40s) will have a port-line boat, a mid-line boat with spotters looking both ways and an I flag on every start. With no wasted time, the party will start on time every night. Any regatta with enough small RC boats can use these techniques. Paul Elvstrom would like this regatta. * From Bill Trenkle: Further to comments from Ross Field and Ron Holland. One of the points that has not been brought up is that when the Volvo Race organizers choose to switch to a more exciting boat and discarded the well proven Volvo 60's they eliminated the opportunity for start- up teams to buy a used boat to start getting some exposure while training on a relevant platform. This was very important in raising sponsorship for the 93-94 to 2001-2002 races. Next we will see if the present America's Cup organizers make the same mistake and discard the ACC class as is the rumor. But the race is what it is and it is and it is very cool to see these 70 foot boats do +550 mile days. Let's hope the Pirates get home safe and that they are the last of the breakdowns. * From Paul Miller: All this talk about the dangers of canting keels reminds me of the talk around 1900 on the dangers of fin keels. Because some designers and builders had not figured out how to do it as well as Herreshoff, Burgess and Lawley, they were effectively banned for fifty years! Ironically, you only need to go to a classic yacht regatta today to see those hundred year old boats still racing! PS I will admit I'm biased; I own a full-keel boat and have designed a half dozen canting ones. * From: Bianculli Kurt: It is interesting to, once again, listen to people complain that a new design (the VO70) is dangerous and un-seaworthy. When the envelope is pushed in a medium as unpredictable as the ocean, problems will show up. So does that mean we should never push the envelope? No, it means you fix the problem and move on. If I remember correctly when the Whitbread 60s were new they had some pretty serious issues with the hulls delaminating and the rudders breaking so people said they were un-seaworthy and they should never be allowed in the race. But the problems were solved and the class became a very reliable, safe design. Fin keels at one time were labeled as un-seaworthy and people felt they shouldn't be allowed in offshore races. Do people really want to go back to sailing CCA era boats? Lets face it, the Volvo Ocean Race is a dangerous game even if you were to sail it in the original Swan 65's that were used in the 73-74 Whitbread so stop trying to make it what it isn't. * From Bruce Thompson: Here is a question for Glenn McCarthy. Would you think it wise to have the VOR RC offer Grant Wharington a 6 hour redress if he would agree to slow down and spend one hour beating to windward? He is over 700 miles behind the nearest competitor ahead and over 1300 miles ahead of Brasil 1, so it won't affect the results. However, the canting keel boats have demonstrated a distinct tendency toward structural weakness when going to windward (i.e. when being rolled). There is ample proof of this weakness (e.g. several VOR boats & Skandia). There is a good chance the keel would snap off. Right now the VOR boats are experiencing a pitching, surging motion as they sail downwind. They're built for this. If a following boat were to experience a major structural failure, should a leading competitor turn back to windward to assist? Or is the likelihood of it also suffering a major failure so high, it is best to leave the rescue to the Australian Navy? I think the risk is too high and having two rescues is so much worse than one rescue, I would not recommend the experiment. The practical result is that if you fall behind, you are on your own. Update- With the recent structural problems on Pirates, Wharington should definitely press on at a safe speed to render what assistance might be possible. But when he arrives, can he provide effective assistance? Hopefully, the navy gets there first. * From Enrico Ferrari (edited to our 250-word limit): The VO 70 race might be the catalyst needed to get sailing national exposure on US TV. New records, breaking down boats, exotic equipment, lots of money spent, young handsome dudes, amazing speed and man vs. the elements. All this is done in reality. This should be one of those reality shows that airs weekly with progression around the world. Doing it in real time would be the best but canning it and airing it as you gather footage would be realistic enough. I'm sure there is plenty of footage of video from each boat. Pirates alone would be doing a movie if they are successful because they have the production resources but the entire race could benefit the sport of sailing. This event is getting as large a following as the AC at this point. The 70's are just amazing machines and the crews hanging on are unreal in their courage and skill. As I approach my own curmudgeonhood, I'm impressed with less and less but this race is something else. If there was a video bank that each contestant can submit footage to, there would be production folks and writers that could easily piece together a showstopper that would sate the US lust for dramatic reality situations. I even think this is more riveting than watching OJ and his white bronco! Get some sound bites and film on the national news, just as a "aren't you glad you are not here" piece. Who is going to document it? CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATION "A man's got to do what a man's got to do. A woman must do what he can't." -- Rhonda Hansome Special thanks to North U, Pirate's Lair, and Charleston Race Week. |
