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SCUTTLEBUTT 3298 - Tuesday, March 15, 2011Scuttlebutt is published each weekday with the support of its sponsors,providing a digest of major sailing news, commentary, opinions, features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus. Website: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com Twitter: http://twitter.com/scuttbutt Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/sailingscuttlebutt RSS: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/rss/index.xml Today's sponsors: North Sails, North U, and LaserPerformance. OWNING THE PODIUM By Lynn Fitzpatrick The Olympic Star class team of Richard Clarke and Tyler Bjorn exemplify Canada's Own the Podium program, which was implemented following the 2006 Winter Olympics. They have been on the podium in five back-to-back regattas (Levin Memorial, Fort Lauderdale to Key West Race, Key West Race Week, Rolex Miami OCR and Pineapple Cup) over the past 40 days. During the 2010 Winter Games, Canada had its largest medal haul ever and broke a record for the most gold medals won by a country at the Winter Olympics. Canada's medal count at the Summer Games rebounded in 2008 also. Clarke and Bjorn had their start independently by earning their way on to Canada's national team in 2009. The Canadian Yachting Association (CYA) supported their effort to sail in the 2009 Star North American Championship, where the fledgling team finished second overall. Convinced of their medal potential, CYA signaled the Canadian Olympic Committee, and Clarke and Bjorn joined the rarified list of Canadian medal contenders in the Own the Podium program. Said Bjorn, "Providing us with Steve Mitchell (past Star World Champion and Olympian) as a coach has been the biggest assistance. He is making a huge impact on the entire program. We feel blessed to have him because we don't know of anybody who could do such a great job. He's always there for us and no job is too small." The Clarke/Bjorn Sailing Team's string of superb results during 2010 included wining the Star Western Hemispheres and taking the bronze at the Star Europeans. "We keep getting results and we keep getting more support in every way. It's a good feeling, and we have happy sponsors," said Bjorn who just added Reebok to his list of plumb sponsors, which include Kaenon Polarized, Yale Cordage, Magic Marine, CYA and Wind Athletes Canada. The team's commitments don't start and end with their performance in the Olympic Star class. Both Clarke and Bjorn are married and have families, mortgages and other obligations. They'd be living large if they were single and in their early 20's. Instead, they are professional sailors and make ends meet by being involved with multiple campaigns. While other Olympic Star sailors will approach 300 days of Star sailing, the Clarke/Bjorn Sailing Team will be lucky to spend slightly over 100 days in the Star. The balance will be in their four other big boat programs. "There's a lot of pressure to do things traditionally," said Clarke. "We have bills to pay and can't sacrifice our lifestyles. We have a different plan and we're following the plan." -- Read on: http://tinyurl.com/48lue9m HOW DEFINITIONS CHANGE In the definition Mark-Room, the phrase "room to sail to the mark" means space to sail in a seamanlike way to a position close to, and on the required side of, the mark. When the mark is abeam of the boat's bow and she is close to it, she has arrived "at" it. While "at" the mark, the boat is entitled to room to sail her proper course. Here is a recent appeal from US SAILING: Facts and Decision of the Protest Committee UM8 and UM10, overlapped on port tack with UM8 inside, approached a leeward mark to be left to port and subsequently rounded it as shown in the diagram (see diagram in link below). UM8 protested UM10 under rule 18.2(b) for not giving her enough room to sail to the mark and round it. The protest committee decided that UM10 did give UM8 the room she was entitled to, both while she was sailing to the mark and while she was at the mark, and denied the protest. UM8 appealed. Read on for diagram and appeal decision: http://tinyurl.com/RRS-031411 NORTH SAILS OFFERS FREE SAIL CARE & REPAIR North Sails proudly offers one year of free sail care & repair on all new North cruising, racing & one design sails. Honored anywhere in North's worldwide network of sail lofts, this program is a testament to the power and durability of your new North sail. Some restrictions do apply (but not many)... Sails must be registered online to receive free sail care. When performance counts, the choice is clear: http://www.na.northsails.com/tabid/23137/Default.aspx THE ATLANTIC CUP AND THE ARAB REBELLION The Atlantic Cup, a new, professional Class40 race showcasing the top short-handed sailors in the U.S., will start from New York Harbor on May 7th, 2011. From there, competitors will sprint double-handed the 240 nautical mile course to Newport, Rhode Island. Once in Newport, skippers will race a two-day, inshore series with a crew of six on May 14 and 15. The combined overall winner of both stages becomes the first Atlantic Cup Champion and receives the $15,000 prize purse. Three teams are currently entered, but that number is expected to grow. "We are expecting at least one more team to enter the race and we plan to announce their entry within the next couple of weeks," noted Julianna Barbieri of Manuka Sports Event Management. "There's a lot of talking amongst the US Class40 fleet, so the total amount of boats could be set at four, but it could also be as many as six." One of the teams entered is led by Joe Harris, a newcomer to the Class40 fleet who recently sold his Open 50 'Gryphon Solo' to a Hollywood producer for it to star in a film called 'Charlie St. Cloud'. "I began looking at used, Generation One Class40 designs, and sailed a number of Owen-Clark, Akilaria, Pogo and other designs to get a feel for the boats and the class," explained Joe. "However, after seeing the third generation of Class40 designs come out last year, I felt that buying a Gen One boat would achieve only planned obsolescence and the re-sale value in five years would be rock bottom, so I decided to buck-up my courage and go for a new boat. "I looked very hard at the Farr-Cookson Kiwi 40 and was close to pulling the trigger, but the price tag was slightly higher and the New Zealand location a long delivery home. The other two mainstream Gen-3 production builds were the Pogo S2 and the Akilaria RC2 and while they are both great boats for sure, I thought the Akilaria was a potentially better all-around performer. "What put me over the top was a competitive price from Akilaria builder MC-TEC and an immediate spot in their build schedule for a fall start and spring completion. Their factory location in low-labor-cost Tunisia sounded exotic and I honestly couldn't place it on the map, but when I went to my globe and found it, it was really not too far from the South of Italy and France across the Med. Part of getting a good price from MC-TEC was agreeing to commission the boat in Tunisia instead of France or the U.S. "However, I had no idea when I signed the purchase contract in September that Tunisia would soon the lead the Arab world into rebellion and armed revolution against its long-time despotic dictator. When the revolution began in early December and there was rioting and violence in the streets, it soon became apparent that commissioning in Tunisia was just not going to be safe. In fact, the resort village of Hammamet, where we were going to commission the boat, was the home of President Ben-Ali's opulent summer homes, which were burned and looted by the angry mobs. Not the best place to commission your race boat!" -- Read on: http://www.atlanticcup.org/archives/974 FLEXING THEIR MARITIME MUSCLE No pressure, no brooding about last year, no doubts about the skipper's injured foot . the California Maritime Academy Keelhaulers from Vallejo won the fourth annual Port of Los Angeles Harbor Cup/Cal Maritime Invitational Intercollegiate Regatta on March 11-13. Nine teams competed in the three day, ten race event held in Catalina 37s chartered from the Long Beach Sailing Foundation - the same boats to be match-raced by 10 professional world-class teams in the Congressional Cup March 21-26. A scoreline of all top five scores clinched the title for the Keelhaulers with a race to spare, but they sailed the last race as well to close out the event. "It seemed like the right thing to do," skipper John Gray said. Coach Charlie Arms, who followed the racing in a tiny chase boat, said the seniors like Gray wanted to make the most of their sailing before they graduate into the maritime industry. "You don't go to a maritime school to sail [sailboats] the rest of your life," she said. Navy, led by Emily Frost, the only female skipper in the fleet, finished second ahead of upstart longshot Cal State Channel Islands from Camarillo in third place, followed by first-time participant Hawaii and defending champion USC in fourth and fifth respectively. "This is the first time we've come here [for the Harbor Cup]," said Fizz Foster of Hawaii. "I like big boats a lot more [than dinghies], and to be able to sail big boats in college is sweet!" -- Full report: http://layc.org/graphics/uploadfile/4840/12181/harborcup11pr5_.pdf "I DO NOT FEEL WELL" (March 14, 2011; Day 45, 22:00 UTC) - While Thomas Coville is pleased to have finally surpassed the record pace on Sunday, he is not pleased at low ceilings, dark clouds, and growing seas of the depression storm that he must now negotiate off the Brazilian coastline. "I do not feel very well to be honest. I'm amazed that the sea is already so formed." The depression has emerged at the tip of Cabo Frio, in the east of Rio. "It is fast approaching and the sky darkened," said Coville. "I admit this is a term I fear for several days. For the first time since the beginning that we are somewhat in limbo level weather. The models are not calibrated so we'll do it the old way, improvising on area and doing the best with what we have." Coville has been sailing upwind in challenging conditions since Cape Horn, and the situation behind this depression remains uncertain as is often in the tropics. The heat tends to disrupt the patterns and, for now, the trade wind is difficult to predict from the northern tip of Brazil and the expected passage of the equator this weekend. -- http://www.sodebo-voile.com/ Current position as of March 14, 2011 (22:00 UTC): Ahead/behind record: 189.3 nm Speed over past 24 hours: 15.4 knots Distance over past 24 hours: 369.8 nm Distance remaining: 4629 nm Tracking: http://sodebo-voile.geovoile.com/tourdumonde/2011/ BACKGROUND: Thomas Coville (FRA) and the 105-foot trimaran Sodebo is seeking to set a new solo round the world record under sail. Coville began the attempt Jan. 29th and must cross the finish line off Ushant, France by March 28, 2011 at 00:40:34 (UTC) to break the record (57:13:34:06) set by Francis Joyon in 2008 on the 97-foot trimaran IDEC. FIGHT BACK OR LOSE Eleven stops remain as the North U Tactics Seminar Tour rolls on, teaching your rivals how to beat you with better positioning, better risk assessment, and a boatload of boat-on-boat tricks. Fight back. Find out when the tour is coming to your town and sign up. Top instructors, multi-media curriculum, a take-home Seminar-on-CD, US Sailing member discounts plus a free Tactics Tour Long Sleeve T to the first 20 registrations at each location. Learn more: http://www.northu.com IN CHARGE OF EVERYTHING BUT LUCK (March 14, 2011, Day 72) - Even with their comfortable lead and closing distance to the finish, Jean-Pierre Dick and Loick Peyron are focused on the fundamentals as they near the eastern tip of Brazil. "I am very proud of having all our sails intact and will hopefully still have the full inventory when we reach Barcelona," noted Jean-Pierre. "We still have a few days up to the Doldrums and should pick up speed to 17 knots rather than 10-11 we have been doing. Five minutes ago I was looking at the meteo for the Doldrums and the bad news is that they are quite active, which is not good, but we will do our best to manage it and but of course there is always a luck factor which is unfortunately inevitable, and even if we are very careful, you can't control everything." -- Event website: http://www.barcelonaworldrace.com Race Tracker: http://tracking.barcelonaworldrace.org Standings (top 5 of 14 as of 20:01:03) 1. Virbac-Paprec 3, Jean Pierre Dick/Loick Peyron (FRA/FRA), 3664 nm DTF 2. Mapfre, Iker Martinez/Xabi Fernandez (ESP/ESP), 368.8 nm DTL 3. Renault, Pachi Rivero/Antonio Piris (ESP/ESP), 1507.4 nm DTL 4. Neutrogena, Boris Herrmann/Ryan Breymaier (GER/USA), 1763.3 nm DTL 5. Estrella Damm Sailing Team,Alex Pella/Pepe Rives (ESP/ESP),1857.3 nm DTL Full Rankings: http://www.barcelonaworldrace.org/en/ranking/ BACKGROUND: This is the second edition of the non-stop Barcelona World Race, the only double-handed race around the world. Fourteen teams are competing on Open 60s which started December 31st and is expected to finish by late March. The 25,000 nautical mile course is from Barcelona to Barcelona via three capes: Good Hope, Leeuwin and Horn, Cook Strait, putting Antarctica to starboard. Race website: http://www.barcelonaworldrace.org NEW TP52/IRC WEST COAST RACE SERIES The St. Francis Yacht Club has announced the creation of a new four-regatta series for the TP52 IRC Class and 40 footer IRC class. The series will consist of four regattas in proximate date range, designed to coincide with the Rolex Big Boat Series, and provide an opportunity for East Coast boats to compete with their West Coast rivals. "Earlier in the year, we learned that some of the East Coast TP52s were interested in coming to San Francisco to sail against their West Coast peers in the Rolex Big Boat Series," said Rolex Big Boat Series regatta Chairman, Norman Davant. "It seems that with the America's Cup now coming to San Francisco, there are a lot of people wanting to sail in the same venue as the Cup. The new series will be a great season capper to the East Coast racing calendar, while giving the fleet an opportunity to experience a variety of San Francisco race formats." The St. Francis Yacht Club worked with the TP52 fleet to devise the series that will include the Aldo Alessio Ocean Race on August 26-28, followed two weeks later by the Rolex Big Boat Series on September 8-11, and then two weeks later, by a newly created event, the "West Coast Shootout", to take place on September 24-25, with the final race in the series to include the Great Pumpkin Regatta- one of San Francisco's classic races - on October 29-30. -- Read on: http://tinyurl.com/4ahhgko FREE CLASSIFIED ADS The Scuttlebutt Classified Ads provide a marketplace for private parties to buy and sell, or for businesses to post job openings. Here are recent ads: * Wanted: Santa Cruz 27 * Launch operator wanted, Old Greenwich, CT * Locoloc M 2 Type II Manual Bench Swager W/ Bench for sale * Catalina 22 for sale * Laser Radial Sailboat for sale View/post ads here: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/forum/classified_ads SAILING SHORTS * The Coast Guard Foundation, a non-profit organization committed to the education, welfare and morale of all Coast Guard members and their families, has announced its first annual sailboat race, the Coast Guard Foundation Cup. Established to raise funds for Foundation programs for enlisted Coast Guard members, provide financial support for college to families of Coast Guard members lost in the line of duty, and offer relief for Coast Guard families who have lost possessions in natural disasters, the first annual Coast Guard Foundation Cup will be hosted by the Annapolis Yacht Club (AYC) in Annapolis, Maryland on Saturday, May 14, 2011. Details: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=11441 * The single-handed leg of the 2011 Bermuda One-Two, a biennial offshore yacht race for monohulls, will start Friday, June 3, from Newport, RI The double-handed return from St. George's, Bermuda, to Newport, will start Thursday, June 16. First raced in 1977, the Bermuda One-Two is organized by the Newport Yacht Club and the Goat Island Yacht Club (R.I.) with St. George's Dinghy & Sports Club as the host club in Bermuda. Notice of race, application, and other information can be downloaded from http://www.bermuda1-2.org/ * The Storm Trysail Club's (STC) 24th biennial Block Island Race Week presented by Rolex is scheduled on June 20-24, and will serve as both the 2011 IRC East Coast Championship (held for the previous six years in Annapolis, Md.) and the J/122 National Championship. The event has revised previous PHRF restrictions to now allow all boats with PHRF Certificates of 175 and less to enter, and will alsofeature the debut of a new J/111 class. The five day race format includes the around-the-island race in conjunction with buoy racing. A 10% early entry discount deadline is March 31st and the final deadline is June 1st. Details: http://www.regattanews.com/pressrelease.asp?pid=100504&lang=1&eid=257 * The Finn North American Championship was hosted by Texas Corinthian YC on March 10-12, 2011 in Kemah, Texas. Eighteen competitors completed eight races on Galveston Bay, with Darryl Peck winning the event with a race to spare. Gordon Lamphere and Forrest Gay finished second and third respectively. Full results: http://tinyurl.com/Finn-031411 * CORRECTION: Scuttlebutt 3297 stated that an estimated 100 million euros would be needed to be competitive in the 34th America's Cup. The conversion to dollars was listed as US$1.38 million, which mistakenly included a decimal point. And now, a day later, the dollar conversion is up to US$140 million. 950 LASERPERFORMANCE CHARTER BOATS That's how many charter boats LaserPerformance will supply to events across the globe this year. If you sail in a championship regatta, chances are good that it will be on a LaserPerformance supplied boat. It's one way LaserPerformance is helping grow our sport. Find out more at http://www.Laserperformance.com GUEST COMMENTARY Scuttlebutt strongly encourages feedback from the Scuttlebutt community. Either submit comments by email or post them on the Forum. Submitted comments chosen to be published in the newsletter may be limited to 250 words. Authors may have one published submission per subject, and should save their bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere. Email: editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com Forum: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/forum * From Doran Cushing, Sarasota, FL: (re, Tsunami on West Coast) Watching the video of the destruction of marinas and boats in California caused by the tsunami reminded me of what we see in Florida every hurricane season - careless owners who truly couldn't care less if their boat is destroyed. In the case of the tsunami, the West Coast owners had about 12 hours to take action. That action would simply have been to go to sea for a few hours, then come back. Yes, the marina might be gone but the boats would still be floating and could be anchored or moved to another location. Can someone please explain why a boat owner would NOT try to save the boat? => Curmudgeon's Comment: The harbor in Santa Cruz, CA got hit particularly hard. Here is a report and videos from Chuck Hawley of West Marine: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=11458 * From Neil Pryde, Managing Director of Neil Pryde Limited: I have been acting as an Ambassador for the IKA (International Kiteboarding Association) in order to assist Kitesurfing in its objective to attain Olympic Event status. I have now withdrawn my endorsement of the IKA Campaign because it is my view that Kitesurfing has not yet developed the rules of competition and disciplines that must be demonstrated to qualify Kitesurfing as an Olympic Event. As the Managing Director of Neil Pryde Limited, the owner of Cabrinha, a world leader in Kitesurfing I remain a strong supporter of Kitesurfing and I believe that the sport will continue to grow and develop as a lifestyle / adventure sport. Kitesurfing offers tremendous opportunities to combine sport and travel and there is no doubt that it is an exciting action sport that ultimately could obtain Olympic status. However it is important to look at Kitesurfing today and understand the limitations of the sport within the requirements of an Olympic Event. I would support the inclusion of Kitesurfing as a Demonstration Event at the 2016 Olympic Games if this is feasible. -- http://www.neilpryde.com/latest/kitesurfing-as-an-olympic-event.html CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATION Conscious is being aware of something; conscience is wishing you weren't. SPONSORS THIS WEEK Gowrie Group - New England Ropes - North Sails - North U LaserPerformance - Mount Gay - Doyle Sails - US SAILING Ullman Sails - Team One Newport - The Pirates Lair - Harken Need stuff? Look here: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/ssc/suppliers |
