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SCUTTLEBUTT 2549 – March 10, 2008Scuttlebutt is a digest of major sailing news, commentary, opinions,features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus. Scuttlebutt is published each weekday with the support of its sponsors. STEPHENS CELEBRATES 100TH BIRTHDAY IN APRIL Founded in 1929, Sparkman & Stephens has been a veritable breeding ground for some of the best-known yacht designers and naval architects in the world. None among them though, holds the stature of company co-founder Olin J. Stephens II. Stephens, who turns 100 in April, is the subject of several celebrations in his honor. “Olin is a titan among twentieth century yacht designers,” says S&S Executive Vice President and Chief Designer Bruce Johnson. “His influence and indeed, many of the creations he was responsible for have carried over into the twenty-first century. The principles and design philosophies that Olin and his brother Rod adhered to such as strong and seaworthy performance yachts are still respected at the firm today.” By any measure, a man who has lived a hundred years has lived a full life. But some centenarians live fuller lives than others. Stephens is a case in point. The soon-to-be-centenarian is still building on a legacy that began in the 1920s with seminal early offshore racing yachts such as Dorade and Stormy Weather, and carried through countless small-boat designs, the influential J-Class America’s Cup yacht Ranger and a number of the most revered early 12-Meters including Columbia, Constellation and Intrepid. -- Read on: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/08/0309/ KEEPING ON THE PRESSURE Within the minutes of the International Sailing Federation (ISAF) Executive Committee meeting of February 15-17, 2008 (see link in Issue 2547), there was a discussion regarding the events for the 2012 Olympics and the position taken by ISAF as to the process which resulted in the event selection. Despite pressure from individuals, sailing groups, and national sailing organization, mostly due to the elimination of the multihull event, ISAF does appear pleased with their event decision, and does not seem eager to reconsider it. However, for those that disagree with this decision, they have not yet thrown in the towel. Among those leading the charge is Nick Dewhirst, who is both Chairman of the United Kingdom Catamaran Racing Association, and also Secretary General of the newly formed International Multihull Council. Over the weekend he distributed an update, of which is posted on the Scuttlebutt Forum. Within this is information regarding a widely circulated petition to overturn the event decision and comments on alleged inconsistencies within ISAF concerning their decisions, but perhaps the most interesting information is in a detailed report which maps out how the event decision was made in the first place, including how each country voted. -- http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=5889#5889 ACURA MIAMI GRAND PRIX Miami Beach, Fla. (March 9, 2008) – There was no slam dunk choice for the Boat of the Week honoree at the 2008 Acura Miami Grand Prix. That’s because all four classes were hotly contested throughout the regatta. Colm Barrington and his crew aboard Flash Glove counted all first and second place finishes and did not need to sail the final race en route to winning IRC 1 class in convincing fashion. Andy Fisher skippered Bandit to a hard-earned victory in IRC 2, which had four different leaders over the course of the four-day regatta. Michael Illbruck and the Pinta team led at the end of each day in Melges 32, an amazing feat considering it was the German skipper’s second regatta in the highly competitive class. Ultimately, the three-part criteria that officials with Premiere Racing use to select the Acura Trophy winner favored the Farr 40 Barking Mad, owned by Jim Richardson of Newport, R.I. won three of 10 races and overcame some double-digit results to capture what proved to be the closest, most competitive class at Acura Miami Grand Prix. Farr 40 (28 entries) 1. Barking Mad, James Richardson (Newport, RI), 2-2-11-18-1-1-1-6-3-17, 62 2. Mascalzone Latino, Vincenzo Onorato (ITA), 1-1-14-9-6-3-9-12-9-2, 66 3. Warpath, Fred & Steve Howe (San Diego, CA), 5-6-6-3-14-18-5-5-1-4, 67 Melges 32 (20 entries) 1. Pinta, Michael Illbruck (GER), 2-3-1-3-2-1-1-2-1-(5), 16 2. New Wave, M Carroll/M Kullman (Clearwater, FL),6-1-3-1-1-7-3-(9)-2-2, 26 3. Star, Jeff Ecklund (Fort Lauderdale, FL), 5-2-4-2-4-(8)-6-4-7-3, 37 IRC 1 (6 entries) 1. Flash Glove, Colm Barrington (IRL), JV 52, 1-2-2-1-1-2-1-2-2-(7/DNC), 14 2. Windquest, Doug DeVos (Holland, MI), TP52, 2-(5)-3-3-2-3-2-1-4-3, 23 3. Rusal Synergy, Sergey Pichugin (RUS), TP52, (5)-3-1-2-3-4-3-4-3-2, 25 IRC 2 (6 entries) 1. Bandit, Andy Fisher (RI), Swan 42, 4-2-2-3-1-3-2-4-4-(5), 25 2. Teamwork, Robin Team (NC), J/122, 1-1-4-4-4-(6)-3.5-1-5-2, 25.5 3. Gold Digger, James Bishop (RI), J/44, 3-(6)-1-2-3-1-3.5-3-6-4, 26.5 Event website: http://www.premiere-racing.com/miami08/pages/AMGP08_entry_information.htm * WARNING: Photographers Sharon Green, Amory Ross, and John Payne have provided the Scuttlebutt website with four pages of images from Acura Miami Grand Prix. Avoid viewing this gallery if you are offended by big wind, warm weather, and exciting action: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/08/0308 * Video reports from the Acura Miami Grand Prix by Jobson Sailing can be viewed at http://www.jobsonsailing.com/reports WHEN THE ETCHELLS CLASS EXPERIMENTS, WE ALL WIN While most of us were McLubing items around the house and garage all winter (http://www.mclube.com/sailkote/index.php?c=recapps), the Etchells class was out racing. During the Etchells Jaguar Mid-winter Championship, the first three teams all tested the new citrus-based hull polish from Harken/McLube. This revolutionary polish is enviro-friendly, looks beautiful, applies much more quickly and easily, keeps your hull cleaner longer, has superior UV, and appears to be very fast. From windward gates, to environmentally friendly citrus-based speed polishes, the Etchells are a class act. When these open-minded, talented and friendly one-design racers try new ideas, we all benefit. More info coming soon… QUOTE / UNQUOTE “The truth is, I am happy that we ‘fouled’ someone and did our penalty turn. There are way too many fouls going on out on the race course that never get absolved by the offending party. This situation has gotten a lot worse since I last raced in this class three years ago.” -- Paul Cayard, sailing on the Farr 40 Warpath in the Acura Miami Grand Prix, regarding an alleged port tack crossing violation in the last race on Saturday. -- http://cayardsailing.com STAR BACARDI CUP Miami, FL (March 7, 2008) Portugal’s Afonso Domingos and crew Bernardo Santos won the 2008 Bacardi Cup Star Class Regatta on the waters of Biscayne Bay Friday, edging 2002 Star Class World Champion Iain Percy and crew Andrew Simpson in a tiebreaker. Aided by substantial gains on each of the reach legs in both races, Domingos and Santos sailed to two second place finishes Friday – and a first place tie with Percy and Simpson, who held the lead entering the final day of the regatta, but finished fifth and ninth in Friday’s two races. The teams’ finishes in the regatta’s final race were used to determine the overall winner of the 81st Bacardi Cup. The 2004 and now 2008 Bacardi Cup champions, Domingos and Santos remain the only European sailors ever to win the Bacardi Cup in the regatta’s 81-year history. Final results (top 10 of 118) 1. POR, Afonso Domingos/ Bernardo Santos, (12)-9-7-2-2, 20 2. GBR, Iain Percy/ Andrew Simpson, 3-(14)-3-5-9, 20 3. USA, John Dane/ Austin Sperry, 20-(39)-2-3-5, 30 4. POL, Mateusz Kusznierewicz/ Dominik Zycki, 11-8-(45)-6-7, 32 5. AUT, Hans Spitzauer/ Christian Nehammer, 5-(55)-10-4-14, 33 6. BRA, Robert Scheidt / Bruno Prada, 4-12-21-1-(119/BFD), 38 7. ITA, Alberto Barovier/ Nando Colaninno, (23)-4-9-18-10, 41 8. ITA, Diego Negri/ Luigi Viale, (16)-7-12-14-8, 41 9. IRL, Peter O'Leary/ Stephen Milne, 14-15-1-(39)-12, 42 10. USA, Augie Diaz/ Phil Trinter, 9-3-(29)-10-20, 42 Daily reports, mark rounding positions, and complete results: http://www.starclass.org/search.cgi?Action=view&Event_id=1371 JUDGE’S FAVORITE STORY This may come as a shock to offshore racers around the world, but distance races that originate in Southern California are intended to do one thing: race downwind. Wait… it gets better. These races also aim toward destination ports that generally have wind and warm temperatures. Say what you want about this aspect of the sport, but if you are into distance racing, surfing for days in shorts and flip-flops is a pretty good way to do it. Since 1953, San Diego Yacht Club has been sending racers down the Baja California coastline for distance races to Acapulco, Manzanillo, Mazatlan, and Puerta Vallarta, Mexico. Prior to the Vallarta Race a couple weeks ago, and the judges deemed a story by Chuck Simmons to be their favorite. In the '98 SD-PV race, Simmons was to sail with Ron Kuntz, who had taken delivery of the Andrews 52' Cantata the day of the race. However, they blew out their rig shortly after the start, but Simmons was able to hop on Dr Hal Ward’s sled Cheval for the big boat start the next day. Here is an excerpt: “It was a beautiful sail to the Cape and a power reach to PV across the Gulf. We had caught a few boats and weren't looking bad, and at three in the morning I got woken up to help with a sail change. We were just charging along at 15-18 knots, and since I'm groggy from sleep, they put me on mainsheet. The boys are getting the new kite ready when Keith Kilpatrick, who's trimming the kite, yells to watch out for that reef. Well, it wasn't a reef… it was a whale sleeping on the surface. The boat T-bones the whale. We didn’t know if the keel was still there or what. Behind us we can hear the whale huffing and puffing like he got kneed in the nuts with the keel bulb and can't catch his breath.” -- Read complete story, along with all the others, at http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/08/vallarta/ * Casey Schnoor, navigator onboard Andy Rasdal’s DK46 Valkyrie, provides onboard commentary from the 2008 Vallarta Race, where he reports on “spectacular sea life (whales, turtles, seals, flying rays and friendly birds) and a great finish fiesta of margaritas, beers, mariachis, and sombreros to top off a great adventure!” -- Complete story: http://sdyc.org/blog/archives/152 AGILITY: ULTIMATE D0-IT-All DESIGN Tagged as the ultimate do-it-all design, the Camet Agility short is ideal for any seasonal outing with an aerobic component. In addition to the shorts breathable and versatile function, the two-tone shell features side pockets placed high for easy access when sailing. CametflexT is 98% nylon and 2% CFlex double weave with 3 way mechanical stretch. The yarns are specifically processed to resist deformation. The resulting fabric has great stretch and no propensity to hold moisture, with a super durable water repellency. See it at http://www.camet.com/?Click=645 AMERICA’S CUP – NEWS IN BRIEF * Following the press release issued last week by Emirates Team New Zealand regarding the filing of two law suits, one with the New York Supreme Court and one with the United States District Court, Alinghi has prepared the following insights into the issues raised: http://tinyurl.com/2jvsjk * Nearly a third of Team New Zealand's staff have been laid off as the yachting syndicate faces a lengthy wait until the next America's Cup regatta and embarks on a legal tussle with another syndicate. More than 20 people have been made redundant as the Team New Zealand struggles to stretch its budget to take into account the ongoing delays. -- Complete report: http://home.nzcity.co.nz/news/article.aspx?id=82640&fm=newsmain,nrhl * Forbes magazine in the United States has published its annual list of the world's wealthiest people, and among the eight people with Swiss citizenship, the 42-year-old Ernesto Bertarelli remains the wealthiest, with an estimated fortune of $10.3 billion, up $1.5b in the past year. He ranks 76th worldwide, while his America’s Cup rival, Oracle Chairman and CEO Larry Ellison, is the third-richest in the U.S., coming in No. 14 on the global list with $25 billion. -- Read on: http://www.genevalunch.com/genevalunchrethink/2008/03/swiss-fortunes.html * Justice Cahn, the NY State Supreme Court judge in charge of the lawsuit brought by BMW Oracle against Alinghi, will also judge the lawsuit Team New Zealand filed against Ernesto Bertarelli, Alinghi and ACM last Thursday (see ‘Butt 2548). One of the first things Justice Cahn did right after Grant Dalton and the team's lawyers filed their papers on Thursday was to issue an "ex parte order to compel preservation of records", meaning that Team New Zealand (the Plaintiff) and Ernesto Bertarelli, Alinghi and ACM (the Defendants) are "restrained from destroying, erasing, mutilating, concealing, altering, transferring, writing over, or otherwise disposing of in any manner, directly or indirectly, any documents or records of any kind that relate to the case". -- Valencia Sailing, complete story: http://tinyurl.com/2vzk88 CALENDAR OF MAJOR EVENTS (Sponsored by West Marine) Events listed at http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/calendar SAILING SHORTS * While Scuttlebutt is largely the domain of the monohull segment of sailing, the door remains wide open to the multihull world. Photographer Pierrick Contin has been in Langebaan, South Africa shooting the Hobie Tiger & Dragoon Worlds, capturing the action from some of these modern Hobie classes. The Tiger comes from Hobie Cat Europe, has double trapeze and spinnaker, is designed to conform to Formula 18 racing rules, and is an ISAF recognized class. The Dragoon is another product from Hobie Cat Europe, and is a simpler design that is suitable for both youth and adult sailors. See photos and the event website: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/photos/08/0307a/ * Nassau, Bahamas -- The International 5.5 meter class completed the Scandinavian Gold Cup last weekend, which was won by Kristian Nergaard, Mark Strube, and Harry Meges III onboard Artemis XIV (NOR). The World Championship will be held on March 10-14. -- http://www.5point5worlds2008.nassauyachtclub.org/index.htm * St. Maarten, N.A. (February 9) – The 28th edition of the St. Maarten Heineken Regatta wrapped up today, in similar fashion to the way it began: with clear skies and a steady breeze offering ideal conditions for a record-setting fleet of 289 competitors. Among the 21 classes, there were seven fleets of top-flight racers in the spinnaker groups, plus multihulls, bareboaters, non-spinnaker racers, etc., with a strong J/Boat contingent and the Caribbean debut of the SeaCart 30, True Look, an innovative trimaran designed by noted French naval architect Marc Lombard. -- Event website: http://www.heinekenregatta.com * St Petersburg, FL (March 2-7, 2008) -- While winds at the Thistle Midwinters East didn't cooperate all the time, the 58-boat fleet did get in five races, with Greg Griffin, Karl Felger and Dave Decamp picking up a great finish in the final race to nip the overall title over second place Brent Barbehenn, Chris Murphy and Jess Murphy. The MWE is the first leg of the Thistle Southern Circuit, which moves on next weekend to the Orange Peel Regatta in Jacksonville, FL. -- Skip Dieball, full report: http://tinyurl.com/3xergr EIGHT BELLS Bill Sill, who earned a stellar reputation as a youth sailor in Rhodes Bantams and Lasers, before graduating to J/24's. He also skippered 8 Meters, Offshore boats and other One Designs throughout the country before elevating the level of competition in Disabled Sailing. Bill used up the last of his nine lives, and died March 7 at the age of 55. For most of his life, Bill was forced to deal with the debilitating effects of juvenile diabetes. He was a tough survivor though. During his adult years, Bill endured multiple kidney and pancreas transplants, severe visual impairment, he emerged from a coma after six weeks, and had rods implanted in his legs. All of which earned Bill the endearing nickname of "Trainwreck" in disabled sailing circles and not surprisingly, brought a beaming smile to his face. Bill was a masterful craftsman, and started the company, William Sill Yacht Designs. He recently completed the building and sea trials of the prototype of his 14' runabout design. Bill is survived by his wife Sue, his parents Dawn and Stew, and his sister Charlene. His family has requested that Memorial gifts be directed to: Thomas E. Starzl Transplantation Institute University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Medical Arts Building, Suite 400 3708 Fifth Ave. Pittsburgh, PA 15213 TWENTY AND COUNTING What do you get with attending thousands of regattas and having countless supports boats on the water? Twenty years of commitment to the sport. Providing the optimal platform for setting marks, coaching, or just watching the races, RIBCRAFT is the official RIB of US SAILING and the US Sailing Team. http://www.ribcraftusa.com 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 John Sherwood, Annapolis: (comments from ‘Butt 2548) The Miami Acura Grand Prix fleet gets in two races last Thursday in up to 14 knots of ocean southeasterly while the Star Bacardi sailors have no wind five or so miles away on Biscayne Bay? Hmm! As for downwind starts, there are usually several such starts in Wednesday Night racing here in Annapolis, and I can testify that at the leeward mark two miles away most of the fleet of 15 or so Etchells is usually overlapped. It is very difficult to get separation in a competitive one design fleet with a downwind start, so the traffic-at-the-mark problem cannot be solved this way. * From Bob Billingham: In response to TNZ and Dalt's filings last week with the New York State Supreme Court, what else can you say but - "Good on ya, Mate !!!" * From John C. Quigley: What is most galling is that for many of us in the industry, this is not just a sport that we love, live and breathe but also a job and how we make our living - lucky us! Certain parties in this debacle may be 'quite comfortably off' and have perhaps forgotten that careers and businesses are being built and run on the back of a growing interest and awareness of the sport and its media and communications potential and value in the corporate and public arenas. With holding Rights to an Event, and in this case being Defender of the Challenge come responsibilities too, primarily to promote and enhance the value and perception of the said event. I have said it before and will say it again - take the Cup away - put it on display for future generations to remember the amazing times and stories of the past - do not damage it further. Start again with a new Cup - the 'Blake Cup' - that will stand for all the good things like sportsmanship, professionalism, commitment, courage, humility, endeavor, passion, energy, and social responsibility. * From Steve Gregory: When the RORC Rating Office (in SBUTT 2546) says that canters cannot be accurately rated under their rule – the IRC rule – you have to wonder how these swinging keels ever got to be allowed in mainstream racing in the first place. However, with that said, I am puzzled why they can’t be fairly rated. Isn’t it all about the variables? With their bonus righting moment, they will suffer rating-wise in light air when the keel isn ’t canted, much like when an ultralight boat suffers in breeze when they don ’t have sufficient righting moment. Can some smart people help the rest of us out here? * From Michael van Stom: I am in complete agreement with Franklin Tulloch"s comments in ‘Butt 2547 re: JJ Giltinan trophy for 18' skiffs. If you have ever seen a fleet of modern 18's at full pelt, you will know what an impressive sight it is. They are an amazing class and always have been, even back in the early 1900's. Many of the innovations seen on today's Grand Prix racing machines had their gestation in the 18's. I am currently racing in the historic replica 18' skiffs on Sydney Harbour and I can assure you that the old girls get up and plane hard. "Aberdare" a 1930's 18'skiff was clocked at 26 knots on the Brisbane River in 1932. The 18's deserve full ISAF recognition. * From Rex Denton: (regarding the 2012 Olympic event decision in ‘Butt 2547) The decision followed a designed procedure, but it was hardly proper. While it was a decision, an endorsement of the US Sailing and RYC agenda (going all the way back to around August 2007) to exclude more exciting, athletic sailing events while lobbying to keep moribund classes, while procedurally correct, lacks integrity, and shows no vision for the future growth of yachting. So 'the surgery was a success, but the patient died anyway'. We need better leadership, or we can expect the sport of yachting to suffer. CURMUDGEON’S OBSERVATION You know you're a redneck when you've been involved in a custody fight over a hunting dog. Special thanks to Team McLube, Camet, and Ribcraft RIBs. A complete list of preferred suppliers is at http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/ssc/suppliers |
