Around The World Of Sailing

Orange II News

After the 24 h record smashed last August, (706.20 miles covered at an average of 29.42 knots) and the new Mediterranean record set last week in 17h 56mn and 33s (an average of 25.53 knots reaching up to more than 41 knots), the Orange II maxi-catamaran has confirmed all her potential. It is time now to get her ready for the next legs of the programme, which begin with some celebrations in Marseilles.

The giant Orange II will indeed be present this weekend, on the sidelines during the Marseilles Provence Multihull Grand Prix and several well known sporting figures, such as Alain Prost, 4 times Formula 1 world champion, Laure Manaudou, recent swimming gold medallist in the Athens Olympics, as well as several OM players.

As early as next week, the giant will leave her homeport in Marseilles to head for her technical base in Lorient, where she will be prepared for a new attempt at setting the Jules Verne this Winter...

A look back at a speedy record
The superlatives simply pour out of Bruno Peyron's mouth, when he talks about his most recent record in the Med : "It was great from a personal and sporting point of view. It was violent, intense, pure speed with an exceptional boat and an exceptional crew. The wind and sea conditions were perfect, the light was splendid, and everything came together... The beauty during those moments at sea is partly linked to the performance of the men on board and partly to the machine. They are simple, Epicurean pleasures to savour at every moment, in spite of the tiredness. The way it is done is also important. You have to manage to push the boat even faster in difficult wind and sea conditions, to make it go forward more and more. We regained our confidence in this boat, which had given us a few worries before. It was the first time we had sailed with one of the new rudders, and that considerably improved keeping the boat on track, at high speed. The second rudder will be fitted here in Marseilles, so we can use it on our way back up the Atlantic next week".

A few scares on board...
The crossing was quick, but not without a few scares. Bruno Peyron: "In fact, we came smashing down three times fairly violently, but paradoxically, it was less dramatic than on the previous Orange, which could be slowed right down from 35 knots to 15 knots. With Orange II, we go now from 30 knots down to 20 knots. The braking is less violent, as the boat forces its way into the wave. The second scare was more intense: we swung right around in a 35-knot wind. We were forced to shake out the mainsail very quickly, which caused the sheets to come out of the pulleys. Then, we had to repair the damage climbing out the boom with 40-knot gusts, which is quite dangerous..."

A versatile crew
"...It should be pointed out that this record was achieved with a few from the technical staff, as some of the racing team were out on Grand Prix events. I'm very attached to this feature of our team, when we sail as often as possible with those, who would normally be back on dry land, and it certainly seems to pay off, as everyone did their job magnificently. For the Jules Verne, we will look particularly closely at the quality of the helmsmen. When you know that at high speeds the difference between a good and excellent helmsman can mean 4-5 knots extra speed, it makes quite a difference when you add up all the miles to the finish. I shall therefore be drawing up a team with at least 6 very talented helmsmen (two in each watch)".

Alain Prost and Laure Manaudou as guest stars this weekend
We were lucky to achieve the Mediterranean record within a week of our arrival in Marseilles. That allows us to continue with the programme of events as planned. We shall be on the sidelines of the Multihull Grand Prix in Marseilles this weekend with our partners and guests, and it should be a great event. I'll have the pleasure of handing over the helm of Orange II to Alain Prost and Laure Manaudou, and to several players from the Olympique de Marseilles football club, who will be on board on Sunday".

Preparation details...
"We'll be setting out from Marseilles next week and back in our technical base in Lorient, with the aim of being in dry dock between the 15th and 20th October for a complete check up. We remain very realistic and cautious about the next stages of the programme, as our records were set on short distances. For the next bit, things are very different. The boat was built to smash all the different ocean records. Clearly, these last few weeks have shown that we have the right equipment to carry out this wager successfully. She seems to be fully reliable, but we must not get carried away, as even if we our confidence has been building, you must keep a clear head to avoid making any stupid mistakes. So we really have to keep an eye on that from now on, as the forthcoming overhaul is a complete one, and we will have to take everything apart, then put it back together again, which is a long meticulous piece of work to get the boat ready (rigging, paintwork, sails, chandlery,... ), then there will be a test sail to check everything is working and get the crew ready for the big trip around the world".

Orange II during the Trans Med Record
Photo: Gilles Martin Raget

Moloney Prepares and Prepares

IN BRIEF

* SKANDIA UNDERGOES FINAL CHECKS AHEAD OF DEPARTURE FOR VENDEE GLOBE START PORT...

* DECREASING DAYLIGHT HOURS IN THE NORTHERN HEMISPHERE BUT THE SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE OFFERS MORE DAYLIGHT ALBEIT IN ONE OF THE WORLD'S MOST INHOSPITABLE REGIONS...

* THE VENDEE GLOBE WEATHER (PART 2) : THE SOUTHERN OCEAN...

* 38 DAYS TO THE START...

http://www.nickmoloney.com/skandia

IN DETAIL

They say everything about long-haul, offshore racing is in the preparation and over the last week Nick's Open 60 Skandia has gone through some further final checks. "It is so important to check everything, then check it again and again and again," said Skandia skipper, Nick. "One of the greatest threats to me fulfilling this Vendée goal is gear failure - I have to totally trust my shore team in this because they are the ones making all the final checks. Every rigging pin, every seal, no detail is too small to be overlooked." To this end, Skandia was lifted out of the water for a full antifoul of hull, keel and rudder. The new sails have all been back to North Sails in France for a full check and returned to Skandia at her Cowes base by Bruno Dubois. A final rig check will be carried out by Marco Lefebvre from V1D2 and a final B&G autopilot and instrument check will be carried by Alan Davies. Once these are completed Skandia will be packed for delivery to Les Sables d'Olonne for the October 16th deadline to be in the race village.

With only 38 days to the start of the solo, non-stop Vendée Globe race, autumn in the Northern Hemisphere marches on and darkness closes in earlier and earlier, leaving for work in darkness and arriving home in darkness will soon become the norm... Nick, on the other hand, will be able to look forward to comparatively more daylight hours as he races Skandia through the Southern Ocean this winter where there is on average only 5 hours of darkness per day, however he will be enduring one of the world's most inhospitable environments. The first Albatross sighting is a sure sign of arrival in the Southern Ocean - these birds are the legendary protectors of seafarers and seen in full flight are truly spectacular. Although a welcome sight, these majestic birds are an indication of the solitude that lay ahead in freezing and dangerous conditions. The Vendée Globe sailor will spend approximately 35 days between rounding the Cape of Good Hope at the tip of South Africa and rounding Cape Horn at the tip of South America. For Nick, his arrival at Cape Horn is likely to be around the 64 day mark - the same amount of time it took him and the crew of the 110' catamaran, Orange, to circumnavigate the globe for the Jules Verne Trophy.

The greatest threat to the safety of the solo skippers in the Southern Ocean is ice. The big 'bergs' are picked up on the boat's radar and are easier to spot, although in pitch darkness, hurtling along at speed, it is still a frightening experience for any skipper. But it is the small 'growlers' - small segments of ice, sheared off from the icebergs, that float nearly totally submerged, that pose the biggest threat. Struck at speed, these growlers can pierce a hull. The Vendée Globe race organisers will decide on obligatory waypoints to keep the fleet from traveling too far south to reduce the threat of high iceberg activity. However, this will not eradicate the dangers...many skippers in the last Vendée Globe 2000-01 encountered ice and Ellen MacArthur racing Kingfisher (now Skandia) saw 10 icebergs in one day at 57 degrees south.

THE WEATHER (PART 2)

Southern Hemisphere

Into the Southern Hemisphere and all weather circulation systems turn the opposite way to the Northern Hemisphere. Boats look to position themselves onto the front side of the low-pressure zones that run ceaselessly around the planet, so that they experience downwind conditions and fast sailing all the way. The fleet will be aiming to sail as far south as possible to shorten the distance sailed, whilst respecting the obligatory waypoints (imaginary positions that help keep boats away from dangerous iceberg territory). Sailing too far south, however, and boats may get to the south side of the low-pressure centres which would mean upwind sailing, making slow and dangerous progress.

Southern Ocean

The weather encountered in the Southern Ocean is truly the toughest weather that any sailor will ever encounter anywhere. It is cold, often well below freezing, it is windy, often with hurricane force winds, it is rough with a constant ocean swell that can deliver 'rollers' (waves) over 12 meters high. There is no shelter anywhere and as each depression passes over another one is preparing behind. The fleet will spend about five weeks sailing in these conditions, which take a terrible toll on skipper and equipment. Careful positioning of the boat, however, will mean that the favourable winds will be encountered first and for longer and so great distances will be sailed and large gaps either made or reduced by the wise.

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Spirit of Canada Build Begins

Construction has begun on Canada’s entry in the 5-Oceans Challenge, one of the sailing world’s most grueling and prestigious racing events. Spirit of Canada Ocean Challenges today announced the laying of the keel of the new Open 60 "Spirit of Canada". The boat will be built in Canada as part of this country’s entry into the 5-Oceans Challenge solo boating race in 2006-07.

"Today is the first stage in our bid for victory," says Derek Hatfield, Skipper of the new Spirit of Canada. "The Spirit of Canada team, its sponsors and grass roots supporters have worked very hard to make this day happen, and this keel laying ceremony is the first step in building what will be one of the most sophisticated boats of its kind, anywhere."

Years ago, when ships were made of wood, the laying of the keel - the long timber forming the ship’s "backbone" - was the first step in building a new vessel. The current ceremony maintains the tradition, but has been modified to take into consideration updates in materials, technology, and techniques.

The Spirit of Canada Open 60 will require 18,000 hours of labour, and feature cutting-edge materials and technology, including global satellite communications and Kevlar honeycomb hull material previously used only in aerospace design. The highly technical canting keel mechanism, which includes the keel fin and lead bulb, will be built with materials and labor donated by various Canadian sponsors.

Sorel Forge of Sorel, Quebec, supplied the specialized steel for the keel fin. Tycos Tool & Die, a Division of Decoma International, has started the milling of the keel fin; using its CNC cutting expertise. Another Canadian company, Mars Metal Company, Burlington, Ontario will be casting the 2730 kg. (6000 lb.) lead bulb for the fin bottom.

Last January, Hatfield announced that he would build a new Open 60 Spirit of Canada sailboat for the next race around the world. Spirit of Canada is Canada’s entry in the 5-Oceans Single Handed Round the World Race in 2006. Hatfield will be at the helm of the new boat but not alone. He has received unprecedented support from thousands of individuals and hundreds of companies.

Busy Shipping Day in Muskegon

The Flintersky 2nd Saltie to visit Muskegon this week

Cargo is transported from Muskegon to Port Sheldon by Barge

The JAW Iglehart peaks out from the Lafarge dock

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The saltie Flintersky at a busy West Michigan Mart Dock on Tuesday

Boating Websites Acquired

Trader Publishing Company announced today that it had acquired the market leading websites boats.com and YachtWorld.com. This acquisition brings under Trader’s umbrella the global marine industries’ largest group of independently operated databases of boats for sale. Terms of the acquisition were not announced.

“We are very excited about the new opportunity that Trader brings boats.com and YachtWorld.com," said James Nolan, spokesperson for boats.com, Inc. "Their recognition and acquisition of our market leadership position will enable both companies to continue our charter to provide new ways for the professional marine industry to sell more products while providing the personal service that our clients have come to expect from us.”

Nick Petsos, General Manager of TraderOnline.com, said “Acquiring these successful on-line products and service businesses gives us a tremendous opportunity to increase the value we provide to the professional marine community. The unique character of YachtWorld.com allows us to invest in expanding and enhancing the services provided to the brokerage community, while the leadership position of boats.com and its relationships with its boat builder and dealer customer base will enable us to deliver more services to the new boat industry.”

Petsos added that “In keeping with Trader business practices, there will be no disruption in operations or changes in service to boats.com and YachtWorld.com; the properties will continue to operate with autonomy and serve the needs of their customers who rely on them.”

Lloyd Phoenix Trophy

After three days of racing at the U.S. Offshore Championship hosted by Long Beach Yacht Club in California, it ultimately boiled down to a duel between Marc Eagan (Metairie, La.) and Aaron Houston (Chicago, IL) to determine the winner. In the end, Eagan’s consistent placing in the top four every race throughout the regatta earned him the National Champion title and US SAILING’s Lloyd Phoenix Trophy. The
U.S. Naval Academy’s team (Annapolis, Md.) demonstrated a consistent
performance throughout the Championship sailed in Catalina 37s, taking home third place. Rolex Watch U.S.A. sponsors this and all other US SAILING Adult National Championships.

Joining Eagan on the winning boat were Stephen Murray, Jr. (New Orleans, La.), Quinn Eagan (New Orleans, La.), Jeff Hampton III (Metairie, La.), Karl Schutte (New Orleans, La.), Tim Molony (Metairie, La.), and Charles Thompson(New Orleans, La).

On the first day of the U.S. Offshore Championship, two races were completed in good breezes, averaging 12 ­18 knots with long inshore courses. On the second day, Saturday, the winds moderated for the longer offshore course.

The final day of the regatta, Sunday, began light, with the first race of the day having to be shortened. Luckily the breeze filled in for the last race. This was the first year that a team from Hawaii participated in the U.S. Offshore Championship.

For complete results and photos of the U.S. Offshore Championship, please visit www.ussailing.org/championships/lloyd.

A total of 11 teams competed in this year’s Championship, including a team from the U.S. Naval Academy. The U.S. Offshore Championship is a fleet racing competition in offshore keelboats on a closed course, except for one long-distance race. Teams representing each of the US SAILING Areas are seeded through Area eliminations or by sailing resume. Each team must have competed in at least five regattas in IOR, IMS, PHRF, MORC or Portsmouth Numbers rating systems in its respective Area during the current season. Since 1994, racing has alternated between the Naval Academy in the Navy 44s and Long Beach Yacht Club in Catalina 37s.

News of Trafalgar

A RECREATION OF THE DELIVERY OF THE TRAFALGAR DISPATCH FROM CAPE TRAFALGAR TO THE ADMIRALTY IN LONDON IN 1805

A new Dispatch is being prepared, based on contemporary quotations, which will reflect the courage and humanity of those involved in the battle on both sides and recognize the brotherhood of the sea that exists between all seamen.

Copies of the New Dispatch in Spanish and French will be formally taken on board the Sail Training Ship, the Lord Nelson during the International Festival of the Sea at Portsmouth (1st–3rd July 2005). The crew of the Lord Nelson will comprise 50% disabled people and include Spanish and French representatives. She will sail in succession for Cadiz and Brest, where presentations of the New Dispatch will be made by representatives of the Royal Navy to those of the Spanish and French Navies.

The Lord Nelson will then sail for Falmouth, where the original Trafalgar Dispatch was brought ashore by Lieutenant Lapenotiere on 4th November 1805 at the end of a voyage in HM Schooner Pickle from the British Fleet off Cape Trafalgar. A reception will be held in the National Maritime Museum Cornwall on 4th August 2005, and exemplars of the New Dispatch will be brought ashore for presentation to the County of Cornwall and the town of Falmouth.

A newly built post chaise will then leave Falmouth for London, emulating the drive by post chaise of Lieutenant Lapenotiere in 1805. The post chaise will follow Lapenotieres 1805 route, with New Dispatch presentations being made by young Naval Officers to the seven counties and many towns along the route. County Committees have been set up to organize local events, such as concerts, Royal Marine band displays, reenactments, lectures and firework displays.

In Wiltshire there will be a formal presentation of the New Dispatch to representatives of Northumberland, in recognition of Vice-Admiral Collingwood, a Northumbrian and Lord Nelson’s successor in command of the British Fleet. It was Admiral Collingwood’s Dispatch that Lapenotiere was conveying to the Admiralty in London.

Also in Wiltshire there will be a Trafalgar Ball at Trafalgar Park, near Salisbury, the home of the Nelson family in the years after Trafalgar. In Surrey, the Earl and Countess of Wessex have agreed to a reception being held at Bagshot Park on the arrival of the post chaise when a Dispatch presentation to a County representative will be made. This will be followed by a concert of maritime music.

The post chaise will arrive at the Admiralty Building in Whitehall on 10th September, where Admiral Collingwood’s original dispatch was delivered on 6th November 1805. A young Naval Officer will then deliver the New Trafalgar Dispatch to the successor to William Marsden, the Secretary to the Navy, who received the original document in 1805. He will then hand it to the First Sea Lord, to represent Lord Barham, the First Lord who received it from William Marsden in 1805. Further Dispatch presentations are then planned in Central London and details will be released in due course. An exemplar of the New Trafalgar Dispatch will also be carried in the shallop The Jubilant from Greenwich to Westminster to lead The Thames Nelson Flotilla on 16th September.

The New Trafalgar Dispatch is one of the principal events of the Trafalgar Festival, which itself forms the core of SeaBritain 2005 (see below). Other major Trafalgar Festival events include: An International fleet Review at Spithead involving ships from over 40 nations; a Drumhead Ceremony at Southsea Common; a Son et Lumiere in the Solent; An International Festival of the Sea at Portsmouth; a National Trafalgar Weekend in October, and The Thames Nelson Flotilla.

SeaBritain2005 is a year-long series of events and festivals on the theme of Britain and the sea. SeaBritain2005 was instigated and is managed by The National Maritime Museum, Greenwich jointly with Visit Britain, and a large number of national and regional partner organizations. These include the Official Nelson Commemorations Committee (ONCC), The National Trust, the BBC, the Royal Navy, the Chamber of Shipping, The Royal Yachting Association, SeaVision UK, Trinity House and the Department of Media Culture and Sport. For further information, visit www.seabritain2005.com

Wellington Added to VOR Route

Glenn Bourke, CEO of the Volvo Ocean Race, joined Mayor Kerry Prendergast, Wellington City Council, and Stephen Moir, Commodore of the Royal Port Nicholson Yacht Club (RPNYC), to announce that New Zealand’s capital city, Wellington, will host a pit stop for the Volvo Ocean Race from 17 - 19 February 2006. Although the event has a long association with New Zealand, this will be the first time that the race has visited Wellington.

The Volvo fleet will race from Melbourne in the third leg of the event, arriving in Wellington for a pit stop of between 24 and 48 hours. The fourth leg of the race to Rio de Janeiro, will be a fleet restart on either February 18 or 19, depending on the time of arrival in Wellington.

The only other scheduled pit stop during the 2005-06 race will be New York in May 2006. The pit stop concept was first introduced to the Volvo Ocean Race in Hobart during the 2001-02 event when the fleet took part in the gruelling Sydney to Hobart yacht race.

“This is the world’s premier ocean race and Wellington has one of the most exciting positions geographically for ocean racing. Hosting the Volvo Ocean Race fleet here is confirmation of that ­ it literally puts us on the global ocean racing map,” said Mr Moir.

Glenn Bourke added, “It’s great to be including Wellington as a new port to the Volvo Ocean Race itinerary, and it will be a pleasure to bring the competition to such an event-friendly city. The Volvo Ocean Race has always been well supported by New Zealanders and we are very pleased to have the first pit stop of the event in the southern hemisphere.”

Wellington Mayor, Kerry Prendergast, said the event would bring global media attention to Wellington. “The international media coverage that this event attracts will be fantastic for Wellington’s global profile. Wellington is now building a reputation as an ocean racing port of the highest standing and we are looking forward to giving the Volvo Ocean Race a very warm welcome when they arrive.”

Alinghi TV

Team Alinghi, Defender of the America's Cup, will launch a new internet webcast program (broadcast video over the internet) during its current campaign called "Alinghi TV".

The concept will involve an Alinghi specific "TV Schedule", where Alinghi followers and sailing fans worldwide can tune in to watch shows on different aspects of Team Alinghi - from out on the water to life on shore.

"For Acts 2 and 3 in Valencia, which begin October 5, Team Alinghi plan to pilot the concept with a race summary, analysis or interview each day following the racing at 5:30pm GMT+2, explained Bernard Schopfer, Team Alinghi Director of Communications. "Those who miss the live version will be able to view the broadcasts as a replay."

Women's Match Racing Championship

US SAILING’s U.S. Women’s Match Racing Championship will be held later this week in Newport, RI (Sept. 30-Oct. 3). Judging by the list experienced competitors from across the country, this
year’s event promises to be very exciting: the list includes recent
Olympians, members of the US Sailing Team, World Champions, Yachtswomen of the Year, Collegiate All-Americans, just to list a few. New York Yacht Club is the experienced host of the event. Rolex Watch U.S.A. is a proud sponsor of the U.S. Women’s Match Racing Championship.

The winning team of the Championship will be awarded the US SAILING Allegra Knapp Mertz Trophy. New York Yacht Club and the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club recently arranged that the winner of the event will also receive an invitation to the Cicada International Women’s Match Racing Championship, which will be held at the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club next month (October 16-19).

For more information on the U.S. Women’s Match Racing Championship,
including the complete list of competitors and their biographies, please visit www.ussailing.org/championships/women.

Local law enforcement team up with Coast Guard to remove impaired boaters

June 13, 2003. 4:03 a.m.. Coast Guard Group Grand Haven. The Communications Specialist on watch in the Group Operations Center received a call from 911 that a boat had collided with the Grand Haven North Pier. Within minutes, a Coast Guard (CG) 23-foot rescue boat along with a 47-foot motor life boat arrived at the North Pier. There, boat crews discovered an empty 21-foot Bayliner lying alongside the seaward side of the pier.

Meanwhile the Grand Haven police responded from ashore and apprehended three adult males racing down the pier away from the empty boat. Ottawa County marine deputies soon arrived on scene. The young men told marine sheriff deputies that a fourth person, who was operating the boat, went overboard and disappeared when the boat struck the pier, and they were running for help.

The Coast Guard called in air search and rescue and Ottawa County marine divers. What appeared at first to be a law enforcement issue now found search and rescue at the forefront. However, while questioning the young men Ottawa marine deputy Sergeant Kevin Allman detected the odor of alcohol. Smelling a rat, he pointed first to the Coast Guard helicopter overhead, then to the Coast Guard rescue boats searching nearby waters, and finally to marine sheriff divers and said: “See that helicopter, those Coast Guard rescue boats, those marine divers, those police units? If that fourth guy you claim went overboard is bogus, you will be billed for the cost of those assets.”

Two of the young lads sang out like jail birds, confessing to sergeant Allman that the boat operator concocted the story. A background check revealed the operator was facing a possible third alcoholic conviction. Sergeant Allman read him like an oft-read book. That experience, those street smarts, and instant access to state and local law enforcement data are invaluable to the Coast Guard in its efforts to crack down on impaired boaters around Lake Michigan.

During the 2004 boating season Coast Guard boat crews with help from local law enforcement agencies have cited183 impaired boaters around Lake Michigan and with good reason. On June 18, 2004, while operating a 16-foot jet boat at high rate of speed, a 20 year-old male slammed into the Saugatuck North Pier. The accident happened at 5:30 a.m. and in fog; his blood alcohol level was .156. He died on impact. On June 28, 2004 a 28 year-old male backed down a 34-foot power boat onto his 10 year-old nice while she jumped off the stern. She died from prop strike moments later despite the valiant efforts of an off-duty Coast Guardsman to save her life. And on August 7, 2004, just before midnight, an 18-foot Crownline run-about, with five people aboard, slammed into the Muskegon breakwater at 40 mph. The 52-year-old operator suffered neck injuries, his wife fractured ribs and a passenger broke a leg. Both cases involved alcohol.

This is exactly why maritime law enforcement officials team up to remove impaired boat operators. During the 2004 Grand Haven Coast Guard festival, I witnessed firsthand how efficient this law enforcement accord operates. On departing Station Grand Haven, moments before the fireworks began, I watched a Coast Guard boat crew along with an Ottawa County marine boat crew escort a suspected drunk boater to the Coast Guard moorings. The crews handed the boater over to fellow officers on the dock who processed the case while the boat crews returned to the river channel, joining DNR and Coast Guard Auxiliary boats enforcing the fireworks safety zone.

The joint task force had already nabbed four other drunks that evening. If these boaters mistakenly thought that law enforcement units would be too involved in enforcing the fireworks safety zone they received a sobering rebut. Especially considering those arrested and convicted of operating a vessel under the influence could receive local and federal fines. The two-bladed sword can cut deep into a boater’s wallet.

Two boaters recently cited by a Coast Guard Ludington boat crew for operating a water craft under the influence of alcohol could be facing hefty local and federal fines. Coast Guard officials from the Ludington Station along with local police recently removed several boaters off Pentwater Lake, Michigan, after a Coast Guard boat crew observed them ramming their 12-foot boats together as if they were afloat bumper cars. The police hauled them off to jail after they registered a .173 and .263 percent blood alcohol level. “The support we receive from the Pentwater police was outstanding,” said Coast Guard boarding officer Hall who initiated the arrest.

Hopefully, the two men, ages 37 and 43, will appear in court, for if not it could invite additional woes. Local municipal courts will levy bench warrants for those who fail to appear on a boating appearance citation. In the event a motorist is pulled over by a road unit, the officer will check the computer for liens and warrants. Guess what? That person is headed for jail if a boating-related bench warrant flashes on the patrol car’s computer. Many boaters, however, mistakenly believe that water-related citations carry little weight. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Some Michigan state legislators would like to see alcoholic boating citations tagged to motor vehicle records. Neal Nitz, State Representative from Michigan’s 78th district, has introduced House Bill 5191 and 5192 that will link boating under the influence citations to automobile records. Currently the bill resides in the Committee on Criminal Justice. With latest Coast Guard nationwide boating statistics reporting 39-percent of boating fatalities are alcoholic related, one hopes state legislators will take action.

Until maritime state legislation, one way or another, catches up with the motor vehicle codes that have so successfully cracked down on drunken carnage on our highways, the Coast Guard along, with the dedicated efforts of local law enforcement agencies, will continue to team up to keep our waters safe. Join the team. Boat Smart. Boat sober.

Sailor of the Year Candidates

Soon voting will begin for the Torresen Sailing Site Sailor of the year. Past winners have included Mark Reynolds and Emma Richards while the list of past nominees includes Randy Smuth and Hannah Swett.

While the nominees have not been finalized here are sailors under consideration as nominees:

Male:
Ben Ainslie- Finn Gold Medaliist
Michel Desjoyeaux- Winner Solo Transat-trimaran
Mike Golding Winner Solo Transat mono hull
Torben Grael Star Gold Medallist
Steve Fossett Set new outright around the world record
Bruno Peyron- 24 hr. and Trans Med Record

Female:
Shirley Robertson Yngling Gold Medallist
Siren Sundby Europe Gold Medallist
Berkatoru/Tsoulfa Greek 470 Team Gold Medal Winners
Ginny Tulloch College Sailor of the Year
Adriane Cahalan Navigator for Cheyenne's around the world record and Bermuda race winner.

If you have a sailor you want added to these lists email their name and accomplishments for consideration

A Sporting Family

A mostly Australian team travelled to the Canadian Great Lakes and won the Mumm 30 worlds. My memory of this regatta will be about the boats that finished 4th and 8th. Both were named Pegasus and the skippers had the same last name Kahn.

Father Phillip and son Samuel were competing hoping to capitalize on their success in the Melges 24 class. Since both ended up in the Top 10, they succeeded on the water.

It's been suspected that that father/son were more collusive and team race oriented than they might need to be.

This was disproved last week when at a weather mark rounding son Samuel fouled his father. Rather than keep quiet Phillipe protested, his son did a 720 penalty turn ending up 18th in that race.

The daily race report read, "So much for people who say we team-race," Philippe said as darkness descended on the docks. "If it costs him the Worlds, it costs him."

Kudos to the Kahn's for this extremely fine showing of sportsmanship. There's many sailors that are not blood kin that would not have handles this as well.

The Kit Cat

Kit Cat. It appears as though there maybe another chance for the maxi cats to race around the world. The Oryx Quest is scheduled to begin February 2005.

How many boats make the start line is open to question. One may literally be a kit cat. According to the Daily Sail Loick Peyron and Cam Lewis could combine to make 1 big cat out of 2.

Lewis' Team Adventure would provide the mast, rig etc. Peyron would provide the hull etc. in the form of the maxi cat formerly known as Orange/Kingfisher 2. Reason being Team Adventure lacks a bow and Peyron's boat lacks a rig and main. Both are less than fully funded and the February start creates time pressure. The Kit Cat could be the best solution.

Having a Go at the Golden Globe

This Sunday 26th of September Russian Open 85 ft boat “Trading Network Alye Parusa” was baptized in Pendennis Marina by Greek Orthodox Priest Father Nikitous (from Penryn).

This is the fourth sailing boat that Fedor Konyukhov baptized in his life. The first one was in 1990 in Sydney when he baptized his 36 ft “Karaana” on board before his round the world single-handed non stop sailing. In 1993 in Taiwan, he blessed the 56 ft Formosa ketch for his round the world against the wind sailing, in 1998 his Open 60 boat was baptized in Charleston (USA) just before he started in Around Alone 1998-99.

Father Nikitous presented to Fedor Konyukhov boat icon of St. Nicolas and bottle of Holy water which Fedor will carry with him round the world.

National Maritime Museum in Falmouth also gave Fedor Konyukhov several souvenirs that he will carry with him and return back to Museum upon arrival.

The start is scheduled between 15-20th of October – subject to weather conditions. The starting line will be in Falmouth Bay.

Konyukhov will be sailing round the world, non stop, singlehanded on a west to east record attempt on the historic route of Golden Globe 1967 race which was won by Sir Robin Knox Johnston in Suhaili.

New Mark For Orange II

The WSSR Council announces the ratification of a new World Record:

RECORD: Outright Marseilles to Carthage. The "Transmed Record"

Yacht: Orange II. 120ft Catamaran
Sailed by: Bruno Peyron and a crew of 10
Dates: 24th and 25th September 2004
Time: 17 hours 56 minutes 33 seconds
Distance travelled: 458 nm.
Average speed: 25.53 kts.

Linky Sailing News

Racing Prince of Wales Bowl. J24 worlds

News Blind champion. Big cats to go 'round. Lost fingertip. It's in my knapsack

Great Lakes Saltie news. South Haven's ship is in.

College Sailing Yalie qualifies

Prince of Wales Bowl

The weather gods seemed to be on the side of US SAILING and St. Petersburg Yacht Club in Florida last week and the U.S. Match Racing Championship was held as planned, finished just in time before the arrival of Hurricane Jeanne. The team from Seawanhaka Corinthian Yacht Club, with skipper Karl Ziegler (Norwalk, Conn.) and crew
Dean Brenner (Wallingford, Conn.) and Michael Welch (Boston, Mass.) got to take home US SAILING’s Prince Of Wales Bowl after defeating ten other teams at the National Championship.

The winning team got the last flight out of
the area before Hurricane Jeanne arrived. Ziegler is only the third person ever who has won both the U.S. Team Racing and U.S. Match Racing Championships. For Brenner, this is a record fourth U.S. Match Racing Championship title. The U.S. Match Racing Championship is sponsored by Rolex Watch U.S.A. (which sponsors all US SAILING Adult National Championships), as well as by Chubb.

The U.S. Match Racing Championship was raced in the following format: one full 11-team round robin, followed by the top eight teams from that round robin moving into the second round, and then followed by the top four teams from round two competing in semifinals and then a final. Team Seawanhaka Corinthian Yacht Club was 9-1 in the first round robin, 7-0 in the second round robin, and then defeated Southern Yacht Club 2-0 in the semifinals. In the finals, Seawanhaka Corinthian Yacht Club demonstrated great teamwork, both in strategy and sail handling, and had three straight wins against the
San Diego Yacht Club Team of skipper Bill Hardesty (San Diego, Calif.) and crew Jeff Nelson and Brian Bessel. Last year’s winner Nathan Hollerbach and his team from Bayview Yacht Club won two straight against Southern Yacht Club for the third spot.

NWICSA Women's Singlehanded Championship

2004 NWICSA Women's Singlehand Championship
Portland State University
Sept 25-26, 2004

FINAL RESULTS

REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS:

After waiting for wind for several hours on Saturday morning, the breeze filled at about 1:30PM and the women's division was able to complete 5 races in the 5-10 knot southerly. Three more races were finished Sunday morning before the early northerly petered out and shifted hard east. Nine women from four schools competed in the puffy and shifty conditions at the Willamette Sailing Club in Portland, OR, and the fleet was the closest the Northwest has
seen in some years. After the first two races, the top four girls were all tied with five points, and going into the 8th and final race, the top three places were separated by just one point. Congratulations to Hayley Siegenthaler of the University of Washington for her second win in a row at the Northwest Women's Singlehands.

Photos at www.pacificfog.net/photographs/04-09-26-web, courtesy of Sean Trew

women's division = 8 Races
TOT
1. UW Hayley Siegenthaler '07 19
2. UW Elliot Wilson '07 21
3. PSU Anika Olsen '06 22
4. UW Michelle Stitzer '08 27
5. WWU Lisa Marsauden '07 46
6. WWU Jamie Albert '06 48
7. UW Heather Baird '06 54
8. WWU Lynsey Walker '06 58
9. UO Erin Eckerman '05 71

Note: Siegenthaler will be this district's rep. to the National Women's single handed championship.

NWICSA Men's Singlehanded

2004 NWICSA Men's Singlehand Championship
Portland State University
Sept 25-26, 2004

FINAL RESULTS

REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS:

After waiting for wind for several hours on Saturday morning, the breeze filled at about 1:30PM and the men's division was able to complete 5 races in the 5-10 knot southerly. Three more races were finished Sunday morning before the early northerly petered out and shifted hard east. Thirteen men from four schools competed in the puffy and shifty conditions at the Willamette Sailing Club in Portland, OR, and while Brendan Fahey from the University of Washington dominated the regatta for the third year in a row,
the rest of the fleet was extremely close and competitive and consistent finishes were extremely difficult to maintain.

men's division = 9 Races
TOT
1. UW Brendan Fahey '06 10
2. UW Ben Young '08 28
3. UW Zak Malbin '05 42
4. UW Jonathan Kelch '07 48
5. PSU Jeff Causey '06 50
6. UW Paul Stewart '08 54
7. UW Alex Jones '06 54
8. UO George Yioulos '05 70
9. UO Rob Dubuc '07 71
10. WWU Randy Holt '06 78
11. PSU Scott Caldwell'05 98
12. WWU Ethan Ott '05 101
13. PSU Lurch Leslie '06 115

Note: Fahey qualifies ICSA Singlehanded National's

Repeat Mallory Cup Winner

For a second consecutive year, Zak Fanberg (New Orleans, La.) has led his team representing Bay-Waveland Yacht Club (Bay Saint Louis, Miss.) to the U.S. Men’s Sailing Championship title. Competing with crew Dave Blouin (Baton Rouge, La.) and Kippy Chamberlain (Bay Saint Louis, Miss.), Fanberg took the lead on the first day of the U.S.
Men’s Sailing Championship and never gave it up throughout the four-day event hosted by the Long Beach Island Yacht Racing Association in New Jersey and sailed on Lightnings. Rolex Watch U.S.A. sponsored this regatta, as it does with all U.S. Adult Championships. Other sponsors include Chubb and Dry Creek Vineyard.

Fanberg's crew, Blouin and Chamberlain, are both skippers during the regular season and when asked how this team worked in harmony, they replied that they have been in competition with each other, and sailing together, all their lives. All sailed together at the same college and credit the intense college sailing competition to their edge. For Fanberg’s team, the primary class at home is the Flying Scot, but thanks to a clinic sponsored by Rolex Watch U.S.A. and the openness of fellow competitors who frequently sail Lightnings, they quickly learned many little tricks and tips to get the Lightning going.

The race for second place turned out to be very exciting with three teams changing positions throughout the regatta. In the end, it was the team from the Buffalo Canoe Club with skipper Jim Allen (Walled Lake, Mich.) and crew Tom Allen and Jody Swanson taking second place overall. The Niantic Bay Yacht Club team finished two points behind and ended up in third place. Allen also took home the Royal Victoria YC Seamanship Trophy and Kenny Manzoni from Southwestern Yacht Club was awarded the Staton J. Peele Jr. Sportsmanship Trophy.

Oryx Quest 2005

Quest International Sports Events (QISE) has unveiled the major elements of the Oryx Quest 2005, the round-the-world sailing race for the world's fastest maxi multi-hulls that starts in Doha in February 2005.

At a launch ceremony in Qatar today, four of the world's leading offshore skippers confirmed that they would be at the start in Doha on 5 February, HSBC announced a multi-million dollar title sponsorship investment and the Gulf State of Qatar reaffirmed its strong partnership with the Oryx Quest 2005.

Skippers Loick Peyron, Tony Bullimore (Team Daedalus) and Olivier de Kersauson (Geronimo) were at today's announcement to confirm that they will be contesting the first QISE-organised event, along with the maxi-cat 'Qatar 2006', the identity of whose skipper is still to be confirmed. Cam Lewis (Team Adventure) and representatives from 'Cheyenne' were also in attendance in anticipation of joining the fleet for the first major sailing event to start and finish in the Middle East.

HSBC - one of the world's leading banks - outlined its multi-million dollar commitment to the Oryx Quest, taking title sponsorship with by far the company's biggest sponsorship deal in the region to date. HSBC's endorsement not only brings financial support to this innovative event but also the kudos and credibility of the backing of a major international brand.

The Gulf State of Qatar announced its support of the Oryx Quest 2005 in October last year. The presence of HE Sheikh Abdulla bin Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani representing the Crown Prince HH Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani at today's ceremony further underlines this backing as the country seeks to establish itself as a leading venue for international sports events.

Making today's announcements at Doha's Diplomatic Club, Tracy Edwards MBE - QISE Events Director - said:

"We feel that today's event marks the official start of the Oryx Quest 2005. The outstanding package of sponsors, partners, sailors and boats that we are able to confirm today, has taken a lot of hard work by many people to pull together. I am hugely grateful to all of our backers for the confidence and commitment that they have shown in the Oryx Quest 2005."

"We are all looking forward to February and, although there's a lot of work to be done before then, we can confirm that thanks to the calibre of our partners and supporters, the Oryx Quest 2005 is going to be a truly world-class event."

"This event struck us as crisp, modern and dynamic," said Robert Gray, Chairman of HSBC Financial Services Middle East. "We have a rich tradition in the Middle East, and are celebrating our 50th anniversary in Qatar this year. We have forged close links with Qatar on many levels over the past half century, and we are proud of our significant presence in Qatar, and the fact that we are the largest and highest profile international bank in Doha. This event provides us with a wonderful opportunity to demonstrate what HSBC really means in Qatar, and in the region."

The dignitaries at today's event unveiled the exclusive Oryx Quest Trophy, designed by William & Son and created by William Asprey. Standing at 56cm high, the stunning trophy is in sterling silver and silver gilt with diamonds, the finest lapis lazuli, Mother-of-Pearl and enamel.

"I am delighted to unveil the Oryx Quest Trophy for the first non-stop race around the world to start and finish in the Middle East," said HE Sheikh Abdulla bin Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani. "Qatar is very much looking forward to hosting this great event. We would also like to welcome the skippers and their teams to Qatar and look forward to January 2005 when their boats arrive in Doha."

Also confirmed at today's launch were the official start date, 5 February 2005, the race route and the nomination of the Qatar Foundation as the official charity of the Oryx Quest.

Jesuit School Invite

Jesuit School Invitational & Championship
September 25-26, 2004
Host: Fordham University
Final Results

Regatta Highlights - Racing took place in Western Long Island Sound off Morris Yacht & Beach Club on City Island in the Bronx, NY. A steady and consistent southerly provided 10-12 knot breezes throughout the day on Saturday resulting in 22 races being sailed. On Sunday, B division got in two races in a dying northwesterly breeze before the regatta was curtailed due to a lack of wind. On land highlights included compliments on the homemade cream cheese and chives, which came with the delicious bagels from H&H on Second Avenue, and the tasty New England clam chowder and Italian bread, from Tito Puentes on City Island, which was served at the end of the competition. This was the 24th Jesuit School regatta since 1955 and the third since it was resurrected in 2002. Congratulations to Georgetown for making it three in a row. In addition to having its name engraved on the perpetual trophy, which is on display at the Vincent T. Lombardi Memorial Center on the Rose Hill campus of Fordham University, Georgetown got to return home with the "keeper"plaque, which is passed on to the winner each year.

There were 12 races in each division.

School 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7 - 8 - 9 - 10 - 11 - 12 Total

Georgetown A 2 - 1 - 1 - 2 - 3 - 1 - 1 - 1 - 1 - 1 - 1 - 1 16
B 1 - 3 - 1 - 1 - 1 - 1 - 1 - 1 - 1 - 1 - 2 - 1 15
Total: 31

Marquette A 1 - 2 - 3 - 1 - 1 - 4 - 2 - 4 - 3 - 2 - 2 - 2 27
B 3 - 2 - 2 - 3 - 3 - 2 - 3 - 3 - 3 - 2 - 1 - 3 30
Total: 57

Fordham A 3 - 3 - 4 - 4 - 4 - 3 - 4 - 3 - 2 - 3 - 3 - DNS/5 41
B 2 - 1 - 3 - 2 - 2 - 4 - 2 - 2 - 2 - 3 - 3 - 2 28
Total: 69

Villanova A 4 - 4 - 2 - 3 - 2 - 2 - 3 - 2 - 4 - 4 - 4 - 3 37
B 4 - 4 - 4 - 4 - 4 - 3 - 4 - 4 - 4 - 4 - 4 - 4 47
Total: 84

A Division
1. Georgetown - Seamus Kraft ' 07 & Emily Siguler ' 07
2. Marquette - Hunter Rutcliff ' 05 & Cate Muller ' 06
3. Villanova - Matt Griffin ' 07 & Christine Brooks ' 05
4. Fordham - Anne-Marie Martin ' 08 & Katie Murphy ' 06

B Division
1. Georgetown - Zack Kavanaugh ' 08 & Leigh Fogwell ' 08
2. Fordham - Matt Grinder ' 06 & Lily Caldwell ' 07
3. Marquette - Chris Williams ' 05 & Katie O'Malley ' 07 (Fordham sub)
4. Villanova - Ryan Walsh ' 05 & Thomas Baker ' 06

Winning Team: Georgetown
Seamus Kraft
Emily Siguler
Zack Kavanaugh
Leigh Fogwell

Linky Sailing News

Racing Results: Mumm 30 , Etchells NA's, Melges 24 NA's. Mallory Cup. US Offshore Champ

News Orange II record. NZL 81 touches down

Great Lakes Saltie visits Muskegon

College Sailing MCSA Sloops

Salite Visits Muskegon

The Scan Arctic was in Muskegon Sunday.

Barges and a tug from Andrie towing were to take the equipment to Port Sheldon

The cargo was containerized

Aussie Team Takes Mumm 30 Worlds

An Australian team coming from way Down Under to win in North America took on a new meaning in the Bell Mumm 30 World Championship, but it's becoming routine for Richard Perini and his crew.

While most eyes were watching whether hometown favorite Fred Sherratt's frontrunning Steadfast, with Andy Roy as skipper, could fight off Tom Ritter's Tramp from Michigan and the Kahns, father and son, from California and Hawaii on the fourth and final day Friday, the issue became a Foreign Affair.

That's the name of Perini's boat from Sydney that won the class at Key West in 2002 and 2003 and arose from fifth place here to bite all the contenders with a runaway flourish in the last race. Pending the outcome of some protests, that left Foreign Affair three points ahead of Steadfast, four ahead of 15-year-old Shark Kahn's Pegasus 20 and five ahead of Tramp. Nelson Stephenson, the Mumm 30 World Council president from Connecticut, was fifth with TeamBOLD.

The 15-year-old Shark led the regatta after two days and again after winning the first race Friday. Then his comeback from the previous day's belly flop fizzled when he became entangled with Carlo Alberini's Calvi from Italy at the leeward gate. Forced wide by the Italians and two other boats, Pegasus 20 was passed by several and protested by Calvi, as well, for not giving room at the mark on its way to 15th place.

Steadfast, meanwhile, struggled to 11th and 13th places, leaving the door wide open to Perini for the 49-year-old businessman's first class world title in five tries. Overall, he scored two firsts and three seconds in the nine races and seemed a popular winner as one rival after another came by his boat to congratulate him.

"There were six boats that could have won it today," Perini said, "which is a tribute to the depth of this class. We went into today 13 points behind the leader, so we just said we weren't going to give up, that's not an insurmountable lead."

His start in the second race set the tone. Foreign Affair was a boat length ahead of the pack coming off the line and controlled its own destiny from there, as directed by tactician Steve Flam, a 42-year-old real estate manager from Long Beach, Calif.

"We had a nice gap and were going full speed when we hit the line," Perini said. "Then Steve did a fantastic job in picking our way up that first beat."

They didn't waste time looking for the other contenders. "We had no idea where they were," Perini said. "We just wanted to do our best in that situation."

Flam said, "It was not a tactician's dream out there this week. It's not just the shifts. We're looking for pressure, too. If you're in a little breeze it's better to hang on a bit. But the crew deserves most of the credit."

Flam and Canadian bowman Curtis Florence were the only non-Australians on the crew, which also included Tristan Eldershaw, pit; Chris Cook, cockpit; Darren Jones, main sail trimmer, and Jason Rowed, jib and spinnaker trimmer.

"They were flawless all week," Flam said. "Sets, trims and takedowns were all perfect."

Principal race officer Mike Milner had hoped to run four races to complete the complement of 11, but by the time enough wind arrived out of a morning fog shortly before 3 p.m. there was time only for two. The first race started in 6 knots of breeze from the east and built to 9 in the second race.

Protest hearings involving Calvi against Pegasus 20 and Steadfast and Dan Cheresh's Team Intermec from Michigan against each other were being heard well into the evening but would not affect Foreign Affair's victory.

Shields Trophy

SHIELDS TROPHY
U.S. Naval Academy
Navy 44's

Sat. - Very light wind. No racing until after 4 PM. Two races
completed.

Sun. - Light northeast breeze at 5 knots building to 8 knots. Three
races completed.

SHIELDS TROPHY

Final Results

School #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 Total
Kings Pt. 2 2 1 1 1 7
NY Maritime 1 1 8 2 3 15
Cal Maritime 7 5 2 3 4 21
Maine Maritime 5 3 3 7 5 23
Navy 8 4 6 4 2 24
CGA 3 7 5 6 6 27
St. Mary's 4 8 7 8 7 34
Mass. Maritime 6 6 8* 5 9 34

Race 3 Cal Maritime protest Mass.
Maritime
Mass. Maritime displayed yellow flag, no report to
RC
* Mass. Maritime scored with 50% 4 pt.
penalty

Race 5 St. Mary's protest Mass.
Maritime
Mass. Maritime DSQ

WINNING TEAM - Kings Point
William Howell '05
Jeremiah Lyons '06
Bardley Griffin '06
Robert Tolleson '05
Chad Ellis '07
Bob Greenling '07
Pat Gorman '07
Ben Hilton '08

Tufts Wins Hood Trophy

Hood Trophy 04
Tufts
9-25-04 to 9-26-04

FINAL RESULTS

REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS:
Beautiful day.Wind SW 5-10 building to 10-15 with occassional gusts
approaching 20 but calming down later in the day. Shifty and variable as usual. Two breakdowns (one hiking strap, one rudder), once filed for redress and was given it. Courses 5 and 6. Eight races for each division. One protest pending between MIT and USF.

Day 2: Another great day of racing. Wind 5-12 knots, shifty and variable. 5 races were completed in each division. Racing ended at 2:30 due to dying breeze. Thanks to everyone for a great regatta.

A division = 13 Races
B division = 13 Races
A B TOT

1. Tufts 57 48 105
2. Boston College 66 82 148
3. Dartmouth 79 86 165
4. Roger Williams 106 81 187
5. Charleston 113 84 197
6. Brown 114 97 211
7. Rhode Island 103 124 227
8. Coast Guard 136 110 246
9. Columbia 124 128 252
10. South Florida 117 148 265
11. Connecticut 142 123 265
12. St. Mary's 167 101 268
13. MIT 124 172 296
14. Harvard 133 165 298
15. Boston Univ. 150 154 304
16. Yale 168 140 308
17. Cornell 155 187 342
18. Mass Maritime 177 193 370

A division = 13 Races
TOT
1. Tufts 57 Dave Seigal
Anna Martin
2. Boston College 66 Ben Gent
Caitlin Gill
3. Dartmouth 79 Peter Fleming
Killarney Loufek
4. Rhode Island 103 Morgan Poxhia
Kelly Mahoney
5. Roger Williams 106 Dave Hyer
Elizabeth Wishe
6. Charleston 113 Alana O'Reilly
Suzy Lintern
7. Brown 114 Chaz Enright
Janelle Sing
8. South Florida 117 Kevin Reali
Ashley Reynolds
9. Columbia 124 Becker Chase
Lauren Parmington
10. MIT 124 Jack Field
Wyman Li
11. Harvard 133 Clay Johnson 1-8, Matt Knowles 9-13
Ruth Schlitz 1-8, Christina Duhlman 9-13
12. Coast Guard 136 Rob Gorman
Kyra Chin
13. Connecticut 142 Niko Kotsatos
Ellissa Leonard
14. Boston Univ. 150 Molly Francis
Kristina Karl
15. Cornell 155 Kinloch Yellott
Michelle D'Agrosa
16. St. Mary's 167 Chuck Asper
Megan Hawn
17. Yale 168 Matthew Barry 1-8, Phil Stemler 9-13
Hannah Oakland 1-8, Hillary Shapiro 9-13
18. Mass Maritime 177 Pete Schwebach
Todd Wilson

B division = 13 Races
TOT
1. Tufts 48 Jeff Cruise
Chryssa Rask
2. Roger Williams 81 Robert Koar
Kristin Pappas
3. Boston College 82 Frank Ustach
Joy MacDougall
4. Charleston 84 Jesse Combs
Hunter Stunzi
5. Dartmouth 86 Garrett Holmes
Elisabeth Kreter
6. Brown 97 Ricky Hale
Jen Bauer
7. St. Mary's 101 Mark Sorbo
Dona Mackenzie
8. Coast Guard 110 Chris Greenough
Mallorie Schell
9. Connecticut 123 David Melany
Brouck Anderson
10. Rhode Island 124 Matt Kastan
Klisten Johnson
11. Columbia 128 Katie Simon 1-6, Chris Fleming 7-13
Julia Werb
12. Yale 140 Benoit Bewley
Courtney Cox
13. South Florida 148 Andrew Blom
Katie Beizer
14. Boston Univ. 154 Matt Conover 1-8, Kyle Assad 9-13
Liddy Ogdahl 1-8, Liz Varr 9-13
15. Harvard 165 Kyle Kovacs 1-8, Pat Mavro 9-13
Emily Simon
16. MIT 172 Jake Muhleman
Jake Katz 1-8, Gabe Cira 9-13
17. Cornell 187 Scott Grandt
Allie Tumilty
18. Mass Maritime 193 Andy Zavatsky
Casey Ivatts 1-8, Justin Runey 9-13

New England Women's Singlehanded Championship

NEW ENGLAND WOMEN'S SINGLEHANDED CHAMPIONSHIP - FINALS


Skipper School Total
=========================================
1 Devlin Harvard 29
2 Tulloch Harvard 31
3 Davidson Brown 37
4 Carapiet Yale 38
5 Clark Connecticut 44
6 Bogart Connecticut 48
7 Padilla Dartmouth 57
8 Kelly Tufts 72
9 Hill Yale 75
10 Baker Harvard 78
11 Morin Coast Guard 86
12 McManus BU 93
13 Emhiser Yale 101
14 Lashaway Coast Guard 102
15 Storck Tufts 107
16 Barton Connecticut 112
17 Petronello U Vermont 127
18 Spencer U Vermont 128

Sail # by last TWO digits of Laser number

Highlights: Nice northerly at start of day, fading quickly, with lots of outgoing current. Three races before the breeze became too light and lousy; long lunch break; two more races in NNW, shifting west before southwest kicked in at 3-7 for final three races. Tight battle amongst the top seven for the five qualifying positions. Annie Davidson led most of the way before a late charge by Sloan Devlin and Genny Tulloch dropped her to third. Consistent finishes by Molly Carapiet and late charge by Amanda Clark to secure
the final two positions. Really tough racing conditions; competitors maintained good spirits throughout.

Ohio Wins MCSA Sloops

2004 MCSA Sloop Championship
Detroit Yacht Club
September 25-26, 2004

Final Results

REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS:
Saturday: The racing was in Flying Scots provided by the Detroit Yacht Club and the Edison Yacht Club. The weather was on the chilly side wit temperatures in the high 60's. The wind was about 8-12 from the west causing the course to be set crossing the river. The races were modified windward-leewards with the first race being four laps. Races 2-5 were reduced to 3 laps and races 6-8 were reduced further to two laps as the wind lightened. Minnesota's
jib halyard and forestay both failed at the same time causing their boat to lose its mast in Race 2. There were three other breakdowns. Five protests were filed. Three protests were withdrawn, one was disallowed and one resulted Denison's disqualification in Race 5.

Sunday: The fleet was sent out for a 9:30 sequence, but received a postponement instead. While the wind was filling it was necessary to anchor to prevent being carried down stream to Ohio. At about 11:15 race 9 was started in a breeze of 5-8, just enough to comfortably make it to the weather mark for a two lap windward-leeward. Races 10-13 went well in a shifty but slightly building breeze using the same course. There was one protest which was determined to be invalid as the hail of Protest was not loud enough to be heard.

11 Races
TOT
1. Ohio University 41 Karl Felger 06/Mark Paisley 05, Eric Millman 07
2. Michigan 46 Chris Granger 07/Tom Martin 05, Jeff Spearin 05
3. Minnesota 47 Ben Burgum 04/Alex Symes 04, Mark Dunsworth 06
4. Purdue 49 Carlos Alisambra 06/Matt Conrad 07, Carlie Rush 06
5. Northwestern 50 Ward Detwiler 06/Brian Sabina 05(1-8), Lindsey
Duda 05, Jack McCallum(9-13)
6. Wisconsin 73 Matt Schmidt 07/Kelsey Cramer 07(1-3,7-8, 9-10),
Andy Muller 07(1-11), Tim Shay(4-6, 9-11), Tom
McGrath 05 (8,11)
7. Miami - Ohio 76 Nicole Finefrock 05/Jocelyn Pollak 07, Chris
Mack 08
8. Michigan State 77 Michael Fong 07/Mills Forni 08, Richard Manner 08
9. Western Michigan 82 Geoffrey Lindenberg 06/Nick Sundstrom 06, Chris
Koch 07
10. Indiana 101 Lucy Krammer 08/Jen Gaker 05, Kiki Kappal 07
11. Denison 101 Abigail Bacon 05/Kevin Moritz 05, Evan Velleman
08
12. Hope 104 Robert Crosswell 07(1-3,7-8, 11),Marc Palma 06(4-6,
9-10)/Trinity Scurto 05(1-2,7-10),Christine Dostal
06 (4-6, 11),Charlie Seizerant 07 all

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
1
Ohio University 1 3 5 7 1 6 4 2 3 5 4
Bobcats 4 9 16 17 23 27 29 32 37 41

2
Michigan 2 OCS 1 6 3 7 1 8 1 1 3
Wolverines 15 16 22 25 32 33 41 42 43 46

3
Minnesota 6 BKD 4 1 2 4 6 1 9 4 6
Gophers 10 14 15 17 21 27 28 37 41 47

4
Purdue 8 5 2 11 4 1 2 3 2 9 2
Boilermakers 13 15 26 30 31 33 36 38 47 49

5
Northwestern 3 1 3 3 BKD 3 11 7 7 2 5
Wildcats 4 7 10 15 18 29 36 43 45 50

6
Wisconsin 4 2 10 2 7 8 10 4 12 6 8
Badgers 6 16 18 25 33 43 47 59 65 73

7
Miami - Ohio 9 OCS 11 10 6 2 12 5 4 3 1
Red Hawks 22 33 43 49 51 63 68 72 75 76

8
Michigan State 7 BKD 8 4 10 5 7 6 5 8 10
Spartans 4 22 26 36 41 48 54 59 67 77

9
Western Michigan 5 4 9 5 5 11 3 11 10 10 9
Broncos 9 18 23 28 39 42 53 63 73 82

10
Indiana 11 7 12 9 9 10 5 9 11 7 11
Hoosiers 18 30 39 48 58 63 72 83 90 101

11
Denison BKD 8 6 8 DSQ 9 8 10 6 12 12
Big Reds 17 23 31 44 53 61 71 77 89 101

12
Hope 12 6 7 12 8 12 9 12 8 11 7
Flying Dutchmen 18 25 37 45 57 66 78 86 97 104

WINNING TEAM : Ohio University Bobcats
Karl Felger 06/Mark Paisley 05, Eric Millman 07

SAISA Men's Singlehanded Championship

SAISA Men's Singlehanded Championship
September 25, 2004
Host: Charleston

1. Peter Stanton, Eckerd, 34
2. Jose Fuentes, Charleston, 40
3. Bryan Paine, USF, 46
4. Patrick Wilson, Charleston, 51
5. Blake Kimbrough, Charleston, 56
6. Chris Armstrong, Eckerd, 57
7. Chris Lash, Charleston, 57
8. David O'Reilly, Citadel, 64
9. Anthony Scruggs, USF, 70
10. Justin Van Diense, Eckerd, 85
11. Stan Smith, Eckerd, 120
12. Michael Soberick, UNC/Wilmington, 129
13. Ryan Boyle, NC State, 134

Note: The top 2 finishers qualified for the national single hended championship.

Orange II On Record Pace

At 17 :15 French time (15 :15 GMT), Orange II was positioned by the South of Sardinia, and was getting ready to gybe before coming back on the direct route. The first half of the day has been
quite hard for everyone aboard, but now the conditions seem to
grow calmer. Nevertheless, the wind force should be sufficient to
keep on speeding! This morning, the speedometer displayed 41,2
knots…

The record seems to be accessible for Orange II, and the crew now only needs 19 knots of average speed to better Steve Fossett's performance.
"We sent the gennaker up again about half an hour ago, since the wind decreased a bit, and it should drop to 25 knots in the next two hours", explained Bruno during the 17:00 audio chat session. "It's notably less violent than it was this morning, especially when we
were under gennaker – a situation that puts a lot of pressure on the shoulders of the helmsman! I personally saw the speedometer hit 41,2 knots, and we maintained the speed between 35 and 39 knots for at least 20 straight minutes". Which implies a permanent tension for the crew, who have to cope with sudden gusts, likely to cause sudden and
brutal reactions. "At one point, the wind picked up in a snap. We were under reefed main and staysail, and we let go of the mainsheet in a desperate manoeuvre – it was a little chaotic, I have to say. But now, things are getting better: fortunately, we'll keep enough
wind to sail fast until the end", says a skipper who seems optimistic, as far as the outcome of this record attempt is concerned. "We can't miss out for 30 minutes twice in a month",
he laughs, referring to the Atlantic record attempt this summer, when Orange II crossed the line only 31 minutes too late". The maxi-cat should gybe at 19:00 (17:00 GMT), before hitting the direct route and speeding towards the line.

Orange II Flat Out

- At 13 :15 (French time), the Orange II maxi-cat was positioned
at the latitude of Northern Sardinia, only 5 hours after having left Marseilles!

- Since the start, this morning at 08:13 (06:13 GMT), Orange II has
been sailing at 30 knots of average speed, in very tough conditions- 35 / 40 knots of winds with gusts at 45, and very choppy
seas.

- At 15:00 (13:00 GMT) this afternoon, the crew was still maintaining the boat speed between 32 and 35 knots, on a 160° heading. Orange II is for the moment ahead of PlayStation’s performance on the course.

RESTLESS MORNING…
Bruno Peyron, skipper of Orange II, seemed relieved early in the afternoon, after having experienced hard times this morning. “It’s been very risky all morning, and we even asked ourselves if we would not have to give up altogether – the conditions were really extreme.
With 45 knots of wind at times, the boat was sailing at 35 to 40 knots, speeds unseen until today… The whole crew was on deck, hands on the sheets in order to be able to ease off at once if required. Only the very experienced helmsmen took the wheel, which means
Sébastien Audigane and Lionel Lemonchois. But despite our constant attention, the boat went wild on two occasions, under violent gusts, and we came close to the wipe out! Quite stressful, but at the same time very thrilling. Since noon, fortunately, the conditions are
easier, the winds and the waves are more manageable. We’ll soon send more canvas up, to optimise our angle towards the South Sardinian waypoint. We’ve been living wonderful moments since we’ve left the Marseilles harbour, towed by our fishermen pals who have
been great. On board, the crew is at its best, very excited by the speed and totally concentrated on our final objective”…

Riding the Ferry In Pictures V

For the first time I had an opportunity to cross Lake Michigan on the Lake Express ferry. This is the final set of pictures.

Sediment kicked up during docking in Muskegon

Muskegon dock & terminal

Sailboat picture taken from sun deck.

Linky Sailing News

Racing Mumm 30 Worlds: DadCalls Foul. Etchells NA's. Mallory Cup. Prince of Wales. Sunfish Worlds

News J24 Worlds Entries. Orange II off. Pegasus Olympics

Great Lakes Canal discovered. Layup questions

College Sailing Tufts hosts & defends Hood Trophy

US Paralympian wind Medals

The final day of competition in the Paralympic Regatta has seen the USA win medals in the two Paralympic sailing events. Tom Brown (Northeast Harbor, Maine) sailed to a silver medal in the
2.4 Metre class; and the Sonar team of John Ross-Duggan (Newport Beach, Calif.), Brad Johnson (Milwaukee, Wis./Hollywood, Fla.) and J.P. Creignou (St. Petersburg, Fla.) captured the bronze on the waters of the Saronic Gulf.

"It's just hard to believe that this is a reality right now," said Sonar skipper Ross-Duggan on receiving confirmation of his boat's third-place overall finish. "We got exactly what we needed. Everything just fell together."

With the USA and German Sonar teams tied for third overall entering the final race of the nine-race series, Duggan, Johnson and Creignou needed to either beat Germany or have them finish no higher than ninth place. The second scenario was the one that played out as the Germans narrowly edged the USA at the finish line for ninth place in the race.

"At the last second I counted the boats ahead of us and said 'oh my god, they're ninth and we're tenth.' That's exactly what we needed to beat them by a point," said Ross-Duggan. "I think the math works out. It scared me to death when I saw the German team celebrating as they went across the finish line. I thought they knew something we didn't know."

The German celebration was premature as the USA discarded its tenth-place finish for an overall score of 37 points to the German's 38. The Israeli team of Dror Cohen, Arnon Efrati and Benni Vexler dominated the Sonar fleet throughout most of the series to overcome a disqualification from race two that had toppled them from their lead position early in the regatta. They won four races of the series, including today's final race, and secured the gold medal on 19 points. Udo Hessels, Marcel van de Veen and Mischa Rossen
of The Netherlands claimed the silver medal with 28 points.

Duggan adds the 2004 Paralympic Games bronze medal to the one he won in 1996 when sailing was introduced to the Paralympics as an exhibition sport.

"This is by far the best team I have ever had," said Ross-Duggan of Johnson and Creignou. "It is a privilege to sail with them. They are both experts in their areas on the boat. They're great sailors."

For 2.4 Metre sailor Tom Brown, the winds of fortune proved as fickle as the breezes over the Saronic Gulf in determining his silver medal.

The Paralympic 2.4 Metre Bronze Medallist in Sydney, Brown entered today's final race tied with France's Damien Seguin for the fleet lead. But after battling Sequin bow-to-bow to the second mark, Brown dropped to 10th place -- where he would eventually finish the race. Sequin went on to finish third and claim the gold while Thierry Schmitter of The Netherlands earned the bronze.

"I'm happy," said a disappointed but upbeat Brown following the race. "Being so close you're all revved up and you're right there and have a shot to win it. I just feel bad that I didn't really put it on today...I didn't give him a race."

Brown was the only repeat medallist in Athens: 2000 gold medallist Heiko Kroeger (Germany) placed fourth and 2000 silver medallist Jens Als Anderson(Denmark) placed sixth in the 16-boat 2.4 Metre fleet.

"I did move up a little bit (from bronze in 2000), so I don't feel too bad about that," said Brown. "But moving up a little bit every four years...that could take a long time."

Following today's final races in both fleets, Brown, Ross-Duggan, Johnson, Creignou and alternate Roger Cleworth (Brandon, Fla.) were awarded their medals at the Agios Kosmas Sailing Centre.

Water Level Update

Below you'll find water level info that pertains to Lakes Michigan and Huron.

Reference Point- Measurements in Inches

Difference from Chart Datum +9
Difference from last month -2
Difference from last year +12
Difference from long term average for September -11
Difference from Record High -44
Difference from Record Low +19
Forecast for 24 October 2004 -2

Click for information on other lakes.

Dad Calls Foul

The only race Thursday in the Bell Mumm 30 World Championship almost didn't happen, and Philippe Kahn almost wished it hadn't.

But there it was: his own son fouled him, he protested and the standings went inside out going into the fourth and final day Friday. The new leader, replacing 15-year-old Samuel (Shark) Kahn, is Fred Sherratt, a local sailor representing the host Royal Canadian Yacht Club, who finished third.

Nelson Stephenson, the class president from Southport, Conn., sailed TeamBOLD to its first win of the week, two boat lengths in front of Australia's Richard Perini on Foreign Affair.

The younger Kahn, who led by six points after the first two days, flamed out after the incident at the first windward mark when he and his father, sailing Pegasus 20 and Pegasus 591, were fighting for the lead. After doing a double penalty turn---a "720" in racing jargon---he rejoined the parade in seventh, briefly appeared to be making a comeback but went all the wrong ways as the wind died on the last downwind drift and straggled in 18th, beating only two boats.

Principal race officer Mike Milner hoped to sail four races Friday to complete the 11-race schedule. The event rules say none can start after 5 o'clock, so Milner moved the day's starting time up an hour to 10:30 a.m.

Ironically, Thursday's race didn't start until 5:34 p.m. after four general recalls following a day of card-playing and lawn bowling before Milner, two miles out on Lake Ontario, decided there was finally enough wind to race—not more than 6 or 7 knots but just enough to race twice around a one-mile windward-leeward course.

Sherratt, sailing Steadfast, has 36 points. Tom Ritter's Tramp from Bloomfield Hills, Mich., slipped into second place (44), followed by the Shark (45), Philippe Kahn (47) and Perini (49).

The course of the regatta turned as Shark Kahn approached the first windward mark on port tack as his father came in on starboard, slightly behind but with the right of way. Instead of crossing in front or ducking behind, Shark tacked on the other Pegasus' lee bow and forced his father to luff up to avoid a collision.

Shark's tactician, Richard Clarke, a veteran Finn and big boat sailor from Toronto, blamed himself for suggesting the fatal move.

"That's about the stupidest thing I could have done," he said.

And it put Philippe Kahn on the spot. Neither he nor his son had ever protested the other while racing Melges 24s against each other in recent years.

"So much for people who say we team-race," Philippe said as darkness descended on the docks. "If it costs him the Worlds, it costs him."

A nephew, Brian Lee, also is a member of the crew.

"It broke my concentration on the run," Philippe said, still in emotional agony. "But what dad and uncle couldn't do it? It may be a loss for Shark and Brian, but it's a lesson in life."

Shark understood. "It proves we're not on the same team," he said. "I wasn't surprised. He had every right to protest us. I fouled him."

Stephenson won the race on the last run by playing the middle of the course while most boats tried one side or the other.

"It doesn't work very often, but [tactician] Anthony [Katoun] called a good tactical race," Stephenson said. "Everybody on the boat contributed. I just steered."

Sherratt has sailed a steady regatta with no wins but only one double-digit finish. Tactician Scott Collinson said, "We don't usually race this time of day, unless it's beer can [races] in the harbor. We tried to focus where the pressure was, not play the angles."

Earlier, the only wave was the local heat wave attributed to a broad high-pressure area across the northeast that smothered the breeze and threatened to break temperature local records for the first week of autumn at the western end of Lake Ontario.

Thursday's high was 28 degrees C. (82.4 F.), down a bit from Wednesday. Friday's forecast was cautiously promising that the class's eighth world title would be settled on the water: 8-10 knots from the south.

Appropriately, with the weather foremost in everyone's mind, the day was dedicated to supporting sponsor North Sails, which is providing daily forecast for the sailors.

While waiting out the shoreside postponement, the sailors played cards and were introduced to lawn bowling, without some of the refinements.

"I'm not sure we were dressed properly," one said. "Aren't you supposed to wear all white?"

Bell, Canada's national leader in communications provides connectivity to residential and business customers through wired and wireless voice and data communications, local and long distance phone services, high speed and wireless Internet access, IP-broadband services, e-business solutions and satellite television services. Bell Canada is wholly owned by BCE Inc. For more information please visit www.bell.ca.

Joining Bell in support of the event are contributing sponsors Champagne Mumm, CHUM Limited, Lewmar, McMillan Binch LLP, Mount Gay Rum, North Sails, Stella Artois and Sorgentone.

North Sails continues as the worldwide leader in sailmaking through an ongoing commitment to making sails lighter, stronger and faster. North's 3DL thermo-molded sails dominate grand prix sailing worldwide and have been the sail technology of choice for every team in the last America's Cup and Volvo Ocean Race events. For more information, visit www.northsails.com .

Standings (after 7 of 11 races):
1. Steadfast, Fred Sheratt, Toronto, 8-2-4-6-2-11-3, 36 points.
2. Tramp, Tom Ritter, Bloomfield Hills, Mich., 1-7-7-15-4-5-5, 44.
3. Pegasus 20, Samuel Kahn, Honolulu, 3-1-17-3-1-2-18, 45.
4. Pegasus 591, Philippe Kahn, Honolulu, 5-3-5-1-5-19-9, 47.
5. Foreign Affair, Richard Perini, Sydney, Australia, 2-12-13-2-17-1-2, 49.
6. Team Intermac, Dan Cheresh, Holland, Mich., 6-10-9-10-7-6-6, 54.
7. TeamBOLD, Nelson Stephenson, Southport, Conn., 15-11-14-9-3-4-1, 57.
8. ,Groovederci, Deneen Demourkas, Santa Barbara, Calif., 4-18-2-14-6-14-4, 62.
9. Calvi, Carlo Alberini, Pesaro, Italy, 16-5-11-7-13-7-10, 69.
10. Cygnet, Richard Swann, Fairfield, Conn., 13-8-1-12-10-8-19, 71.
11. USA 65, David Pyles, Easton, Md., 7-16-6-18-8-10-7, 72.
12. Team Traffic, Philip Werheim, USA, 14-13-21-4-9-3-132, 77.
13. Notorious, Kevin Brown, Toronto, 9-9-12-8-16-16-8, 78.
14. Three Niner, David Gonzalez, Lambertville, Mich., 12-15-10-5-11-13-15, 81.
15. it, Jim Sminchak, Euclid, Ohio, 11-4-16-16-18-15-16, 96.
16. Dark'n Stormy, Kevin Young, Novelty, Ohio, 10-14-19-11-12-17-17, 100.
17. Surprise, David Irish, Harbour Springs, Mich., 18-17-15-13-15-12-11, 101.
18. Champosa, Jonathan McDonagh, Minneapolis, Minn., 20-6-3-19-19-20-20, 107.
19. War Pony, Art Guerrera, Atlantic Highlands, N.J., 19-10-8-20-20-9-12, 108.
20. Hammer, U.S. Coast Guard Academy, New London, Conn., 17-19-18-17-14-18-DSQ, 125.
21. Wildthing, Jeff Fogarty, Fonthill, Ontario, 21-21-20-21-21-21-14, 139.

Regatta of Champions

Next week, 20 of the country’s top one-design sailors will meet in Perth Amboy, NJ, to compete in the U.S. Championship of Champions. One look at the list of competitors and it appears that the event will be a family affair: seven teams are made up of family combinations such as father-son, father-daughter, and a pair of
brothers. One of the most unique combinations is likely that of David Watts (Oceanport, NJ) who is sailing with his ten year-old daughter Julia, the youngest competitor in the event. Another interesting combination is that of the Fast family: 13-year-old Nathan will be the skipper with his father, Carl, as crew. Sponsored by Rolex Watch U.S.A., the event is hosted by Raritan Yacht Club and will take place September 29-Oct. 2.

The U.S. Championship of Champions brings together 20 of this year’s
one-design National or North American champions who will compete in JY15s for US SAILING’s Jack Brown Trophy. For the first time ever in the 28-year history of the U.S. Championship of Champions, a blind sailor will compete. Vince Morvillo (League City, TX) qualified for the Championship by winning the Ensign Class National Championship earlier this summer. The tall ship Unicorn will be present throughout the entire championship, sponsored by the city of Perth Amboy.

Competitors who have been selected to race in the U.S. Championship of
Champions as well as the one-design class champions through which they
qualified are:
Drew Daugherty (Little Rock, Ark.) ­ Y Flyer
Ken Whitt (Chapel Hill, NC) ­ Tanzer 16
Ed Spengeman (Louisville, Ky.) ­ Highlander
Eduardo Cordero (Lecheria, Venezuela) ­ Sunfish
Michael Funsch (Harrison, NY) ­ Vanguard 15, Interclub Dinghy
Randy Sprout (Los Angeles, Calif.) ­ Coronado 15 (competing with son
Barrett)
Glenn Darden (Fort Worth, TX) ­ J 80, JY15, J 105
Mike Perry (Somers Point, NJ) ­ Evelyn 32
David Klatt (Oxnard, Calif.) ­ J 24
Keith Stauber (Duluth, Minn.) ­ San Juan 24 (competing with son Nathaniel)
Ryan Flack (Gwinn, Mich.) ­ Buccaneer 18
Stuart Robinson (Huntington Beach, Calif.) ­ Lido 14 (competing with
daughter Erin)
Benz Faget (Metairie, La.) ­ Rhodes 19
Vince Morvillo (League City, TX) ­ Ensign
Ernesto Rodriguez (Hialeah, Fla.) ­ Snipe
Nathan Fast (Groton, Conn.) ­ Blue Jay (competing with father Carl)
David Watts (Oceanport, NJ) ­ Wood Pussy (competing with daughter Julia)
TJ Tullo (Staten Island, NJ) ­ Laser Radial, Club 420 (competing with
brother Jerry)
Brent Barbehenn (Moorestown, NJ) ­ Jet 14
Greg Raybon (Shrewsbury, NJ) ­ Hobie 17 (competing with son Eric)

Inaugurated in 1976, the U.S. Championship of Champions is comprised of 20 class champions selected by US SAILING from nominations made by their class associations. Eligible are current national or North American one-design class champions who normally sail in the U.S. and are members of US SAILING and of a club, class or association affiliated with US SAILING.

Know Thy WX

IN BRIEF

* STUDYING WITH WEATHER EXPERT WOUTER VERBRAAK LEAVES NICK REASSURED...
* EMOTIONAL FINAL FAREWELLS IN AUSTRALIA...
* THE VENDEE GLOBE WEATHER (PART 1)...
* 45 DAYS TO THE START...

http://www.nickmoloney.com/skandia

IN DETAIL

Ever stopped to think how much the weather effects our lives? It dictates what we wear, what we do and when, it can even have a catastrophic effect on peoples lives and, of course, we love to talk about it! For Nick Moloney, who will race Skandia solo around the globe in less then 45 days, it will be no different and, if anything, the weather will dictate every aspect of his life at sea. How fast, how slow, the optimum route on the race track, what he can eat, how much he drinks and the gear he wears from survival suit to a t-shirt.

Last week, Nick spent several days with the Norwegian weather expert, Wouter Verbraak (Volvo Djuice Dragons weather router under Jean-Yves Bernot), studying the expected weather over the Vendée Globe course. The aim was to breakdown the Vendée course weather to enable Nick to understand all the scenarios and properties of the course in order to create a feasible racing strategy. "I was reassured to find out how much I understood - after leaving home four times to attempt to go around the world and so far making it twice, my knowledge was greater than I expected. I am also interested to see the difference in the route I am able to take with regards to the time of year we will depart Les Sables d'Olonne. So far I have left for around the world attempts in September (Whitbread Round the World), January (The Race) and March (Jules Verne)," commented Nick.

Nick is also feeling very comfortable with SKANDIA, after racing her for the past two years in both crewed and solo events, he is getting to know the performance and set up of the Open 60 and has been able to use that knowledge to modify her to suit his needs. However, all the above still comes with some trepidation - this will be a different race, on his own, a different course and a whole new set of emotions even after nine equator crossings and 13 transatlantic's the nerves are still there.

With only 45 days to go to the start, this Friday Nick will head Down Under one last time to fulfill media requirements and say an emotional final farewell to family and friends that are unable to travel from Australia to the the start line on November 7th.

THE WEATHER PART 1

France
The fleet leaves Les Sables d'Olonne on the French north-west coast in early November. This is well into autumn in that part of the world and although the winds can be favourable, the chances are that the first part of the course, to Cape Finisterre across the Bay of Biscay, will be sailed upwind. The chances are also strong that the fleet will encounter gale and storm force headwinds crossing the Bay of Biscay. Three races ago (1992-93) the first few days of the race took a terrible toll on the fleet and Nigel Burgess was lost overboard from his boat.

Spain/Portugal
After the west coast of Spain and Portugal, which again can produce any weather at this time of year, the fleet will reach south negotiating the various weather systems on the way. Abeam of the Straits of Gibraltar the fleet will be heading towards the Canary Islands. Here lighter winds will be encountered, especially at night, and the fleet will be hoping to pass through the archipelago during daylight hours and hook into the Trade Winds. But the skippers will already have an eye ahead contemplating the next major hurdle of the course - the Doldrums.

The Doldrums
The ITCZ (Inter Tropical Convergence Zone) is an area of extremely variable weather, mostly light winds interspersed with big storms, which can stretch over thousands of square miles and are fairly hard to predict. Basically triangular in shape, it can be crossed quickly at the western end but leaves boats that choose this option sailing upwind into the south-east Trade Winds. Heading further west to cross the zone closer to the Latin American continent can take significantly longer but drops the boats that choose this route into favourable downwind conditions on the other side and on a better route for the next weather phenomenon, the St Helena High pressure zone.This fairly stationary high pressure zone needs to be passed to the west for the most favourable downwind conditions, giving boats an effective sling-shot into the Southern Ocean.

Orange II start delayed

The strength of the wind in Marseilles is stronger than forecast and the maxicatamaran Orange II, which is on stand-by in the Old Harbour
for an attempt at the Mediterranean crossing record, will not be able to set sail until early tomorrow morning.

Contacted by phone this afternoon, her skipper explained the reasons for this delay. Bruno Peyron: " The strong mistral wind and the
heavy swell mean that it would be dangerous to try to leave from the Old Harbour this evening. We have taken the decision to stay in port tonight and to set out tomorrow at around 6 a.m. to be able to cross the starting line some time between 7 and 8 o’clock".

The record to beat: Steve Fossett (PlayStation) 18 hours, 46 minutes and 48 seconds ( 24th May 2002)

Crew :
Bruno Peyron, skipper
Sebastien Audigane
Yves Le Blévec
Halvard Mabire
Lionel Lemonchois
Ludovic Alglaor
Marc Englebert
Tanguy de lamotte
Stanislas Devorsine
Quentin Gilles
Arnaud De Bélinay (cameraman)

Riding the Ferry In Pictures IV

For the first time I had an opportunity to cross Lake Michigan on the Lake Express ferry. I was able to snap some pictures and throughout the week we'll feature them.

Loading in Milwaukee

Milwaukee Terminal

Milwaukee Skyline

Linky Sailing News

Racing Mumm 30 Worlds. Sunfish Worlds. Etchells NA's

News Top 10 for Davies. Sailor athlete council

Great Lakes Toledo War

College Sailing Texas A&M Report. USC & Yale ranked # 1. Big breeze @ Nevins

US Paralympian clinches Medal

The USA’s Sonar and 2.4 Metre sailors are well-positioned to bring home Paralympic medals after races seven and eight were completed today on the Saronic Gulf. Both fleets will sail the ninth and final race of their Paralympic Regatta tomorrow. Tom Brown (Northeast Harbor, Maine) is now guaranteed a medal in the 2.4 Metre, while Sonar sailors John Ross-Duggan (Newport Beach, Calif.), Brad Johnson (Milwaukee, Wis.) and J.P. Creignou (St. Petersburg, Fla.) remain in the hunt.

"It was a good day," said Team Leader Serge Jorgensen (Sarasota, Fla.). "Now it's just a matter of who can beat who on the final day."

On finishes of 1-3 in today’s races, Brown recovered the one-point between himself and rival Damien Seguin of France. The two sailors are now tied on points – at 17 apiece – in a virtually unbreakable tie owing to the same number of first, second, third, fourth and fifth-place finishes thus far in the series. Seguin holds the overall fleet lead by virtue of his finish in the last race today – a second to Brown’s third. Thierry Schmitter of the Netherlands is third overall with 20 points. The three sailors are all guaranteed medals, with the color to be determined on the outcome of tomorrow’s final race.

"I got off the line today," said Brown, who won a bronze medal at the 2000 Paralympic Games. "I just have to do that one more time."

Brown led the first race of the day from start to finish and sailed to a comfortable 47-second win over Peter Thompson of Australia. Seguin and Schmitter placed third and fourth, respectively.

The cushion wasn't as comfortable in the second race, however, as Brown gained, and then lost, the lead at the fourth mark on his way to a third-place finish. Schmitter edged out Seguin for first place with Brown crossing the line 11 seconds later. Remarkably, the top nine boats in the 16-boat fleet finished within one minute of each other.

After an eighth place finish in the first race of the day, Ross-Duggan, Johnson and Creignou battled back to place fifth in race eight to remain in contention for a medal in their 15-boat Sonar fleet. The U.S. team is fourth overall, behind Germany with whom they are tied on points at 30. Israel leads the overall standings on 18 points, followed by The Netherlands with 22.

In tomorrow’s final race, the U.S. will have to finish ahead of Germany -- and stay within seven boats of Australia -- to claim the Sonar bronze medal.

"Tomorrow is going to be an interesting day," said Sonar alternate Roger Cleworth (Brandon, Fla.).

Shark to the Front on Day 2

One doesn't hear about many shark attacks on Lake Ontario, but there aren't many 15-year-olds devouring major international one-design classes the way Samuel Kahn is sailing the Bell Mumm 30 World Championship.

Kahn, a.k.a. "Shark," and his world-class crew of Mumm 30 neophytes finished third, first and second in Wednesday's second day of racing---Lewmar Day around the historic Royal Canadian Yacht Club---to seize a six-point lead after six of 11 races.

"Awesome stuff," said a rival, Richard Perini of Sydney, Australia, who had a fair day himself by wrapping a second and first around a 17th to climb into fifth place in the feisty 21-boat fleet.

The younger Kahn took over the lead from his father Philippe, the California software developer who opened the day with a win, followed by a fifth and a wind-dying 19th, settling into third place 11 points off his son's pace and five points behind second-place Fred Sheratt, the local hope from the host club.

The Shark's stunning performance is an even larger surprise than the weather. On the first day of autumn, when the resident Canada geese should be flying south and citizens donning winter woolies, the region remained in the grip of a high-pressure system with a peak temperature Wednesday of 29 (C.), which converts to 85 (F.)---probably warmer than it was in the Kahns' second home in Hawaii.

The conditions meant light to moderate winds fading to very light and swinging 45 degrees left through the afternoon.

"It was hot," Kahn said---his only complaint.

When he and several of the same crew won the Melges 24 worlds last year a fair share of credit was given to the other guys in the boat, particularly professionals Richard Clarke and Mark (Crusty) Christensen. But when a quiet lad of 14 and now 15 steps into an authentic international one-design class like the Melges 24s and Mumm 30s and outperforms veterans as Kahn is doing, some extraordinary forces must be at work.

At least he raced the Melges 24 a couple of years before reaching the top. Here, he and each of his six crew members are racing a Mumm 30 for the first time in their lives.

Clarke, the tactician, said, "His improvement over a year is just amazing. He's giving us a little feedback now. He used to be a mute back there, but now when we're sailing a target speed of 6.2 knots he says, 'I could be going 6.3; the windward telltales aren't flowing.' "

Clarke also notes Christensen's contribution for "setting the boat up so well" by tuning the rig and trimming the sails.

Christensen said, "None of us has ever raced a Mumm 30 before this week, so we're all still learning. Shark has always listened and done everything we said, but now he's saying how it feels. The nice thing is he's really unfazed by it all."

The unassuming skipper said, "Mainly, if I give any feedback it's to see if I'm doing the right thing. Pretty much all I do is look at the telltales and the speedo."

But he's also having fun. "Light air is all about concentration," he said, showing a subtle sense of humor. "I had an extra cup of coffee this morning that may have helped."

Nelson Stephenson, the Mumm 30 World Council president from Connecticut, said Kahn's performance midway of the regatta is "a big surprise" that defies conventional wisdom. "Everyone that knows these boats knows it takes a lot of time to learn them."

Perini said, "Sure, he has a great crew, but you still have to steer the boat, and, sure, he's had the opportunity to sail at this level with family support, but he still has to get on the boat and do the job."

And he's doing it better than anyone so far. Three races are scheduled Thursday and the last two Friday.

Bell, Canada's national leader in communications provides connectivity to residential and business customers through wired and wireless voice and data communications, local and long distance phone services, high speed and wireless Internet access, IP-broadband services, e-business solutions and satellite television services. Bell Canada is wholly owned by BCE Inc. For more information please visit www.bel.ca.

Joining Bell in support of the event are contributing sponsors Champagne Mumm, CHUM Limited, Lewmar, McMillan Binch LLP, Mount Gay Rum, North Sails, Stella Artois and Sorgentone.

Standings (after 6 of 11 races):
1. Pegasus 20, Samuel Kahn, Honolulu, 3-1-17-3-1-2, 27 points.
2. Steadfast, Fred Sheratt, Toronto, 8-2-4-6-2-11, 33.
3. Pegasus 591, Philippe Kahn, Honolulu, 5-3-5-1-5-9, 38.
4. Tramp, Tom Ritter, Bloomfield Hills, Mich., 1-7-7-15-4-5, 29.
5. Foreign Affair, Richard Perini, Sydney, Australia, 2-12-13-2-17-1, 47.
6. Team Intermac, Dan Cheresh, Holland, Mich., 6-10-9-10-7-6, 48.
7. Cygnet, Richard Swann, Fairfield, Conn., 13-8-1-12-10-8, 52.
8. TeamBOLD, Nelson Stephenson, Southport, Conn., 15-11-14-9-3-4, 56.
9. Groovederci, Deneen Demourkas, Santa Barbara, Calif., 4-18-2-14-6-14, 58.
10. Calvi, Carlo Alberini, Pesaro, Italy, 16-5-11-7-13-7, 59.
11. Team Traffic, Philip Werheim, USA, 14-13-21-4-9-3, 64.
12. USA 65, David Pyles, Easton, Md., 7-16-6-18-8-10, 65.
13. Three Niner, David Gonzalez, Lambertville, Mich., 12-15-10-5-11-13, 66.
14. Notorious, Kevin Brown, Toronto, 9-9-12-8-16-16, 70.
15. it, Jim Sminchak, Euclid, Ohio, 11-4-16-16-18-15, 80.
16. Dark'n Stormy, Kevin Young, Novelty, Ohio, 10-14-19-11-12-17, 83.
17. Champosa, Jonathan McDonagh, Minneapolis, Minn., 20-6-3-19-19-20, 87.
18. Surprise, David Irish, Harbour Springs, Mich., 18-17-15-13-15-12, 90.
19. War Pony, Art Guerrera, Atlantic Highlands, N.J., 19-10-8-20-20-9, 96.
20. Hammer, U.S. Coast Guard Academy, New London, Conn., 17-19-18-17-14-18, 103.
21. Wildthing, Jeff Fogarty, Fonthill, Ontario, 21-21-20-21-21-21, 125.

New Murdock music

Singer, song writer, performer Lee Murdock has a new CD out 'Between Two Worlds'. Typically I associate Murdock with songs from back in the day, songs about wooden ships, songs from the past. His new CD does a fine job of mixing tradition and contemporary.

The traditional side is represented by songs like 'Tommy's Gone to Hilo'which describes Tommy a sailor who ranges from Buffalo to Cape Horn, and Homeward Bound an old capstan shanty.

The discs 1st track 'Mill Towns' is an evocative contemporary song that will come home to anyone who has grown up in a rust belt, industrial or waterfront town. Murdock sings 'Old Port' a song picked right out recent Lake Michigan history lamenting the Linda E the commercial fishing tug run down at sea.

He includes a couple of handy, novelty sing along type numbers. These numbers are 'Eddystone Light' & 'Sailors Alphabet'.

Murdock casts his head towards daily life, commuting, conference calls and email in 'Casting your Cares to the Deep' This song is firmly in the a bad day sailing is better than a good day in the office tradition.

The final song I will note is 1913 Massacre a Woodie Guthrie tune. This describes a hideous occurrence during labor strife in Michigan's UP.

This collection corrected any perception I may have had that Murdock is just a sing of nostalgic schooner tunes. Rather, he's a full blown contemporary musician with command of a wider range of subjects than most.

For those in the Muskegon area Murdock will be performing at the Langeland House Bed and Breakfast November 14th from 4 to 6 PM.

Orange II Gets Green

As predicted yesterday, a weather window is opening up for Bruno
Peyron and his crew, who will try and break the Marseilles –
Carthage record. The Orange II maxi-catamaran should cross the
starting line tomorrow between 18:00 and 20:00 local time.

“We’re waiting for a cold front which should cause the winds to shift to the west – shift which will probably be less significant than expected, and that might force us to gybe twice at the end of the course”, explained Bruno Peyron today. “As far as the wind force is concerned, I reckon we’ll have more than enough ! I think the state of the seas will be quite rough, since it’s generally the case in the Mediterranean when it’s been blowing more than 30 knots for three straight days – we can expect choppy seas, which may force us to ease off a bit”.

Orange II will probably not be pushed at 100%, but “all hands will be on deck all the time (no watch systems, since the record to beat is only 18 hours and 46 minutes), and the best helmsmen on board will take turns behind the wheel. Their task will be to keep the boat speed at its highest level!” The crew for this record is composed by the same “core” that already tackled the Atlantic in August.

Current record: Steve Fossett, PlayStation / 18 hours, 46 minutes and 48 seconds (Est. May 2002)

Crew list :
Bruno Peyron, skipper
Sébastien Audigane
Yves Le Blévec
Halvard Mabire
Lionel Lemonchois
Ludovic Alglaor
Marc Englebert
Tanguy de Lamotte
Stanislas Devorsine
Quentin Gilles
Arnaud de Bélinay (video)

What Kind of Oil Goes in My Engine

What Kind of Oil Goes in My Engine and can I use synthetic Oil?

A common question from diesel engine owners is: "Should I
use a diesel grade engine oil and what specification/grade
to use?"

We can start by eliminating the oil you might use in your
auto engine if it's a gas engine. There are separate lubrication
oils for gas and diesel engines.

So, yes, you should use a diesel grade oil. How to determine
this?

Take a look at the label on the oil container. You'll see a service
symbol donut. The top part will read something like this: "API Service CI-4 CH-4,CG-4,CF-4,CF/SL"

The C tells that it is a diesel oil. The designations are more specific. For instance CF-2 a current diesel lube oil
category is for "severe duty, two-stroke engines." If the oil
has all the designations listed above it can be used in a
variety of diesel engines. Below that you will see the oil's
viscosity. The bottom half tells if the oil has energy conservation
properties.

The specific categories are determined by the American
Petroleum Institute.

Some engine manuals, such as as older Universal Diesel Service Manuals list grades such as CD. This is an obsolete classification
having been initiated in 1955. All of the current grades
listed above can be used in place of CD oils.

To sum up the answer: yes use a diesel specific oil, use the
grades listed on the API Oil chart to
determine if an oil will work with your engine.

A real life example of a specific oil is Quaker State SAE 15W-40 Universal HDX for Heavy Duty Diesel engines. Torresen Marine uses this oil on many diesel engines.

Also when changing you oil make sure to dispose properly of
used engine oil, i.e. not at your marina or boatyard dumpster.
You should recycle your used oil.

Whether you should use synthetic oil is dependent on your engine and its number of hours. Yanmar reccomends against use of synthetic oil. Should you use synthetic oil in your Yanmar during the warranty period this will void the warranty.

Universal/Westerbeke's answer is different. They reccomend using conventional oil during the first 100 hours of engine life. After that synthetic oil is acceptable. With the variance from just 2 manufacturers you should check with your engine's maker before using synthetic.

Riding the Ferry In Pictures III

For the first time I had an opportunity to cross Lake Michigan on the Lake Express ferry. I was able to snap some pictures and throughout the week we'll feature them. This set of photos feature Milwaukee.

The non descript Milwuakee Harbor engrance.

The ship's water jet's during undocking

Looking astern while underway

Linky Sailing News

Racing Mumm 30 Worlds Day 1. Etchells NA's. A class cat

News NZL Super Maxi. Sailor dies. TNZL AG. Tracy Edwards $

Great Lakes Detroit boats. South Haven tall ship. Riding the Lake Express

College Sailing Tough conditions. Spartan Singles.

TP 52's cross tacks upwind at the Big Boat Series

US Paralympian 2nd

Finishes of 5-6 in today’s races on the Saronic Gulf have dropped 2.4 Metre sailor Tom Brown (Northeast Harbor, Maine) to second place overall in the Paralympic Regatta underway at the Agios Kosmas Sailing Centre.

"It was rough out there," said Brown who had moved to the head of the fleet standings after winning races three and four on Sunday. "My head wasn't in the game today. I couldn't get off the line and that makes all the difference in the world. I was behind all day and had to do a lot of catching up."

With six races scored, the series standings now reflect a worst finish discard by each sailor in calculating the total points. Damien Seguin of France moved into the overall lead with finishes of 1-7 for 12 points. Brown is one point back, followed by Thierry Schmitter of The Netherlands who is third with 15 points.

In light winds on the Saronic Gulf, Brown started the first race in seventh place at the first mark before gradually climbing to as high as third. In a photo-finish, Great Britain's Alan Smith nipped Brown at the line for fourth place.

"I wanted to escape today and get five or six more points on them (Sequin and Schmitter) and be able to breathe a little bit, but it didn't work out that way," said Brown on the tightening of the overall race. "It looks like it's going to go down to the last day. It just got a whole lot more interesting."

Competition continues tomorrow, Wednesday, September 22, for both the 2.4 Metre and Sonar classes with races seven and eight scheduled. The USA’s Sonar team of John Ross-Duggan (Newport Beach, Calif.), Brad Johnson (Milwaukee, Wis./Hollywood, Fla.) and J.P. Creignou (St. Petersburg, Fla.) had a layday today and are currently fourth in the overall standings.

The final race of the series is scheduled for both fleets on Thursday, September 23.

Kahns Strong at Mumm 30 Worlds

Last year Samuel Kahn, then age 14, stunned the sport when he sailed a Melges 24 to the class world championship on his first try. Tuesday, four inches taller at 6-2 but still too young to own a driver's license, he finished third and first before stumbling to 17th in the third race on the first day of the Bell Mumm 30 World Championship---his first day racing one of the 31-foot sloops after sailing it only three days in practice.

Do you think . . . ?

"I'm kind of surprised," he said. "I didn't think we'd be doing so well."

Then someone handed him a score sheet of the day's results.

"Cool," he said. "Dad's leading."

That would be Philippe Kahn, the California and Hawaii-based software developer whose steady 5-3-5 string earned him a one-point lead over one of the local hopes, Fred Sherratt, sailing Steadfast for the host Royal Canadian Yacht Club, and two points over Tom Ritter's Tramp, which won the opening race.

Shark Kahn, in fourth place eight points back, said, "My dad's leading, so I can't take it easy on him anymore."

Eight more races are scheduled over the next three days at the western end of Lake Ontario. Winds Tuesday were moderate slipping to light and shifting 30 degrees through the afternoon. The 21 boats from four countries raced a 1.6-nautical mile windward-leeward course, twice around.

"It was a tricky day," said Stu Bannatyne, an America's Cup and Volvo Ocean Race veteran who called tactics for Philippe Kahn. "When you saw a trend it really paid to push it that way."

Shark Kahn's tactician was Richard Clarke, a three-time Olympian for Canada who grew up here. Other recognizable names aboard were Brian Janney and Brian Lee, who sailed with Clarke and Kahn on his Melges crew, and Mark Golsch and Mark (Crusty) Christensen.

Clarke teased his skipper, "He just drove the boat well, did what we said and concentrated."

Philippe Kahn's pitman, Tony Rankin, said his skipper didn't much talk about his son during the racing. "He might have said, 'He's doing pretty well,' "Rankin said, "but it's a pretty quiet boat."

Richard Swann's Cygnet from Fairfield, Conn. jumped up to fifth place by winning the last race Tuesday.

"I owe it all to my tactician [Mark Ivey]," he said, slapping the native Californian on the shoulder. "We did a good job of playing the sides and got lucky with some wind shifts."

They beat Deneen Demourkas' sixth-place Groovederci from Santa Barbara by 1 ½ boat lengths. "We were the first boat to jibe down the last run," Ivey said. "It was one of those do or die moments. Then we defended the inside [to the finish]."

Ritter, who settled into a pair of sevenths after winning the first race, noted a mellow mood on the first day. "People were being very gracious and considerate out there," he said. "I didn't hear any yelling or swearing. I let a couple of port [tack] boats cross us and was shown the same favor once or twice."

Some---including Shark Kahn in the last race---were obliged to do penalty turns for routine infractions, but no protests were filed at the end of the day. Ritter doesn't expect it to last.

"We're all showing the love early because the hate's coming soon enough," he said.

Bell, Canada's national leader in communications provides connectivity to residential and business customers through wired and wireless voice and data communications, local and long distance phone services, high speed and wireless Internet access, IP-broadband services, e-business solutions and satellite television services. Bell Canada is wholly owned by BCE Inc. For more information please visit www.bell.ca .

Joining Bell in support of the event are contributing sponsors Champagne Mumm, CHUM Limited, Lewmar, McMillan Binch LLP, Mount Gay Rum, North Sails, Stella Artois and Sorgentone.

Standings (after 3 of 11 races):
1. Pegasus 591, Philippe Kahn, Honolulu, 5-3-5, 13 points.
2. Steadfast, Fred Sheratt, Toronto, 8-2-4, 14.
3. Tramp, Tom Ritter, Bloomfield Hills, Mich., 1-7-7, 15.
4. Pegasus 20, Samuel Kahn, Honolulu, 3-1-17, 21.
5. Cygnet, Richard Swann, Fairfield, Conn., 13-8-1, 22.
6. Groovederci, Deneen Demourkas, Santa Barbara, Calif., 4-18-2, 24.
7. Team Intermac, Dan Cheresh, Holland, Mich., 6-10-9, 25.
8. Foreign Affair, Richard Perini, Sydney, Australia, 2-12-13, 27.
9. Champosa, Jonathan McDonagh, Minneapolis, Minn., 20-6-3, 29.
10. USA 65, David Pyles, Easton, Md., 7-16-6, 29.
11. Notorious, Kevin Brown, Toronto, 9-912, 30.
12. it, Jim Sminchak, Euclid, Ohio,11-4-16, 31.
13. Calvi, Carlo Alberini, Pesaro, Italy, 16-5-11, 32.
14. Three Niner, David Gonzalez, Lambertville, Mich., 12-15-10, 37.
15. TeamBOLD, Nelson Stephenson, Southport, Conn., 15-11-14, 40.
16. Dark'n Stormy, Kevin Young, Novelty, Ohio, 10-14-19, 43.
17. War Pony, Art Guerrera, Atlantic Highlands, N.J., 19-10-8, 47.
18. Team Traffic, Philip Werheim, USA, 14-13-21, 48.
19. Surprise, David Irish, Harbour Springs, Mich., 18-17-15, 50.
20. Hammer, U.S. Coast Guard Academy, New London, Conn., 17-19-18, 54.
21. Wildthing, Jeff Fogarty, Fonthill, Ontario, 21-21-20, 62.

Orange II on for Med Record

Orange Code. Bruno Peyron, skipper of the Orange II maxicatamaran,
in stand-by mode in Marseilles since Friday, just switched the orange lights on for his Mediterranean record attempt.
This means that the boat could cross the starting line sometime
between Thursday and Saturday this week. A first weather window could open this Thursday between 15 :00 and 20 :00. To be confirmed tomorrow.

The Mediterranean crossing record between Marseilles and Carthag(Tunisia) is held by Steve Fossett, who established it on May 24, 2002 aboard PlayStation, in 18 hours, 46 minutes and 48 seconds (24,38 knots of average speed).

Bruno Peyron : « We could leave tomorrow, but the wind will be too strong (45 to 50 knots) and it will blow right in the direction of our route. Thursady, the cold front will show up and give us 20 to 25 knots of breeze. We should sail really fast for the first two thirds of the course. A little doubt remains as afr as the last portion is concerned, since the system does not seem to stay with us until the end. But whatever happens, the conditions that are expected lead us to give it a first shot ».

Record of the Mediterranean : The first official benchmark time was recorded on this course 25 years ago ! François Boucher, aboard the Elf Aquitaine maxi catamaran (the same boat Marc Pajot had sailed to victory in the 2nd Route du Rhum) then renamed Saab Turbo, took the first record in just a bit more than 26 hours. Serge Madec, skipper of theglorious Jet Services V (which held the Atlantic record at the time and eventually became Commodore Explorer), did better 2 years later, before he was himself beaten by Laurent Bourgnon aboard his 60’ trimaran RMO (which then became Primagaz) : nevertheless, the
talented Bourgnon saw his record fall just a few days later ! Florence Arthaud had just won the Route du Rhum when she sailed flat out towards Carthage aboard her trimaran Pierre 1er. She beat Laurent Bourgnon by only 45 little seconds, but she kept her record for 11
years (during which there has not been many attempts). PlayStation, skippered by Steve Fossett, has added this record to his already long list in June 2002, gaining almost 4 hours on the previous performance.

Time to beat : 18 hours, 46 minutes and 48 seconds

Riding the Lake Express

For the first time since service began in June I rode the Lake Express ferry to Milwaukee and back. Here are one passengers impressions.

The reservation process was straight forward. I used the Lake Express website initially. In the end I visited the Muskegon terminal to book my trip.

Even post labor day there were some crossings that were fully booked. Also it's easier to get a person on board than a car.

Milwaukee Breakwater Light as seen from the Lake Express Sun Deck

I am able to walk to the ferry terminal. Be advised if you plan to leave your car at the Lake Express lot in Muskegon there is a $4.00 per nite charge.

There is airport type security prior to boarding. For my trip it was quite a bit more relaxed than when flying.

Earlier this year the Lake Express had some issues with timeliness. For my trip the boat was on time-even to the extent of being early.

On board the passenger cabin is very airplane like. Both sides have seats that recline with the center being taken up by chairs that have tables. The seats recline but are minimally padded.

On board service is minimal. Lake Express is in the style of modern day commodity travel, if you want something get your wallet out. Service by on board crew consists of some brief safety announcements, collection of trash, and handing out head sets for the movies. There was a movie shown on board, with a $3.00 charge rental fee for headsets.

The aisles between the seats are wide. As the ship rolls passengers careen and pin ball up and down these aisles. The installation of some type of grab rail would result in an easier time for passengers.

Smoothness of ride has been an ongoing issue. My west bound trip saw calm conditions and a ride with minimal rolling. The east bound return voyage saw rougher conditions rolling waves that were just starting to white cap.

The rolling was much more noticeable. Having said that I would estimate the roll at approximately 10 degrees maximum. There is not fore and aft pitching.

The motion is perhaps a bit unnatural. You expect more of a roll than you get, perhaps due to the stabilization system on board.

To me the ride was smooth enough. However, it looks like Lake Express will have to do all they can to solve this as they are getting a reputation for providing rough rides.

In close quarters the ship appears to handle well. It easily makes right angle maneuvers at the Muskegon dock and slides in quickly off Lake Michigan to imitate a parallel parking maneuver at the Milwaukee dock.

The sun deck on top of the ship provides a nice vantage point when in the harbor. It is a rather bland area and needs to have more non skid applied.

Terminals on both sides are functional. They are not ideally located, but serve their purpose well enough. Signage for those needing to find the terminals is better in Muskegon than in Milwaukee.

Overall it was an adequate experience in modern style travel. Lake Express lacks the romance, service and amenities of the SS Badger. It does provide speed and has improved it's reliability throughout the season giving hope that the overall experience will get better going forward. Lake Express plans to run up to 1 January so there is still plenty of chances to ride it.

Book Scout Look Out: True Bearing

True Bearing is the only book from author David Fairbank White. It is out of print, but available used.

Appropriately I picked this books up for one thin quarter at Spies Library near the Menominee Marina.

I say appropriately because this library has a water view and is adjacent to the marina where I spent my formative sailing years leading to my current career in the sailing biz. And as I've penned/typed rowing reporter I've tried to keep a broader field of view beyond just sailing to include commercial shipping and more general waterfront news.

True Bearing covers the struggles of the last 'ship news' reporter of the New York Glove (aka the NY Times) along the New York waterfront. In the end the reporter cracks a big story about a tanker that leaked oil. The story goes to a magazine as there are no 'ship news' reporters needed by the Globe.

Of course, more recently, there has been the Shipping News. This books also turned movie featured Quoyle as a 'ship news' reporter.

While there may not be any 'ship news' reporters on newspaper staffs, the Internet does provide. A prime example of on line ship news is the Boat Nerd site.

This book is an interesting read and serves as a fun way to take a look at how communications have changed while the pull of the watery world stays the same.

The Earl W. Ogelbay enters the Soo Locks

Riding the Ferry In Pictures II

For the first time I had an opportunity to cross Lake Michigan on the Lake Express ferry. I was able to snap some pictures and throughout the week we'll feature them. These photos look at various areas on board the Lake Express

The modern interior

The Sun Deck

Bow view, wheelhouse on the left side

Paralympians battle Baffling Winds

Just as it did last month for sailors competing in the Olympic Games, the unpredictable winds of the Saronic Gulf have once again baffled sailors and shuffled the standings, although this time it is the sailors competing in the 2004 Paralympic Regatta who are battling the conditions.

The USA’s entry in the Sonar class – skipper John Ross-Duggan (Newport Beach, Calif.), with crew Brad Johnson (Milwaukee, Wis./Hollywood, Fla.) and J.P. Creignou (St. Petersburg, Fla.) – slipped to fourth place overall after finishing sixth in each of today's two races. The series standings, with six races scored, now allows each team to discard their worst finish from the total points.

After dropping the 16 points they earned on being disqualified from race two, Israel has returned to the lead position in the 15-boat fleet on 14 points. Germany follows second with 16, third is The Netherlands with 18. The USA is currently one point out of the medals with 19 points.

"It was tough today," said Ross-Duggan. "The wind was shifty. We had a brilliant first race start and led to the first weather mark. As things should have unfolded, we should have just walked away with the race, but we didn't."

The USA shot off the starting line to open the first race, but dropped to third by the second mark. With the winds continuing to shift, the USA dropped as far back as seventh at the final windward mark, but edged out rival Australia at the finish to place sixth. Less than a minute separated the top seven finishers in the race.

"It was tough out there," said Johnson. "It was very shifty. We'd have a good wind and then – poof – it was gone."

The team faced an equally tricky breeze in the second race where they fell back as far as 11th place before climbing back to a sixth place and joining the rest of the fleet in a helplessly slow crawl to the finish line.

With only five points separating the top four teams, the USA’s Sonar team heads into the final three races of the series in contention for a medal.

"We've got three races to go," said Ross-Duggan. "The plan now is to focus on the people ahead of us (in the standings) and try to stay ahead of them."

The Sonar fleet will have a day off tomorrow, Tuesday, September 21, with races seven and eight planned for Wednesday, September 22.

Today was a layday for the 2.4 Metre sailors, with racing for that class resuming tomorrow, Tuesday, September 21. The USA's Tom Brown (Northeast Harbor, Maine) holds the lead in that class after winning races three and four on Sunday.

The final race of the series is scheduled for both fleets on Thursday, September 23.

Repeat at Mumm 30 Worlds?

Carlo Alberini and his all-Italian crew sail into the Bell Mumm 30 World Championship Tuesday ballasted by the weight of tradition. They alone carry the hopes of their homeland to stretch the string of four consecutive class titles won by Italians.

Fifteen Americans, three Canadians and one Australian are lined up to see that it doesn't happen again. None of the seven former champions is competing.

The schedule calls for 11 races through Friday, with no throwouts. The event is hosted and organized by the Royal Canadian Yacht Club, located on an island off downtown Toronto in an elegant setting of flower beds, tennis courts, a bowling green and a stone facing dedicated by the Prince of Wales in 1919. The club dates to 1852, only one year younger than the America's Cup.

Alek Krstajic, director of marketing for the title sponsor, said, "Canada has had a rich heritage in sailing, and Bell is proud to be associated with hosting a world championship."

Besides Alberini, the other overseas entry is Richard Perini, sailing Foreign Affair from Sydney. Perini won class in similarly difficult competition at Key West in 2002 and 2003 and has sailed in four previous Mumm 30 Worlds, but he was worried about sailing in uncharted waters here.

"I've never been to Canada," he said after two low-key practice races in light winds Monday. "All the locals we've spoken to say conditions could be anything at all, so we're ready for nothing. We're hoping for wind. We seem go have a bit of an edge when the wind comes up."

Alberini echoes that sentiment. The week's forecast calls for 10 knots tops.

"A lot of the teams are very, very strong," said Alberini. "The racing will not be easy because of little breeze. But I'm here to play the game with what I have in my hand."

Two crew members, Sandro and Paolo Montefusco, are veterans of three Olympic Games in the 470 dinghy class; they won silver medals in 1988. "My crew is from all parts of Italy," Alberini said, "from the north to the south."

Alberini's home is in Pesaro, a town on the Adriatic coast near where the composer Rossini and the painter Raffalo were born---but their boat, Calvi, is named for to company of a sponsor.

Bell, Canada's national leader in communications provides connectivity to residential and business customers through wired and wireless voice and data communications, local and long distance phone services, high speed and wireless Internet access, IP-broadband services, e-business solutions and satellite television services. Bell Canada is wholly owned by BCE Inc. For more information please visit www.bell.ca .

Joining Bell in support of the event are contributing sponsors Champagne Mumm, CHUM Limited, Lewmar, McMillan Binch LLP, Mount Gay Rum, North Sails, Stella Artois and Sorgentone.

Entries (alphabetical by boat name):
Calvi, Carlo Alberini, Pesaro, Italy
Champosa, Jonathan McDonagh, Minneapolis, Minn.
Cygnet, Richard Swann, Fairfield, Conn.
Dark'n Stormy, Kevin Young, Novelty, Ohio
Foreign Affair, Richard Perini, Sydney, Australia
Groovederci, Deneen Demourkas, Santa Barbara, Calif.
Hammer, U.S. Coast Guard Academy, New London, Conn.
it, Jim Sminchak, Euclid, Ohio
Notorious, Kevin Brown, Toronto
Pegasus 20, Samuel Kahn, Honolulu
Pegasus 591, Philippe Kahn, Honolulu
Steadfast, Fred Sheratt, Toronto
Surprise, David Irish, Harbour Springs, Mich.
TeamBOLD, Nelson Stephenson, Southport, Conn.
Team Intermac, Dan Cheresh, Holland, Mich.
Three Niner, David Gonzalez, Lambertville, Mich.
Tramp, Thomas C. Ritter, Bloomfield Hills, Mich.
USA 65, David Pyles, Easton, Md.
War Pony, Art Guerrera, Atlantic Highlands, N.J.
Wildthing, Jeff Fogarty, Fonthill, Ontario

Carin Streufert Memorial Team Race

Carin Streufert Memorial Team Race

Hosted by the University of Minnesota and the Lake Minnetonka Sailing
School

Held out of the Wayzata Yacht Club.

Saturday: The winds started in the morning at 5 kts and grew in until the end of the day at a steady 15kts out of the southwest. 36 races between 9 teams were run. A full round robin was completed using port modified triangles and two fleets of boats.

Sunday: Racers were greeted with 10kts of breeze out of the southwest. First race was a sail off between St Thomas and Marquette for the gold/silver fleet split Marquette won. Single Silver 6 round robin was completed and two Gold 4 round robins were completed. No protests were filed.

The U of M team would like to thank PRO Paul Kobs and his team for running 84 races over the two days. We would like to thank Cappy Capper and Brent Ostbye for help with organization, Jonathan Held for providing an extra safety boat and our scorer Ariell Bachman and Anne Scheuerman. Thank to the parents of Jenny Wilson and Alex Symes for helping with lunch.

Final Results:

Gold:
Minnesota Maroon 13-1
Wisconsin White 10-4
Wisconsin Red 8-6 (Women's Team)
Marquette 5-9

Silver:
St Thomas 9-3
Wisconsin Freshman 7-3
Minnesota Gold 3-9 (20 pts sailing against Carleton)
Carleton 3-9 (22 pts against Gold)
Iowa 0-12

*Carleton and Minnesota Gold both won once head to head.

Minnesota Maroon: Skippers: Alexander Symes, Ben Burgum, Marke Dunsworth
Crew: Jennifer Wilson, Jessica Haverstock, Andrea Porter

Wisconsin White: Skippers: Mathew Schmitdt, James Dunham, Joe Zechlinski, Schott Eisenhardt, Aaron Mann, Tom Mcgrath
Crew: Jen conant, Jake Fishman, Missy Barry, Michelle Lorenz

Wisconsin Red: Skippers: Liz Prange, Anne Porter, Anna Bargen, Teresa
Phillips, Amy Schultz Crew: Kelsey Cramer, Anna Bargen, Anne Porter, Teresa Phillips, Amy Schultz

Marquette: Skippers: Hunter Ratliff, Christopher Williams, Cate Muller Crew: James Blackwood, Renee M Jacobs, Eric D Orzechowski
(Iowa)

St Thoams: Skippers: Dan Shinozaki, Parker Zanios, Lindsay Allen Crew: Jackson Dalton, Rachel Leadens, Nate Owens

Wisconsin Freshman: Skippers: Rob S Pickens, Anders S Hester, Tristan T Sather, Patricia K Schmidt Crew: Ben W Dickey, Brianne M Zechlinski, Micheal
W Stephenson, W. Brett Christiansen

Minnesota Gold: Skippers: Carolyn Krech, Jordan Jones, Dave Elsmo
Crew: Rebecca Mitchell, Sarah Gross, Oren Lambert

Carleton: Skippers: Chris H Reitz, Josh Tolken, Julia Tuichell, Tony Adler Crew: Charles Swietzer, Rob Evans, Gaeten Damberg-Ott, Catherin
Courcy, Andy Klientheschomik

Iowa: Skippers: Josiah Ball, Leah Isreal, John Phelps Crew: Brad Maier, Lindsey Schneider, Suzan Hamm

Linky Sailing News

Racing Sunfish Worlds

News TNZL to sail Act II. Loading NZL 81. Read on TP 52's. Log blog

Great Lakes Fox Locks Terrorism thoughts

College Sailing Yale 2nd @ Mrs. Hurst. Yales weekend

NZL is loaded for flight to Europe

Spartan Singles

Spartan Singles 2004
Hosted by Michigan State University and Lansing Sail Club

Saturday
The clouds disappeared quickly as the sun shined brightly on the lake while the wind toyed with the race committee from 0-4 knots. Only 3
Windward-Leeward races were sailed in the fluky conditions. Racers who were not in college also raced during the event to provide a wide range of competition. Racing concluded for the day at 2:30pm due to lack of wind.

Sunday
Racers had to wait for the morning fog to clear away before the wind picked up to approximately 3-8 knots from the Southeast around 10am with sunny skies. Only collegiate sailors remained for Sunday's racing as scheduled. Six more races were sailed today, all Windward-Leeward courses. Many thanks to all who volunteered from Lansing Sail Club to run races, especially Pat
Dolan and Mike Moody. Even some who had been racing on Saturday switched from sailors to race committee today. Thanks to Mike Fong for doing all the scoring for the regular and collegiate events. George Griswold was available as a judge,thank you so much for being at our event-no protests were filed. Thanks to the rest of the MSU Sailing Team for providing dock and shore support.

Spartan Singles '04
Michigan State University
09/18 - 09/19

1:51 PM 9-19-04

A division = 9 Races

TOT
1. Purdue 2 27 Carlos Abisambra '06
2. MSU 2 32 Casey Ray '08
3. Notre Dame 1 38 Tim Roy '08
4. Univ. of Mich. 40 David Ellis '06
5. Notre Dame 2 48 Chris May '08
6. MSU 1 55 Mary Vorel '05
7. MSU 6 71 Mills Forni '08
8. Purdue 1 89 Charles Rush '06
9. Western Mich Univ 2 93 Geoffery Lindenberg '06
10. Western Mich Univ 1 96 Kirk Pettinga '08
11. MSU 4 100 Steve Griffith '08
12. Northwestern 103 Don Thinschmidt '07
13. Purdue 3 107 Staci Mattox '07
14. Hope College 127 Drew Wierda '08
15. Ohio University 1 142 Karl Felger '06
16. MSU 5 148 Andy Schiller '08
17. MSU 3 165 Arne Thielenhaus '07
18. Ohio University 2 169 Anna Rice '05

Riding the Ferry In Pictures

For the first time I had an opportunity to cross Lake Michigan on the Lake Express ferry. I was able to snap some pictures and throughout the week we'll feature them. These photos were taken as the ferry was out bound on Muskegon Lake.

I took the late boat

We passed the Milwaukee Clipper

Wind Instruments and Navigation Light

Standard Side for Jib Halyards?

I was recently asked the following question: "I have owned 6 sail boats. Some, but not all have had the main halyard running down the starboard side of the mast which I prefer. Is there a standard side of the mast for main halyards to be winched or cleted on and a standard side of the mast for tha jib halyard to run?"

I answered: "There is not standard set up. Some boats have halyards at the mast some have them run aft to the cockpit, some have them on the cabin top between the mast and cockpuit.

Having said that you'll find a lot of jib/genoa halyards to port. One
reason for this is that race courses tend to have marks that are rounded
to port, thus making it common for the headsail halyards to be on the
port side."

What other answers might there be to this question?

Some answers here.

Silva Sponsors VOR

Leading navigational equipment specialist Silva, has been appointed Official Supplier of compasses and navigational accessories to the Volvo Ocean Race 2005-06.

To support the race, Silva will be making available both to competitors and the general public a range of Volvo Ocean Race branded goods including binoculars, headlamps and handheld atmospheric data instruments.

“We are delighted to have the opportunity to work alongside such a prestigious event as the Volvo Ocean Race,” commented Silva Ltd managing director, Tony Kent. “Silva’s range of navigational accessories and electronics have always been designed with the rigours of ocean sailing at the forefront of our thinking, and the global media and spectator coverage offered by the Volvo Ocean Race gives us an unprecedented opportunity to reach a wider audience than ever before.”

Anders Lofgren, commercial director for the Volvo Ocean Race commented, ” We’re very pleased to welcome Silva into this exciting venture. Silva shares many of the uncompromising standards and attributes both of the race and Volvo, and we look forward to a mutually beneficial and productive partnership.”

Silva’s equipment has long been used by elite sailors at the very highest level, and a selection of products will form part of the official Volvo Ocean Race collection, available for purchase online at http://shop.volvooceanrace.com.

Linky Sailing News

Racing Big Boat Series. 12 meter NA's

News Vendee Globe skippers. Mirabella V off the rocks

Great Lakes Ice Rescuers awarded. Terminal still a go.

College Sailing BC wins Nevins

Next for Orange II

After her rapid transalantic crossing during which she broke
the world 24 h record (706.2 miles covered at an average of 29.42 knots), Bruno Peyron’s Orange II maxi-catamaran made her way into port in the Old Harbour in Marseilles for the first time this afternoon at 3.30 p.m. Her skipper Bruno Peyron announced that the crew of Orange II were already on stand by for an attempt at the
Mediterranean crossing record between Marseilles and Carthage (Tunisia). There was fine weather and the seas were flat calm for this wonderful summer’s day, when the Giant Orange II, after a short showcase between the islands of Frioul and the mainland, made her way majestically into the waters of the Old Harbour. When she
reached the quayside, the senator and mayor of Marseilles, Monsieur Jean-Claude Gaudin congratulated Orange II’s crew on their performance and on the first record they had set: «Your success is due to your bravery and perseverance, we are proud that you are
showing the colours of our metropolitan area Marseilles Provence Métropole ».

Bruno Peyron talked again about his 24 h record and more generally about his rapid transatlantic crossing: « There’s never been a smaller time difference between two racers attempting
the Atlantic record. Orange II returned with this world 24 h record and became the first sailing boat in history to go beyond the hurdle of 700 miles. We pushed the boat hard all the way and her reliability astounded us. That is very promising for the next stage of our
programme, starting with an attempt at the Mediterranean record. We think there will be a first opportunity in the weather this weekend, but the forecasts haven’t yet been confirmed. We are ready to st off as soon as the weather allows ».

THE MEDITERRANEAN RECORD
An historical sea journey, Marseilles – Carthage was the route taken by many ships when trading between Mediterranean countries. But it was only 25 years ago that a reference time was recorded François Boucher, aboard the catamaran Elf Aquitaine (in which Marc
Pajot won the second edition of the Rum Race) rechristened Saab Turbo, made the www.orange.fr
crossing in a little more than 26 hours. Serge Madec, skipper of the fabulous Jet Services
V (which was to become Explorer and holder of the Atlantic record at that time) did better two years later, before he in turn was beaten by Laurent Bourgnon, aboard his trimaran RMO (the future Primagaz). But although he was to win the Rum Race twice, the spotlight
for the Marseilles – Carthage was to stay on him only for a few days… Florence Arthaud, who had in turn just won the famous Atlantic race going to Pointe à Pitre, took off for Carthage aboard the trimaran Pierre 1er. She only beat Bourgnon’s record by 45 seconds(22h 9mn 56s at an average speed of 20.66 knots), but was to keep the victory honours for this race for 11 years. Since then, PlayStation, skippered by the American Steve Fossett, added this record to her list of successes on 24th May 2002, improving on the time by a
little under 4 hours. The record to beat is currently 18 hours 46 minutes 48 seconds (at an average speed of 4.38 knots). Keep watching...

Swan Cup Completed

On the fifth and final day of racing at the Rolex Swan Cup 2004, the fleet was put to a final tactical test in very light and shifty conditions. In the end it was Roberto Ferrero's Solenia 2 that took overall fleet honours and was awarded the Rolex Swan Cup. Individual class winners for the week were: Bugia Bianca (Swan 70) in Class A, Vertigo in Class B/Swan 45, and Solenia 2 (Swan 48) in Class C/D. Overall class winners were presented with a Rolex Submariner timepiece in steel and gold.

The northerly breeze at the start was around 4-5 knots. It remained light for most of the race and in fact shifted to the northeast and then died out almost completely so that the Race Committee was forced to shorten Classes A and C/D. In Class B, the Swan 45's started on a windward-leeward course of about 10 miles, but with the first boat only 300 meters from the finish line, the time limit ran out and the race was abandoned.

Class A sailed a course from Porto Cervo to a mark on the Golfo delle Saline, then upwind to a shortened finish at the Monaci Islands, a distance of approximately 17 miles; Class C/D were sent on a 12-mile course which took them round the Secca dei Tre Monti, then on to the same shortened finish line at Monaci.

Solenia 2 and Bugia Bianca were tied for the overall Rolex Swan Cup win, but Solenia 2 won on a tiebreak. Owner Roberto Ferrero said of his win, "The sails are good on Solenia but what is important is what is in the heart. We are all friends and this is the philosophy and the secret to Solenia 2.

Lorenzo Bressani, helmsman onboard added, "It was my second Swan Cup with Solenia, so to win was very special. We have a very good crew and have sailed well all week." Tactician Tommaso Chieffi commented, "It is my third time at the Swan Cup and my first win, so I am very pleased. It could have been a disaster today with only 5 knots of breeze, but we stayed calm and our crew work was good."

Marco Salvi, co-owner of the Swan 45 Vertigo said, "We have had a fantastic week of sailing with some very tough conditions. We race well together and it's been a lot of fun. We have only had Vertigo since May and already this is our second win of the season. It has been great to have all the Swans present in Sardinia and see how our boat competes with the rest of the fleet."

Massimo Dentice onboard Bugia Bianca, commented on the race, "Although we had one of our best starts of the week, the Swan 601 Island Fling got off in the lead. We overtook them passing Liscia di Vacca and were ahead for 15 minutes. Then the wind shifted and Island Fling overtook us again. The boat has sailed fantastically all week and I have sailed with a top crew of sailors in what has been a very well-organised regatta."

In addition to the jubilant crowd of sailors from over 100 participating Swans, the prizegiving ceremony on the Piazza Azzurra was also attended by political and military authorities. The Rolex Swan Cup 2004 brings the regatta season organized by the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda to a close.

BC Wins Nevins

Nevins Trophy Regatta
U.S. Merchant Marine Academy
September 18-19, 2004

5:14 PM 9-19-04

REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS:
Saturday-No racing 25-35knots, huge waves, lots of rain
Sunday- Breeze 20-25 gusts to 30 North/Northeast, lots of capsizes,
breakdowns, DNF's and DNS's. Five modified triangles were sailed in each division. V-15's with FJ mains were sailed for A and B. No FJ's were used. C-division-Lasers Boston College wins the Nevins for the first time.

Doug Clark

A division = 5 Races
B division = 5 Races
C division = 5 Races
A B C TOT

1. Boston College 30 16 14 60
2. St. Mary's 30 16 21 67
3. Georgetown 42 30 11 83
4. Dartmouth 13 39 46 98
5. Washington College 21 26 53 100
6. Hobart/WmSmith 38 44 21 103
7. USMMA-Kings Point 57 18 29 104
8. Harvard 42 44 47 133
9. Connecticut College 23 47 69 139
10. Rhode Island 55 59 26 140
11. Old Dominion 55 44 42 141
12. Coast Guard 61 36 53 150
13. Navy 62 55 35 152
14. MIT 33 66 58 157
15. Charleston 52 55 54 161
16. Michigan 80 74 76 230
17. Maryland 84 69 100 253
18. Cornell 86 77 101 264
19. Princeton 88 91 101 280
20. Miami/Ohio 93 87 104 284

A division = 5 Races
TOT
1. Dartmouth 13 Erick Storck 07/Jimmy Attridge 07, Clementine Ja
2. Washington College 21 Colin Robertson 05/Vanessa Anderson 07
3. Connecticut College 23 Dan Markham 06/Niko Kotsatos 05
4. Boston College 30 Jeff Bonanni 05/Tim Orazem 06
5. St. Mary's 30 Andrew Watters 07/Hilary Wiech 07
6. MIT 33 JM Modisette 05
7. Hobart/WmSmith 38 John Storck 05/Trevor Moore 07
8. Harvard 42 Clay Johnson 07/Ruth Schlitz 06, Laura Shubert 0
5, Pat Mauro 07
9. Georgetown 42 Steve Streit 05/Barbra Hall 05
10. Charleston 52 Jose Johnson 06/Liz McCarthy 05,Hunter Stunzi 06
11. Old Dominion 55 Anna Tunnicliffe 05/Christabelle Fernandez 05, M
ichael Smith 06
12. Rhode Island 55 Morgan Paxhia 05/Kerry Mahoney 05
13. USMMA-Kings Point 57 Graham Merganthaler 06/Tim Cain 06
14. Coast Guard 61 Robbie Goritan 07/Kyra Chin 07,Chris Greenough
15. Navy 62 John Keith 06/Lauren Sutehall 07, Dave Parker 08
16. Michigan 80 Matt Vonderion 06
17. Maryland 84 Michael Coe 05/Philip Brazio 05, Alexa Schuler 0
4
18. Cornell 86 Casey Williams/Scott Grandt
19. Princeton 88 Lawrence Azzaretti 06/Lauren Racusin 07
20. Miami/Ohio 93 Jocelyn Pollack 07/Anne Simiele 06, Doug Baker 0
8

B division = 5 Races
TOT
1. St. Mary's 16 Andrew Watters 07/Cotton Kelley 07
2. Boston College 16 Ben Gent 05/Guillaume Seynhaeve 05
3. USMMA-Kings Point 18 Peter Young 05/Emily Gardner 06
4. Washington College 26 Carl Horrocks 06/Alexandria Starks 08
5. Georgetown 30 Edward duMoulin 06/Julia Graham 06
6. Coast Guard 36 Chris Greenough 07, Ben Komar 07/Mallorie Schell
07 JJ Shock 06
7. Dartmouth 39 Peter Fleming 05/Elizabeth Kreler 05, Jimmy Attr
idge 07, Clementine James 05
8. Hobart/WmSmith 44 Lee Sackett 05
9. Harvard 44 Genny Tulloch 05/Laura Shubert 05, Pat Mauro 07,
Ruth Schlitz 06
10. Old Dominion 44 Charles Higgins 06/Vince Fantimayor 05, Wade Sch
on 07
11. Connecticut College 47 Charlie Modica 08/Kit Will 07
12. Charleston 55 Brendean Healy 07/Savannah Morton 05, Hunter Stu
nzi 06
13. Navy 55 Gary Grimes 07/Slava Haywas 07, Adam Oliviera 06
14. Rhode Island 59 Matt Kastan 07/Kristen Johnson 07
15. MIT 66 Jack Field 08
16. Maryland 69 Aaron Galvin 07/Joseph Schmaus 05
17. Michigan 74 Chris Granger 07
18. Cornell 77 Charlie Richter/Tom Hull
19. Miami/Ohio 87 Matt Rush 07/Drew Polminski 08, Abby Heckler 07
20. Princeton 91 David Cobey 07/Natalia Balko

C division = 5 Races
TOT
1. Georgetown 11 Andrew Campbell 06
2. Boston College 14 Reed Johnson 08
3. St. Mary's 21 Alex Steele 07
4. Hobart/WmSmith 21 Trevor Moore 07
5. Rhode Island 26 Tim Pitts 05
6. USMMA-Kings Point 29 Chris Branning 08
7. Navy 35 Steve Gay 05, Chuck Fulmer 06
8. Old Dominion 42 David Tunnicliffe 07
9. Dartmouth 46 Mike Wilde 07
10. Harvard 47 Kyle Kovacs 08
11. Coast Guard 53 Matt Sexton 06
12. Washington College 53 Parker Mitchell 08
13. Charleston 54 Patrick Wilson 07
14. MIT 58 Jake Muhleman 08
15. Connecticut College 69 Eric Aaronsohn 08
16. Michigan 76 Christina Falcone 07
17. Maryland 100 Thomas Chafey 08
18. Cornell 101 Andre Van-Rynbach 07
19. Princeton 101 Jed Drumm 05
20. Miami/Ohio 104 Nicole Finefrock 05

US Paralympians Take Lead

U.S. sailors in the 2.4 Metre and Sonar classes moved into first place in the overall standings at the Paralympic Games following the second day of competition at the Agios Kosmas Sailing Centre.

The Sonar team of John Ross-Duggan (Newport Beach, Calif.), Brad Johnson (Milwaukee, Wis./Hollywood, Fla.) and J.P. Creignou (St. Petersburg, Fla.) opened the day in first place following a protest from day one that saw the disqualification of the race-winning team from Israel. The U.S. team held on to the overall fleet lead with finishes of 3-6 in today’s two races.

"We had an average day today," said Creignou following the third and fourth races of the nine-race series. "The winds were very light and they change throughout the day. That requires a lot of readjusting and changing gears. It's very, very tough to figure out what the wind will do next."

After four races the U.S. leads the Sonar standings with 13 points. Australia and The Netherlands, tied on points at 19 each, follow in second and third, respectively.

Tom Brown (Northeast Harbor, Maine) won both of today’s 2.4 Metre races to move into first place overall in that 16-boat fleet.

Brown took the lead from defending gold medallist Heiko Kroeger (Germany) late in first race of the day, and then led wire-to-wire in the second race. With eight points, Brown holds the top position in the 2.4 Metre standings, with yesterday’s leader Damien Seguin (France) now in second place with 11 points. Kroeger sits third with 12 points.

Sailing continues on Monday with two races only in the Sonar class. Racing for the 2.4 Metre sailors resumes with two races on Tuesday.

Yale takes Hatch Brown

Hatch Brown Regatta
Boston University
FINAL RESULTS
9/18-19/2004
6:45 PM 9-19-04

REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS:
Saturday:
Rain poured down on Boston as the racing began, leading to a cloudy but clear afternoon in moderate breeze. 8 Races Completed in each division. Special thanks to judges Kerry Sherwin and Tom Robinson and the BU Freshmen for helping run races.

Sunday:
Breezy and cool on the Charles under sunny skies. 8 Races sailed in each division. A few breakdowns occured. Special thanks to judges Kerry Sherwin and Bruce Anderson. Thank you to the competitors for smooth rotations and great sailing.

A division = 16 Races
B division = 16 Races
A B TOT

1. Yale 130 51 181
2. Dartmouth 94 100 194
3. Tufts 108 97 205
4. Conn College 132 82 214
5. Brown 116 114 230
6. St. Mary's 123 120 243
7. Boston College 88 158 246
8. Univ Southern Florid 72 177 249
9. Old Dominion 106 158 264
10. Roger Williams 182 123 305
11. Hobart William Smith 192 131 323
12. Coast Guard Acad 233 128 361
13. Boston Univ 178 188 366
14. Mass Maritime 138 244 382
15. Harvard 149 246 395
16. Bowdoin 235 179 414
17. UVM 206 211 417
18. MIT 256 228 484

Mrs. Hurst Bowl won by Brown

Mrs. Hurst Bowl
Dartmouth College
September 18-19, 2004

8:51 PM 9-19-04

REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS:

Saturday: Rainy in the morning, eventually clearing out with breeze starting
NNW around 5 going North ranging from 5-10 mph. Thank you to judges Allison
Swindell, Jon Kling, and Amo Loring for monitoring sailors on the water and
hearing one redress, which was denied.

Sunday: Cloudy skies, shifty breeze from NNW to NNE ranging from 10-15 mph
throughout the day.
Thanks to judges Jon Kling and Amo Loring, for hearing eight more redress
hearings and protests, and the Dartmouth sailors who helped run the event.

A division = 14 Races
B division = 14 Races
A B TOT

1. Brown 104 49 153
2. Yale 77 78 155
3. Navy 73 84 157
4. Dartmouth 59 114 173
5. Harvard 83 134 217
6. Connecticut College 114 110 224
7. Boston College 128 112 240
8. Georgetown 153 93 246
9. St. Mary's 105 152 257
10. South Florida 122 158 280
11. Hobart/William Smith 161 123 284
12. Stanford 156 148 304
13. Boston University 172 144 316
14. UVM 175 146 321
15. Tufts 159 165 324
16. Coast Guard 166 172 338
17. Bowdoin 191 168 359
18. MIT 181 242 423

A division = 14 Races
TOT
1. Dartmouth 59 Lauren Padilla '05
Liz Hyon '05
2. Navy 73 Katie Whitman '07
Monica Meese '05
3. Yale 77 Molly Carapiet '06
Jenn Hoyle '05
4. Harvard 83 Sloan Devlin '06
Jenny Wong '05 1-4 Emily Simon '07 5-14
5. Brown 104 Anne Davidson '05
Sally Walkerman '05
6. St. Mary's 105 Adrienne Patterson '08
Maggie Lumkes '08
7. Connecticut College 114 Kate Bogart '05
Kirsten Bartan '05 1-3, 9-14 Grace Kenel '07 4-8
8. South Florida 122 Kristen Herman '07
Jee Lee '07
9. Boston College 128 Julie Wilson '05
Lizz McAlpine '06
10. Georgetown 153 Cordo Carraher '05
Meghan O'Neill '05
11. Stanford 156 Liz Rountree '06
Avowa Vu '06
12. Tufts 159 Lindsay Shanholt '05
Chloe Starr '08
13. Hobart/William Smith 161 Emilie Barkow '05
Kate Kana '05
14. Coast Guard 166 Sarah Martin '06
Betsy Tufts '07
15. Boston University 172 Molly Francis '05
Kristina Karl '05 1-8 Liddy Ogdahl '05 9-14
16. UVM 175 Andrea Petronello '06
Kathryn Massey '05
17. MIT 181 Amanda Baker '08
Julie Arsenault '08
18. Bowdoin 191 Caitlin Moore '06
Kate Auth '08

B division = 14 Races
TOT
1. Brown 49 Katie Lovelace '07
Louise Sherman '05
2. Yale 78 Emily Hill '07
Meaghan Pearl '06
3. Navy 84 Charlotte Hill '08
Audrey Callanan '08 1-12 Andrea White '07 13-14
4. Georgetown 93 Blaire Herron '08
Caroline LaMotte '07
5. Connecticut College 110 Emily Whipple '06
Brouck Anderson '07
6. Boston College 112 Maura Winston '06
Goodby '07 1-6 9-10 13-14 McManus '06 7-8 11-12
7. Dartmouth 114 Killarney Loufek '07
C Duncan '06 1-8 13-14 Kate Hacker '07 9-12
8. Hobart/William Smith 123 Augusta Nadler '06
Kate May '05
9. Harvard 134 Jessica Baker '06
Emily Simon '07 1-4 Jenny Wong '05 5-14
10. Boston University 144 Chanz McManus '06 1-6 Kristina Karl '05 8-14
Erin Kilkline '08 1-6 Lauren Kugel '07 8-14
11. UVM 146 Tiffany Spencer '05
Laura Eichorn '08
12. Stanford 148 Caroline Young '07
Jo Madsen '07
13. St. Mary's 152 Jenny Gervais '06
Lauren Durfeo '07
14. South Florida 158 Abby Ethington '07
Sarah Hakken '05
15. Tufts 165 Gretchen Curtis '07
Anna Martin '08
16. Bowdoin 168 Emily Bruns '06
Whitney Rauschenbach '06
17. Coast Guard 172 Gafield 1-6 11-12 Lashaway 7-10 Dahlkemper 13-14
Bobbie-Jean Felix '05 1-12 A McGoveoln 08 13-14
18. MIT 242 Jenny Hu '06
Ellann Cohen '08

Big Boat Series Winners

Winners in two IRC classes and seven one-design classes were named this evening at the Big Boat Series presented by Rolex. St. Francis Yacht Club named the six Perpetual Trophy winners, who also received specially engraved Rolex timepieces.

Chris Perkins and Dave Wilson (San Francisco, Calif.) won the Commodore's Cup, created in 2004 to encourage competition in one-design racing on San Francisco Bay. Perkins and Wilson's Good Timin' won the 31-boat J/105 fleet.

James Richardson (Boston, Mass./Newport, R.I.) won the nine-boat Farr 40 class and the Richard Rheem Perpetual Trophy. The trophy was established in 1972 in memory of Richard Rheem, whose famous yacht Morning Star was the elapsed time winner in the 1949 and 1955 Transpac races to Honolulu.

Stephen Madeira (Menlo Park, Calif.) won the Keefe-Kilborn Memorial Trophy, which was established in 1976 to honor Harold Keefe and Ray Kilborn. Madeira's Mr. Magoo won the nine-boat J/120 class.

John Siegel (San Francisco, Calif.) won the Atlantic Perpetual Trophy, which was established in 1978 and features the ship's bell of the yacht Atlantic, long-time Trans-Atlantic Ocean record holder (1905). The bell was donated by John C. "Jack" Morris, and the trophy by Jack H. Feller Jr. Siegel's Wylie 42 Scorpio won the 16-boat IRC B class.

Nicholas Lykiardopola (London, U.K.) won the St. Francis Perpetual Trophy, which was established to stimulate and encourage competition among large ocean racing yachts. Sturgeon's AERA, a Kerr-55, won the seven-boat IRC A class. The trophy has been awarded annually since the inception of the Big Boat Series 40 years ago to yachts invited to a race or series of races that are measured and handicapped in accordance with the current measurement rule and rate 40 feet or more. This trophy was donated in 1964 by Commodore A. L. Sandy McCormick.

Makoto Uematsu (Tokyo, Japan) won the City of San Francisco Trophy, which is one of the two golden spades used to break ground for the Golden Gate Bridge in 1933. His Esmeralda won the nine-boat TP52 class.

In the remaining classes, White Fang, the Beneteau 40.7 owned by Mark Howe (Richmond, Calif.) won the six-boat class. The winner of the five-boat Santa Cruz 52 class was Thomas Sanborn (Oakland, Calif.). And Golden Moon, owned by Kame Richards and Bill Bridge, won the nine-boat Express 37 class.

St. Francis Yacht Club's Big Boat Series presented by Rolex will be featured in the television program "The Spirit of Yachting," to be broadcast internationally beginning January of 2005. For sailors worldwide, the Rolex "Spirit of Yachting" films convey the exciting highlights of the racing season. Each year, from a host of locales that offer spectacular conditions and intense competition, Rolex produces a series of 30-minute films capturing the racing action.

The Big Boat Series presented by Rolex joins other prestigious Rolex-sponsored events in 2004 including the Giraglia Rolex Cup, Rolex Farr 40 World Championship, Rolex Fastnet Race, Maxi Rolex Cup, Rolex Middle Sea Race, the Rolex Miami OCR and the Rolex Sydney Hobart Race.

Founded in 1927, St. Francis Yacht Club, within view of the Golden Gate Bridge, is a year-round host of over 40 regattas on San Francisco Bay. The club is renowned for its expertise in running world and national championships.

Full results and additional information on the Big Boat Series presented by Rolex, online at www.stfyc.org.

Results - Big Boat Series presented by Rolex
September 19, 2004 - Final (seven races total in series)

Top 3 per class
Place, Owner, Hometown, Boat Name, Boat Type, Race 1-2-3-4-5-6-7, Total points

IRC Class A (7 boats)
1. Nicholas Lykiardopulo, Athens, Greece, AERA, Kerr 55, 1-1-1-1-2-1-1, 8
2. Robert Youngjohns, Woodside, Calif., Zephyra, DK46, 2-2-2-3-3-2-3, 17
3. Ed McDonnell, Kilauea, Hawaii, Grand Illusion, SC70, 6-3-4-2-6-4-2,s 27

IRC Class B (16 boats)
1. John Siegel, San Francisco, Calif., Scorpio, Wylie 42, 4-1-1-1-2-2-2, 13
2. Jeff Pulford, Corral de Tierra, Calif., Bustin Loose, Sydney 38, 3-3-2-4-1-3-3, 19
3. French/ Lezin, Santa Cruz, Animal, Sydney 38, 1-4-4-2-4-1-4, 20

SC52 Class (5 boats)
1. Tom Sanborn, Oakland, Calif., City Lights, 2-1-1-1-2-1-2, 10
2. Martin Brauns, Los Altos Hills, Calif., Winnetou, 1-2-2-2-1-2-1, 11
3. Skip Ely, La Selva Beach, Calif., Elyxir, 3-4-3-3-4-4-3, 24

TP52 Class (9 boats)
1. Makoto Uematsu, Tokyo, Japan, Esmeralda, 1-2-1-1-1-1-1, 8
2. Karl C. Kwok, Hong Kong, China, Beau Geste, 2-1-4-2-3-2-4, 18

3. Roger Sturgeon, Fort Lauderdale, Calif., 3-6-2-3-4-5-5, 28

Farr 40 (9 boats)
1. James Richardson, Boston, Mass./Newport, R.I., Barking Mad, 1-3-1-1-1-4-1, 12
2. Chuck Parrish, Hillsborough, Calif, Slingshot, 2-2-2-7-2-1-5, 21
3. Steve & Fred Howe, San Diego, Calif., Warpath , 9-1-3-3-6-3-2, 27

Express 37 (9 boats)
1. Kame Richards/ Bill Bridge, Alameda, Calif., Golden Moon, 2-1-1-6-4-3, 19
2. Mick Shlens, Palos Verdes Estates, Calif., Blade Runner, 1-4-5-3-1-7-2, 23
3. Bartz Schneider, Expeditions, Crystal Bay, Nev., 5-2-2-5-5-6-1, 26

J/120 (9 boats)
1. Stephen Madeira, Menlo Park, Calif., Mr. Magoo, 1-1-5-1-6-3-7, 24
2. Barry Lewis, Atherton, Calif., Chance, 6-6-9-3-1-2-3, 30
3. Rick Wesslund, Tiburon, Calif., El Ocaso, 3-7-8-4-3-1-5, 31

J/105 (31 boats)
1. Chris Perkins/Dave Wilson, San Francisco, Good Timin', 4-1-2-3-1-2-1, 14
2. Tim Russell, Novato, Calif., Aquavit, 2-2-3-2-9-3-6, 27
3. Thomas Coates, San Francisco, Charade, 3-3-5-4-5-4-14, 38

Beneteau 40.7 (6 boats)
1. Mark Howe, Richmond, Calif., White Fang, 1-3-2-2-3-2-2, 15
2. Mike Garl, San Carlos, Calif., White Dove, 7-7-1-1-1-1-1, 19
3. Joel Davis, Alameda, Calif., Shaddy Daddy, 2-2-3-5-2-5-7, 26

Big Boat Series Day 3

After recovering from yesterday's high-drama, the 101-boat fleet at the Big Boat Series Presented by Rolex settled into calm conditions of cool temperatures, 12- to 18-knot wind and overcast skies. Today was a welcome relief that gave class leaders a chance to consolidate their lead or, as in some fleets, a chance to capitalize and gain in the standings. The 40th annual regatta, where six historic Perpetual Trophies will be awarded among the 101 boats competing in seven one-design and two IRC classes, continued today on San Francisco Bay.

Maintaining a consistent scoreline of all first- and second-place finishes Nicholas Lykiardopulo's (Athens, Greece) Kerr 55 AERA remains atop of the IRC A class. With a casual glance of the scoreline, the conclusion might be that AERA is outsailing its competition, but that isn't the case according to helmsman Jez Fanstone (Lymington, U.K.). "We've been sailing AERA for 18 months and we've gotten to know the boat pretty well," he said. "The boat was designed for last year's Admirals Cup. It's a stiff boat and it sails very well upwind, especially against a strong current like in San Francisco."

With Eddie Warden-Owen (Hamble, U.K.) calling tactics, a 16-member crew that includes Volvo Ocean Race veterans and Olympians, and Lykiardopulo navigating the unfamiliar and tricky waters of the Bay, AERA's skipper explained that the team's collective Bay knowledge is increasing with every race. "This is a new venue for us and it's very interesting sailing," he said. "Today we struggled with our speed, but the optimum condition for this boat is 12-18 knots and we had it in the second race. We're into our second generation of sails and fortunate to have our North sail maker Simon Fry on board to assist us."

Bob Barton's (Santa Rosa, Calif.) Andrews 56 Cipango won today's first race, 22 seconds ahead of AERA, with Zephyra, the class's second-place boat overall, finishing third.

Santa Cruz 52 class leader Winnetou, owned by Martin Brauns (Los Altos Hills, Calif.) almost forfeited its lead today after a close call with a cruise ship. The five-boat class split to either side, with little room to spare. Winnetou seemed to press its luck with the distance before tacking, but then slipped away after a short warning from the ship. Tom Sanborn's (Oakland, Calif.) City Lights won the last race of the day and with it took control of the class.

John Siegel's (San Francisco) Wylie 42, Scorpio retained its lead in the IRC B class by posting two second-place finishes. Norman Olson's (Wayne, Penn.) Farr/Beneteau Just In Time dropped down to fourth, to see Animal, the Sydney 38 owned by French & Lezin (Santa Cruz, Calif.) pass him into second overall. Jeff Pulford's (Corral de Tierra, Calif.) Bustin Loose, with around-the-world sailor Cam Lewis (Narragansett, R.I.) on board, won today's first race and is in third overall.

In the 31-boat J/105 class, Good Timin' owned by Chris, John and Phil Perkins moved into first place by winning the day's first race and finishing a close second in the second, and now has a good chance of winning the class overall. They will be challenged by Tim Russells's (Novato, Calif.) Aquavit, which suffered a ninth today, but rounded back with a third to second overall. Charade, owned by Tom Coates, continued with its consistent form and sits three points behind Aquavit.

Yesterday's preliminary results that showed Barking Mad, owned by Jim Richardson (Boston, Mass./Newport, R.I.), losing its lead in the Farr 40 class, were corrected when a scoring error was discovered. The Farr 40 World Champion remains in the lead, winning one race and scoring a fourth in the other. Slingshot, owned by Chuck Parish (Hillsborough, Calif.), remains in second overall, with a strong challenge by Fred & Steve Howe's (San Diego, Calif.) Warpath.

White Fang, owned by Mark Howe (Richmond, Calif.), shook things up in the six-boat Beneteau 40.7 class with a 3-2, and moved into the lead, despite Mike Garl's (San Carlos, Calif.) two bullets with his White Dove, which now is in second overall.

Golden Moon, owned by Kame Richards/Bill Bridge (Alameda, Calif.) held onto the lead in the Express 37 class, while in the J/120 class Stephen Madeira's (Menlo Park, Calif.) Mr. Magoo also held its lead.

Today's racing in the TP52 class appeared to be a repeat of yesterday, minus the heavy winds, with the top three remaining firmly in place. Esmeralda, owned by Makoto Uematsu (Tokyo, Japan) won both races, with Karl Kwok's (Hong Kong, China) Beau Geste in second and Rosebud, owned by Roger Sturgeon (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) in third.

One final race is planned for Sunday. The Rolex Prizegiving Ceremony will follow the conclusion of racing where six historic Perpetual Trophies will be awarded, in addition to a Rolex timepiece to each trophy winner.

St. Francis Yacht Club's Big Boat Series presented by Rolex will be featured in the television program "The Spirit of Yachting," to be broadcast internationally beginning January of 2005. For sailors worldwide, the Rolex "Spirit of Yachting" films convey the exciting highlights of the racing season. Each year, from a host of locales that offer spectacular conditions and intense competition, Rolex produces a series of 30-minute films capturing the racing action.

Moloney Readying for 3rd Around the World

IN BRIEF

* PRESENTATION OF THE 23 VENDEE GLOBE SKIPPERS TAKE PLACE IN PARIS TODAY...

* NICK AND SKANDIA VISIT THE SOUTHAMPTON INTERNATIONAL BOAT SHOW

* THE FINAL ROUND OF CORPORATE AND MEDIA SAILING DAYS BEFORE SKANDIA IS PACKED TO LEAVE FOR LES SABLES D'OLONNE

* AS WEATHER TURNS AUTUMNAL NICK TURNS HIS FULL ATTENTION TO THE VENDÉE COURSE AND WEATHER

* ONLY 52 DAYS TO THE START

IN DETAIL

Today in Paris the 23 skippers, who plan to be on the start line in Les Sables d'Olonne on 7th November for the fifth edition of the Vendée Globe, were presented to the media at an official press conference hosted by Philippe de Villiers, president of SAEM Vendée, organisers of the Vendée Globe. The Vendée Globe is a sporting celebration in France that is followed avidly by both the media and public. In the 2004/2005 race, the 23 skippers represent seven different nationalities (English, French, Swiss, American, Belgian, Austrian and Australian) giving the race a much wider international appeal. Nick being the only entrant from the Southern Hemisphere will help extend the race's profile to reach the other side of the world.

Nick Moloney sailed the Open 60 Skandia into the Southampton International Boat Show for the afternoon of Friday, 10th September. This was the last opportunity for the UK public en masse to see Skandia before she heads off to the Vendée Globe start port early October for the start on 7th November. The boat show is also provides an opportunity to catch up with sponsors, suppliers and some old friends.

As summer in the Solent seemed to come to an abrupt end last weekend as the weather turned wet and windy... The final sponsor sailing days came to an end with Offshore Challenges hosting their annual partner day and the 'wind gods' were kind as the 35-40 knot winds decreased to a mild 15 knots, allowing time for the guests to get a sail on Skandia, before kicking in again by lunchtime. "To take all these guys sailing on board the boat they have helped get to the start line, seems like the least we can do. There are just as much of a part of the adventure as we are," said Nick.

The following day (Wednesday), the wind was still doings its best to upset life on the Solent but Skandia set off eastwards to the back of the Isle of Wight to do a helicopter photoshoot. The results are pretty dramatic! Go to http://www.nickmoloney.com/skandia to see latest images.

"When you are out in these kind of conditions, it kind of gets your mindset into what lays ahead on the Vendée course... There is no doubt we will see conditions like this as head out of the North Atlantic in November and much worse in the south..." Nick is now spending most of this time studying the Vendée Globe course and weather in detail.

THE COURSE...

Twenty-six thousand miles (approx 42,000 km) around the globe, although, in reality, the boats will sail a greater distance in search of favorable weather conditions. In theory, the race could not be more simple. Competitors start and finish from Les Sables d'Olonne on the north-west coast of France, sailing around the world from west to east, on a route south of the three Capes (Cape of Good Hope, Cape Leeuwin and Cape Horn) all kept to port with Antartica to starboard.

In practice, nothing is harder. The route takes the skippers into the heart of the Southern Ocean, where gales are the norm, and storm force winds are expected. Icebergs, towering seas, and bitter cold are the real enemy here, on the most desolate part of the world’s oceans.

The Race Committee of the Vendée Globe will issue obligatory passage points in the Sailing Instructions, in order to keep the boats a sensible distance to the north away from the icepack off Antarctica.

Only 30 days to the deadline for being in Les Sables d'Olonne, and only 55 days to before Skandia will cross the start line!

Local Notice to Mariners-Muskegon Lake

Chart 14934, MUSKEGON LAKE, Including Muskegon Harbor, Michigan has had the following Change :F 8ft Priv to Fl G 4s at Location: 43-14-21.00N 086-17-52.00W.

Note: This is at Pointe Marine in North Muskegon.

BMW Oracle in Europe

Marseille Louis Vuitton Act 1 was an undisputed success for BMW ORACLE Racing with the overall victory clinched before the last race against America's Cup Defender Alinghi. With a score of seven victories in nine races and 46 points, the team earned the best combined overall score for the fleet and match racing contest against five tough competitors. Team CEO Chris Dickson’s concluding comment was appropriately optimistic: “We have a long way to go but this week proved we are on track, especially in our crew work. A true team effort both on the water and on shore earned us the win here in Marseille.”

Prominent guests aboard USA-76 in Marseille had the opportunity to witness the excellent teamwork at close range. Roman Hagara, the Austrian who recently won the Olympics in the Tornado class, and Bixente Lizarazu, the professional soccer player with Olympique Marseille and formerly with German record title-holder FC Bayern München, were offered the exclusive opportunity to be on board in the18th man crew position on the BMW ORACLE Racing yacht. Hagara, who earned Gold at the Olympics for the second time, was deeply impressed: “I saw perfect tactics and teamwork on board BMW ORACLE Racing today. There are many more people involved in this sailing than in the Tornado class and it’s all about communication on board during the race. It’s fantastic.”

For all the teams, Marseille Louis Vuitton Act 1 was the first official competition on the road to the 32nd America’s Cup in 2007 in Valencia, while for the spectators and the media, it was definitely a spectacle not to be missed. From nearby, thousands of sailing enthusiasts spent the six regatta days watching spectacular fleet and match races, where the teams were extremely challenged due to winds gusting to 30 knots. “We raced in more wind than we ever raced in before and we also saw the highest ever boat speed while racing,” said Dickson. “All the teams did a fantastic job. Teams such as K-Challenge, Le Defi and Shosholoza demonstrated great promise on the race course. This was a great chance to check in with the competition and see where we are at this stage in our campaign.”

In an unfortunate turn of events, the team suffered damage to the race yacht in a storm following the last day of racing. Heavy gale-force winds which swept through Marseille’s boatyard compound early on Sunday morning toppled the yachts of Alinghi, Emirates Team New Zealand and BMW ORACLE Racing into their team containers and port-a-coms. BMW ORACLE Racing is currently still assessing the extent of the damage to USA-76. However, the participation of the team in the upcoming Louis Vuitton Act in Valencia (starting October 5th) is assured. “While unfortunate, this doesn't change the fact that Marseille Louis Vuitton Act 1 was a tremendous success, with some of the most competitive and interesting AC racing ever,” said Dickson after assessing the damage. “The teams and ACM are working together to minimize the impact and to find the best way forward.”

BMW ORACLE Racing’s other 2003-generation yacht, USA-71, which is currently at the team’s base in Valencia, will be prepared for racing in Louis Vuitton Acts 2 and 3. The team should be sailing USA 71within two weeks. Dickson said: “We've come to Europe to go racing. Marseille Louis Vuitton Act 1 was a fantastic regatta, and we are determined to move forward and to be as competitive as possible in Acts 2 and 3 in Valencia.”

Linky Sailing News

Racing Swan Cup

News Act I review. BBS entries

Great Lakes Pilot Pay

College Sailing Kings Point hosts Nevins Trophy

Championship Week

The country’s airways and waterways will soon be filled with sailors traveling to one of three U.S. National Sailing Championships scheduled to take place at different sailing organizations across the country next week. The U.S. Men’s Championship will be sailed in Long Beach Island, NJ (Sept. 20-25); the U.S. Match Racing Championship will be held in St. Petersburg, Fla. (Sept. 21-25; and the U.S.
Offshore Championship will be raced in Long Beach, Calif. (Sept. 23-26). Demonstrating a strong commitment to the sport of sailing, Rolex Watch U.S.A. sponsors all three Championships, as well as all ten of US SAILING’s Adult Championships. The U.S. Men’s and U.S. Match Racing Championships are also sponsored by Chubb and Dry Creek Vineyard.

About the U.S. Men’s Championship ­
Sponsored by Rolex Watch U.S.A., Chubb, and Dry Creek Vineyard
Winning the U.S. Men’s Championship and US SAILING’s Mallory Trophy is no easy feat. Winning it two consecutive years is even more difficult, but that’s not holding back Zach Fanberg (New Orleans, La.) from trying to accomplish this. After winning the event last year, Fanberg is returning this year with crew Christopher (Kippy) Chamberlain and Dave Blouin representing Bay-Waveland Yacht Club of Mississippi. They will have to beat eight other teams who have already proven to be strong competitors by having qualified for this Championship, hosted by the Long Beach Island Yacht Racing Association in Long Beach Island, NJ.

For a complete list of competitors and more information on the U.S. Men’s Championship, please visit the event’s website .

About the U.S. Match Racing Championship ­
Sponsored by Rolex Watch U.S.A., Chubb, and Dry Creek Vineyard
Despite recent “visits” from several hurricanes, St. Petersburg Yacht Club in Florida will host the U.S. Match Racing Championship, Sept. 21-25. The event is sailed on Sonars and the winning boat will be presented with US SAILING’s Prince of Wales Bowl. For more information about the event, please
visit the event’s website .

About the U.S. Offshore Championship ­
Sponsored by Rolex Watch U.S.A. The ten skippers selected to compete in the U.S. Offshore Championship will get to race in Long Beach Yacht Club’s Catalina 37s on Sept. 23-26. Nine areas send one skipper who has been selected by sailing resume. The U.S. Naval Academy sends a team which rounds out the field. Three skippers from
last year’s event are returning to compete for US SAILING’s Lloyd Phoenix Trophy: last year’s runner-up Warren Hudson (Chestnut Hill, Mass.), Bruce Kuryla (Milford, Ct.), and Jim Hightower (Temple, TX).

For a complete list of competitors or for more information on the U.S.
Offshore Championship, please visit
www.ussailing.org/championships/offshore.

Swan Cup Day 2

Patience paid off on day two of racing in the Rolex Swan Cup 2004, organized by the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda. The 107-boat strong fleet of Swans set out in a light southwesterly breeze of around 5-6 knots.

The Race Committee started Classes A and C\D just southeast of Caprera Island. Class A sailed a 38-mile course along the coast, inside the Maddalena Islands - rounding the island of Spargi, then onto Barrettinelli before heading back south, passing Capo d'Orso and Capo Ferro on their way to the finish line at Porto Cervo. Class C/D sailed a similar but shorter course - approximately 30 miles - rounding Spargi, then heading straight for the finish.

For Classes A and C\D the start was somewhat frustating as the wind died on the the first beat. At the top mark, the breeze died out completely for about 20 minutes, and the boats compressed. The new northwesterly breeze filled in at around 18-20 knots, and it was a virtual restart for the fleet. Boats such as the Swan 70's Stay Calm and Flying Dragon, and the Swan46 Eurosia were well-positioned to take advantage of the major windshift.

On board Stay Calm, tactician Adrian Stead (tactician on 2000 America's Cup challenger, GBR Challenge), kept the pressure on in Class A. Stead commented: "We were able to stretch out comfortably, but the impressive Swan 80, Favonius passed us and sailed off into the distance.

Everyone on the boat showed great team work and sailed well enabling us to finish a good second on the water. The other Swan 70's in our fleet were proving to be very fast showing how competitive this class is. Lots of boats in Class A have a good chance of winning the regatta including one of our sisterships, Bugia Bianca who looks like our biggest threat. Luckily we managed to just keep them at bay in today's race.

Bugia Bianca retains overall lead in Class A, despite a night patching up a hole in the hull following a pre-start collision yesterday. In today's race, the boat was over the start line early, returned to restart and managed to climb back to the front of the fleet by the top mark. They got back to within a minute of Stay Calm, but corrected out to 5th place today.

In Class C|D, Eurosia skipper Emanuel Vaccari claims luck was on his side, but as three-time Rolex Swan Cup winners, that was hardly likely. This crew has sailed together for five years and it shows - crisp crew work and good boat speed prevailed for them around the course.

For the Swan 45's in Class B, the light winds convinced the Race Committee to move the windward-leeward course to the entrance of the port of Porto Cervo. This turned out to be a good decision as the northwesterly breeze of 10-12 knots finally arrived and the fleet got off on their first race at 2pm.

Onboard Vertigo, co-owner and skipper Alberto Signorini, had a 2-1 finish to maintain a comfortable overall lead in Class B. He said, "The wind came round from the north and we managed to maintain good speed by keeping the number of manuevers to a minimum in the light breeze."

Mumm 30 Worlds in Toronto

Take it from Nelson Stephenson, the Mumm 30s have found a happy home and a solid supporter for their eighth world championship Tuesday through Friday, Sept. 21-24.

The Bell Mumm 30 World Championship will be contested out of the Royal Canadian Yacht Club with Canada's national leader in communications as the title sponsor.

Bell provides connectivity to residential and business customers through wired and wireless voice and data communications, local and long distance phone services, high speed and wireless Internet access, IP-broadband services, e-business solutions and satellite television services. Bell Canada is wholly owned by BCE Inc. For more information please visit www.bell.ca .

Locals say the timing is right for the best wind and weather conditions of the year as summer slides coolly into fall and the average high temperature along the northern shore of Lake Ontario is 68 degrees F.

"The venue is a world-class facility," said Stephenson, the new North American champion and Mumm 30 World Council president from Southport, Conn. He has had his boat, TeamBOLD, on site since last month.

"Most of us will probably never be able to compete in the world championship for less and get more value for our money," Stephenson said.

But one thing it can't buy is the championship, which has been in the grip of a different Italian team each of the last four years---currently, Claudio Recchi and Carla Umbertalli, who won sailing Cheyenne at Portoferraio, Italy on the island of Elba last year. In their absence, Carlo Alberini, sailing Calvi from Pesaro, will try to continue the Italian dominance---a tall order in this competitive and compact fleet of 20 boats from three continents.

Stephenson said, "In the expected conditions at Toronto, at the end of the week the trophy will belong to the team that displays consistency, sails cleanly and avoids the pitfalls of sailing a major, four-day, non-throwout regatta---no small feat in this fleet. At Elba last year 11 different boats won races."

Stephenson's team won the overall Mumm 30 class North American title this year with a second place at Key West, first place in the New York Yacht Club's 150th annual regatta---their first major win---and a third at the Holland (Mich.) Regatta.

Eleven races are scheduled over the four days, starting at 11:30 a.m., conditions permitting. The Royal Canadian Yacht Club, founded in 1852, is on Toronto Island, which is accessed by launch from the city shorefront. The racers will sail a windward-leeward course set two miles off the Centennial Pier.

The fleet includes three teams fresh from the Farr 40 Worlds at San Francisco last week: Deneen Demourkas of Santa Barbara, Calif.; Australia's Richard Perini and California-Hawaii software developer Philippe Kahn, the father of the camera phone.

Demourkas will race a sister ship---also named Groovederci---of the Mumm 30 she sailed in the 1,000-mile Tour de France a la Voile this summer. The only non-European entry, she finished third after leading the first half of the race. Since her second place in the Farr 40 Worlds two years ago and victories in single races in 2003 and 2004, she has held world-class status in both international fleets.

Her team includes five-time Canadian Olympian Ross Macdonald of Vancouver, B.C., who with crew Mike Wolfs won a silver medal in the Star class at Athens.

Richard Clarke, a Toronto native and three-time Olympian in the singlehanded Finn class, will be sailing with Kahn's 15-year-old son Samuel, a.k.a. "Shark." The younger Kahn will sail a second Mumm 30, also named Pegasus, for the first time in competition, and rivals would do well not to take him lightly. When he was only 14 he won the Melges 24 class world championship.

Meanwhile, he sailed on his father's maxi sled Pegasus when it won first-to-finish "Barn Door" honors in the last two Transpacific Yacht Races.

Others in the extraordinary depth of title contention include the previous two North American champions, Dan Cheresh from Holland, Mich., and David Pyles, Easton, Md.; Tom Ritter, Bloomfield Hills, Mich., who won at Annapolis and Holland this year, and hometown hope Fred Sherratt, who was third in the 2002 Worlds at Annapolis.

The Mumm 30, sailed by a crew of six, rates among the elite of international one-design classes. It has been locked in as the boat of choice for the Tour Voile through 2010 and was recently picked as one of three team classes for the 2005 Admiral's Cup at Cowes, an event regarded as the unofficial world championship of offshore racing. The boat was created by Bruce Farr & Associates, the designer said, as "a state of the art one-design keelboat that would be fast and exciting, yet uncomplicated and economical."

At 31 feet LOA, its one-ton lead bulb represents 44 per cent of its 4,461-pound displacement, giving it stiff stability but, with limited overall weight, good light air speed, acceleration and agility. The power and ease of handling come from a fractional rig complemented by masthead spinnakers.

Joining Bell in support of the event are contributing sponsors Champagne Mumm, CHUM Limited, Lewmar, McMillan Binch LLP, Mount Gay Rum, North Sails, Stella Artois and Sorgentone.

Entries (alphabetical by boat name):

Calvi, Carlo Alberini, Pesaro, Italy
Champosa, Jonathan McDonagh, Minneapolis, Minn.
Cygnet, Richard Swann, Fairfield, Conn.
Dark'n Stormy, Kevin Young, Novelty, Ohio
Foreign Affair, Richard Perini, Sydney, Australia
Groovederci, Deneen Demourkas, Santa Barbara, Calif.
Hammer, U.S. Coast Guard Academy, New London, Conn.
it, Jim Sminchak, Euclid, Ohio
Notorious, Kevin Brown, Toronto
Pegasus 20, Samuel Kahn, Honolulu
Pegasus 591, Philippe Kahn, Honolulu
Steadfast, Fred Sheratt, Toronto
Surprise, David Irish, Harbour Springs, Mich.
TeamBOLD, Nelson Stephenson, Southport, Conn.
Team Intermac, Dan Cheresh, Holland, Mich.
Three Niner, David Gonzalez, Lambertville, Mich.
Tramp, Thomas C. Ritter, Bloomfield Hills, Mich.
USA 65, David Pyles, Easton, Md.
War Pony, Art Guerrera, Atlantic Highlands, N.J.
Wildthing, Jeff Fogarty, Fonthill, Ontario

Brazillain Volvo Entry to be led by Grael

Brasil 1 will be sponsored by Vivo - Brazil’s biggest mobile ‘phone operator, Motorola, Qualcomm and the Brazilian government. Brazil’s Torben Grael, fresh from more gold medal success at the recent Athens Olympic Games will be the skipper.

“Having reached the pinnacle in short course sailing, now is my chance to do the same in ocean racing,” says Grael, who has also been part of two America’s Cup campaigns and sailed part of The Whitbread in 1997-98. Former star class world champion, Alan Adler, will lead Brasil 1 together with Enio Ribeiro, a marketing executive with an industry and sports background.

The chosen designer is American-based Farr Yacht Design and construction will begin shortly at ML Boatworks in Indaiatuba, Sao Paulo, Brazil. This project is seen by the Brazilian public and business sectors as an excellent opportunity for Brazil to promote it’s primary companies and products all over the world.

The syndicate plans to create an atmosphere at the stopovers reminiscent of Brazil with fashion and music shows as one of the highlights to be held in their syndicate pavilion, which will showcase Brazil around the world.

“This is a very exciting time for us,” commented Glenn Bourke, CEO of the Volvo Ocean Race. “We ended last week with confirmation of another three teams in our race, having started the week with the news that one potential team sponsor had slipped away. As any sports organiser will tell you, ‘some you win, some you lose’ ­ this is the nature of the business.

“Today’s announcement is the first of several more that we will be making over the coming weeks, with the next announcement coming from a European team whilst emerging out of the USA, is one of the most exciting campaigns the race has ever seen. We are proud to have confirmed entries from a greater spread of countries than the event has had for many years.”

“We are in an extremely strong position now with the fleet set to exceed the last race’s total of eight boats. I am absolutely confident that the Volvo Ocean Race 2005-06 will be one to remember,” Glenn Bourke concluded.

Deteriorating Lifelines

Yachtsmen are urged to check the condition of rope lanyards used to take up the slack at the ends of wire lifelines (guardrails) rigged around the deck.

In two cases recently reported, rope lanyards had been allowed to deteriorate over time and parted suddenly under strain, throwing crew members into the water. Fortunately there were no serious consequences of these incidents.

There are no plans at present to change the Offshore Special Regulations but the incidents draw sharp attention to the importance of regular inspection and maintenance of safety equipment.

Attention is drawn to Special Regulation 2.03.1: "all equipment required by Special Regulations shall function properly, and be regularly checked, cleaned and serviced." The responsibility of the Person in Charge described in Special Regulation 1.02.1 includes "He must be satisfied as to the soundness of hull, spars, rigging, sails and all gear. He must ensure that all safety equipment is properly maintained".

A cursory glance at rope lanyards may not be sufficient to verify their condition. Although not a guarantee against failure, a wise and inexpensive precaution is annual renewal.

Big Boat Series This Week

Anticipation is growing in San Francisco for the upcoming Big Boat Series Presented by Rolex, set to take place at the St. Francis Yacht Club on September 16-19. Noted as one of the world’s premier sailing events, the 40th annual regatta has the added distinction of introducing IRC racing in the United States this year. To date, there are 24 entries in the IRC fleet and a diverse fleet of one-designs that make up the 100-plus boat roster of entries competing for six historic Perpetual Trophies. At the conclusion of the four-day regatta, specially engraved Rolex timepieces also will be awarded to the perpetual trophy winners.

Karl Kwok of Hong Kong, China returns to the Big Boat Series after a six-year hiatus and will compete in the nine-boat TP52 class with his one-year-old Beau Geste. BMW Oracle Racing helmsman Gavin Brady joins the roster. “My TP52 will be the biggest Beau Geste to race in this series to date,” said Kwok, referring to his previous Beau Gestes, a Corel 45 in 1996 and an IMS 49 in 1998. “I have always enjoyed sailing in the Bay, and I am looking forward to an exciting regatta especially in the TP52 class. This in essence is the biggest gathering of the class so far. It will be fun for me as and the
other skippers!"

The defending TP52 class champion is Rosebud, owned by Roger Sturgeon (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), and it will be back to defend its title. According to the class organizer, Tom Pollack, this year’s fleet – the largest to date – is particularly notable due to the change in class rules to accommodate an asymmetrical spinnaker for inshore racing. “The TP 52s will be using the larger 25-foot spinnaker poles and 2665 square-foot spinnakers which was Yassou owner Jim Demetriades's (Long Beach, Calif.) idea,” he said. “This means that if conditions are really big, with wind speeds in the 20-plus range, the ‘A-sails’ don’t collapse when they jibe, so look for the fleet to be faster downwind.”

In the IRC class, one of the standout entries belongs to Nicholas Lykiardopulo (Athens, Greece). His Kerr 55 AERA is racing its first major regatta in the U.S. with this event and will have in its crew Jez Fanstone, skipper of News Corp in the previous Volvo Ocean Race. Although the IRC fleet will be divided into divisions based on each boat’s individual rating, the group includes such standout entries as the Schumacher 53 Swiftsure I, owned by six-time champion Sy Kleinman (Saratoga, Calif.) who has raced in the event 24 times. Robert Youngjohns (Woodside, Calif.) will debut his new DK 46 yacht Zephyra.

In the 30-boat J/105 class Good Timin, owned by San Francisco brothers Chris and Phil Perkins and Dave Wilson, returns to defend its overall fleet victory from 2004. According to class secretary Eden Kim (Cupertino, Calif.), owner of the J/105 Whisper, the fleet has its work cut out for them against Good Timin. “Good Timin has won three events this summer, with 13 first-places, 4 seconds and 2 thirds in individual races,” he said. “The class is vying for the newly established StFYC Perpetual Commodore's Cup, which will be presented each year to the one design class that has the largest number of entrants.”

Jim Richardson (Boston, Mass./Newport, R.I.) will compete in the Farr 40 class, fresh off his victory in the Rolex Farr 40 Worlds, held here last week. Richardson is the returning class champion with his Barking Mad, and he will face nine other competitors, including Steve & Fred Howe’s (San Diego, Calif.) Warpath, the third-place boat at the Worlds. Terry Hutchinson (Annapolis, Md.) will call tactics for Barking Mad.

St. Francis Yacht Club’s Big Boat Series presented by Rolex will be featured in the television program “The Spirit of Yachting,” to be broadcast internationally beginning January of 2005. For sailors worldwide, the Rolex “Spirit of Yachting” films convey the exciting highlights of the racing season. Each year, from a host of locales that offer spectacular conditions and intense competition, Rolex produces a series of 30-minute films capturing the racing action.

The Big Boat Series presented by Rolex joins other prestigious Rolex-sponsored events in 2004 including the Giraglia Rolex Cup, Rolex Farr 40 World Championship, Rolex Fastnet Race, Maxi Rolex Cup, Rolex Middle Sea Race, the Rolex Miami OCR and the Rolex Sydney Hobart Race.

Linky Sailing News

Racing E Scow Nationals

News TP 52's @ BBS. Flying boat. Rope & Lifelines

Great Lakes Esmeralda's Mac

College Sailing Tufts report

Boat Smart: Boaters of Oz

By Senior Chief Tom Rau, Coast Guard Group Grand Haven, Mi

A reporter once asked Judy Garland where is the land of Oz? The film star of the 1939 box office smash, the “Wizard of Oz” said: “It’s not a place you can get to by a train or boat.” I don’t know about trains, but boaters often do visit Oz through a mindset that views the entire Lake Michigan marine environment as a giant Oz-like aquatic playground.

But unlike the Oz fables originated in the year 1900 by American writer Frank Baum, wherein his fictional characters seldom died- notwithstanding the East, West Wicked Witches- far too many do die in the Oz-land of recreational boating.

Why? Because some boaters seem unable to understand that a serene environment that appears Oz-like can, in fact, be the Wicked Witches’ brew. The following concoction of stories reveals whether it be witches’ brew or not that far too many boaters seem to be under a spell when it comes to their own safety.

Dave Gummere, a Coast Guard Auxiliarist in the Twin Bay Flotilla, Traverse City, lives on Karlin Road near Buckley. It’s a popular route to Highway 37 for boaters heading to Traverse City or the Leelanau peninsula. He watches a steady stream of vehicles hauling boats in early May and continuing through the summer months. “I hear cars trailing boats with their bearings squealing. I see boats sitting cockeyed on trailers and gear flying off boats, like life jackets. I found one in its original plastic wrap. I pick up boat lines, fenders, life rings, rain coats… If they are that mindless about towing their boats and stowing their gear, how mindless are they on the water?” said Gummere. I later talked with Gummmere in the spring of 2004, and he said: “I’m looking forward to collecting a new batch of road side goodies. Mid summer, I can hold a giant garage sale featuring marine supplies.”

Gummere agrees with me that this heedlessness stems from an Oz-land-like mindset that fails to even recognize a need for safety equipment. This free-and-easy mentality reveals itself during Coast Guard auxiliary courtesy vessel safety checks on recreational boats that on an average produce a 33-percent failure rate (Lake Michigan), many failures stem from a lack of safety equipment. Coast Guard Auxilarist Freda Herman told me while conducting a vessel safety check at a Manistee marina in 2003, a woman called her husband on a cell phone twice to ask for the location of safety equipment on the boat

I spoke with Freda at the end of August and she said that 41-percent of the 266 boats the Manistee flotilla has inspected during 2004 failed due to lack of safety equipment. She told me while inspecting an 18-foot boat the operator told her that he wasn’t even aware the safety items were required. “At least he had enough lifejackets aboard for his wife and three kids,” said Freda

That was a good day for Coast Guard safety inspectors. Coast Guardsman Jay Douglas advised me that of the 365 vessels inspections the Muskegon boats crews have conducted this season on recreational boats, they have sent back to the docks 65 boats because they lacked enough life jackets, carried defunct fire extinguishers or lacked improper navigation lights . But then who should care in the land of Oz boating?

Jay Douglas certainly does. When he inspected an 11-foot ‘John Boat’ in May with seven people aboard- two adults and five children including an infant- to find only two life jackets, he coiled. The two adults together packed over four-hundred pounds; add the weight of the five children and together it far exceeded the weight capacity of the tiny boat. “Scary? You bet. And they had been on Lake Michigan for over four hours with water temperatures in the mid forties,” said Douglas.

Here’s yet another Oz land boating story. Coast Guard boarding officer Emily Roulbal of Motor Lifeboat Station, Two Rivers, Wisconsin, told me she and her boat crew recently inspected an 18-foot power boat at a local Two Rivers’ marina. The boat had just come off Lake Michigan. During the inspection she discovered no flares, no sound producing device, and no boat registration aboard. Lack of flares could draw a hefty fine.

Acting in the spirit of the law, Roulbal provided the operator a chance to correct the infractions on the spot, if he purchased the items at a nearby marine supply store, which he did. She then issued him a written warning for failure to carry a current boating registration certificate. It was a win-win situation for all, until…. A short time later Roulbal encountered the clerk who sold the boater the items and discovered he had returned them. She detailed the scam in a supplement to the original boarding report and sent if off to Coast Guard officials responsible for levying fines. Needless to say someone was in for a nasty surprise.

But what greater surprise would there be than for this Oz-land boater to reach for his flares during an emergency only to find a return sale slip. But then life-threatening emergencies don’t occur in Oz-land boating. Oh, how pretty to think so! During the 2004 boating season I’m aware of 18 boating fatalities and the sad thing about them- nearly all could have been prevented.

Whether these needless deaths are the result of the Wicked Witches’ brew or the brew of ignorance- a sure way to break either spell is to-boat smart.

Swan Cup Day 1

A dramatic shift in the weather provided opportunities for some and disappointment for others in the first day of racing in the 13th edition of the Rolex Swan Cup taking place in Porto Cervo and Organized by the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda.

The 102-boat fleet is divided into three groups: Class A consists of the fastest yachts, including the latest performance model from Nautor's Swan, the Swan 601, Class B encompasses the fleet of Swan 45 one-design models, while those Swans with a TCF under 1.185 are grouped in Class C/D.

The three classes competed on different courses: Class A raced two windward-leewards of around 8 miles, while the Swan 45's (Class B) sailed a 24-mile course which took them up to Monaci Island before heading south to Secca Tre Monti and on to Mortoriotto. Class C/D competed on a similar course, but finished line at the entrance to the port of Porto Cervo, reducing the race distance for these smaller boats to approximately 16 miles.

At the start, the sirocco breeze was approximately 10-12 knots from the southeast, but by the third leg had begun to shift steadily right, died completely and then filled in by the end of the race from the northwest.

For the Swan 45's, a close start found Leonardo Ferragamo's Cuordileone in good position and with good speed at the pin end. They led their fleet to the top mark and partway down the first run where they were overtaken by the Australian boat Ginger. On the second beat to Mortoriotto, Cuordileone went inshore; shortly after the breeze shifted right and the boats outside and behind were in a better position with the shift. Noted grand-prix and offshore sailor Paul Cayard, tactician onboard said "we watched a few boats from behind cut in front and pass us -- at one point we were back to sixth or so. We finally bit the bullet and got in line and fought our way back. We feel pretty good given the situation". Cuordileone finished second to the Italian Swan 45, Vertigo.

In Class C/D, Tommaso Chieffi, Tactician on the Swan 48 Solenia 2, commented on their win: "There was a good breeze and we managed to have a fast start. We got out in front straight away rounding the first marker 1 minute ahead and increased our lead for the rest of the race, eventually finishing two minutes ahead.

Chieffi continued: "I'm feeling positive about our chances for the week ahead as long as we continue to sail consistently. We've got a great crew and Solenia 2 is a fantastic boat to sail. I have sailed in four Swan Cup's, having won twice, and am returning to this regatta having taken time out for the America's Cup (with Oracle BMW Racing) - its great to be back! There is a great mix of Swans here with both amateur and professional sailors all competing together. The combination of the Swan yachts, the great wind and the beautiful setting in Sardinia is perfect"

In Class A, it was Italian Massimo Dentice's Bugia Bianca (Swan 70) with a perfect 1 - 1 for 1st place overall, Paul Winkelmann's Swan 601 Island Fling with a 8 - 3 for 2nd, and Dutchman Roel Pieper's Swan 80 Favonius with a 10 - 2 for 3rd place.

With a line-up of top-ranking competitive sailors such as Ian Walker and Adrian Stead on the Swan 86 Hamilton in Class A, Vasco Vascotto on the Swan 45 Mascalzone Latino and Roy Heiner on Favonius, today's races were hard fought.

Results

Base Layer

The current day sailor's suit is much like the traditional
dress up suit, it's a three piece affair. The first piece
is known as the base layer.

One of the best best layers is thermal underwear made of fabrics such as polartec's Power dry. A visit to the polartec website shows that Iditarod sled dog racers use polartec. No question, if it will handle the Iditarod it should handle going to sea warmth-wise.

The adage cotton kills applies to thermal underwear, aka the next to skin layer. Cotton neither breathes nor wicks. Fabrics such as Polartec do. It first wicks moisture away from the skin and then breathes, allowing it to escape. The outside of the fabric does the keeping warm part.

Patagonia is well known for it's base layer products. They break their products into the following levels: silkweight, light weight, midweight and expedition.

Another way to look at this is that silkweight wicks the fastest, light weight is for fair weather, midweight is the most versatile and expedition weight is for extreme conditions. Midweight is appropriate for most sailing conditions,

Taking the above principles: breathing/wicking and appropriate for the conditions you can then look at lines such as Musto, Gill etc.
for a set of thermals. They will typically have a couple of options for thermals. Non sailing outdoor outfitters such as REI, and Cabelas, will usually have more options.

No matter the source, a set of thermal underwear is a key safety item. It's the first step in staying warm and dry. It will cut down on evaporative heat loss (aka sweating). It helps minimize convective heat loss (that is wind etc.) by trapping warm air next to the skin.

A set of thermals can be bought for $ 90 to $ 100 and should always be packed for sailing. As a bonus these can be used for skiing, or just taking a walk in the winter.

Wearing a good base layer will keep you warm and dry which can prevent a myriad of other safety and survival issues.

America's 1st Light

Boston Light on Little Brewster Island in Boston Harbor holds a unique place in American Lighthouse history. It's uniquness is two fold. One, it was North America's fist lighthouse. Two it was the last North American Lighthouse to be automated in 1998.

The first keeper, George Worthylake, lighted the tower for the first time on September 14, 1716. Later during the Revolutionary War both American and British forces controlled the light and at one point it was blown up.

Sailing Stamp

Written communication has gone from the letter, to email and now even to text messaging. Even bills can now be paid online.

Still, I have an occasional need for stamps. When I do I search the Postal Service's Online store for something a little different. My most recent purchase was stamps featuring a US Navy sailing warship.

To commemorate the 150th Anniversary of the launch of the sloop-of-war USS Constellation, the US Postal Service issued a $.37 postage stamp.

The art on the stamp is based on a photo graph from 1893. The Constellation amazingly dates from the era of US Civil War having been built in 1854.

Prior to this Constellation there was a sailing frigate of the same name. Recently the aircraft carrier Constellation has been decommissioned.

Another famous Constellation was the Sparkman & Stephens designed 12 Metre US-20 which was the America's Cup winner in 1964.

So, for awhile my bills and occasional letters will carry a sailing stamp.

Typically stamps depict historical things, famous figures of the past etc. So it's unlikely that any boat you currently see on the water will end up on a stamp in 2004.

But....if there was a chance to have a current day boat on a stamp I'd chose Cheyenne nee Playstation the current round the world record holder. Which boat would you postally commemorate?

Linky Sailing News

Racing Wipeout Video. Paralympics

News Show goes on. Hutch explains win

Great Lakes Will the real Big Sable turn it's lite on? Lake Express to Chicago. Save the ferry. Detour Reef

College Sailing Harvard a winner

2 Lighthouses for 1

Thanks to Nature 2 images of Big Sable Light in 1 exposure

2004 Coastal Cleanup

Lake Michigan Federation's Annual September Adopt-a-Beach Event is Saturday, September 18, 2004, from 9 a.m. to noon.

This event is part of the world's largest shoreline cleanup. Thousands of volunteers come out to area beaches to lend a hand to improve lake health and enjoy our Great Lake. Have fun giving back to your lake. The event is more than just a cleanup-it's a celebration of the Great Lakes!

To find out more contact: Jamie Morton toll-free at 866-850-0745 ext. 12, or jmorton@lakemichigan.org or find a cleanup near you and contact your local coordinator .

If you want to participate in the Muskegon Lake portion of the clean up meet downtown, at Third & Clay. From there volunteers will proceed to areas such as Richards Park, Fisherman's Landing etc. for the clean up.

Results of the 2003 Clean Up from Heritage Landing in Muskegon

Team Race Winners

On a thrilling final day of the U.S. Team Racing Championship, team Cape Cod WHishbone narrowly defeated team Somerville Silver Panda, winning the US SAILING George R. Hinman Trophy and qualifying for the 2005 Team Racing World Championship.

Both teams are well known in the world of team racing: both have previously won the National Championship (WHishbone in ’03 and Silver Panda in ’02) and WHishbone is the reigning World Champion. The competition was intense at this year’s Championship, with 16 of the country’s top teams (96 sailors in total) competing in new Vanguard 15’s provided by Vanguard Sailboats. The event, sponsored by Rolex Watch U.S.A. and Chubb, was held at Bayview Yacht Club.

On the last day of the Championship, Cape Cod WHishbone and Somerville
Silver Panda ended up in a tie-break, each with a total of 19 points. Since Cape Cod WHishbone had defeated Somerville Silver Panda the last time they raced against each other in the event, the title was awarded to Cape Cod WHishbone and its team-members, Mark Ivey (Newport, RI), Olympian Tim Wadlow (Osterville, Mass.), Karen Renzulli (Needham, Mass.), Matt Lindblad (Newport, RI), Erin Largay(Branford, Ct.), and Tim Fallon (Somerville, Mass.). For them, the hunt is now on to defend their World Championship title at the 2005 Worlds, which will be held in Newport, RI, in September.

2004 Swan Cup

Having just completed the successful Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup, the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda (YCCS), will host the Rolex Swan Cup 2004 with over 100 Swans representing 17 countries beginning on Sunday 12th . The regatta will provide a global sailing stage for the world's best sailors including: America's Cup sailors Paul Cayard (US,) Tommaso Chieffi (Italy), Russell Coutts (New Zealand), Adrian Stead (Great Britain) and Ian Walker (Great Britain); single-handed sailor Ellen McArthur (Great Britain); and Volvo Ocean race duo Neil and Lisa MacDonald. In addition to Germany, France, Italy, the United Kingdom, and the Unites States, competitors from Asia and Australia will compete.

The first race is scheduled for Tuesday, September 14, 2004 at 11:30AM.

The dramatic Sardinian coastline will provide the backdrop for challenging competition on the water, while the elegant Yacht Club Costa Smeralda and the village of Porto Cervo set the stage for the daily social events. This 12th edition of the regatta, with three classes, will consist of five days of racing with one lay day. 25- 40 mile courses among the islands of Northern Sardinian coast will take full advantage of the Swan cruiser-racer designs.

"We are always pleased to welcome the international Nautor's Swan family," said YCCS Commodore Gianfranco Alberini. "The Swans have a long history of racing here, providing competition of the highest level. We are proud to be associated with Nautor, a company with a great pedigree in the world of yacht racing.

We must also express our appreciation to Rolex, our partner of over twenty years. In fact, it was in 1984, that Rolex first sponsored this regatta. It has been a successful relationship resulting in first class regattas that have attracted sailors from around the world. We look forward to serving as a gracious host both on and off the water."

Enrico Chieffi, Nautor's Swan Marketing Director, says: "Yet again this event has proved to be of great importance, not only for our dedicated Owners but also to an incredible range of top class sailors that have come to Porto Cervo to race in a highly competitive regatta. The Rolex Swan Cup is the only time that you will see a full spectrum of Swans all sailing together from all over the world and as the crews make their final preparations, you can feel the excitement rising around the regatta village, ahead of tomorrow's racing."

This year's event promises to provide even more excitement as Nautor's newest one design model, the Swan 601 takes to the water. For the first time ever, three Swan 601's will be competing in Class A, the "grand prix" section, providing a special prelude to the Swan 601 Class that will commence in 2005. Spectators will also get the chance to see an extensive fleet of Swan 45's racing under class rules (Class B), guaranteeing some tough racing throughout the week in this highly competitive one design class.

Boiler Cup

Boiler Cup- Final Results
Purdue University- W. Lafayette
September 11-12

Sun and mid-eighty degree weather greeted the sailors on Saturday. =
However painful 2-3 mph winds from the South. Four races were sailed in the A division and 3 races were sailed in the B division.

Sunday conditions were less favorable than Saturday and no races
were sailed.

Boiler Cup
Purdue University
September 11-12

3:23 PM 9-11-04

A division=4 races
B division=3 races

A B TOT
1. Purdue 1 6 7 13
2. Wash U 7 10 17
3. MSU 12 10 22
4. Purdue 2 25 7 32=09
5. WMU 1 18 18 36
6. WMU 2 22 21 43
7. Denison 28 22 50
8. JCU 29 24 53
9. IUPUI 37 16 53
A division=3D 4 races
TOT

1. Purdue 6 Carlos Abisambra 06
Jose Cuadra 06
2. Washington U 7 Frank Beling 08
Graham Walker 06
3. MSU 12 Mills Forni 08
Arne Thielenhaus 07.=20
4. WMU 1 18 Geoff Lindenberg 06
Brian Seavitt 07
5. WMU 2 22 Chris Koch 07
Emily Freed 07
6. Purdue 2 25 Sean Kennedy 06
Staci Mattox 06 1-3
Kevin Catter 06 4
7. Denison 28 Abigail Bacon 05 1-2, Jason Ginler 08
3-4
B. Tyler Blair 07 1-2,
Kevin Christner 08 3-4=09
8. JCU 29 Pat Feeley 05=09
Bob Maxwell 06
9. IUPUI 37 Ryan Widau 05
Britney Fleck 07 1-4

B division=3D3 races
TOT
1. Purdue 1 7 Matt Conrad 07
Adam Naramore 06
2. Purdue 2 7 Charles Rush
Jessica Torres 07
3. Wash U 10 Jon Levine 06
Saurabh Anand 07
4. MSU 10 Michael Fong 07 1-2 Ryan Gates 07 3-4
Richard Manner 08 1-2 James Hook 06
3
5. IUPUI 16 Katie Ochs 06
Jon Storer 06
6. WMU 1 18 Nick Sundstom 06
Ken Milker 06
7. WMU 2 21 Scott Cesar 06
Chris Pedeu 07 1-2 Kelly 07 3-4
8. Denison 22 William Bonin 08
Kathryn Kramer 06
9. JCU 24 Michelle Mirowski 06
Katy Lloyd 06

1 2 3 4 TOT
1.
Purdue 1 A 1 2 2 1 6
B 3 3 1 0 7
4 9 12 13 13

2.
Wash U A 3 1 1 2 7
B 5 2 3 0 10
8 11 15 17 17

3.
MSU A 2 3 3 4 12
B 1 4 5 0 10
3 10 18 22 22

4.
Purdue 2 A 7 7 6 5 25
B 2 1 4 0 7
9 17 27 32 32

5.
WMU 1 A 6 5 4 3 18
B 4 8 6 0 18
10 23 33 36 36

6.
WMU 2 A 5 4 7 6 22
B 6 6 9 0 21
11 21 37 43 43

7.
Denison A 4 6 8 DSQ 28
B 7 7 8 0 22
11 24 40 50 50

8.
JCU A 9 8 5 7 29
B 8 9 7 0 24
17 34 46 53 53

9.
IUPUI A 8 9 DSQ DSQ 37
B 9 5 2 0 16
17 31 43 53 53

Pyewacket is Maxi Winner

After five days of racing under blue skies and sunshine, the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup 2004, ended with Pyewacket, Alexia and Mister A winning the Racing, Wally and Cruising Divisions respectively. In today's race, the same three boats won. All three divisions sailed a coastal courses with the Racing Division sailing 30 miles, the Wally Division 26 miles and the Cruising Division 23 miles.

The Racing Division provided some great action with the front three boats trading places during the coastal section. Genuine Risk eventually beat Pyewacket by 2 and half minutes, with Alfa Romeo a further two minutes behind. Preceding this, the windward-leeward-windward legs were some of the best of the week, with multiple boat roundings, immaculate sail handling and spot-on tactics contributing to the spectacle. The start was highly charged with Genuine Risk close to being squeezed out at the Committee Boat by Idea. Further down the line Drake Passage almost found herself over early for the second race in a row. The 66-foot Wild Oats fought another close battle with the bigger Idea. Idea finally establishing a lead she could hold during the long leg from Monaci to Mortoriotto, beating 'The Oats' (as she is affectionately known) by just over a minute.

"This has been a fantastic week of racing in a setting that is hard to match," noted Roy Disney, owner of Pyewacket. "We had three factors working in our favour: excellent crew work, smart tactics and a great boat. Today, we went out to sail clean and enjoy ourselves. Our win, combined with the warm hospitality provided by the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda and Rolex marks this regatta as a highlight on the world yacht racing calendar."

"Even though we technically won the regatta yesterday, we love to race so we wanted to sail today with the same spirit," said Alberto Roemmers Jr., son of owner of Alexia. "We have raced here before with our IMS Maxi Alexia, but this is the first time we raced our new Wally, and truly enjoyed the week. While we had a strong performance, we faced a major challenge on day one. A shackle used to douse the spinnaker exploded just prior to a takedown. In the process, I was knocked into one wheel, breaking it and then the sheet hit the other wheel, damaging it too. For the rest of the race, we steered with the remaining spokes of both wheels." Following this early hiccough, Alexia sailed a perfect remainder of series with four bullets.

In the Cruising Division, throughout the week the closest competition was between Mister A, the German yacht Inspiration, and the restored J-Class Velsheda. The range of racing experience was as varied as the designs of the boats themselves. In the end, Mister A made it look easy scoring 4 straight bullets. A creditable result given this was its debut Maxi racing event.

"Since we are so much smaller than the other boats in our division, our goal was to sail our own race, which is exactly what we did," said Aldo Pagani, owner of Mister A. "This is our first real Maxi regatta and our first experience in the serious race circuit. We hope we will have the same luck in the future."

Thirty-one Maxi yachts from 13 nations competed during a week of light to moderate winds on courses that ranged from windward-leeward to longer, scenic coastal courses. The world-renowned regatta featured elegant classic yachts along side of modern-day boats featuring the latest racing technology. International CEOs such as Roy Disney and business leaders from established companies such as L'Oreal, Pirelli and The Carphone Warehouse sailed in addition to America's Cup and Olympic champions. Competitors attended social activities at the most beautiful of Sardinia's venues, including the five-star Hotel Cala di Volpe. This year celebrates the 20-year partnership between the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda and Rolex.

" "We thank the competitors, many of whom have travelled a long distance, for their enthusiasm and commitment to the sport," said Commodore Gianfranco Alberini. "It has been our privilege to host this distinguished fleet and we are happy to have welcomed our guests to our beautiful home. We thank Rolex for its partnership during the past twenty years and look forward to continuing our friendship in the future."

RACING DIVISION - RACE 6
1. Pyewacket (USA) Roy Disney
2. Wild Oats (AUS) Bob Oatley
3. Nokia-Enigma (GBR) Charles Dunstone

WALLY DIVISION - RACE 5
1. Alexia (ARG) Alberto Roemmers
2. Annica (ITA) Georges Lassados
3. Magic Carpet 2 (GBR) Lindsay Owen Jones

CRUISING DIVISION - RACE 5
1. Mister A (ITA) Aldo Pagani
2. Velsheda (NED) Ronald de Waal
3. Inspiration (NED) Herbert Dahm

FINAL OVERALL STANDINGS
Place Boat Owner R1 R2 R3 R4 R5 R6 Total
RACING
1. Pyewacket Roy Disney 1.00 1.00 (2.00) 2.00 1.00 1.00 6.00
2. Wild Oats Bob Oatley 2.00 2.00 (3.00) 1.00 3.00 2.00 10.00
3. Genuine Risk Randall Pitman 3.00 (12.00) 1.00 5.00 2.00 4.00 15.00

WALLY R1 R2 R3 R4 R5 Total
1. Alexia Alberto Roemmers (3.00) 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 4.00
2. Tiketitan Luca Bassani Antivari 1.00 3.00 (4.00) 3.00 4.00 11.00
3. Annica George Lassados 2.00 (4.00) 6.00 5.00 2.00 13.00

CRUISING
1. Mister A Aldo Pagani (8.00) 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 4.00
2. Velsheda Ronald de Waal 4.00 (7.00) 2.00 3.00 2.00 11.00
3.Inspiration Herbert Dahm 2.00 3.00 (4.00) 4.00 3.00 12.00

Barking Mad is Farr 40 World Champ for 2nd Time

Jim Richardson (Boston, Mass./Newport, R.I.) and his Barking Mad team entered the history books today at the conclusion of the Rolex Farr 40 Worlds in San Francisco by becoming the first team in the history of the class to win the coveted world championship title for a second time.

"I'm very, very proud," said a beaming Richardson, clutching a glass of champagne minutes after his boat reached the dock at the St. Francis Yacht Club. "We've been working at this since the first Worlds I won in 1998," he continued. "It is hard to win this regatta and everything came together perfectly for us. I had a teacher at school who said 'you learn from doing and being done.' We've been done enough that we've started to learn some things from our competitors and figured out ways to improve and it all worked out."

In the first race today Barking Mad got into trouble with Norwegian Steam in a port-starboard incident at the end of the first beat, dropping it to the middle of the fleet. It was exactly the type of incident Richardson's team has strenuously managed to avoid all week. Tactician Terry Hutchinson (Annapolis, Md.) said that this came about due to a miscommunication. "We had a 35 point lead," he said. "I screwed up what I was thinking, but we put the hammer down in the second race and sailed like we know how to sail." Hutchinson will soon go to Valencia, Spain to serve in the afterguard of the Emirates Team New Zealand America's Cup challenge, but will continue to sail with Barking Mad.

In the second race, Barking Mad took a commanding lead and was fifth to round the top mark. Up the long final beat, as the San Francisco Bay fog shrouded the race course, the team lost the charge to be first to the finish line by five seconds. This did not matter to Richardson. "It was close going up that last leg," he said. "but it doesn't matter whether you win by one point or one hundred."

With 47 points total and an exceptional single digit scoreline -counting a ninth place in the first race as its worst finish - Barking Mad finished 40 points ahead of the defending World Champions Massimo Mezzaroma and Antonio sodo Migliori (Rome, Italy) on Nerone.

Geoff Stagg, president of Farr International, put Barking Mad's win into perspective. "It is the biggest margin in a Farr 40 world championship by miles, ever," he said. "I was thinking an average of an eighth-place might win it, but they did it with an average of fourth, which is great.

Barking Mad was very well prepared and the team was very well trained. They had good starts. They didn't get brilliant starts, but they were never in trouble on the start line. Terry was brilliant with the laylines particularly when the ebb tide was kicking in. It's the old story of their stars being aligned."

After a dismal set of results to date in the Rolex Farr 40 Worlds, Stuart and MarrGwen Townsend's (Chicago, Ill.) Virago, on which Chris Larson (Annapolis, Md.) has been calling tactics, came from nowhere to win today's first race while fending off a strong challenge from Scott Harris and Alex Geremia's (Santa Barbara, Calif.) Crocodile Rock and John Kilroy's (Malibu, Calif.) Samba Pa Ti. Aside from Barking Mad's exceptional win, Kilroy's team was the class act of the day finishing third in the first race and winning the second, to finish 13th overall.

Samba Pa Ti was one of the favorites going into the Rolex Farr 40 Worlds, but its early results in this regatta were disappointing in the extreme, including five uncharacteristic finishes in the 20s. "We spent the week trying to get the tune of the boat right," explained Samba Pa Ti tactician Paul Cayard (Kentfield, Calif.). "Basically we used a brand new mainsail and it wasn't what we thought it was, so it took us a while to get things sorted out with the tune. We got going better yesterday afternoon and then today we went a bit more in the same direction and had good speed and had two great starts and were out in front from the get-go which helped a lot."

Nerone held on to second place overall, having scored some better results than yesterday's, while the fight for third place was closely fought between five boats. Steve and Fred Howe's (San Diego, Calif.) Warpath eventually beat Steve Phillips' Le Renard for third place.

With the 2004 Rolex Farr 40 Worlds over, the main contenders in the class do not have long to wait before the next running of this regatta - set to take place on Sydney Harbour on 1-4 March, 2005.

AC Boats Damaged

The Alinghi yacht, together with BMW Oracle Racing and Emirates Team New Zealand, has been badly damaged last night when strong winds hit Marseille. The incident occurred at around 2:40 AM. Nobody was injured.

Alinghi was blown out of its cradle and crashed onto a container. Grant Simmer, co-Director general of Alinghi, said: "Our shore team is working hard to assess the extent of the damage, but we will make every endeavor to be on the starting line of the Act 2 in Valencia."

Pine Trophy

PINE TROPHY
INTERSECTIONAL

Hoseted by Coast Guard Sailed in J22's

Highlights: Seven races Saturday in northerly; Sunday no races


TEAM RACES Total
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Charleston 1 7 3 1 3 2 1 18
Coast Guard 4 BKD 4 5 2 4 2 25
Kings Point 6 1 1 3 7 3 5 26
Brown 3 2 2 2 6 6 7 28
Dartmouth 7 3 7 4 1 1 8 31
Tufts 5 5 6 9 4 5 3 37
Hobart 2 4 9 6 5 7 4 37
Michigan State 9 10 5 8 9 8 6 55
URI 10 6 8 7 10 9 9 59
Fordham 8 9 10 10 8 10 10 65


Charleston Blake Kimbrough '05/Jose Fuentes '06/Brendan Healy '07
Coast Guard Matt Sexton '06/Chris Greenough '07/Mallorie Schell '07
Kings Point Austin Howell '05/Ryan Mulvania '06/Keegan Dolg '07
Brown Charles Enright '07/Ward Young '05/Keith Putnam-Delaney '07
Dartmouth Erik Jophnson '06/Karl Johnson '06/Emily East '06
Tufts Ian Beam '06/Stephen Cot '07/Duncan Kopp '07
Hobart Brian Clancy '07/Zach Goldman '06/Nate Owen '07
Michigan State Rob Linden '06/Steve Griffith '08/Casey Ray '08
URI Kyle Wilson '05/Paul Simas '05/Greg Seekel '04
Fordham Anne-Marie Martin '08/Graham Farrell '07/Jacqueline Monterosso '07

Wisco Fall Fury

Fall Fury Intersectional
University of Wisconsin-Madison
September 11-12, 2004

Saturday greeted sailors with sunshine and 80 degree weather in
beautiful Madison, Wisconsin. Winds were shifty and out of the
South/Southwest at 7-10 MPH. Eight races were sailed in both divisions. Competitors sailed modified triangle 2's, WL 2's, and olympic courses. No protests were filed.

Sunday's conditions were unfortunately not as favorable. No consistent breeze filled before 1pm and no races were sailed. Thank you to Warren Wong, George Griswold and Mike Barnett for serving as Judges, and to David Porter and Peter Lundt as PRO's.

FINAL RESULTS
Fall Fury Intersectional
University of Wisconsin
September 11-12, 2004

1:16 PM 9-12-04

A division = 8 Races
B division = 8 Races

A B TOT

1. Minnesota 22 9 31
2. Wisconsin 31 17 48
3. Ohio 32 31 63
4. Michigan State 36 35 71
5. St. Thomas 32 52 84
6. Marquette 29 80 109
7. Miami of Ohio 61 53 114
8. Indiana 56 63 119
9. Iowa State 88 45 133
10. Iowa 69 67 136
11. Hope 72 77 149

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 TOT

1
Minnesota A 5 1 4 2 3 3 3 1 22
Gophers B 1 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 9
6 8 13 16 20 25 29 31 31

2
Wisconsin A 2 9 3 3 2 2 5 5 31
Badgers B 2 3 2 3 2 1 2 2 17
4 16 21 27 31 34 41 48 48

3
Ohio A 3 3 2 6 6 7 2 3 32
Bobcats B 4 4 4 6 3 3 3 4 31
7 14 20 32 41 51 56 63 63

4
Michigan State A 7 2 6 5 4 4 6 2 36
Spartans B RAF 2 3 2 4 4 5 3 35
19 23 32 39 47 55 66 71 71

5
St. Thomas A 6 4 8 7 1 1 1 4 32
Tommies B 3 6 7 5 10 8 6 7 52
9 19 34 46 57 66 73 84 84

6
Marquette A 1 5 1 1 5 5 4 7 29
Golden Eagles B 10 11 11 11 11 11 10 5 80
11 27 39 51 67 83 97 109 109

7
Miami of Ohio A 10 6 10 4 7 8 8 8 61
Red Hawks B 7 7 6 9 8 6 4 6 53
17 30 46 59 74 88 100 114 114

8
Indiana A 8 8 5 8 8 6 7 6 56
Hoosiers B 6 8 9 7 7 10 8 8 63
14 30 44 59 74 90 105 119 119

9
Iowa State A 11 11 11 11 11 11 11 11 88
Cyclones B 5 5 5 4 5 5 7 9 45
16 32 48 63 79 95 113 133 133

10
Iowa A 4 7 9 9 10 10 10 10 69
Hawkeyes B 8 9 8 8 6 9 9 10 67
12 28 45 62 78 97 116 136 136

11
Hope A 9 10 7 10 9 9 9 9 72
Flying Dutchmen B 9 10 10 10 9 7 11 11 77
18 38 55 75 93 109 129 149 149

Navy Laser Open

Navy Laser Open
U S Naval Academy
11-12 Sept 2004

FINAL RESULTS

REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS:
Saturday: 5-12 kt NE'ly with a fair amount of chop from boat traffic.
12 races sailed. Courses were all W/L, 15-20 minutes long. Tight racing all around. Great day for sailing! Top six qualify for the Carl Van Dyne trophy at Navy 9-10 OCT.
Sunday: Breeze was fickle in the morning, finally filling out of the east at around noon. Two races were sailed in the Bemby Beach area in 4-6 kts before the breeze cut out and the chop took over. The Sunday boaters were out in Annapolis and the predicted SE'ly never took hold. Racing was abandoned by communal consent of the coaches and competitors at 2:30.
Congradulations to Peet Must--KP, Chuck Fulmer and Garth Fasano--Navy,
Alex Steele--St. Mary's, Jay Mills-Hobart, and Carl Horrocks--Washington College for qualifying for the Carl Van Dyne.
PRO was Stephen Gay '05. Many thanks to the Head Jugde, Hugh Elliot.
No protests were filed. One request for redress was granted by the jury.

A division = 14 Races
TOT
1. Peet Must 45
2. Charles Fulmer 69
3. Alex Steele 80
4. Carl Horricks 99
5. Jay Mills 111
6. Garth Fasano 113
7. John Loe 115
8. Charles Higgins 132
9. Patrick Curran 138
10. Dan Ramsay 167
11. Eric Reitinger 169
12. David Tunnicliffe 179
13. Bill Berg 180
14. Wiley Wakeman 183
15. Langdon Mitchell 195
16. Matt Lyman 202
17. JB Turney 216
18. Todd Kutkiewicz 216
19. Ricky Turner 230
20. Jeff Sharp 237
21. John Keating 271
22. Eric Silverman 285
23. Berry Kurland 308
24. Cem Yurdam 312
25. Roger Counihan 317
26. Eric Magnuson 351
27. Mike Nicoletti 358
28. Parker Mitchell 386

Harvard Defends Captain Hurst

Captain Hurst Bowl
Dartmouth College
September 11-12, 2004

5:08 PM 9-12-04

REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS: Saturday: Sunny skies, temps in the mid 70s, no wind and no races.

Sunday: Sunny and warm again. Long postponement before a light, sporadic westerly breeze eventually came in peaking around 5 mph.

A division = 4 Races
B division = 4 Races
A B TOT

1. Harvard 21 17 38
2. URI 32 21 53
3. Yale 27 29 56
4. Dartmouth 23 45 68
5. Connecticut College 36 32 68
6. St. Mary's 50 20 70
7. Hobart/William Smith 36 35 71
8. Brown 59 18 77
9. Coast Guard 37 43 80
10. Boston College 51 32 83
11. South Florida 27 57 84
12. UC Irvine 43 54 97
13. Tufts 52 54 106
14. Roger Williams 45 66 111
15. Navy 61 52 113
16. MIT 45 72 117
17. Boston University 55 64 119
18. Bowdoin 80 45 125
19. Georgetown 73 53 126
20. Washington College 57 72 129
21. Columbia 45 94 139
22. Providence College 88 63 151
23. UVM 71 81 152
24. Maine Maritime 88 82 170

A division = 4 Races
TOT
1. Harvard 21 Clay Johnson 07
Sam Fink 07 Ruth Schlitz 06
2. Dartmouth 23 Erik Storck 07
Clementine James 05
3. Yale 27 Stu McNay 05
Meredith Killion 05
4. South Florida 27 Kevin Reali 06
Ashley Reynolds 06
5. URI 32 Morghan Paxhia 05
Kerry Mahoney 05
6. Hobart/William Smith 36 John Storck 05
Mandi Markee 07
7. Connecticut College 36 Hans Jenson 07
Elissa Leonard 07 Elizabeth Hawkins 08
8. Coast Guard 37 Rob Gorman 07
Kyra Chin 07
9. UC Irvine 43 Frank Tybor 07
Will Pochereva 07
10. Roger Williams 45 Bobby Koar 05
Kristin Pappas 06
11. Columbia 45 Becker Chase 05
Allison Sudol 05
12. MIT 45
13. St. Mary's 50 Justin Law 07
Hillary Wiech 07
14. Boston College 51
15. Tufts 52 Brendan Shattuck 05
Zoe Bolesta 06
16. Boston University 55
17. Washington College 57 Colin Robertson 05
Vanessa Anderson 07
18. Brown 59 Rip Hale 06
Jen Bauer 06
19. Navy 61 Gary Grimes 07
Slava Hayway 07
20. UVM 71 Chris Doyle 05
Adrienna Gaetano 05
21. Georgetown 73 Steve Streit 05
Emily Siguler 07
22. Bowdoin 80 Frank Pizzo 06
Ellen Grenley 06
23. Maine Maritime 88
24. Providence College 88 Alex Howland 05
Kelly McFadden 07

B division = 4 Races
TOT
1. Harvard 17 Genny Tulloch 06
Laura Schubert 05
2. Brown 18 Pat Rynne 05
Arlene Chung 06
3. St. Mary's 20 Andrew Watters 07
Meredith Nordhem 08
4. URI 21 Matt Kastan 07
Kristen Johnson 07
5. Yale 29 Zach Brown 08
Jenn Hoyle 05
6. Connecticut College 32 Chalie Modica 08
Amanda Kalkins 05 Chales Struse 07
7. Boston College 32
8. Hobart/William Smith 35 Lee Sackett 05
Agusta Nadler 06
9. Coast Guard 43 Ben Kemar 07
Linden Dahlkemper 08
10. Bowdoin 45 Pieter Scheerliuck 05
Carolyn Chu 07
11. Dartmouth 45 Andrew Loe 06
Elisabeth Kreter 05
12. Navy 52 Katie Whitman 07
John Appelbaum 06
13. Georgetown 53 Ed DuMoulin 06
Julia Graham 06
14. UC Irvine 54 Lauren Maxam 05
Whitney Loufek 07
15. Tufts 54 Zander Kirkland 06
Katie Mims 06
16. South Florida 57 Andrew Blom 06
Jee Lee 06
17. Providence College 63 Devin Hurson 07
Liz Sciuto 07
18. Boston University 64
19. Roger Williams 66 David Hyer 07
Elizabeth Wishe 05
20. MIT 72
21. Washington College 72 Chad Hillyer 05
Hannah Lee 08
22. UVM 81 Ted Chawlk 05
Laura Evangelesta 07
23. Maine Maritime 82
24. Columbia 94 Jon Epstien 07
Julia Weab 06

1 2 3 4 TOT
1
Harvard A 8 7 2 4 21
B 5 3 1 8 17
13 23 26 38 38

2
URI A 15 5 9 3 32
B 3 4 13 1 21
18 27 49 53 53

3
Yale A 6 8 12 1 27
B 2 10 6 11 29
8 26 44 56 56

4
Dartmouth A 1 16 1 5 23
B 14 14 10 7 45
15 45 56 68 68

5
Connecticut College A 2 4 17 13 36
B 4 8 4 16 32
6 18 39 68 68

6
St. Mary's A 9 11 13 17 50
B 9 6 3 2 20
18 35 51 70 70

7
Hobart/William Smith A 3 15 16 2 36
B 7 1 17 10 35
10 26 59 71 71

8
Brown A 7 19 21 12 59
B 1 2 12 3 18
8 29 62 77 77

9
Coast Guard A 23 1 3 10 37
B 15 5 11 12 43
38 44 58 80 80

10
Boston College A 11 14 10 16 51
B 8 12 8 4 32
19 45 63 83 83

11
South Florida A 13 3 4 7 27
B 6 15 16 20 57
19 37 57 84 84

12
UC Irvine A 4 DSQ 6 8 43
B 12 19 2 21 54
16 60 68 97 97

13
Tufts A 12 17 5 18 52
B 13 7 9 OCS 54
25 49 63 106 106

14
Roger Williams A 5 9 20 11 45
B 22 18 7 19 66
27 54 81 111 111

15
Navy A 19 20 7 15 61
B 11 17 15 9 52
30 67 89 113 113

16
MIT A 18 2 11 14 45
B 10 22 18 22 72
28 52 81 117 117

17
Boston University A 10 10 15 20 55
B 18 13 19 14 64
28 51 85 119 119

18
Bowdoin A 17 23 18 22 80
B 16 9 14 6 45
33 65 97 125 125

19
Georgetown A 22 13 19 19 73
B 17 11 20 5 53
39 63 102 126 126

20
Washington College A 20 6 DSQ 6 57
B 20 16 21 15 72
40 62 108 129 129

21
Columbia A 16 12 8 9 45
B 23 24 24 23 94
39 75 107 139 139

22
Providence College A 21 21 22 24 88
B 24 21 5 13 63
45 87 114 151 151

23
UVM A 14 22 14 21 71
B 19 23 22 17 81
33 78 114 152 152

24
Maine Maritime A 24 18 23 23 88
B 21 20 23 18 82
45 83 129 170 170

WINNING TEAM : Harvard
Clay Johnson 07
Sam Fink 07 Ruth Schlitz 06
Genny Tulloch 06
Laura Schubert 05

Linky Sailing News

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Great Lakes Port Huron titled. Shipping News

College Sailing Hurst Bowl

From left: EMIRATES TEAM NEW ZEALAND (NZL 82) , BMW ORACLE RACING (USA 76) AND ALINGHI TEAM (SUI 64) damged duringa strom after racing in Marseilles France.
© Th.Martinez

Alinghi 2nd in Act I

The last race between Team Alinghi and BMW Oracle Racing was enthralling, all the way to the finish. Throughout the race, SUI-64 managed to control its adversary, to play the windshifts and to protect the favorable side of the course. Thanks to this victory against the overall leader, Alinghi took second place on the podium today in Act 1. Emirates Team New Zealand finished 3rd. The French team, the Challenge took 4th, K-Challenge 5th, even though these latter two teams were equal in points. Team Shosholoza took sixth.

September 10, 2004 - Marseilles: At the beginning, Team Alinghi was forced to take the left side of the start. BMW Oracle Racing appeared to have the advantage at the line. The Swiss were slightly behind, but after a few minutes, the left side paid off. SUI-64 quickly advanced, taking the lead and gaining several lengths on the Americans. At the windward mark, the holder of the America's Cup rounded 20 seconds in front of the winner of Act 1.

"Brad Butterworth, the tactician, and the crew performed excellent work, succeeding in doing exactly what they wanted," confirmed Yves Detrey, pitman for Team Alinghi and observer of the race today. On the first leg, BMW Oracle Racing managed to make some time on SUI-64. But Alinghi controlled without giving in to its' American adversaries and, while they tried to take USA-76 at the start, chose the favorable side of the course. The match was, however, very tight to the finish. Every few moments, the aggressive Americans were on us, maintaining the suspense until the end. SUI-64 took the race with a 15 second lead, accompanied by a number of impressive spectator boats. "

The result of this match was more than just the victory over the winner. If they had lost, Alinghi would have taken third place on the podium after Emirates Team New Zealand. Alinghi is thus second in Act 1, within just two points of BMW Oracle Racing.

In the two other matches of the last day of competition in Marseilles, the Challenge had a very nice start, leaving Team Shosholoza far behind. It won the match with more than three minutes lead, thus moving into 4th position overall. With 17 points, it tied with the other French Team K-Challenge. But in this situation, it is the team who won yesterday's match between the Challenge and K-Challenge who moves ahead of the other in overall results. As such, Thierry Péponnet's team are fifth. In their final day today, they lost the match against the New Zealanders after a rather spectacular battle. All results are at www.alinghi.com

Overall results : 1st BMW Racing Oracle, 46 points ; 2nd Alinghi, 44 points ; 3rd Emirates Team New Zealand, 42 points ; 4th the Challenge, 17 points ; 5th K-Challenge, 17 points ; 6th Team Shosholoza, 8 points.

Quotes for the day
-------------------
Peter Holmberg, skipper for Team Alinghi: Conditions today were really complex, with good wind shifts to the left and a more extreme breeze to the right. It was crucial to be successful in playing the shifts. At the start we wanted the same side as BMW Oracle Racing, but we couldn't so we went left. We decided to stay on this side and to do everything to pass. We did well. Our decisions were good today, taking the start to the left. It is fantastic to have won this race, even though we would have liked to win overall. But BMW Oracle Racing was obviously sailing better than us.

Jochen Schuemann, strategist for Team Alinghi: Before the start, we knew that we couldn't win Act 1. But, for us today was the most important race of the competition. It was the last match, a kind of finale and we were very happy to have won it.

Torn Genoa hurts Alinghi

In spite of an easy victory against the South-Africans, the second day in the match racing series was tough for the Swiss. Compromised by a torn genoa, Team Alinghi was at the mercy of its adversary from the last America's Cup. With this defeat, any chance Alinghi had of winning Act 1 is now gone, to the advantage of BMW Oracle Racing, who will definitely take first place on the podium. The fight for second place is very tight between SUI-64 and NZL-82. To take it, the Swiss will have to win on Saturday against the overall leader.

September 10, 2004 - Marseilles: An air of revenge blew this afternoon on the Rade Sud of the city Phocéenne. The first match of the day began between the finalists of the last America's Cup, won in 2003, 5 to 0, by Alinghi. After a start marked by a lengthy dial-up, the Swiss boat favoured the right side which it had defended for several minutes. According to tactician Brad Butterworth, the strategy was that if the wind swung to the right, it would benefit SUI-64. If it swung to the left as it has each day since the beginning of Act 1, it would benefit NZL 82. But the Swiss intuition paid off and crossed the line 20 meters ahead of the Kiwis.

But, nine minutes after the start, the Alinghi genoa ripped on a spreader. Teflon tape protecting an abrasive end of the spreader was damaged during the dial-up, when the boats were headed into the wind. It was a hard blow for Alinghi and a stroke of luck for the New Zealanders who were able to pass to take the lead. However, it only took 20 seconds for the Swiss crew to lower the old and hoist a new genoa and to set out again with in pursuit of NZL-82.

The lost 20 seconds proved to be irreversible for the Swiss, even though SUI-64 were able to make some time on the Kiwis on the first leg. On the second leg, the Kiwis, in a favorable position, chose the left side, which they defended tirelessly. Alinghi, in a compromised position out on the right, was unable to make up crucial time. The wind shifted to the left and with more breeze at the top of the course, NZL-82 was able to maintain its lead on the Swiss. The Kiwis headed to victory and Alinghi crossed the line 13 seconds behind Emirates Team New Zealand. "We lost because of the torn genoa," explained Jochen Schuemann, strategist on board Alinghi. "We were in the lead and in a good position which would have enabled us to win."

In the match that saw both French teams up against each other, the Challenge had a perfect start and sailed well to win its first race 30 seconds in front of K-Challenge, putting the Challenge in fifth position place overall. The Americans, as expected, beat Team Shosholoza. Alinghi's second match against the South-Africans was much more calm. During the start, the Swiss proceeded in traditional match racing manner with a dial-up then circling. But Team Shosholoza appeared not to want to play the game. SUI-64 was able to easily start to the left, accelerated, to cover the older boat, class of 2000. The Swiss crossed the line with 3' 33 ahead. Out on the water, the scenario was much the same, as the two other teams in Race 3 of Act 1, BMW Racing Oracle and Emirates Team New Zealand overcame the two challengers of the weaker group, respectively, K-Challenge and the Challenge.

Tomorrow, Alinghi will meet the overall leader, BMW Oracle Racing. This match will be the decision maker. If SUI-64 wins, it will finish Act 1 in second position in front of the Kiwis. If not, Alinghi will finish in third place, after Emirates Team New Zealand. All results can be found at www.alinghi.com.

Overall Results: 1st, BMW Racing Oracle, 46 points; 2nd, Alinghi 38 points; 3rd, Emirates Team New Zealand 36 points; 4th, K-Challenge 17 points; 5th, the Challenge 11 points; 6th Team Shosholoza 8 points.

Quotes for the day:
Jochen Schuemann, strategist for Team Alinghi: We could have won. We were doing everything well and had a good lead. But we tore the genoa and were unable to follow Emirates Team New Zealand like that. We had to take it down and put another up. We lost a lot of time, even though we did succeed in catching them. Either way, it was one of our best regattas of the match race series here. At the end of the day we lost because of the genoa. This is something that never happened to us during the America's Cup.

Christian Karcher, grinder for Team Alinghi and observer today: During the dial-up, the genoa came in contact with a place on the spreader that was wrapped in teflon scotch tape protecting the abrasive part of the end of the spreader. It was this half-centimetre or less which then tore the mylar of the very new genoa. The final result was decided right there.

Rolf Vrolijk, principal designer for Team Alinghi: It is the first time that the two finalists of the America' s Cup have met again in a competition. It is exceptional. The New Zealanders and the Swiss know each other well. They had some aggressive training days together before the start of this Act. Typically, they never sail against each other. It's really interesting to watch them sail together in this situation although it's obviously not the same as the real Cup, during which all the teams are at their best. The boats and the sails are optimized to the maximum. Here, it is not the case, except for BMW Oracle Racing, who has been training and testing for the past year.

Emirates New Zealand Tops Alinghi

Emirates Team New Zealand and Alinghi went head-to-head today in a rematch of Auckland 2003, with New Zealand gaining a narrow win.

It was a good win and a boost to syndicate confidence about tackling the three years ahead. The win will be savoured tonight in Marseille, but only modestly because tomorrow’s another race day.

It was a win the team members had been working up to since they started sailing off Marseille 10 days ago, having never sailed together as team. As the days passed sailing crew confidence in the boat and its reliability grew. More important they gained confidence in themselves and sensed that Oracle and Alinghi were not invincible.

Emirates Team New Zealand had finished ahead of both BMW Oracle and Alinghi in the fleet races earlier in the week. Yesterday a tactical error cost the team a possible win against Oracle. Today it was one-on-one against the team that took the America’s Cup from Auckland.

Managing director Grant Dalton, whose pre-regatta expectation was for the team to be competent and competitive, still takes a cautious view of the future.

Every win in this competition is a good win. The boat went well, the team-work onboard was near perfect and we took advantage of the opportunities

“I know this race has been keenly anticipated and people talked of revenge….. but for us it was only another race against opposition we respect.

“The margin was only 13 seconds and we worked hard for every one of them. There’s still nothing in it and there’s a long way to go before the start of the challenger series in Valencia in 2007.”

Today’s race was sailed in a south-east breeze of 11 to 16 knots with gusts over 20.

Emirates Team New Zealand claimed the left side of the course gaining a one to two boat-length lead. Halfway up the leg, a tacking duel developed with NZL 82 ahead until Alinghi got better pressure and edged ahead. A problem with Alinghi’s jib gave the lead back to NZL82 and they kept it to the finish, fighting off a relentlessly determined challenge.

NZL82 led around every mark, by 10 sec after the first beat, 9sec at the second mark, 42 sec at the third mark and 13 seconds at the finish.

In Emirates Team New Zealand’s second race of the day, Le Defi was beaten by 2min 30 sec.

This regatta has been a learning experience for the team. Grant Dalton said: “We now know that NZL82 is almost right on the pace up wind, but is not performing well down wind. Unfortunately we won’t be able to do anything about that before the Valencia regatta.”

Water Level Update

Below you'll find water level info that pertains to Lakes Michigan and Huron.

Reference Point- Measurements in Inches

Difference from Chart Datum +11
Difference from last month -2
Difference from last year +14
Difference from long term average for September -10
Difference from Record High -43
Difference from Record Low +21
Forecast for 10 October 2004 -2

Click for information on other lakes.

Linky Sailing News

Racing Farr 40 Worlds. Act I Day 5.

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Farr 40 Worlds Mark Rounding
Photo Daniel Forster/Rolex

Farr 40 Worlds Day 2

A day of sun, big breeze and a short lumpy sea on San Francisco Bay proved to be the favored conditions for Jim Richardson's Barking Mad at the Rolex Farr 40 World Championship. The New England-based team set the tone by winning the first of three races and is the only boat in the 31-strong fleet to have a score line comprising single-digit results. Today's first race began in lighter conditions with the sea breeze kicking in and building during the afternoon to more than 25 knots. Massimo Mezzaroma and Alberto Sodo Miglori's Nerone from Italy is in second place, with Peter de Ridder's (Monaco) Mean Machine in third-place overall.

After some extreme tactics at last year's Rolex Farr 40 Worlds in Sardinia, which disqualified Barking Mad from the penultimate race, the team has been playing it safe this time. "The thing about the early days of a regatta is that you can put yourself behind the eight ball and that's difficult to recover from," said Richardson, who is the 1998 world champion. "So we've been trying not to lose the regatta in the first couple of days and position ourselves for the end."

Barking Mad's tactician Terry Hutchinson (Annapolis, Md.), who won the J/24 World Championship on this course six years ago, explained the day's strategy. "We did our best to get off the starting line in a position that wasn't going to be at a disadvantage to the rest of the fleet," he said. "We 've been doing a pretty good job at getting the best starts without too much risk, and then from there, pick our way through when we can. We aren't trying to hit any home runs. We're relying on the things we do well to get us past boats."

The Italians seem to be almost shadowing their old rivals on Barking Mad around the race course. "They are the defending world champions," explained Richardson. "They know they have to beat us and we know we have to beat them." While 12 points seems to be a comfortable lead, Richardson and his tactician are only too aware that all it takes is one bad result in one race to see this evaporate. "It's a war of attrition right now to get to Saturday," said Hutchinson.

As ever there is much dockside discussion about the tactics for sailing San Francisco's Berkeley Circle, with the most common advice being to 'hit the right side' of the course going up the beat, where there can be advantageous current in the deeper water, followed by a favorable shift off Angel Island. In fact today's three races were all won off the start line.

Peter Stoneberg's (Orinda, Calif.) Shadow won today's second race. "It was a perfect race," said tactician Peter Isler (San Diego, Calif.). "The right was favored and we were fast. We started in the upper third of the line, punched on all the boats around us, and upped the speed. It was a classic good start, our first of the regatta. We pushed for two minutes and tacked over and I said to the boys 'we could win this race.' Then it all fell into place."

Richard Perini's (Atarmon, Australia) Evolution team, the winners of today's third race, are sailing a brand new boat in anticipation of being the top local boat when the Rolex Farr 40 Worlds are held in Sydney, next March. "We got a great start at the pin end and we were able to tack across pretty much straight after the start," described tactician Hamish Pepper, who recently returned from Athens where he represented New Zealand in the Laser class. "We had a good lead right from the beginning. We jumped out at the start and had a good lane across, then the breeze shifted to the left and gave us a nice 50-yard lead at the top mark. They don't often come like that, but when they do, it is fantastic."

But the final word today goes to Isler. "This Rolex Farr 40 Worlds is the best big boat regatta for owner-drivers that there's ever been," he said. "In terms of the performance, two or three years ago, any boat here in the top 10 would be so far ahead, the game has been raised so much."

Racing continues through Sunday. Three races are planned for tomorrow, the third day of racing.

Results

Alinghi Wins a Pair

For the first day of match racing in Marseilles, the Swiss won, not surprisingly, two races against the French team the Challenge, and also K-Challenge. BMW Oracle Racing, Alinghi's most serious competition, also took two wins. Overall, only two points separate Alinghi from the current leader, USA-76. To finish in the lead for Act 1, SUI-64 must now win all its matches. Tomorrow, it will relive the last America's Cup in a match which promises to be very exciting against Emirates TEAM New Zealand.

September 9, 2004 - Marseilles: In its first match race for Act 1, TEAM Alinghi met the French team, the Challenge, a team Alinghi had taken three victories from in the Louis Vuitton Cup in 2002. The French did not proceed past the quarter final repecharge, which was won by the Swiss team.

The start began with a tactical battle which turned out to be an advantage to the Swiss team. But on the first leg it was apparent that Alinghi had the upper hand, as anticipated. The gap widened and continued to extend to Alinghi's advantage as the French hoisted their spinnaker. In a poor manoeuvre, the French dropped the sail in water, losing invaluable seconds before being able to fly another. Alinghi maintained the advantage to the finish, which it crossed three minutes and 28 seconds ahead. The two matches started 10 and 20 minutes before this race saw K-Challenge win over TEAM Shosholoza and, after a tighten battle, BMW Oracle Racing took a win over Emirates TEAM New Zealand.

For the second series in today's match racing, the breeze was at 10 knots and conditions on the course choppy due to the spectator fleet. SUI-64 went up against the French K-Challenge in the second race, a new challenger for the America' s Cup. The five minutes prior to the start determined this race. The two boats engaged in a dial-up very quickly, the phase during which each goes head to wind, waiting for each other to make a move, looking for control.

Alinghi, while they did not have the advantage at the start, were able to control K-Challenge. Postioned poorly, the French had to tack away, followed closely by Alinghi who were not going to let go of any control to the French team. Peter Holmberg, made the most of this tactical blow to the French. At the gun, SUI-64 managed to close the door on the French who, sandwiched between Alinghi and the committee boat, had nowhere to go on the line. K-Challenge had to tack, regain speed and return to cross the start.

This was an expensive error for the French as they rounded the first mark one minute behind Alinghi. The remainder of this match was a similar scenario to today's first match for the Swiss. Throughout both races Alinghi was always in the lead, taking its second match for the day with a 1:01 minute advantage.

In the other matches today, the Challenge put on a beautiful performance against overall leader BMW Oracle Racing, leading up the first leg but eventually bowing out to the Americans. Emirates TEAM New Zealand won without much difficulty against TEAM Shosholoza. This first day of match racing confirms the domination of two teams BMW Oracle Racing and TEAM Alinghi, which have today both won all their races. Tomorrow, SUI-64 will go up against Emirates TEAM New Zealand, its adversary of the last America' S Cup, in a race which promises to be enthralling…then Team Shosholoza. All results on www.alinghi.com.

Overall results: 1st, BMW Racing Oracle 34 points; 2nd, Alinghi 32 points; 3rd, Emirates TEAM New Zealand 24 points; 4th, K-Challenge 17 points; 5th, TEAM Shosholoza 8 points; 6th, the Challenge 5 points.

Quotes of the day
------------------
Peter Holmberg, skipper TEAM Alinghi: The start against K-Challenge was easy for us. We were very quickly in a strong position which helped us be in a place of control. They couldn't tack or jibe. We succeeded in getting them tight up against the committee boat, crossing with a 32 second advantage at which time the fate of the race was almost determined. Against the Challenge, we encountered more difficulties. We initially controlled them, then they succeeded in getting away from us and gaining control. I had to respond aggressively for us to get out from under them and we made our start on the favored side.

Jochen Schuemann, strategist TEAM Alinghi: When we are moving fast, we want to gain without taking risks. We try to carry out clean manoeuvres and be prepared for any possible one. We try to minimize the amount of tacking so not to damage the sails. One thing is for sure and that is that we don't slow down the speed!

Yves Detrey, pitman for TEAM Alinghi and observer today: The first match races for Act 1 are being raced on a course that is different to the usual America's Cup course. The windward mark is a gate, i.e. two buoys. At the end of the downwind leg, the boats have the choice to round one or the other before going for the closest. Contrary to a single buoy, the gate has the advantage of opening the tactical options. The two buoys can, indeed, shift slightly in the wind. It is also possible that the mark which seems to be most advantageous is actually the side where there is less wind. That opens up the game and creates new possibilities.

Act I Match Racing

Two match races on a fine Marseille afternoon in 12 – 14 knots from the south-west and a win and a loss from Emirates Team New Zealand.

The moderate breeze was in sharp contrast to the 20-plus knots experienced during the fleet races earlier in the week.

There were some great moments for a team that first sailed together just a week ago in a match against BMW Oracle, a team that had been working up to the first pre-regatta of the 2007 America’s Cup for 16 months.

NZL82 showed good speed upwind on the first beat against the form yacht BMW Oracle and in tacking duel towards the top of the first leg, NZL 82 extended to lead around the mark by 19 seconds,

It was a good position to be in and one from which it is possible to control the race. On the first run Oracle showed its downwind pace and with two-thirds of the leg sailed, the yachts split and Oracle was able to claim the right, giving them the favoured left on the beat up the third leg.

At the top mark, the Americans were ahead by 25 seconds, extending this to 42 by the finish.

Back ashore, team managing director Grant Dalton, sailing in his first America’s Cup match race, said the team’s performance showed potential. “It was a race we should not have lost, but I saw enough today to know that we have a very solid base for going forward.

“I don’t want to be too hard on ourselves, but the fact is that we were in a winning position and we made a small mistake and at this level of the sport small mistakes are heavily punished.”

In the second match of the day, as expected, Emirates Team New Zealand had no difficulty despatching the South African Shosholoza.

Emirates Team New Zealand won the start, but there was nothing in it, and they powered away to a 1min 18sec lead by the first mark; the South Africans took 20 seconds out of the lead on the first run but from then Emirates Team New Zealand piled on the pressure, extending the lead by 31 seconds on the third leg and a further 32 seconds on leg 4.

The final delta was 2minutes and 1 second.

Farr 40 Worlds Day 1

Contrary to expectations, the opening day of the Rolex Farr 40 Worlds produced a fleet leader without professional crew or a two boat program or even a coach boat. Norwegian Steam owned by Eivind Astrup (Oslo, Norway) leads the 31-boat fleet after two races.

In front of a backdrop that includes downtown San Francisco, the Golden Gate and Bay Bridges and Alcatraz Island, racing got underway on time in eight knots of breeze, with an inevitable two general recalls from the anxious teams.

At the weather mark rounding, Italian boat TWT, owned by Marco Rodolfi (Comasco, Italy), led Peter de Ridder's (Monaco) Mean Machine and Norwegian Steam. By the leeward mark Norwegian Steam had slipped ahead, a position it clung on to for the remaining three legs of the race.

"We were lucky in our choice of where we went on the course; we did more right than wrong," explained Astrup. "At the start we were on the right side near the committee boat. We tacked over immediately and had a good run out to the right. We had a small wind shift at the end, so we overstood, but it was worth it. Then downwind, we were catching the wind shifts and jibing on them well."

During the course of the race the breeze built to around 15 knots. Finishing 45 seconds after the Norwegian boat was TWT and Takashi Okura's (Tokyo, Japan) Sled on which Tony Rey (Portsmouth, R.I.) is calling tactics. Mean Machine was close behind until it had a collision with TWT at the weather mark.

"We were coming alongside TWT and we tried to pass them at the top mark by forcing them a little past it," recounted Mean Machine's tactician Ray Davies. "The current was sweeping us up and when we tacked, we had overlaid the mark and had to come back down. We were having trouble getting the bow down and we hit TWT." Acknowledging their mistake the team performed a 720-degree penalty turn, losing four places that they were unable to regain during the rest of the race.

Prior to the start of the second race there was drama on board David Voss' (Marina del Rey, Calif.) Piranha. Although they are the most successful team in the Schlock 35 class, Voss' crew is one of the newest racing here. Voss purchased the boat in July. During the pre-start, tactician Gordon Palmer was caught by the main sheet during a jibe, hurling him down to leeward. Palmer was unloaded onto a chase boat and taken to the hospital where he received two stitches. Apart from this and two black eyes, Palmer is expected to be back racing tomorrow.

By the start of race two the westerly sea breeze had filled in and was blowing 20 knots.

Mean Machine had one of the best starts, in the middle of the line. "There was a lot of sag in the line and we had nearly a boat length on everyone around us," explained Davies. They continued to the left, the only occasion today when this tactic paid, and rounded the top mark first ahead of two class favorites - Jim Richardson's (Boston, Mass./Newport, R.I.) Barking Mad and defending World Champions Antonio sodo Migliori and Massimo Mezzaroma (Rome, Italy) on Nerone.

Mean Machine extended on the run, to approximately 200 yards ahead of its competitors as the boats flew downwind, semi-planing, in 25 knots of wind and an increasingly choppy sea. From here the Dutch team was untouchable finishing one minute ahead of Barking Mad.

Mean Machine is clearly one of the top boats to watch this week. This is only de Ridder's second season in the Farr 40, but to date this year he has won both Key West Race Week and the SORC. Here in San Francisco he is sailing with most of the same crew on board as took part in the East Coast regattas earlier this year.

The second race was one of mixed fortunes for the Norwegian Steam team. After a poor start and picking the wrong side of the first run the team was down to around 25th place. They then staged a remarkable recovery getting to the right side of the course on the second run, then hitting the left side aggressively on the final beat up to the finish by which time they had dropped to fifth.

After the first day Norwegian Steam leads the fleet. Astrup, who is in the shipping business in Oslo, has been campaigning the boat for three years and has an all-Norwegian crew including Arve Roaas, who sailed the last Volvo Ocean Race aboard djuice and tactician Herman Jorn Johannessen, 2000 Olympic bronze medallist in the Soling class.

Racing continues through Sunday. Three races are planned for tomorrow, the second day of racing.

The 2004 Rolex Farr 40 World Championship takes place September 8-11 at the St. Francis Yacht Club in San Francisco, Calif. For more information about the Rolex Farr 40 World Championship, including daily racing reports, results and photos go to www.farr40.org or www.stfyc.org.

Founded in 1927, St. Francis Yacht Club, within view of the Golden Gate Bridge, is a year-round host of over 40 regattas on San Francisco Bay. The club is renowned for its expertise in running world and national championships, including the Melges 24 Worlds, and the J/105 and Star North American Championships.

Rolex Farr 40 Worlds

Preliminary Results - Day 1, September 8, 2004 (Top 10 of 31)

Place, Owner Name, Hometown, Boat Name, Race 1, Race 2, Total Points
1. Eivind Astrup, Oslo, Norway, Norwegian Steam, 1-5, 6
2. Peter De Ridder, Monaco, Mean Machine, 7-1, 8
3. James Richardson, Boston, Mass., Barking Mad, 9-2, 11
4. Massimo Mezzaroma, Rome, Italy, Nerone, 10-3, 13
5. Peter Stoneberg, Orinda, Calif., Shadow, 11-6, 17
6. Marco Rodolfi, Comasco, Italy, TWT, 2-16, 18
7. Erik Maris, Paris, France, Twins2, 5-, 18
8. Takashi Okura, Tokyo, Japan, Sled, 3-17, 20
9. Richard Perini, Atamaron, Australia, Evolution, 12-11, 23
10. Alan Field, Temptress, Los Angeles, Calif., 4, 21, 25

New 24 Hour Record

The WSSR Council announces the ratification of a new World Record:

RECORD: Outright longest distance run in 24 hours
Yacht: Orange 2
Sailed by: Bruno Peyron
Dates: 22nd and 23rd August 2004.
Distance travelled: 706.2 nm.
Average speed: 29. 42 kts.

Linky Sailing News

Racing Farr 40 Worlds day 1. Genuine Risk a winner. Team race sailors

News T-rings

Great Lakes Lake Express leader. Ontario ferry ceases service. Protection decal. Kayaking Superior

College Sailing Purdue hosts Boiler Cup.

Sail change action on Genuine Risk
Carlo Borlenghi/Rolex

August Weather Report

Going by the standard of difference from average temperature August was 3.5 degrees below normal. This is the coldest month by this measure in Muskegon since May of 2002 when temps were 5.5° below normal.

Much of the typical hot, dog days of August weather came at the beginning of the month. The first 4 days were + 80 degrees. The monthly high of 85° came later on the 24th. The month low of 42 degrees was recorded on the 21st.

The 11th through the 22nd were the months main cool streak. Highs barely hit the 70's, while lows often were in the 50's.

Not only was August cool, it was dry as 3.06 inches of rain fell, .71 below normal. 1.21 inches of that rain fell on the 2nd.

Despite the cool conditions the skys stayed clear with 16 considered clear. A mere 5 were officially cloudy.

The average wind in August was 8.2 knots. Windiest day was the 9th at 13.9 knots with the 21st the least windy at 3.6 knots.

The coolness of August brought year to date temperatures down to only .06 degrees above normal for the year. Could be worse though, as in 2003 temperatures were actually below normal after August.

Outlooks for the fall are neutral on temperature and precipitation. They give an equal chance for either being below or above normal. So expect temperatures above or below the typical average of 61 degrees and more or less rain than 3.5 inches. Weather....just one more reason to get up in the morning.

Varnishing Hints & Tips

In Michigan we are starting haul out/layup season. Along
with buttoning the boat up for the winter, many let winter
double as project time. A good winter project is to take
varnished items such as floor boards and drawers home.

Working with wood and varnishing is part science, part black
art. There are many variables including environment,
humidity etc. See below for some basics.

Once home, be prepared to spend more time preparing the
surface to be varnished than you spend on applying the
varnish. The quality of the varnish job depends on the
preparation!

Starting from bare wood use #320 sand paper to get a smooth
surface. Sand parallel to the grain. From old varnish, in
good condition 220 should do the job. Make sure that there
is NO shine left from the old varnish.

Brushes depend on personal preference. Choices include
bristle and foam brushes.

I've had great success using Interlux #333 brushing liquid
applied before each coat as directed on the can.

Starting from bare wood I use varnish thinned 50% for the
first coat. My varnish work has been with oil varnish though
poly varnish givers good results.

How many coats? From bare wood five coats gives good depth.
Doing an annual varnish job I find that one coat does it for
us in our northern environment. Maybe a second coat in the
sunny south with longer sailing season. Two coats on steps
and other areas such as companion way steps that are worn
down by heavy use.

Almost essential is a work space that can be kept dust free.
Also avoid varnishing in warm bright sun. That last can
cause some big deep puckers that take lots of elbow to sand
out.

Enjoy your sanding/varnishing !

Sailing Amazon

Here's a quick item that combines back to school show & tell, info for fans of Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome and something for ATWOS readers.

During my recent holiday I had an opportunity sail my father's sailing dinghy Amazon. She is a replica of the Amazon sailed by the Blackett sisters in Arthur Ransome's Swallows and Amazon's series.

After a short photo session I sailed Amazon on Green Bay out the famous, to ATWOS readers, friendly flashing buoy.

Many of the sailing skills I posses were honed as a youngster in Amazon. My love of reading and literature was sparked by reading Swallows and Amazon's so sailing Amazon was a fun homage to much of what I have become.

Olympic Look Back

The 2004 Olympics are in the books, in our collective rear view mirror illuminated now only by tail lights. Here's one person's thought on what happened on the waters off Athens'.

As in 2000 Great Britain was once again most successful. They won 5 medals and at least one of each color.

Their success was led by Ben Ainslie in Finn and Shirley Robertson and crew in Ynglings. Both had won Gold in 2000.

Britain's 470 medallists had been 4th in 2000 while their Bronze medals winners were also 2000 Olympians.

There's a lot of conjecture about Britain's winning ways. Is it money, talent, luck etc. From the above I'd say experience is a factor. All 5 of their medals came from previous Olympians.

The US was one of 7 countries with 2 medals. Gold came in men's 470, while Silver was one in Tornados. Perhaps not coincidentally these teams had Olympic experience going back to 1988!

If the US is to up it's medal totals a case can be made that sailors from this Olympic cycle need to be retained.

Maybe with another 4 years of training the USA's 8th in Laser and 5th in women's 470's can be turned into medals.

To me, several sailors will signify this Olympiad going forward.

One is Britain's Ben Ainslie the Gold Medallist in the Finn class. After a 1st day disqualification he came back to win the Finn class placing 1st in 4 of the remaining 9 races. Ainslie is as close to a sailing god as there is these days.

Unless of course you want to call Brazil's Torben Grael a sailing god. Grael and crew won the Star class gold. This was Grael's 5th Olympic medal and his 2nd gold.

Grael beat former world champion (1990)Ross Mcdonald of Canada and 2003 World Champion team from France who were the Bronze medallists.

Other world champions Paul Cayard, Iain Percy/Steve Mitcell and Fred Loof were 5th, 6th and 12th respectively.

The 11 races in this class were one by 9 different teams. Only Gold winner Grael and the USA's Cayard/Trinter won multiple races.

Now with an Olympic experience added to his resume perhaps Cayard should vie for the 2008 berth when Olympic experience might equal a medal.

Gal Fridman of Israel was the Gold medallist in the Mistral windsurfers. This was Israel's 1st gold medal in any sport. It was good to see athletic triumph come from this not always happy part of the world!

Finally there was US 470 crew Kevin Burnham. The photo of his post gold back flip shows his winning joy. Burnham had sailed 470's since 1980, culminating in this gold. Once again, experience wins!

Linky Sailing News

Racing Farr 40 pre worlds. Maxi Cup. Act I

News Schwab seeks sponsor. We didn't fall apart. The Coutts story

Great Lakes Waterline controversy. Ferry a positive. Wrong on wreck

College Sailing Pre season rankings. Harry Anderson Report

Cup Boats of Marseille

Fleet racing ended off Marseille today, with a second and a third for Emirates Team New Zealand in the two races sailed.

Once again, the breeze was brisk, averaging about 22 knots and gusting to 30 at the top end of the course.

Both races were won by Oracle, with Alinghi third in race one and second in race two.

Emirates Team New Zealand managing director Grant Dalton says he is well satisfied with the team after three days of racing.

“NZL82 has been very reliable in conditions that were at the top of the range for which these yachts were designed. We had no significant damage in three days of racing.

“The crew had not raced together before and they’re shaking down well. We still have a lot of work to do to mold them into a precise, potent match-racing team, but we have more than 1000 days to do that. I am very optimistic about the way this team is shaping.”

Racing today was very close and the margins small. Oracle showed the benefit of a year of development and training. Alinghi confirmed that they will be hard to beat.

“We are just a click off the pace – that’s better than I expected. In fact we are doing better than I expected,” Dalton said. “Today we made a couple of tactical errors And in short courses like this there’s little opportunity to recover.”

Tomorrow (Wednesday) will be a day off and match racing starts on Thursday. Each team will compete in two matches a day. Racing will end on Saturday.

New Atlantic Record

Subject to WSSR ratification, there is a new Bermuda to Plymouth record.

Mollymawk - 43 ft Trimaran
Ross Hobson and a crew of 2
Elapsed time: 14 days 6 hours 12 minutes 50 seconds
2870 nm
8.38 kts

Previous record Pen Duick VI, Eric Tarbarly, 14d 20h 15m 12s in 1974.

Recreational boats can go down quickly

Recreational boats can go down quickly

By Senior Chief Tom Rau, Coast Guard Group Grand Haven, Mi

Coast Guard Auxilarist, Jim Bradley, captain of the 50-foot tug Wilhelm Baum, homeport South Haven, once told me: ‘Boats are brought into this world for one reason- to find their way to the bottom.” Bradley spent many years as a professional diver in the marine environment, lending weight to his aphorism. He also pointed out how quickly boats go down especially recreational boats.

Unless a person has experienced, first hand a sudden sinking, I suspect their conception of a doomed boat mirrors movies like Titanic where in it took the 46,000-ton behemoth nearly two hours to sink and in the movie it seemed even longer as human drama upstaged the sinking.

That ain’t the way it happens in the real world of small boats. I’ve known recreational boats that sank in minutes and some seconds. The quickest plunge was told to me by a friend: His cousin while driving a Skater fast boat on Sandusky Bay, Ohio suddenly went airborne at night and was ejected off the boat. He hit the water, went under and quickly resurfaced, buoyed by his life jacket. He looked all around, no boat, gone, not a trace.

I told the story to Coast Guard Station Ludington‘s executive officer, Joe Marion. He said, while running as first mate aboard a charter fishing boat on Lake Huron, he watched two fishermen approach off the starboard side in a 16-foot boat. A four-foot wave rolled over the stern, the bow shot skyward and within seconds sank, leaving the two fishermen floating in the lake. Neither were wearing life jackets.

In another quick sinker story, Patrick Lafreniere, a deckhand on the Car Ferry Badger, watched a small outboard boat with two men aboard beating across Pere Marquette Lake in Ludington, Michigan. It was late November 1989 and the small lake, home port to the Badger, swirled in a white-crested wind-driven free-for-all. “I watched the boat crest a wave, then dip out of sight, then reappear then dip again, but it failed to reappear.” The boat flipped in a heartbeat and the two men aboard drowned. They were not wearing lifejackets.

Some boaters are more fortunate. They can at least announce their plight by calling Mayday before the boat sinks.

I once received a distress call over Channel 16 from a boater claiming he was going down. I asked for his position. He replied: “I can’t give one, I’m in the water,” end transmission. The caller had recently purchased a brand new 19-foot Thompson power boat and was beating out into Lake Michigan on his maiden voyage. Pounding into three-foot seas, the boat’s engine mounts had separated from the hull, creating a gash athwartships. Around four miles west of Manistee the operator throttled back and turned the stern into the seas to set up fishing lines to troll. Lake water poured through the gash and the boat sank in moments. Later the captain told me he quickly swam away from the 19-foot boat, fearing it would suck him under. Sound like the movies?

Shortly after that case I responded to another “quick sinker” involving a16-foot boat that sank 3.3 nautical miles west of Manistee Harbor in 68 feet of water. The two men aboard were rescued by a nearby boater.

“My brother and I were landing a fish. Suddenly the boat began filling with water,” said Frank Maddens, operator of the vessel.

His brother, Jack Maddens, later told me that they were both standing near the stern trying to land the fish. “Just as we tossed our catch into the boat it began taking on water. There was nothing we could do. It went down fast,” said Maddens.

In the brothers’ haste to pull the fish aboard, their combined weight dipped the stern below the surface. The Manistee News Advocate ran my story front page with the headline: “Big Fish Sinks Boat.” Chalk one up for the underdog.

Here’s quick sinker story that found two males well prepared. (Oh, how I love these stories.)

On September 11, 2003, two men aboard a 20-foot Patriot boat suddenly began taking on water while transiting Little Bay De Noc en route Escanaba. The owner, Zack Boudreau, told the Coast Guard the boat sank in 20 seconds and that he did not hit an underwater object. The owner did report water gushing up from the floor of the boat at the base of the pedestal seat. He believes a major catastrophic hull failure in that area caused the sinking. Both men aboard were wearing lifejackets.

While in the water, Boudreau called the Coast Guard over Channel 16 with a hand held radio, and then fired off a flare, attracting the attention of several nearby boaters, who also heard the distress call over Channel 16 and came to the rescue. Nice story, sweet ending, squared-away boaters, if only….

Unfortunately, many boaters are unprepared to deal with a sudden water emersion and I wonder if many even give it a thought. I certainly do. It’s a preempt brief I automatically cycle through before getting underway on a small boat.

Foremost, I wear a life jacket. I absolutely will not get underway on a small boat without one. Then I ask myself should I end up in the water do I have the means to attract attention such as with a whistle, mirror, and flares. Finally, do I have a strobe light (secured to by life vest with a lanyard) that will announce my presence to other boaters at night and even during day light.

These seemingly small safety devices could produce huge life-saving dividends. What about you- how huge is your plan? If you boat smart, it will be king size.

Farr 40 Worlds Preview

An amateur owner-driver class it may be, but winning the Rolex Farr 40 World Championship, due to take place in San Francisco, Calif. on September 8-11, represents one of the toughest challenges in yacht racing. To insure victory, each team’s crew roster is stocked with Olympic medallists, America’s Cup and Volvo Ocean Race veterans, and multi-titled world champions.

Paul Cayard (Kentfield, Calif.) has recently has returned from the Athens Olympics where he finished fifth in the Star class, to resume his post as tactician for John Kilroy (Malibu, Calif.) onboard Samba Pa Ti. "In keelboat sailing the Farr 40 has the most professionalism and dedication to training and the top programs are run like small America’s Cup or Volvo programs," said the former America’s Cup skipper and Whitbread Race winner.

Cayard, the 1998 Rolex Yachtsman of the Year, provides a few tips on what it will take to win. "The Farr 40 fleet is always very competitive and by virtue of the fact that they are one design boats they are very similar in speed and there will be a large group of boats," he said. "So, like any one design sailing it’s going to be about getting a good start and finding a good lane of clear air on the first beat, to sail well and arrive at the top mark in the top five. Being able to do that consistently will lead to some good results."

To date, 31 boats are due to take part, including many seasoned U.S. campaigns such as Jim Richardson’s (Boston, Mass./Newport, R.I.) Barking Mad, Steve Phillips’ (Arnold, Md.) Le Renard, Philippe Kahn’s (Santa Cruz, Calif.) Pegasus and Alex Geremia and Scott Harris’ (Santa Barbara, Calif.) Crocodile Rock.

Europe is well represented with stand-out teams such as Peter de Ridder’s (Monaco) Mean Machine, Eric Maris’s (Paris, France) Twins2, Giovanni Maspero’s (Milan, Italy) Joe Fly and Vincenzo Onorato’s (Naples, Italy) Mascalzone Latino. The list of ‘top campaigns’ is a long one.

They will all fight it out with the defending World Champions from Rome, Italy, Massimo Mezzaroma and Antonio sodo Migliori on Nerone.

Adrian Stead, tactician on the Italian Mascalzone Latino team, agrees with Cayard’s views on the level of competition. "Any one of 10 teams could probably win and I think any one of 20 teams could win a race," said the former GBR Challenge team member. "The standard now is so high in the class that people don’t make mistakes." The reason, Stead says is due to a majority of the owners being used to winning in business and wanting to emulate this on the water. "A lot are doing whatever it takes," he said.

Like other top-level programs most of the Farr 40 teams have been training with world class coaches who have been evident this week in their inflatables out on San Francisco Bay. Some of the teams also have carried out two boat testing, the fast track approach to improving boat speed.

Emirates Team New Zealand afterguard Terry Hutchinson is once again on Barking Mad, while ex-Team New Zealand afterguard, turned Olympic Laser sailor, Hamish Pepper is calling tactics on Australian Richard Perini’s Evolution.

Other notable sailors taking part include Stu Bannatyne on Groovederci, Ray Davies on Mean Machine, John Cutler on Fred and Steve Howe’s Warpath (San Diego, Calif.), as well as 2003 Match Racing World Champion Ed Baird on Marc Ewing’s Riot (Glencoe, Ill.).

The 2004 Rolex Farr 40 World Championship takes place September 8-11 at the St. Francis Yacht Club in San Francisco, Calif.

Founded in 1927, St. Francis Yacht Club, within view of the Golden Gate Bridge, is a year-round host of over 40 regattas on San Francisco Bay. The club is renowned for its expertise in running world and national championships, including the Melges 24 Worlds, and the J/105 and Star North American Championships.

Cat Fight V Results

Catfight V saw 60+ beach catamarans gather on the beach at Muskegon State Park for 3 days of sailing, camping, good food, and good fun. The venue is tremendous and the State Park staff were extremely accomodating. A total of 8 races were sailed in winds ranging from moderate on Friday, light on Saturday, to strong on Sunday. 4 divisions competed with the largest being 30+ boats in the Low Portsmouth w/ Spinnaker group. This group showed a bit of agression on Friday and Saturday at the start line and were rewarded with liberal use of the Z Flag. This seemed to curb the agressiveness quite nicely and kept them a couple of boat lengths off the line. In all, it was quite an enjoyable regatta which is how we, as race committee, judge an event.

Pos Class Sail No Helm Crew USPN R1 R2 R3 R4 R5 R6 R7 R8 Pts
Lo Portsmouth Fleet - Sailed: 8 Discards: 1 Ratings: USPN
1 F18 Sloop spi 04 343 Matt Struble Dominique Stuble 62.5 4 1 2 1 2 2 1 1 10.00
2 NI20 04 254 Kurt Korte Kevin Jewitt 59.2 2 4 5 12 4 3 9 7 34.00
3 Tornado 2 Trap & spi 817 Chris Tuckfield Nina Barlow 59 7 5 3 10 11 7 3 4 39.00
4 Tornado 2 Trap & spi usa836 Robbie Daniel Gary Chu 59 1 2 1 3 1 1 DNS DNS 41.00
5 NI20 04 250 Claus Schnable Rick Olt 59.2 6 3 7 9 3 8 8 14 44.00
6 F18 Sloop spi 04 1317 John Bauldry Giselle Vasiri 62.5 11 16 6 2 10 14 2 3 48.00
7 F18 Sloop spi 04 344 Guy Selsmeyer Debbie Selsmeyer 62.5 9 12 11 19 26 5 5 2 63.00
8 NI20 04 495 Mark Lebel Karen Lebel 59.2 3 6 12 29 6 9 16 DNF 68.00
9 F18 Sloop spi 04 316 Roger Cochran Ginger Cochran 62.5 13 10 9 8 5 16 15 13 73.00
10 F18 Sloop spi 04 314 Sean Fidler Tiffany Miller 62.5 15 8 4 14 7 12 19 DNF 76.00
11 Tornado 2 Trap & spi CAN2 Alain Dubuc 59 17 7 8 20 23 4 13 9 78.00
12 F18 Sloop spi 04 315 Marc Kennedy Les Gallagher 62.5 8 9 20 15 8 19 11 DNF 86.00
13 F18 Sloop spi 04 310 Ed Cunningham Tara Cunnngham 62.5 18 14 15 5 17 DNF 10 10 89.00
14 F18 Sloop spi 04 1462 Mark Batchelor Chris Batchelor 62.5 10 17 24 4 12 OCS 7 DNF 90.00
15 F18 Sloop spi 04 1460 Paul Krutty Kim Krutty 62.5 19 11 10 16 13 10 25 DNF 95.00
16 F18 Sloop spi 04 1520 Mike Hill Andy Humphries 62.5 14 23 23 24 15 11 6 5 97.00
17 F18 Sloop spi 04 1452 Ollie Jason Kelly Jason 62.5 24 26 17 13 14 6 12 15 101.00
18 Tornado 2 Trap & spi ISV3 Craig Jefferds Pat Gilles 59 5 13 13 18 19 OCS DNS 8 108.00
19 F18 Sloop spi 04 1111 Matt Bounds Sue Korzeniewski 62.5 OCS 27 22 31 9 15 4 6 114.00
20 NI20 04 462 Harold Burns Frank Burns 59.2 12 15 18 28 16 24 22 12 119.00
21 F18 Sloop spi 04 1376 Tom Paoli Daniel Paoli 62.5 21 18 19 7 22 17 20 DNS 124.00
22 F18 Sloop spi 04 79 Tom Liston MJ Liston 62.5 16 28 16 22 28 21 14 11 128.00
23 F18 Sloop spi 04 GBR123 Leah Burns Travis Duby 62.5 28 24 21 25 18 18 21 DNF 143.00
24 Tornado 2 Trap & spi 824 Martin Malcheski Benjamin Malcheski 59 22 29 28 21 20 23 18 DNF 148.00
25 F18 Sloop spi 04 126 Tom powers Arrowood 62.5 20 21 14 27 25 20 DNS DNS 159.00
26 F18 Sloop spi 04 338 Brent Carlson Jennifer Carlson 62.5 25 19 27 11 29 OCS 17 DNS 160.00
27 F18 Sloop spi 04 312 Jim Powers Sue Kizoff 62.5 DNS DNS 26 6 21 13 DNS DNS 162.00
28 F18 Sloop spi 04 100 Bruce Inwood Jenny Inwood 62.5 26 20 25 17 24 26 DNS DNS 170.00
29 NI20 04 625 Alex Lefur Chris Bergerson 59.2 29 OCS 29 32 30 27 23 DNF 186.00
30 Tornado 2 Trap & spi 804 Kurt Wellencotter Steve Gornick 59 30 22 30 23 31 28 24 DNS 188.00
31 Nacra 6.0 New Eng. 3 420 Dave Reese Amos Cushway 60.3 23 DNS DNS 26 27 25 DNS DNS 197.00
32 F18 Sloop spi 04 294 Chad Scwall Anjie Mejia 62.5 27 25 DNS 30 32 22 DNS DNS 200.00
Not Legal Fleet - Sailed: 8 Discards: 1 Ratings: USPN
1 Buchert 80277 Charlie Buchert 73.8 1 2 1 1 1 2 2 DNF 10.00
2 Williams 98724 Bruce Williams 73.8 DNS 4 2 3 DNS 1 1 DNF 17.00
3 Steed 102154 Paul Steed 73.8 2 1 3 2 DNS 3 4 DNF 17.00
4 Colby 88837 Mark Colby 75.4 3 3 4 DNS DNS 4 3 1 22.00
lo non spin Fleet - Sailed: 8 Discards: 1 Ratings: USPN
1 N5.8NA 04 1601 Gene Cook Becky Cook 66.2 2 1 1 1 1 3 6 DNF 15.00
2 N6.0 NA 04 394 Chris Blake Wendy Seder 62.7 3 5 2 4 2 2 1 1 15.00
3 H20 Miracle 04 919 Gregg Kittinger 64.9 1 DNS DNS 3 4 1 2 2 23.00
4 H20 Miracle 04 726 Dave Stiemsma Andy Stienmsma 64.9 6 2 3 2 DNS 5 3 DNF 27.00
5 Prindle 19MX 12012 Randy Johnson Lindsey Johnson 64.4 4 3 4 5 3 6 4 4 27.00
6 N5.8NA 04 1589 Tim Hilk Jeffrey Hilk 66.2 5 6 5 6 DNS 4 5 DNF 37.00
7 N5.8NA 04 1428 Jim Egerdal Kyle Egerdal 66.2 7 4 6 7 DNS 9 DNS 3 46.00
8 H20 Miracle 04 361 Matt Johnson Bob Hudosn 64.9 10 DNF DNS 9 5 DNS 8 5 54.00
9 Tornado 04 741 Josh Garrett Bobby Garrett 63.8 9 DNS DNS 8 DNS 7 7 DNF 57.00
10 N5.8NA 04 1556 Ken Haga Brian Rode 66.2 8 DNF DNS 10 DNS 8 DNS DNS 63.00
singlehanded Fleet - Sailed: 8 Discards: 1 Ratings: USPN
1 N5.5U 04 43 Ron Miller 69.7 2 1 1 1 1 4 5 3 13.00
2 NI17R 04 S100 Bill Gillespie 66.7 1 3 5 3 2 1 2 5 17.00
3 N5.5U 04 917 Eric Kennedy 69.7 3 2 2 6 5 7 3 1 22.00
4 N5.5U 04 448 Ryan Visser 69.7 7 4 3 2 6 5 7 2 29.00
5 NI17R 04 1011 Matt Keenan 66.7 DNS 5 4 5 3 2 6 8 33.00
6 NI17R 04 136 Bill Westrick 66.7 4 11 6 4 4 6 4 6 34.00
7 NI17R 04 101 Mike Wisniewski 66.7 5 7 7 7 8 3 9 DNF 46.00
8 NI17R 04 125 Dan Clapp 66.7 DNS 10 10 9 7 8 1 4 49.00
9 NI17R 04 129 Stan Hall 66.7 6 6 9 11 11 12 10 7 60.00
10 NI17R 04 131 Chris Berg 66.7 9 12 8 12 12 11 8 9 69.00
11 N5.5U 04 918 Ray Fullerton 69.7 11 9 12 10 9 10 11 DNF 70.00
12 NI17R 04 105 John Johnson 66.7 8 13 11 8 10 9 DNS DNS 72.00
13 N5.5U 04 438 Fritz Kletke 69.7 10 8 DNS DNS DNS DNS DNS DNS 83.00
medium portsmouth Fleet - Sailed: 8 Discards: 1 Ratings: USPN
1 N5.2 (2-up) 04 1818 Jack Soullier Justin Soullier 72.1 1 1 1 3 1 1 1 DNF 9.00
2 H16 04 51937 Joe Buchert Kelly Buchert 76.1 DNS 2 2 2 2 3 2 1 14.00
3 H16 04 104936 Tim Holton Claire Holton 76.1 2 3 3 DNF DNS 2 4 3 24.00
4 H18 04 9212 Al Schweizer Mike Smith 71.4 4 5 5 5 3 5 3 2 27.00
5 Prindle 16 04 2306 Nathan Eikelberg Eric Bombery 77.5 3 4 4 1 DNS 4 DNS DNS 30.00
6 H16 04 91542 James Flumerfelt Jackid Flumerfelt 76.1 DNS DNS DNS 6 DNS 7 5 DNF 43.00
7 SuperCat 17 Super17 Charles Stauber Josh Stauber 73.3 DNS DNS DNS 4 DNS 6 DNS DNS 45.00

Melges 24 Grand Traverse Invatational

2004 Melges 24 Grand Traverse Invitational Regatta
Series Standing - 9 races scored
Information is Final
Regatta results saved: Sunday, August 29, 2004 8:35:08 PM EDT

Division: Melges24 (12 boats) (top)
Pos Sail Boat Skipper 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Total
Points Pos
1 513 Flying Toaster Dow, Mike 1 1 1 1 2 2 3 2 4 17.00 1
2 520 Flyer 02 Holzman, Chuck 3 2 5 2 3 3 5 1 2 26.00 2
3 13 Snow Pile Clark, Bob 4 8 4 7 1 1 1 6 6 38.00 3
4 347 Sponge Bob Buldge Pants Hulsey, Paul 6 3 3 4 12 4 6 5 3 46.00 4
5 14 Bling Bling Jahn, Evan 5 6 2 5 4 7 9 8 1 47.00 5
6 175 Hot Tuna Stursma, Jamie 2 5 10 6 5 9 2 4 8 51.00 6
7 497 Kilroy Jones, Jeff 7 4 7 10 8 5 8 3 7 59.00 7
8 106 Lil' Iodine Hilger, Grant 8 9 6 3 11 6 7 7 5 62.00 8
9 142 The Red Boat Lindhout, Murray 11 7 12 9 6 10 10 9 10 84.00 9
10 312 I Don't Know Cromwell, Cindy 12 11 8 11 9 11 4 10 9 85.00 10
11 3 Team Wipplash Wipperman, Doug 9 10 9 8 7 8 13/DNS 13/DNS 13/DNS 90.00 11
12 71 Major Woody Skibowski, Dave 10 12 11 12 10 12 11 11 11 100.00 12

Notes
- Scoring System is ISAF Low Point 2001-2004
- Finishes in [brackets] denote throwouts

Information is Final

Principal Race Officer: Eric Lind
Jury Chair: Eric Lind
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Version 4.0.2: Regatta scoring by JavaScore, an Open Source project available at http://www.gromurph.org/javascore

Survival Course

IN BRIEF

* Nick completes his mandatory Vendée Globe survival training in Lorient

* ‘SKANDIA’ gets closer to her Vendée race trim, including new rigging, sails and a re-measure for the IMOCA rules

* ONLY 65 DAYS TO THE START

IN DETAIL

Nick took part in the a sea survival training course in Lorient France as part of the requirements for the Vendee Globe 2004. Along with approximately half the Vendée skippers the two day course was based on the solo sailor as you would expect. The aim of this course is to ensure that the skippers are equipped for all eventualities in the harsh an unforgiving conditions they will experience.

Much of the information in this course has been developed from experiences with the rescues of Tony Bullimore, Raphael Dinelli, Thierry Dubois and Isabelle Autissier in past solo round the world races. The course is conducted in French and English and includes :

Getting out of an upturned hull
Righting and upturned life raft and then boarding the raft
Swimming from under a sail ( imagine the size of an Open 60 mainsail - it is not an upturned dinghy)
Helicopter pick up simulation
Ship rope ladder rescue
Fire Fighting

With just over 9 weeks to go to the start line on November 7th SKANDIA gets closer and closer to being ‘Vendée ready’. Over the past 10 days the race keel has been removed X-rayed and checked, new race standing rigging has been fitted and tuned and a full inspection carried out to IMOCA standards. SKANDIA has been re-measured including a 90 degree test and new extra escape hatch has been fitted to comply with IMOCA standards. The IMOCA rules (http://www.imoca.com) control safety and also performance – optimising the boat to the rules is clearly important for the race...New 3dl sails from North Sails in France arrive over the weekend.

On top of all this the race inventory is being worked on right down to how many batteries, spare bulbs and pairs of boxer shorts are packed! Food and clothing are also at the top of the list along with any personal items Nick would like to take.

The pace is on, as the days slip by...only 43 days to the deadline for being in Les Sables d’Olonne, and only 65 days to the start!

College Sailing: Kings Point Laser Open

One race completed on day one in a light westerly.
14 races completed today in a shifty easterly at about 8 to 15 knots.
Congratulations to the top 4 who advance to the MAISA singlehanded chapionships.

KP Laser Open
King's Point
9/4/04-9/5/04

5:35 PM 9-5-04

REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS:

A division = 15 Races
TOT
1. John Storck 60 HWS
2. Chris Branning 75 Kings Point
3. Robert Noonan 76 Kings Point
4. Trevor Moore 79 HWS
5. Wiley Wakeman 87 HWS
6. Alex Steele 88 St. Mary's
7. Chris Alexander 98 King's Point
8. Garth Fasano 104 Navy
9. Chuck Fulmer 117 Navy
10. Stephen Gay 124 Navy
11. Eric Reitinger 130 St. Mary's
12. Valen Smith 183 St. Mary's
13. Ray Potter 185 Hampton
14. David Eberhardt 198 Webb
15. Steven Stone 211 Webb
16. Bob Kleinschmit 231 Webb

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
1
John Storck 7 8 4 4 3 5 5 3 3 3 1 4 1 7 2
HWS 15 19 23 26 31 36 39 42 45 46 50 51 58 60

2
Chris Branning 1 6 9 1 4 3 9 1 8 5 2 10 6 4 6
King's Point 7 16 17 21 24 33 34 42 47 49 59 65 69 75

3
Robert Noonan 6 1 8 2 1 9 3 12 4 2 9 5 5 6 3
King's Point 7 15 17 18 27 30 42 46 48 57 62 67 73 76

4
Trevor Moore 11 7 3 5 2 11 4 4 2 12 6 6 2 3 1
HWS 18 21 26 28 39 43 47 49 61 67 73 75 78 79

5
Wiley Wakeman 3 2 6 8 6 4 2 9 10 1 4 3 10 10 9
HWS 5 11 19 25 29 31 40 50 51 55 58 68 78 87

6
Alex Steele 4 3 5 7 11 1 6 6 1 7 5 8 8 8 8
St. Mary's 7 12 19 30 31 37 43 44 51 56 64 72 80 88

7
Chris Alexander 9 4 1 6 5 8 7 5 9 8 7 7 4 11 7
King's Point 13 14 20 25 33 40 45 54 62 69 76 80 91 98

8
Garth Fasano 5 5 11 12 12 2 8 2 7 4 8 2 7 9 10
Navy 10 21 33 45 47 55 57 64 68 76 78 85 94 104

9
Chuck Fulmer 2 9 7 3 9 6 14 10 13 6 11 9 12 1 5
Navy 11 18 21 30 36 50 60 73 79 90 99 111 112 117

10
Stephen Gay 8 OCS 2 11 7 14 1 8 11 11 14 11 3 2 4
Navy 25 27 38 45 59 60 68 79 90 104 115 118 120 124

11
Eric Reitinger 14 13 13 10 10 10 10 7 5 9 3 1 9 5 11
St. Mary's 27 40 50 60 70 80 87 92 101 104 105 114 119 130

12
Valen Smith 10 11 12 14 OCS 7 13 11 14 13 12 12 11 13 13
St. Mary's 21 33 47 64 71 84 95 109 122 134 146 157 170 183

13
Ray Potter 13 10 10 9 OCS 12 12 13 13 10 10 15 13 14 14
Hampton 23 33 42 59 71 83 96 109 119 129 144 157 171 185

14
David Eberhardt 12 14 14 13 14 13 11 15 6 14 16 14 15 15 12
Webb 26 40 53 67 80 91 106 112 126 142 156 171 186 198

15
Steven Stone 16 12 15 15 8 OCS 15 16 15 15 13 13 14 12 15
Webb 28 43 58 66 83 98 114 129 144 157 170 184 196 211

16
Bob Kleinschmit 15 15 16 16 13 15 16 14 16 16 15 16 16 16 16
Webb 30 46 62 75 90 106 120 136 152 167 183 199 215 231

2005 to See Team Philips Exhibit

National Maritime Museum Cornwall is delighted to announce that its major exhibition for 2005 will be a celebration of Team Philips.

Team Philips was the dream of one man, Pete Goss, who inspired millions. Pete and his team developed the revolutionary catamaran that was Team Philips. A 120ft long, 70ft wide (larger than the centre court at Wimbledon) and 135ft high (taller than ten Double Decker buses) catamaran that owed more to aerospace than boat building. The team, the boat and their combined spirit, entered the hearts, minds and emotions of hundreds of thousands of people all over the world. Now the Maritime Museum is developing a dedicated exhibition celebrating this West Country epic project.

Team Philips was built to be the biggest, fastest and most high-tech of boats. With wave piercing bow technology she was a sailing spaceship in carbon fibre, and was specifically designed for The Race – a no-holds barred, no limits, round the world challenge.

In December 2000, on the passage to the start of The Race in Barcelona, Team Philips had to be abandoned in freak weather. 70 knot winds, 10m waves and worsening weather conditions, left Pete and his crew no choice but to abandon Team Philips or risk their lives.

40ft of the original 120ft starboard hull was salvaged off Iceland. Carrying thousands of names of individual supporters it will form the centre piece of the exhibition. The museum has been working with Pete collecting objects, photographs, equipment and other memorabilia which will all play a central role in this exciting exhibition.

Pete Goss comments: “I wanted to preserve the ‘spirit’ of Team Philips and the Museum is the perfect setting. Some might say the project was a failure, so why celebrate it? But, you can’t measure success just by winning, it can be measured in so many ways and I know Team Philips inspired others to go the extra distance, to overcome their fears and to tackle their own challenges. Granny Barney, for example, who at 60 walked the south coast of England to raise £10,000 for her church and Team Philips, is a prime example of the drive and determination that can make anything possible – and that’s why we called the galley after her.”

Pete continues: “Progress is about change and development; by definition, attitudes will always follow one step behind. By accepting the risks we chose to drive in the fast lane. Defeat, however, sometimes has to be accepted. As a team we can look the project in the eye knowing that we gave it our all. We dared to dream and we are proud of what we achieved and I am over the moon that the museum will be telling this story.”

The support for the project was enormous, with 1.2m visitors passing through the visitor centre in Totnes and a further 97m hits on the website. Team Philips is the story of an entire community; how an amazing group of people pulled together for the adventure of a new millennium and a celebration of that achievement.

College Sailing: Harry Anderson at Yale

On Saturday, we had light to moderate breeze with a bit of chop, which often made sailing
conditions trying. Nevertheless, it was a beautiful day for sailing. Sunday brought cooler
temperatures and while it started off light, the wind built as the day progressed, causing many
teams, for the final few races, to put in their heavies. Over the two days many different
conditions tested the competitors. Eleven races, either course-4s or course-5s, were run.

Results
---------

School |A B Total
-------------------------------------------------
1) Boston College |80 74 154
2) St. Mary's |58 100 158
3) Connecticut College |122 50 172
4) Yale |81 93 174
5) Dartmouth |66 109 175
6) Tufts |104 75 179
7) Kings Point |89 129 218
8) MIT |98 125 223
9) Harvard |91 135 226
10) UC/Irvine |87 154 241
11) Washington College |143 110 253
12) Brown |158 99 257
13) Navy |153 126 279
14) Stanford |153 131 284
15) Mass Maritime |131 156 287
16) URI |157 135 292
17) Coast Guard Academy |172 140 312
18) Roger Williams |178 148 326
19) U. Vermont |190 173 363
20) Wisconsin |184 187 371
21) Citadel |181 202 383
22) Boston University |161 234 395
23) Bowdoin |222 184 406
24) Maine Maritime |232 237 469

America's Cup Act I New Zealand Perspective

Monday was another brisk day on the water off Marseille. Race two of Act 1of the 2007 America’s Cup was completed but race three was postponed when race organizers decided the wind was too strong.

Emirates Team New Zealand skipper Dean Barker said: “It was a tough call for race organizers … but they do want to see the boats finish. It’s very early in a regatta to have major breakages. We were confident and happy to race.”

Emirates Team New Zealand meteorologist Roger Badham (Clouds), on board the weather boat reported a steady 24 knots, the upper limit for racing.

Crews don’t expect a day off on Wednesday which is a reserve race day. With only two of a scheduled four races sailed, organisers may well decide that Wednesday will be a race day.

That’s a decision that won’t worry Emirates Team New Zealand managing director Grant Dalton. “We’re here to race. We have only until Saturday to get the racing away. There’s no point taking a break when there’s racing to be done.”

Today on the water, Emirates Team New Zealand finished third. BMW Oracle won followed by Alinghi.

Today the south-easterly was stronger and filled in earlier in the day and the race started on time. The committee set a windward-leeward course with two laps with two-mile beats.

The breeze was a good 16 knots at the start and built to 20 knots during the race.

Both BMW Oracle and Le Defi were over the line and returned to restart. Before returning to restart, Le Defi luffed NZL82, forcing ETNZ further to right than had been planned.

USA 76 went hard left after the restart and she and FRA 57 (K Challenge) made big gains from a temporary shift to the left which occurred part way up the first beat.

Alinghi and Emirates Team New Zealand, which had been first and second respectively, sailed a more moderate course centre-left. K Challenge led at the first mark, and Oracle ducked Alinghi to be a close third with NZL 82 a further 15 seconds behind in fourth.

Oracle gained enough on Alinghi on the run so that Oracle could choose the right hand gate mark at the bottom. K slipped back but was still just ahead of NZL 82 at the bottom and she also chose the right hand gate so that the four boats effectively rounded in pairs with USA 76 and FRA 57 headed for the left shore and SUI 64 and NZL 82 following on their hips.

Oracle gained a little to the left and eventually led Alinghi round the top. NZL 82 was able to pass FRA 57 and lead her round mark three and that was the finishing order as well.

The breeze continued to build and when it got up to 24 knots on a 5 minute average the race committee abandoned racing for the day.

Principal race officer Peter Reggio said: “We were getting wind readings of 25-26 knots at surface level after the first race. The masts on these boats are 30-metres high, and the teams that sailed upwind a bit after the first race told us they were seeing 28-30 knots.

“That’s just too much for these boats. Even though there are no hard limits for the races here, these are old boats, designed with the wind limits of the last Cup in mind, so we have to have some respect for that.”

Racing will continue tomorrow, with two fleet races scheduled. The outlook is for pressure starting to build and winds showing signs of decreasing. East- north-east, 11-16 knots in the morning, decreasing south 7-10 knots in afternoon.

America's Cup Act I

The second race of Act 1 provided two laps of high suspense between the Swiss and American contenders, but it was the second beating leg that proved decisive. In another day of strengthening winds, Team Alinghi crossed the line 26 seconds behind BMW Oracle Racing to retain her lead in the overall rankings. USA-76 is second, followed by Emirates Team New Zealand, K-Challenge, Team Shosholoza and Le Défi.

6 September 2004 - Marseille: After an excellent start, Team Alinghi locked horns with Emirates Team New Zealand, her opponent of yesterday and the last America's Cup. But today's real danger came from the Americans. BMW Oracle Racing and Le Défi both jumped the gun to make false starts. Forced to return and restart 20 seconds behind, USA-76 staged a spectacular comeback on the first beating leg, moving up from fifth to third.

Alinghi, then second behind K-Challenge, was caught at the windward mark by BMW Oracle Racing, determined not to be left behind in this race. On the first reaching leg, the Cup defender and the Louis Vuitton Cup finalist overtook the French crew to engage in a spectacular duel in an ever-strengthening wind that freshened from 17 to 22 knots.

Alinghi, with Peter Holmberg at the helm, managed to keep ahead but, slowed by a broken winch, SUI-64 let the Americans escape to the left (more favourable) side of the course. On this final beating leg, they found even more wind, this time from a better direction. Hugging the left of the course and forcing SUI-64 to the right, USA-76 increased her lead. At the windward mark, the die was cast. Team Alinghi crossed the line second, 26 seconds behind the race winner. Nevertheless, the Swiss team retains its lead in the overall rankings, 1 point ahead of BMW Oracle Racing.

Behind the first two finishers, there were two other gripping duels going on; the first between K-Challenge and Emirates Team New Zealand and the second, a little further back, between Team Shosholoza and Le Défi.

The second race of the day was postponed when the wind, then averaging 28 knots, became simply too violent for a race start. Two more fleet races are scheduled for tomorrow, with the first starting at 12:40. Keep up with all the results at www.alinghi.com

Overall rankings.
------------------
1 Alinghi, 11 points.
2 BMW Oracle Racing, 10 points
3 Emirates Team New Zealand, 9 points
4 K-Challenge, 6 points
5 Team Shosholoza, 4 points
6 Le Défi, 2 points

Quotations of the day
----------------------
Peter Holmberg, Skipper of Tea\m Alinghi: the end of the first lap proved the decisive point for the outcome of this race. We had an equipment problem when a winch broke, forcing us to gybe in front of BMW Oracle Racing, which was then able take the mark on the right and gain the left side of the course. On the first beating leg, we probably made a mistake by focussing too heavily on Emirates Team New Zealand, even though we could have covered everyone. At the time we thought that BMW Oracle Racing was out of the running because of her late start. But we got the start we wanted, the crew sailed very well and we're still in a very good position. We'll do better tomorrow!

Grant Simmer, Team Alinghi General Manager: Tactically, this race was very difficult. We had a problem with a winch, which prevented the crew from positioning the boat where they wanted it. The sea was complicated, with frequent changes in the wind and we were really close to the coast! We're still very happy with the crew and the boat and can't wait to sail again tomorrow.

Murray Jones, Team Alinghi Strategist: On the first beating leg, we were duelling with Emirates Team New Zealand, but in the end the real problems came from BMW Oracle Racing. We learned a lot today.

Maxi Cup Day 1

Under clear blue skies with winds between 11-16 knots from the northeast, 33 boats hit the starting line for day one of the 2004 Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup hosted by the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda. The dream fleet of assembled Maxi yachts is divided into three divisions: Racing, Cruising and the Wally class.

In race one, each division sailed slightly different versions of a course that took the yachts down the coast to the Islands of Mortorio and Soffi with the finish located off Porto Cervo. The Racing Division sailed 33 miles by virtue of an extra downwind and upwind leg after the first windward mark and a long leg upto the island of Monaci. The Wally Division, which also went to Monaci, sailed 29.5 miles, whilst the Cruising Division sailed only 22 miles. Some clever planning by the YCCS race committee intended to give all the racers a similar length of time on the water.

The fleet includes an array of top competitive sailors such as Francesco de Angelis on Randall Pitman's Genuine Risk and Mauro Pelaschier on Vittorio Moretti's Viriella, With yachts ranging in size from 20 metres (66 feet) to upwards of 40 metres (175 feet) the start line is no place for the faint-hearted. Today's winners were: Pyewacket, owned by Roy Disney (USA) in the Racing Division, with Luca Bassani's Tiketitan finishing first in the Wally Division. Italy's Viriella claimed first in the Cruising Division.

"Today's' race provided the high quality competition we expected," said Disney. "We went head to head against Genuine Risk and Alfa Romeo, especially on the first beat. As the race progressed, our boat's and the crew's performance enabled us to sustain the lead, in particular going downwind. We look forward to having another day like today." Of note, Pyewacket held on to beat Genuine Risk on the water despite owing her time on handicap. In contrast to Pyewacket, which was launched last November, this was the first competitive outing for Pitman's yacht in Europe and more will be expected of her during the week ahead. With the possibility of a discard if five races are sailed there is a long way to go.

According to Bassani, the key to winning today's race was, "sailing smart and conservative, especially in light of the choppy seas during the first part of the race." He added, "Yet, despite the seas, Tiketitan sails well in these kind of wind conditions, specifically on beats and reaches."

In the cruising class, Viriella an 118 ft. Frers took first place honors. "We had a good start and were able to cross the fleet," said skipper Mauro Pelaschier, previously an Italian America's Cup skipper. "We made a smart sail selection for the downwind leg which enabled us to extend our lead."

Racing continues tomorrow, 7th September, with the start of race two scheduled for noon.