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SCUTTLEBUTT 2238 – December 7, 2006Scuttlebutt is a digest of major sailing news, commentary, opinions,features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus. Scuttlebutt is distributed each weekday, with support provided by UBS, main partner of Alinghi, Defender of the 32nd America's Cup (http://www.ubs.com/sailing). MOVING UP Peter Holmberg (ISV) made a huge leap on the just-released ISAF World Match Race Rankings – climbing into the top 20 following his victory in Malaysia at the weekend. Now counting eight results instead of six as he also made an appearance at the ISAF Grade WC Allianz Cup, Holmberg climbs a massive 61 places up the rankings to number 14. Making a similar move is Jesper Bank (DEN) whose third place in San Francisco and fifth in Malaysia sees him moving up 47 places to number eleven. France continues its reign at the top as Sébastien Col and Claire Leroy hold onto their number one positions. Ian Williams (GBR) continues his assault on the top of the rankings whilst Silke Hahlbrock (GER) makes her first appearance in the top five. Ed Baird, in the ninth position on the new Open rankings, remains the top North American. And Sandy Hayes is the top North American on the women’s rankings, in the 20th spot. – Full story and rankings: http://www.sailing.org/default.asp?ID=j67Fh??12 STAMM THE MAGNIFICENT (The Daily Sail subscription website talked with Bernard Stamm about his Leg One win in the Velux 5 Oceans and about the race itself. Here’s an excerpt from their story now posted online.) Some might argue firstly that Bernard Stamm's victory on leg one of the Velux 5 Oceans occurred just two nights into his 42 day 22 hour and 18 minute passage from Bilbao to Fremantle or secondly that his overall result in the Velux 5 Oceans is now assured. However this is a singlehanded round the world race, through some of the toughest waters on the planet on the longest course of any solo race. As this leg has demonstrated anything can happen in solo round the world racing and there remain all manner of possibilities. For example how many of us would have predicted that on this leg Mike Golding and Alex Thomson would both break their boats and be out of the race? With this in mind possible outcomes of the Velux 5 Oceans including no finishers all, or that Stamm's boat experiences a severe breakage opening up the competition once again. All we can say with any certainty at this stage is that Stamm's position is good , with what looks set to be an advantage of around four days on second placed Kojiro Shiraishi on Spirit of Yukohat the end of the first leg - (the Velux 5 Oceans is scored on cumulative elapsed time remember). – http://www.thedailysail.com * Japanese skipper Kojiro Shiraishi, sailing his Open 60 Spirit of Yukoh, is now 288 miles from the finish of Leg One in the Velux 5 Oceans. Koji is expected to arrive in Fremantle, Western Australia, on Thursday evening (local time). Graham Dalton, the Kiwi skipper onboard A Southern Man - AGD, who moved into third yesterday, has confirmed that he will need to make a quick pit stop in the Kerguelen Islands and re-fuel his engine. The solo sailors use their engines to power the technology and instruments onboard. Although Dalton will be subject to the 48-hour time penalty for receiving assistance, he will not be made to sit out the penalty at the waypoint, but will have the net time penalty added onto his final elapsed time when he arrives in Fremantle. Sir Robin Knox-Johnston’s Saga Insurance's latest ETA into Fremantle is between 23rd-28th December. Event website: http://www.Velux5Oceans.com HAVE YOU GOT WHAT IT TAKES? (In an interview now posted on the Volvo Ocean Race website, Louay Habib asked Simon Fisher, navigator of ABN Amro Two, about the qualities required to be a part of the crew on a Volvo Open 70. Here is Fisher’s reply.) There are many qualities you need to do this race. I guess it’s a given that you are a good sailor and good at your specific role, but I think it really helps to be a bit of an all-rounder. That way you get more out of it for sure. I’d say mental toughness is important too. You have to put up with a lot of different things and it can be very stressful, not only when it’s windy and your are on the edge, but in the light airs too. I guess everyone deals with it differently, but what matters is that you can. Then there is fitness, not only strength for dragging sails around, but aerobic fitness too. If you are fit then you get less tired and I think your brain works better too. I’ll definitely go into another race looking a bit more athletic! Above all I feel that teamwork is the major player when it comes to success in the Volvo. It’s a long race where you live in each other’s pockets for extended periods, so it helps if you are a good people person and a sense of humour is a must. I think having a good, cohesive team goes a long, long way in this race. I think one of the reasons ABN Amro Two worked as well as it did was because we had a lot of fun while we were out there. – Full interview: http://tinyurl.com/yyh2hz DON’T TAKE OUR WORD FOR IT… -- “A better dry pack” - Sailing -- “From Boat to Shore & Still Dry” - Cruising World -- “An excellent bit of kit, perfect for navigators” - Sailing World Ocean Racing’s new waterproof Offshore Backpack & Duffels make great gifts. 30% off on all sailing watches until Christmas plus other cool gift ideas too. -- http://www.OceanRacing.com MOVING ON George Wood, who has worked with the College of Charleston sailing program for 31 years, will resign as the school's Sailing Director effective January 31, 2007. Wood has accepted the position of Director of the Newport Sea Base for the Boy Scouts of America in Newport Beach, California. Wood, who will start his new job February 1, 2007, will serve as Director of the Newport Sea Base for the Boy Scouts of America. He will oversee the operation of the Sea Base facility located in the heart of Newport Harbor on Coast Highway, in Newport Beach, CA, and includes more than 400 feet of waterfront and a large fleet of boats. The facility underwent a $6.5 million renovation in 2004. The fleet ranges from kayaks and canoes to tall ships and a maxi ocean racer. A variety of boating programs are offered for Boys Scouts and the community at large. Since 1978, the CofC sailing team has qualified for numerous national collegiate sailing championships and has won 15 of them. The team has produced 56 All-Americans and four Collegiate Sailors-of-the-Year, including James Island’s Alana O’Reilly who was honored as Women’s Sailor of the Year last week last year. Last spring the Cougars won the ICSA Women’s and Coed National Championship. The women’s was the first ever for the team and the Coed’s was the second. Just this past November the Cougars took the Women’s Singlehanded and Coed Sloop National Championships. – The rest of the story: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/06/1206/ TORNADO WORLDS Sunny warm weather returned to San Isidro, Argentina where the Tornados sailed races three and four of their world championship in 10-12 knots of breeze. Standings after four races (48 boats – no discards): 1. Roman Hagara & Hans Peter Steinacher (AUT) 13 pts 2. Darren Bundock & Glenn Ashby (AUS) 14 pts 3. Santiago Lange & Carlos Espinola (ARG) 42 pts 4. Billy Besson & Arnaud Jarlegan (FRA) 47 pts 5. Mitch Booth & Pim Nieuwenhis (NED) 50 pts 20. Johansson & King (CAN) 80 pts 24. Daniel & Chu (USA) 90 pts 28. Lovell & Ogletree (USA) 98 pts Full results and pictures at http://tornado2006.cnsi.org.ar/ SAILING SHORTS * Delta Dore skipper, Jérémie Beyou, will participate in the double-handed, non-stop Barcelona World Race. This brings the latest tally to five IMOCA Open 60 boats, with more expected to confirm their entry over the coming months. Jérémie is the eighth skipper to be added to the roll-call. Jérémie's new monohull IMOCA Open 60 was designed by Farr Yacht Design and was launched in September, in time for the start of the solo Route du Rhum - La Banque Postale race from St Malo to Guadeloupe, but because of family reasons, Jérémie had to retire just after the start. -- http://www.barcelonaworldrace.com * From January 21 to 27, 2007, the world’s top Olympic and Paralympic class sailors will be sailing on the waters of Biscayne Bay at US Sailing's Rolex Miami OCR. For Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls, the 18th annual event is one of the world’s top competitions that will help the sailors prepare for the competition in China in 2008. The event is ranked by the International Sailing Federation (ISAF) as a Grade 1 event and features competition in all 14 Olympic and Paralympic classes. In 2006, more than 610 sailors representing 40 countries competed. -- http://www.RolexMiamiOCR.org. * Bill Goggins has been named Commercial Manager of Harken Yacht Equipment. In his new position, Goggins will coordinate Harken’s newly-formed global OEM, Aftermarket, Grand-Prix and Custom sales divisions. He will focus on opening lines of communication and developing efficient operating procedures among the four groups. This new role includes his present responsibilities of managing Harken’s international marketing team. With this change, Tim Kent has been made responsible for the US Sales team. Kent’s title is the US Sales Manager. * Having taken very different routes, the two leading boats in ARC 2006 – a Swan 100 Fantasticaa and the 80ft maxi yacht Capricorno, are now just a day away from the finish line, with the larger yacht just 29 nautical miles in front of her Italian compatriots. However, the advantage is definitely with Capricorno, whose early decision to go north, has been rewarded by a much better gybe angle and higher speeds as they charge for the line. At stake is a chance for ARC glory, and a new course record, currently held by the Volvo 60 Spirit. http://arc.worldcruising.com/ * US Sailing is currently accepting bids from sailing organizations nationwide to host a National Championship in 2008 and beyond. Hosting one of these events has numerous benefits, including an opportunity to showcase the sailing organization and local region to sailors from across the country, bringing the club's members together to put on a good show, getting nationwide visibility for the event. US Sailing organizes 18 U.S. National Championships, ranging from junior to adult events, from fleet racing to team or match racing, and from able-bodied to disabled championships. -- http://www.ussailing.org/ ULLMAN SAILS – DENMARK Ullman Sails International is pleased to announce that GP Covers in Aarhus, Denmark has joined the Ullman Sails group. The three partners are Oluf Groenkaer, Bo Melson, and Flemming Clausen. They moved into new facilities this summer in Aarhus, which is one of the largest sailing centers in Denmark. The sailmaking team is led by Lasse Rosenbech, whose sails recently finished 1st on an Elan boat in one of Denmark’s largest keelboat regatta’s. The Ullman group is delighted to have these talented sailmakers on our team. Look for their contact information listed in the “Loft Locator” section at http://www.ullmansails.com EIGHT BELLS Leonard M. Greene, 88, an aviation-safety innovator who received patents for helping pilots avoid deadly wind hazards and who used his fortune to fund an economic policy think tank, a group that flies cancer patients to hospitals and ventures into America's Cup racing, died Nov. 30 at White Plains (N.Y.) Hospital Center. He had lung cancer. An avid sailor, Mr. Greene became a technical adviser to several America's Cup races before buying two-time winner Courageous from Ted Turner in the early 1980s. Despite several of Mr. Greene's modifications to the keel, the boat's age remained a problem, and his team withdrew during the 1986 competition in Fremantle, Western Australia. Mr. Greene's syndicate represented the Yale Corinthian YC, and was one a record six challenges from the USA for the 1987 Cup. -- Washington Post, full story: http://tinyurl.com/y5xcoe 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 Baker: Would you be able to enlighten us how the speed record currently being undertaken is calculated? Length of course, time elapsed, marker types, etc? i.o.w., course specifications. Also, how is tide and/or set of the body of water accounted for? this latter variable seems to be the quiet leveler that would be nice to eliminate. My only first hand experience with speed records was watching the Slo Mo Shun 1V do a mile in 178 mph on Lake Washington (no tide) around 1952, piloted by Joe Taggart with crew Stan Sayres (owner). They started at a wide spot between Mercer Island and what is now Bellevue, and finished close to the East Channel Bridge, which Joe Taggart described harrowingly as threading a needle on the run-out. The "course" stopped just short of the bridge. After watching, I went sailing with my two ten-year-old buddies on a Mercury, happy to fly along at probably 5 knots. Curmudgeon’s Comment: Let me refer you to the experts in this area – the World Sailing Speed Record Council: http://www.sailspeedrecords.com/ * From Adrian Morgan: We can now rely entirely on Sir Robin Knox-Johnston to provide the colour and drama in this latest round the world race. Now that the rescue of Thomson by Golding is over, and Stamm is enjoying warm baths and cold beer in Fremantle, the excitement is being brought to us singlehanded by Sir Robin. Shades of 1968 again, when he was forced to go over the side of Suhaili to attach tingles to his leaking garboards (and keep an eye open for matrauding sharks). No longer in competition, he is simply sailing against himself and the ghosts of the Golden Globe. What an inspiration . Now, if Stamm were to do a Moitessier, and head for Tahiti and the other two had to pull out for any reason, it would leave Robin once again the only finisher. God speed. I can't wait to read his book... * From Bob Fisher (Re Scoring Editorial): The ISAF President states: "A major part of the idea behind the new Medal Race format and moving to just one discard in the Olympic Games was to make the sport more accessible and understandable." Would it not have been both of these by simply eliminating any discards? The loaded points of the medal race is hardly conducive to greater comprehension of the scoring by anyone outside the sport. * From Ralph Taylor: There are some of us who hope ISAF's Rules Committee resists the pleas of Glenn McCarthy & Luiz Kahl for worldwide uniformity of race scoring. ISAF should standardize scoring only for events in which it has a direct role. Leave room for local adaptation. The point about protest committee "manipulation" of scores is disingenuous. A PC can change scores only in the event of a protest -- it may penalize a boat -- or a redress -- it may improve a boat's score - and only by following the rules. Should a boat breaking a rule not be penalized? Should a boat damaged by a boat breaking a rule and unable to continue racing should not receive redress? PCs could use more guidance on applying redress; it has some tricky questions. Modifications of Appendix A are put into sailing instructions because competitors want them. Under standard A2, every boat gets one "throw-out"; a regatta that completed only one race would result in an all-way tie for 1st place and a waste of time for all. Differential points for letter scores are a fairness issue; is it fair to give the same score to a boat that "timed out" as to the surly rule-breaker This differential might not make much different at the top of the fleet, but it keeps the mid-fleet & back-enders racing. The McCarthy & Kahl proposal, if adopted, would result in killing off much of the sport. It's a cure that's worse than the disease. * From Rory Ramsden: I read Glenn & Luiz's question on scoring with interest. The sooner ISAF sort this one out the easier it will be for sailors to communicate their sport to non-sailors. In the meantime, The RS:X forum has had a discussion running on possible alternatives to the current Olympic scoring system including the double points medal race. Check it out at http://www.rsxclass.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=8 * From Peter Huston: Score one for hard work, inventing thinking and a willingness to examine what is wrong with the sport and how fix it one problem at a time. McCarthy & Kahl have articulated a problem in terms of the way sailing is scored, the complications therein for race committees, and ISAF President Petersson has suggested he'd be very interested in receiving submissions on this topic from Member National Authorities. The only question now is which MNA will make such a submission. Or does this rule re-write need to come from only one MNA? Why not set up a wiki and let everyone around the planet help simplify the rule. Sort of like Open Source Rule Writing. Then let any and all MNA's call it their own and make a submission. CURMUDGEON’S OBSERVATIONS “It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change." --Charles Darwin Special thanks to Ocean Racing and Ullman Sails. Scuttlebutt is also supported by UBS, main partner of Alinghi, the Defender of the 32nd America's Cup. |
