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SCUTTLEBUTT 1338 - May 28, 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 focus. Corrections, contributions, press releases, constructive criticism and contrasting viewpoints are always welcome, but save your bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere. ROCKET SHIP DEVELOPMENT A full size 'mock-up' of Ellen MacArthur's 75-foot solo trimaran's cockpit and navigation area is almost complete at the base in Cowes, Isle of Wight. The purpose of the mock up is to physically test the ergonomics of the cockpit and accommodation layout: "There is only so much that can be done on paper," said Neil Graham, Technical Director for Team Kingfisher. "The 2d images do not show us if it's possible for Ellen to stand at the central grinding pedestal and reach the port winch, for example. We need to check that the deck layout suits her size and reach." The first noticeable aspect about the cockpit and navigation area is how compact it is: "It is very similar in size and depth to Kingfisher (monohull) - there is no need to have a cavernous area down below," said MacArthur. The advantage of the mock-up means that any changes can easily be made: "With a mdf mock up you can muck around with it - its easy to chop and change," said Graham. "Whereas altering the boat further down the line is far more expensive and time consuming." As the mock-up nears completion in the UK, on the other side of the world, the mold tools for the main hull, floats and beams are under construction at the Boatspeed boat yard just north of Sydney, Australia. A 25-man build team is working on the construction of the new trimaran: "Boatspeed are in the first stage of construction, building the molds for the floats and beams and the plug for the main hull," explained Graham. Flying the colours of Kingfisher-owned business, B&Q, Ellen will oversee the design and construction of the new 75-foot [22.8m] 'solo' trimaran which will be entered into a campaign of single-handed record attempts in 2004/5. To see a rendering of the trimaran and learn more: http://www.kingfisherchallenges.com/ SIR PETER BLAKE A close friend of Kiwi yachting icon Sir Peter Blake is incensed at news today that Sir Peter's killers will get out of jail early. Simon Gundry, a former sailing companion and pallbearer at Sir Peter's funeral, said he is 'gutted' that a Brazilian court had reduced the jail terms of the six killers by four years. Sir Peter's widow Lady Pippa Blake said she had no comment on the reduction of the jail terms. * Sir Peter, a two-time winner of the America's Cup, was shot dead on December 5, 2001 by pirates who boarded his yacht 36m Seamaster moored near the Amazon river town of Macapa in Amapa state, 1800km north of Brasilia. The six were sentenced last year to prison terms ranging from 26 to 36 years. Two others convicted of less serious roles in connection with the killing were sentenced to six months time served. After an appeal a court official said the court decided to reduce their sentences by an average of four years "to give the defendants some hope that one day they will be able to rejoin society and lead fruitful lives." n.z.p.a, full story: http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,2506748a10,00.html THE 2003 MAGIC MARINE SAILING GEAR LINE IS ALL NEW! You may have seen Magic Marine before but it definitely didn't look like this! They have a brand new line of spray tops, wetsuits cut specifically for sailing, hiking pants, gear bags and packs, and tried and true harnesses and gloves. See it all and find a dealer at http://www.magicmarinegear.com ROUND THE WORLD Clipper Ventures plc, the AIM-listed ocean racing company chaired by Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, has announced the award of a landmark contract for the build of a new 10-strong fleet for the Clipper 2005 Round the World Yacht Race. The contract is awarded to Shanghai Double Happiness Yachts Ltd, a subsidiary of Shanghai Double Happiness Sports - the only Chinese company to be an official supplier to the Olympic Games. The new fleet of 68ft yachts, from the drawing board of designer Ed Dubois, will be built in China and will start coming into service in 2004. Also announced today is a sponsorship deal valued at $1,000,000, granting Shanghai Double Happiness Yachts the rights to promote their yacht sales through the Clipper 2005 race, which will set sail from the UK in the autumn of 2005. - Yachting World website, full story: http://www.yachting-world.com/auto/newsdesk/20030427103250ywnews.html SWEDISH MATCH TOUR Brilliant Mediterranean sunshine and a 12-knot winds from the southwest greeted the 11 skippers taking part in the first day of the Swedish Match Tour's ACI HTmobile Cup in Split on Croatia's Dalmatian coast. After the first day of racing, Swedish Match Tour leader Jes Gram-Hansen of Team Victory Lane and Australia's James Spithill, former helmsman for the OneWorld Challenge, top the leaderboard with unblemished records of 3-0. A surprise result in the second flight, held in much the same conditions as the first, came when Allan Coutts dispatched former Swedish Match Tour winner and victor at the last Swedish Match Tour event in Elba, Magnus Holmberg. Coutts, who has a famous uncle in Alinghi skipper and triple America's Cup winner, Russell Coutts, is representing Alinghi and four of his five crew were part of the winning America's Cup team. The fifth, Bruce Curson, campaigned a 49er with Coutts during the Sydney Olympics. The third and final flight saw a massive windshift as an ugly black squall passed over the fleet doubling the wind strength in a matter of seconds. In his match against Swedish Match Tour leader Jes Gram Hansen of Team Victory Lane, Coutts said that they had been behind off the line and when the shift came through it became a case of "following my leader". - Shawn McBride, www.swedishmatchtour.com. Leaderboard after three rounds: James Spithill 3-0 Jes Gram-Hansen, 3-0 Jesper Radich, 2-1 Chris Law, 2-1 Magnus Holmberg, 2-1 Karol Jablonski, 1-2 Allan Coutts, 1-2 Mattias Rahm, 1-2 Paolo Cian, 0-2 Johnie Berntsson, 0-2 Frane Brate, 0-3 IF ONE IS GOOD, TWO MUST BE BETTER Sydney yachtsman Andrew Short has bought the two Danish 60-footers built for the last Volvo Ocean Race round the world. He will campaign one in the 2003 Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race and other major races and regattas on the Australian East Coast this year, and already has had offers from local yacht owners to buy the second boat. This will bring to five the number of Volvo 60s now owned in Australia, with at least three or four likely to contest the Rolex Sydney Hobart in December. The two Danish VO60s, both named djuice dragons, have undergone a refit in Auckland where they were built in 2001 by Cooksons to the design of New Zealander Laurie Davidson. - Peter Campbell FASTEST SAILS ON THE PLANET! Ullman Sails produced another dominating race season for our customers. From Key West to Seattle or Block Island to San Diego, Ullman sails customers have enjoyed unparalleled performance and service. From local one design sailing to international competition, let Ullman Sails give you and your crew the speed advantage for 2003. To see how affordable the "Fastest Sails on the Planet" are, call your nearest Ullman Sails loft or visit us at http://www.ullmansails.com TRANSPAC Sixty-one boats---the largest fleet since 1985 and the 10th largest ever---are signed up to start the 42nd biennial Transpacific Yacht Race from Los Angeles to Honolulu in July. Transpac hasn't topped 60 entries since 64 boats raced in 1985. The record is 80 in 1979. Trophies will be awarded by divisions, and any boat is eligible to win the Governor of Hawaii Trophy for first overall on corrected handicap time. Division assignments are currently provisional and will be finalized within the next two or three weeks. The match race for the Barn Door (fastest elapsed time) between Pegasus 77 and Roy E. Disney's record holder, Pyewacket, will command international attention. However, there is also considerable interest in the ten Cal 40s racing in the 40th anniversary celebration of the glory days when Cal 40s dominated Transpac on corrected time for three successive races. - Rich Roberts, www.transpacificyc.org NEWS BRIEFS * US Sailing has published a new book entitled, "Start Powerboating Right!" Covering the basics for safe and proficient powerboating, this book guides beginning powerboaters through engine systems, boathandling skills, equipment and requirements, navigation rules, launching and trailering, emergencies, and more. Written for US Sailing's new powerboat training program which provides hands-on, on-the-water training to encourage safe and proficient powerboating. - www.ussailing.org/merchandise * As Mini Pavois singlehanded fleet close on Douarnanez, Jonathan McKee on Team McLube still retains his lead. In fact the former skiff medallist is leading the Mini Pavois' second leg by a country mile over Doin Pascal on ASNQ. - The Daily Sail website, full story: http://thedailysail.com/ * The ISAF has just posted their latest match race rankings. Fifth-ranked Ed Baird is the only North American in the top 20 in the pecking order of the Open Davison. The Women's Division has few more: 7. Betsy Alison, USA; 13. Liz Baylis, USA; 17. Sandy Hayes, USA; 20. Charlie Arms, USA. http://www.sailing.org/matchrace/mrranking.asp * The Waikiki Yacht Club continued their domination in Hawaii's Lipton Cup Regatta, an annual, all-state yacht club challenge. In this year's event sailed under Americap rules, WYC's J/35 Ho'okipa skippered by Mike Rothwell again brought the trophy back to where it has resided after 12 of the last 14 regattas. * The ISAF honored the lifelong contribution to the sport of sailing made by Jan Linge by presenting him with the Beppe Croce Trophy in recognition of outstanding voluntary contribution to the sport of sailing. Linge, who in the sailing world is best known for the design of the Soling and Yngling. http://www.sailing.org/Article_content.asp?ArticleID=4566 * Brechin ("Brec") Lee Morgan, of Milford, Connecticut, is the world's newest solo circumnavigator, completing a four an a half year voyage aboard Otter, his 27' Pacific Seacraft Orion. He officially completed his solo voyage on Saturday, May 17. Michael L. Martel, Rear Commodore of the Joshua Slocum Society International, presented Brec with the Society's official burgee and nomination for the Golden Circle Award, an award reserved exclusively for documented solo circumnavigators. There have been fewer than 150 documented solo circumnavigators since Captain Joshua Slocum's famous first solo circumnavigation in 1898. www.Otternews.com * The Around Alone Race's Spirit of Canada skippered by Canadian Derek Hatfield, now only 632 miles from the finish line off Castle Hill in Newport RI. Positioned 10 miles to the west of Bermuda Tuesday morning, Hatfield looks set to finish during Friday 30th May, weather depending. Hatfield is enjoying southwesterlies, which should continue for most of this week, as he steers Spirit of Canada on the home stretch to Newport, RI. - http://www.aroundalone.com ATTENTION: SUNSHINE JUST AROUND THE CORNER If you East Coasters think this is bad, we get clouds and rain year 'round in the northwest. Even though it's cloudy, now is a good time to check your boat's running rigging for wear. Stop by your local Samson dealer or rig shop with your shopping list and buy some new halyards, sheets or control lines. This will be good for the marine economy and your boat will love you for it. Plus, you'll be ready for the sunshine and warm breezes when the weather turns. http://www.samsonrope.com FIGAWI RACE The 32nd annual Figawi Race from Hyannis, Massachusetts to Nantucket Island was sailed on Saturday, May 24th under cold, gray skies in east-northeast winds of 15 - 20 kts. Of 215 boats registered, 188 made it to the starting line after a miserable New England spring and a solid week of stormy weather preceding this three-day event. With predictions of worsening weather conditions, the race committee elected to move up the pursuit start by one hour and to shorten the course essentially to a straight shot, beam reach between harbors. Thirteen divisions raced and included four spinnaker divisions, one asymmetrical spinnaker division, and eight cruising divisions. Following a lay-day on Sunday, the fleet raced back to Hyannis Yacht Club on Monday in 17 to 24 knots of easterlies with light rain and temperatures in the low 50's. For complete race results; http://www.figawi.com 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.) * John Roberson: Noel Robins will be sadly missed all over the world. While much has been made of his sailing achievements, it should not be forgotten that Noel was largely responsible for the successful organization of the Fremantle America's Cup. Noel's energy, forsight and diplomacy overcame many obstacle along the path to what many still believe was the best America's Cup ever. He set the benchmark for organising the whole event. It was his template that the Kiwis used when organising the 1999/2000 event. I have many reasons to thank Noel, not least because in 1984, when I arrived in Perth, having driven across Australia, he gave me a job in the Cup organisation, while I got myself settled into life in Freo. He was fun to work with, and has remained a great friend ever since.He regularly sailed in the Royal Perth Yacht Club's Wednesday afternoon races, and that was the last time I saw him, just a few weeks ago, friendly as ever, and interested to know what I was up to. Noel taught me many lessons about living life to the full, and I will always be grateful. In the finest Australian traditions, he was a mate. * From Robie Pierce: Our deepest sympathies to Noel Robins' family. A fellow disabled skipper, I first knew Noel here in Newport in the 70's, then as a disabled skipper in Spain & St. Petersburg. I will always remember Noel cruising around the Cadiz, SP marina complex on his electric scooter. Always with a G'day and a smile. A wonderful man and always a superb and fair competitor. We were honored to have him within our ranks. We all will miss him. * From Alexander Meller (edited to our 250-word limit): I have to agree with Brad Reutenik's point in Scuttlebutt 1337 on the Brits extensive sailing in small boats, whereas so many US sailors jump into Lead Mines. The UK has a wide range of actively raced dinghy classes, including a number of high performance tuneable classes that help develop the skills appropriate for high performance, tuneable Olympic classes, whereas many of the relatively small number of US sailors in dinghies are racing low performance, non tuneable dinghies that are not International Classes. The US dinghy classes and US intercollegiate racing programs do develop sailors with strong boathandling, tactical and kinetic skills. But those US sailors who wish to race at the Olympic Class level have to work hard to develop the skills they are often lacking. The Brits do not have large numbers of sailors in the current Olympic Classes (other than Laser), neither does the USA. But the Brits do have a large pool of talented dinghy sailors with the high performance and tuning skills appropriate for several of the Olympic Classes. The USA has proportionally a much smaller pool to draw from. Strong dinghy racing skills transfer well to lower performance dinghies or keelboats. Strong keelboat or low performance dinghy skills are not enough to race high performance tuneable dinghies successfully. The US Sailing Team does tend to develop teams that peak for the Olympics, getting better results there than at the Olympic Classes events in the years leading up to the Olympics. * From Peter Huston: Last week I received a copy of a US Sailing press release announcing their new book "Start Powerboating Right!" I guess I shouldn't be surprised; it's become crystal clear that the organization has shifted its focus from the organization of yacht racing to "training". Anything that can drive revenue to the Training Commission has a Washington, DC flavored spin put on it, and the next thing you know what was once a pretty good sailing shop is now in the education book biz. I'm sure the next title launched by US Training will be "Start Bass Fishing Right". Of course, "Start Jet Skiing Right" will soon follow. President Elect Baxter, if you want to preside over a book publishing company, then perhaps Random House is hiring. If you want to lead a sailing organization, kill this nonsense the moment you take office. * From Jane Moon: In match racing the ranking points of the skipper determine, whether a crew is invited to a race or not. Thus it would seem rather fair to me, that the ranking points were 'frozen' during the skipper is on a maternity leave. To my understanding those male skippers, who participate America's Cup for instance, are given their ranking points back once they return to sailing. Shouldn't this apply to females that cannot sail due to pregnancy? * From John Schalka: I would like to add to Barry Auger's comment about Jonathan and Charlie McKee. I was also in that Soling fleet. At the time the fleet was very good with Axel Olsen, Jim Medley, Morice Ratery and eventually Bill Buchan who went on to win the worlds. The McKee's had an old boat with old sails and had to rely on being smart instead of fast. Jonathan almost always steered and Charlie did the middle with their brother Bates in the front. They won a lot of races even in the breeze. The important point is that at the time, Bates was 14, Jonathan was 12, and Charlie was 9! It comes as no surprise to me that the European single handed sailors are having a hard time with Jonathan. CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATION If tin whistles are made out of tin, what do they make fog horns out of? |
