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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
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The Story of an Impossible World Championship
April 15, Tuesday
The plan of the day is a light training, just to stretch before the regattas begin.
I'm focused and quiet: statistics are not favourable, we have already won two championships in a row and the third one is a "mission impossible". Furthermore we are conscious that Jim and Terry are in great shapes. They just won Key West and the S.O.R.C. and they are real champions.
It will be difficult to defeat them as well as Mean Machine, Alinghi, Paul Cayard, Tommaso Chieffi, Alberini and others. It is ten in the morning and I'm having my ordinary breakfast based on carbs, when my phone rings. It is Adrian, my tactician, the man I have been working with for many years now to build a winning team. He says just a few hard-fought words: "I am really sorry but I should come back home, my wife is in the delivery room". I knew this could happen, though the baby should have born in May and I decided to run the risk: Adrian is the key-man of this crew, we understand each other perfectly on the boat. My answer comes from the heart: "I have five children and they are the blood of my life, this is just a wonderful game, God bless you".
Yes, right, and now? I gather together the crew and ask them a simple question: "What are we going to do?" Technically we should go home of course. It takes years to create a symbiosis among helmsman, tactician and crew. Finding a substitute on the eve of the regatta, without having even the time to try, is embarrassing and ridiculous at the same time. They all speak: Davide states he loses the World Championship in action, Jerry and the others agree with him, Andrea, the wisest of the group, reminds us we are yachtsmen and that we came here for the regattas. Marco Savelli, a brother to me, says it is better to die than not being present. This is what I wanted to hear: we will sail! But who is going to call the tactics? We think of Dee Smith, but he left to Europe the night before. The name of Morgan Larson comes out. We call him, he is comfortably relaxed in his house on the West Coast. "Morgan would you like to come?"..."When?"..."You must leave now"..."I have a regatta on the East Coast in two days time"..."Wonderful! Tomorrow you are free then!"..."I am going to sleep in the plane and I will be tired..." "Try to have a nice rest, you are a champion". Some other calls and we have John Kosteki for the other days.
Guys smile, we are unconscious relaxed: "Hey guys, put fore a light blue cockade tomorrow, we sail for Lucca Stead, welcome into the world and fuck off all the regattas! Thanks God we will have time to win in the future!" In the evening, in spite of the strict rule we have unwillingly established (that is to limit drinking during the regatta days), we drank 14 red wine bottles!!! Who said the Californian wine is bad?...Could life be easier?
April 16, Wednesday
First day of regattas. "Guys, Morgan, let's have fun!" And we are having fun, we are first. In the afternoon Morgan hugs us and flies away, what a champion!
In the evening arrives a living legend: John Kosteki. I ask him to drink something together. I tell him: "Hey John, do you know you owe me one?" He looks at me confused.
"In San Francisco, in 1999, you won the Farr 40 World Championship on Samba Pa Ti with only one point less than us. Now you must give me that World Championship back!"
John hardly smiles.
April 17, Thursday
Three regattas and we are in first position. I told John my English was nearly as bad as his Italian. In a pre-start he tells me: "Nice tack" and I understand "Quick tack" and I tack again, while he exclaims: "What are you doing?" During the first upwindleg I swear to myself I have to start again my English classes as I come back in Italy.
April 18, Friday
Two regattas and we are still on the top of the fleet. I have never been so concentrated on steering and the mutual understanding among us is magic.
April 19, Saturday, the last day
We win the World Championship but the protest poisons the day. Yet, for the ones who read me and do not know about sailing, protests, in case of infringement, are a guarantee for the quality of the game. I do not want to go into the merits of the question because it is evident and, most of all, there is the decision of a qualified international Jury. The only thing I have at heart is the personal relationship I was establishing with Giovanni Maspero.
In the Newport World Championship in 2000, while we were winning, we had been disqualified for not giving room to a down wind mark, with the witnessing of an Italian boat, still present, also in this occasion, in the cases against us, that is how the world goes...It was a great sorrow after the second place in 1999.
In the World Championship in Newport in 2006, in a situation exactly alike the one caused by Joe Fly, while rounding the mark we forced Barking Mad to luff. We had learnt the lesson and we made the 720, the penalty provided by the rules. This done even if Jim Richarson and Terry Hutchinson are good friends of us and we could have asked them not to present a protest. Jim Richarson and Terry Hutchinson are gentlemen, models for the world of sailing and we would have never abused of our confidence. We did the penalty and anyway won the World Championship, also thanks to some good luck.
Not seeing Giovanni at the prizegiving has been a sorrow. Maspero has probably been ill-advised by someone, as I know him as a gentleman, an important man, with his real passion for the Italian sailing.
In this World Championship an unpleasant presence was the one of the journalist Luca Bontempelli. "You will know a tree by its fruits!" said Jesus and the Bontempelli ones are always poisoned. The entire world knows my team and I are always willing for the journalists, to whom goes our deepest professional respect, anytime and in any condition. We have broken off relations with Bontempelli since the America's Cup in Auckland. I thought, and I was wrong, ignoring each other as people presumably intelligent was an acceptable compromise. In his behaviour in Miami and in his declarations there has been an improvement: I can't tolerate personal insults to me or to the guys of my crew. We are going to defend ourself with a legal charge to ask for the civil injury we are due to.
Apart from that, greetings go to Giovanni Maspero - the Farr 40s need such a owner - to Geoff Stagg, who the great Jim Richarson keeps the class alive with, to Peter "Luigi" Reggio always surprising for his extraordinary skill and, last but not least, to our fans.
Thanks and good sailing!
Vincenzo Onorato
New Gimballed Rate Compass from B&G
B&G launches the new Gimballed Rate Compass, designed to eliminate the effects of pitch and heel from the heading read out. By adding gimbals to the rate sensor B&G has created a compass that gives the true rate of turn whatever the angle of heel or sea state, a major advantage for both accurate autopilot steering performance and for race boats looking for real time data on course changes and wind shifts. The GRC also includes heel and trim sensors, will integrate with existing B&G systems, and link via NMEA-0183 to other instruments.
See www.bandg.com for more information
TEAMORIGIN Winding Down
With the America's Cup's immediate future still in the hands of the New York courts the 33rd (and 34th!) Cup cycles are still on hold. Consequently it has been a testing few months for TEAMORIGIN, Britain's America's Cup Team.
TEAMORIGIN issued a statement in January of this year outlining modified plans and aiming for a possible America's Cup competition in 2011. These plans called for the team to stand down from a full operational mode to a lower level of activity. Now, more than three months later, with no further clarity on the Cup's future and having spent much time assessing and re-assessing various scenarios and strategies, a second modification of plans has been necessary.
From 1st May 2008 TEAMORIGIN will reduce the retained team to a smaller core group. This group will comprise some of the management team, key design and sailing team members, a limited commercial/marketing team and essential support functions. TEAMORIGIN will be able to keep the vital elements of its programme alive and progressing forward and always b ready to 'reignite and ramp up' to full speed as and when clarity in the America's Cup returns. Team members are now able to pursue other projects with the knowledge that they will be brought back into TEAMORIGIN once the next multi-challenger America's Cup programme is properly defined.
On the sailing side, TEAMORIGIN has a number of sailing activities planned for 2008 which will keep many of the sailors together and focused on performance, as well as keeping the TEAMORIGIN brand alive and at the forefront of people's minds. These activities will also provide partnership and hospitality opportunities during the Cup 'interim' period.
www.teamorigin.com
* These [other activities] include sailing a 40-foot catamaran, skippered by Rob Greenhalgh, on the iShares European circuit and providing, with director of sailing Mike Sanderson, key crew on a new American-flagged, New Zealand-built 100-footer, Speedboat. -- Stuart Alexander
www.independent.co.uk/sport/
Hahlbrock Wins Women's Criterium After Windless Ending
Calpe, Spain: The wind deserted Calpe bay on the final day of the ISAF Grade 1 International Women Match Race Criterium, giving overall victory to round robin winner Silke Hahlbrock.
During the last racing day in Calpe the wind was conspicuous by its absence. The competitors sailed to the racing area at 13:00 but the lack of wind prevented any racing. By 15:00 the competitors were back in the club and at 17:30 racing was abandoned for the day.
With no knockout stages, the overall results were based on the round robin scores from the first three racing days. This gave overall victory to Silke Hahlbrock (GER), with world #1 Claire Leroy (FRA) in second and Sabrina Gurioli (ITA) third. -- ISAF, sailing.org
Overall Results
1. Silke Hahlbrock, GER, 9/11
2. Claire Leroy, FRA, 9/11
3. Sabrina Gurioli, ITA, 8/11
4. Lotte Meldgaard, DEN, 8/11
5. Camilla Ulrikkeholm, DEN, 7/11
6. Katie Spthill, AUS, 6/11
7. Linda Rham, SWE, 6/11
8. Lucy Macgregor, GBR, 6/11
9. Jenny Axhede, SWE, 4/11
10. Amanda Scrivenor, AUS, 1/11
11. Adriana Romano, ESP, 1/11
12. Marga Cameselle, ESP, 1/11
www.rcnc.es/x-criterium-internacional-femenino-de-match-race/
Clipper Events is Hiring
Post: Corporate Sailing Skippers / Mates - 2008 Summer Season
Department: Clipper Events, Clipper Ventures plc, Gosport
Responsible for: Corporate Sailing / Yacht Maintenance
Start/Finish Date: 01/7/2008 - October 2008
Salary Scale: 18-24,000 GBP per annum pro rata
Clipper Events is a world leader in corporate sailing and management training/development. Using the current Clipper 68' RTW Racing Yachts we deliver high quality corporate sailing, racing and management training. We are currently looking to recruit a number of qualified, experienced and high quality sailing staff for the forthcoming summer season. Minimum of Yacht Master (commercially endorsed) and big boat experience.
Send CVs to Becky:
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Pleomax Breaks Vuurschepenrace Record
Photo by Diana Bogaards
On Wednesday morning April 30, the Pleomax Volvo Open 60 of skipper Harm Prins (NED) broke the fifteen year old Vuurschepenrace record. He and his crew needed 10 hours and 29 minutes to cover the 110 nautical miles across the North Sea. That was eighteen minutes faster than in 1993. Several teams blew up their spinnakers in wild conditions of gusts up to 35 knots. It was a rough start of the ABN AMRO North Sea Regatta 2008. The Dutch talents of vanUden-TUDelft-VanOord Sailing Team won surprisingly the IRC 1 class. These students are preparing for the Tour de France a la Voile in July.
After a calm start with a fifteen knots breeze, it picked up considerably in the evening. Earlier this year, Pleomax also set the fastest time between Lowestoft and IJmuiden.
Team vanUden TUDelft VanOord won the IRC 1 class onboard their Mumm 30. The Delft students finished eighth, but beat the favourite Roark on handicap. Last year's winner ended up in second position overall. Peter de Ridder was third to steer his Checkmate Swan 45 across the finish line. They were fifth on the leader board.
FRD-Xperience, skippered by John van der Starre, and title defender Rosetta from the Rocks of skipper Radboud Crul, battled for victory in the IRC 2 class.
After the demanding Vuurschepenrace, the sailors will catch up some sleep tonight. Tomorrow they will have a lay day and the prize giving ceremony in the evening. On Friday May 2nd at 10:30 AM, the competitors will line up for the 185 nautical miles North Sea Race back to Scheveningen, organised by the Royal Ocean Racing Club. A few more Dutch and English teams will join the fleet. The first finishers are expected on Saturday morning off the coast of Scheveningen. The prize giving will be on Sunday in the afternoon. The Hans Horrevoets Memorial Trophy for the youngest crew (average age) with the best results in both offshores, will be awarded on May 10. Hans' eldest daughter Bobby will hand it over. -- Diana Bogaards
Provisional top 3
IRC1
1. vanUden TUDelft VanOord, S. Leinders
2. Roark/Claus & Kaan Architecten, Geert de Krom
3. Eclectic, Manne Sijsma
ORC 1
1. Otium, B. van der Hoeven
2. Xanadu, A. van Lookeren Champagne
3. IJsvogel, Marcel Schuttelaar
IRC 2
1. FRD-Xperience, John van der Starre
2. Rosetta from the Rocks, R.M. Crul
3. Winsome, Harry J. Heijst
ORC 2
1. Against all Odds, Martin Molenkamp
2. Antares, F. Winterswijk
3. Windveer, R. F. Blankevoort
ORC 3
1. Lancer of Hamble, H. Visser
2. Pinta-M, Atse Blei
3. Blue June, Henk Zomer
ORC 4/5
1. Haddock, Jorg Raven
2. Gouden Ruiter, Willem N.R. Kats
3. Celestine, A. van der Hout
www.nsr.nl
Ellison In Valencia??
It was rumored, at least here in Valencia, that right after the end of the RC44 Cagliari Cup, Larry Ellison would drop by the city in order to meet local authorities and discuss the possibility of holding the 34th America's Cup here, if of course BMW Oracle wins the 33rd edition against Alinghi.
If one is to believe Las Provincias, Valencia's main newspaper, the American billionaire was indeed in Valencia on Monday and held a secret meeting with Francisco Camps, the president of the Valencia Region, and Rita Barbera, the city's mayor. The meeting was held in Camps' office and lasted an hour and a half, always according to the newspaper.
There are very few, if any, details in the article about what Ellison discussed with the two politicians. It appears that BMW Oracle's owner came to Valencia with a proposal for holding the 34th edition in 2010, based on the assumption the 33rd edition takes place next October. Of course, this is purely theoretical, given the legal uncertainties but it shows Ellison's intention to move on as quickly as possible once the 33rd America's Cup is out of the way.
Last but not least, there is a brief mention in the article of the financial terms the city proposes. According to the article, Valencia's politicians are thinking of offering BMW Oracle what Alinghi proposed a couple of weeks ago. That is 50 million euros for the 33rd edition and 75 to 100 million euros for the 34th. According to the newspaper, no matter who organizes the 34th edition, Valencia will offer exactly the same financial considerations and rights. This isn't only related to the cash amount but also advertising and television rights, the marina as well as the commercial exploitation of the entire America's Cup complex.
No matter how you do the math, it is impossible to justify the 50 million for a race between two boats that will not last more than a week while a regatta involving up to 10 teams and lasting almost two years is valued at only twice that amount. If Ernesto Bertarelli, Alinghi's owner, gets that deal, then he's a hell of a negotiator. -- Pierre Orphanidis,
valenciasailing.blogspot.com
* The Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court has set a date of June 5, 2008 at 14:00 to hear oral arguments following the submission of briefings by America's Cup Defender Societe Nautique de Geneve (SNG) on April 21, 2008 and Challenger Golden Gate Yacht Club (GGYC) on April 22, 2008.
VOR Singapore Stopover Puts Rob Turnbull in Charge
One15 Singapore Ocean Race Pte Ltd, the company set up to promote and organise the inaugural Singapore Stopover of the Volvo Ocean Race 2008-2009, has appointed Rob Turnbull as Chief Operating Officer (COO).
As the COO, Mr Turnbull will be in charge of directing and managing operations for the Singapore Stopover including sponsorship, marketing and public relations. The Singapore Stopover will represent the first time that the race has visited South East Asia, and One°15 Marina Club on Sentosa Island will host the yachts. Mr Turnbull will work closely with Volvo Events Management United Kingdom, the global organiser of the Volvo Ocean Race, and competing teams to ensure a successful stopover leg.
A 19-year veteran in the sports events industry, he has managed projects in New Zealand, the Americas, South Africa and Asia. In Singapore, he was the Tournament Director for the Lexus Cup 2005 and the Standard Chartered Singapore Sevens 2006. Most notably, his credentials in sailing includes stints as Event Manager for the Whitbread Round-the-World Yacht Race in 1993-1994 and 1989-1990 when he was responsible for international stopovers and sponsorship management. The Whitbread Round-the-World Yacht Race was renamed the Volvo Ocean Race following the Swedish automaker's title sponsorship of the 2001-2002 series.
www.sail-world.com/indexs.cfm?nid=43912
* Fulford PR added the Volvo Ocean Race to its sports PR portfolio in a deal with the organisers of the 4th leg of the world's most challenging yacht race, ONE15 Singapore Ocean Race Pte Ltd.
The agency has provided PR support for marquee events such as the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon, Lexus Cup, HSBC Women's Champions and for the upcoming 2008 Formula l SingTel Singapore Grand Prix, will provide publicity and communication support to promote the race in Singapore.
www.sportbusiness.com/news/166603/fulford-pr-sets-sail-with-the-volvo-ocean-race
Heroes Gather In Scarlino
The final international Finn class championship prior to the Olympic regatta later this summer is due to take place at Scarlino in Italy this week, from May 2-10. Despite most countries having already finalised their trials for China, there are 93 pre-entries from 30 countries. As is traditional the event also features the Junior European Championship and this year the growth of the junior fleet continues with 19 sailors from 11 countries taking part, including many new faces. The line up also includes a growing number of new sailors finding their footing in the Finn class with an encouraging four entries apiece from Serbia and Ukraine and five from Russia.
The racing is being hosted by the Club Nautico Scarlino. This modern club is located in the La Marina di Scarlino, a brand new marina in the Gulf of Follonica, Maremma, Tuscany. This venue is about half way between Rome and Pisa on Italy's western coastline. The course area for the championship is within spitting distance of the famous Bonaparte retreat, Elba, but the sailors will not be thinking about taking prisoners this year, but rather looking to stamp their authority at a crucial point in the campaign for gold in China.
In the final medal race of the Gold Cup earlier this year in Melbourne, Ben Ainslie (GBR) had the unusual pleasure of having to actually race in order to win the series. In doing so he narrowly beat Dan Slater (NZL) to take his fifth Finn world title, the first person ever to do so. A few weeks later it was back to business as normal though after he had wrapped up the Princess Sofia Regatta before the final race. Having skipped Hyeres, Ainslie will be looking to take yet another title in Italy and further demoralise his fellow sailors. However to do that he will have a hard battle ahead, and I would venture again to say that it is not a foregone conclusion. Although Ainslie is the obvious choice for headline material, there are plenty of others with hatchets in hand ready to knock the Brit off the top spot. There are many possible contenders.
The practice race is scheduled for Monday 4th May at 14.30, with the first points race the following day at 12.00. An eight race opening series is planned with up to two races each day and a medal race for the top ten and a final race for the rest on Saturday 10th May. -- Robert Deaves
www.finnclass.org
www.eurofinn2008.it
Letters To The Editor
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Letters are limited to 350 words. No personal attacks are permitted. We do require your name but your email address will not be published without your permission.
* From Eric Hall: I realize that the owner of Joe Fly is disappointed, but he's barking (mad?) up the wrong tree when he impugns Tom Ehman. When it comes to running regattas or jury participation, his reputation for fairness and impartiality is impeccable.
* From the RORC Rating Office: Are you intending to race at ACCBank Cork Week 2008?
If so, and you are racing in an IRC class (except the Gentleman's Class) you will require an ENDORSED 2008 IRC certificate to be eligible to race.
An 'Endorsed' IRC certificate is one for which the data on the certificate has been audited and if necessary verified by measurement or other methods. The 2005 IRC Congress agreed that a set of common standards for the IRC Rating Authority and Rule Authorities to apply when endorsing a boat's IRC certificate should be developed and published: these are available on our website www.rorcrating.com
If you do not yet hold a 2008 certificate you will need to submit a revalidation form to renew a 2006 or 2007 certificate; or a new application form which is available on our website www.rorcrating.com . These must be returned to the relevant office (see below).
If you do not already hold an Endorsed certificate, please contact the relevant office AS SOON AS POSSIBLE to find out about requirements for Endorsement:
GBR boats : the RORC Rating Office tel 01590 677030 e-mail
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IRL boats : the Irish Sailing Association tel 01 2710101 e-mail
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Other overseas boats : your local IRC Rule Authority as listed on our website www.rorcrating.com and in the back of the 2008 IRC Yearbook.
Please pass this message on to any other owners who you know are intending to race at ACCBank Cork Week.
Boats racing in the Gentleman's Class or the Corporate Class do not require Endorsement.
Featured Brokerage
1978 Hydro 28 Special, 15,000 GBP, Located in Strangford Lough, United Kingdom
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Complete listing details and seller contact information at
uk.yachtworld.com/core/listing/boatFullDetails.jsp?boat_id=1881625
Editor's Note
We're celebrating our 1500th issue tonight, another trivial, pathetic excuse for a self-congratulatory 'wee dram' of single malt (a lightly peated one called 3D from Bruichladdich, absolutely delicious, perfect for a lapsed Laphroaig drinker...). One thing of note for our more tech-savvy readers: we've updated/improved the RSS feeds available for subscription at scuttlebutteurope.com . They now include full HTML formatting and images. One more way to get your Eurobutt...
The Last Word
Laughter is the valve on the pressure cooker of life. Either you laugh and suffer, or you got your beans or brains on the ceiling. -- Wavy Gravy
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