Around the World of Sailing

5 June 2002

Event News: College Nationals
Available on line at:
http://www.torresen.com/news/atwos/2002/ju/0605/ms.htm

....Old Dominion was the winner of the first of three
collegiate championship regatta, the women's dinghy
championships. By the 4th and 5th races on Day 1 the
Monarchs established a lead. They scored a pair of 2nds in
A Division and won both B division races. Meanwhile Yale
which led after dropped back fast going from a 1 point lead
to a 15 deficit due to 1 pair of bad races. The second day
saw ODU lead by 27 points. Old Dominion continued their
strong sailing to the end with defending champion Hawaii
closing in, but falling 9 points short in 2nd. St. Mary's
was a solid 3rd.

Old Dominion skipper Sally Barkow '02/ with crew Cara
Gibbons-Neff/Debbie Capozzi won A division by 19 points.
They scored no finishes lower than 7th.

Emma Lichtenstein of Brown with Marisa Ihara and Louise
Sherman were the winners in B division. Brown's due narrowly
held of Yale's B division skippered by Julie Papanek.

Next up was the co-ed Team Race Championship. Georgetown
and Harvard got off to 5-0 starts on day 1. Day 2 saw these
undefeated teams match up. Harvard's 3 boats scored a
winning combination of 1-3-6 (10 points) while Georgetown's
finishes were 2-4-5 (11 points). From this victory Harvard
carried on and completed the regatta undefeated at 17-0.

However when the top 4 teams sailed a final round against
each other Georgetown lost twice to Harvard and Tufts. This
moved Tufst to second place with a 13-4 record and left
Georgetown 3rd at 12-5. College of Charleston ended up 4th
with a record of 8-9.

Beginning today 18 teams will sail the co-ed Dinghy
championships in Flying Juniors. Tufts the defending
champion is entered and is ranked 8th. Ahead of Tufts in
the rankings and also participating are: Old Dominion,
Harvard, Dartmouth, St. Mary's, Boston College and
Charleston.

Links:
Women's Dinghy Championships
http://www.collegesailing.org/2002/women.htm
Team Race Championship
http://www.collegesailing.org/2002/team.htm
Old Dominions Sailing
http://odusports.fansonly.com/sports/c-sail/
Hawaii Sailing
http://www.collegesailing.org/2002/women.htm
St. Mary's Sailing
http://www.collegesailing.org/2002/women.htm
Harvard Sailing
http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~sailing/
Georgetown Sailing
http://www.guhoyas.com/sports/c-sail/gu-c-sail-body.html
College of Charleston
http://cougars.cofc.edu/coed/sailing/

Theme Article: Anchoring- Types Part I
http://www.torresen.com/news/atwos/2002/ju/0605/ms.htm

This month's theme series topic is anchoring. The four
parts will be arranged as follows: anchor types part 1,
anchor types part 2, rhodes and technique.

Below is the first installment of anchor types.
Considerations when purchasing an anchor include: type of
bottom in your area (sand, rock etc.), retrieval system (do
you have a windlass), and stowage for instance on an on deck
roller or below?

Type: Traditional Anchor/Danforth Type.
Comments: Tapered shanks, 2 flukes, Rounded edges for easy
handling. Sets reliably in sand and mud, limited in rocky or
clay bottoms.
Example: http://www.rule-industries.com/anchor.htm

Type: Fortress Anchor
Comments: Aluminum, lightweight. Adjustable shank, Weight
saving, can adjust for sand or mud. Disassembles for
storage. Popular with racing boats
Example:
http://www.fortressanchors.com/FortressSite/heARTwork/Master
Frame.html

Type: CQR Anchor
Comments: Hinged Shank for consistent setting. Works well
with anchor roller. Good all around anchor will hook rocks.
Requires larger, bulkier anchor for given boat size.
Example: http://www.lewmar.com/webcat/features/anchors.html

Type: Delta Fast Set
Comments: Self Launching. Good with windlasses. Bit high
priced.
Example: http://www.lewmar.com/webcat/features/anchors.html

Event News: Volvo Ocean Race secure into future
Available on line at:
http://www.torresen.com/news/atwos/2002/ju/0605/ms.htm

Illbruck rounds Ushant on leg 8 of the Volvo Ocean Race.
Credit: ©Rick Tomlinson

This edition of the Volvo Ocean Race has but one leg to go.
A 275-mile spring to Kiel Germany will likely make
illbruck's victory official, leave Assa Abloy in 2nd and
will allow one of three other boats to end up 3rd.

49ER SAILING IN GOTEBORG OF THE AMER ONE AND TOO SKIPPERS AND CREW MEMBERS. CHRIS NICHOLSON AND CREW
Credit: © Guido Cantini/ SEA&SEE

It was announced yesterday in Sweden that Volvo will
continue to sponsor the race with the next edition scheduled
for autumn of 2005. Neither the type of boats, nor the
route and stopovers will be announced until Spring of 2003.
Those factors along with sails will be analyzed in order to
make the next race less expensive. It is also possible that
during stopovers in the next race around the buoys racing
will be held. These races would count in the standings and
move the race farther away from its long distance ocean
racing heritage.

49ER SAILING IN GOTEBORG Amer Too skipper LISA gets a hand from husband NEIL MCDONALD skipper of Assa Abloy
Credit: © Guido Cantini/ SEA&SEE

The final leg is scheduled to start Saturday and finish the
next day in Germany another new country for the race. Crews
may have seen the last of actually sleeping in their bunks
on board. Next week we'll know the final order of things.
That it has taken this long to settle the regatta is a
compliment to the teams.

Knut Frostad's posture sums up Djuice's program

Links:
Announcement
http://www.volvooceanrace.com/news/leg_8/020606_volvoannounce.html
Women Sound Off
http://www.yachtracing.com/richroberts/leg8-women.html
VOR in Germany
http://www.volvooceanrace.com/port/calendar/kiel.html
VOR Band
http://dragons.djuice.com/web/index.do?a=goNews&s=_Category&i=/content/en/news/articles/102471023269990_N.xml&p=newsjambean
German Weather Info
http://www.wetterzentrale.de/

News: Boat Smart
Available on line at:
http://www.torresen.com/news/atwos/2002/ju/0605/ms.htm

Boat Smart is a weekly column written by Chief Tom Rau,
Group Grand Haven, U.S. Coast Guard and appears in a number
of newspapers. Chief Rau has been writing and promoting safe
boating since 1986. Many of his columns are taken from real
life experiences from Station St. Joseph/South Haven, where
Chief Rau is currently serving.

Coast Guardsman survives cold-water encounter

Warm winds blowing across Lake Michigan waters and adjoining
lakes often finds cold water flowing beneath the surface.
Spring and fall especially can find this insidious danger at
play, and those foolish enough to be lured into letting
their guard down might learn from Coast Guardsman, Allan
Grundhoffer, of Motor Life Boat Station, St. Ignace.

Near record high temperatures in mid April drew Grundhoffer,
out into Lake Michigan. After launching his 14-foot sail
boat, he set sail from Coast Guard Station Saint Ignace and
headed out towards the Straits of Mackinac. Moments after
launching, he realized that the stiff summer-like breeze
offered more challenge than his limited sailing experiences
could handle. Concerned, he prepared to come about and head
back for shore. A sudden wind gust caught his sail knocking
the small rig over, pitching him into the icy lake.

"It was as if someone slapped me in the face," said
Grudhoffer, after hitting the 35-degree water wearing only a
tank top and shorts. He struggled to re-right the sail boat
in the stiff breeze but to no avail. His portable marine
radio had spilled overboard during the knockdown and there
were no other boats in the area. Removing his red tank top,
he began waving it over his head to draw attention. He had
the presence of mind to stay with the boat, however, he was
not wearing a lifejacket.

Fortunately for him the Coast Guard Cutter Acacia, a
180-foot buoy tender, was backing down as it prepared to
moor at St. Ignace Station. A seaman, standing in the
Acacia's pilot house spotted the sail boat. He sounded the
alarm. Within moments, those on Acacia's bridge watched St.
Ignace's 23-foot rescue boat kicking up spray as it pounded
through choppy seas towards the sail boat.

Unbeknown to the boat crew it was one of their own they were
about to save. From the time Grundhoffer hit the water, to
the time his mates pulled him aboard, 15 minutes had lapsed.
During that short time span his core body temperature had
plummeted to 92 degrees, dangerously nearing comatose
conditions.

Some reading this may wonder how this could happen to a
trained Coast Guardsman, especially one trained aboard Coast
Guard rescue craft where safety is stressed and drilled
almost to a fault. In all fairness to Grundhoffer, I view
this faux pas not as an indictment against his training, but
more so an indictment against Lake Michigan and its
beguiling lure when warm winds blow and cold water flows.
Hey, he's a twenty-two year old lad who is the first to
admit the lake snookered him. Speaking from personal
experience, he's certainly not the first to be hood winked
by Lake Michigan nor will he be the last- unfortunately.

Before releasing this piece, I contacted Grundhoffer's
Officer in Charge, Senior Chief Eric Schmidt, of the St.
Ignace Motor Lifeboat Station for release approval. "By all
means," he said. "Petty Officer Grundhoffer knows he
demonstrated poor judgment, but he owned up to it and hopes
that others might learn."

I've spent 28-years in this organization and it's the
integrity and candidness of Senior Chief Schmidt and Petty
Officer Grundhoffer that makes me stand tall.

Lets look at some cold hard facts regarding cold water
immersion that may send chills up your spine.

* Body heat loss in cold water can occur 25 times faster
than in cold air.

* Initial contact with cold water will rip the breath from
your lungs. You will gasp for air or breathe rapidly due to
cold-induced shock to the respiratory system. Muscles
tighten and shivering increases in an automatic reflex to
produce more body heat. Some liken it to a total full-body
muscle cramp with no relief.

* Those with a positive attitude will most likely survive
longer, if- and I stress the if- they are wearing a
lifejacket.

This old senior chief and fellow Senior Chief Eric Schmidt
recommend the following procedures for cold-water immersion
survival.

* Wear a life jacket at all times. Mark my words- this
advice comes from seasoned chiefs who have sadly too often
dealt with the gruesome aftermath of victims that have
drowned.

* At the first sign of trouble, radio for help or fire off a
flare. Don't wait until the lake has you by the ice cubes.

* Wear several layers of clothing to reduce body heat loss.
Protect the groin, neck, torso, and especially the head.

* If you must enter the water, do so slowly to reduce
respiratory/cardiac shock and to avoid swallowing water.
That's easier said than done. During drills, even though I
prepared to deal with the pain it still jolted me. I
couldn't imagine the shock and dismay of unexpectedly
landing in the water.

* Do not attempt to swim except to reach nearby craft.
Beware the drift rate of small boats can exhaust even
good-swimmers, making them short work for the Lake. More
than once, I've hopelessly searched for the bodies of
so-called-good swimmers, much too often to no avail. I
liken aggressive swimming in cold water to trying to out
swim a shark- you won't.

* If more than one unfortunate soul finds themselves in cold
water, huddle together and pull legs up toward chest with
arms tight against sides. Of course, this maneuver is only
possible if you're wearing a life jacket.

And that's the bottom line to cold water survival, wearing a
lifejacket. Coast Guardsman, Allan Grundhoffer will be the
first to tell you so and he feels darn lucky to be alive to
do so. Boat Smart- follow his hard-earned advice.

Links:
Boat Smart
http://www.boatsmart.net/
Water Temps
http://www.coastwatch.msu.edu/twomichigans.html