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SCUTTLEBUTT 2147 - July 28, 2006Scuttlebutt is a digest of major yacht racing news, commentary, opinions, features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus.800 MILE DAYS (Editor James Boyd takes a sail on board Franck Cammas' incredible new a 105ft state of the art trimaran Groupama III and gives his impressions in a story just posted on thedailysail subscription website. Here are a few excerpts.) Standing with the massive concrete submarine silos behind us trying to keep our tongues in when we first see Cammas' new weapon, our first impression is that compared to Orange II the boat is more Ferrari than hot rod pantechnican. This is born out when we are told the weight - in Jules Verne Trophy trim (ie she is lighter now) the boat is expected to be just 18 tonnes, whereas the larger Orange 2 is around the 32 tonne mark. Aside from the way she floats evidence of the lengths the team has gone to to shed weight is that little fairing work above the water line has been carried out - the orientation of the laminate is clearly visible through the 28kg of paint used on her 700sqm of topside and deck. It has been discovered with these large multihulls, is freeboard, particularly at the bow. The main speed limitation of the first generation Ollier cats is when the forward cross beam starts to bury in waves. As a result on Orange II the freeboard at the bow was raised by 0.8m to 3.3m allowing both better safety, but also for the crew to drive the boat harder in waves. This formula clearly works and is why Bruno Peyron's big cat now holds the big three records in sailing and many of her crew feel she has considerably more potential to show yet, with talk of not just 800 mile days but 830, 840 ones being possible ..and just when the monohull world thought they were catching up... -- http://wwwthedailysail.com I HATE ONE DESIGN RACING I should clarify the headline, as it isn't the one-design racing that I hate. In fact, I have garnered my share of dinghy championship titles, and have found the camaraderie of small boat one-design racing to be to my liking. However, I do hate the measurement process in one-design racing. Hmm, I better back up again, as I have found an amazingly loyal group of people within each class that are in the rules and measurement trenches, and that help maintain the one-design nature within the fleet. But I do hate the process at major class events. I am not sure why I remain surprised by measurement surprises. My latest fiasco was at the measurement for this year's Naples Sabot Nationals. Two years ago at the Nationals, I was measuring in an older boat that we had acquired for my son, and the wood rudder and leeboard were oversized. Lots of last minute sanding and shaping, followed by five coats of varnish (15 hours between each coat), having to go through measurement again, but the blades pass and I am done. Not much fun, but not unexpected due to the age of the boat. This year, I take the same blades to get measured (which haven t been used much), and they don't pass. The word on the street is that the class found the previous measurement templates to be in error and made new ones. So who gets screwed in the deal? Me! - by Craig Leweck, Scuttleblog, full story: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/blog/2006/07/i-hate-one-design-racing.html VIDEO OF THE WEEK Detroit, MI television station Local 4 assigned correspondent Paula Tutman to cover the Bayview Port Huron to Mackinac Race, and Paula filed this very bizarre segment called "Horrors Of The Deep." If you want to learn about deck monsters, or voices and hands that came up from the lake to grab boats, or sailors getting taken over by spirits that enter their bodies, you won't want to miss this week's video. Also, if you have a video you like, please send us your suggestions for next week's Video of the Week. Click here for the video: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/#media SPORTS MEDICINE FOR SAILING With more and more sailors of all levels becoming interested in sailing-related injuries and prevention and other sailing sports medicine issues, researchers have seen an increase in the number of studies in this field over the last 15 years. From sailing injury prevention, fitness & training techniques, physiology & psychology to hydration & nutrition, there is now a lot of beneficial information available to sailors. A comprehensive article on sports medicine in sailing was recently published in the July issue of the British Journal of Sports Medicine. Dr. Anne Allen - an avid sailor and sports medicine physician, as well as a member of US Sailing's Performance Enhancement Team for the US Sailing Team - along with Dr. Marc De Jong - also a sailor and noted sports medicine specialist - reviewed and compiled the information from an extensive list of articles. To read ead the complete article from the British Journal of Sports Medicine: http://bjsm.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/40/7/587 SAILFLOW.COM - WEATHER WHERE YOU SAIL! SailFlow, the leader in real-time and forecasted marine weather, announces the completion of a new website. By collecting all public weather data (buoys, forecasts, warnings, satellite/radar, etc), SailFlow's new FREE service eliminates your need for multiple weather bookmarks by giving you everything in one convenient location. Plus SailFlow operates a network of proprietary weather stations placed right where you sail and uses their own computer model to forecast conditions. A recent addition is a revolutionary weather graph that scrolls between current, past, and forecasted conditions without having to reload the page. -- http://www.SailFlow.com/new LIHAN DOMINATES LEITER Houston Yacht Club (July 27, 2006) - Sarah Lihan (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) is practically breathing a sigh of relief today: after years of practice and racing in numerous regattas, the 17-year-old has finally won the U.S. Junior Women's Singlehanded Championship on her fourth attempt. This year, she clearly dominated the fleet of 56 boats, winning five out of seven races. But her win may not have been as easy as it sounds, as she was up against sailors like Ann Haeger (Lake Forest, Ill.) and Claire Dennis (Saratoga, Calif.), who finished second and third respectively and both of whom had competed in the event before. The event was a qualifier for the 2007 US Youth World Team, which represents the USA at the Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship in Kingston, Ontario in 2007. Unfortunately, Lihan, who will turn 18 next month, will be too old to compete in that event next year. Instead, Ann Haeger will go to Canada next year. "At least I got my name on the trophy," said a happy Lihan about getting her name engraved on US Sailing's Nancy Leiter Clagett Memorial Trophy for winning the U.S. Junior Women's Singlehanded Championship. -- Marlieke de Lange Eaton, http://www.ussailing.org/championships/youth/usjrw/single 9ER CHAMPIONSHIPS The rumors were true! The 29er World Championship and 49er European Championship were blessed with more wind for the fourth day of racing. The 29er Gold fleet sailed outside Portland Harbor today and after waiting for the wind to pick up for the first start saw up to 20 knots by 3pm. Americans Cameron Biehl and Matt Noble continue to pick up the pace moving into 4th today and only 3 points out of the top spot. Teammates Jen Glass and Mike Kuschner had a rough start to the event but also turned it on today and are in 27th, looking to win the Silver Fleet. US 49er team Morgan Larson and Pete Spaulding ended the day on top with a bullet that will help them continue to move up in the Gold fleet. Two more days of racing remain and again the rumors point towards increasing winds for the rest of the regatta. -- Jennifer Morgan Glass, results can be found at http://www.9erchamps2006.com/ SAILING SHORTS * The World Sailing Speed Council has ratified a Honolulu to Yokohama 'initial monohull record - (powered sail systems)" for the 72-foot BeeCom -- owner Isao Mita, skipper Yoshiki Kanai plus 10 crew. This initial record for this 3750 mile passage is 13 days, 3 hours, 36 minutes, 18 seconds for an average speed of 11.88 knots. The existing passage record from Honolulu to Yokohama of 13 days, 20 hours, 9 minutes and 22 seconds was set in 1995 aboard Lakota, a crewed catamaran owned by Steve Fossett. * Carmeuse, a world leader in the production of lime and limestone products will be sponsoring the Laser Radial Olympic campaign of Anna Tunnicliffe -- ranked number two in the International Sailing Federation world rankings, and number one in the United States. Tunnicliffe, who placed third in last year's world championships, is one of 89 competitors, including 11 Americans who will be competing at the California Yacht Club next week in the 2006 Laser Radial Women's World Championships. -- http://www.annatunnicliffe.com / http://www.carmeusena.com * After a three hour postponement the wind filled and the fourth and final race of the CSC 505 Pre-World Championships/ British National Championships Regatta started in a steady 8 knot breeze. The top two teams in this 70 boat event came from the USA -- 1. Howie Hamlin, Jeff Nelson, (USA) 6pts; 2: Tyler Moore, Jesse Falsone (USA) 8pts; 3. Boris Herrmann, Julien Kleiner, (GER) 10pts. http://hisc.co.uk/nupdate.asp BEST SAILING WATCH From the Scuttlebutt Forums, there was a discussion about what is the best sailing watch, and we wanted to put the suggestions to a vote. As the price range and features greatly vary amongst the watches discussed, we are asking what you felt to be the best watch for the weekend sailboat racer, regardless of cost (which means your vote might not be the watch you use). Click here to view the candidates and vote: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/polls/06/0727/ STAY COOL: HEAD NORTH North Sails has added some new cool gear to our online retail store: North Sails Flip Flops for men and women (just $33.95); UV-protective surf shirts for adults and kids (from $27); the North Sails Buff - wear it any way you can - ($18.50) and a huge variety of clearance items including t-shirts (from $8) to tropical shirts (now only $15!) When staying cool matters, head North: http://na.northsails.com/an/AN_catalog.taf 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 thought at the Scuttlebutt website: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi) * From Chuck Cunningham: This unfortunate Sinking of Mureadritta's XL ILC 40 underscores the validity of the West Marine Pacific Cup extensive safety equipment check list. Each race the volunteer vessel inspectors contact each entrant to perform a preliminary walk through of the boat and discuss issues with the Skipper. The final inspection is performed and then back checked for any inspection items not up to par. Racing to Hawaii or any offshore event requires serious preparation. History shows that the delivery Skipper and crew face more challenges in that the sailing is generally on the wind and the number of crew usually less than the race crew. * From John Jourdane: Grant Baldwin was not only the "voice of Transpac," but one of the true gentlemen of the sport of sailing. We will all miss him. * From Big Mike and Erin Howard: It was with great sadness that Erin and I read of the passing of Grant Baldwin. Having felt his Aloha for 13 Trans Pac's has filled our minds with many fond memories. The anticipation of pulling into the Alawai Harbor, pulling into the turning basin in front of the Hawaii Yacht Club and hearing his cheerful heart felt "Aloooha!! , Welcome to Hawaii " was always a high light for me after a beautiful passage across the Pacific. Having won the 1995 Trans Pac on Hal Wards Cheval, and finishing first after dismasting off Molokai left our owner and crew with alligator tears in our eyes with this special welcome that only those who have been blessed to have crossed the Pacific to the welcome of Grant can relate to. Our heart goes out to his family. For those of us who have come to know his voice, don't be surprised after a good life here on earth that you may be welcomed into the next life, Aloooha!!!!, welcome to Heaven. * From Ralph Taylor: Peter Huston's commentary in 'Butt #2146 touched a nerve. We're entitled to ask: "Casual for who? Fun for who? Is the race for the racers or the race committee?" It certainly is not fun for the competitor who has his score taken away by the RC. If there's a case for "casual, fun" races it's that they help introduce people to the sport & its rules in a less competitive environment. That doesn't excuse laziness or ignorance on the RC. The RC's job remains what it always is: To produce fair, fun, and safe racing. Absence of rules doesn't give it a blank check. Lack of sailing instructions brings confusion into the game. Confusion breeds arguments (or worse) and arguments take the fun out of it. * From David H. Clark: In response to Peter Huston's "And we wonder why teenagers want to play lacrosse and soccer with their peer group, rather than compete in sailing". Peter answered the question perfectly with his commentary. There were no SI's, nor a printed NOR, a truly "casual and fun" event. What happened to the school of hard knocks? Assuming his recount of the situation is true, this could have been a great learning experience for this "youngster". Rather than take the rule route why not explain his/her error with the strong probability that it won't happen again (e.g. learn by your mistakes), a true lesson. But no, Peter promotes the litigious route quoting violations, covered under US Sailing Rule 63.1. Again, assuming the story is accurate Peter promotes that this matter should be brought to the club protest committee. Are we to assume an event with no NOR or SI has an organized protest committee? That evidently doesn't stop Peter, as he cites the two hour limit under rule 61.3. * From John Ritter: I understand competitor DNF chagrin, and fault the OA for no SIs - club RC might rotate week-to-week - but think Mr. Huston is disingenuous in his RC slams. Paraphrased: "RC was definitely wrong to DNF. clear violation of Rule 63.1 'Competitor shall not be penalized .except as provided in rules 30.2.69, A5 or P2.' None apply here." A5 does in fact apply: "A boat that did not start . or finish. shall be scored accordingly by a race committee without a hearing." Haven't finished if you haven't sailed the course (28.1): "Boat shall start, leave each mark on the required side in the correct order, and finish, so that a string . drawn taut, [would] pass each mark on the required side and touch each rounding mark." RRS 28.1 not Part II (two-turns and 20% do not apply) - violation options: DNF (RC), DSQ (PC), or going back and correcting error (competitor). On gates: "Nothing in RRS specifying when leeward gates are used, you are required to pass between them." Au contraire: RRS 32.2c (when a course is shortened at a gate, new finish line is between the gate marks), or App L 8.3 for SIs - ".boats shall sail between the gate marks . and round either gate mark." Errors in fact made Rodin 'Thinker' comments a bit much for volunteer RCs . the DNF was appropriate. Suggestion: do it yourself if not happy (Write the NOR & SIs & become their US Sailing certified RC) - make it better. Curmudgeon's Comment: Peter Huston tells me the young sailor who was at the center of this discussion was reinstated by the race committee, and that his racing blog has been inundated with comments. Those comments are posted at: http://peterhuston.wordpress.com/2006/07/26/the-gates-of-hell/#comments * From Barry Dunning, Etchells Lymington Fleet: Tim Patton explained that the Etchells class is working with the ISAF to correct the wording so that there is no question that the use of carbon fiber tiller is illegal. Would it not be more appropriate to legalize them and improve the class?. Stuart Childerly used it because it was a better tiller! * From George Bailey: I too think we need a new name for the big roach, full batten, blunt topped mainsails we are seeing more and more of. Not that these are new - my 1983 Freedom 21 had an early version, though the head was not square (I did recut one F21 sail to give it a squared-off head). I found it cumbersome to have to describe the sail using "big roach, full batten, blunt topped" each time I wanted to inform someone of what sort of rig I had in a way that brought out the differences between it and the more usual sort of mainsail. Do sail makers have some short-hand way to refer to this sort of sail that distinguishes it from the more triangular shaped sails? If not, maybe someone creative out there can come up with something. * From Craig Davis: Alinghi's new 'fat head' mainsail is not a gaff rig because there is no gaff. Just a quadrilateral sail for which CA Marchaj has been a proponent for years -- review his books, "Sail Performance" and the "Aero-Hydrodynamics of Sailing". He has said since the 60s, I believe, that this is a much more efficient sail than our marconi or triangular sail. I believe that the shape creates less drag, but the experts will have to chime in. CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATIONS You can tell that you've grown up when older relatives feel comfortable telling sex jokes around you. This issue of Scuttlebutt presented by SailFlow and North Sails. |
