|
Brought to you by Yachtworld.com Europe and boats.com Europe, Scuttlebutt Europe is a digest of sailing news and opinions, regatta results, new boat and gear information and letters from sailors -- with a European emphasis. Contributions welcome, send to
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
Final Sprint for Gitana 13
The fifth week at sea for Gitana 13 in the Route de l'Or (New York - San Francisco) has been marked by a change of hemisphere - early on Tuesday night - and by the crossing of the tricky Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone. Setting out from New York on 16th January, they are currently positioned less than 2,050 miles from the final destination of San Francisco, after 35 days sailing. However, these last few miles are likely to cause the men no end of trouble.
Though their passage of the ITCZ on the Atlantic coast took place without the slightest difficulty - it only lasted a few hours - the second Doldrums along the La Route de l'Or course have proven to be more complicated. "Our second Doldrums were fairly spread out but not at all violent. We had some very shifty winds and some big clouds, which generated a lot of rain. However, contrary to what you can sometimes encounter when traversing this zone, the jumps in wind were never overly brutal. Nevertheless, we had to work with light winds for over two days in order to pick our way through to the exit" stated Lionel Lemonchois.
This exit was located by the crew of Gitana 13 last night at around 7 degrees latitude North. Since then, Lionel Lemonchois and his men have set off on a NW'ly heading on a reach. However, in the next few hours the ten sailors will encounter moderate N'ly winds. This air flow will impose an upwind point of sail which, as we are regularly reminded, doesn't sit too well with the 33 metre catamaran: "Our last few miles upwind will be very uncomfortable both for the boat and for the men. And the perspective of over 1,500 miles in a headwind is slightly clouding the joy of the imminent finish" announced the skipper of Gitana 13 before concluding: "On this record, we really haven't had much of an opportunity to slip along, apart from on the first quarter of the course as far as the equator. We've either had the wind three quarters aft, forced to make some tack changes, or we've been upwind, which is a long way off Gitana 13's preferred point of sail."
It will take several days of headwinds before they can inscribe the word 'end' on their first record of 2008. According to the latest estimates the maxi-catamaran, in the colours of LCF Rothschild Group, may well make its entrance into San Francisco Bay and slip under the Golden Gate Bridge in a week's time, with their arrival planned for Thursday 28th February.
The time to beat: 57 days 3 hours 21 minutes 45 seconds, record set by Yves
Parlier and his crew in 1998. -- Translation by Kate Jennings
www.gitana-team.com
Groupama 3 Under Tow Towards Dunedin
The tugboat "Clan McCloud" - photo by Otago Images from the Groupama website
After arriving at the scene of their capsize on Tuesday evening (UT), the crew have spared no effort clearing the area surrounding the trimaran in order to see through the righting operations envisaged in open water.
Unfortunately, despite several attempts Franck Cammas and his crew didn't manage to turn Groupama 3 the right way up. As a result it was decided that they would tow the maxi-trimaran to Dunedin, over 70 miles away. Currently making 3 knots of headway, the support vessel towing Groupama 3 is expected in the New Zealand port overnight (UT).
These details were sent to us by Yves Parlier, who remained on shore to ensure the link between the sailors and the shore crew, directed by Stephane Guilbaud based in Lorient. Yves is also in charge of communicating weather data to the crew, which has been prepared by Richard Silvani from Meteo France.
www.cammas-groupama.com
Tornados Off Takapuna
The 2008 Tornado World Championships will start next week with the first race on Monday 28th February off Takapuna Beach. 50 entries are confirmed with representatives from 21 different countries coming to North Shore City for this World Championships which doubles as the final Olympic qualifier.
With the Olympic Games now less than six months away this 50 boat Tornado fleet is world class and includes a multitude of Olympic and World Champions and medallists. An important lead-up regatta for those on the road to Qingdao, China the Tornado World Championships has attracted an unprecedented fleet of Olympic multi-hull sailors to New Zealand.
Racing will start on Monday 25th February with a practice race scheduled for Sunday 24th. The regatta concludes with the crowning of the new Tornado World Champions on Saturday 1st March. Racing will take place on the waters of the Inner Hauraki Gulf a short distance from Takapuna Beach and the Takapuna Boating Club on Auckland's North Shore.
The Tornado catamaran has been an Olympic class since its debut in 1976.
www.takapunaworlds.org
Tornados Revving Up In Auckland
With the 2008 World Championships ready to kick-off next week, Tornado competitors had their final tune-up at Singapore Airlines Sail Auckland Regatta, February 16-19. Ullman Sails customers took second and third place, and finished with six boats in the top ten overall. Germany's Roland Gaebler and Gunnar Struckmann took second, followed by current World champions Fernando Echavarri and Anton Paz from Spain in third. The regatta hosted 41 competitors including the 11 teams who have already qualified for 2008 Olympics.
For the highest quality, performance and speed in one design sails, contact an Ullman Sails loft and visit www.ullmansails.com
World Match Racing Tour Launches Worldwide Qualifier Series
London, England: The ISAF World Match Racing Tour has annouced its new 'Tour Qualifier Series', a group of nineteen events which will act as official qualifier regattas to the ten stages of the 2008 World Match Racing Tour.
The concept behind the Tour Qualifier Series is to provide up and coming match racing teams a structured gateway to competing on the World Match Racing Tour. As Tour Director Craig Mitchell explains:
"In the past, each stage of the World Match Racing Tour has hosted qualifier events in their own country. The new Tour Qualifier Series offers up to two qualifier events to each of the Tour stages, and also in different countries to the host country. The result is the series extends the opportunity for foreign teams to gain entry to the official Tour events"
The Tour Qualifier Series events for 2008 are as follows:
Tour stage / Tour Qualifier Events / Dates
Brasil Sailing Cup
BSC Qualifier (BRA) - 20 - 21 Apr 2008
Brasil Women's Cup (BRA) - TBC
Match Race Germany
German Championship (GER) - Already Completed
Berlin Match Race (GER) - Already Completed
Latium Match Cup
RYA Winter Challenge (GBR) - 19-20 Jan 2008
Korea Match Cup
KMC Qualifier (KOR) - Jun 2008
KMC Qualifier 2 (KOR) - TBC
Match Cup Sweden
GKSS Spring Cup (SWE) - 31 May - 1 Jun 2008
Marseille Int Match Race (FRA) - 11-15 Mar 2008
Portugal Match Cup
PMC Qualifier (POR) - 12-14 Jul 2008
Marseille Int Match Race (FRA) - TBC
Danish Open
TMC Grill Cup (DEN) - 7-8 Jun 2008
Sails of the White Knights (RUS) - 4-8 Jun 2008
St Moritz Match Race
Swiss MR Championship (SUI) - Already Completed
Open de Espana (ESP) - 8-12 Apr 2008
Bermuda Gold Cup
Bermuda MR Championship (BDA) - TBC
Knickerbocker Cup (USA) - 19-24 Aug 2008
Monsoon Cup
Malaysian MR Championship (MAS) - Sep 2008
Asian MR Championship (MAS) - Sep 2008
The winner of each Tour Qualifier Event will automatically receive an invitation to the corresponding Tour Stage. Contact details for the Tour Qualifier Series events can be found on the Tour website at www.worldmatchracingtour.com
Singapore to Host 2010 Youth Olympic Games
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) today announced that Singapore will host the first Summer Youth Olympic Games in 2010.
The result was unveiled by the IOC President, Jacques ROGGE, at the Olympic Museum in Lausanne. Singapore beat Moscow in the final by 53 votes to 44.
The Youth Olympic Games aim to bring together talented young athletes - age group 14 to 18 - from around the world. The first Summer Youth Olympic Games will gather approximately 3,200 athletes and 800 officials and feature 100 sailors in four sailing events: one person dinghy men; one person dinghy women; windsurfing men; and windsurfing women.
The IOC President thanked Moscow for its excellent efforts and the quality of its candidature. He also hoped that today's disappointment would not discourage it from bidding again.
ROgge also paid tribute to the other seven Candidate Cities which took part in a candidature process that started in August 2007: Athens (Greece), Bangkok (Thailand), Debrecen (Hungary), Guatemala City (Guatemala), Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), Moscow (Russian Federation), Poznan (Poland), Singapore (Singapore) and Turin (Italy).
www.sailing.org/22257.php
AIRX Spinnaker Fabrics From Bainbridge International
In 1998, Bainbridge International redefined the standards in spinnaker fabrics with the introduction of AIRX, a range of spinnaker fabrics that combine unprecedented strength, performance and quality. Since then, AIRX spinnakers have won some of the highest profile events, been used by the highest profile syndicates and have been used exclusively by the world's top sailmakers. All styles feature exceptional burst and tear strength, allowing lighter sails to be used in higher wind ranges. Contact us for more information and for your free style and colour samples -
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
www.bainbridgeint.co.uk
And He's Off. But Not For Long.
Photo from David Vann's blog by Peter Lyons, Lyons Imaging
After setting sail to circumnavigate the globe, David Vann encounters a challenge his home-made trimaran simply can't overcome, putting a temporary hold on his ambitious quest.
Well, I had to turn back. The crossbeams that hold the three hulls together are a complicated structure that I have worried about ever since the initial stages of planning and building. I wanted a ladder-like design that would have low wind and water resistance and light weight. But the beams also have to be strong enough to resist enormous stresses. What I found after a day at sea was that although the beams themselves, the primary structure, were still intact, the secondary support structures I had added - five vertical compression posts where the beams meet at the main hull - were cracking out. The entire structure was flexing too much in waves, inadequately braced. I could still sail the boat back to San Francisco, but in a storm the entire structure would be at risk of failing. In the Southern Ocean, that would mean one of the smaller hulls breaking free, the main hull tipped over into the water by the sails. I would most likely end up in the water and, if I weren't able to deploy my life raft or get safely back inside the hull, I could easily die from exposure.
I had promised my wife and family that I would turn around if things weren't right. And there was no question that this had to be repaired and the beams significantly reinforced, so after angling more than 120 miles away from land, and 150 miles south, I turned around. The additions to the structure won't take long - most likely not more than a week or two - but I was already pushing late into the season, leaving much later than I had wanted, and now it's simply too late for this year. I'll have to wait until December to set sail again. That will be two months earlier in the season, a significant difference in safety, and I'll have more time, also, to test and prepare. -- David Vann
www.esquire.com/the-side/blog/tincan
Fedor Konyukhov Half Way to Cape Horn
Fedor Konyukhov sailing his 85ft (27m) yacht Trading Network Alye Parusa is now half way to Cape Horn from his starting point on the Antarctica Cup Racetrack at Albany, Western Australia. "There is less than 3.000 miles left to the Horn - sounds like a Transatlantic race distance and no-longer looks so far-far away." he said today, adding: "I am sailing East at 10-12 knots and for now, would like to stay in the middle of the Antarctica Cup Racetrack around 52-53 degrees South. It is interesting to see how Cape Horn will greet me. It will be quite unusual not to round and up into the South Atlantic, but to continue due East back towards Australia and Albany."
"I know it is full moon now, but I am sailing in complete darkness. I have thick cloud, constant rain and frequent snow showers which makes it very unpleasant to work in the cockpit. All my gear is wet and I can only change one wet foul-weather jacket for another which "dry out" for 2-3 hours on the hook in my cabin. It is just as wet inside as it is out on the deck. Condensation is everywhere. My sleeping bag feels like it has been washed but not dried out. I have several sleeping bags and this helps, but I wish I had 10 of them. With the rolling seas we have now, I can at last think to open the deck hatch for ventilation."
"Here in the Southern Ocean you are always fight something. Now that the storm has passed I'm fighting the cold. I have to put plastic bags on my feet to keep them warm and not lose body temperature. Obviously hat and gloves are onbut basically I am sailing inside a refrigerator."
"Along the Antarctica Cup Racetrack, storms can be violent and massive, but they come and go and I can live with that. But the never-ending cold remains a major problem. I'm a single-handed sailor and allowed to use an autopilot, but future fully-crewed entrants in next year's Antarctica Cup Ocean Race will have to spend 24 hours on deck in similar stormy conditions. I doubt if they will have the luxury of heating onboard, and equipment and sailing gear will have to be very well planned and selected." -- Fedor Konyukhov
www.antarcticacup.com
Job Vacancy - Racing Director Volvo Ocean Race
Reporting to the CEO the Racing Director will run the Race Management team and will be responsible for managing all aspects of delivering the on-water operations for the race both before and during the event.
This is a senior position requiring the applicant to have professional race management or professional racing team management experience. For more details please go to www.volvooceanrace.org/racehqpersonnel/vacancies/
Please send a CV and covering letter to
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
Closing date for applications is 14th March 2008.
EUROSAF Reminder
European Member National Authorities are reminded that the 2008 EUROSAF General Assembly will be held on Saturday 29th March at the Ramada Hotel and Resort, Lake Balaton, Hungary. Delegate and Observer registration details are available via the EUROSAF website, www.eurosaf.org
The deadline for hotel bookings is 28th February 2008.
Perth Yacht Club to Rescue Sick Sailor
A Perth yacht club is going to the rescue of an American woman too seasick to continue a bid to set a 1,000-day sailing record.
Reid Stowe, 56, and Soanya Ahmad, 25, began a 1,000-day voyage from New Jersey in the United States on April 21 last year, aiming to set a number of records including the longest sea voyage by a man and a woman.
Since entering the rough Southern Ocean in November, Ms Ahmad has suffered recurrent and disabling seasickness, and the pair have decided she should not continue on Mr Stowe's 21-metre gaff-rigged schooner, the Anne.
The Royal Perth Yacht Club expects to rescue Ms Ahmad Friday afternoon.
It is planning an at-sea transfer so that Mr Stowe, an American, can continue his attempt to break records, including one for the longest voyage out of sight of land. -- Australia's Nine News:
news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=383051
Rocket Rod Davis
Meet Rod Davis, the man with most unenviable job in Olympic sailing at the moment.
New Zealand has qualified for Beijing 2008 in the Yngling class and Sharron Ferris' crew is the designated team. It now falls to Davis to tell Ferris whether she will be going to China or not.
Ferris finished 9th at the recent Yngling Worlds, comfortably beating the last four nations (Norway, France, Greece and Italy) to qualify for China, but this may not be good enough to get her to the Olympics.
You see, the Kiwis are taking a very hard-nosed view of who they send to race at Qingdao in August. Unless considered a serious medal prospect, Yachting New Zealand won't say yes and it falls to Davis as Olympic Director to exercise Solomon-like judgement...
It's fallen to Davis to put the Silver Fern back on the podium. And talent and dollars is want it comes down to. It's thought the Kiwis would have liked to see if Ferris could finish in the top 5-6, the so-called medal zone, at the Yngling Worlds. She came up short, as she did at the preceding Rolex Miami Olympic Classes Regatta (result: 19th).
Compared with the First Class Olympic sailing programmes such as China, Holland, Britain, Australia, Spain, Denmark and Italy, the Kiwis are definitely Economy Class by comparison. There is very limited cash and resource available.
China or no China, take note of Ferris' determination to get. Seven months' pregnant, she raced hard at the Yngling Worlds, winning a race and being 2nd in another. It was a terrific performance, given the weight of expectation.
Excerpts above from Tim Jeffery's blog:
blogs.telegraph.co.uk/sport/timjeffery/february08/rocketroddavis.htm
Featured Brokerage
The ORC GP42's principle characteristics call for a light displacement, simple fractional rig boat with non-overlapping jibs, no running backstays and significant sail area. The result is great performances and relatively affordable costs. Similar in concept to the well-known and successful TP52, the GP42 competes along side in many class events. Outside of GP42 class racing, this design offers fast and competitive racing under IRC and Performance Handicaps. The GP42 has great IRC potential, currently rated at 1.264 before optimization.
Farr Yacht Sales offers 2 leading GP42's:
ROMA is a 2006 GP42 designed by Farr Yacht Design and built by Latini Marine
ZURICH 7 is a 2007 GP42 designed by Botin & Carkeek and built by King Marine.
Brokerage through Farr Yacht Sales: www.FarrYachtSales.com
Complete Listing Details and Photos at:
www.farrdesign.com/brokerage/605_Roma.htm
www.farrdesign.com/brokerage/Zurich.htm
The Last Word
Man is a gregarious animal, and much more so in his mind than in his body. He may like to go alone for a walk, but he hates to stand alone in his opinions. -- George Santayana
|
