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SCUTTLEBUTT 3606 - Wednesday, June 6, 2012
Scuttlebutt is published each weekday with the support of its sponsors,
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and dock talk . . . with a North American focus.
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Today's sponsors: Point Loma Outfitting, North Sails, and Allen Insurance
and Financial.
VERY BRITISH WEATHER
Weymouth and Portland, U.K. (June 5, 2012; Day 2) - If all you see of
Olympic sailing is the final medal race, it would be easy to believe the
sport is intense, dramatic and short - and while it has those features,
it's also about endurance. And it was endurance that was tested at Skandia
Sail for Gold today.
The British weather turned it on for the Queen's 60th Jubilee celebrations
with steady and occasionally torrential rain, cold temperatures and a
steadily increasing breeze. It was a day to test the focus and commitment
of even the toughest of athletes.
"Now that was an epic day on the water - pouring rain, crazy confused seas,
low visibility and very cold," said Richard Clarke, Canadian Star skipper.
"We sailed 3 races today in these tough conditions placing 10, 2 and 2 to
sit in 3rd overall. One of challenging things today was finding the marks;
that's how hard it was raining at times. We got lucky a few times by
tacking out of the right side with the purpose to consolidate against the
boats to our left - only to find the mark straight ahead of us."
Clearly relishing the stiff winds were Americans Amanda Clark and Sarah
Lihan, posting a 5-1 to move up to third overall in the 32-boat Women's 470
fleet."We know that this is our advantage condition, when it's big waves
and windy, we're one of the fastest teams out there," explained Lihan. "Our
game plan was to go out and dominate. It's a great feeling to say that and
do that and have it done. Our speed is very good, both upwind and
downwind."
The conditions on Wednesday are expected to be similar as today, although the
rain should ease by morning and the sun is rumoured to make an appearance.
Event website: http://www.skandiasailforgoldregatta.co.uk
Video highlights: http://www.sailing.org/matchdaytv/?play=media&id=12109
Canadian team: http://tinyurl.com/CST-060512
USA team: http://olympics.ussailing.org/2012/06/05/2383/
BACKGROUND: Skandia Sail for Gold is the sixth of seven 2011-2012 ISAF
Sailing World Cup regattas. The ISAF Sailing World Cup is open to the
sailing events chosen for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Sailing
Competitions. -- http://www.sailing.org/worldcup/home.php
QUOTE / UNQUOTE
"Despite being asked to submit boats that were considered to have
'universality' (worldwide availability), ISAF decided not to support the
universality they agreed to with the Olympic Commission Report. One ISAF
Council member said that the Olympics is for the elite not one to achieve
universality. ISAF seem to be sending out two messages that are opposite.
They (Hobie manufacturers) offered the universality that ISAF said they
wanted in their reports but in the end, ISAF chose to deny their own
criteria." - International Hobie Class Association, after a prototype Nacra
17 was selected for the 2016 Olympics over their established Hobie 16 and
Hobie Tiger.
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TAKING A LEAVE FROM THE STORE
Growing up in Bayport, N.Y., on Long Island's South Shore, American Debbie
Capozzi remembers going out for Italian ice on summer nights with her
parents, brother and two sisters. Four years ago, her family opened its own
shop in Patchogue, N.Y., named Tina's Italian Ices after Capozzi's younger
sister, Christina.
When she's not helping dish up summertime treats, Capozzi, 30, is part of
the USA's most successful sailing team. Competing in the new Olympic
discipline of women's match racing, Capozzi, skipper Anna Tunnicliffe (who
won a national championship with Capozzi at Old Dominion) and crewmate
Molly Vandemoer, won the 2011 world title.
They will try to defend that title June 25-20 at the 2012 worlds in
Gothenburg, Sweden, before heading to London. Capozzi, who sailed at the
2008 Olympics in the Yngling class, recently spoke to reporters at the U.S.
Olympic Committee media summit in Dallas.
"I used to be really involved (in the shop), years 1 and 2. But as the
(Olympic) quad progresses, it's a bit harder to be involved. This summer I
really don't have a huge role in it, and I'm very lucky to have the family
members able to take up the slack of what I haven't been able to do.
"There is a rainbow Italian ice, and when I look at it, I think of the
American flag, and that's pretty cool. We don't have a flavor (referring to
Capozzi's Olympic status) yet, but maybe after this summer we can make one.
"My favorite flavor is chocolate. There's nothing better than a really good
chocolate ice cream or Italian ice.
"I was just really lucky as a kid. My parents just put me into sailing
lessons. It was great. I did sailing and swimming lessons, and I was never
a good swimmer so I wound up sailing a lot.
"Sailing as a kid is an experience that can either go really bad or really
good. There's a lot of kids that are afraid to go sailing, because the boat
heels over, you're really close to the water, there's a chance the boat
could flip. My sailing instructors always made it fun. I was around kids
that were part of great families that, when we went to races, one set of
parents would take all the kids to the race. It was just a really easy
environment to succeed in." -- USA Today, read on:
http://tinyurl.com/USA-Today-060512
* Capozzi's team, ranked #1 in the world, is struggling this week at
Skandia Sail for Gold. They have two races remaining on Wednesday in the
qualifying round robin series, which advance the top six to the
quarterfinals. The Americans may need to win both races to advance, or be
relegated to the repechage round to vie for one of the two remaining
quarterfinal slots. -- http://www.teamtunnicliffe.com/home
COLLEGE SPRING NATIONALS
Austin, Texas (June 5, 2012) - Today was the third and final day of the
ICSA/APS Team Race National Championship on Lake Travis in Austin, Texas.
The final four of College of Charleston, St. Mary's, Boston College and
Hobart and William Smith began this morning for the championship single
round robin series. Light winds prevailed for most of the day, allowing for
limited racing in the morning before a two-hour mid day delay was needed to
resume the schedule.
Charleston and St. Mary's was the last match up of the day and determined
the National title. St. Mary's had a good start and an advantage over
Charleston up the first windward leg, but Charleston took the lead by the
leeward mark. Charleston was able to hold onto their winning combination
moving up the last beat, ultimately winning with a 1,2,3 combination.
This is the College of Charleston's first ever ICSA/APS Team Race National
Championship title. The winning team members were: Mac Mace '13 with Perry
Emsiek '12, Zeke Horowitz '12 with Cory DeCollibus '13 and Ben Spector '13
with Alyssa Aitken '12.
Racing continues Tuesday with the first day of the ICSA/Gill Coed Dinghy
National Championship. The top eighteen collegiate teams in the nation have
qualified to compete in this stellar event. -- Full report:
http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=13943#13943
BEING CLEVERER
The 34th America's Cup has a lot of rules. Most are to minimize the cost to
compete. But anytime you have a lot of rules, and the stakes are high
enough, you have a lot of effort to find ways around the rules. Or, as
Artemis Racing CEO Paul Cayard describes, the focus is "to be cleverer than
our opponents".
Cayard's team took the first scalp in the 'cleverer' contest when they
retained an ORMA 60-foot trimaran for training. The rules preclude training
on catamarans over 10 meters (other than the AC45 or AC72), but say nothing
about trimarans. The rules also preclude training on AC72s before July 1,
but say nothing about putting an AC72 wing on their 60-foot trimaran.
So Artemis Racing did just that, and began sailing with the AC72 wing on
March 15. A big head start by anyone's measure. But after accruing valuable
hours of load testing and 12 days of sailing time, Artemis Racing's AC72
wing suffered significant damage while training off Valencia on May 25th.
So what happened? Journalist Bob Fisher reports...
----------------------------------------------------------------------
What actually happened was that the wing snapped in two and the whole
structure fell on to the boat - "nothing got wet," said Paul Cayard, the
team supremo. "One minute after it happened, Terry [Hutchinson] was able to
call for a bow tow and 20 minutes later the trimaran and its broken wing
were on their way back to the shore."
"Yes, it's a set-back," admitted Cayard, "but better it happened in May
2012 than in May 2013. We have time on our side now that we wouldn't have
had if this had happened later. We were the first team to have an AC-72
wing up for testing (and we carefully read the Protocol to see if what we
proposed doing was within the rules) and in the 12 days of sailing we
learned an awful lot. Even the breakage can be construed as part of that
learning curve."
The break has been across the main spar, around which the wing elements
pivot, and as such requires a great deal of repair work. "We haven't even
started wing No.2 yet," said Cayard. He did say that there was "a pile of
work" caused by the breakage, but that it had provided the opportunity for
the internal engineering staff and external consultants to add to the
requisite technical knowledge before completing the repair and building the
next wing. (There would, incidentally, be at least three wings constructed
- "You wouldn't go to San Francisco Bay with any less.") -- Sail-World,
read on: http://tinyurl.com/SW-060512
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BRUISED EGOS AND STRAINED WALLETS
To drive from San Diego to Seattle, Interstate 5 extends the full length of
the western United States. Its route cuts inland through rural towns and
farming lifestyles. And as you reach northern California, with San
Francisco far to the west, you come across the city of Stockton.
In the February 2, 2011 issue of Forbes, the magazine gave Stockton the
dubious distinction of being the "most miserable" U.S. city, largely as a
result of the steep drop in home values. But the city is also home to
Stockton Sailing Club, or specifically, the finish line of the Delta Ditch
Run race.
The racetrack for the Delta Ditch Run is the California Delta, an expansive
inland river delta and estuary that encompasses around 1,100 square miles.
With over 100 boats competing on June 2, this year's 65nm race was greeted
with a perfect storm of weather conditions that made it possibly the most
exciting edition in its 21 year history.
An approaching late season low pressure system offshore combined with
inland temperatures earlier in the week hitting the 90's... just the recipe
for the delta to fire off. With offshore winds pumping inland, the course
would prove to be a downwind test. And with gusts to 40 knots, boats were
finding the mud, rigs were breaking, and general carnage littered the
track.
Photos and Race Reports:
Race website: http://www.stocktonsc.org/ditch/
Pressure Drop: http://tinyurl.com/PD-060512
Sail Revolution: http://www.sailrevolution.com/race-it/delta-dished
SAILING SHORTS
* (June 5, 2012) The damaged Farr 80 Beau Geste, which was participating in
the Auckland to Noumea yacht race, is now safely anchored off Norfolk
Island's capital Kingston after suffering hull and decking damage 100
nautical miles east of the island. Skipper Gavin Brady describes the
incident as the "boat had effectively broke in half." Audio interview:
http://tinyurl.com/GB-060512
* (Bristol, RI) - The Herreshoff Marine Museum is proud to announce that it
has received a grant from the McCarthey Family Foundation, of Salt Lake
City, Utah. The grant is intended to support offering full and or partial
scholarships to at least 10 students this summer. Awards will be based on
need, and named the "McCarthey Family Foundation Sailorship Award". -- Read
on: http://forum.sailingscuttlebutt.com/cgi-bin/gforum.cgi?post=13942
* Elaine Dickinson, of Davidsonville, MD was honored Saturday with the
National Women's Sailing Association/BoatUS 2012 Leadership in Women's
Sailing Award at the 11th Women's Sailing Conference held in Marblehead,
MA, and hosted by the Corinthian Yacht Club. This award is given to an
individual who had built up a record of achievement in inspiring, educating
and enriching the lives of women through sailing. -- Full report:
http://www.boatus.com/pressroom/release.asp?id=798
EIGHT BELLS
The South Jersey sailing community suffered a huge loss this week with the
death of Frank McBride on June 5. Frank, a nationally-known
physiotherapist, lost his fight with colon cancer. He was 49.
Frank never sailed on a national champion boat, never even sailed in a
major regatta. The best he did as an active crewman was a few firsts on
Friday night beer can races. But Frank was known on the racing circuit from
Key West to Block Island as the World's Best Shore Crew...and he was.
When horrendous injuries from an old accident prevented the former rugby
and baseball star from crewing effectively on the Evelyn 32 "Bloody Hell",
he decided to stick with the boat and take the job of shore crew to a new
level. At every regatta Frank got up, sometimes before a cold dawn, and
cleaned the bottom. During the day he would shop for food and suitable
beverages for the crew house before greeting the crew at the dock with hot
food and cold drinks.
Big regattas or local races, Frank was always there, charming the socks of
the PHRF crews and making "Bloody Hell" the envy of the fleet. Frank left
Cheryl, his wife of six months, and hundreds of friends who will never
forget him. -- Mike Perry, skipper "Bloody Hell".
COVERAGE THE WORLD OVER
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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 Leslie Ehman:
In Scuttlebutt 3605, Craig's comment to keep the "focus on the fun" is the
key phrase here for mentoring your child in all aspects of life; the
earlier the better. Focus on the fun and encourage them to make their best
effort towards any subject and any goal.
Help the child to own - "his/her best" not your judgment of what "best" is.
I believe this atmosphere creates confidence, independence and can lead a
child to find/feel passion in life. Passion equates to happiness and
fulfillment and as parents we dearly hope that brings success, as well.
Success without passion can still be okay ... it pays the bills.
When asked of parents: "What do you want for your child?" ...many, most
respond with: "I want my child to be happy" (and of course successful). How
do we mentor them in happiness? Find the fun in every task.
* From Johnny Heineken, Kite Course World Champion:
I'm not sure the "Olympic" media does a good job of glamorizing any
sailing, but let's pretend for a moment they do. I have a hard time
believing anyone is getting excited over another white sailed slow-boat
shot and not at all intrigued by kite racing photos.
Yes, framing the shots is important, and since the Olympics is all about
being media friendly, there will have to be some learning on the
photographer's side about how to best capture the action.
As for distant shots capturing the intensity of the moment...hard to do,
since they're a lot more intense than any other starts I've ever been in :)
PS: Lines are generally ~ 25m long, not a few hundred meters (as Mark Chew
said in Scuttlebutt 3605). I can understand how that would seem impossible
to frame.
EDITOR'S NOTE: Johnny has shared some examples of kiting photos for the
white sail shooters to study:
http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/12/0605/
* From Harrison Hine:
Richard Clarke may well have a good chance in the Olympics this year.
Unlike the Star Worlds, where he finished 18th, the Olympic regatta is more
like a club race with a small fleet and lots of opportunity to move up and
down in the standings. In 1984 Bill Buchan and Steve Erickson were able to
pull off a Gold Medal in a fleet of 19 Stars by winning the last race after
rounding the last leeward mark in 6th position. They had to win the final
race to take home the gold after they nearly broke their mast due to an
equipment failure in the third race.
That's what is so great about a tactical boat like the Star compared to the
hot rods like the 49er. By playing each small shift Buchan was able to pick
off boat after boat in a 1 ½ mile beat; it was pure poetry to watch it
happen! Too bad the International sailing community misses the point about
the Star and that there is more than speed to REAL sailing; after 70 years
it will be sad to see the Star eliminated from the Olympic Fleet.
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CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATION
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