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SCUTTLEBUTT 2481 – November 23, 2007Scuttlebutt is a digest of major sailing news, commentary, opinions, featuresand dock talk . . . with a North American focus. Scuttlebutt is published each weekday with the support of its sponsors. SORTING OUT THE OLYMPIC DRAMA by Kimball Livingston, SAIL West In the wake of the Olympics flap, shouldn't we at least talk to US Sailing and ask, "What gives?" Yeah, I think so. When our international sailing authorities met and dropped multihulls as a category for the 2012 Games, a lot of multihull sailors took it as a personal insult. Catamaran and trimaran sailors tend to feel marginalized anyway, and many of them think their boats don't get the respect they deserve. Thus an avalanche of words like "disenfranchised" rained down after the ISAF Annual Meeting, and the US Sailing delegation was widely given the, um, credit. So here we are talking to Dean Brenner on his cell phone, and Brenner is telling us, "There have been suspicions of secret deals. I'll look anybody in the eye and say, no. But we never shied away from saying that men's keelboat was a priority for us, and that's because we believe it affords the US team our best medal chances. You could take a different approach. Some people say you should make decisions, not on medal prospects, but on what's best for the sport, and that sounds good, but if your team doesn't win medals your fund raising is going to dry up and you're not going to be successful in the long run, are you? In the end, we made a sensible, tactical choice on how to vote, and the only legitimate gripe is if you think the US would have a better medal chance in catamarans." Brenner, you should know, is a Connecticut-based volunteer who took over the job of chairing U.S. Olympic sailing a few years ago with a mission to focus high energy on the clear do-ables. And now we're talking to another volunteer on his cell phone, and that would be US Sailing President Jim Capron, who says, "My email box has been filled…" -- Read on: http://sailmagazine.blogspot.com/2007/11/talkin-olympic-blues.html AMERICA’S CUP DELAYED Valencia, Spain (November 22, 2007) The organizers of the 33rd America’s Cup announced on Thursday that they have decided to postpone the 2009 event due to the ongoing uncertainty around the conclusion of the New York court case brought by Golden Gate Yacht Club (GGYC)/ BMW Oracle Racing (BOR). With the challenger trials originally scheduled in May and the America’s Cup Match planned to begin July 18, it is now believed that there is a lack of viability to stage the event in 2009 to the same standards as the 32nd America's Cup. The competitors' entry deadline of December 15th remains valid and for now, AC Management (ACM), the defending club Société Nautique de Genève (SNG) and the Challenger of Record Club Náutico Español de Vela (CNEV), await the outcome of the legal process. If the New York Supreme Court rules that CNEV is valid and BOR chooses not to appeal the decision, ACM will endeavour to work with the competitors to adapt the existing rules and regulations and put in place a new framework for an event to take place at a later stage in Valencia. Should the US Courts rule against CNEV, SNG will accept the GGYC Deed of Gift Challenge and meet them in a vessel, possibly a multihull, in accordance with the terms of the Deed of Gift. -- Complete announcement: http://33rd.americascup.com/en/index.php?idContent=34&idPage=1 QUOTES FROM THE BRITISH TEAM * “Last week we came to within a hair’s breadth of a solution that should have been acceptable to both (the Swiss SNG team and the American GGYC team). Unfortunately the tactics employed by the two have sometimes brought into question the willingness of both to want to find a solution at all,” said Mike Sanderson, TEAMORIGIN’s Team Director. * “This is a really sad day for the America’s Cup and a bad day for sport,” said said Sir Keith Mills, TEAMORIGIN’s Team Principal. “Disputes like this should not be resolved in a Court of Law. For one team to seek to impose its will on a sporting event by using a lawsuit is reprehensible. For another team to slow the process down is equally damning. The full rejection of the offer from the GGYC to the SNG made last week meant that any chance of an ‘out of court settlement’ appeared to have gone. We can only all hope that common sense will prevail and that over the following days the parties will come to their senses and realize that the offer on the table is a good one for all concerned. If that was to pass then we could all get on with making our respective arrangements for an event in Valencia in either 2010 or 2011. If that doesn’t happen we can only surmise that the greed of one side is only matched by the belligerence of the other.” -- Complete announcement: http://www.teamorigin.com/da/65114 FROST BITES MAN Face the elements without losing your edge with Harken Frostbiter gloves. Their large cuffs mate with your spray top and thermal layer, while Neoprene protects and insulates your hands. Harken's Black Magic palm material provides superior grip on cold, wet lines. Harken Frostbiters are up to 15% off through November at select dealerships and make great stocking stuffers—so bite back, take hold, and don't let go. http://www.harken.com/scuttlebutt/FrostbiterGlove_07.php BARCELONA WORLD RACE Open 60 doublehanded round the world race (started Nov 11; 25,000-miles) (November 22, 2007) Overnight the leaders in the Barcelona World Race fleet have hooked into the trade winds and are flying off towards the third scoring gate in the race, at Fernando de Noronha off the coast of Brazil. But before they get there, they’ll have to navigate through the doldrums, the next major obstacle facing the nine teams. Paprec Virbac 2 has maintained its lead over PRB over the past 24 hours and the two leading boats have doubled their margin over third placed Veolia Environnement, which is still positioned furthest west in the fleet. It’s been a difficult 24 hours for the rest of the fleet however, with everyone dropping significant miles to the leaders. Not only that, there isn’t much hope of getting them back until the leading boats are slowed by the doldrums. -- Read on: http://www.barcelonaworldrace.com/default.asp?section=10&sid=10943 Day 12 Positions - November 22, 2007 - 18:00 (GMT) 1. Paprec-Virbac 2 - Jean-Pierre Dick (FRA)/Damian Foxall (IRE), 22,722 DTF 2. PRB - Vincent Riou (FRA)/Sébastien Josse (FRA), 28 miles DTL 3. Veolia Environnement - Roland Jourdain (FRA)/Jean-Luc Nélias (FRA), 93 4. Delta Dore - Jérémie Beyou (FRA)/Sidney Gavignet (FRA), 168 5. Mutua Madrilena - Javier Sanso Windmann (ESP)/Pachi Rivero (ESP), 179 6. Hugo Boss - Alex Thomson (GBR)/Andrew Cape (AUS), 189 7. Temenos II - Dominique Wavre (SUI)/Michéle Paret (FRA), 193 8. Estrella Damm - Guillermo Altadill (ESP)/Jonathan McKee (USA), 234 9. Educación sin Fronteras -Albert Bargués (ESP)/Servanne Escoffier (FRA),490 Race website: http://www.barcelonaworldrace.com TALES FROM THE TRACK Coach Leandro Spina of the No Excuses Sailing Team shares a story from a recent Optimist regatta, where his two young guns were tight on points, and having to deal with the tactical options of the final race: “Going into the last race Axel scores were 1,2,1,1,7,2 but Mac did not let Axel relaxed after such a great performance in the first 6 races. With scores of 2,1,2,2,3,1, Mac was just 1 point behind. His discard was better than Axel's so the strategy was simple, pushing his friend to sail a discard was enough to claim the top spot. Axel needed to sail in the top and stay close to Mac, ahead or with one boat in between if behind. Both sailors had the chance to DNS the last race and still finish top two in the regatta. Sailors and coach discussed their options together before the race and shake hands going into the starting line.” -- Read on: http://tinyurl.com/27yyag * Following the race, Spina commented, “Both knew at all times what to do and both were patient waiting for their chances to use their strategy. We read or watch about this performances in the Olympics and or Team trails, but kids can do it too. Now our Team is going to Puerto Rico for a clinic/ regatta with the top Caribbean sailors and then to Palma de Mallorca, Spain to race against the best European sailors, looking for challenging conditions (windy, waves and cold) to get ready for the 2008 International IODA events.” VIDEO OF THE WEEK The US Olympic Team Trials were conducted October 6-14, 2007 to decide who would represent the country in the 2008 Games in Qingdao, China. The Finn trials were hosted in Newport Beach, CA, where 42 entrants competed for nine days to see who would be the sole survivor (eventually won by Zach Railey). Finn sailor Forrest Gay has produced a seventy-minute documentary of the event, and then cut it up into shorter daily shows with upbeat music and narration. All nine segments are provided this week. Also, if you have a video you like, please send us your suggestions for next week’s Video of the Week. Click here for this week’s video: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/media/07/1119 J/80 DEBUT IN ASIA The J/80 recently debuted in Asia at the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club’s Maersk Asian International Sports Boat Championship, where two out-of-the-box J/80 yachts took the top two spots, finishing ahead of a mixed fleet of custom and production built sportboats. The J/80's successful debut coincided with the opening of J/Boats Asia's new office in downtown Hong Kong, which looks forward to building the Asian J/80 fleet in partnership with parent company JK3 Yachts in San Diego, CA. Following on the heals of the successful European season that had 124 boats at the J/80 World Championship in France, Asia is seen as the next big growth market. To better meet these goals, a second office will be opening on mainland China in early 2008, with plans in place to showcase the J/80 in April at the Shanghai International Boat Show. -- http://www.jboatsasia.com SAILING SHORTS * Francis Joyon has confirmed he will begin his record attempt around the world on Friday, November 23, on board the trimaran IDEC, which has been in stand-by in Brest, France since Tuesday evening. The time to beat is that of Ellen MacArthur: 71 days, 14 hours, 18 minutes and 33 seconds. -- http://www.trimaran-idec.com/ * The World Sailing Speed Record Council announced the ratification of the 24 Hour up to 60ft World Record. The new record was set by the 60ft trimaran Banque Populaire sailed by Pascal Bidegorry and Yvan Ravussin on November 13-14, 2007, where they sailed a distance of 667nm (average speed of 27.8kts). -- http://www.sailspeedrecords.com * SailFast Apparel has announced a new gift program to help support The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. The SailFast holiday gift-pack includes a classic SailFast t-shirt wrapped in a unique sailcloth wristband, and SailFast will donate $5 to The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society for each gift purchase. The SailFast holiday gift-pack can be purchased for $20 from November 15 to December 31 by calling 1-866-605-SAIL or at http://www.isailfast.com * Entries for the Transpacific Yacht Club's 13th race to Tahiti next summer will open Dec. 1st. The 3,571-nautical mile race will start June 22nd off Point Fermin in San Pedro and finish at the historic Pointe Venus lighthouse on the north end of the island, six miles east of Papeete. A Safety at Sea seminar is scheduled for January 26th at Balboa Yacht Club in Corona del Mar, CA. Complete details including the Notice of Race and entry form are posted at http://www.transpacificyc.org PHOTOS OF THE WEEK Some of the random photos from the sport received this week at Scuttlebutt include the attachment of Windward Passage’s new keel, one-design action in Long Beach, a plethora of Islander 36’s, a New Zealand Jollyboat, record-setting skippers prepping for their 44th Sydney Hobart Race, and the 68 year old 12 Meter Trivia. If you have images you would like to share, send them to the Scuttlebutt editor. Here are this week’s photos: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/07/1123 TOO DRUNK TO FIND MY DINGHY (If you have visited the William Thornton bar in the BVI, or ever went about looking for your dinghy after a late night Mount Gay Rum storm, you might find amusing this post on the ‘Messing About In Sailboats’ blog.) Anyone who has sailed the BVIs will know of the Willie T in the Bight at Norman Island. It's an institution. The William Thornton - aka Willie T - is a 98' schooner converted into a two deck floating bar. As I was sitting on the train coming home yesterday a smile slipped across my face as I recalled one of the funniest evenings of my life about 10 years ago spent at the Willie T. My wife and I were in the Caribbean for the first time and at the end of a Learn-to-bareboat course with Steve Colgate's Offshore Sailing School. It was an excellent week under the supervision of central casting charter skipper, Capt Tom. Tom was a gruff divorcee from Florida who looked a bit like a pint-sized Magnum PI with a beer gut fueled on Mount Gay and Ginger There were two boats in the course: My wife and I on one boat with a jolly single lady from Connecticut. The other boat was a mixed bag: A couple who looked like Meg Ryan and Harrison Ford but were dull as crap and spent most of the time locked in their V-berth; a Canadian nurse and a plonker who thought he knew more than the instructors. We named him Captain Giblet Bag as he spent most of the day in a Speedo swim suit that looked like..well pull the giblet bag out of a roast chicken and ...er the name fit. -- Read on, http://tinyurl.com/25uznn LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON Letters selected for publication must include the writer's name, and may be edited for clarity or simplicity (letters shall be no longer than 250 words). You only get one letter per subject, so give it your best shot, don't whine if others disagree, and save your bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere. As an alternative, a more open environment for discussion is available on the Scuttlebutt Forum. -- Scuttlebutt Letters: editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com -- Scuttlebutt Forum: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/forum * From Bill Canfield, St Thomas Yacht Club: As an interesting aside to the "Birth Of A New Fleet" article in Issue 2480, we at St. Thomas Yacht Club in the US Virgin Islands had a similar experience 9 years ago but came up with a simpler solution called the IC 24. Our racing fleet was ravaged by Hurricane Marilyn and we were at a standstill. We looked far and wide for an inexpensive, non-complicated production boat but nothing filled the bill. Dan Neri from North Sails was visiting the club and suggested we modify the many J/24's that were sitting unused in garages and make it more comfortable. Chris Rosenberg and Morgan Avery jumped on the idea and 6 boats were purchased for about $6500 and the conversion began by cutting the cabin sole back and putting in a Melges 24 style cockpit. Six brand new boats appeared for about $14,000 per boat - purchase and conversion. The idea was to make it slow to keep races close so we started out with no traveler, no hiking, 100% jibs, new sails every two years (if you wanted to), and no spinnaker. The funny thing was no one really knew the racing rules very well coming from PHRF fleets so the first few races were rather chaotic at the marks. We have now added spinnakers, have strong class rules, and most of us have rule books. IC 24's now number over 30 in St. Thomas, BVI, and Puerto Rico with a few others in the states and growing. It is a fantastic class that draws the best skippers in the Caribbean as well as families and juniors. Just another solution to the problem that many club sailors have discovered in this age of high tech. * From Noah Purves-Smith, Canada: Obviously, a lot of passionate sailors want to see Olympic Sailing remain healthy and successful. With due respect to Jack Dinelli’s comments (issue 2479), ISAF’s experts on its Events Committee DID recommend high-performance, athletically demanding events including the multihull and women’s skiff. Unfortunately, the ISAF Council ignored their own experts’ recommendations. And, there is additional important information that may not even have been made clear to the ISAF Council members, and is just being brought to the attention of the sailing public. The IOC Programme report gave all sports specific guidance on event selection: ~ “Similar events…..should be avoided” ~ “Global public and media interest ...must be considered as key” ~ “Weight category events should not be allowed” The report also made specific recommendations about sailing: “If (the IOC) recommends the reduction in the number of athletes and events... these reductions could be made through the exclusion of keelboat sailing events” For sailing to continue to prosper, a strong Olympic presence is important. Olympic status drives funding for youth programs. And young sailors are attracted to the high-speed, adrenalin-filled, athleticism of skiffs, catamarans, and foiling moths (which also happen to be the media friendly boats). After their Olympic careers, these young sailors will continue to sail in a variety of monohulls, multihulls, and keelboats throughout their lives, keeping our clubs and fleets active and fun. My only question is: what am I missing here? Because no matter which way I look at it, the recent decision just doesn’t make sense. * From Simon Morgan: (regarding Olympic event selection; excerpt from Forum post) First of all I can have every sympathy with Mr Henderson’s view (in Scuttlebutt 2478) that it is ‘ridiculous to blame ISAF, which is only the structure wherein the votes are cast’ – ‘ISAF is only as good as the delegates nominated by their National Authorities.’ However, Mr Henderson also writes ‘that the process is now open and how each delegate voted is public’. This would perhaps not appear to be the case when analysing the vote of the Council to reject the recommendations of its Executive Committee, when an electronic vote was made and no record of how members voted appears to have been recorded. And no one from ISAF has explained this decision. Why bother having an Events Committee then? My real beef is not with the keelboat class per se, even though that appears to be the second least popular class amongst delegates. It is that is seems totally unreasonable to have two, singlehander and two two man dinghies at the expense of the multihulls – and the fact that Ben Ainslie managed to jump from the Laser to the Finn and win Gold in both classes seems to be a very real argument against the necessity for such doubling up. -- Complete post: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=5549 * From Rod West: (referring to the lead story in Issue 2480) Too bad a yacht club with the name American could not find a boat built in America. CURMUDGEON’S OBSERVATION "Hockey is a sport for white men. Basketball is a sport for black men. Golf is a sport for white men dressed like black pimps." -- Tiger Woods Curmudgeon’s Comment: If Tiger’s generalization had included Sailing, we wonder how he would have categorized it. Who is Sailing a sport for? Post your comment here: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/blog/2007/11/sailing-is-sport-for.html Special thanks to McLube, Harken, and JK3 Yachts. |
