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SCUTTLEBUTT 1282 - March 10, 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 emphasis. Corrections, contributions, press releases, constructive criticism and contrasting viewpoints are always welcome, but save your bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere. AROUND ALONE Canadian skipper Derek Hatfield reported in at 16:53GMT on 7th March to Around Alone Race HQ that his Open 40 boat Spirit of Canada had just been dismasted 30 miles to the ENE of Cape Horn. The Captain of the cruise vessel on its way back from an Antarctic expedition was able to confirm to the Race HQ that the winds were around 70 knots and the waves 40 foot high. Hatfield's story is pretty amazing: It was sometime mid-afternoon when the wave that had his name on it came up from behind. "I have lost the timeline a bit," Derek said. "I was so exhausted that I could hardly think, but when I heard the wave I knew that I was in trouble. I was not as big as some of the others, but it was breaking and it made a huge roar as it approached the boat. In seconds we were falling down the face of it until the bow dug in and then we pitch-poled. The boat went straight up and then fell over sideways. I was at the back of the boat and got flung forward, and the next thing I knew I was in the water under the boat." Spirit of Canada had just undergone the worst possible scenario; an end-over-end capsize. The boat slammed down trapping the skipper underneath it. Derek continued his story. "I heard the water gurgling and knew that I was under the boat, then all of a sudden I heard explosions. Loud explosions that reverberated through the water and I knew in that instant that the mast was breaking. It was unreal. Gurgling water and huge bangs. Suddenly without the mast the boat came back upright and I was dragged back on deck." Hatfield estimated that he was under the boat for about 15 seconds. Had the mast not broken who knows if it would have ever come back up again and how Derek would have got out from underneath the boat. It boggles the mind to think about it. During the pitchpole the keel had come loose. It had already been a problem, but now the whole thing was loose and banging around. Hatfield is now safely in Ushuaia in southern Argentina. There was no mast, no sails or rigging. The keel problem needed to be resolved. The electronics were ruined. "I could not think how we could get back in the race given where things stood," Derek said. "But then I opened my email and started to talk to people and I am amazed and gratified by the outpouring of support we have been getting. It's overwhelming. There is still a lot to do, but I am starting to feel the littlest bit confident that we might just be able to get back into the race. - Excerpts from a story by Brian Hancock. Read the full story: www.aroundalone.com STANDINGS: 2200 UTC March 3 CLASS 1: 1. Solidaires, Thierry Dubois, 167 miles from finish; 2. Bobst Group-Armor Lux, Bernard Stamm, 14 miles behind leader; 3. Tiscali, Simone Bianchetti, 327 mbl; 4. Pindar, Emma Richards, 448 mbl 5. Ocean Planet, Bruce Schwab, 1554 mbl; Hexagon, Graham Dalton, dismasted. CLASS 2: 1. Tommy Hilfiger, Brad Van Liew, 843 miles from finish; 2. Everest Horizontal, Tim Kent, 879 mbl; 3. Spirit of yukoh, Kojiro Shiraishi, 943 mbl; 4. BTC Velocity, Alan Paris, 1679 mbl; Spirit of Canada, Derek Hatfield, dismasted. INTERNATIONAL CATAMARAN CHALLENGE TROPHY The Australian Catamaran Challenge syndicate has issued a challenge for the International Catamaran Challenge Trophy (also known as the Little America's Cup) but this has been rejected by the trustees in favor of a factory backed event. "We were bitterly disappointed," says syndicate coordinator Ian Jenkins, "The Little America's Cup was always about the building most efficient and technologically advanced boats, to sail in one-design boats really misses the point. The C Class Catamaran has represented the pinnacle of sailing technology for the past 40 years featuring revolutionary wing sails." "Our boat is nearing completion in Fremantle, Western Australia and we will be ready to race next year," says Ian. Steve Clark and the Cogito team, the previous winners of the Little America's Cup, have recently met with Ian Jenkins and have accepted a challenge from the Australian syndicate. It is anticipated that the new event will be held in Rhode Island in September 2004. More details of the new event will be released as soon as arrangements can be made. - Damien Smith, pugwash@eisa.net.au CURIOUS ABOUT MULTIHULLS? The mega multihulls smashing records around the world are fast and spectacular, but not very practical for most sailors. However, there are modern multihulls that can provide multihull excitement in a more practical and very safe format. Farrier multihull designs, from the classic trailerable F-27 to the F-41 catamaran, are the most popular cruising multihulls around with now over 2000 sailing. They can exceed 20 knots, and the F-28 has even sailed around the world. Find out more, and check out the exciting new F-33 sport cruiser at http://www.f-boat.com HERO'S WELCOME - Julie Ash Any ideas that the Swiss didn't really care about Alinghi winning the America's Cup were quickly dismissed yesterday when syndicate head Ernesto Bertarelli stepped off the plane with the Auld Mug in Geneva. Hundreds of media and local dignitaries, not to mention the Swiss President Pascal Couchepin, gathered at the airport to greet the team as they arrived on a specially chartered plane. Bertarelli was first off with the cup, followed closely by skipper Russell Coutts, who was carrying his young son Michael. From the airport the team headed to a public celebration held on the edge of Lake Geneva. A crowd of around 40,000 braved the icy cold temperatures and gathered on the streets to catch a glimpse of the team and their trophy. "One day I dreamed of landing here at Cointrin airport with the America's Cup. I was really the only one to believe it," Bertarelli told the crowd. - New Zealand Herald, full story, http://www.nzherald.co.nz/americascup/ BACARDI CUP Coral Reef YC - Peter Bromby and Martin Siese of Bermuda won their second consecutive Bacardi Cup after a second place finish in the sixth daily race of the Star Class regatta on Biscayne Bay. World Champions Ian Percy and Steve Mitchell finished in 28th place and take second place overall. Final Results (112 boats): 1. Peter Bromby / Martin Seise, BER, 24; 2. Ian Percy / Steve Mitchell, UK, 32; 3. John Kostecki / Austin Sperry, USA, 43; 4. Andy Lovell / Eric Oetgen, USA, 43; 5. Augie Diaz / Mark Strube, USA, 46; 6. George Szabo / Chrisian Finnsgard, USA, 51; 7. Mark Reynolds / Magnus Liljedahl, USA, 57; 8. Ian Walker / Nick Williams, AUS, 61. - http://www.coralreefyachtclub.org/starclassevents.htm ORACLE BMW RACING Larry Ellison has stepped down as CEO of the Oracle BMW Racing Team and has appointed Chris Dickson to assume that role. Dickson's first task is to plan the strategy, budget, management structure and program for the next challenge. Planning will be the main emphasis for the next six months, and there are no plans yet for hiring, any major developments, or commitments. Dickson will complete the debriefing and planning process before answering questions about specific members of the team. The team's short term priorities will be to race a yacht in San Francisco this summer, fulfill the obligations as Challenger of Record, and to complete the wind up and debrief analysis of the 2003 campaign. - www.oraclebmwracing.com/ JULES VERNE TROPHY - DAY 58 The Cap Gemini and Schneider Electric trimaran is still making good headway north, despite having to contend with lazy trade winds blowing at around 12 knots. Making an average speed of over 15 knots, Geronimo passed 15° North at the end of last night and should reach 20° North some time tonight. This faster progress puts her back ahead of Orange, her rival of last year. But the crew continues to take a realistic view, since Bruno Peyron and his crew had excellent conditions on days 58, 59 and 60 (covering 411, 518 and 496 nautical miles respectively), which will not be the case this year on this part of course. Distance traveled in the last 24 hours: 358 nm - www.grandsrecords.com TNZ A decision on whether Team New Zealand will again challenge for the America's Cup could be weeks rather than months away. Syndicate heads are completing an internal review into what went wrong in their 0-5 rout by Alinghi in the America's Cup. This will include a look at the management of the syndicate and will not automatically guarantee the present jobs. Skipper Dean Barker said when a boat had two crippling gear failures in five races it was vital the leadership of the team was assessed. "We obviously have to look at our management processes because management is responsible for any failures. That's one of the big things that we have to look at." It is not known whether an external review of the team will be conducted, or who will assess the roles of Barker, Schnackenberg and key executives. - Helen Tunnah, NZ Herald, full story: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/americascup/ GOT STUFF? Scuttlebutt has seen how Star and Etchells sailors benefit from their handy trailer-mounted storage boxes. The convenience of the boat trailer or dry storage yard box keeps your stuff where you need it - with your boat. Sturdy fiberglass construction insures dry, secure storage for your sails and hardware. Boxes are 13'4" in length. Mr. Wax has boxes in stock and affordable to ship anywhere in America. Check them out at http://www.mrwax.com/mainfram/Storagebox/storagebox.htm KINGFISHER2 Thirteen days after Kingfisher2 was dismasted, the maxi-catamaran arrived in Fremantle, Australia on March 8 under tow. Of the dozen attempts that have been made on the Jules Verne record, eight have ended in failure, so skipper Ellen MacArthur always knew the odds were against her. Team Kingfisher and MacArthur have no immediate plans for another crewed attempt to break the Jules Verne record. MacArthur will reveal her program for 2003-2004 by the end of March. As previously announced, in 2005 she plans to enter the ORMA 60 trimaran racing circuit with the key objective of the 2006 Route du Rhum race. - www.teamkingfisher.com CLIPPER 2002 Hong Kong Clipper crossed the line at 06:54 GMT Friday as the provisional winner of Race 6 of the Clipper 2002 Round the World Yacht Race, from Hawaii to Yokohama. Race 6 Finishing Positions: 1 Hong Kong (06:54 GMT 07/03/03); 2. Bristol (14:41 GMT 07/07/03); 3 Liverpool (17:16 GMT 07/07/03); 4. Jersey (17:37 GMT 07/07/03) 5. Glasgow (00:18 GMT 08/08/03) 6. London. Overall Standings: 1. Jersey, 39; 2. Bristol, 34; 3. London, 31; 4. Liverpool, 28.5; 5. Hong Kong, 28; 6. Glasgow, 23; 7. New York, 22; 8. Cape Town, 9. - www.clipper-ventures.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.) * From T.J. Perrotti: I applaud Steve Clark and his Little America's Cup "Cogito" team for the wonderfully innovative advancements and technology that they have brought to C-class catamarans. All of this done with a dedicated core research program and a surprisingly small budget. It's exciting to hear that our sailing friends in Perth are game to give this historic sailing competition their best shot. Sadly, if reports concerning actions of the Sea Cliff Trustees are true, the challengers might never be given their fair chance. I implore those in Sea Cliff to reconsider their sense of direction. * From Ron Deane: As Steve Clark has observed, the current proposal to use production beach cats as the design for a round robin series for this event is an incredible dumbing down and lowering of standards for what has been the epitome of the fastest course racing sailboat championship in the world! These cats have been the most amazing developmental sailing craft worldwide, and I for one cannot believe that the current holders of the cup would suggest that the competition should be staged in production boats - this is a development class - and up until it was won from Australia, the progressive development for each challenge was nothing short of staggering! To drop that level of development back to sailing a round robin in production boats is nonsensical - the whole purpose of the Little America's Cup has been defeated! * From Nancylee Malm: Am I missing something? If Russell Coutts and his team had not won the Americas Cup for New Zealand in the first place and brought it back to his country, New Zealand would have missed these wonderful years being involved in the Cup races. Sons are free to grow up and do their own thing, be happy for the good years, and may they come again. * From Michael Rosenauer: I must disagree with those who opine that a conflict between the World Cup and the AC is illusory. I submit that this perception is based upon the American view of Sport and is similar to our view of skiing. In the US, the only people who are on the sidelines are ski patrol, or course management. The finish is populated with only competitor's families and coaches. Americans watch the Reader's Digest version on TV. In Europe, the old ladies are trudging up the hill before dawn. By race time, people are six and seven deep, each with a flag or a cowbell. The finish is packed and large bleachers have been erected. You can tell where the competitors are on the racecourse by the roar of the crowd. I can further demonstrate the point by reminding the readership of the arrival of the VO 60s in the European ports. They could hardly find the pin end of the line but for the spectator fleet. The starts were equally crazy. I am putting my money on Bertelli and his vision. I hate to wait so long, but I think the public reception will be overwhelming. We here in the US are simply underestimating the following that sailing has in Europe. * From Rob Hahn: Freeing up the nationality restrictions in the AC is an idea whose time has come. This is not the Olympics. Certainly there are downsides to it (as in anything should you decide to look hard enough) but I feel the benefits are there to be seen. Some have said that it will hurt the ability to cheer for your country's entry, as the team members could be from anywhere. I disagree. To buy this argument one must feel that the fans of any sports team are limited to the city they came from, as if you couldn't be a San Francisco 49er fan unless you were from that fair city. Would it also mean that you wouldn't cheer for your hometown college teams unless the entire student body grew up locally? As an American, I had no national stake in this America's Cup, but I was still cheering for my favorite; the team that always showed up ready to sail hard and carried themselves with dignity and class. * From Patrick Mouligne: I believe that, if there was no nationality requirements in the Olympics or in World Cup soccer, there would be much very little interest worldwide in watching either one. I feel the same way about the next America Cup. This latest one was bad enough from that point of view. Who was in it? Was it New Zealand and New Zealand or Switzerland and New Zealand or even France and Switzerland? I am not sure but I do care. I believe it is critical to the marketing success as well as to the preservation of "the spirit" of the AC that nationality requirements be strengthen not further diminished. It is simple to do: five years true minimum residence in one country. Then, ounce you have raced for one country, you cannot switch for 10 years...or something like that. CURMUDGEON'S COMMENT: Although some people seem focused on 'locking the barn after the horses are long gone,' the new AC Protocol is in place, and nothing said here will change that. This thread is now officially dead. * From Bob Osterholt: I'm sorry, but although being a strong KIWI supporter, basically we got our butts kicked! Regardless of equipment failures, their strategy, maneuvering skills, and decision making were superior! Being close in "delta times" is finding gold in the dog@#%$ pile! RNZL must do better all around to be a serious contender for the next AC. I don't think the new protocol as proposed will be a great hindrance for RNZL, it actually may be the best thing for the sport in the long run! * From Theo Muller, Wellington, New Zealand: I simply can not agree with Rich Roberts characterizations in Scuttlebutt 1281. The Russell Coutts situation is now well past and Team New Zealand and most New Zealanders are looking to the future. Team New Zealand was very gracious in defeat, but of course very disappointed. That goes with the territory. The future for Team New Zealand and New Zealand yachting looks very promising. We have the talent, the knowledge, the experience and above all, the will to come back. Let's not unnecessarily dwell on the past. Learn from mistakes and move on. * From Andrei Glasberg (In support of Rich Roberts' commentary): Does Commodore Bill Endean represent the RNZYS? Does he represent NZ? The Loyal campaign was a disgrace to the country and its people. All of this is narrow minded isolationism at its worst - in sporting competition no less. If I were a NZ company with global markets (most are) I would attach behavioural strings to any sponsorship considerations. THE CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATIONS Nothing says poor craftsmanship like wrinkled duct tape. |
