October 29, 2004
Vote for the 2004 Sailors of the Year
For the 6th yearr Torresen Sailing Site visitors will choose the female and male sailors of the year.
Voters can chose from a total of 10 candidates, 5 male and 5 female. Nominated sailors accomplishments range from being named college sailor of the year to winning Olympic gold to setting new around the world records.
Over the years voters have shown a preference for sailors from the around the world realm including: Emma Ricahrds, John Kostecki, Ellen Macarthur and Giovanni Soldini.
Further the preference has been for around the world achievements in winning races not setting records. Phillipe Monnett, Steve Fossett & Bruno Peyron have been nominated for setting records but have not won.
However, in 2000 the last Olympic year, both sailor of the year winners were Olympic gold medalists.
Here, then are the 2004 candidates:
Male:
Ben Ainslie- Finn Gold Medalist
Michel Desjoyeaux- Winner Solo Transat-trimaran
Torben Grael Star Gold Medallist
Steve Fossett Set new outright around the world record
Francis Joyon New Solo Around the World 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.
When you cast your votes you can enter a drawing. The drawing winner will receive a 2005 Ultimate Sailing Calendar.
Voting will continue through December 15th. The drawing winner will receive their Ultimate Sailing Calendar in time for Christmas.
Middle Sea Winner Decided
Late last night time ran out for O2 and Fremito d'Aria, the final contenders in the Rolex Middle Sea Race. Thus the Farr 52 Optimum 3 of Pericles Livas and Nikos Lazos has been confirmed as the overall handicap winners of the 2004 Rolex Middle Sea Race.
"We are crazy happy because we didn't think we could win such a big race," commented Lazos, navigator on board. "I believe the Rolex Middle Sea Race is the biggest offshore race in the Mediterranean at the moment. So we have set ourselves new goals now." Although the Greek team have campaigned boats before this is only their second time competing in the race aboard Optimum 3.
"First of all I believe it is the crew," continued Lazos as to why they had won. "If the crew is no good, the best boat in the world will not win. That is the most critical factor in my opinion. Second is preparation. We had a really well prepared boat with new sails this year." Livas and Lazos who respectively run a stationery company and a manufacturer of industrial rubber conveyor belts in Athens hope to return to defend their title in 2005.
Chris Bull's experienced team on board the J/145 Jazz managed to hang on to second place, leaving the fight for the final podium spot between last night's arrivals Sonke Stein's 02 from Germany and Dario Levi's Italian J/109 Fremito D'Aria. Ultimately the two boats match raced in towards the finish line within Valletta's Marsamxett Harbour finishing just two minutes apart after 607 miles and 5 days 10 hours of racing, the Italian boat taking third, the German fourth.
There had been a number of similarly tight finishes earlier in the evening, the closest being the one between local rivals Alfred Manduca on the Beneteau First 47.7 Allegra and the brand new Grand Soleil 40R Aziza of Sandro Muso who arrived just one second apart.
"It was very close and a fantastic race," said Muso, who finished sixth overall on corrected time. "It was a cat and mouse race all the way. We were catching some boats, other boats were catching us up. But it was a brilliant race, considering that this boat was delivered to me on 29 September, followed by a week's delivery, a week on the hard, four times training with the crew and then the race. So a fantastic result - I'm very very pleased."
Allegra didn't fare so well on handicap. Manduca, who has taken part in every race since 1996, said they had come into their own en route south to Pantelleria in the 30 knot winds behind the storm and its accompanying 'discotheque' lightning display. Unfortunately passing Pantelleria their speed suddenly slowed and it was only 18 hours later when conditions had abated that they were able to get a crewman into the water. It transpired they had some rope and fishing nets wrapped around their keel. Sailing with Manduca this year were his regular team, plus four new crew, two of whom were teenagers from Malta Young Sailors Club.
First Maltese yacht home was Primadonna of a very proud Georges Bonello Dupuis, Commodore of the Royal Malta Yacht Club, sailing in his first Rolex Middle Sea Race.
"It was longer than anticipated - it was tough," said the champagne drenched Commodore after crossing the finish line at 18:57 local time last night. "You'd be leading, the wind dies down and everyone closes back up. At Messina we had 28 boats crawl back up on us. At Stromboli the worst thing happened - we arrived and everyone left whilst we stopped. The biggest joke on the race was about who was going to pay the next parking meter.". Primadonna finished eighth overall on handicap.
The most rousing welcome came this afternoon for local heroes Andrew Calascione and Darius Goodwin, who raced the Rolex Middle Sea Race aboard the J/109 Jammin one of two doublehanded crews taking part.
"Darius had sailed with us last year and I decided he would be the best all-rounder because the second person is 50% of the team. That was the best decision I took, because he was fantastic, the chemistry was there and we had good teamwork," said Calascione, winner of the event in 2000 and 2001.
After getting no sleep on the first night and the frustration of trying to pass through the Strait of Messina in no wind, the exhausted crew had managed to keep up with the fully crewed front runners in their size range until the halfway point. Here they were hit by 42 knots on the nose.
"With that kind of wind speed, with this kind of boat and with no weight on the rail we were getting knocked down the whole time, making no or little headway," said Calascione. "The fleet just pulled away and we came out of the storm without seeing them again. They'd got ahead and moved into another weather system."
The prize giving ceremony for the 25th edition Rolex Middle Sea Race takes place tomorrow, 30th October, at the Mediterranean Conference Centre.
New Leader with 1 Week to Go
In an exceptionally competitive race, where there has been no fixed leader, Barclays Adventurer has powered into the lead in the Global Challenge with VAIO’s inshore move costing them dearly, moving from first to third place.
Currently the yachts are passing down the South American coast on the same latitude as Rio de Janeiro. VAIO’s move inshore has cost them the lead overnight Barclays Adventurer and Samsung benefiting from a later move back to the rhumb line and awarded with 1st and 2nd place respectively.
The shake up is a direct result of the incredibly fast change of wind direction from downwind sailing to an upwind beat, causing a bouncy ride during a night of sail changes to cope with unpredictable conditions.
SAIC La Jolla reported that it was "not the intensity of the wind or rain that struck us, but the quickness with which it arrived."
Richard Parson, our correspondent from Team Stelmar came on watch to find a completely different world from the one he had left behind at the end of his previous watch:
"It was like stepping up into the right planet but at the wrong grid, so far removed was one from the other."
Barclays Adventurer has reported sail changes carried out with an “undistinguished inefficiency to the irritation of all” and even being forced to “sail in the wrong direction” after the abrupt change in the wind direction. Amazingly they were also “briefly heading directly for Samsung: a tactic that must have confused them considerably.” Nevertheless they have a 9nm lead over 2nd place and 24nm on former leader VAIO. Gusts of up to 42 knots have been reported and a steady breeze of 30 knots has reinstated life at an upwind angle as shown in the picture.
By staying east of the line for longer, Barclays Adventurer and Samsung anticipated the wind shift from their stern, moving back in as it turned before heading southwest along the rhumb line. With a fresh breeze at present they are maintaining reasonable boat speed despite sailing into the wind, and the current forecast for the next 24-hours looks set to consolidate their position.
Most of the fleet will see the wind shift from the nose (from the front) round to a beam reach (from the side) and eventually back round to the stern and a return to downwind sailing conditions.
These changes will be caused by the secondary high-pressure system moving east away from the coast. With the winds in the southern hemisphere revolving in the opposite direction (just as the water goes down the plug in the other direction). As it shifts to the east, the fleet will sail south towards the River Plate and the winds spinning anti-clockwise around the high-pressure system will come round behind them so the spinnakers will be flying again. Clive Cosby, skipper of Team Stelmar, mentioned that the leaders will probably benefit from the easterly wind first as it moves round so we may see them pull slightly further ahead of the mid-fleet pack.
Pindar is currently in the convergence zone between the secondary high-pressure system and the southeast trades generated by the South Atlantic high. Caught in light and erratic winds, their boat speed has suffered so they will be looking forward to crossing into more reliable winds.
Team Save the Children has no such problem with speed; they are flying along at 9 knots the fastest of the fleet by a long way. They are still riding the southeast trades and have made up some serious ground as a result. Since yesterday morning they have gained 81nm, which will no doubt provide a huge psychological boost for the team. They will probably enjoy these fast sailing conditions for another 100nm, and could benefit further by avoiding the conditions currently hindering Pindar’s progress. By the time they move out of the south east trades, the secondary high pressure system may have already shifted sufficiently eastwards, giving them a relatively unobstructed path south.
Aside from the huge wind shifts and leader board shake up, Wim Berkhof aboard Me to You has reported a couple of incredible sights that not many people have experienced in succession from such an unusual platform:
“What a nice day in the office! At first last night we saw the complete sequence of the lunar eclipse. The ‘You’ watch saw the first half, the ‘Me’ watch the second. The full moon started to fade as the earth shielded it from the sun. At the time of the eclipse many bright stars with a shooting star every now and then. A good night for a lot of wishes to come true.”
The ETA for the first yachts into Buenos Aires looks like the first six yachts with less than 100 miles between them will be in port on Thursday night/ Friday morning.
Into 1st Amongst Oil Rigs
Each day as the yachts race in the Global Challenge, teams will file daily logs via satellite to the web site.
These log entries are designed to be more than simple position and status reports; they are the teams' way of sharing the excitement and drama as it is seen and felt by those aboard.
Via the Global Challenge's RSS Feed ATWOS will feature selected daily logs.
Today's log is from Richard Goege of Barclay's Adventurer the new 1st place boat
It's like Blackpool here in the middle of the ocean off Brazil as we sail serenly through dozens of brightly lit oil rigs and their support vessels: some rigs are the size of shopping centres. Hundreds of unseen faces must be watching our progress with some mystification. There is a gentle swell and we are making steady progress after a hectic 24 hours. The end to several days of downwind sailing came abruptly when the wind changed and within a few minutes the spinnaker and pole had to be dropped and staysail and yankee raised. The wind was increasing and changing in direction and in the confusion we were forced to sail in the wrong direction until composure was restored on deck. We were briefly heading directly for Samsuing a tactic that must have confused them considerably.
A day and night of unfamiliar upwind sailing followed and life at an angle returned. During a stressful night of multiple tacks and sail changes (conducted by my watch with an undistinguished inefficiency to the irritation of all) at 2.00am we were reported as having taken first place from VAIO whose decision to go further west could prove very costly. Our lead over BP and Sark has also increased, only Samsung are close, just seven miles astern. Well done to Stu and Laurent for their impeccable tactics!
No one is talking of winning, just about focusing on the next watch and keeping our concentration. There is still a long way to go to BA: 1000+ miles and the unpredictable River Plate.
Keep watching, there is more excitement to come.
Fog Signals
From the latest Local Notice to Mariners : "Lake Huron - Harbor Beach Light, On-Demand Fog Signal - Chart 14862 The Coast Guard is proposing to solarize and install an on-demand fog signal system in Harbor Beach Light (LLNR 10130). This system, once installed can be activated with VHF radio. Once energized the fog signal will sound for 30 minutes or until being turned off with a VHF radio. The radio channel for activation is TBD."
I believe that radio controlled navigation aids are fairly common in aviation. For instance a plane landing at a small airport at night can turn on landing lights via radio. Interesting that is being used in marine navigation.
I did find an example where a fog signal at one light (Peshtigo Reef on Green Bay) was controlled via radio remotely.
Linky Sailing News
Racing Target 50 knots. Challenge 7
News Star monument. High School Winner
Great Lakes MC Sailor
College Sailing HWS defends War Memorial @ Navy
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 +3
Difference from last month -4
Difference from last year +10
Difference from long term average for October -15
Difference from Record High -55
Difference from Record Low +16
Forecast for 29 November 2004 -3
Vendee Globe Preview: Jean Pierre Dick
The 5th edition of the Vendee Globe will start November 7th. This race is for single handed sailors sailing Open 60 foot mono hulls non stop around the world via the great capes.
Leading up to the race we will post previews a series of previews of the leading skippers.
Jean-Pierre Dick will sail the only Farr design Virbac-Paprec. This boat has been fast but has twice dismasted. For the 39 year old Frenchman reliability is the question that needs a solution.
One might perceive solo sailors as likely to be single while on land. However, Jean-Pierre is one of the few single people racing.
Another dismasting and Dick will be alone, while greater reliability may lead to success like that of another French lone sailor with similar initials: J.P. Mouligne.
Moloney's Vendee Globe Predictions
With only 10 days to the start line Nick starts to weigh up the competition and mentally prepare himself for the start pace. Having sailed against nearly every boat or skipper in this fleet, Nick feels he knows where SKANDIA is likely to fit in the rankings for the dash to Cape Finistare and beyond. "Golding is always fast out of the blocks and the current forecast, although still very provisional, suggests that it will be fast reaching conditions on start day which will suit Mike and the Finot boats including Hellomoto, VMI and Temenos" commented Nick. At this stage Nick hopes for SKANDIA to be towards the back of the front runners with his new sail inventory helping him to stick with the pace of the new boats in particular.
Dockside talk, as is often the way, suggests that the intial pace of the race will be fast and furious and that this is expected to last all the way down the Atlantic until the fleet enter the Southern Ocean. The rolling weather systems form a conveyor belt effect around Antarctica - its very difficult to catch up a weather system in front, so the boats that manage to hook in first to a Depression will scream off downwind and will be very difficult to reel in until after Cape Horn - as long as they survive of course. This makes deciding how hard you push in the first 7,000 miles down the Atlantic very difficult. Too hard, you are risking damaging the boat early on. Not hard enough, you might be out of the race in the first 3 weeks. Nick predicts that the boats to watch out for in the Vendée Globe are :
* Mike Golding onbard ECOVER : "A new fast boat, a great experienced skipper and excellent preparation, this could be Mike's race. He certainly deserves it"
* Roland Jordain (SILL) & Jean LE CAM (BONDUELLE) onboard the two brand new Lombard design boats: "Both are great skippers with powerful boats, the only downside is that both boats are relatively untested"
* Alex Thomson onboard HUGO BOSS (ex Sill): "Alex will get out of the starting blocks quick and set a pace to chase onboard one of the fastest boats of it's generation. A case of 'shit or bust' maybe"
* Marc Thiercelin taking part in his 3rd Vendée Globe finishing 2nd in 1997 and 4th in 2001: "Marc seems to be always up with the front runners and will be sure to be there again, experience can really tell in this race of nerves"
* Jean-Pierre Dick (Virbac): "Jean-Pierre is always one to watch and proved what he was capable of in the Transat Jacques Vabre 2003, two unfortunate dismasting's followed but he will go out fast"
* Vincient Riou: "Vincent is an excellent skipper with another well prepared boat, one of the best of the same generation of boat as Skandia, and of course the winning boat from the last race in 2000/01"
None of the above rules out the rest of the fleet including Conrad Humpreys, Sébastien Josse and Dominique Wavre all of who will be expecting to be with the front runners. However what we must remember is that anything could happen in this race, and it generally does! All the predictions are just talk when you consider that every skipper expects to have to deal with at least one major problem while on the race course which could jepordize actually finishing. So no matter who gets out of the blocks first and sails smart we still need to keep our boats and ourselves in one piece and cross the finish line 90 days later. As Michel Desjoyeaux, winner in 2001, recently said on Seamaster Sailing - æto win you have to finish". In the Vendée just finishing is a victory in itself.
SKANDIA THE OPEN 60: How she has been modified for Nick since Ellen's Route du Rhum in November 2002
The Open 60 Skandia is the former Open 60, Kingfisher, after Ellen sailed it to victory in the EDS Atlantic Challenge with Nick as Co-Skipper and in the 2002 Route du Rhum Nick took over as skipper and started the final leg of the journey to Vendée Globe 2004/05.
The progamme leading to the start line included the 2003 Fastnet (Team Cowes), two-handed Transat Jacques Vabre co-skippered with Samantha Davies (Team Cowes), the solo Defi Atlantique race (Team Cowes) that qualified Moloney to compete in the Vendée Globe and The Transat solo race in 2004 (Skandia).
Since January 2004 Skandia has undergone a full boat refit and ergonomic optimisation in preparation for the solo circumnavigation, the modifications include :
An interior refit optimising living and stowage room below, full nav station refit including a custom gimbaled and tacking nav seat. Electronic rewire including upgrading of B&G navigational electronics, new Sony computer system, installation of new media suite (5 cameras). Thrane & Thrane Fleet 77 and Fleet 33 satellite navigation communication domes.
Customisation of the cockpit, relocation of the pedestal and upgrade of the winch systems. Mast modifications, new halyard lock systems, hydraulically adjustable forestay, upgraded furling systems, replacement of rig fittings and PBO rigging supplied by Ocean Yacht Systems and Future Fibres. plus a full suite of running rigging supplied by Marlow Ropes.
Re-painted deck, hull and bottom in the new Skandia livery. Replacement of all McMurdo safety equipment. A complete new suite of sails including new higher aspect genoas developed to perform over a wider wind range. Complete engineering refurbishment including fitting of new generator, upgrading keel hydraulics and rams, water-maker overhaul, fitting of new heating systems and modifying nav tech system.
October 28, 2004
Annapolis to Host Women's Keelboat Champs Again
The 2005 edition of US SAILING’s Rolex International Women’s Keelboat Championship (Rolex IWKC) will return to the historic maritime city of Annapolis, Maryland and the beautiful waters of the Chesapeake Bay from September 17-23. The Annapolis Yacht Club also returns as host for a third time, with Taran Teague, an experienced sailor and race committee veteran, serving as the event chair. The biennial
regatta, which was founded in 1985, is considered one of the world’s
pinnacle events for women sailors and utilizes the International J/22 class keelboat, suitable for four-person teams. Entries are expected from across the U.S. as well as Europe, Asia, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand.
The previous two Rolex IWKC regattas each experienced an increase in the number of competitors, and the same is expected for the 2005 event. “In 2003, over 250 women sailors of all ages and abilities, from across the U.S. and abroad, convened on Annapolis to create a truly one-of-a-kind competition,” said Denise MacGillivray (Portsmouth, R.I.), chair of US SAILING’s Women’s International Keelboat Committee, which oversees the Rolex IWKC. “Twenty-two years ago when Rolex joined in partnership with US SAILING to create the first Rolex IWKC, the idea for an international open women’s regatta was new and different, and there was a need to give women more opportunities in sailing. Since the event’s creation, that idea
inspired countless regattas, programs and organizations that today focus on women’s sailing.”
Previous contestants have included Olympic medallists, America’s Cup and Volvo Ocean Race veterans, world champions and Rolex Yachtswomen of the Year, in addition to women of all ages with varying levels of racing experience. The regatta does not require pre-qualification for entry, however each team must be a member of its country’s national governing authority for sailing. Prospective entrants can register online at www.race.annapolisyc.org/2005rolex for direct email updates about the 2005 regatta.
“Annapolis and the Chesapeake have become a hub of activity for the J/22 fleet,” said local event chair Taran Teague (Annapolis, Md./Raleigh, N.C.). “The Annapolis Yacht Club hosted the J/22 world championship this past May with 130 teams from around the globe, and the club’s members are extremely enthusiastic about hosting the 2005 Rolex IWKC.”
Returning for the third time as Rolex IWKC race committee chair is Chip Thayer (Annapolis). “Our highly experienced and dedicated team of international race committee officials guarantees the competitors
world-class racing and professional race management in a venue well known for its awesome sailing conditions,” he said. “We admire the training and determination it takes to participate in this kind of international sailboat racing challenge and we will provide the sailors with the very best racing available anywhere.”
The Rolex IWKC will feature 11-races in five days and will be preceded by two days for registration, measurement and a practice race. Evening social events will culminate with the traditional Rolex gala and awards presentation. A Rolex timepiece will be awarded to the winning boat’s skipper.
Greek Boat Lead Middle Sea Race
With one quarter of the fleet now comfortably berthed in Manoel Island Marina opposite the Maltese capital of Valletta, the tension is rising over who will win the Rolex Middle Sea Race on handicap. Between the three maxis that finished yesterday, the German-owned Black Dragon has won under IRC, ahead of Damiani Our Dream and Alfa Romeo.
But overall at present it is the exceptional Greek Farr 52, Optimum 3 of joint owners Nikos Lazos and Pericles Livas that is leading. The team set the tone from the outset arriving first at the St Paul's Bay mark and remaining with the substantially larger maxi-boats all the way up the east coast of Sicily. Significantly they got a jump on the rest of the fleet, passed through the Strait of Messina on the same tide as the maxis and half way round the course were still up with Damiani and Black Dragon.
Unlike the maxi boat crews, the crew of Optimum 3 are all amateur sailors from Athens with the exception of their tactician and coach, British sailor Eddie Warden-Owen. But they take their racing seriously having trained throughout the summer including an offshore session in 35 knots prior to coming to Malta. This summer the team, sponsored by Wash & Go shampoo, won Greece's top offshore race, the Aegean Sea Rally.
Like the maxis they too experienced big conditions overnight on Tuesday. Wisely they had decided to drop their spinnaker before the storm hit. "It just blew and the boat was flying. It was doing over 25 knots with just the main and storm jib," said Warden-Owen, adding that the speedo seemed to be reading less than the speed shown on the GPS.
Pericles Livas said as the wind increased they had dropped the mainsail and at the peak he had seen 52 knots of wind on the instruments. "Nothing would have prepared for what happened," continued Warden-Owen. "Lightning was just all over the place and while the guys were trying to get the mainsail down one crash came really close."
Optimum 3 crossed the finish line off Valletta at 16:25:01 local time Wednesday and at present is leader on corrected time under IRC.
Another race favourite Chris Bull's J/145 Jazz, arrived at 02:11:39 this morning (Thursday), but just outside of Optimum 3's time and currently second overall on corrected time.
"It was a very difficult race," commented Jazz's navigator Mike Broughton. "We parked on the first day, we parked on the second day, we parked three times on the third day and three times on the fourth day. But that is one of the great things about this race - it is so difficult with big lumps of lime stone and volcanos around the race course and the challenge of working out the fluid dynamics of how to get around the next rock are big."
Further to the north than the maxis on Tuesday night they saw 38 knots of wind in which they achieved the boat's fastest speed ever of 24.5 knots with three time Olympic medallist Rodney Pattisson at the wheel.
A faster speed was achieved on the former Volvo Ocean 60 Kvaerner Innovation of Peter Hopps and Hilary Cook. "Around Pantalleria we hurtled off and saw 27.6 knots," described Hopps. "We covered 38 miles in two hours - then we thought we should put a reef in." Unfortunately their progress came to a halt when their mainsail fell to the deck after the piece of mast track holding the sail's headboard broke off the mast. From then on they were forced to sail with one reef in the mainsail.
This year's Rolex Middle Sea Race was a rather different experience on the plush Swan 62RS Constanter of American Willem Mesdag, that finished at 09:19:35 this morning. Compared to the stripped out racing machines, Constanter has a well appointed interior complete with microwave, deep freeze and tumble drier and featured a professional chef among the crew. The crew experienced a tough blow during the race when, with their red wine stock dwindling, the kitchen were forced to supply boeuf bourginon made with beer instead.
However their race was not a leisurely cruise, says crewman Campbell Field. "She's got all the mod cons, but we were peeling and changing jibs just as hard as anyone else was. We ran a watch system with a person changing watch every hour. We were eating boeuf bourginon, but it was out of dog bowls on deck. For us we wanted to do as well as we could, we wanted to race the boat competitively, but it was also an adventure."
While Optimum 3 is the present leader under IRC handicap, there are two boats still to finish - the German Elan 37 O2 of Sonke Stein and the Italian J/109 Fremito d'Arja of Dario Levi- who could topple the Greek yacht on handicap.
How Lonely?
The Vendee Globe website refers to a single handed race. Nick Moloney's media guide calls it a solo race. The last edition of Around Alone featured lone sailors.
Single handed seems to be a sailing centric term. There are also double handed and short handed races. No full handed races, eh?
Solo carries more a flying connotation to me. In gaining your pilots license there is a 1st solo flight.
Lone sailor is the most appropriate term for the upcoming Vendee Globe. During the last Around Alone Tim Kent said, "I have not laid eyes on another human being since ten days before Christmas [28 days
at time of writing]." Vendee Globe sailors will be alone for 80+ days.
So, lone sailors who deal with extremes of solitude most of us don't seems the best term to me. When asked about solitude French lone sailor Jean Pierre Dick said: "That frightens me in the sense of technical difficulties. However, today, skippers experience an assisted solitude thanks to the means of communication." Yes, assisted solitude is eerie if you are from Michigan, but certainly the loneliness factor has decreased.
Conrad Humphreys describes particulars of this assisted solitude: "every day, though, I will speak to my wife, Vikki, and call into my shore team to exchange news & information on the satellite phone. The race organisation will call me every other day and I have regular media interviews to do from the boat, so although I am physically on my own I’ll be racking up a decent phone bill keeping in touch with the rest of the world!"
How else to stay in touch? Benoît Parnaudeau says, "We’ve installed a good sound system aboard and I’m bringing a fair number of CDs and also two books per week."
Vincent Riou actually becomes a reader at sea: "At sea, I like to read while on shore, it’s something I hardly ever do. I usually take onboard some books which are given to me before I leave. In that way I have the element of surprise once I’m at sea."
During this Vendee Globe the lone sailors will be lonely. They were lonelier in the past. Never the less for a few months they maybe the loneliest folks on the planet.
A Dot on the Ocean
Each day as the yachts race in the Global Challenge, teams will file daily logs via satellite to the web site.
These log entries are designed to be more than simple position and status reports; they are the teams' way of sharing the excitement and drama as it is seen and felt by those aboard.
Via the Global Challenge's RSS Feed ATWOS will feature selected daily logs.
Today's log is from Team Stelmar's Susan Lyons
It is the 27th October 2004 and our position is 17° 10.61 S and 37° 32.9 W. We are approximately 90 miles off the coast of Brazil and approaching Rio de Janeiro. I am sitting on the side of the yacht under a particularly starry night and there has just been an eclipse of the moon.
As I sit and reflect over the day's events I look up at the leech of the mainsail vacillating in the wind and cutting a clear line against the sky. Millions upon millions of stars are glistening in the night giving an awesome feeling of the immensity of the universe. When viewed from this perspective, magnificent Team Stelmar is a mere dot on the ocean and her crewmembers even smaller dots. This has a humbling effect, paling every day mundane problems into insignificance and gives a different perspective on life.
This morning when we woke at 6am I noted a general silence amongst my watch as we stumbled exhausted out of our bunks and went into our automatic routine of preparing to go on deck. The scent of Newton's freshly baked bread pervaded the atmosphere providing temporary respite to the pungent odour of sweaty feet and trainers. On deck the spinnaker was flying and we all went into our positions for sailing, taking over from the previous watch who were tired and waiting patiently for us to come on deck.
Our watch leader, Tim Wright, put me in charge of trimming the spinnaker which involves giving orders to the grinder to wind on the winch whenever the sail starts to collapse or when there is a wind shift. Team Stelmar's beautiful spinnaker breast was flying freely and proudly ahead like the little bird on her emblem, every now and then having fun frolicking and flirting with the wind making it hard work for the crew to control her. 'Bear away' I shouted to Tim Johnston on the helm when a huge wave knocked us off balance and the spinnaker flew right over to the side.
Then suddenly we encountered a huge black cloud that turned into a squall and a heavy downpour followed. Soaked to the skin I sat down on the deck and winced in pain - SBS ('spotty botty syndrome') is rife amongst sailors, who have to sit for long periods in wet or damp clothing on hard decks. Just another one of the trials we are facing at the moment I suppose but I know it will all have been worth it in the end.
Despite the rain the sea state was beautiful today with its deepest shades of blue waves and white horses rolling relentlessly in a true wind speed of 14 to 16 knots and a boat speed of between 8 and 11 knots. The wind was warm and I was truly happy to be there.
At lunchtime we all chatted about the day's sailing whilst munching away on Mexican pancakes and dried fruit pieces and we discussed what could have been done better and made the boat go faster. We have a session like this once every day as we are very competitive as a team and like to try and improve things as much as possible and get the most out of our sailing.
Later on activity on board Stelmar increased considerably when we found a tear in the sail, which subsequently had to be mended. This is a frequent occurrence in sailing and one that provides a great deal of hard work in repairs. A few exhausted volunteers stayed up throughout the night to mend and repair providing a hubbub of activity both down below as well as the usual work on deck. But somehow we will find the strength to continue and after all we are now on our 24th day at sea and in approximately 10 days time we will arrive in Buenos Aires. Yet another adventure to look forward to.
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Hellomoto 9 Days Out
With 9 days to go until the Vendée Globe start, read Conrad’s penultimate diary from land online, with excerpts below; his overwhelming impressions from being down in France at the inauguration of the Vendée Globe race village, where over 95,000 people walked past the boats in the first week alone. Plus he pens his final thoughts as he spends his last week back home in Plymouth…
We put Conrad in the hot seat and interrogated him on what makes him tick and why he is voluntarily going off to sail solo around the world non-stop. Find out what his biggest fear is, how he’ll survive the loneliness factor, what he can’t leave the dock without and many more intriguing questions…will the real Conrad please stand up! Click on HELLOMOTO News online for the full Q & A session.
Today we have refreshed the website for the Autumn/Winter season – warm colours and fantastic new aerial and onboard sailing photography of Conrad sailing HELLOMOTO, taken in varying conditions offshore. Check out the homepage ‘Interactive’ section for new Motorola Ocean Racing Merchandise and sign up for race updates.
Excerpts from Conrad’s Diary with less than 10 days to go…
“For thousands of people, to come and see the boats and skippers taking part in Vendée Globe is something of a pilgrimage. Clutching their race programmes, scrapbooks & newspaper special editions, they spend a few moments transfixed by the boats, touching the bowsprit or part of the rigging, knocking on the hull softly, before eagerly thrusting their autograph material into my hands. I have never felt quite so humble…I was simply not prepared for the affection and admiration that is held for each of the Vendée skippers and their boats…”
Other priorities this week included a fleet safety inspection, which was carried out meticulously by the race organisers. The lessons learnt from the 1996/7 race where French skipper Thierry Dubois boat capsized off SW Australia. His life raft wouldn’t inflate in the cold southern ocean temperatures and this has meant new safety checks to some of the essential kit. These guys are so thorough, they even checked that the Mars Bars in my emergency grab bag were out of date and told me that I had to replace them..!
Then the medical course arranged by the race organisers took place. The race doctor, Jean-Yves Chauve, has a wealth of experience, particularly in remote medical operations, and successfully helped Pete Goss nurse Raphael Dinelli back to health after his dramatic rescue in the Southern ocean. He also helped another previous competitor, Bertrand de Broc, when he had to sew his tongue back on. We practiced this ourselves but using pigs’ trotters. All very easy in the confines of a classroom…”
And finally, the time has come now to say goodbye to friends and family at home – and buy a few Christmas presents before the off! Vikki and I are used to spending Christmas apart, but this will be my first one alone. It seems a long way off right now, and I’ll take one day at a time, but there will inevitably be times like Christmas Day where being on my own will be tougher than usual…
So, the whole of the Motorola Ocean Racing team will all be together in Les Sables d’Olonne this Sunday, and our goal is to be race ready at the end of this week so that we can enjoy the race build up and excitement in France for the final few days after all the hard work that’s gone in to getting the boat and myself ready. I imagine I’ll be taking it all in with some awe and amazement!”
October 27, 2004
Overboard Incident in Middle Sea Race
After days of little or no wind, last night the Mediterranean Sea to the west of Malta became reminiscent of a scene from the Old Testament as a massive thundercloud complete with 50 knot gusts, hailstones and sheet lightning wreaked havoc on the Rolex Middle Sea Race fleet.
"It was like the Doldrums, with more lightning than I've ever seen" described experienced Swedish round the world racer and Black Dragon helm, Magnus Woxen of the wind that would rise dramatically from single figures to 30 or even 50 knots in a matter of minutes sending the crew scrabbling to drop sails.
Worst affected by the conditions was Neville Crichton's Alfa Romeo. Sailing under Code Zero in the pitch black last night the wind increased to 12 knots and the crew had furled the powerful headsail and were half way through dropping it when a 30 knot gust came through. The furled sail began to writhe around on deck, six crewmen unable to control it and the last to hang on to it, America's Cup grinder John Macbeth, one of the beefiest guys on the Kiwi maxi, was tossed overboard like a rag doll.
Macbeth was recovered after 12 minutes in the water. "The guys on the boat all knew what to do and I had full confidence in them. They did a great job," Macbeth said later. "When I was in the water, I kicked off my shoes and wet weather gear and waited for them to come back. All credit to them, they picked me up very quickly and I never really felt in danger at any time."
More drama was to come two hours later for the Alfa Romeo team when sailing along in 8 knots the wind suddenly piped up to 30 and then 58 knots, knocking the boat flat under full mainsail and furled Code Zero. "It was very quick," recounted owner Neville Crichton. "We tried to run with it, but it was hopeless and we lost control and it went straight over. The boom and the rig was in the water and dragged it sideways. It took us 15 minutes to get back upright on its feet and probably another three hours after that to tidy the boat up and get everything operating. In the crash we destroyed the mainsail which was Aus$150,000 and two spinnakers, so it was a $200,000 fall over."
On Black Dragon they were more fortunate. Rounding the island of Lampedusa and the final turning mark of the Rolex Middle Sea Race they broke the top batten in their mainsail and pulled into the lee of the island to drop the mainsail and replace it. "Just as we did that all hell broke lost," described racing skipper Jesper Radich. "Hail, 46 knots of wind and we were doing 20 knots of speed downwind under jib. Fortunately it wasn't chaos on the boat. We had Magnus [Woxen] on the helm and we continued with only the jib on for two and half hours averaging 12 knots."
Earlier Black Dragon had also experienced a full wipe-out as they tried to drop their 370sqm heavy spinnaker in a 39 knot gust. In typically Doldrums-like conditions the wind then dropped to just 8 knots. En route back towards Malta and the finish line the breeze picked up to 25-28 knots and Radich said they had experienced near perfect blast reaching conditions, boat speed hovering around the 23 knot mark.
For the Italian maxi Damiani Our Dream the conditions were no less extreme. "I started this regatta aged 35 and now I feel like I am 62. The lightning helped me with that," described tactician Vasco Vascotto of last night's incredible display of sheet lightning.
In the big conditions they broke the foreguy - holding the spinnaker pole away from the forestay - on three occasions. Damage to the Italian maxi occurred as they were approaching Lampedusa in marginal conditions. "Whenever I said 'ready to drop' the wind went down," recounted Vascotto. "And after three hours of that, we had 55 knots and it was too late." They attempted to drop the mainsail and in the process created a 3m tear in the leach (the back of the sail) and another big T-shape rip in the body of the sail. They spent five hours with the mainsail down below repairing it and were able to rehoist it for the final hours of the race.
Alfa Romeo cruised across the finish line within Marsamxett Harbour at 10:01:49 local time her mainsail's leech hanging off and three of its five battens broken. She was followed by Black Dragon just half an hour later at 10:32:25 and Damiani Our Dream at 14:07:36.
The Greek Farr 52 Optimum 3 of Nikos Lavos and Pericles Livas arrived at 16.25.01 and currently leads overall on IRC handicap.
Elsewhere in the fleet eight boats have retired having suffered damage in the windy conditions of the last 24 hours.
New US Olympic Chair
US SAILING, national governing body of the sport, announced today that it has selected Dean Brenner (Wallingford, Conn.) as Chairperson for the organization’s Olympic Sailing Committee (OSC). In his four-year term, Brenner will lead the OSC and the athletes
within the Olympic Sailing Program as they prepare for the 2008 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Beijing, China. Brenner replaces Fred Hagedorn (Chicago, Ill.) who served as Chair for the previous four years.
“I am honored to have the opportunity to serve as the Chairman of the
Olympic Sailing Committee,” said Brenner. “The challenges are significant, but so are the opportunities. Our goal for the next four years is to continue to look for new ways to increase support for our athletes and to make it easier for them to achieve their goals. I am looking forward to making a dramatic impact on Olympic Sailing in the United States.”
Brenner has been involved with US SAILING since 2000. He has been a member of US SAILING’s Executive Committee since 2003 and has served as the Vice Chair of the OSC during the last two years, while simultaneously serving as Chair of US SAILING’s Sailor Athlete Council. Brenner also brings extensive sailing experience to the position, having won six National Championships (most recently the U.S. Match Racing Championship last September) and finishing second at the 2000 U.S. Olympic Sailing Team Trials, narrowly missing a trip to the Sydney Olympic Games.
“Dean Brenner is an accomplished sailor who is highly respected and very dedicated to the sport and excited about the Olympic movement,” said US SAILING President Janet Baxter. “As a former Olympic campaigner, he knows from his own firsthand experience what our top athletes need. We’re thrilled to have Dean on board to lead the OSC.”
Brenner is founder and President of The Latimer Group, a consulting firm providing communication skills, public speaking and sales coaching and training for individuals and corporate teams.
Vendee Globe Previews: Conrad Humphreys
The 5th edition of the Vendee Globe will start November 7th. This race is for single handed sailors sailing Open 60 foot mono hulls non stop around the world via the great capes.
Leading up to the race we will post previews a series of previews of the leading skippers.
Conrad Humphreys sails Hellomoto the Finot design formerly known as Group 4. Under Mike Golding she completed the 2000-2001 race.
Humphreys has run a thorough and profeesional campaign including a successful Transat. He is the Mr. Positive, a happy sailor. Only 31 Humphreys already has 2 around the world races on his CV.
A proven boat and winning attitude are the assets Humphreys carries
into another around the world trip.
Photog Named
Oskar Kihlborg has climbed Mount Everest, crossed the Atlantic Ocean twice and been involved in many adventure projects. Now he is preparing for his second Volvo Ocean Race, but this time as official photographer.
"My job is to show the world what the Volvo Ocean Race is all about," says Kihlborg, whose home is just outside Stockholm in Sweden. "It's not just the competition between the boats; it's also about happiness and sorrow, sweat and tears, high tech and mother nature. I want to cover all of that," he explains.
During the last Volvo Ocean Race, Oskar Kihlborg worked with Sweden's SEB team as their photographer throughout two years of preparation and racing. For the next race he will be covering all the teams and everything that surrounds this massive event.
"I don't think people realise what kind of hardship it is to compete in the Volvo Ocean Race. Even if they've seen pictures and video clips from the Southern Ocean, it's hard to imagine how tough it is. I want to show them that the race really is the worst, or the best thing you can ever do."
Oskar Kihlborg has always been an adventurer himself. He started out as a mountaineer, but he has always loved adventure in any form. On May 11, 1990, Kihlborg, together with Mikael Reutersward, became the first Swedes ever to reach the top of Mount Everest. After Mount Everest, Kihlborg climbed K2 in 1992 and in the same year he became the first Scandinavian to reach the top of Lhotse, (8516m) also in Nepal.
"I have never been in the Southern Ocean myself, but I know from our record-breaking Atlantic crossing on Nicorette what it is like to sail in tough conditions. I know the feeling when one minute you scream for joy and the next you cry for fear. I think that is important for me to know, and I hope I'll be able to put those feelings into my pictures."
Kihlborg´s images will be published on the Volvo Ocean Race digital online archive, where the media can download high and low resolution images royalty-free.
Real World Intrusion
Each day as the yachts race in the Global Challenge, teams will file daily logs via satellite to the web site.
These log entries are designed to be more than simple position and status reports; they are the teams' way of sharing the excitement and drama as it is seen and felt by those aboard.
Via the Global Challenge's RSS Feed ATWOS will feature selected daily logs.
Today's log is from Spirit of Sark
My friend Jules e-mailed me this evening and in her mail she included the sad news of the death of John Peel the DJ. Whilst I wouldn't say that he was pivotal to my life he certainly enriched it and, in a musical sense, was a kind of god to me. Even though I haven't listened to him recently I will miss him.
The point of me mentioning this is that news of things back in the real world, whether it is good or bad is becoming more and more important to us on board. A few of us are really craving for any news from home, current affairs or just good old gossip column stuff - it doesn't matter. In this case, with John Peel, I'm glad I know about it so that in my own way I can mark it and that's important to each of us in different ways. On board we are becoming more and more aware of how detached we are from the rest of the world, a process that if we are honest started a few weeks before the start of the race, and now that we have become accustomed to the routine of life on the boat the need to be informed is becoming an obsession.
On deck the crew remain focussed as we strive to push the boat faster in an attempt to make up the miles on the boats in front. For the past few days this has been quite a repetitive affair with the same sails up and not much in the way of physical effort being needed, unless you are one of the chosen few to go on the helm (the art of helming seems to be about making turning a wheel look exhausting, talking huge amounts about how exhausting it is, constantly comparing one's speed with another colleague's (but really viewed as a competitor) whilst rocking the boat from side to side sufficiently to keep everyone's attention - some people are definitely more gifted at keeping the crews' attention than others!. Despite the constant push for boat speed there have been some rewarding sights. Yesterday as our watch was nearing its end we enjoyed the view of a huge double rainbow as we ran ahead of a large squall. Then 10 minutes later a large pod of dolphins joined us just as the sun was setting. Moments like these are priceless, I just wish they happened every watch!
So, whilst we do have our own forms of unique and often beautiful entertainment on board, a gentle reminder to all friends and family - we come from your world really so keep the news coming in before we crack-up, bobbing around on this 72ft mobile desert island.
I'm just about to go off watch now, but before I do I'm going to go and sit on deck and look at the stars and say a prayer for John.
Boudeman Memorial Regatta
Boudeman Memorial Regatta
Western Michigan University
10/24/04
FINAL RESULTS
REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS:
Saturday: Harken Clinic: Temperatures were in the low 60's with wind
speeds of 12-17 mph gusting to 22 mph. Cloudy skies and intermittent
rain lasted for the majority of the day. The clinic was run in three
groups (FJ's, 420's and Lasers) on practice diamonds. Drills were run
as weather conditions allowed. The water portion of the clinic wrapped up at 4:15 p.m. and was followed by indoor instruction and team self evaluations running until 8 p.m.
Sunday: Boudeman Cup Regatta: Temperatures were slightly cooler than
Saturday with highs getting into the mid to high 50's. Cloudy skies and light mist in the morning gave way to some sun as the day went on.
Winds were light but consistent in the morning but built to 7 to 10 as
the day went on. Five races were run on WL1X and WL2x courses with a
mid-line start. A division raced in 420's and B division raced in FJ's. Both divisions raced on the same course with 420's starting first and FJ's starting second. There was no boat rotation.
The regatta results are as follows:
A division = 5 Races
B division = 5 Races
A B TOT
1. Michigan 31 10 41
2. Miami 20 24 44
3. Northwestern 1 11 37 48
4. Michigan State 38 13 51
5. Northwestern 2 11 41 52
6. Hope 33 24 57
7. Western Michigan 2 29 28 57
8. Iowa State 30 28 58
9. Purdue 42 26 68
10. Western Michigan 1 36 53 89
11. John Carroll 60 46 106
Linky Sailing News
Racing Vaio leads drag race
News Lauderdale Key West
Great Lakes Environmental education
College Sailing Dartmouth qualifies. Tufts weekend
Fedor Delays Due to Weather
The weather pattern across the eastern Atlantic is very unstable, with fast-moving gales passing through on a regular basis. Ideally, Fedor would prefer to have a northwest wind flow that extends well to the south, and has a smooth transition to the northeast trade winds. Unfortunately, this is not the situation, and it does not look like the pattern will be good for the foreseeable future. For this reason, Fedor has decided to put the start on hold until there is evidence of a more stable pattern.
We had hoped that the weather would allow a departure on Sunday, and though the pattern was not what would be called ‘good’, there was a chance to get out and on the way. But there were three main concerns about Sunday:
First, the starting winds were going to be difficult, with a low-pressure center nearby and winds that would initially force Fedor to the west before he could turn to the southwest. That westerly route is difficult because of the land features that are in the way (including the Scillies if the wind did not shift in time). The wind looked better just past midnight on Sunday, but Fedor cannot leave on a Monday (this is something I did not know until I got involved in this project; I have had many skippers refuse to depart on a Friday, but I was not aware of the Russian tradition of not leaving on a Monday—very interesting). Here is one of the charts that Fedor and Oscar reviewed before making the decision to put the departure on hold.
Second, a small but storm-force gale was forecast to develop and move across the route within the first 48-72 hours. If Fedor could make it far enough to the southwest and west, he could get around the backside of the low and avoid the very worst. But, if the timing changed (if the low moved faster or if Fedor was held up by less-favorable wind), Fedor could face 50-60kt winds—not a good situation anytime, but especially not so soon after leaving!
Third, even if Fedor made it through the first few days without damage and at a reasonable pace, yet another low was predicted to form near Madeira, and the trade winds were not expected to be in place until south of the Canaries. This is the forecast for 29 October/0000Z.
The average wind field for October of 2003 shows downwind conditions near Madeira and the Canaries—certainly not what Fedor was likely to see!
So with all the potential problems, Fedor and Oscar made the decision to wait for a better pattern. When you consider all the time, effort, and money invested to get Fedor to the starting line, it is wise to wait for at least a better start to the adventure.
Lee Bruce
Tactical Weather - global adventure meteorology ®
www.tacticalweather.com
October 26, 2004
Alfa Romeo Gains
While the Rolex Middle Sea Race fleet were keeping fingers and toes crossed that the wind had filled in for good yesterday afternoon, ultimately this only proved true for Neville Crichton's maxi Alfa Romeo.
Last night the Kiwi maxi rounded Capo San Vito, the northwesternmost tip of Sicily at midnight with the other maxis Black Dragon and Damiani Our Dream in hot pursuit less than an hour behind. Yet this small advantage turned out to be significant. While Alfa Romeo was able to continue sailing in breeze both the other maxis ended up becalmed immediately after rounding the cape. Black Dragon made little progress for four hours, the Italian maxi for almost eight, a situation that will probably define the final outcome of the 2004 Rolex Middle Sea Race.
This afternoon's positions show Alfa Romeo having rounded the island of Pantelleria en route to the final turning mark at Lampedusa at around 09:45 this morning, roughly five hours ahead of Black Dragon and six and a half ahead of Damiani Our Dream. The only redemption for the chasing maxis is that they may benefit from the increased winds from a cold front now forecast to cross the race course tonight.
One of the most exceptional performances has been that of the Greek Farr 52 Optimum 3 of Nikos Lazos and Pericles Livas, which this morning has been neck and neck with the substantially larger Damiani.
On board Chris Bull's J/145 Jazz navigator Mike Broughton said they had parked up for four hours in the early hours of this morning, and this had allowed the boats astern to catch up. Their main rival, David Franks' J/125 Strait Dealer (overall handicap winner in 2001), appears to have been attached to them by elastic. "We spent yesterday trying to shake them off, then they sailed up to us and we were neck and neck for a while and we have now sailed away from them again and they are about 4-5 miles behind," commented Broughton, happier that finally round the cape, the wind had filled in.
The last 24 hours have seen the bulk of the fleet making slow progress on the 125 mile leg from the volcanic island of Stromboli towards Palermo and Capo San Vito. The Elan 37, 02 of German competitor Sonke Stein for example rounded Stromboli yesterday lunchtime and 24 hours later had still not reached the cape.
"We have been trying to pass Capo San Vito for the last 10 hours approximately. We have not covered any ground this morning." Said a resigned Stein. "It is very flukey, the wind is shifting constantly and there is a little bit of swell that makes the spinnaker collapse all the time. Last night was a beautiful close reach, good sailing, nice conditions, but in the morning everyone went back to sleep." He added, echoing the thoughts of all those still to the north of Scilly: "I hope we find some wind. I don't mind if it's headwinds just provided there is some wind. In the meantime we take it with humour and try and sail as fast as we can."
On board Kirribilly, the feelings of London-based Australian Doug Flynn were much the same. This is the second time his Beneteau 47.7 has competed in the Rolex Middle Sea Race. Last year they finished on the Wednesday night. This time a Friday ETA is more likely. "The great thing about this race is that we have been able to get a lot of sleep," said Flynn adding that there were some wild-looking tactics going on aboard other boats around them, heading on a variety of different courses with different sail combinations as they desperately tied to seek breeze.
In contrast, those ahead and to the west of Sicily have benefitted from the strong southwesterly winds preceding the cold front. On board American Willem Mesdag's Swan 62RS Constanter one crewman reported having to beat upwind into 30 knots.
For the bulk of the fleet still to the north of Sicily one concern is running out of food. "Our last bit of Christian Ripard's wife's cake has just gone," commented Mike Broughton of the situation on Jazz. "Apparently there is some pasta on board. Otherwise there is nothing decent."
On Kirribilly more extreme measures were being considered: "Some of the guys may lose their left arms as we run out of food as I don't think we've got a bent pin to turn into a hook," mused skipper Doug Flynn.
Moloney's Goal
We all have our reasons for doing what we do. Nick Moloney who will sail Skandia in the Vendee Globe has a unique motivation. Since 1996 it has been Moloney's goal to be the first to race around the globe in 3 disciplines.
1st he sailed around the world in the 1997/1998 Whitbread aboard Toshiba. Then in 2002 he was aboard Orange when she set the Jules Verne trophy record. This allowed Moloney to tick off the category of fastest non stop. A successful completion of the Vendee Globe, a solo non stop circumnavigation will see his goal completed.
Moloney was also aboard Playstation during The Race, but did not finish. This would have given him a non stop crewed circumnavigation.
Two other well known sailors Robin Knox Johnston and Olivier de Kersauson have come close to achieving this goal. Johnston won the 1968-1969 Golen Globe (Solo Non Stop) and co-skippered ENZA to the Jules Verne trophy (fastest non stop). He did compete in the 1977 Whitbread race, but only sailed 2 of 4 legs.
de Kersauson skipped Sport Elec to the Jules Verne Trophy (fastest non stop) and completed the 1973 Whitbread. While he has completed a solo circumnavigation but he stopped for repairs, ie not non stop. If Moloney finishes then he will be the first to fully complete the three pronged goal.
Michel Desjoyeaux is considered one of the great solo sailors having won the Vendee Globe, the Fiagro Solo two times and the 2004 Transat. That's only one trip around the world.
Christophe Augin won both the Vendee Globe and Around Alone (twice). That's 3 planetary laps.
Peter Blake and Grant Dalton both won Whitbread Round the Worlds in mono hulls and had successful catamaran circumnavigations-in all cases crewed. These New Zealanders have completed double digit circumnaviations between them.
French sailor Jacques Vincent has been around the world 7 times in a variety of boats including Whitbread boats and maxi cats.
If Moloney achieves his goal I would put him amongst but not above any of the above sailors. Even a win I don't think makes me rank him above others.
However Moloney has set up another triple crown type measurement for sailing. Currently one of these is to win the America's Cup, an Olympic Gold and an around the world race. For instance Russell Coutts has the gold and the America's Cup but not the round the world race. Moloney will set up some criteria for sailing's great to measure themselves against if he succeeds.
What's a Legger?
Each day as the yachts race in the Global Challenge, teams will file daily logs via satellite to the web site.
These log entries are designed to be more than simple position and status reports; they are the teams' way of sharing the excitement and drama as it is seen and felt by those aboard.
Via the Global Challenge's RSS Feed ATWOS will feature selected daily logs.
Today's log is from Vaio.
Nick - one of the two 'leggers' here. The other 'legger' is our Italian friend Fabrizio (aka Fab, Fabrize and more recently Osama!) who only secured his place onboard a week or so before the start after postponing his 3rd year of university following an extended summer working vacation in London!
For those of you who don't know what a 'legger' is, here is a brief explanation: a 'legger' is someone who signs up to do one (sometimes more than one) leg of the Race; wants a piece of the action; would dearly like more; but DOES NOT have an understanding bank manager; and only just managed to convince their employer that the experience would be good for them and the lessons learnt could be re- incorporated into the workplace upon their return!
My appearance on the log today can be attributed to the fact I'm on Mother watch and have found time in between the usual daily routine of eat, sail, sleep (& very occasional wash!) to put a few words down on 'paper' whilst the usual 'Loggers' (who incidentally are doing a fantastic job at keeping the Daily Log both entertaining and informative - I hope?) are either asleep (resting their typing fingers) or sailing the boat fast and on course.
We've now been on the same port tack for what feels like forever (but believe it to be around 8/9 days - you lose track), only momentarily interrupted for half an hour by 4 tacks as we battled out of the Doldrums. The lack of tacking or gybing is now cause for growing concern amongst the crew as we are advised by Amedeo that we WILL have to tack, gybe and even possibly hoist the kite from the port rail, using the starboard pole as we close in on the waypoints out of BA! We are, therefore, frantically digging to the bottom of our curver boxes in search for our Challenge Business (CB) boat handling notes to remind ourselves once more of the process - I'm sure that everyone back at CB HQ will only be too pleased to learn that all that photocopying paid off!
Ben - PS Molly and Max - the food your dad and Thys organised is superb! - Top 3 dishes = Hotdogs and Sauerkraut -Thai Green Curry and Bacon and Lentils! x
Last Call Regatta
Last Call Regatta
At IUPUIOctober 23-24th
REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS:
Saturday:Temperatures were in the mid 60s with wind speeds averaging 4-8mph, gusting 14mph from the south. Rainy and overcast conditions lasted most of the day. Courses were WL1X and WL2X, with a one hour delay as the race committee could not hold course due to changing wind direction. A total of 4 rotations were completed by 4pm.
Sunday: Temperatures again in the mid 60s with wind speeds averaging 4-8mph, from the southeast. Sunny conditions lasted throughout the day. Courses were WL1X. A total of 2 rotations were completed by 1pm for a total of 24 races for the weekend.
The regatta results are as follows:
A division = 12 Races
B division = 12 Races
A B TOT
1. Purdue 14 19 33
2. UofC 26 28 54
3. IUPUI 37 37 74
4. Indiana 43 36 79
B&Q Readying for Challenge
IN DETAIL:
WHY IS THIS RECORD SO EXCEPTIONAL:
1800+ people have reached the summit of Everest...
450+ people have been in space...
12 astronauts have stepped on the moon...
5 solo sailors have attempted to race around the globe NON-STOP on MULTIHULLS (the fastest and most extreme boats to traverse the oceans)...
Only 1 succeeded to go the distance non-stop...
Francis Joyon, current solo round the world record holder, set off on 22.11.03 and finished 72 days, 22 hours, 54 minutes and 22 seconds later on 3.2.04 to set a new world record. This is the time MacArthur has to beat
FINAL STAGES OF BOAT PREPARATION FOR <
At the trimaran base in Lorient on the north-west coast of France, the 75-foot multihull <
START LINE AND STANDBY PORT:
"We have opted to start this record attempt by crossing the line between Ushant on the French coast and the Lizard," said Ellen. "This is the traditional start and finish line for the crewed Jules Verne round the world record attempts although for a solo attempt you can, in fact, choose any starting point." Current solo round the world record holder, Francis Joyon, started his record from a start line off Brest which actually added another seven miles to the round the world distance. Based on the prevailing conditions in which Ellen will start her attempt, the optimum standby port is Falmouth on the south-west coast of England - this will give <
STANDBY FROM MID-NOVEMBER:
To ensure all the necessary work is completed on <
PREVIOUS MULTIHULL SOLO CIRCUMNAVIGATIONS:
Previous attempts to race solo non-stop around the world on a multihull:
1968-69 Nigel Tetley on board Victress (Golden Globe competitor, sank 1100 miles from the finish line off the English coast but Tetley had already crossed his outbound track thereby technically completed the first solo circumnavigation in a multihull)
1973-74 Alain Colas on board Manureva finished in 169 days (stopped to make repairs)
1986-87 Philippe Monnet on board Kriter finished in 129 days (stopped to make repairs)
1988-89 Olivier de Kersauson on board Un Autre Regard finished in 125 days (stopped to make repairs)
2003-04 Francis Joyon on board IDEC finished in 72 days, 22 hours, 54 minutes, 22 seconds (non-stop)
Linky Sailing News
Racing Jobson back on the water.
News Cup thoughts. TP 52 logo.
Great Lakes Water wanted.
College Sailing Rankings. How Navy fall was won. Campbell's win. Yalie 3rd
October 25, 2004
US Sailing Awards
US SAILING, national governing body of the sport, has recognized several sailing organizations and volunteers for their contribution and dedication to the sport of sailing during an awards presentation at the organization’s annual general meeting in Portland, Ore.,
last Saturday. US SAILING President Janet Baxter presented several awards,including the Gay S. Lynn Trophy for outstanding contribution to disabled sailing (awarded to Robie Pierce), the Timmy Larr Award for outstanding contribution to the advancement of sailor education and training (awarded to John Malatak), and two President’s Awards.
Gay S. Lynn Trophy
Robie Pierce (Newport, RI) was presented with the Gay S. Lynn Trophy for outstanding contribution to disabled sailors and the sport of disabled sailing. For many years, Pierce ran the Shake-A-Leg sailing program in Newport, RI, which has introduced hundreds of disabled people to the joys of sailing and sailboat racing. Pierce is also an accomplished sailor. He won the International Foundation for Disabled Sailors (IFDS) Disabled World Championship in 1993, was a three-time Independence Cup winner and finished second at the 1995 Trials to represent the USA at the 1996 Paralympics. In 1992, he joined US SAILING’s Sailors with Special Needs Committee, becoming Chairman in 1993. In addition, he served as a member of the Executive
Committee of IFDS from 1998 to 2002. Pierce’s service to the sport of disabled sailing, at the grass roots and at the international levels, made him a very worthy recipient of the Gay S. Lynn Trophy.
Timmy Larr Award
John Malatak, a lifelong supporter of boating safety through education and training, has recived US SAILING’s Timothea Larr Award for his lifelong commitment to boating safety through education and training. The award is US SAILING Training Committee’s highest honor presented annually to an individual whose vision and guidance has made an outstanding contribution to the advancement of sailor education and training in the United States. Malatak exemplifies the best qualities, the highest standards and selfless devotion in his lifetime service to public service and boating education in general and specifically to US SAILING’S efforts to train sailors for safety
and excellence.
President’s Awards
US SAILING President Janet Baxter announced that the President’s Award will be presented to Chris Bedford (Watertown, Mass.) for the outstanding meteorological services he donated to the U.S. Olympic Sailing Team in Athens last summer, as well as to the US Sailing Team throughout 2004.
Baxter also announced that the President’s Industry Award will be presented to A.G.A. Correa & Son (Edgecomb, ME) for creating and donating spectacular trophies for the top five winners at the 2004 U.S. Olympic Team Trials Sailing.
Middle Sea Race features light air
After a frustrating 24 hours of light or no wind the frontrunners in the Rolex Middle Race have finally picked up some breeze and are making headway towards Palermo and the northwestern tip of Sicily.
The three maxis passed through the Strait of Messina between Sicily and the toe of Italy yesterday lunch time followed by the Greek Farr 52 Optimum 3 soon after. They then spent most of the afternoon parked up, wind spotters up the mast on each boat trying to seek out the slightest zephyr on the water that might help propel them northwest towards the volcanic island of Stromboli and its little outcrop Strombolicchio.
Race leader on the water, Neville Crichton's Alfa Romeo was at a virtual standstill yesterday afternoon between 1 and 4pm and again from 9pm until midnight finally rounding Stromboli at 02.30am this morning with Damiani Our Dream and Black Dragon both around 20 minutes astern of the Kiwi line honours favourite having suffered similar fates.
"It took 14 hours instead of seven hours to get to Stromboli," commented a crew member on board Damiani Our Dream, where the team have been keeping themselves entertained between meals telling jokes and singing. It seems an age ago when rounding southeast Sicily they split their light no1 genoa - now long since patched up.
After threading their way through another light patch in the lee of Stromboli this morning, the three maxis were this afternoon making 6-9 knots towards the northwest corner of Sicily in a breeze that is supposed to veer to the southeast and build to around 10 knots. Tomorrow they are expected to enjoy fresher conditions still, when a front passes across the race course bringing with it 20 knot winds at last providing an opportunity for the ocean racing speedsters to show their full potential.
Yesterday afternoon while the four front runners were negotiating the tough conditions up to Stromboli, the bulk of the fleet were in worse shape, left wallowing in no wind and in unfavourable current to the south of the Strait of Messina.
"The current took us up to the Italian side and the current then pulled us across from Italy to Sicilian side. It was a little frightening," commented Royal Malta YC Commodore George Bonello Dupuis, whose Prima 38 Primadonna finally made it through the Strait at 0200 local time this morning.
"Just before coming out of the Straits the wind died and we were caught in a whirlpool which took us right round 720 degrees, while XE and another yacht sailed past," described a crew member on Anthony Camilleri's Bavaria 38 Matchless. "At one point we went backwards 200m."
Mike Broughton, navigator on board Chris Bull's J/145 Jazz reported having been becalmed for four hours and that they along with several other boats had had to anchor close to shore in the busy Strait. Other boats becalmed in the Strait were requested by the Italian Coastguard to start their engines to avoid the proliferation of ferries and other maritime traffic that use the busy mile wide channel at Messina. The progress of these yachts, believed to be around eight in number, will be subject to an enquiry upon finishing.
Late last night the race effectively restarted for the majority of the fleet with Chris Bull's Jazz, Brave, Constanter, Nur and Isigo making it through the Strait at around midnight local time. Compared to the maxis their progress across to Stromboli this morning was in a light but more consistent easterly breeze that saw them round the volcanic island at around midday. They also seem to have been impeded less by the lee of the island than the maxis were this morning and should be in good shape on handicap..
Vendee Globe Preview: Roland Jourdain
The 5th edition of the Vendee Globe will start November 7th. This race is for single handed sailors sailing Open 60 foot mono hulls non stop around the world via the great capes.
Leading up to the race we will post previews a series of previews of the leading skippers.
Roland Jourdain with his shock of curly hair was the 3rd place finisher in the 2000-2001 edition. Jourdain has the fleet's newest boat designed by Lombard. Launched this April the boat had problems relating to the keel. Still Jourdain completed a 2,800 mile qualifier.
The 40 year old has a record of consistent success that adds credence to this untried boat. None of the other 3rd place finishers have moved onto a win (although Herve Laurent 3rd in 1996-97 is entered this year), but Jourdain has the results and potential to alter this pattern.
Global Challenge is a 3 mile race
After nearly 500 miles of racing Samsung has lost her lead to VAIO having clung on to their easterly position a fraction too long, not making it to the Rhum line in time.
Most of the yachts have passed the Fernando De Noronha Islands, which lie 225 miles to the North East of the Brazilian coast, for the final drag race down the coast of South America.
VAIO, led by Italian skipper Amedeo Sorrentino are now enjoying pole position with a 3 mile lead against their rivals who will undoubtedly be kicking themselves for their first tactical error in the race. Imagine It. Done is also in danger of losing ground, as is Pindar, who have been following the easterly position, whereas Team Stelmar have made up ground by being on the inside, known as the inside corner effect.
Hard at it in the middle of the fleet is 6th place Spirit of Sark, set to make another move through the fleet with the highest 24-hour run of 238 miles. Their sights are now firmly on BG SPIRIT and just 2 miles which separates the two yachts.
All of the yachts have passed the doldrums, given Neptune more than his fair share of gifts and sacrifices and are now racing towards the first port of call Buenos Aires.
The yachts will now be broad reaching down the coast and need the wind to stay at its current wind speed for some time. However, there is an anomaly with variable weather in the vicinity of Capo Frio (near Rio de Janeiro) with evidence of current frontal activity.
Trouble stricken Team Save The Children, now 604 miles from the leader, have encountered yet another obstacle. Anthony Campbell explains: “Another valuable lesson:- never believe that things can't get worse than they already are!
“As is prone to happen though, in the unpredictable doldrums, a squall suddenly whipped up some breeze and we started moving- hooray. However we quickly realised that there was too much sail up for the sudden wind and had to get our biggest headsail the Genoa down to be replaced by the smaller number 1 Yankee.
“As we were dropping there was an anguished cry from just below
me, something had gone wrong and worryingly the cry had come from John (Bluett).
“It wasn't good. JB had dislocated his shoulder and was as white as a sheet and in considerable pain. His shoulder was severely displaced and it was apparent that we would have to get his shoulder realigned and back in it socket- not pretty!
“Remarkably we managed to get the shoulder back in place first time round. To lose JB at this stage in the race is a hammer blow we could have done without. He is a workhorse and one of the most important crewmembers on the yacht. If anything on the yacht needs fixing we call in JB. He never fails to amaze us with his list of skills. So far he's saved the water maker, fixed our computer and spinnaker pole, as well as sealed leaks in our heads and hull. More often than not we wonder what on earth we'd do without him.”
As a key member on the bow team, this will be another blow for the crew, which seems to have been besieged with problems including a water maker failure earlier on in the race.
Leaderboard Distance to finish
VAIO 2,123
Samsung 2,126
Barclays Adventurer 2,143
BP Explorer 2,177
BG SPIRIT 2,186
Spirit of Sark 2,188
SAIC La Jolla 2,220
Team Stelma 2,259
Imagine It. Done 2,273
Me To You 2,367
Pindar 2,405
Team Save the Children 2,727
Yacht Clubs Win Award
Indian Harbor and Riverside Yacht Clubs (in Greenwich and Riverside, Conn., respectively) received US SAILING’s prestigious St. Petersburg Yacht Club Trophy for excellence in race management. The Trophy was presented to both yacht clubs by US SAILING’s Race Management Committee Chair Tom Farquhar earlier this evening during an awards dinner at US SAILING’s Annual General Meeting in Portland, Ore. Commodore Jeff Merz (Indian Harbor Yacht Club), Spike Richey (Riverside Yacht Club and event co-chair), and Tom Duggan (US SAILING Certified Principal Race Officer) accepted the Trophy.
Indian Harbor and Riverside Yacht Clubs were honored for their outstanding organization and execution of the 2003 MasterCard International Etchells Class World Championship held September 17-23, 2003. A total of 93 boats from 9 different countries competed in this Championship. Both yacht clubs received particularly high marks for reaction to wind changes, mark setting accuracy and setting of marks, response to change and safety considerations. Skippers' comments from the event included, "Conducted in very trying conditions. That was not only a test for competitors but for the ‘efficiency and effectiveness of the race management team. ‘Excellence’ is the only description.”
Emblematic of excellence in race management, the St. Petersburg Yacht Club Trophy was awarded originally by St. Petersburg Yacht Club in the late 1960s to recognize the club that ran the best regatta. The trophy was retired for several years, until it was donated to US SAILING in 1977. The winner is selected on the basis of race management superiority and evaluation by participating skippers. To be eligible for the St. Petersburg Yacht Club Trophy in 2005, events must be held between September 1, 2004 and August 31, 2005. Regatta organizers may get program information on US SAILING's web site. Entries must be postmarked no later than September 5, 2005.
Neptune Names Names
Each day as the yachts race in the Global Challenge, teams will file daily logs via satellite to the web site.
These log entries are designed to be more than simple position and status reports; they are the teams' way of sharing the excitement and drama as it is seen and felt by those aboard.
Via the Global Challenge's RSS Feed ATWOS will feature selected daily logs.
Today's log is from Pindar's Cuong Tran
Day 21, on a beautiful deep blue sea, bright sun shine on all her sails, boat Pindar charged south off the coast of Brazil.
On board there was an unusual buzz of excitement amongst the crew. Past misfortunes were forgotten that day - a spinnaker sail completely ripped apart by freak winds, water maker broken leaving water rations just for drinking and a crew stinking like rats, a skipper in agony from major tooth damage. No one cared! For the equator was approaching and they have never been there before.
As the moment came, crew members celebrated ecstatically on deck. Cameras clicked and champagne bottles were popped. A party atmosphere ensued and only continued until the alcohol dried up, and as everyone was about to clear off, King neptune emerged from within the boat (looking surprisingly similar to the skipper) an ugly sight it was, a half naked Loz covered in body fluff .
Talking gibberish about mystics of the sea and how each sea farer must pay homage to King Neptune. Loz Marriott started dishing punishment to the crew remembering to be given out in Buenos Aires to avoid compromising boat speed. What follows is a watered down account of accusations made by King neptune about each crew member on what has driven him insane over the past 3 weeks at sea.
Tony - hogging the computer and telephone all the godammed time.
Graham - for thinking and believing he invented every idea, including global challenge itself!
Andy Cam - Questioning of the wind speed and technicalities the moment he steps on deck everytime, and being the one who blew the kite.
Andy Cat - for throwing up all the time with the greatest volume of bile and loudest vomiting noises too.
Spikus Maximus (Simon) - Founder of the kite riders club a crazy stunt involving climbing 100 ft up the mast and hanging his manhood over a spinnaker thats got enough power to pull this 42 ton boat at 20 knots!
Kathy - For driving the skip into despair abusing her station as the ship's medic by molesting all of the crew in the name of nursing
CT - Asking the most random questions at the most innapproriate times (and being as tactful as a brick). Falling asleep in the skippers daily brief
Paul - Constant playing with his tools in his tool box and impersenating a masseur with the female members of the crew.
Damian - Using big words that the skipper doesn't understand
Steve - Keeping Neptune awake with his snoring
Shonagh - Keeping all the best food hidden away and being sickenly polite
Sophie - Not taking Mother watch seriously enough
Helen - Being bossy and wrapping her watch leader around her little finger
Mary - Carrying her own personal pink phalic symbol around with her at all times
Woo - Swearing in the pit, talking too much and protesting in the quiz
Lucy - Being a homing device for all surrounding flying fish and leaving them to die a painful death on the deck
Nick (AKA DOG - Deaf Old Git)- Pretending to be deaf when it suits him
Tunnicliffe wins women's singles for 3rd time
FINAL RESULTS
1. Anna Tunnicliffe, ODU 37
2. Sloan Devlin, Harvard 54
3. Molly Carapiet, Yale 64
4. Amanda Clark, Connecticut College 81
5. Genny Tulloch, Harvard 99
6. Anne Davidson, Brown 113
7. Anne Bowen, Charleston 135
8. Tinja Anderson, Hawaii 137
9. Shandy Buckley, Hawaii 148
10. Cordo Carraher, Georgetown 152
11. Alana O'Reilly, Charleston 155
12. Anne Porter, Wisconsin 174
13. Jenny Gervais, St. Mary's 187
14. Christina Falcone, Michigan 194
15. Hayley Siegenthaler, U. of Washington 211
16. Jenipher Cate, Texas A&M-Galveston 238
Campbell dominates Men's Singlehandeds
2004-2005 ICSA / Vanguard North American Mens Singlehanded Championship for The Glen Foster Trophy
FINAL RESULTS
Friday: Sailors were welcomed to Lake Minnetonka with fog, rain and temperatures in the low 50’s, however, a nice breeze out of the Southeast at 8-13mph allowed for seven races to be completed.
Saturday: Another chilly morning with moderate fog but the breeze was still around, more from the South, at 8-13mph. Three races were completed before lunch. In the afternoon, the breeze picked up dramatically and shifted to the west. Gusts were well into the 20mph range and the sailors were challenged by typical Minnesota fall sailing conditions. A total of seven races were completed.
Sunday: Sunny skies but calm breeze.
The University of Minnesota would like to thank the Wayzata Yacht Club for their continued support of their program and all of youth sailing. The team would also like to thank the ICSA and Vanguard for their continued support of collegiate sailing as well as the Burgum Family, the Kobs Family, the Wayzata Sailing Foundation and the Midwest Collegiate Sailing Association for the contributions to the event.
Genuine and true thanks extended to Head Coach and Assistant Coach of the University of Minnesota, Cappy Capper and Brent Ostbye, for making this event possible with many long hours of preparation over the past two weekends. Also, thanks to Principal Race Officer Blake Middleton and his staff, Head Judge Dr. Bruce Martinson and jury members Zak Fanberg, Sam Rogers and Tim Krech. Scoring and website updates by Anne Scheuerman and Ernest Brody, food by Dee Ghering and her staff, as well as countless members from the University of Minnesota Sailing Team and members of the Wayzata Yacht Club for manning safety boats, coordinating traffic and assistance to the race committee.
1 A. Campbell Geogetown 32
2 C. Johnson Harvard 68
3 A. Kirkland Tufts 83
4 P. Must Kings Point 84
5 K. Kovacs Harvard 97
6 R. Johnson Boston Colege 110
7 B. Fahey Washington117
8 E. Wager Stanford124
9 J. Storck HWS 125
10 M. Anderson USC149
11 P. Stanton Eckerd 159
12 H. Haggerty Texas A&M Galveston 185
13 J. Fuentes Charleston 204
14 B. Burgum Minnestota 208
15 C. Rechcgyl Marquette 213
16 K.Kleinschrodt Southern Alabama 221
Linky Sailing News
Racing Coutts a winner in Bermuda match racing. Middle Sea Race. Cat match of American Olympians.
News Schwab report. Record attempt ends. Grael goes offshore. Captain Lane
Great Lakes Squirrel news. Lake Superior harbor of refuge
College Sailing Campbell and Tunnicliffe win singles
October 22, 2004
Gadget # 3
Your traditional Swiss Army knife has things like knife blades, corkscrew, can opener, screwdriver, wire stripper, saws and toothpicks. As with many things the Swiss Army knife continues to change.
Now there is a Swiss Army knife that includes a USB storage device that can hold up to 128 MB of data. This includes things like text files, images, video, audio and more. Plug it into any USB enabled computer and you can then view and manipulate data.
I'm not sure this is the most useful item a sailor could have but it is the indicator of a trend. Although it might be a way to download weather data from a land based computer and then load the data on to the onboard laptop prior to a race. Or it could be used to keep contact information and vital boat information such as engine manuals etc. Then when cruising you would have a portable device you could use for trouble shooting, repairs etc.
Vendee Globe Run Up
Over a two day period this week Nick took part in obligatory medical training provide by the Vendée organisers. The official race doctor Jean-Yves Chauve held the two day training course in Les Sables d'Olonne. The course included practical lessons in first aid, drug (legal ones!) admistration, and precise injury description so that accurate diagnosis and treatment can be relayed to the skipper. Nick is no stranger to injury while sailing after breaking his arm on the the Mini Transat in 1999 after being capsized, and breaking his ankle onboard the maxi catamaran PLAYSTATION. The aim is not to create doctors but to impart knowledge and create a feeling of trust in the race doctor and his ability to advise when the skipper is half a world away. There are plenty of examples in Vendée Globe history of serious self-administered treatment - in the '96 race Bertrand de Broc managed to sew his own tongue back deep Southern Ocean and Pete Goss had to operate on his elbow following instructions coming through on his screen from Dr Chauve. Broken ribs, deep cuts and nutrition related problems are frequent. Looking after the body is as important as the boat.
With only 15 days to the start line last minute preparations and supplies continue to arrive on the pontoon's. For SKANDIA the last items to go onboard will be Nick's personal effects and fuel, 550 litres of fuel will power the generator which in turn charges the batteries that supply essential power to the performance, navigation and communication equipment as well lights, the radar and essential autopilots. Nick will take a wind generator with him as a back up, and the main engine can also be used to charge if necessary. Gauging how much fuel is very important - too little and the race could be over early, too much and all those hours saving grams of weight are wasted as the boat carries the extra fuel all around the globe.
The Race Direction team have today been briefing the Skippers on details of the race course and communication. One key announcement today were the Southern Ocean ice limits - gates created from lines of latitude which the boats have to pass to the north of - the effect being to keep the fleet further north than they might other dare to go. Whilst this doesn't prevent close encounters with icebergs, it certainly reduces the chances. Ice is very often invisible to radar...and one of the biggest threats to the skippers. Ellen MacArthur in the last Vendée passed a line of ten 1 mile long icebergs, at least she thought there were ten, the ones you don't see don't count...these can be the most stressful moments!
For Nick the realisation that "THIS IS IT" and the dream will finally become a reality has arrived -
"This is a huge achievement for everyone that has been involved in the project from the outset. Initially just the idea of competing in the Vendée Globe is a dream, but its soon taken over by the practical side of finding a sponsor, and putting a boat through a refit. Finally to be in les Sables d'Olonne and ready to start means that once again I am looking at the dream and realising that it is happening. For the next 16 days I will try to enjoy the atmosphere, relax, maybe get one last surf in St Lunaire and try to have a good mental attitude for the start line"
VENDÉE GLOBE HISTORY - LEGENDS ARE MADE (Part 2):
After the tragedy of the second edition of the Vendée Globe in 1992 when Nigel Burgess was lost at sea, the 3rd edition was to see History repeat it's self.
That horror was repeated in 1996, when Gerry Roufs, a Canadian, was also lost at sea. Two others were rescued in unimaginable conditions. Less than half the competitors finished in a race where heroes were born and martyrs were made. The 1996-97 running of the race only added to the drama and mystique of this death defying challenge that saw Britain’s Pete Goss rescue French sailor Raphaël Dinelli in life-threatening conditions and another Brit, Tony Bullimore, was rescued from his upturned hull by the Australian navy. A new race record was set by winner Christophe Auguin, of 105 days. And Catherine Chabaud became the first woman to finish a Vendée Globe.
The 2000-01 edition of the race pierced the consciousness of the British nation when 24-year-old Ellen MacArthur stunned the sailing fraternity and became a national heroine when she finished second 24 hours behind French sailor, Michel Desjoyeaux, in a time of 94 days, 4 hours, 25 minutes and 40 seconds to become the fastest woman to circumnavigate the globe.
Now for the 2004-05 Vendée Globe, over 20 sailors are expected to line up on the start line on 7th November to face the biggest challenge of their sailing careers.
All of them drawn to the same sea sailed by Slocum, Chichester and Knox-Johnston. All of them wondering if they can measure up to the challenge of the Vendée Globe.
Original text by Peter Rusch
Vendee Globe Preview: Nick Moloney
Nick Moloney has been around the world on a Volvo 60 and a maxi cat.
Now he will sail it alone onboard Skandia which was 2nd in
2000-2001 as Kingfisher. The Australian has altered the boat and worked hard at improving his mental and emotional skills.
A finish of the Vendee Globe will mean he has completed his tri part around the world sailing goal list at 36. In past solo events Moloney
has struggled to avoid emotional burnout and physical collapse. How much moderation Moloney has learned will determine how this talented sailor on a historic boat finishes.
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 +4
Difference from last month -6
Difference from last year +11
Difference from long term average for October -14
Difference from Record High -54
Difference from Record Low +17
Forecast for 22 November 2004 -4
Checks & How They Are Done
Each day as the yachts race in the Global Challenge, teams will file daily logs via satellite to the web site.
These log entries are designed to be more than simple position and status reports; they are the teams' way of sharing the excitement and drama as it is seen and felt by those aboard.
Via the Global Challenge's RSS Feed ATWOS will feature selected daily logs.
Today's log is from Imagaine It Done's mechanic Neal Acworth
As the race progresses through the troublesome doldrums the activity continues around the boat to ensure that we're safe and can reliably keep pushing the pace. Top of the list, literally and figuratively speaking, is the rig check.
In port we have a comprehensive checklist, starting with the wind instruments at the top of the mast, progressing through every block, pulley, rivet and joint all the way down to the deck fittings that ensure that the mast stays up. In port its easy if time consuming, involving some swinging around on a line to reach the more remote parts of the rig. In port the boat's not really moving. In port the mast isn't swinging about like an inverted pendulum. Unfortunately we're not in port and we still need to check that the mast isn't going to fall down. So we wait for a calm(ish) day and send someone, usually me, up to the top to cast a careful eye over anything that might fall apart. With a little luck it's possible to get from top to bottom without losing your grip and getting slammed into pointy bits of metal as you get thrown through wide arcs around the mast.
Another favourite and fortunately infrequent job is to clean the water filters in the water maker. For some reason, a side effect of taking seawater and making drinking water is the production of something that smells of bad eggs. Ordinarily this isn't a problem as the smell is contained. Right until you need to clean the filters. The trick is to take the filter mechanism apart as quickly as
possible, usually spilling a few litres of water in the process, then throw the filters overboard on a line before the smell gets too much. An hour or so being towed behind the boat and the filters are clean.
The generator and engine checks are easier and don't involve bad eggs; does it have oil, does it have water, is the belt about to break? Add to this a healthy scan of the more miscellaneous bits to check that it still looks like it did the last time you looked and you're done. As boat mechanic (as well as rigger /dogsbody) I usually find that it's best not to touch anything that's still working, if only for blame avoidance reasons. Oh, and don't check the generator oil on starboard tack because the angle of the boat means that all the oil pours out, the end result of which is that the once working generator no longer works.
Most of the rest of the checks get done on an ongoing basis as a side effect of daily use, the recent incident with the heads being a prime example.
Key West '05
Bigger, better---and faster. That's the prospect for Key
West 2005 with the booming Transpac 52s and bustling J/105s, among other classes, coming out in force for North America's annual premiere regatta.
Overall entries are running ahead of the 2001 pace that saw a record number of 326 boats compete, forcing an expansion to four race courses. The climate, conditions, competition, renowned race management and shoreside attractions are among the reasons why the event dominates the world's midwinter sailing calendar.
Even regulars from throughout Florida are keen to return despite the heavy hardships and losses suffered by themselves or their neighbors when their state was hammered by a rare succession of four major hurricanes recently.
Premiere Racing management, recognizing the tenacity of the state's
competitors, has reduced entry fees for Florida residents by $100 for both Key West 2005 and Acura Miami Race Week 2005.
With the hurricane season long gone by January, Gary Schwarting, a Melges 24 sailor from Naples, said, "I entered well before the hurricanes hit and I'm still planning to go. There were no direct hits in Naples. We only got[winds] up to 80 mph."
Dr. Jose Suarez Hoyos of Tampa, who will sail his J/109 Mariah in his eighth Key West week, said he wouldn't miss it for anything. "The restaurants are great, you meet a lot of famous sailors and boats, and the organizers are really organized, so you know that a race is going to be [fair]."
Last January, week-long ideal winds produced winners from five countries and 11 states coast to coast and allowed a Key West record number of nine races to be sailed. This time there will be more than 20 one-design and PHRF classes for boats from 24 to 75 feet---notably the Transpac 52s that have quickly surged into a class of their own and the J/105s making a quantum jump from 29 boats to a free-for-all of 40 or more.
The Transpac 52s are now officially organized as the TP 52 Association as the box rule class expands far beyond its original concept of big boats that were equally suitable for the Transpacific Yacht Race and inshore buoy racing. Now there are boats competing or being built for owners in seven countries, including a Mediterranean fleet of 17 led by King Juan Carlos of Spain.
Tom Pollack, the class's executive director from Newport Beach, Calif., promises that six will line up at Key West. They are follow the lead of Roger Sturgeon's Rosebud, a bi-coastal competitor from Santa Cruz, Calif. and Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. that has crisscrossed the country competing at Key West and other venues in between the last two years.
"It all started with Rosebud traveling around and getting people
interested," Pollack said.
Others due to line up include the first U.S. season champion, Makoto Uematsu from Tokyo, sailing Esmeralda, with Ken Read as tactician. After winning 6 of 7 races at the Big Boat Series in San Francisco, Uematsu said, "This is the best boat I have ever had. It is also the fastest I have gone in a boat---faster than my powerboat!"
Key West will mark the start of the TP 52s' 2005 season championship series.
The J/105s' growth since their inception 13 years ago also has found no bounds. Class secretary-treasurer Nelson Weiderman said, "We have a lot of new people who are interested and we're retaining the people who have been there."
Also, he added, reconfiguration of the early Annapolis fleet will put those boats in the chase. "The Annapolis guys decided to go with deep keels," Weiderman said. "That's a 40- or 50-boat fleet that couldn't race with us because of their shoal keels. They're in the midst of converting their boats and will start bringing them to Key West."
Glenn Darden, the current North American champion, will not compete, but Richard Bergmann and Shawn Bennett's Zuni Bear, the two-time defending champion from San Diego, will be back, challenged by, among others, Ed Cummins and Jack Franco's Bold Forbes, the NA runnerup from Newport Beach.
Anticipated one design classes include the Swan 45s, which debuted a year earlier; Farr 40s, Mumm 30s, 1D35s, J/120s, J/80s, J/29s, C&C 99s, Corsair 28Rs and the largest group of all, the Melges 24s with their usual strong international turnout.
One-off designs and others without the numbers to establish classes will be assigned to the PHRF fleets that traditionally comprise about one-third of the turnout.
Key West 2005 sponsors are Nautica, Terra Nova Trading, RealTick, Mount Gay Rum, B&G, Lewmar, Samson Rope Technologies, and the Florida Keys and Key West Tourist Development Council. The Historic Seaport is the Official Site.
Support also comes from a record number of 28 Industry Partners.
Premiere Racing is also managing the new Acura Miami Race Week 2005 (“the SORC renaissance”). Race dates are March 10-13, 2005, with ocean and Biscayne Bay racing. Many Key West entrants are planning to store boats in Miami and FT Lauderdale and return for more great South Florida racing.
Linky Sailing News
Racing Middle Sea Prelims. Bermuda crash.
News Mirabella needs repairs. What Works.
Great Lakes Richardson Cup.
College Sailing This weekend Men's & Women's Single Handed Nationals
October 21, 2004
Quiz Nite at Sea
Each day as the yachts race in the Global Challenge, teams will file daily logs via satellite to the web site.
These log entries are designed to be more than simple position and status reports; they are the teams' way of sharing the excitement and drama as it is seen and felt by those aboard.
Via the Global Challenge's RSS Feed ATWOS will feature selected daily logs.
Today's log is from 10th place Pindar
Hello to one and all from Pindar the boat that seems to never cool down.
The soaring temperatures as we sail further south are constant so the crew are drinking as much fluids as possible and then of course trim, trim, trim!
We are working very hard to catch the boat in front which at every check we seem to be chasing down the mileage,this is a great morale booster for the team, and motivation to keep on working hard throughout the day and night.
This evening we had a break from the usual activities on the boat. Tony (our entertainments officer) produced a general knowledge quiz, split the crew into 2 teams, and we had to answer 30 questions. The winner of this would receive 2 packets of biscuits! Which I know does not sound the usual sort of competition prize to you guys back on terra firma but here on the boat that means Gold Dust!!! Sugar Rush!!! and an immense feeling of satisfaction and big smiles all round.
So, who won, well it was not the team I was on. We will be thinking of team names for the next quiz so that it will be easier for you guys to follow, as this will become a regular occurence culiminating at the end of the leg with the victorious team who will, I am sure, get a prize linked more to land and something that quenches the thirst! It was great fun huddled in our groups one in the cockpit the other in the snake pit trying to turn our brains to trivia questions and not sailing. Occasionally turning an ear to the opposition just seeing if you could eek out an answer to a question you were struggling with! Already the teams are wracking their brains for knowledge, almost revising so that, in our case, we can win next time and receive those coveted biscuits!!
Fedor Postpones
Currently there are two powerful low pressure systems in Eastern Atlantic heading towards each other. One storm is coming down from Artic, another coming up from South-West direction. This night these two low systems will crush into each other creating a very powerful storm that will hit South-West territory of UK and France. The storm force 9-10 (45-50 knots) will stay for several days. Falmouth Coast Guard announced Storm Warning.
Based on this weather patterns skipper Fedor Konyukhov had to postpone the start of his round the world record attempt that was scheduled on this Sunday 24th of October from Falmouth (Cornwall).
Open 85 “Trading Network Alye Parusa” is moored in Port Pendennis Marina. The boat is in “ready to go” conditions.
Today local divers using soft sponges cleaned the bottom of the yacht out of fresh weed that build up during last 2 months being in the docks after refit. The boat was supplied with final set of food, fuel, gas, fresh water. All equipment and food is packed into fixed storage boxes inside of the boat. Fedor Konyukhov considers that the start will be done in rough swell after storm and all equipment must be secured properly.
New starting date is scheduled on 26th of October, weather permitting. The date will be confirmed on 23-24th of October.
According to long term weather forecast at the beginning of November England will be hit with another severe storm, so Fedor has short period of time to get out into Atlantic and run fast to S-W towards Canary Islands.
Linky Sailing News
Racing Conner out. Cat match
News B7G picks up Sailmath. Sea rescue. Ainslie's aims to improve in team environment
Great Lakes More snakefish not found. Cell phone help call works. Delivery almost disaster
College Sailing Yale singles rep
October 20, 2004
Gadget # 2
Recently I've come across several gadgets that I think might play a role in boating safety. 1st up was a hand cranked cell phone charger.
Now we turn to a GPS you can wear on your wrist, the Garmin Foretrex 101. It runs on a pair of AAA batteries and even includes a countdown for race starts. It's WAAS enabled and is accurate to 3 meters. It can also handle up to 30 minutes in the water. Plus it has all the regular GPS features such as waypoints (500), and routes (20) etc. And since GPS is based on time measurement the GPS will give you accurate time while on your wrist.
Particularly when sailing short handed having accurate nav info write on your wrist will be handy. This product is just another step on the road from navigation by say the lunar distance method, to easier and more accurate methods like a wrist top GPS.
Vendee Globe Preview: Jean Lecam
The 5th edition of the Vendee Globe will start November 7th. This race is for single handed sailors sailing Open 60 foot mono hulls non stop around the world via the great capes.
Leading up to the race we will post previews a series of previews of the leading skippers.
Jean Le Cam has a varied background most recently on the 60 foot trimaran circuit. Bonduelle is a sister ship to Roland Jourdain's Sill and was able to beat Ecover in a 1,000 mile race this spring. She had similar problems to Sill as regards the keel.
Le Cam is much like Michel Desjoyeaux in that his boats are highly personalized. Le Cam, age 44, once sailed tbe Whitbread with Eric Tabarly and sailing smaller offshore boats has won the Figaro solo event three times (1994,1996 & 1999). He shares this record with Phillipe Poupon who was 3rd in the 92-93 Vendee Globe.
Winning the Figaro is a good sign for Le Cam. 3 of the 4 Vendee Globe Winners (Michel Desjoyeaux 2000-2001 VG, 1992 Figaro) Christophe Augin (1996-97 VG, 1986 Figaro) and Alain Gautier 1992-93 VG, 1989 Figaro) were Figaro winners prior to winning the Vendee Globe.
TP Shortage on Me to You
Each day as the yachts race in the Global Challenge, teams will file daily logs via satellite to the web site.
These log entries are designed to be more than simple position and status reports; they are the teams' way of sharing the excitement and drama as it is seen and felt by those aboard.
Via the Global Challenge's RSS Feed ATWOS will feature selected daily logs.
Today's log is from Me to You, which is sponsored by a greeting card company. Author of this log is Wim Berkhof from the Netherlands.
Another great day out on the water yesterday. The Me to You crew dealt with a new phenomona called squalls. These flying buckets of water approach the boat rather quickly. First a few drops of rain fall which signals the watchleader to go for a run-guy kite drop. Then the squall empties on top of the boat, soaking everyone on deck. Meanwhile the wind increases quite a bit. When it's raining the hatches need to be closed which makes it very sweaty inside. The whole sequence takes about 15 minutes.
At the beginning of the afternoon Tatty (Teddy) had a rather entertaining experience. Going to the top of the mast with Ricky to sort out some halyards ("vallen"). After watching carefully it went down the spare main for a high-speed descend to land in Will's smooth hands.
BREAKING NEWS: Me to You is running out of toilet paper. An emergency meeting came up with a plan to get the team through the second half of the leg. Boys can use five sheets a day, girls can use eight (less whenever possible). Next level would be to cut down on food intake, an option I personally don't fancy. New provisions in BA.
Nice talking to you again and have a very entertaing day in your office as we will have in ours.
Linky Sailing News
Racing Bermuda women's winner. Knockout round. Cat match racing
News Jobson returns
Great Lakes 90 year old survivor. Snakehead info. 6th generation sailor
College Sailing Buff Dartmouth sailors like breeze
October 19, 2004
Navy 4 Division Fall Intersectional
NAVY FALL INTERSECTIONAL
US Naval Academy
16-17 October, 2004
REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS: Big Breeze (12-22 knots) both days. Lots of races and wipeouts!
A division = 20 Races
B division = 20 Races
C division = 20 Races
D division = 20 Races
A B C D TOT
1. Kings Point 143 110 116 57 426
2. Yale 113 80 159 182 534
3. Hobart W/S 145 155 159 81 540
4. USC 91 100 173 195 559
5. Tufts 182 131 112 154 579
6. Georgetown 198 151 69 162 580
7. St. Mary's 186 156 157 118 617
8. Harvard 191 278 69 105 643
9. Stanford 217 202 108 186 713
10. Navy 213 189 183 139 724
11. Charleston 173 205 246 153 777
12. Washington Coll 175 151 270 208 804
13. Rhode Island 184 203 191 284 862
14. Old Dominion 172 192 251 279 894
15. Eckerd 265 272 208 240 985
16. Texas A&M Galv 183 271 336 313 1103
17. Wisconsin 310 300 289 339 1238
18. Michigan 355 354 312 251 1272
19. Maryland 355 312 390 341 1398
20. Cornell 334 373 307 387 1401
A division = 20 Races
TOT
1. USC 91 Mikee Anderson 06/
Vanessa DeCollibus 07 1-7; Kyrstin Munson 05 8;
Ben Palmer 06 9-20
2. Yale 113 Stuart McNay 05/
Sarah Himmelfarb 06 1-10; Benoit Bewley 05 11-20
3. Kings Point 143 Graham Merganthaler 06/
Aaron Thompson 08 3-20; Greer Ferguson 06 1-2
4. Hobart W/S 145 Lee Sackett 05/
Kate Brush 07 1-7,13-14,19-20; Aaron Holland
07 8-10;
Dan Thompson 08 11-12,15-18
5. Old Dominion 172 Anna Tunnicliffe 05/
Ryan Kozoriz 07 1-7; Wade Schon 07 8-10;
Michael Smith 06 11-20
6. Charleston 173 Alana O'Reilly 06 1-8,13-14; Tom Loutrel 05
9-12,15-20/
Suzy Lintern 06 1-8,13; Hunter Stunzi 07
9-12,14-20
7. Washington Coll 175 Colin Robertson 05/
Vanessa Anderson 07
8. Tufts 182 Dave Siegal 06/
Anna Martin 07 1-6,13; Duncan Kopp 7-10;
Stephen Cox 07 11-12,14-20
9. Texas A&M Galv 183 Scott Stanton 07/
Nick Moraski 07
10.Rhode Island 184 Morgan Paxhia 05/
Kerry Mahoney 05
11. St. Mary's 186 Andrew Watters 07/
Meredith Nordhem 08 1-8,13-14; Cotton Kelley
07 9-12,15-20
12. Harvard 191 Sloan Devlin 06/
Christina Dahlman 07
13. Georgetown 198 Steve Streit 05/
Emilie Bogrand 07 1-8; Barbara Hall 05 9-12;
Kyle Bergeron 06 13-20
14. Navy 213 John Keith 06 1-16,18-20; Adam Oliviera 06 17/
Lauren Sutehall 07 1-2; John Appelbaum 06 3-10;
Dave Parker 08 11-17; Adam Oliviera 06 18-20
15. Stanford 217 Pete Deming 05/
Lucy Horton 05 1-6; Ali Salatti 06 11-20
16. Eckerd 265 Kellen Bernard 06/
Tina Irwin 07 1-8; Katja Riise 06 9-20
17. Wisconsin 310 Anne Porter 05/
Patti Schmidt 08
18. Cornell 334 Kinloch Yellot 05/
Michelle D'Agrosa 07
19. Michigan 355 Chris Granger 07/
Katie DeWitt 0715-16; Lisa Vandenbossche 07
1-14;
Evan Quasney 06 17-18
20. Maryland 355 Mike Coe 05/
Alexa Schuler 04 1-10,12-16,20;
Joseph Schmaus 05 11,17-19
B division = 20 Races
TOT
1. Yale 80 Zach Brown 08/
Meredith Killion 05 1-2; Benoit Bewley 05 3-10;
Sarah Himmelfarb 06 11-20
2. USC 100 Harrison Turner 05/
Melanie Roberts 07 1-7,13-16,19-20; Ben Palmer 06 8;
Kyrstin Munson 05 9-12,17-18
3. Kings Point 110 Pete Young 05/
Tim Cain 06
4. Tufts 131 Jeff Cruise 06/
Chryssa Rask 08 1-5,13-16; Stephan Cox 07 6-10;
Duncan Kopp 11-12,17-20
5. Georgetown 151 Ed duMoulin 06 11-20; Chris Behm 08 1-10/
Kyle Bergeron 06 1-10; Julia Graham 06 11-14;
Barbara Hall 05 15-20
6. Washington Coll 151 Carl Horrocks 06/
Alexandria Starks 08
7. Hobart W/S 155 Jay Mills 08/
Mandi Markee 07 1-8,13-14; Dan Thompson 08
9-10;
Aaron Holland 07 11-12,15-20
8. St. Mary's 156 John Howell 07 1-16; John Loe 08 17-20/
Doria MacKenzie 05 1-2; Blake DeBoer 07 3-20
9. Navy 189 Gary Grimes 07 1-2,11-18,20; Garth Fasano 08
3-10;
Dave Parker 07 19;
Slava Haywas 07 1-2; Adam Oliviera 06 3-6,8-10;
Kristen Sproat 08 7; John Appelbaum 06 11-20
10. Old Dominion 192 Bill Berg 05/
Vince Fontimayor 05 1-7,13-15,19-20;
Wade Schon 07 11-12,16-18; Mike Smith 06 8-10
11. Stanford 202 Edward Conrad 08/
Anna Vu 06 1-6,11-18; Ali Salatti 06 7-10;
Lucy Horton 05 19-20
12. Rhode Island 203 Matt Kastan 07/
Kristen Johnson 07
13. Charleston 205 Brendan Healy 07 1-5,8-12,14-18;
Russ O'Reilly 07 6-7,13; Jesse Combs 07 19-20
14. Texas A&M Galv 271 Kevin Gunn 05/
Maureen Frerichs 06
15. Eckerd 272 D.J. Driscoll 06/
Lauren Fisher 07 1-17; Tina Irwin 07 18-20
16. Harvard 278 Jessica Baker 06/
Ruth Schlitz 06 1-5,7-8,13-14; Pat Mauro 07 6;
Matt Knowles 06 9-12,15-20
17. Wisconsin 300 Joe Zechlinski 06/
Brianne Zechlinski 08
18. Maryland 312 Aaron Galvin 07/
Philip Brazio 05 1-8,11-20; Joseph Schmaus 05 9-10
19. Michigan 354 Caitlin Delphin 06/
Thomas Martin 05 6-20; Katie DeWitt 07 1-5
20. Cornell 373 Scott Grandt 08/
Hilary Johnson 05
C division = 20 Races
TOT
1. Georgetown 69 Andrew Campbell 06
2. Harvard 69 Clay Johnson 07
3. Stanford 108 Emery Wager 07
4. Tufts 112 Zander Kirkland 06
5. Kings Point 116 Peeter Must 05
6. St. Mary's 157 Alex Steele 07
7. Hobart W/S 159 Trevor Moore 07
8. Yale 159 Matt Barry 07
9. USC 173 Greg Helias 07
10. Navy 183 Steve Gay 05
11. Rhode Island 191 Tim Pitts 05
12. Eckerd 208 Peter Stanton 06
13. Charleston 246 Jose Fuentes 06
14. Old Dominion 251 Charles Higgins 06
15. Washington Coll 270 Parker Mitchell 08
16. Wisconsin 289 Matt Schmidt 07
17. Cornell 307 Ricky Turner 08
18. Michigan 312 David Ellis 06
19. Texas A&M Galv 336 Chris Flynn 08
20. Maryland 390 Rohan Prabhakar 05
D division = 20 Races
TOT
1. Kings Point 57 Chris Branning 08
2. Hobart W/S 81 John Storck 05
3. Harvard 105 Kyle Kovacs 08
4. St. Mary's 118 Charles Asper 05
5. Navy 139 Chuck Fulmer 06
6. Charleston 153 Patrick Wilson 07
7. Tufts 154 Brendan Shattuck 06
8. Georgetown 162 JB Turney 07
9. Yale 182 Phil Stemler 07
10. Stanford 186 Andrew Megher 05
11. USC 195 Clark Fonda 07
12. Washington Coll 208 Alex Hood 08
13. Eckerd 240 Justin Van Deinse 07
14. Michigan 251 Alp Kardicali 08
15. Old Dominion 279 Tom Lewin 07
16. Rhode Island 284 Craig Thompson 08
17. Texas A&M Galv 313 Brad Winslett 08
18. Wisconsin 339 Scott Eisenhardt 06
19. Maryland 341 Varun Prabhakar 06
20. Cornell 387 Eric Magnuson 07
Gadget # 1
Recently I've come across several gadgets that I think might play a role in boating safety.
1st up is the Sidewinder Charger a hand crank charger for mobile phones. These are a fact of life and are often on boats. More and more boats have the ubiquitous 12V outlets to charge them. However, if the batteries go flat so does your battery charging capability.
The Sidewinder which claims to give 6 minutes of talk time for 2 minutes of cranking removes this worry.
It's not a universal product as for instance it does not work with Sanyo phones.
Finally, if you've seen the movie Cellular this little item would make Chris Evan's life much easier.
P.S. Grundig makes a multi band radio that works off a hand crank. This is sold at Radio Shack etc., and again takes the what happens if the batteries die worry away.
Rain & Showers
Earlier today, Phillip the Weather anorak wrote, "I've tried to point out the difference between rain and showers." Since he didn't go into the details here's what he might have said.
Shower
- Comes from convective cloud
- Sudden start and stop
- Rapid changes in intensity
- Quickly differing sky
- Bigger water particles aka drops than other forms of precipitation.
Rain
-Droplets grater than .5 mm.
-Different terms including light(0 to .10 inch per hour) to heavy (over .3 inches per hour)
-Falls in relatively straight, although not completely vertical paths.
I will add that if the drops are less than .5 mm and fall in an irregular path than you have drizzle and not rain.
Phliip the WX Anorak
Each day as the yachts race in the Global Challenge, teams will file daily logs via satellite to the web site.
These log entries are designed to be more than simple position and status reports; they are the teams' way of sharing the excitement and drama as it is seen and felt by those aboard.
Via the Global Challenge's RSS Feed ATWOS will feature selected daily logs.
Today's log is from Phillip Avery who is sailing on Samsung the current leader in a close 1st leg.
Educational standards are rising we are told. Successive GCSE and A level results have broken all previous records. In fact, they are becoming so good that the day when every student gains straight A's in all examinations cannot be far away. Then what? It brings to mind the somersaults gymanastics went through to overcome the 'perfect 10s' attained by so many eastern Europeans of yesteryear. If you detect a little scepticism in my opening remarks, read on.
A little back ground may help matters here. I'm a Weatherman by profession, trained by the Royal Navy after a brief flirtation with Flying Training. That was ended by an encounter with Sooty, yes I do mean the glove puppet.... and no, I won't go into that right here.
After ten years in the Service, I fell into Broadcast Meteorology and have been broadcasting, mainly the BBC for the past eight years. I don't consider myself a weather anorak in the least but have found myself fighting the cause of weather ignorance for some time. Part of the problem is that everyone considers themselves an expert. Some are. My mother had a great working knowledge of Plymouth's weather simply because of her need to dry washing over 40 odd years. Most, however, are not and will remain on the wrong side of dim on the subject simply because they don't listen to forecasts when provided or they labour under the misapprehension that 'they (meaning me, in part, I suppose) always get it wrong'. This trip is proving no exception. I've tried to point out the difference between rain and showers but I'm not sure it'll stick in too many minds. I've also floated notions about the atmosphere, air masses and cloud types, not much else to see out here, but to little avail. Perhaps an example could be set by the man at the top?
Matt is highly appreciative of all my inputs into Samsung's strategy, a worry in itself as surely some of it must be pure dross. It was also a worry only this very morning when he branched out into weather observation, a highly specialised skill taking years of practice and tuition. 'Cloud base must be around 500ft' speculated (and Boy, do I mean speculated) Matt. If he was within 1500ft I'll be amazed! It's not all doom and gloom by any means. Gorgeous, pouting, Nic Maton, when awake, has shown a great interest in the subject. Pity he leaves us in BA! The rest of the crew see my daily grappling with broadcasts from New Orleans, London and Boston only as a means of staying dry and warm whilst they do battle with the accurately
forecast elements. And to think we've only been going 17 days!
I was determined not to be such an anorak as to write a piece on the weather. Global Challenge? I've fallen at the first, but with some provocation, don't you think?
FYI for non brits find out exactly what is meant by anoroak
Closest 1st Leg Ever
On day 17 of the Global Challenge a cat and mouse game is being fought out between Samsung and Barclays Adventurer. Samsung still holds her lead, but by just four miles, as the race heads past the Cape Verde Islands and towards Buenos Aires.
The fleet is once again slowly converging in what is the closest and most competitive first leg in the event’s history. There are just 75 miles between three quarters of the fleet the first eight yachts. Sailing has been intense the whole of the leg, made ever more exhilarating as many of the yachts will have been in sight of one another, the psychological need to visually get in front, high on the skippers’ agendas.
The westerly fleet appears to have done the right thing and consolidated their advantage by what is known in the world of the sailing industry as ‘shutting the door’. This is where they have put themselves firmly between the finish line and their competition.
However for all of the yachts there will be a straight-line race now where the emphasis will be less on tactics and heavily on sheer boat speed as they hammer their way through the northeast trade winds.
Cal Tomlinson, race organiser’s Sailing Manager offered his opinion about the next few hours and days: “Looking at the weather it looks like the north and south east trade winds are actually amalgamating and may infer that that the Doldrums could be a non event for the fleet. Because of this it may be a good idea for the boats too reserve their easterly positions as this will give them better sailing angles when they encounter the south east trade winds in about two days time (watch Duggie Gillespie!).”
The east and west fleet have taken two totally different tactical philosophies yet are converging back, often within sight of one another. There are just 24 hours between the front and back yachts, in the case of Team Save the Children, 30 hours. This is quite a feat for an offshore yacht race and proves how competitive this leg is.
Squalls are becoming a regular respite for the heat stricken crews as Barclays Adventurer explains in their daily log: “It has been a fascinating 12 hours of darkness with unpredictable fast moving squalls - first they appear as a yellow blob on the radar so we have been on constant watch and then as they rapidly approach it is a case of avoiding or rather just sticking it out.
“Sails are up and down. It all comes with perfect timing so as to not lose too much speed as the wind gusts almost double if not triple its strength in seconds and then dies again within minutes.
”When you see the rain, it comes as if a hose is turned upon us, there is no hiding and one member rushes down below sliding about in their new river boat shoes to quickly shut hatches to protect the sleeping dead! There is nothing quite as refreshing as fresh water rainstorm and not one complaint of being soaked has come as we all feel such relief from the humid stagnant stale air previously.”
Texans Win in Hawaii
Three races were held on the final day of the U.S. Women's Sailing Championship, hosted by Kaneohe Yacht Club in Hawaii and sailed on J/24s, and it was a tight finish. In the end, it was Kathy Irwin (Heath, TX) of Rush Creek Yacht Club who won the Championship
and US SAILING's Mrs. Charles Francis Adams Trophy.
The event is sponsored by Rolex Watch U.S.A., which sponsors all US SAILING's Adult Championships, and by Chubb. This year’s Championship was unique in that the top four included not only previous winners Vicki Sodaro (2002) and Joni Palmer (2003), but also two granddaughters of 1946 winner Virginia Weston Besse: skipper Whitney Besse (Brookline, Mass.) who sailed with her cousin, Sonya Stevens (Sudbury, Mass.).
Only five points separated the top four boats at the beginning of the final day of the U.S. Women’s Sailing Championship. With strong and consistent finishes throughout the week, Kathy Irwin and her crew, Kern Cummingham (Rockwall, TX), Wendy Vaun (Ft. Worth, TX), and Nancy Flynn (Shoreacres, TX), ended up winning the Championship.
Vicki Sodaro (Tiburon, Calif.), of San Francisco Yacht Club and 2002 winner of the event, was over the starting line too early in the first race of the day, but then went on to win the final two races. However, it was not enough to come back and she finished fourth overall.
Joni Palmer (Annapolis, Md.), of Deep Creek Yacht Club and
last year’s winner, and Whitney Besse (Brookline, Mass.), of Vineyard Haven Yacht Club, were in strong competition to win the event, but wound up tied before the discards. Palmer won the tie-breaker and earned the second place finish overall.
Linky Sailing News
Racing Women's Match Racing. Undseeded racing in Bermuda
News Act thoughts. AC analysis. Dalts assesement. Alinghi check in. Cat match. '05 NOODS
Great Lakes Restoration colaition. Deal for Rochester ferry?
College Sailing Yale wins
October 18, 2004
Vendee Globe Preview: Mike Golding
The 5th edition of the Vendee Globe will start November 7th. This race is for single handed sailors sailing Open 60 foot mono hulls non stop around the world via the great capes. Leading up to the race we will post previews a series of previews of the leading skippers.
Mike Golding will sail Ecover the 3rd Open 60 from Owen Clarke (following Kingfisher and Pindar). Golding completed the race in 2000-2001 and won the Transat this summer. Nobody else has the combination of experience (age 44, 4 circumnavigations), new boat and time sailing that new boat that this British skipper has. Golding's 2000-2001 finish was 7th in 110 days. The 7th place boat in 89-90 took 163 days and in 1992-93 153 days. Golding will have to aim for a circumnavigation of under 90 days to move up from 7th to 1st.
Snakeheads in Lake Michigan
Another invasive species has been founding on the Great Lakes. Recently a Snakehead fish 17 inches in length was found in Chicago's Burnham harbor.
This fish is not a Great Lakes native. It comes from China, Korea and Russia. Amongst the fish the snakehead can eat are: yellow perch, blue gills and rock bass.
The snakehead
Scientists call the snakehead a 'frankenfish' for its ability to survive in oxygen-depleted water, move from pond to pond and eat other fish. Snakeheads can even wriggle along while on land.
Biologists will begin a search of the harbor using electricity and nets to search for the unwanted fish.
Snakeheads can harm the entire ecosystem and specific lake activities such as sport fishing.
These fish are actually kept in home aquariums. One theory is that this particular snakehead outgrew his aquarium and was dumped in the harbor.
Will & The Waves
Like as the waves make towards the pebbled shore,
So do our minutes hasten to their end.
William Shakespeare
Sonnet 60
From the Back
Each day as the yachts race in the Global Challenge, teams will file daily logs via satellite to the web site.
These log entries are designed to be more than simple position and status reports; they are the teams' way of sharing the excitement and drama as it is seen and felt by those aboard.
Via the Global Challenge's RSS Feed ATWOS will feature selected daily logs.
Today's log is from Team Save the Childern currently 12th of 12. Despite this good words for their skipper Paul Kelly
A slight change of tone in the daily log today. Everyone seems keen, particularly our Iron lady J to make all our supporters out there realise how disappointed we are to find ourselves at the back of the fleet. Before we left Portsmouth the whole team felt like we had a real chance in this race and believe it or not, despite our position now, we still feel the same. In every sport you need a few lucky breaks here and there to really compete, and from where I'm standing this seems to apply even more in sailing. I'm not convinced that we've had too much luck as yet, more like the opposite! Our ability to be competitive was thrown into disarray with our Chinese manoeuvre and the trashing of our flanker. Combine this with another tear in our lighter spinnaker and we've really been up against it. The saloon area of this yacht has been a constant work in progress to repair sails. It may sound a wee bit cheesy but I think that the true character of the team has come through in these testing times and we'll emerge from the leg a stronger and more cohesive bunch. This is just the first leg of a marathon adventure and I believe that we will only move our way up on the leaderboard in future legs.
Just a couple of words about our Skip and navigator Iain. I've given them nothing but grief so far in these daily logs! I hope that you guys are reading between the lines and realise that they have our complete support. Both of them are working so hard to get us back in this race and we all appreciate their fantastic efforts. It's not their fault that they happen to be useless! For Paul, being in last spot is his worst nightmare come true but his ability to keep smiling and keep everyone battling on is fantastic.
Great skippers aren't necessarily those that are heading the fleet (although that helps, Paul!) but those who unify their crew and run a happy ship. We have had some pretty abysmal situations with sails and equipment failure so far on this leg and not once has Paul allowed heads to drop, least of all his own. When we finally cross the finishing line in Buenos Aires, whatever position we finish in there will be a real feeling of group achievement among all of the crew aboard Team Save the Children. We all work to sail this boat in the fastest way we know how rather than the skipper simply telling us what to do. Ultimately, I think that this will lead to a huge sense of achievement for everyone aboard.
A quick note to all our friends, family and supporters out there. We really are working hard to try and get this boat moving faster. It's difficult not to feel that we are in some ways letting those down that have helped each and every one of us get to where we are today. On the flip side the support that we are receiving is truly incredible and constantly lifts our spirits.
If there is a boat out there that has more people cheering for it then they're very lucky, I'm practically certain there isn't! Stick with us and we'll come good in the end, is what I say. If you can make it to any of the ports for one of our soon to be legendary parties you'll believe that we have won the race, because for many of us we'll feel like we have in our own little way. Our 1986 UK Malibu Disco Dancing Champion, Danny Treen, is choreographing a Team Save the Children dance for ports. We are practising on the foredeck with flying fish in the hope that it may double up as a wind dance! And, no I haven't made that title up for Danny -he really is a disco dancing champion. "My face is white, my feet are black. Watch me dance." We can't wait, Danny boy.
Back to the banter in a couple of days - not too hot at this boring serious stuff. Thanks again for all your support folks, I'm off to practise our dance!
Linky Sailing News
Racing Gold Cup in Bermuda. ENZ is ACC champion
News Oracle grapples. DC out? VG training
Great Lakes Snake head fish found. Lake Express done 31 October
College Sailing Hoosier Daddy
ENZ ACC Champion
Team Alinghi became the third team to win one of the three 2004 Louis Vuitton Acts on Sunday, as a pair of top-three performances secured them the Valencia Louis Vuitton Act 3 regatta on the last day of racing. BMW ORACLE Racing and Emirates Team New Zealand were the two race winners on Sunday, putting the Kiwis in second place for Act 3, with BMW ORACLE Racing third overall. Those results give the 2004 ACC Season Champion title to Emirates Team New Zealand, a remarkable recovery from their America’s Cup loss in 2003.
Team Alinghi was crowned the winner of Act 3 in front of an enormous crowd lining the waterfront at the Darsena Interior. Fireworks exploded overhead as the team was presented with their trophy and congratulated by the other race crews, along with a flotilla of spectator boats. Emirates Team New Zealand was to be awarded their season champion prize later on Sunday evening.
It was another bright, sunny day on the Gulf of Valencia, and a large spectator fleet was out to follow the final races of the 2004 season. In the America’s Cup Park on shore over 200 000 people enjoyed the action over the Valencia Louis Vuitton Acts, which were covered by 500 accredited media, among them 150 television crews.
It was a day of extremes on the race course. Both races were held to the South of the Port of Valencia due to an air show above the North race course. Racing began in the first match in a light, offshore wind, which proved to be very patchy and inconsistent before dying completely and rebuilding in a different direction. The second race took place in a nice Southeasterly seabreeze of 10 to 14 knots.
Valencia Louis Vuitton Act 3 – Fleet Race 5
Chris Dickson’s BMW ORACLE Racing team figured out the tough conditions better than anyone else, winning the race in convincing fashion by a very comfortable 3:42 margin over K-Challenge, who secured their best Fleet Racing result. Team Alinghi was third, while Emirates Team New Zealand who had led the series by a large margin after the first three races finished in fifth place, allowing the Swiss to open a three point margin on their Kiwi rivals on the points table. This race was a difficult one for everyone but the Americans, as enormous patches of very light wind meant boats sometimes spent long periods virtually stopped. Team Shosholoza, for example, which sailed a good race and couldn’t be faulted on its tactics, rounded the second windward mark in fifth position but stalled before the finishing line, eventually crossing more than 40-minutes behind the race winners.
Valencia Louis Vuitton Act 3 – Fleet Race 6
This was the first contest in conditions like those one would expect for the Louis Vuitton Cup and America’s Cup in 2007 – a classic sea b reeze, with the wind offshore from the Southeast at 10 to 14 knots. Emirates Team New Zealand won this race on the first run, when it gybed away from the fleet to the right-hand side of the course. The Kiwis had rounded the mark behind Alinghi, but when the teams converged again just before the leeward gate, Grant Dalton’s team had an eight-second lead. This slim margin was never threatened in the stable conditions, with helmsman Dean Barker covering his opponents up the second beat, and down the final run to the finish.
There were many good performances on the day, with K-Challenge sailing strongly again with a second and fourth place finish. The French team nearly reeled in Luna Rossa on the leaderboard, finishing just two points shy at the end of racing. LE DEFI ended the event in sixth place after a tough day, but was able to stay ahead of the surprising Team Shosholoza. The new entry, +39, recovered with two sixth place finishes on the day, but that wouldn’t be enough to finish ahead of the South Africans in either Act 3, or on the final standings for the season.
The racing today concludes the competition calendar for 2004 for the America’s Cup. The next racing is scheduled for June 2005, with the Valencia Louis Vuitton Acts 4 and 5.
Valencia Louis Vuitton Act 3 – provisional Leaderboard with total points and race finishing position
The Valencia Louis Vuitton Act 3 is scored on a high-point system, with the winner of each race receiving 8 points, second position 7 points, and so on down to the last place boat, which is awarded 1 point.
Team Name: (Total Points) Race # 1 2 3 4 5 6
Team Alinghi (40) 4 1 3 1 3 2
Emirates Team New Zealand (38) 1 2 1 6 5 1
BMW ORACLE Racing (34) 5 6 2 3 1 3
Luna Rossa (30) 3 4 7 2 4 4
K-Challenge (28) 8 3 4 4 2 5
LE DEFI (17) 2 7 8 5 7 8
Team Shosholoza (15) 7 5 5 7 8 7
+39 (13) 6 8 6 DNF 6 6
2004 ACC Champion Leaderboard
The Event Organiser will designate the title “ACC Champion 2004” on the team that has the best cumulative classification over the three Louis Vuitton Acts this year, using a low point scoring system.
Team Name: (Points) Act 1 Act 2 Act 3
Emirates Team New Zealand (6) 3 1 2
BMW ORACLE Racing (7) 1 3 3
Team Alinghi (7) 2 4 1
Luna Rossa (13) 7 2 4
LE DEFI (15) 4 5 6
K-Challenge (16) 5 6 5
Team Shosholoza (21) 6 8 7
+39 (22) 7 7 8
** Point ties are broken in favour of the winner of more match races between the tied teams across all of the Louis Vuitton Acts. If still tied, the team that finished above the other in more of the Louis Vuitton Acts will prevail. If still tied, the team that finished above the other in the most recent Louis Vuitton Act shall be ranked higher.
Alinghi Wins Fleet Racing
A successful final day on the water today for the Swiss as Alinghi took third in Race 1 and second in Race 2, to become the overall winner of Act 3 Fleet Racing series, with 40 points. In close second position was Emirates Team New Zealand with 38 points, and BMW ORACLE Racing in third with 34 points.
At the conclusion of Act 3, the ACC Champion 2004, was awarded to Emirates Team New Zealand. It is a new title awarded to the competitor with the best cumulative classification from Acts 1, 2 and 3, determined on a low point basis. BMW ORACLE placed second and Alinghi third overall.
Race 1 got underway in light, shifty breeze of 10 knots with the fleet minus the French contingent clustered at the pin end, going out to the left, while Le Defi and K-Challenge out on their own at the committee boat went right. The top four, Alinghi, Luna Rossa, BMW ORACLE and Team New Zealand immediately peeled off to port together, Alinghi favoring the middle stayed there while the others favored the right. Racing stayed close up the first beat with BMW ORACLE making it around the top mark leading Alinghi. The Americans maintained their lead as the wind died off. The final run was indicative of the hugely unstable wind direction characterizing this race, with leader BMW ORACLE dropping their kite half way down the run and hoisting a jib to finish this leg first. K-Challenge and Alinghi followed suit, dousing kites for jibs to finish in second and third place consecutively.
Fortunately, the sea breeze kicked in on schedule just prior to 4pm for a second race. For the Swiss this was a match race within a fleet race against the Kiwis. Luna Rossa and Alinghi had great starts on starboard, while the Kiwis appeared to get tangled with the Americans, and quickly tacked away to port to cleaner air just behind the Swiss, Alinghi tacked to cover, the Kiwis tacked back, with the two engaging for a time in their own race out to the right. Leading the fleet, Team New Zealand chased Alinghi around the top mark by seven seconds. Alinghi relinquished the lead at the second mark to Emirates Team New Zealand, the two stayed very close with the Kiwis finishing just 13 seconds ahead for first place. BMW ORACLE Racing finished in third, 43 seconds after Alinghi.
Overall Results:
------------------
Team Alinghi - 40 points
Emirates Team NZ - 38 points
BMW Racing Oracle - 34 points
Luna Rossa - 30 points
K-Challenge - 28 points
Le Defi - 17 points
Shosholoza - 15 points
+39 - 13 points
Quotes:
--------
Juan Vila, Team Alinghi Navigator: "It has been a very difficult day and the first race was really shifty, it was the hardest one. The second race had a more stable breeze and it was a typical fleet race. We are really happy with our performance, and very satisfied with the results of the fleet racing."
Brad Butterworth, Team Alinghi tactician: "This last day has been the same as the others, we sailed quite well today, we tried to keep up all through the regatta and we ended up winning. Everything was really good."
Yale Women's Intersectional
Yale Women's Intersectional
Hosted by Yale University
Saturday, October 16, 2004
Regatta Highlights
-----------------------
Day 1:
The first race began at around 10:10 am but the fleet was brought in after it because of SW winds at around 18 -22 knots. Races were began again at about 1:30 pm when winds had died to about 15 knots and had shifted west, calming waves. The day ended with waves picking up and the wind rising to 12-18 knots. Four races were
sailed in each division.
Day 2:
Strong SW-W breeze (15-18 knts) and large chop
off Long Island Sound. Two A division races were sailed in the morning but strong winds and large chop prevented any further sailing. Races 5A and 6A were deleted from the official record.
Results
---------
School |A B Total
-------------------------------------------------
1) Yale |8 10 18
2) Brown |9 21 30
3) Charleston |13 28 41
4) Dartmouth |23 21 44
5) St. Mary's |20 36 56
6) Boston College |31 26 57
7) Bowdoin |37 35 72
8) Connecticut College |45 29 74
9) Hobart/William Smith |41 39 80
10) Stanford |44 37 81
11) Coast Guard |37 49 86
12) Univ. of Vermont |44 42 86
13) Boston University |52 36 88
14) Tufts |54 36 90
15) Navy |46 48 94
16) Old Dominion |61 56 117
17) Providence College |47 75 122
18) Harvard |64 60 124
19) Roger Williams |74 65 139
Brown wins Wood Trophy
Jack Wood Trophy
Dartmouth College
October 16-17, 2004
FINAL RESULTS
REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS:
Saturday: Sunny and westerly breeze to start at about 10 mph, shifting northwest, back to west, and eventually to the south ranging from 2-10.
Sunday:
Shifty would be an understatement. Breeze ranging from 2-12 from the West, Southwest, Northwest, and North-Northwest at various points throughout the day.
A division = 20 Races
B division = 20 Races
A B TOT
1. Brown 107 63 170
2. Dartmouth 94 78 172
3. South Florida 78 111 189
4. St. Mary's 84 109 193
5. Coast Guard 99 115 214
6. Roger Williams 137 83 220
7. Mass Maritime 104 122 226
8. Boston University 117 144 261
9. Boston College 141 124 265
10. Yale 161 196 357
11. UVM 193 176 369
12. Z Bye 239 240 479
A division = 20 Races
TOT
1. South Florida 78 Kevin Reali '06
Ashley Reynolds '06
2. St. Mary's 84 Aubrey Mayer '07
Samantha Pansi '07
3. Dartmouth 94 Mike Wilde '07
Christina Duncan '06
4. Coast Guard 99 Rob Gorman '07
Kyra Chin '07
5. Mass Maritime 104 Tim Corbett '05
Steve Crombie '05
6. Brown 107 Charlie Enright '07
Janelle Sing '07
7. Boston University 117 Kyle Assad '06
Liz Varr '07
8. Roger Williams 137 Drew Hamilton '06
Sarah Henley '06
9. Boston College 141 Reed Johnson '08
Julie Howe '08
10. Yale 161 Rufus Peabody '08
Abby Coplin '08
11. UVM 193 Teddy Chwalk '05
Laura E '07
12. Z Bye 239
B division = 20 Races
TOT
1. Brown 63 Pat Rynne '05
Jen Bauer '06
2. Dartmouth 78 Jimmy Attridge '07
Meaghan Ferrick '07
3. Roger Williams 83 Andy Goetting '08
Alex Boudreau '08
4. St. Mary's 109 Marc Sorbo '07
Lauren Dutee '07
5. South Florida 111 Andrew Blom '06
Katie Beiser '08
6. Coast Guard 115 Chris Greenough '07
Mallorie Schell '07
7. Mass Maritime 122 Pete Schwebach '06
Casey Ivatts '06 Todd Wilson '06
8. Boston College 124 Leigh Kempton '08
Emily Flint '08
9. Boston University 144 Ben Spiller '08
Jason San '07
10. UVM 176 Stewart Hall '08
Heidi Denton '07
11. Yale 196 Dan Santovasi
Jason Rabinovitch '08
12. Z Bye 240
WINNING TEAM : Brown
Charlie Enright '07
Janelle Sing '07
Pat Rynne '05
Jen Bauer '06
N/N at UW
North/North
University of Washington
October 16,17 2004
REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS:
Saturday: 5A and 4B races were completed on a 59 deg day with plenty of rain. Winds were variable direction and velocity, 0-7kts, usually 0. Courses were WL.
Sunday: 4 more A and 5B races were sailed. Sailors enjoyed both more
breeze and more rain than saturday. It was also a bit colder. Winds were 0-20kts from several direction. 18 teams from 7 schools sailed FJs on Lake Washington. Courses were WL, 2WL, Triangle, and Olymics.
A division = 9 Races
B division = 9 Races
A B TOT
1. UW 1 36 49 85
2. UO Varsity 41 46 87
3. UW 3 21 70 91
4. UW 17 67 30 97
5. PSU 1 53 45 98
6. UW 18 61 43 104
7. UW 2 33 77 110
8. UW51 119 31 150
9. Western AA 67 97 164
10. Western 77 104 85 189
11. Lewis and Clark 81 122 203
12. Western 00 116 92 208
13. PSU 2 109 107 216
14. OSU 89 136 225
15. Western 1000 128 105 233
16. UO JV 120 123 243
17. WSU 1 154 163 317
18. WSU 2 167 171 338
A division = 9 Races
TOT
1. UW 3 21 Chris Mordue 05 All
Heather Baird 06 All
2. UW 2 33 Brendan Fahey 06 All
Kate Selting 07 All
3. UW 1 36 Alex Jones 06 All
Ellie Wilson 06 All
4. UO Varsity 41 Rob Dubuc 07 All
Beth Otto 06 All
5. PSU 1 53 Jeff Causey 06 All
Caitlin Coleman-Hulbert 05 All
6. UW 18 61 Zak Malbin 05 All
Lysondra Ludwig 06 All
7. Western AA 67 Justin Blevins 05 All
Lisa Marsaudon 07 All
8. UW 17 67 Jon Kelch 07 All
Laurel Siegnethaler 07 All
9. Lewis and Clark 81 Kyle Eaton 06, All
Karen Coffman 07 1-7, Peter Mitchell 07 8-9
10. OSU 89 Andrew McDade 08 All
Florian Kapsenberg 07 All
11. Western 77 104 Dora Henger 05 All
Cheryl Petso 07 All
12. PSU 2 109 Scott Caldwell 05 All
Daniel Martines 08 All
13. Western 00 116 Mike Reele 07 All
Marci Tallman 07 All
14. UW51 119 Craig Terry 05 1-5,9 Matt Weigert 06 6-8
Angela 1-5 Craig Terry 05 6-8, Matt Weigert 06 9
15. UO JV 120 Alex Yale 05, Kathleen Thagak 07
Jenny Dorner 06, Sarah Higenbatten 05
16. Western 1000 128 Randy Holt 06 All
Ashley Fejeran 06 All
17. WSU 1 154 Scott Wilson 05 All
Jeff Price 07 All
18. WSU 2 167 Dave Wheeler 06 All
Rebecca Walker 07, Charissa Benson 08
B division = 9 Races
TOT
1. UW 17 30 Ben Young 08 All
Emily Schneider 08 All
2. UW 51 31 David Waldo 05 1-4, Brian Irish 05 5-9
Marie Sandona 06 1-4, Paige Hardman 06 5-9
3. UW 18 43 Hayley Siegenthaler 07 All
Elishia Van Luven 06 All
4. PSU 1 45 Anika Olsen 05 All
Jake Strawn 05 All
5. UO Varsity 46 George Yioules 05 All
Erin Eckemen 05 All
6. UW 1 49 Paul Stewart 08 All
Erin Bell 07 All
7. UW 3 70 Michelle Stitzer 08 All
Truda Peters 06 All
8. UW 2 77 Emily Hawken 05 All
Joey Duncan 07 All
9. Western 77 85 Jamie Alkent 06 All
Lynsey Walker 06 All
10. Western 00 92 Ethan Ott 05 All
Johan Petterson 05, Sarah Kenote 06
11. Western AA 97 Rob Walters 05 All
Annie Thompson 06, Mike Vanderhelm 06
12. Western 1000 105 Bryce Daifuku 07 All
Janna Ott 08, Ali Bennett 08
13. PSU 2 107 Lurch Leslie 07 All
James Acton 07 All
14. Lewis and Clark 122 Alan Worf 07 All
Peter Mitchell 07 1-3, 7-9 Lisa Arnold 08 4-6
15. UO JV 123 Tyler McNamara 06, Jessi Runyan
Chuck Slottown 05, Lauren Sprenger 07
16. OSU 136 Gillian O'Brian 05 All
Katie Wesley 07 All
17. WSU 1 163 Ricky Mulien 05 All
Ben Schlibeher 06 All
18. WSU 2 171
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 TOT
1
UW 1 A 3 2 1 6 3 1 6 5 9 36
B 5 6 8 3 5 6 6 5 5 49
8 16 25 34 42 49 61 71 85 85
2
UO Varsity A 8 1 10 7 4 6 2 1 2 41
B 2 1 7 9 4 5 3 11 4 46
10 12 29 45 53 64 69 81 87 87
3
UW 3 A 1 4 2 5 2 2 1 3 1 21
B 9 11 6 6 8 8 8 7 7 70
10 25 33 44 54 64 73 83 91 91
4
UW 17 A 4 8 7 3 9 13 5 11 7 67
B 1 2 1 4 3 2 5 2 10 30
5 15 23 30 42 57 67 80 97 97
5
PSU 1 A 5 3 4 10 7 8 7 4 5 53
B 7 5 2 2 2 7 9 3 8 45
12 20 26 38 47 62 78 85 98 98
6
UW 18 A 6 11 8 8 5 3 10 2 8 61
B 4 8 4 1 7 1 2 10 6 43
10 29 41 50 62 66 78 90 104 104
7
UW 2 A 2 6 3 1 1 7 3 6 4 33
B 14 9 5 8 10 11 10 8 2 77
16 31 39 48 59 77 90 104 110 110
8
UW51 A 11 13 16 14 15 15 14 10 11 119
B 3 4 10 7 1 3 1 1 1 31
14 31 57 78 94 112 127 138 150 150
9
Western AA A 7 7 6 2 6 9 8 OCS 3 67
B 13 13 16 10 9 4 4 DNF 9 97
20 40 62 74 89 102 114 152 164 164
10
Western 77 A 12 5 14 4 10 16 15 9 DNF 104
B 8 7 3 11 6 12 7 12 DNS 85
20 32 49 64 80 108 130 151 189 189
11
Lewis and Clark A 15 10 5 9 16 4 4 12 6 81
B 16 14 12 13 13 14 13 14 13 122
31 55 72 94 123 141 158 184 203 203
12
Western 00 A 16 16 12 12 13 10 16 7 14 116
B 11 12 13 12 11 13 11 6 3 92
27 55 80 104 128 151 178 191 208 208
13
PSU 2 A 10 12 9 15 14 12 11 14 12 109
B 10 16 11 16 12 10 12 9 11 107
20 48 68 99 125 147 170 193 216 216
14
OSU A 14 9 11 11 12 5 9 8 10 89
UW 1 B 15 15 15 15 15 9 14 DNF DNS 136
29 53 79 105 132 146 169 196 225 225
15
Western 1000 A 9 14 17 16 11 11 12 DNF DNF 128
B 6 3 9 5 14 15 15 DNF DNS 105
15 32 58 79 104 130 157 195 233 233
16
UO JV A 13 15 13 13 8 DNF 13 13 13 120
B 12 10 14 14 16 16 16 13 12 123
25 50 77 104 128 163 192 218 243 243
17
WSU 1 A 17 17 15 17 17 14 DNF DNF DNF 154
WSU 2 B 17 17 17 17 DNS DNS DNS DNF DNS 163
34 68 100 134 170 203 241 279 317 317
18
WSU 2 A DNF 18 18 18 18 DNS DNS DNF DNS 167
B DNS DNS DNS DNS DNS DNS DNS DNS DNS 171
38 75 112 149 186 224 262 300 338 338
WINNING TEAM : UW 1
Alex Jones 06 All
Ellie Wilson 06 All
Paul Stewart 08 All
Erin Bell 07 All
Indiana a Winner
Hoosier Daddy Regatta
Indiana University
October 16-17
Saturday:
Temperatures were in the mid 50's with abnormal winds for Indiana of 20 mph and gust of 30 mph, coming from the north west. partly cloudy skys. 2 'A'
races were sailed in the morning with 10 capsises and we post poned
racing for an hour while we moved the course to a more sheltered area and continued racing. 6 'A' races were completed and 4 'B' races were completed.
Sunday:
Temperatures were in the upper 40's. We had sunny skys with much more calm winds of 5-8 mph coming from the north west. 2 'A' races were completed and 4 'B' races were completed to total of 16 races for the weekend.
Final Results:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 TOT
1
Indiana A 3 7 2 3 2 11 2 6 36
B 3 4 1 1 3 1 1 1 15
6 17 20 24 29 41 44 51 51
2
Northwestern A 2 6 3 2 4 1 10 5 33
B 2 1 2 4 4 7 5 8 33
4 11 16 22 30 38 53 66 66
3
MSU1 A BKD BYE 5 1 6 3 3 2 26
B 6 6 4 2 2 6 8 7 41
9 18 27 30 38 47 58 67 67
4
Minnesota A 1 1 1 5 1 4 5 18 36
B 7 5 6 5 1 2 2 5 33
8 14 21 31 33 39 46 69 69
5
Wisconsin A 6 2 4 8 5 2 4 4 35
B 11 8 5 9 6 3 3 2 47
17 27 36 53 64 69 76 82 82
6
Miami2 A 5 5 8 6 8 8 12 BKD 59
B 5 2 3 7 5 4 10 4 40
10 17 28 41 54 66 88 99 99
7
Notre Dame A BKD BKD 10 4 9 7 6 14 66
B 1 3 7 3 7 5 9 3 38
9 20 37 44 60 72 87 104 104
8
OSU A 4 3 12 7 7 6 9 10 58
B 13 11 15 8 15 8 6 11 87
17 31 58 73 95 109 124 145 145
9
Miami A 11 8 6 12 3 5 11 7 63
B 14 14 10 13 8 12 17 9 97
25 47 63 88 99 116 144 160 160
10
OU1 A 10 4 DNS DNS DNS DNS 1 3 94
B 4 10 9 6 10 9 12 12 72
14 28 56 81 110 138 151 166 166
11
Purdue A DNF DNF 9 10 16 14 7 1 95
B 9 9 8 14 14 11 14 10 89
28 56 73 97 127 152 173 184 184
12
Michigan A 9 9 7 13 13 9 8 11 79
B 15 7 13 15 16 13 11 15 105
24 40 60 88 117 139 158 184 184
13
OU2 A 7 11 11 11 14 16 13 9 92
B 16 BKD 12 11 18 15 15 14 115
23 48 71 93 125 156 184 207 207
14
Iowa A DNF DNF 14 9 11 10 14 8 104
B 12 12 16 16 11 14 13 16 110
31 62 92 117 139 163 190 214 214
15
MSU2 A DNS DNS DNF DNS 10 13 BKD 16 131
B 8 DNF DNF 10 9 10 4 6 85
27 65 103 132 151 174 194 216 216
16
IUPUI A 13 12 15 14 12 12 15 12 105
B 17 DNS 14 17 12 17 16 13 125
30 61 90 121 145 174 205 230 230
17
Denison A DNS DNF 13 15 15 15 16 15 127
B 10 13 11 12 13 18 7 DNF 103
29 61 85 112 140 173 196 230 230
18
Illinois A 12 10 16 16 17 17 18 17 123
B DNF DNF 17 18 17 16 18 17 141
31 60 93 127 161 194 230 264 264
October 16, 2004
Racing Abandoned
Principal Race Officer Peter Reggio did everything in his power to start racing on Saturday afternoon, but was unable to squeeze off a start before the wind became too strong to assure safety for the America’s Cup crews and their boats. With the offshore breeze gusting above 26-knots, and forecast to build to gale force strength later in the day, Reggio abandoned racing shortly before 13:00 on Saturday.
Reggio and the sailing teams proceeded to the race course in the morning determined to get at least one start in before the wind became too strong. But it was clear that the wind strength was simply too high for safe racing. As the teams circled around the starting line, massive groans could be heard as rope screamed over the carbon drums on the winches. Spray was flying from the front of the boats, and waves were washing dow n the decks as the narrow bows on the America’s Cup boats knifed through the building seas.
“It was marginal at the start time, and the forecast is for the wind to keep building through the afternoon,” Reggio said. “We saw the wind jump by nearly 10-knots in the hour before the scheduled start to the high 20's, and with the forecast we had, this was a pretty easy decision actually.”
The Race Committee has now scheduled two races on Sunday with a first start at 11:40, on a race course located further to the South of the Port of Valencia off El Saler.
Valencia Louis Vuitton Act 3 – provisional leaderboard with total points and race finishing position
The Valencia Louis Vuitton Act 3 is scored on a high-point system, with the winner of the race receiving 8 points, second position 7 points, and so on down to the last place boat, which is awarded 1 point.
October 15, 2004
Conrad Preps
HELLOMOTO arrived in Les Sables d’Olonne on Wednesday evening and moored up alongside the special race pontoon. Conrad & the shore team will be based there from now on with the boat, although Conrad will return to the UK in 10 days for a few last days at home to finish setting up his Race HQ with the rest of the team in Plymouth.
The Vendée Globe Race Village officially opens on Saturday 16th October with all the 22 skippers and boats together for the first time. The official race website has gone live in French & English so check out all the race news at: www.vendeeglobe.org
Yachting World November issue is out on the shelves now with Vendée preview features, including a double-page spread on Conrad’s team behind the Motorola Ocean Racing project, plus the only time we got the 4 UK based Vendée Globe skippers in bed together for a different kind of photo shoot!
Read online about Conrad’s personal training programme & diet for the Vendée Globe. Find out how Conrad had to get fit and fat for the ultimate physical endurance test. His wife Vikki reveals all his eating habits and how she spent the last three months preparing and packing enough food to last Conrad around the world. Below are a few excerpts to whet the appetite and the photo attached shows Conrad on a grinding exercise with Fitness Coach Mark Cox!
Next week we take a look at behind the scenes of running the Motorola Ocean Racing programme when the head of the team is thousands of miles offshore, plus we’ll have all the new aerial & onboard images of Conrad sailing HELLOMOTO in her new Vendée Globe livery
Conrad Humphreys’ Fitness Programme – a summary of the report by Coach Mark Cox from the University of Plymouth:
The first phase of the Conrad’s fitness routine involved several multi-joint strength and core conditioning exercises using free weights and a Swiss Ball. These exercises were used to increase strength and muscle mass quickly. Grip strength exercises were also included as Conrad felt that towards the end of The Transat he lacked the grip necessary to move the sails around…
Whilst the primary aim of the programme was still to improve overall strength and muscle mass, exercises that would replicate the actions used whilst sailing were introduced. In order to include specific exercises an analysis of the actions and movements Conrad performed whilst sailing was undertaken. These actions included winching, grinding, raising sails and climbing the mast...
Following a short break for a holiday, Conrad returned to the gym and started the second phase of the programme. This was aimed at increasing Conrad’s maximum strength. Again, large muscle group exercises were used, this time with controlled explosive movements…
The last phase of Conrad’s programme was aimed at improving his muscular endurance. Having developed Conrad’s max strength and power it was now necessary to be able to apply that power over an extended time period. This was particularly true for actions like hoisting sails and climbing the mast. Lighter weights were used and exercises were performed for an extended time period…
Mark Cox concludes: “Conrad trained consistently in the build up for the Vendée Globe and has been rewarded for all his efforts. He has shown excellent gains in strength and endurance. He is now in great shape to tackle what must be one of the toughest challenges in sailing.”
Food Glorious Food!
One person who knows Conrad eating habits better than anyone is his wife Vikki, who co-ordinated the food for the race. She revealed a few home truths about Conrad and food before telling us how she prepared 3 months’ worth of food for the race…
“Conrad is not a well-practiced cook, and yet he does have a high metabolic rate and so needs to eat regularly but can’t eat huge portions when he does. He has certain likes and dislikes, for example he loves dried mangoes, so I’ve asked my family to bring some supplies back from Hong Kong especially. He has a sweet tooth and can’t leave the dock without knowing he has enough bars of Cadbury’s Fruit & Nut chocolate and bags of Bassett’s Jelly Babies tucked into his day packs. His old favourite is his Mum’s flapjack, it’s bulkier than other foods and won’t last as long, but she’s still making up a month’s supply to keep him going…!”
Vikki went on to explain what she was up against at the start in planning the food. “The time he spends cooking and eating whilst racing must be efficient in terms of energy and effort used, and it can’t encroach on valuable sleeping time in his 24hr routine. He must be able to prepare a main meal in 15 minutes. The ‘galley’ onboard consists of one single calor gas stove on a gimble, so he can only heat up one thing at a time. The space on board HELLOMOTO for even storing any food is minimal, and I’ve managed to reduce a day’s worth of food into one A4-sized zip lock bag. I was given strict instructions that one day pack could not exceed 1 kilo in weight – including the packaging!
“I’ve also got to take into account the nutritional value of each day’s worth of food to ensure that he is consuming the right quantity of calories, protein, carbs, fat, fibre and sodium. He should be eating about 3,200 calories a day, and in the Southern Ocean that will be increased to 4,000 calories. Also, he needs variety in his menu to keep him motivated as there’s nothing like being faced with even three pasta meals in a row to make you lose interest in cooking & eating – and Conrad can’t do that!”
So, what will Conrad be eating for the next 3 months and does he get to choose or have any ‘surprises’ on the menu? Vikki explains: “On the boat, Conrad must eat every 3 hours or so, so I had to come up with a menu that includes 3 main meals of Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner, plus 4 snacks which he’ll get through between 8am and 8pm each day. He’s pretty much tasted everything I’ve packed to make sure he likes it first, and he can pick which day pack he wants to eat as I have typed out the ‘menu’ for each day of the race so he can choose – as long as he remembers to cross it off on the sheet! He has a ‘tuck box’ with snacks like chocolate and biscuits that are supposed to be a treat above the normal rations, rather than just a quick energy boost and I hope he doesn’t gorge them all in the first few weeks or he’ll be grumpy for the rest of the race!”
Good Day for K Challenge
The Defender of the America’s Cup, Team Alinghi, showed it is still a force to be reckoned with on Friday with two strong races to take the series lead in the Valencia Louis Vuitton Act 3. The BMW ORACLE Racing team also had two good performances on the day, with a second and third place finish, the former all the more remarkable for having to re-start for being over the starting line early. France’s K-Challenge also punched above its weight today. Sailing a 2000-generation boat, FRA-57, Thierry Peponnet’s team finished in fourth place in both races, and after a disastrous opening race to Act 3, his team now sits in fifth position. For BMW ORACLE and Alinghi, the day offered at least a partial answer to the many questions being raised in light of their ‘weaker than usual’ performances over the past week. In short, these are stil l two very strong America’s Cup teams.
The leaders at the beginning of the day, Emirates Team New Zealand, had a spectacular opening race, and at that point, appeared to be running away with the series. With some of its main rivals starting prematurely in the opening race on Friday, Emirates TNZ streaked to its second victory of the Louis Vuitton Act 3. But in the second contest of the day, it was the Kiwis who were too aggressive at the start, and after re-starting correctly, Grant Dalton’s team could only manage a sixth place finish. The result leaves Team Alinghi one point clear at the top of the table.
BMW ORACLE Racing and Luna Rossa are both six points behind the Kiwis, with Luna Rossa getting the edge from the tie-breaking formula that favours stronger results in individual races. Whilst both teams have a second and third place finish, the Italians also can claim a fourth, while the Americans next best race is a fifth.
It wasn’t a good day for the Italian +39 Challenge. Although the team managed a sixth place finish in the first race of the day, it was forced to abandon the second contest after one lap of the course with equipment problems. The team was trailing the fleet at the time.
Racing was initially postponed with the wind very shifty, despite being a full 12-14 knots. The breeze became soft and shifty in the first race, and although it regained velocity later in the afternoon, the shifts continued to make the race course a difficult challenge for the tacticians. Racing continues with two Fleet Races scheduled for Saturday afternoon.
Valencia Louis Vuitton Act 3 – Fleet Race 3
This race featured a remarkable start, with fully half of the fleet on the course side of the line when the starting gun fired, including three of the four top teams. Alinghi, BMW ORACLE, Luna Rossa and K-Challenge were all forced back to re-start, allowing the other four boats a nice head start on the proceedin gs. Emirates Team New Zealand took full advantage of the error by its rivals, flying up the course to a commanding 1:41 second lead at the first top mark. The Kiwis were never threatened from that point forward. Amazingly, Chris Dickson’s BMW ORACLE recovered nearly all the way, picking up favourable wind on the left side of the race course and rounding the top mark in second place, with Alinghi just behind. K-Challenge, the other boat to re-start wasn’t as fortunate, and rounded in sixth position.
With the wind easing, the fleet began to spread out. K-Challenge picked up another couple of positions, but Luna Rossa, the last team to re-start, never fully recovered and couldn’t make it back into the top group of boats. The Italians continued to split from the fleet in an attempt to get back into the game, but the payoff never came, and Luna Rossa helmsman James Spithill had to settle for a disappointing seventh place finish. The South African Team Shosholoza also sailed a st rong race here, holding on to fifth position, with +39, Luna Rossa, and LE DEFI trailing the pack.
Valencia Louis Vuitton Act 3 – Fleet Race 4
This time it was Emirates TNZ’s Dean Barker who had to re-start, after pushing too aggressively at the start line. It was the first slip-up in several days by the Kiwis, and their rivals were ready to pounce. Team Alinghi and BMW ORACLE picked a course up the left side, while Luna Rossa pushed far to the right. While both sides seemed to pay at different times, in the end it was Alinghi leading at the top mark, with the Americans and Italians charging close behind. The middle course chosen by the Kiwis didn’t offer a way back into the race, and K-Challenge, Shosholoza, and LE DEFI led them around the mark. Only +39 were behind at the top mark.
While the fleet split at the leeward gate, it wasn’t apparent than either option offered salvation. Luna Rossa hit the right side of the race course again on the second b eat and was able to sneak past BMW ORACLE who sailed up the left, but despite the rest of the fleet splitting sides on the windward leg, positions didn’t change dramatically for the rest of the race. Iain Percy’s +39 abandoned the race on the second lap of the course, apparently unable to fully sheet in their sails. The Kiwis charged hard at LE DEFI on the final run, desperate for the additional point that would allow them to hold the lead on the points table, but Philippe Presti protected well, and held them off.
Skandia arrives at VG Start
IN BRIEF
* NICK MOLONEY PRESS PACK NOW AVAILABLE- HARD COPY ON ITS WAY OR DOWNLOAD VIA LINK BELOW...
* SKANDIA ARRIVES IN LES SABLES D'OLONNE IN WINDY AUTUMNAL CONDITIONS AS THE VENDEE FLEET START TO ASSEMBLE...
* TRAVEL TO THE VENDEE START WITH BRITTANY FERRIES SPECIAL OFFER...
* 23 DAYS TO GO TO START AT 1200 GMT ON SUNDAY, 7TH NOVEMBER...
* READ ABOUT HOW IT ALL BEGAN AND THE FIRST TWO EDITIONS OF THE RACE ...
This time of year, the chances of getting gnarly weather are pretty high and everyone remembers the last edition in 2000-01 when the fleet couldn't even leave the port to start the race 4 days later because of the weather."
Nick continued: "Actually arriving here makes you think more of the possible finish than the start because all going well, by early February that's where I will be heading back to once more.:
VENDÉE GLOBE HISTORY - LEGENDS ARE MADE:
It is generally acknowledged that the first solo circumnavigation under sail was completed just over 100 years ago when Joshua Slocum set sail on board Spray, his 37-foot sloop from Boston Harbour. Three years, and some 46,000 miles later, Slocum dropped anchor in Newport, Rhode Island, having circled the world alone. Slocum stopped ashore when the mood suited, either to explore or to re-supply.
In 1966 Sir Francis Chichester took Gypsy Moth III alone around the world from the UK stopping just once in Sydney, Australia. His voyage inspired a nation, indeed he was mobbed upon his return, and set the stage for the Golden Globe.
This 1966 race would see Robin Knox-Johnston return home a hero, having beaten all the odds, and all-comers including the great Frenchman Bernard Montessier, who gaining on the final leg home across the Atlantic, decided to stay South, and keep cruising. Knox-Johnston went down in history as the man to realise the last great major 'first' in circumnavigations. It took him 313 days to log over 30,000 nautical miles.
Numerous races to better the time followed, and indeed, solo-circumnavigations in less than half the time became the new standard. But in 1989, the Vendée Globe was born. Ocean racer Phillipe Jeantot, envisioned a race that would challenge both man and machine to the limits and beyond. The first race saw 13 competitors line up at Les Sables d'Olonne in western France for the start.
Only seven of the 13 starters finished the race. Three more made it back to Les Sables but were disqualified for breaching the rules, one competitor capsized, and two others retired. The winner, Titouan Lamazou, finished in 109 days.
For the second Vendée Globe in November 1992, 14 men lined up on the starting line. But again, only seven completed the race. This time Alan Gautier was the first back at Les Sables, in 110 days. Tragedy marred the celebrations however, as Nigel Burgess was lost at sea, within a month of the start gun.
October 14, 2004
AC Fleet Racing Day 1
It was an incredibly difficult day on the Gulf of Valencia for the first Fleet Races in the host city of the 32nd America’s Cup. Conditions looked great early, with a nice Westerly 12-14 knot breeze streaking white caps across the water. But once racing started, on time at 12:40, the first race was a minefield for the tacticians and strategists with many pitfalls across the race course in the form of wind shifts in both speed and direction.
Emirates Team New Zealand, fresh off a win in the Louis Vuitton Act 2, and the French LE DEFI team were the best at making sense of the conditions and finished in first and second, while the highly touted Team Alinghi and BMW ORACLE had a harder time, coming home in fourth and fifth place.
In the second race, the conditions were even tougher. The wind died compl etely on the second lap of the course, as a weak sea breeze killed off the gradient wind. The very light new wind came from nearly the opposite direction, so the final run to the finish became a beat upwind, complete with tacking for most of the teams. This time it was Alinghi who managed to just squeeze ahead of the Kiwis at the finishing line. The French K-Challenge was close behind in third place. For a time it seemed as though the race might be abandoned with none of the teams finishing in the 40-minute leg time limit. But in the event, Alinghi finished with a full 10-minutes to spare, just two-seconds in front of NZL 81.
The results leave Emirates Team New Zealand clear ahead on the leaderboard with a two-point cushion over Alinghi, and Luna Rossa two further points in arrears. Both French teams had a good day and hold fourth and fifth, while BMW ORACLE Racing, the winners of the Marseille Louis Vuitton Act, are in unfamiliar territory down in sixth position. The South African Team Shosholoza also had a good day, finishing with boats behind it in both races, for the first time in Valencia.
Racing continues with two Fleet Races scheduled for Friday afternoon.
Valencia Louis Vuitton Act 3 – Fleet Race 1
It was a special sight, seeing eight America’s Cup Class yachts charging at the starting line to begin the final Act of the 2004 season at the America’s Cup. Team Alinghi, mid-line seemed to be a nose ahead of the opposition, with K-Challenge hard left at the pin and +39 on the right. BMW ORACLE streaked up the left side of the race course, and led around the top mark with Emirates Team New Zealand close behind. Luna Rossa, which trailed the entire fleet at the start, was still deep in the fleet at the first mark. The Italians gybed immediate around the offset mark however and the tactic worked with Luna Rossa streaking down the right hand side of the race course, and leading BMW ORACLE by one-second through the leewa rd gate. While BMW ORACLE and Luna Rossa elected to take the left side upwind, Emirates Team New Zealand went out far to the right. With LE DEFI following them, the Kiwis picked up an enormous lift on their side of the course, and rode it into a big lead, with the French team the only other to capitalise. While it was a good first race for LE DEFI, their French cousins on K-Challenge weren’t as fortunate and trailed the fleet across the finish line.
Valencia Louis Vuitton Act 3 – Fleet Race 2
As with the first race, this contest began in a good breeze, a 10-12 knot Southwesterly, and with plenty of action on the starting line. With Alinghi and Emirates Team New Zealand mid line, K-Challenge skipper Thierry Peponnet repeated his trick of starting left at the pin, while Shosholoza and BMW ORACLE engaged in some aggressive tactics near the Committee Boat. The South Africans came off much better in the exchange, with BMW ORACLE assigned a penalty by the on-the-water Umpires. By the time the Americans had completed their penalty turn, most of the fleet was heading well upwind of them and BMW ORACLE would be in last place around the windward mark. While the first lap of the course set the table for this race, the real action came in slow motion on the final run to the finish, when the wind completely died before building gently from the opposite direction. K-Challenge, which had rounded the second windward mark in third position was able to carry its spinnaker longer than Team Alinghi, and Emirates Team New Zealand ahead of it, and at one point appeared to be leading on the leg, although it couldn’t hold its advantage and was eventually beaten to the finish. Team Alinghi beat Emirates Team New Zealand in a slow motion, photo-finish, with the boats overlapped, and the Swiss boat just a fraction ahead. Luna Rossa and Team Shosholoza also made nice gains on this leg at the expense of BMW ORACLE and LE DEFI, while +39 had the worst time of it, coming home in last place for the race, and on the overall points table.
Cup Fleet Racing
The first fleet race for Act 3 got underway at 12:40pm in SW 15 knots of breeze. Racing took place on the same course as Act 2 with a few changes including roundings to port and an offset mark, or "dog leg" a few hundred meters from the windward mark to keep the boats rounding first separate from the rest of the fleet coming up the beat. At the end of Day 1, Emirates Team New Zealand is in first place with 15 points; Alinghi in second with 13 points; and Luna Rossa in third with 11 points.
Race 1 challenged the fleet with a tricky breeze that varied between 6-15 knots. The line jostling at the start saw the fleet in a fairly even cross head out on starboard, with three boats quickly tacking to the right splitting the fleet into two. Alinghi kept pace with the leaders, edging out farthest right of the left hand pack after a solid start. Converging on the first mark together, BMW ORACLE Racing and Emirates Team New Zealand squeezed round first and went off on split jibes. The rest of the fleet rounded very quickly together, Le Defi protested Alinghi for not responding quick enough as the French luffed the Swiss but the umpires denied the protest. After trailing the fleet since the start, Luna Rossa got back into the race on the first run benefiting from a dramatic wind shift to enter the leeward gate first into the second mark.
The Kiwis shot out on their own on the second beat, quickly gaining 20+ boat lengths stretching to almost 40 lengths by the second windward mark, destroying the rest of the fleet. The boats spread out across the entire course making it hard to determine the favoured side. Emirates Team New Zealand finished first with an exciting fight for the next three places. Le Defi bounced Luna Rossaoff with a slick starboard jibe to slide by the Italian team by a quarter of a boat length; Luna Rossa likewise put in a jibe with good speed to cross just in front of Alinghi. K-Challenge blew out their kite 500 meters before the finish to let the South Africans slip by and win their first point. The Kiwis won by 4:27.
Match 2
--------
The left side was favoured at the start and up the first beat, the breeze blew even across the course at about 12 knots. Shosholoza took the start nicely, but Alinghi lead the charge up the first beat in the middle of the course where there were more options in today's fickle breeze. Luna Rossa and Le Defi were in close pursuit. BMW ORACLE sailed clear to the back of the fleet after taking a 270 penalty turn at the start. Alinghi blew a kite leading around the first mark and impressively hoisted another very quickly to maintain their lead on Emirates Team New Zealand. Simultaneously +39 blew their spinnaker halyard losing much ground in the recovery. Alinghi led into the first weather mark, followed closely by the Kiwis. The breeze dropped to not more than 2 knots on the final run and the fleet squeaked over the finish just inside of the 40 minute limit within which legs must be sailed. Alinghi held 7 lengths advantage over the Kiwis down the last run, both having dropped their spinnakers and sailing under jib. An exciting finish saw Alinghi win by just two seconds over the Kiwis, and K-Challenge finishing 24 seconds after the Swiss team.
Overall Results:
--------------------
Emirates Team NZ - 15 points
Team Alinghi - 13 points
Luna Rossa - 11 points
Le Defi - 9 points
BMW Racing Oracle - 7 points
K-Challenge - 7 points
Shosholoza - 6 points
+39 - 4 points
Quotes:
--------
Yves Detrey, runner: "The worst part of the day was when we broke the spinnaker when we were ahead. Team New Zealand was very close. If you can get a spinnaker up quickly you know you have a chance to save the race. If you can't get a spinnaker up quick enough, it's usually because you're not prepared."
Curtis Blewett, mid bow/sewer: "From my place on the boat, we were happy we were able to get the spinnaker up as quickly as we did. We had a back up one on the deck so were able to get that up and not lose too much and hang onto the lead against Team New Zealand."
ICSA Men's Singlehanded Qualifers
The following sailors are scheduled to attend the ICSA Men's Singlehanded
North Americans for the Glen S. Foster Trophy at MCSA/UMinnesota/Wayzata YC on
October 22-24:
MAISA:
Andrew Campbell, Georgetown
Peeter Must, Kings Point
John Storck, Hobart/WmSmith
MCSA:
Chad Rechcygl, Marquette (unconfirmed)
Ben Burgum, Minnesota (unconfirmed)
NEISA:
Clay Johnson, Harvard was 3rd in 2003, the top returning finisher.
Reed Johnson, Boston Coll
Alexander Kirkland, Tufts
Kyle Kovacs, Harvard
NWICSA:
Brendan Fahey, U/Washington
PCIYRA:
Mikee Anderson, USC
Emery Wager, Stanford
SAISA:
Peter Stanton, Eckerd
José Fuentes, Charleston
SEISA:
Karl Kleinschrodt, Southern Alabama
Hugh Haggerty, Texas A&M Galveston
ICSA Women's Singlehanded Qualifiers
The following sailors are scheduled to attend the ICSA Women's Singlehanded North Americans for the Janet Lutz Trophy at MCSA/UMinnesota/Wayzata YC on October 22-24:
MAISA:
Anna Tunnicliffe, Old Dominion is the defending champion.
Jenny Gervais, St. Mary's
Cordo Carraher, Georgetown
MCSA:
Anne Porter, Wisconsin (unconfirmed)
Christina Falcone, Michigan (unconfirmed)
NEISA:
Sloan Devlin, Harvard
Genny Tulloch, Harvard
Anne Davidson, Brown
Molly Carapiet, Yale
Amanda Clark, Connecticut College
NWICSA:
Hayley Siegenthaler, U/Washington
PCIYRA:
Tinja Anderson, Hawaii
Shandy Buckley, Hawaii
SAISA:
Alana O'Reilly, Charleston
Anne Bowen, Charleston
SEISA:
Jenipher Cate, Texas A&M Galveston
Being Mother
Each day as the yachts race in the Global Challenge, teams will file daily logs via satellite to the web site.
These log entries are designed to be more than simple position and status reports; they are the teams' way of sharing the excitement and drama as it is seen and felt by those aboard.
Via the Global Challenge's RSS Feed ATWOS will feature selected daily logs.
Today's log is from Marina Kniestedt who is sailing on BG Spirit currently ranked 6th.
Have just finished being 'mother' for the last 24 hours and am looking forward to spending some quality racing time back on deck again - it's become a little hot and stuffy below deck with these soaring temperatures, BP Explorer have also appeared in our rear-view mirror ...
A Mother's Day:
Wash-up and clean the galley and saloon after the previous watch have prepared breakfast.
Clean the heads - may need to be delayed until later in the morning, especially after having boil-in-the-bag chilli dinner the previous night.
Prepare morning coffee/tea and snack for the crew - dried fruit and nut mix today.
Baking time - time to fill the yacht with wonderful aromas.
Sweep and clean the floors and walls in the forward section of the yacht.
Prepare lunch - rehydrated nasi goreng today (or should that be nasty goatreng?) - for both watches separately.
Wash-up and clean galley and saloon after lunch.
Sweep and clean the floors and walls to the aft.
Prepare afternoon tea and snack - time for those freshly baked choc chip muffins!
Time for a little siesta ... zzz.
Prepare dinner for both watches separately - rehydrated pasta with vegetables today.
Wash-up/tidy-up after dinner, clean the heads one more time.
Lay out treats for midnight snack ...
Sleepy time! Standing-by to be called on deck should the need arise ... (fingers crossed for a full night's sleep though).
Prepare breakfast next morning, then hand over 'mother' duties to another.
Linky Sailing News
Racing Swan 45 Gold Cup. AC Fleet racing. Senators Cup
News New Kirby design. Cup thoughts. Sunfish sailor passes
Great Lakes Derecho. Public heearings
College Sailing Mosbacher Knapp
Mosbacher-Knapp
Saturday: Saturday was a beautiful day down on Lake Cayuga. We sailed in a decent breeze for most of the day until it quit aroudn 3 PM. Both divisions were sailed on the water. Modified Gold Cups were sailed. 10 races were completed in A and 9 in B.
Sunday: Sunday morning was dark, cold and windy, with winds over 20 mph. 6 races were completed in A and 7 in B, mostly Modified Triangles.
Congratulations to Dartmouth, the winners of this year's Mosbacher-Knapp
Garret Holmes '05
Delsbie Sperling '06
Jimmy Attridge '07
Meaghan Ferrick '07
Mosbacher-Knapp
Cornell
Oct 9-10
FINAL RESULTS
A division = 16 Races
B division = 16 Races
A B TOT
1. Dartmouth 60 34 94
2. Yale 60 52 112
3. Brown 70 47 117
4. Columbia 53 73 126
5. UPenn 58 71 129
6. Harvard 56 98 154
7. Cornell 100 73 173
8. Princeton 120 128 248
Mosbacher-Knapp
Cornell
Oct 9-10
FINAL RESULTS
A division = 16 Races
TOT
1. Columbia 53 Chris Fleming 08
Julia Werb 0
2. Harvard 56 Matt Knowles '07
Daphne Lyman '05
3. UPenn 58 Bryce LeFort '07
Caroline Keagh '07
4. Dartmouth 60 Garrett Holmes 05
Delsbie Sperling 06
5. Yale 60 Rufus Peabody '08
Abby Coplin '08
6. Brown 70 Hugh Willman 07
Carrie Perk 07
7. Cornell 100 Charlie Richter 07
Whitney Patross 05
8. Princeton 120 David Cobey '07
Natalia Balko '07
Mosbacher-Knapp
Cornell
Oct 9-10
FINAL RESULTS
B division = 16 Races
TOT
1. Dartmouth 34 Jimmy Attridge '07
Meaghan Ferrick '07
2. Brown 47 Keith Putnam-Delaney '07
Monica Stein '07
3. Yale 52 Kendra Emhiser '07
Natalie Kitchen '05
4. UPenn 71 Pat Curran '08
Bhanna Morgan '08 1-14 Bryce LeFort '07 15-16
5. Columbia 73 Katie Simon '08
Krissie McMennaman '05
6. Cornell 73 Andre Van Rynbach '07
Tom Hull '06
7. Harvard 98 Pat Mauro '07
Ashley Nathason '07
8. Princeton 128 Hilary Minot '06
Adriana Willsie '07
October 13, 2004
2004 ACC Champion to be Named
The eight teams competing in the Valencia Louis Vuitton Acts enjoyed a well-deserved break on Wednesday, ahead of the start of the Act 3, the final regatta on the 2004 America’s Cup calendar.
The people of Valencia have certainly been supportive hosts for the America’s Cup. From Saturday through the conclusion of Act 2 on Tuesday evening, over 130 000 people visited the America’s Cup Park in the Darsena Interior, and thousands gathered along the waterfront for the prize-giving ceremony where Emirates Team New Zealand was awarded their Act 2 trophy.
The Valencia Louis Vuitton Act 3, a Fleet Racing event, will now provide a spectacular close to the season. For the teams, the switch from Match Racing to a Fleet Race format requires a change in approach, as the tactic of focusing on just one opponent is unlikely to lead to the desired result when racing seven opponents.
For the winner of the Louis Vuitton Act 2, Emirates Team New Zealand, it will be interesting to see how their highly acclaimed new afterguard attack the Fleet Races. The Kiwis were the only one of the ‘Big Three’ teams in Marseille to fail to win a Fleet Race, as Team Alinghi and BMW ORACLE split the victories.
With three wins in four races in Marseille, BMW ORACLE helmsman Gavin Brady says he’s looking forward to Thursday.
“It’s quite enjoyable doing the Fleet Racing,” Brady said at the conclusion of the Louis Vuitton Act 2. “You can’t cover seven other boats. I think you’ll see a lot of different winners. It’s important to try and hang in there. If you’re in third place for example, you might try and hold on to your third instead of taking a risk for the win, because third might be alright at the end of the day.”
The starts in particular should provide some very exciting moments a s 200-tonnes of boats all fight for the same piece of water on the starting line.
“I really like the Fleet Race starts in these boats. It really is spectacular,” enthused Thierry Peponnet, skipper on K-Challenge. “I think it will be more open for some of us smaller teams, because the first boats will match each other, and we’ll have some opportunities because of that.”
Racing is scheduled to begin at 12:40 on Thursday afternoon.
2004 ACC Champion
On Wednesday afternoon, the event organiser released the current standings for the “2004 ACC Champion”. This title will be awarded to the team that has the best cumulative classification over the three 2004 Louis Vuitton Acts, based on a low point scoring system. After Act 2, Emirates Team New Zealand and the BMW ORACLE Racing team are equal on four points. With just one Act left to sail, they cannot remain tied. But Team Alinghi is just two points back, and could still claim the prize with a stron g finish in Act 3.
2004 ACC Champion Leaderboard
The Event Organiser will designate the title “ACC Champion 2004” on the team that has the best cumulative classification over the three Louis Vuitton Acts this year, using a low point scoring system.
Team Name: (Points) Act 1/ Act 2
Emirates Team New Zealand (4) 3 1
BMW ORACLE Racing (4) 1 3
Team Alinghi (6) 2 4
Luna Rossa (9) 7 2
LE DEFI (9) 4 5
K-Challenge (11) 5 6
+39 (14) 7 7
Team Shosholoza (14) 6 8
Ellen named 'Time Hero'
IN BRIEF
* ELLEN MACARTHUR SELECTED AS ONE OF 'TIME' MAGAZINE'S 2004 EUROPEAN HEROES.....
* <
* NEW 'LIFE-SAVING' MAN OVER BOARD OPERATIONAL SYSTEM INSTALLED ON BOARD
* MACARTHUR TO GO ON STANDBY FROM MID-NOVEMBER IN QUEST TO BE FASTEST SOLO SAILOR ON THE PLANET...
Visit teamellen for all the latest information, audio and images
IN DETAIL
TIME MAGAZINE HONOURS ITS HEROES...
Time Magazine has paid "tribute to 29 dazzling people who shine their light on the world..." in their October 11 special issue. Ellen MacArthur was selected for her inspiration in 'Setting Sail for Greatness' and her work with the Ellen MacArthur Trust that takes young children suffering from cancer sailing. Ellen is featured alongside 28 other heroes from all walks of life who have made an impact on the environment they work in. The European Heroes include Anita Roddick, founder of The Body Shop who campaigns for human rights, fair trade and social justice; actress Emma Thompson who is an ambassador for ActionAid since 2001; and Otylia Jedrzejczak of Poland who won a gold medal in Athens in the 200m butterfly finals and has committed to auctioning her medal to help raise money for children suffering from leukemia. The European Heroes were chosen as 'they inspire, create, devote themselves to others, and even risk their lives...'
<
Since returning to her French base in Lorient in mid-September, the 75-foot trimaran <
The main refit work has focused on a major structural check, overhaul and refit of new deck gear, replacement of rigging and running rigging as well as a full suite of new sails including a new Code 0 (front sail). In addition, the team have installed a new, potentially, life-saving system that allows Ellen to operate a launching mechanism for a single person life raft in a man overboard situation via remote control. "If you fall or get knocked overboard when sailing solo the prospects are pretty grim," said Ellen, "but with this new system that has been pioneered in France, I can launch the life raft away from the boat."
STANDBY FROM MID-NOVEMBER ...
If all goes to plan, Ellen hopes <
NOTES ON PREVIOUS RECORDS:
MacArthur currently holds four solo sailing race records:
* Plymouth (UK) to Newport (US) east-west transatlantic 14 days, 23 hours, 11 minutes (fastest female and winner of Class 1 / Kingfisher monohull).
* Fastest female to race solo around the world in the 2000/2001 Vendée Globe in 94 days, 4 hours, 25 minutes, 40 seconds and finishing 2nd overall (Kingfisher monohull).
* Route du Rhum race (St Malo, France to Guadeloupe) new course record 13 days, 13 hours, 31 minutes, 47 seconds (Kingfisher monohull).
* Fastest female solo to cross the Atlantic west to east in 7 days, 3 hours, 49 minutes, 57 seconds (<
Powered Winches
MOTORISED WINCHES DURING RACING
It has come to Yachting New Zealand's attention that a number of keelers are racing using electric or hydraulic powered winches. Racing Rule 52 states "MANUAL POWER A boat's standing rigging, running rigging, spars and movable appendages shall be adjusted and operated only by manual power"
This precludes the use of powered winches whilst racing although sails could be hoisted before racing starts as long as they are not adjusted using the same winch during the race.
Yacht clubs which choose to allow the use of powered winches should state this in the Notice of Race in the section 'Changes to the Racing Rules'.
Samsung takes 1st in GC
Samsung, skippered by Aussie Matt Riddell, has taken over the prestigious 1st place in the Global Challenge as the lead yacht in the westerly group of the fleet, now split in two.
East and West now battle it out as they race towards the trade winds, which the yachts will reach in around 300 miles.
The fleet have just passed the Canary Islands in two distinct fleets. In the past few days the westerly yachts have enjoyed an advantage over the easterly yachts, which have passed through the Canary Islands looking for the Wind Acceleration Zone the wind tunnel that occurs as wind passes between islands, known to occur between Tenerife and Gran Canaria.
There is now also a low pressure forming to the west of the fleet which will cause south westerly winds, bringing to an end the reaching run for the westerly yachts. Conversely there seems to be a north east breeze along the African coast within reach of the easterly yachts. With the weather looking like it will remain stable in the meantime, and with lighter headwinds for the westerly fleet, there may be another imminent change in the leader board.
Team Save the Children, skippered by Paul Kelly, which nearly had to divert to the Canary Islands due to a water maker failure is gambling now to make up the deficit of miles lost over the past few days. They have diverted far east in what looks like a desperate attempt to find the stronger winds nearer to the coast. Time will tell if they can make up the 212 miles they are currently trailing from the leader.
4th place Barclays Adventurer, skippered by Stuart Jackson, looks to be in the most advantageous position, having got back on the Rhumb Line and hence capable of going either west or east.
David Melville, skipper of BP Explorer, currently lying in the middle of the fleet in 7th place explains the recent few days out at sea: “Which way to go? So BG SPIRIT (9th place), Spirit of Sark (5th place) and BP Explorer headed down between these islands in a kind of collective madness. We needed the wind to hold for this to work and inevitably it did not. We sailed slowly..... oh so slowly, between the islands and every position schedule showed a worse and worse picture. It was hell, there is nothing worse than being a skipper and leading your boat into a poor strategic position.
“I felt tense, anxious and miserable the whole day, it was so bad that I had stomach cramps. The only consolation was that we were not on our own. For most of this time Spirit of Sark were within close sight. First and second favourites, according to the bookies anyway, stuck behind an island where they should know better - ridiculous.
”Well we are on our way again. We are out to the east and consider ourselves to be in a three boat race for the next week. Slightly higher speed trade winds are forecast out here and so we should be able to slowly claw back some mileage. So much has happened and we have only been going about 10 days so there is probably another 25 days left to sort this mess out.”
Having to find every inch of mileage from the yachts is hard work and leads to immense frustrations. As well as a great deal of soul searching from some there is also the usual banter from others as Richard Parsons of Team Stelmar explains:
“Now there are many criteria for selecting someone to climb the 95 feet to the top of the mast, but today a simple error was made.
”The crewmember selected was one that had,
a) More or less, been suffering from motion sickness for 10 days.
b) Was feeling unwell
c) Had just eaten lunch
d) Been un-communicative for the last half an hour
e) Had never scaled the mast before
”Nevertheless, he was hoisted to the top of the mast to look for wind. After a half an hour at the top and still being un communicative, even though his primary role there was to communicate, his first clear call was "Look out below!"
Instinctively, instead of ducking for cover, all the crew on deck looked heavenwards, which was their second mistake, as they were soon to discover.
”It might not seem funny to you, but for those of us below decks away from the firing line, in a manner of speaking, our day was brightened enormously as the contents of his stomach rained down on the deck above us.
”The queue for the showers shortly afterwards was a source of much amusement for some and considerable embarrassment for others.”
Skipper Report
Each day as the yachts race in the Global Challenge, teams will file daily logs via satellite to the web site.
These log entries are designed to be more than simple position and status reports; they are the teams' way of sharing the excitement and drama as it is seen and felt by those aboard.
Via the Global Challenge's RSS Feed ATWOS will feature selected daily logs.
Today's log is from BP Explorer skipper David Melville
Well I suppose you would all like to know how you take a boat from first to the back of the pack in a few days. The answer is to take a holiday in the canaries. A lifetime ago we came out of a big storm battered but in front.
The fleet had been scattered by the winds over a large distance and a new low pressure system was out to the west disrupting the more normal north easterly winds. To the east lay the Canaries. I have been planning weather for this trip for nearly a year and you always in the research try and avoid them, but our close rivals BG SPIRIT and Spirit of Sark were heading that way, some of the others in the fleet were heading west. Which way to go? We have always really rated BG SPIRIT and Spirit of Sark and so it a kind of fixed mindset I decided to go that way. it was something of a gamble and required going between Gran Canaria and Tenerife (at this point experienced sailors roll their eyes). So BG SPIRIT, Spirit of Sark and BP Explorer headed down between these islands in a kind of collective madness. We needed the wind to hold for this to work and inevitably it did not. We sailed slowly..... oh so slowly, between the islands and every position schedule showed a worse and worse picture. It was hell, there is nothing worse than being a skipper and leading your boat into a poor strategic position. I felt tense, anxious and miserable the whole day, it was so bad that I had stomach cramps. The only consolation was that we were not on our own. For most of this time Spirit of Sark were within close sight. First and second favourites, according to the bookies anyway, stuck behind an island where they should know better - ridiculous.
Well we are on our way again. We are out to the east and consider ourselves to be in a three boat race for the next week. Slightly higher speed trade winds are forecast out here and so we should be able to slowly claw back some mileage. Realistically we are not going to see any big changes in the short term. Things should be shaken into place by the Cape Verde islands which are a few days away yet. Of course it doesn't look good, but the thing to remember that this is a long race. So much has happened and we have only been going about 10 days there is probably another 25 days left to sort this mess out.
When I realised the true horror of the situation I sent a rather down email to my wife Kate. She replied that ''the lessons we are meant to learn in life are the ones we fear the most''. So here I am learning how to be a good skipper and not be in the lead. The crew are unperturbed and supportive. We have decided to work this one out as a team - control the controllables and let the rest do what they will.
Linky Sailing News
News Ainslie's role. Legally blind ATW
Great Lakes GB river walk
College Sailing Hawaii 2nd. MCSA Single's elims
MCSA Men's Singles
MCSA Men’s Singlehand Chapionships
Ohio State University
October 9-10, 2004
Saturday:
10 races were sailed in excellent conditions: 5-7 knots from the SSW which later clocked around to the West. Temperatures were in the mid to upper 60s. The 19 competitors sailed windward-leeward twice around courses. One protest was filed against Michigan 2 in race 10, who was disqualified after committee review.
Sunday:
Brisk conditions greeted the fleet as the wind increased to 6-10 knots out of the North for the second day of racing. 5 more races were completed.
Congratulations to Chad and Ben on qualifying for Nationals: best of luck in Minnesota!
Final Results:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
1
Marquette 1 5 12 2 12 5 3 1 6 1 1 6 7 3 1 15
Chad Recheysl 17 19 31 36 39 40 46 47 48 54 61 64 65 80
2
Minnesota 1 6 5 10 2 2 2 5 15 10 10 8 6 1 2 2
Ben Burgum 11 21 23 25 27 32 47 57 67 75 81 82 84 86
3
Minnesota 4 3 1 9 1 3 14 6 10 13 3 2 4 12 6 1
Mark Dunsworth 4 13 14 17 31 37 47 60 63 65 69 81 87 88
4
Purdue 1 1 9 1 7 14 OCS 2 14 2 16 5 5 4 4 8
Carlos Abisambra 10 11 18 32 52 54 68 70 86 91 96 100 104 112
5
Wisconsin 3 9 4 5 8 10 4 10 11 18 2 13 2 10 9 3
Rob Pickens 13 18 26 36 40 50 61 79 81 94 96 106 115 118
6
St. Thomas 1 2 11 13 5 12 13 12 1 5 8 17 8 5 11 5
Parker Zanios 13 26 31 43 56 68 69 74 82 99 107 112 123 128
7
Ohio 1 7 8 8 3 7 1 16 2 15 11 3 16 11 3 17
Karl Felger 15 23 26 33 34 50 52 67 78 81 97 108 111 128
8
Wisconsin 1 DSQ 10 6 6 9 9 9 12 12 7 1 14 8 14 6
Matt Schmidt 30 36 42 51 60 69 81 93 100 101 115 123 137 143
9
St. Thomas 2 12 13 7 4 18 12 13 3 OCS 6 11 1 2 8 14
Dan Shinozaki 25 32 36 54 66 79 82 102 108 119 120 122 130 144
10
Wisconsin 2 16 6 4 11 8 11 7 9 11 4 9 9 13 15 13
Aaron Mann 22 26 37 45 56 63 72 83 87 96 105 118 133 146
11
Northwestern 1 10 3 14 17 16 5 8 5 8 17 12 3 9 10 11
Donald Thinschmidt 13 27 44 60 65 73 78 86 103 115 118 127 137 148
12
Minnesota 2 11 7 3 9 13 15 3 4 4 9 10 10 15 DSQ 16
Brian Kerr 18 21 30 43 58 61 65 69 78 88 98 113 133 149
13
Minnesota 3 4 2 17 18 1 6 15 19 14 15 7 13 6 7 9
Alex Symes 6 23 41 42 48 63 82 96 111 118 131 137 144 153
14
Michigan 1 8 17 18 14 11 16 4 8 6 13 16 15 7 13 10
David Ellis 25 43 57 68 84 88 96 102 115 131 146 153 166 176
15
Miami 1 17 18 15 10 6 8 14 16 3 14 14 18 17 5 4
Matt Rush 35 50 60 66 74 88 104 107 121 135 153 170 175 179
16
Michigan 2 14 15 12 15 17 7 11 13 16 DSQ 4 12 14 12 7
Alp Kardicali 29 41 56 73 80 91 104 120 140 144 156 170 182 189
17
Wisconsin 4 13 19 16 13 4 17 18 7 7 12 15 11 16 16 12
Andy Muller 32 48 61 65 82 100 107 114 126 141 152 168 184 196
18
Purdue 2 18 16 11 19 15 18 19 17 17 5 18 17 18 17 19
Charles Rush 34 45 64 79 97 116 133 150 155 173 190 208 225 244
19
Michigan State 1 15 14 19 16 19 10 17 18 9 18 DNS DNS DNS DNS DNS
Casey Ray 29 48 64 83 93 110 128 137 155 175 195 215 235 255
MCSA Women's
MCSA Women’s Singlehand Chapionships
Ohio State University
October 9-10, 2004
Saturday:
9 races were sailed in excellent conditions: 5-7 knots from the SSW which later clocked around to the West. Temperatures were in the mid to upper 60s. The 19 competitors sailed windward-leeward twice around courses.
Sunday:
Brisk conditions greeted the fleet as the wind increased to 6-10 knots out of the North for the second day of racing. 4 more races were completed.
Congratulations to Anne and Christina on qualifying for Nationals: best of luck in Minnesota!
Final Results:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
1
Wisconsin 2 1 2 1 3 2 4 1 1 1 1 2 2
Anne Porter 3 5 6 9 11 15 16 17 18 19 21 23
2
Michigan 6 2 4 5 1 1 1 5 2 2 2 1 4
Christina Falcone 8 12 17 18 19 20 25 27 29 31 32 36
3
St. Thomas 5 3 6 2 5 3 6 2 5 5 3 3 3
Lindsay Allen 8 14 16 21 24 30 32 37 42 45 48 51
4
Minnesota 1 4 1 4 4 DSQ 7 6 6 3 5 4 1
Jessica Haverstock 5 6 10 14 24 31 37 43 46 51 55 56
5
Northwestern 3 6 7 3 2 4 3 4 4 6 6 5 DNF
Lindsey Duda 9 16 19 21 25 28 32 36 42 48 53 63
6
Marquette 4 8 5 7 8 7 2 3 3 8 4 6 5
Kate Muller 12 17 24 32 39 41 44 47 55 59 65 70
7
Miami 7 5 3 8 7 5 8 7 9 4 DSQ 7 6
Nicole Frinefrock 12 15 23 30 35 43 50 59 63 73 80 86
8
Michigan State 8 7 8 6 6 6 5 8 7 DNS DNS DNS DNS
Laura Schmidt 15 23 29 35 41 46 54 61 71 81 91 101
9
Ohio University 9 9 9 9 9 8 9 9 8 7 7 8 7
Anna Rice 18 27 36 45 53 62 71 79 86 93 101 108
October 12, 2004
Fedor on Stand By
Russian skipper Fedor Konyukhov is ready to start his round the world single-handed record attempt. His well prepared by Pendennis Shipyard Open 85 ft boat “Trading Network Alye Parusa” is moored alongside National Maritime Museum of Cornwall in Falmouth.
The boat is now stocking with the food, gas, fresh water and other suppliers. Some new equipment from B&G still need to be calibrated which will be done within next week. We are expecting 2 ARGOS beacons to arrive from France.
The start is scheduled on the 24th of October (Sunday), weather permitting.
It was announced that Fedor Konyukhov signed an agreement with experienced US based meteorologist and sailing weather router Lee Bruce. www.tacticalweather.com/
A group of Russian journalist from Moscow is coming on 22 of October to cover the start.
One week before the start there will be daily updates about a final decision on the departure date.
SAISA Sloops
SAISA Sloop Champs
College of Charleston
October 9, '04
REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS:Racing started at 1010 and ran till 1600. Courses W/L, 25-55 mins. length. Wind from the east mostly upper teens and low twenties, gusty. One protest resulting in a withdrawal. South Florida qualifies for nationals.
FINAL RESULTS
A division = 6 Races
TOT
1. U. South FL 14 Kevin Reali 06 all
Ryan Rey 07 all, Phillip Tanner 07 all
2. Eckerd 16 Justin Van Deinse 07 all
Peter Stanton 06 all, Kellen Bernard 06 all
3. Citadel 16 David O' Reilly 05 all
Josh Putnam 05 all, Jonathan Hiers 06 all
4. College of Charlesto 17 Blake Kimbrough 05 all. Brendan Healy 3-6
Jose Fuentes 06 all, Patrick Wilson 06 1-3
5. UNC Chapel Hill 31 Stuart Cullinan all
Jake Balridge all, Sam Lindle all
6. NC State 33 Chris Mullen 05 all
Chris
SAISA Sloop Champs
College of Charleston
October 9, '04
1:41 PM 10-11-04
1 2 3 4 5 6
1
U. South FL 1 3 3 4 1 2
4 7 11 12 14
2
Eckerd 2 1 1 1 RAF 4
3 4 5 12 16
3
Citadel 4 4 2 3 2 1
8 10 13 15 16
4
College of Charlesto 3 2 4 2 3 3
5 9 11 14 17
5
UNC Chapel Hill 6 5 5 6 4 5
11 16 22 26 31
6
NC State 5 6 6 5 5 6
U. Florida 11 17 22 27 33
ENZ Takes Act II
Emirates Team New Zealand is the winner of Act 2 of the 32nd America’s Cup after all racing was cancelled on Tuesday. Principal Race Officer Peter Reggio managed to squeeze off the first Flight on the schedule just after noon in a light Westerly breeze, but the wind soon died, and the leg time limit of 40-minutes expired for all of the matches, forcing them to be abandoned.
The Race Committee and the teams stayed out on the Gulf of Valencia most of the afternoon in hope that the wind would build enough to allow racing, but their patience was in vain, and racing was cancelled for the day just after 15:30. As there are no more race days left for Act 2, each team is awarded one half point for matches not raced, as dictated under the Rules. With every team receiving a further 1.5 points, the leaderboard is unchanged from Monday.
The result leaves Emirates Team New Zealand alone at the top with 11.5 points, one point clear of Luna Rossa. The Kiwis are perhaps fortunate to escape second Round Robin matches with Team Alinghi and BMW ORACLE Racing, although they can rightly point out that they beat both of those teams in the first Round Robin and defeated the Italian Luna Rossa in Round Robin Two, thus earning their status at the top. Luna Rossa was the only top team to beat the Kiwis.
Luna Rossa is the other team to claim defeats over each of the other ‘big three’ across the two Round Robins, but its loss to the Kiwis on Monday in a light air match is the difference between first and second place. BMW ORACLE Racing, the winner of the Marseille Louis Vuitton Act in September and Team Alinghi, the Defender of the America’s Cup, will be unaccustomed to their final positions in third and fourth on the table. Team Alinghi lost to each of the teams ahead of it, as did the BMW ORACLE Racing squad, which squeeze s ahead of Alinghi by virtue of winning their first Round Robin match.
This would have to be considered a successful regatta for LE DEFI who defeated each of the teams on the bottom half of the ladder at least once. The last of the teams sailing a 2003-generation boat, the French team was aggressive on the starts, and generally performed well. Their French rivals on K-Challenge, sailing a 2000-generation boat were able to beat DEFI in the first Round Robin, although that loss was avenged in their second meeting.
K-Challenge too had a good week here, scaring a few of the big teams by leading for some of their matches, but in the end, K-Challenge had to be content with those ‘moral victories’ over the big teams, claiming its points against DEFI and the two teams below it on the points table.
+39 earned a pair of wins on the race course, all the more remarkable for the paltry big boat experience of the crew. This Italian team can likely claim to have le arned the most during the week.
The South African Team Shosholoza is another squad that benefited from the racing here, although it had nothing to show for it on the points table. Shosholoza also competed well against some of the bigger teams, and threw a fright into its opposition on multiple occasions, but in the end, the team sailing the oldest boat at this regatta failed to pick up a victory on the water.
The Valencia Louis Vuitton Act 3, a four-day Fleet Racing regatta is due to begin on Thursday, with seven races scheduled through Sunday. There is no racing on Wednesday.
NZL Leaders
Grant Dalton is the new leader of Emirates Team New Zealand. During then Team New Zealand's 1995 & 2000 sweeps of the America's Cup the later Peter Blake was the leader.
Blake sailed on board, but not as skipper. Rather he handled traveller duties. Dalton is also on board in a secondary roll, working the runners and packing spinnakers. This style of sailing leadership is not typical in the America's Cup realm.
Both Dalton and Blake are better known for accmomplishments in ocean-specifically around the world racing- than for inshore stuff.
Both had a signifigant accomplishment on board a catamaran after several mono hull circuits of the globe. Blake sailed ENZA to A Jules Verne record while Dalton was skipper of Club Med winner of The Race.
Of course, Dalton has yet to achieve an America's Cup victory as did Blake. Given the similarties at play a return of the Cup to Kiwi Land would not be a surprise.
Promoting PFD's
"How you get people to replace a $ 4 PFD with a $ 50 PFD? You don't," says Boat U.S. President Jim Ellis.
I read the above in a Soundings Trade Only article on a potential rule that would mandate the use of PFD's for adults. My first reaction was that I was appalled. You can't put a dollar figure on safety and similar things went through my mind.
Then I read a further item by Boat US. In this piece Boat US talks about Type II pfd's. These are the infamous orange items. Functional yes. Uncomfortable definitely. Stylish not hardly. Cheap, you bet. Indeed this is the $ PFD in question.
Outfitting your boat with these means you pass the safety requirements. Whether you are any safer with a number of PFD's in a locker is an open question.
A PFD such as an Extrasport Challenger is a $ 50 item. More comfortable, has more style, and still functional. Yet there is that price increase.
The ever mentioned family of 4 would need to spend $ 200 to upgrade their PFD's. If they did they might wear them more often and be safer. That's assuming the money was spent and the PFD's were de-lockered.
Ellis goes onto say "We need a less expensive alternative, and we need to get that fast tracked."
In fact Boat US published a column in it's magazine as a starting point. Among the good points of their concept is size...that of an Ipod MP3 player. I didn't like the one time only concept.
Although I can't claim to be knowledgeable or care much about style I think this needs to be a key component of a widely accepted PFD. Folks won't spend six figures on a boat, with the look of it being a large reason for their purchase and then wear safety gear that is boxy or nor stylish. Apparently the I Pod is considered stylish so maybe that's already considered.
I don't think the one time use moedel is a good one. We needn't make more trash. Also, if you use this once there is no guarantee you will have another unit when you need it. Something that you can reuse and make part of your kit and routine will be better in the long run.
Maybe we need an X Prize type competition except rather than space travel aim it towards water safety....1st PFD to meet a list of specs such as size, usability, styling etc. wins.
Does My Gear Take ATF?
Along with changing your lube oil and filter haul out is
a convenient time to check the lubricant in your reversing
gear. Be advised that not all marine gears necessarily
take transmission fluid. For instance many Yanmar engines
use the same type of oil for engine and transmission. With Universal
engines that have Hurth gears you do use Automatic Transmission
Fluid.
On a Yanmar engine the type of lubricant used in the reversing gear
is stamped on the bell housing. On a Universal/Westerbeke the
lubricant type is on a plaque that is attached to the gear.
If your engine is older and you can't find the lubricant
information refer to the appropriate service manual.
As with lube oil there are certain specifications and grades
that you should use. For instance Universal advises using
"Automatic Transmission Fluid, 'ATF Type A Oil Only'
according to specification Dexron II (General Motors) and M2
C33 G (Ford)"
The ATF standards mainly have to do with the requirements of auto makers. The majority of applications use the Dexron specification.
There are particular ATF's for Chrysler and Ford products. Most
marine applications use the Dexron specification, if the gear takes
ATF.
The standards that a fluid meets will be printed on the
outside of the container. Just match requirements of the gear to
standards on the container.
When adding lubricant you can either top the gear off, or
drain it and add all new fluid. Gears take on the order of
.25 quarts to just over a quart. You should always use the
same type of lubricant. Finally, to check the level, the
dipstick should just be inserted and not screwed in.
Bermuda Match Race Seeds
Russell Coutts, Ed Baird, Mathieu Richard, returning 2003 champion Peter Gilmour, Staffan Lindberg, Björn Hansen and James Spithill are the seeded skippers who will clash in the Investors Guaranty presentation of the King Edward VII Gold Cup match race tournament scheduled for October 16-24 in the Hamilton Harbour just off the marina at Royal Bermuda Yacht Club. Wild Card Skipper Dennis Conner will fill the eighth slot in the seeded bracket.
Getting to the finals won't be easy for anyone racing against such a talented field of seeded skippers and against the talented, but not-yet-famous unseeded skippers who must work their way through the Grade 3 qualifying round. Also, the winner and runner up from the Cicada Women's International Match Race Championship will be thrown into the mix in the Gold Cup. In the tough rounds of competition, they all have a chance at winning the King Edward VII Gold Cup and a share of the $100k purse.
Going into the Gold Cup, Ed Baird is ranked 1st on the Swedish Match Tour. Coutts and Gilmour are tied for 3rd, Lindberg is 6th and Richard is 7th. The September 1st ISAF World Match Racing rankings place Baird 1st, Richard 3rd, Gilmour 4th, Spithill 7th, Lindberg 12th, Hansen 15th, Coutts 24th. Conner was in excellent form in the Etchells Worlds in Australia, too.
The King Edward VII Gold Cup is the third stop on the 2004-05 Swedish Match Tour, and it is not hard to discover why the great sailors keep coming back year after year.
"It's the classic IOD boats, the spectacular venue," Jane Correia, Royal Bermuda Yacht Club Commodore says, "and the tough competition that attract the best match race sailors to the Gold Cup every year. Sailors like six-time Gold Cup winner Russell Coutts come back to race against sailors like 2003 winner Peter Gilmour and today's hot sailors Ed Baird and James Spithill." In a recent interview with Laurie Fullerton in Sailing, Gilmour said, "The Gold Cup is a fabulous benchmark for sailors. For the young guys, they can see where they stand. There are 16 unseeds who go up against eight seeded skippers. It is very unsettling for unseeds and for the seeds. We all face pressure, but that is what makes the Gold Cup Great."
About The King Edward VII Gold Cup:
The King Edward VII Gold Cup is scheduled for October 16-24, 2004 set in Hamilton Harbour just feet from the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club.
The unique format of the King Edward VII Gold Cup, sailed in Bermuda's famous International One Design sloops, includes a Grade 3 qualifying event where the top six skippers advance to round one of the tournament and face the eight seeded skippers along with the winner and runner-up of the Bermuda International Women's Match Race Championship. The winner of The King Edward VII Gold Cup will be presented with the King Edward VII Trophy and a share of the $100,000 prize purse.
Soo Library for Mariners Closes
The American Merchant Marine Library Association’s Marine Library, which for 69 years provided reading material for free to Great Lakes sailors as their vessels passed through the Soo Locks, has checked out its last book.
AMMLA’s Sault Ste. Marie, Mich., branch – also dubbed the Public Library of the High Seas – was shut down in April. Lack of funding was blamed by AMMLA’s New York office as the reason for the closure. Modern technology also contributed to the demise of the library. Sailors aboard Great Lakes vessels have access to cellular phones to keep in contact with friends and family, and most of the boats now have satellite television, videos and DVDs readily available on board.
The libraries sign, photo September 2004
Most of the library’s hardbound volumes were distributed to area libraries, while paperback books were packaged in cartons and offered to passing vessels. Some out of date and badly worn materials were taken to a landfill. The Sault Ste. Marie branch of the AMMLA traced its history to 1935. The service was forced to move in 1943 by the construction of the MacArthur Lock to the former Weather Service building, a two-story brick structure built in 1899 on the grounds of the Soo Locks.
The primary mission of the AMMLA was to distribute educational and recreational reading material to ships passing through the locks. However, other services were provided, including lodging and travel arrangements, communications assistance, transportation to airports, hospitals and other Sault locations, delivering and sending mail, writing letters and assisting the spouses of seamen. The library staff was also called upon to arrange medical and dental treatments, cash checks, and in one case, handle funeral arrangements. The library building also provided a lounge area for sailors waiting to catch a passing vessel or waiting for transportation after leaving a ship in the locks.
The building that formerly housed the AMMLA is now being used as a temporary office for the new Soo Locks Visitors Center Association.
Reported by Dave Wobser, Noel Weaver
Tactical Consequences
Each day as the yachts race in the Global Challenge, teams will file daily logs via satellite to the web site.
These log entries are designed to be more than simple position and status reports; they are the teams' way of sharing the excitement and drama as it is seen and felt by those aboard.
Via the Global Challenge's RSS Feed ATWOS will feature selected daily logs.
Today's log is from Team Stelmar's Richard Parson a funeral director
After the bawdy excesses of the first few days, the hangover finally had to come. From the gales and storms that introduced us to the race, the wind speed dropped away to virtually nothing. The entire fleet lost virtually all boat speed in a high-pressure system just near Madeira. The leader board changed as the boats that went towards the middle in the front of the fleet, slowed down to a crawl and those that followed were able to go either to the east or west.
Their tactics paid dividends as the miles slowly passed beneath their keels.
For 24 hours, the crew aboard Stelmar sat anxious and frustrated as they helplessly watched the changes take place, only being able to achieve boat speeds of a couple of knots and in one one hour period, travelled just a single mile.
From the third place position of Sunday, we found ourselves in seventh and then eighth place as the daily race positions were relayed to us via race H.Q. or the daily chat show amongst the fleet confirmed. Frustrating times indeed.
Overnight on Sunday/Monday brought a change however and with the exception of the 0200 - 0600 hour watch, brought the best days sailing to date as we approached the Islas Canarias. The wind picked up to a steady force four and the sun shone. The Genoa was hoisted, the crew stripped down to shorts and t-shirts and we ploughed along at speeds of between eight and ten knots in the Canarian sunshine.
The next tactical decision was already being contemplated as a dissipated high-pressure system, just south of the Canaries on the West African coast begins to elongate. Most of the fleet decided to head west of it into almost certain headwinds, whilst Stelmar, BG SPIRIT and Spirit of Sark went for the far more risky eastern option, gambling on tail winds, which potentially are far quicker.
Time will tell whether the decision will pay off.
Linky Sailing News
Racing ENZ 3 for 3. Swan 45 Gold Cup. Money wants
News Transpac entries
Great Lakes Ferry idled. Shipwreck news.
College Sailing New Dartmouth coach named
October 11, 2004
ENZ 3 for 3
Three matches today and three wins again for Emirates Team New Zealand as the second act of the America’s Cup 2007 continued in Valencia.
The greatest interest today was in ETNZ’s match against Luna Rossa (Prada). Sitting on seven wins each from eight races, Emirates Team New Zealand and Luna Rossa Challenge, were joint-equal at the top of the leaderboard.
In round robin one, Luna Rossa beat NZL81 by 57sec NZL81’s only loss. Luna Rossa in turn lost to Alinghi.
Racing conditions today contrasted sharply with Sunday when racing was abandoned after sustained gusts of up to 34 knots were recorded.
Today’s first matches started in 14 knots from the west and by the end of the second run, the breeze had dropped to 9 knots.
Luna Rossa beat Alinghi by 27sec in the first flight of the day (flight two of round robin two). After trailing the Swiss around the first three marks, Luna Rossa overtook on the final run. ETNZ beat K-Challenge by 1min 9sec.
With both teams sitting on eight wins, those results set the stage for the “match of the day” - Luna Rossa’s match against Emirates Team New Zealand.
However, the breeze, which never got above 7 knots, took away much of the match’s drama. NZL81, won the start and took the right of the course, which turned out to be the place to be, and by the end of the first beat had opened a margin of 2min 26sec which increased to 2min 59sec at mark 2.
The Emirates Team New Zealand afterguard never let control slip to the Italians, but the Italians did find some better breeze on the second windward leg and took 1min15sec out of the advantage, leaving NZL81 with 1min 41sec and march 3.
Then on the final run, ETNZ opened up by a massive 4min 34sec, finishing the match with a delta of 6min 18sec.
Grant Dalton said the delta flattered New Zealand. “We sailed well and had a lot of luck with the breeze. Luna Rossa did not sail badly but they had a lot of bad luck with the breeze. Up until now, Luna Rossa has been having a good regatta. What happened to them could have happened to any one just as it almost happened to BMW Oracle in their match against Shosholoza.”
In the third match of the day, Emirates Team New Zealand faced the Italian +39 Challenge. NZL81 won the start and was never threatened finishing with a winning margin of 3min 17sec.
Dalton said the lighter breeze today made big demands on the crew.”The afterguard worked superbly and everyone else responded. We’ll take today’s wins and bank the points. Tomorrow is another tough day.”
Tomorrw is a big day for Emirates Team New Zealand. Three more matches are scheduled – against Alinghi, BMW Oracle and Led Defi.
ENZ Takes the Lead
Grant Dalton’s Emirates Team New Zealand swept its three races on Monday afternoon on the Gulf of Valencia, leaping to the top of the leaderboard at the Valencia Louis Vuitton Act 2. The Kiwis beat K-Challenge, Luna Rossa and +39 to go into the final day with a one point lead over Luna Rossa.
BMW ORACLE Racing and Team Alinghi, both highly touted teams coming into the regatta will need to win at least two of their races on Tuesday to threaten the top of the leaderboard. Based on current form, Luna Rossa has the easiest schedule on Tuesday.
It was a tricky day on the Gulf of Valencia with the Southerly sea-breeze battling against a more Westerly gradient wind. In the middle Flight especially, this resulted in big opportunities for gains and losses on the race course.
Match of the Day – Luna Rossa beat Team Alinghi
This Match in the first flight of the day was a tight confrontation between two top teams with Luna Rossa skipper Francesco de Angelis and his team making a pass on the final run to win the race. On the start, both boats hit the line at speed, Alinghi helmsman Peter Holmberg settling for the right hand side of the race course, with James Spithill, ITA 74, claiming the left. The boats raced out on a long starboard tack, with Holmberg slowly gaining height on the Italian boat until Spithill was forced to tack. Holmberg used his starboard tack advantage to keep bouncing the Italian boat left each time they converged, and led around the top mark by 18-seconds. On the first run, Alinghi set a spinnaker while the Luna Rossa afterguard elected to use an asymmetric sail. The decision appeared to work for Luna Rossa, with the Italians closing up on the first run.
But Alinghi held firm and led by 13 seconds at the second windward. On the final run, the Italians gybe d first and suddenly found better pressure on the left hand side of the race course. By the time Alinghi gybed in a covering position, the Italians were storming down the side of the race course and were able to roll over the top of the Swiss boat. Luna Rossa won the race by 14 seconds avenging a loss in Round Robin One against the America’s Cup Defender.
In the other matches in Flight 2, each of the top teams held serve against their lower ranked opponents in races that started in a brisk 17-knot westerly, which eased to 10-12 knots by the finish.
In the Flight 3, the heat of the sun generated a sea-breeze that quickly extinguished the gradient Westerly. The wind for these matches was light and patchy and offered plenty of peril for the tacticians and strategists on each boat.
Whilst Alinghi and Emirates Team New Zealand were able to build an early lead and run away with their matches, the other two pairs struggled around the race course with BMW ORACLE Racing struggling on the final run to hold off the winless South African team. There was a moment approaching the finishing line when Team Shosholoza appeared poised to win an enormous upset, but the Americans prevailed in the end.
The final pairing in this flight was a dramatic encounter between +39 and LE DEFI. In the fluky conditions the leading boat was never confident as time and again the trailing boat found wind that didn’t reach the leader. On the final run to the finish both boats eventually were forced to drop their spinnakers and the wind died completely with the pair just metres from the finishing line. Skipper Iain Percy on +39 was the luckier man on the day, and found just enough breeze to slide across the finishing line, leaving a frustrated Philippe Presti helpless and adrift.
For the final flight on the day, the sea-breeze died off, the gradient wind returned at 10-12 knots, and normal service resumed, with each of the top four teams prevaili ng in their races.
Racing continues on Tuesday with Flights 5, 6 and 7 to conclude the second Round Robin, and the Valencia Louis Vuitton Act 2. Racing is scheduled to start at 11:40.
Transpac Entries
Who knows how they did it a hundred years ago, but those early Transpacific Yacht Race competitors couldn't imagine how their
successors are filing entries for the Centennial Transpac 2005.
Online.
Sailing events in the forefront of 21st century technology are using the method to simplify the process of getting to the starting line. With the first of three starts scheduled for July 11 and the Notice of Race now posted on the race Web site (www.transpacificyc.org or
www.racetranspac.org), all but one of the early birds have filed their entry forms from home, office or remote computers.
Kerry Deaver of Newport Beach and Bob Williamson of Corona del Mar are among those registering online. They are co-owners and skippers of Kahoots, an Andrews 43 representing the Los Angeles Yacht Club.
"It worked for me," said Deaver, 45, daughter of Dick Deaver, a two-time Congressional Cup winner and veteran offshore racer and world cruiser who was once Williamson's boat partner with the Islander 40, Fast Company.
Bill Lee, serving as entry chairman for the second consecutive Transpac, said online registration makes his job easier, too. "I said I wouldn't do it again if they didn't do it online. There are two reasons to do it. The competitors often have last-minute crew changes, and online is the easiest way for it to be entered and confirmed. Also, a lot of people here and in Hawaii need access to the information, and you want it in a data base online."
After submitting their information online, competitors also must make it official by mailing a signed paper entry, a signed waiver and a signed check.
Deaver and Williamson bought Kahoots (formerly It's OK) just this year. It will be their first Transpac, although both have raced on other boats to Mexico, and Deaver has done the Pacific Cup from San Francisco to Hawaii as a crew member.
Deaver explained that she and Williamson each owned their own boats but neither was suitable for a Transpac. "So we decided to sell our two boats and buy one," she said. "The boat was built for buoy racing. We've had to redo it with things like adding a stove, but it did have a door on the head."
Another early entry is Sally Honey as the solo skipper of Illusion, the Cal 40 fleet winner in 2003, while husband Stan Honey returns to Roy Disney's new maxZ86, Pyewacket, as navigator in its bid to break the Transpac elapsed time record for monohulls held by the previous Pyewacket. Operating online is second nature to Stan Honey, whose company has developed advanced communication systems in that element, along with the yellow first-down line used on telecasts of American football games.
Also checking in online were David Kory of Concord, Calif., who logged the second fastest Aloha Division corrected time in 2003 with a Catalina 38
named Barking Spider and returns with a MacGregor 65 of the same name;
Chasch Mer, Gib Black's Santa Cruz 50 from Honolulu; Jacaré, Jeff Young and Rich Blackman's J/35, San Diego; Pursuit, Norman and Rosemary Dawley's Custom 48, Solomons, Md., and Radiant, Fin Beven's Cal 40, Pasadena, Calif.
Paid entries to date (listed alphabetically):
Barking Spider (MacGregor 65), David Kory, Concord, Calif.
Chasch Mer (S/C 50), Gib Black, Honolulu.
Jacaré (J/35), Jeff Young/Rich Blackman, San Diego.
Kahoots (Andrews 43), Kerry Deaver, Newport Beach/Bob Williamson, Corona del Mar.
Illusion (Cal 40), Sally Honey, Palo Alto, Calif.
Merlin (Lee 68), Patricia Steele, Maui.
Pursuit (Custom 48), Norman and Rosemary Dawley, Solomons, Md.
Radiant (Cal 40), Fin Beven, Pasadena, Calif.
2-1 day for Alinghi
In a very tough battle against Luna Rossa in Race 1, the Italians rolled the Swiss in the final run to finish just 13 seconds ahead of Alinghi. Luna Rossa trailed Alinghi by just two to three boat lengths throughout the race but a favorable left shift on the final run determined the race. In its other races, Alinghi overcame both K-Challenge and Shosholoza to move into third equal position with BMW ORACLE Racing with 7 points each. Emirates Team New Zealand sit in first place with 10 points, and Luna Rossa in second with 9 points.
Blue sunny skies and a stiff westerly of 15 knots cleared the air to finally expose views of the picturesque mountains which sit behind the city of Valencia. It was a tough tactical fight in a classic match race for Alinghi in Race 1. The Swiss worked for the committee boat end and got it, the two boats crossed evenly on starboard with excellent speed. Heading to the left, Alinghi nudged the Italians out to that side, nothing between them up the beat. Luna Rossa tacked first onto port, Alinghi covered; a tacking duel ensued, Alinghi rounding the first mark by 18 seconds. Hoisting asymmetrical kites in the light air, Luna Rossa fought hard to find an opportunity to pass as the boats took a straight shot to the first leeward mark, both rounding at the left gate into the second beat with Alinghi in the lead. The fight continued with not much between the teams until Luna Rossa, sitting behind the Swiss on the final run, the Italians lucked out with a left shift and rolled SUI 64,
winning by just 14 seconds.
The breeze dropped to 7 knots by the start of Race 2. K-Challenge started at the favored pin end, crossing just slightly ahead of Alinghi and headed out to the left. With not a lot initially between the two teams, Alinghi hooked into sizeable right shift up first beat, pulling out a 100 meter lead going into the first weather mark. The Swiss extended substantially on the first run to control the race and win by a solid 3:23 minutes. A similar scenario occurred in the last race of the day for Alinghi up against Shosholoza, with the Swiss winning by 1:17 minutes.
The match against the two top teams Emirates Team NZ and Luna Rossa started in barely 5 knots with dramatic wind shifts all over the course. The Kiwis won the start and moved into a controlling position up the beat, giving Luna Rossa no chance at all, winning by a very significant 6:18 minutes, demonstrating the huge opportunities in calling the shifts today. While they didn't take a win, notably the South Africans put on a great performance in both their races against Le Defi, with plenty of lead changes in an exciting match against BMW ORACLE Racing.
Quotes of the day:
---------------------
Juan Vila, navigator: "It was a difficult race, very shifty and puffy with the wind dropping all the time. We managed to stay ahead for three quarters of the race then it got really light and Luna Rossa got the pressure from behind first and rolled us. We tried to pass them again but it was difficult."
Murray Jones, afterguard: "It was disappointing to lose to Luna Rossa. They did a good job of keeping it close which was the key to the race in these conditions - it was really shifty. They're going pretty well."
Rodney Adhern, runner/pit: "The conditions were tricky and very shifty. The weather team gave us good information but it didn't turn out for us. It was tough for everyone. We doubled at lead at the bottom mark and lost it again by the top mark. Even though you are ahead, you can't control it."
Navy Fall Women's
Navy Fall Women's Intersectional
US Naval Academy
October 9-10, 2004
A division = 20 races
TOT
1. Yale 93 Molly Carapiet 06/Jenn Hoyle 05
2. Charleston 95 Alana O'Reilly 06/Suzy Lintern 06
3. Old Dominion 96 Anna Tunnicliffe 05/Christabelle Fernandez 05
4. St. Mary's 121 Adrienne Patterson 08/
Melissa Pumphrey 07 1-15,17-18; Katie Tinder 06 16,19-20
5. Dartmouth 123 Lauren Padilla 05/Liz Hyon 05
6. South Florida 125 Kristen Herman 05/Jee Lee 06
7. Brown 130 Anne Davidson 05/Sally Walkerman 05
8. Navy 148 Katie Whitman 07/Monica Meese 05
9. Connecticut C 177 Kate Bogart 05/Eliza Hawkins 08
10. Georgetown 183 Cordo Carraher 05/Megan O'Neill 05
11. Boston Coll 189 Julie Wilson 05/Eliza McAlpine 06
12. Hobart/WmSm 239 Augusta Nadler 06/Kate May 05
13. Kings Point 243 Allison Davis 08/Brittany Rossi 08
14. Eckerd 255 Lindsey Nahmias 06 1-10; Sarah Swan 08 11-20/
Sarah Swan 1-10; Amanda Burney 08 10-20 (emergency crew
from USNA)
15. Bowdoin 264 Caitlin Moore 06/Morgan Pile 08
16. Michigan 310 Caitlin Delphin 06/Caroline Cochran 08 1-2; Katie
Cummins 08 3-20
17. Washington C 326 Vanessa Anderson 07/Tonie Domino 08
18. U/Florida 335 Courtney Whitehurst 06/Jessica Engelman 06
19. Queen's 378 Olga Koubrak 05/Anna Dawson 06
20. Loyola 389 Alicia St. Jean 07/Bridget Hanahan 07
---------------------------------------
B division = 20 races
TOT
1. Brown 58 Katie Lovelace 07/Louise Sherman 05
2. Georgetown 75 Blaire Herron 08/Dorothée Bergin 05
3. Charleston 110 Sara Wilkinson 05/Kelley Bowers 05
4. Yale 113 Emily Hill 07/Meghan Pearl 06
5. Dartmouth 137 Emily East 06/Kate Hacker 07
6. St. Mary's 140 Maggie Lumkes 08/Hilary Wiech 07 1-19; Lauren Durfee 07
20
7. Navy 148 Charlotte Hill 08/Audrey Callahan 08 1-16; Andrea White
07 17-20
8. Boston Coll 149 Maura Winston 06/
Kristen Goodby 07 1-10,12-15,18-19; Leland McManus 06
11,16-17,20
9. Old Dominion 177 Cara Disanti 07/Emily Bartlett 08
10. Eckerd 178 Madeleine Eustis 05/Allison Cribbs 06
11. Connecticut C 196 Emily Whipple 06/
Brouck Anderson 07 1-19; Meghan Lucy 06 20
12. South Florida 218 Abby Ethington 06/Ashley Wierzbicki 06
13. Bowdoin 227 Emily Bruns 06/Whitney Rauschenbach 06
14. Hobart/WmSm 264 Marilyn Cassedy 08/Kate Kana 05
15. Washington C 292 Meredith Dodd 08/Meredith Bluefield 08
16. Michigan 327 Alli Boyd 08/Meredith Cochran 06
17. U/Florida 341 Ashleigh Schmidt 06/Brittney Beck 08
18. Queen's 344 Andrea Para 05/Chrissy Chang 05
19. Kings Point 344 Pearl Gray 05 1-3,6-8,13,15-20; Constance Barela 07
4-5,9-12,14/
Constance Barela 07 1-3,6-8,13,15-20; Pearl Gray 05
4-5,9-12, 14
20. Loyola 388 Kathryn Lundgren 05/Katie MacKevich 08
-------------------------------
C division = 20 races
TOT
1. St. Mary's 54 Jenny Gervais 06
2. Charleston 89 Anne Bowen 05
3. Dartmouth 120 Adele Wilhelm 08
4. Eckerd 120 Katja Riise 08
5. Hobart/WmSm 122 Emlie Barkow 05
6. Bowdoin 135 Cotton Estes 07
7. Georgetown 140 Jessica Stewart 07
8. Queen's 150 Danielle Dubé 08
9. Old Dominion 157 Maureen Castruccio 05
10. South Florida 165 Adrienne Bohl 08
11. Maryland 174 Janet Thacker 04
12. Navy 171 Maggie Reynolds 08
13. Connecticut 212 Kirsten Barton 05
Coll
HWS Fall
HWS Fall
HWS
October 9-10, 2004
4:35 PM 10-10-04
REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS: Saturday: 8 races sailed per divison in a south/ south west breeze of 8 to 14 knots.
Sunday: 7 races sailed per divison in a north/ north west breeze of 8 to 14 knots.
A division = 15 Races
B division = 15 Races
A B TOT
1. Charleston 67 34 101
2. HWS 49 69 118
3. St. Marys 95 67 162
4. KP 83 94 177
5. Washington College 109 73 182
6. USCGA 88 106 194
7. Boston U 88 130 218
8. Columbia 84 137 221
9. Maryland 153 101 254
10. Navy 164 112 276
11. Vermont 158 124 282
12. Cornell 175 138 313
13. Michigan 157 190 347
14. Bowdoin 159 219 378
15. Miami/OH 201 222 423
16. CNU 204 225 429
A division = 15 Races
TOT
1. HWS 49 Lee Sackett/Kate Brush 3-end
Rob Aspinwall 1,2
2. Charleston 67 Jesse Combs/Hunter Stunzi
3. KP 83 AJ Black/Tim Cain
4. Columbia 84 Becker Chase/Lauren Parmington
5. Boston U 88 Kyle Assad/Liz Varr
6. USCGA 88 Noel Shriner/Tenley Barna 1-4
Linden Oahlkemper 5-16
7. St. Marys 95 Aubrey Mayer/Kate Reynolds 1,2,5-8,9-12
Phelps Kelley 3,4,13-15
8. Washington College 109 Colin Robertson/Hanna Lee
9. Maryland 153 Trevor Eddy/Steven Woodling
10. Michigan 157 Matt Vanderpool/Tom Martin 1-4
Evan Quasney 15/Lisa Vandenbossche 5-14
11. Vermont 158 Ryan Brown/Laura Eichorn
12. Bowdoin 159 Simon Bolmgren/Jackie Haskell
13. Navy 164 Adam Oliveira/Danny Conley
14. Cornell 175 Kinloch Yellot/Michelle D'agrosa
15. Miami/OH 201 Jocelyn Polla/Anne Simiele
16. CNU 204 Peter Foytik/Paula Davis
B division = 15 Races
TOT
1. Charleston 34 Russ O'Reilly/Joel Labuzetta
2. St. Marys 67 John Loe/Doria Mackenzie 1-12
Kate Reynolds 13-15
3. HWS 69 James Landi 1-8/Nate Owen 1,2 & Kate Wilson 3-15
Brian Clancy 9-15
4. Washington College 73 Chad Hillyer/Alexandria Starks
5. KP 94 Todd Kutkiewicz/Greg Forthuber 1-4,13-15
Sonha Bilunas 5-12
6. Maryland 101 Greg Lines/Emilie Vincent
7. USCGA 106 Sam Mazzeo/Elana Mcgovern
8. Navy 112 Robert Ramirez/Mike Mullee
9. Vermont 124 Matt Clark/Grayson Hellmouth
10. Boston U 130 Bobby Martin/Erin Kilcline 1-10
Jason Sanders 11-15
11. Columbia 137 John Epstein/Allison Sudol 1-12
Isaac Hornblower 13-15
12. Cornell 138 Scott Grandt/Allison Tumilty
13. Michigan 190 Matt Bergin/Evan Quasney 1-4
Tom Martin 5-15
14. Bowdoin 219 Eric Loss/Carolyn Chu
15. Miami/OH 222 Dreaux Plominski/Niki Anderson
16. CNU 225 Mark Newman/Sara Hattorf
WINNING TEAM : Charleston
Jesse Combs/Hunter Stunzi
Russ O'Reilly/Joel Labuzetta
Gone Troppo
Each day as the yachts race in the Global Challenge, teams will file daily logs via satellite to the web site.
These log entries are designed to be more than simple position and status reports; they are the teams' way of sharing the excitement and drama as it is seen and felt by those aboard.
Via the Global Challenge's RSS Feed ATWOS will feature selected daily logs.
Today's log is from 2nd place Samsung written by Dean Apps from New Zealand.
Yesterday we were all tired after a couple of days of lumpy seas and less-than-sufficient sleep, although exhilarated after some good downwind sailing as well. Where is the uphill stuff that the world's toughest yachties are expecting? Today the winds have died completely, and we have "gone troppo" in shorts and T's. Showers and laundry are the order of the
day. We have hung out the laundry as we need all the cloth we can get to provide sail area. Last night we had a star-filled sky which was just as well as holding a compass course was tricky in the light airs. But we had a ship and a star to steer her by.
It is hard to believe we are racing in these airs, miles from land with Madeira somewhere off the port side. Feels more like a sunny day at the beach, except there is no beach. We did see a sea turtle this morning, but other than that we are the only visible life around.
We've been at sea a week now and the routine is starting to feel normal. Sleeping is replaced by napping between watches, and we are learning the importance of getting some shuteye during daylight hours. The seasickness that kills the desire to sail has been replaced by racing enthusiasm, a desire to find out how we are doing against the other yachts and planning our tactics accordingly. But mainly it's a case of "trim, trim, trim".
As for life on board from my perspective, it's interesting to see how 18 people manage to move past and around each other through the narrow passageways and in the sleeping quarters (world's smallest three-storey bedroom) but somehow it gets done and we all have enough space to call our own (sort of). The "pleases and thank-yous" lend an air of civility to the whole thing, although on occasion the grace and decorum has given way to true blue sailor-speak when a sail change has gone wrong or a spinnaker gybe has been done, um, differently than the standard textbook manoeuvre would suggest.
Still, we all have smiles on our faces after a week of varying conditions starting with gales and ending in calm, and that is a good sign. Roll on doldrums (but could we have just a bit more wind please?)
Global Challenge Report
As the yachts in the Global Challenge make their way past Madeira there are some changes taking place on the leader board. The yachts which have boldly followed more of a westerly course have now taken the lead.
Team SAIC La Jolla is getting a taste of first place glory with Samsung breathing down their neck hard in second with VAIO now up with the leaders in third. The only female skipper in the race and the first Brit up with the front runners, Dee Caffari, is in fourth place and chasing hard.
All the yachts have slowed down over the past 24 hours as a result of high pressure moving over the fleet. The westerly yachts are currently experiencing reaching conditions whereas the yachts taking more of an easterly route very slow, light downwind conditions.
SAIC La Jolla have no idea they have gone into first place reporting in their daily log the conditions as being: "Frustrating" - with winds ranging from less than 1 knot to 6 knots from SSE to WNW. But our helmsmen, with unwavering concentration, have kept us moving (generally) in the right direction. Momentum is key here with a 40plus ton yacht, just got to keep the boat moving!”
BP Explorer (4th) and Spirit of Sark (5th) - early leaders for much of the race - have now shifted down the pack, although there are just 48 miles between first and ninth yacht.
Winds are currently light for the crews preparing them for the frustrations due to hit the fleet further south in the Doldrums. Barclays Adventurer reported in their daily log: "Shorts and T-shirts during the day, a bit of Bob Marley down below in the chill out room and Madeira cake within sight of Madeira. It looks like the fleet are starting to bunch up a little so it will be great racing over the next few days."
BP Explorer explained how conditions on their yacht was like in these lighter winds: "It's in these situations where brains take over from brawn and the physical challenge makes way to the mental challenge. It doesn't mean we're sitting around waiting for wind though. We are hoisting and dropping spinnakers and headsails at a tiring pace and analysing every fraction of a knot difference. (Skipper) David (Melville) has resorted to shouting into the skies demanding wind and has given the rest of the crew permission to pray to their gods."
Time will tell if their prayers are answered!
3 W's for ENZ
Three races today were scheduled for Emirates Team New Zealand in the best breeze of the Valencia pre-regatta. The first race started before noon in 18 knots from the west, puffing to 22.
It was another hot day in Valencia with mid-afternoon temperatures climbing to 28 deg. The fresher conditions caused minor damage on several yachts.
K challenge did not start the second race and ETNZ damaged the spinnaker pole in the race against +39.
The team also changed the boom before the third race as a precaution but it was not necessary because opponent Shosholoza did not start the match, the first of round robin two because of damage to the main. +39 also did not start the day’s third race.
The record book shows ETNZ has had three wins. At the end of
round robin one Emirates Team New Zealand and Luna Rossa are leading the regatta.
But as far as the team is concerned, there’s a lot of hard racing to be done before the regatta ends on Tuesday.
First up today against Le Defi, NZL81 won the start taking the favoured right side of the course. The result was never in doubt, with Emirates Team New Zealand opening up a handy lead by the first mark and extending all the way, crossing the finish line 4min and 15sec ahead.
At the first mark, NZL81 was only 10sec ahead but extended by 47 sec on the first run to be 57sec ahead at the second mark. By mark 3 NZL81 had a 2min 25sec and at the finish line the margin was 4min 15 sec.
The second race of the day was against the Italian syndicate +39, which did not compete at Marseille. This was the match abandoned because of lack of breeze on Wednesday and was the end of the first round robin of the Valencia pre-regatta.
There was nothing in the start and at the first mark, NZL81 was 20sec ahead, and extended down the run to 35sec. At the third mark the advantage was 1min and 4sec and at the finish line 2 min and 3 sec.
Windy Day Breaks Equipment
Valencia put on a fabulous day for racing with plenty of wind and sunshine. It was a lively day on the race course with up to 24 knots by day's end and plenty of carnage to go with it. Three flights were scheduled for a total of 12 matches today. Team Alinghi won its race against Shosholoza, claimed a race by default as +39 withdrew, but lost to rival BMW ORACLE Racing, finishing the day with 6 points. Emirates Team New Zealand and Luna Rossa are in equal position with 7 points each. Team Alinghi is third place on the leaderboard with 6 points while BMW ORACLE Racing is in fourth place with 5 points.
The wind debuted early in the day with strong shifty breezes offering up a gusty 14 knots at the start of Race 1. In an uneventful pre-start Alinghi, with starboard advantage crossed the line slightly ahead and to the right while BMW ORACLE went left. Head to head up the first beat, BMW ORACLE got the benefit of a massive left shift that shot USA 76 ahead of Alinghi by four boat lengths, or a 100 meter advantage to the Americans at the first windwark mark. Trailing the American team around the second windward mark, Team Alinghi blew its spinnaker just after the hoist, giving the race to BMW ORACLE Racing. +39 defaulted in Race 3 against Alinghi due to a damaged mainsail.
Races of the day were the battle between K-Challenge and Shosholoza, the South Africans taking advantage of an error by the French on the hoist during the first mark rounding to lead until just near the finish. Shosholoza sailed a great race to finish an unlucky 5 seconds after the French who simply had the faster boat. In BMW ORACLE's race against Luna Rossa, Kiwi Gavin Brady up against Aussie James Spithill on the Italian boat was a nail biting affair all the way. The Americans crossed the line just two seconds before Luna Rossa but hit the mark at the finish line to lose the race. Predictably, the gusty conditions and unfamiliarity with the location played havoc on boats today, with both Le Defi and K-Challenge each bailing on their opponents due to equipment issues during Race 2.
Overall Results:
---------------------
Luna Rossa - 7 points
Emirates Team NZ - 7 points
Team Alinghi - 6 points
BMW Racing Oracle - 5 points
K-Challenge - 3 points
Le Defi - 3 points
+39 - 1 point
Shosholoza - 0 points
Quotes of the day:
--------------------
Enrico de Maria: "It's the first time I've sailed in a breeze like this since Auckland - 1 ½ years. It's a big difference to 5 knots like the other day. We had some break downs, we broke the vang, the jib Cunningham, the spinnaker…a lot of things went wrong and we tried to make the most of it."
Peter Holmberg: "It was a tough day. In Race 1 we had a good challenge for the start but we wanted right and got it. We had plenty of oscillations up the first beat but were close at the top mark to attack them but the break downs crippled us which made it hard for us to attack. On the second beats the shifts didn't go as well for us."
Yves Detrey: "In the race against the South Africans the main point was that we had a problem with the cunningham. We repaired it while we were sailing and had to ease the jib so weren't trimmed so that slowed us down. We lost a couple of lengths but fortunately we were ahead by quite a few lengths so were ok."
12 Matches in One day
Fantastic racing conditions dominated the waters off Valencia on the first weekend of competition at the host city of the 32nd America’s Cup. Stronger winds, clear blue skies, and a record-breaking schedule of 12 America’s Cup matches made for an exciting day on the Gulf of Valencia and the local spectator fleet numbered into the hundreds. The 15 to 23 knot West winds, blowing offshore, proved hard on the boats, with many equipment problems spread across the fleet. The offshore breeze was also very challenging for the afterguards, with numerous shifts and puffs making for a tactically difficult race course.
There were two standout Matches of the Day on Saturday – a couple of tremendous duels, one amongst two teams further down the points table, and one match between two of the ‘big four’.
While many observers may not have rated the duel between Team Shosholoza and K-Challenge based on their respective forms so far this week, in the event, the match itself was spectacular for all the right reasons. After a big windshift just before the start gun, K-Challenge appeared to be in a strong position, starting first, and steaming up the course while Shosholoza struggled to cross the line, albeit on the side the windshift favoured. K-Challenge skipper Thierry Peponnet used the power of the right-hand side of the course to maintain a slim advantage up the first beat and led around the top mark by 16-seconds.
But Shosholoza skipper Geoff Meek and tactician Andy Green, showing great faith in their crew, called for a gybe-set of the spinnaker – a difficult move for an experienced crew in the gusty 18-knot wind, let alone a new team still learning the ropes. But their faith was rewarded, and the crew performed a flawless set, catching Peponnet and his team off guard. The French immediately gybed to cover, but it was a hasty call, and poorly executed, and the South Africans were able to make the pass on the downwind leg.
At the final windward mark, the South Africans were up by 28-seconds and appeared to have the race sewn up. But K-Challenge made an early gybe, and found a favourable shift and stronger pressure on their side of the course. Shosholoza could only watch as their hard-earned lead dwindled away, metre by metre. With K-Challenge clearly more powerful, with an enormous bow wave breaking over the deck, the finish line came too late for South Africa, and the French team earned a narrow five-second victory.
Late in the afternoon, Luna Rossa prevailed over BMW ORACLE in a spectacular race where the American team couldn’t start or finish properly, but sailed a tremendous match nonetheless. BMW ORACLE helmsman Gavin Brady started prematurely and by the time he had restarted, Luna Rossa, with James Spithill on the wheel, was off and running with a 46-second lead. But right away, Brady and his team began chipping away, and by the top mark they’d reduced the margin to 17-seconds. At the final windward mark, they still trailed by 21-seconds but, like K-Challenge in the earlier match, with an early gybe they immediately began to soak up the margin between themselves and the Italians.
The race appeared to finally be BMW ORACLE’s to lose a moment later when the spinnaker on Luna Rossa burst in the strong wind, and the American team surged ahead. But the Italians set a replacement immediately and began the chase. As the boats approached the finish line, with Luna Rossa to leeward, both boats appealed to the Umpires that their opponents weren’t sailing a proper course, but they found no sympathy. Three boat lengths from the finish mark, Luna Rossa was obliged to gybe, to give BMW ORACLE room to squeeze on the correct side of the finish mark – USA 71 had apparently won the race by two-seconds. But t he Americans dragged their spinnaker sheet over the pin, hitting the mark, and incurring a penalty, thus handing the race to Luna Rossa. It was a spectacular conclusion to a hard fought match.
The heavy conditions meant that five of the 12 matches involved just one boat, with one team either retiring after the start, or unable to finish the match due to equipment problems. Nevertheless, it was a day of memorable matches, and the newer teams certainly had plenty of ‘educational’ moments on the race course in the tough conditions.
At the conclusion of Round Robin One, Luna Rossa, making its debut at the Valencia Louis Vuitton Act, held the honour at the top of the points table, equal on points with Emirates Team New Zealand, but ahead by virtue of winning their match earlier in the week. Helmsman James Spithill continues to have outstanding starts, giving his team every opportunity to win from early in each match. Team Alinghi and BMW ORACLE Racing were in unfamiliar territory, further down the table, each with two losses in the opening round.
At the conclusion of racing on Saturday, the Italians continue to lead, while further down the table, the two French teams, LE DEFI and K-Challenge, each sit on three wins, with LE DEFI ahead having won both matches between the two rivals.
Act II Racing Abandoned
After a fantastic day of racing on Saturday, race crews were prepared for another heavy load day as the forecast again called for strong winds on Sunday. But unfortunately, in the event, the West wind was simply too strong to allow racing to start, and before the scheduled start time of 12:40, Principal Race Officer Peter Reggio was forced to shut down competition for the day.
“It’s not right for these boats to sail in these conditions. We’ve been in touch with each of the teams and unfortunately, we have to make this decision,” Reggio said. “I have had an average of 24 knots of wind blowing measured at 6-metres above the water on the Committee Boat, with long gusts of over 30 knots. The masts on these boats are over 30-metres high and it’s a lot windier up there!”
Although there are no hard wind limits in the 32nd America’s Cup that would pre vent racing, the teams and the Race Committee are very conscious of the fact that these boats have been built to a rule where racing in these conditions would have been prohibited. Serious equipment damage is a very real possibility when the wind is so strong.
“We have a long way to go, and we don’t need to damage the fleet unnecessarily,” Reggio concluded.
Tremendous public attendance at America’s Cup Park
Despite the lack of racing on Sunday, this has been a very successful first weekend for the America’s Cup in its new Host City of Valencia, Spain. Saturday was a regional holiday in Valencia, ‘San Donis’, a day of celebration in the city and region of Valencia. Roughly equivalent to Valentine’s Day, the day was capped with an impressive fireworks display, and this year, many took the opportunity to come to the Darsena Interior and visit the America’s Cup.
The public in Valencia have embraced the event, with over 31 000 visitors to the America’s Cup Park on Saturday alone. Tuesday the 12th of October is National holiday, known as ‘El Pilar’, and with many people taking the Monday off work as well, this is wonderful opportunity for the America’s Cup and the people of Valencia to get acquainted.
Racing in the second Round Robin continues on Monday with Peter Reggio and his crew on the Race Committee scheduling Flights 2, 3 and 4, with the first start at 11:40.
Hap Moore Team Race
DAY ONE:
Nice fall day with a SSW breeze shifting south and west, back and forth, 3-7 mph (or 7-3, if you prefer). Elimination round-robin of 55 races completed with teams each sailing half of their matches in FJs and half in 420s. Starboard N course. Current not much of a factor for a change. Protests in five matches, which were heard by judges Sue Riley, Pat Dillon, Becky Chwalk, and Joel Hanneman.
Three teams tied for final sixth spot in Gold fleet, requiring a sail-off first thing on Sunday. Five will sail in the Silver fleet.
Race management by cadets Jon Wolstenholme, Erica Metzger, Leo Lake, Matt Weibel, and Jason Hill.
First Day Records:
Yale 8 wins 2 losses
Boston College 8 2
Brown 7 3
St. Mary's 7 3
Tufts 6 4
Dartmouth 4 6 Sail-off required
Kings Point 4 6 Sail-off required
Connecticut 4 6 Sail-off required
Coast Guard 3 7
Harvard 3 7
MIT 1 9
DAY TWO:
Northerly 4-8 under cloudy skies to start. Sail off between KP, Conn, and Dartmouth to decide sixth qualifier for Gold fleet; won by KP.
Two sets of matches completed in Gold and Silver fleets before breeze died as the current increased. Ninety minutes later, sky cleared and the northerly returned, 5-10, and shifty, moving west during the afternoon. Double round robin of matches completed in both fleets. Boston College turned in perfect 5-0 record in second round of the Gold fleet to win. Dartmouth lost only one match in the two Silver rounds to win that fleet.
Thanks again to the judges (one protest heard), who helped with course management and to Mike O'Connor for mark moving. Race management on Sunday by cadets Leo Lake, Erica Metzger, Bobbie-Jean Felix, Matt Weibel, Joe Delauter, and Brittani Lashaway.
Final records:
1. Boston College 16 wins 4 losses
2. Brown 14 6
2. St. Mary's 14 6
4. Yale 12 8
5. Tufts 7 13
6. Kings Point 7 13
7. Dartmouth 11 7
8. Connecticut 8 10
9. Harvard 7 11
10. MIT 5 13
11. CGA 4 14
Boston College: Frank Ustach, Ben Gent, Jeff Bonanni, Mallory Fontenot, Jen Doyle, Joy MacDougall
Brown: Charlie Enright, Rip Hale, Ward Young, Janelle Sing, Jen Bauer, Arlene Chung
Coast Guard: Rob Gorman, Chris Greenough, Ben Komar, JJ Schock, Kyra Chin, LIbby Hetrick
Connecticut: Hans Jensen, Charlie Modica, Pete Lelek, Elissa Leonard, Amanda Calkins, Christie Jackson
Dartmouth: Peter Fleming, Todd Whitehead, Ben Sampson, Killarney Loufek, Elisabeth Kreter, Clementine James
Harvard: Genny Tulloch, Sloan Devlin, Jess Baker, Laura Shubert, Christina Dahlman, Ruth Schlitz
Kings Point: Pete Young, Andrew Berlovici, Graham Mergenthaler, Emily Gardner, Scotty Gilmore, Greer Ferguson
MIT: JM Modisette, Jack Field, Jake Muhleman, Emma Bassein, Wyman Li, Gabe Cira
St. Mary's: Justin Law, Andrew Watters, John Howell, Jamie Frey, Maegan Hawa, Blake DeBoer
Tufts: Dave Siegal, Jeff Cruise, Peter Fallon, Anna Martin, Chryssa Rusk, Meredith Ginley
Yale: Sti McNay, Phil Stemler, Zach Brown, Meredith Killion, Hilary Shapiro, Sarah Himmelfarb
New England Men's Single Handed Elims
2004 New England Men's Singlehanded
Roger Williams University
October 9-10, 2004
REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS:
Saturday, SW breeze 8-12 knots, fairly steady. Adverse current upwind at about 1.5 knots. No protests filed, one flag issued by judges for sculling pre-start.
Sunday, light, variable NW-NNW breeze. 5 Races before the wind “took a break”. Filled in to about 5 knots NWerly for race 18. No protests filed, no flags issued.
Congratulations to Clay Johnson (Harvard), Reed Johnson (Boston College), Alexander Kirkland (Tufts), and Kyle Kovacs (Harvard) who qualified for Men’s Single-Handed North American Champs in Minnesota.
A division = 18 Races
TOT
1. Johnson, Clay 85
2. Johnson, Reed 92
3. Kirkland, Alexander 97
4. Kovacs, Kyle 110
5. Berry, Matt 112
6. Wilde, Mike 119
7. Shattuck, Brendan 126
8. Loe, Andrew 151
9. Koar, Bobby 164
10. Easton, Michael 167
11. Rynne, Pat 173
12. Storck, Eric 196
13. Nucci, Giancarlo 203
14. Markham, Dan 222
15. Stoner, Isaac 241
16. Perry, Andrew 256
17. Doyle, Chris 280
18. Reeve, Quentin 288
Stoney Burke Won By Stanford
Stoney Burke Intersectional
October 9-10 2004
UC Berkeley
The Stoney Burke Intersectional was sailed out of Treasure Island Sailing Center in the San Francisco Bay. The varsity fleet consisted of 23 womens and coed teams battling for the top. There was also a JV fleet that consisted of 20 teams. Races started Saturday around noon when the wind filled in from the North-NW around 8 knots. Windward-leward courses were sailed the rest of the day as the wind built to a steady 12. On Sunday, sailors were greeted by lighter winds and plenty of sunshine as races were started in 6 knots with the wind building to around 10. Congratulations to Stanford and University of Hawaii coming in with a close second.
REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS:
A division = 13 Races
B division = 13 Races
A B TOT
1. Stanford 58 34 92
2. UHawaii 70 26 96
3. USC 67 45 112
4. UCI 44 77 121
5. UCSB 109 77 186
6. UCSB Women 113 94 207
7. UWashington 104 114 218
8. Stanford Women 103 120 223
9. UCSD 99 155 254
10. UCBerkeley 135 148 283
11. UCBerkeley Women 156 130 286
12. CMA 161 138 299
13. U of Oregon 164 142 306
14. UMBC 153 215 368
15. UWashington Women 214 156 370
16. UCLA 178 208 386
17. UCSC Women 182 214 396
18. UCSC 201 240 441
19. Western 245 215 460
20. Western Women 249 235 484
21. CSUMB 286 277 563
22. SCU 272 292 564
23. UCLA Women 265 340 605
A division = 13 Races
TOT
1. UCI 44 Frank Tryber
Whitney Loufek 1-10 13, Will Pocherera 11-12
2. Stanford 58 Peter Deming
Lucy Horton
3. USC 67 Mikee Anderson
Vanessa Decollibus
4. UHawaii 70 Scott DeCurtis 1-4 9-13, Tanner Marsh 5-8
Becky Marbardy 1-4 9-13, Crystal Bronte 5-8
5. UCSD 99 Sean Anderson
Heather Martinelli
6. Stanford Women 103 Liz Rountree 1-8, Evan Browis 7-13
Julie Pitts 1-8, Marriamma Beadsworre 7-13
7. UWashington 104 Chris Mordue 1-4 9-13, Brendon Fuhey 5-8
Heather Baird 1-4 9-13, Kate Seltig 5-8
8. UCSB 109 Hunter Williams
Courtney Carreccia
9. UCSB Women 113 Kate Conway
Monica Lahaye
10. UCBerkeley 135 Ryan Schultheis
Tiffany Bock
11. UMBC 153 Kevin King
Laura Wallaan
12. UCBerkeley Women 156 Anne Conway
Sara Huey
13. CMA 161 Andy Goodman
Jonathan Richards
14. UofO 164 Rob Dobuc
Elizabeth Otto
15. UCLA 178 Boris Gutman
Steph Adams
16. UCSC Women 182 Sarah McNaboe
Crissie Fuller
17. UCSC 201 Mike Sarich
Anita Graffias
18. UWashington Women 214 Hayley Siegenthaler
Elishia Van Laven
19. Western 245 Randy Holt
Jon Takao
20. Western Women 249 Jamie Albert
Ashley Fejelan
21. UCLA Women 265 LyzzSchueyler
Sarah Lewis
22. SCU 272
23. CSUMB 286 Megan Comstock
Lindsay Knott
B division = 13 Races
TOT
1. UHawaii 26 Matt Stine
Cassandra Harris
2. Stanford 34 Emery Wager
Becca Levin
3. USC 45 Harrison Turner
Melanie Roberts
4. UCI 77 Mike Brown
Emily Hemberger 1-2 7-10 13, Graham Beihl
5. UCSB 77 Carson Reynolds
Lauren Hobson
6. UCSB Women 94 Casey Pelletier
Andrew Baylissos
7. UWashington 114 Jon Kelch 1,2,5,6, Zak Mulbin 3,4, Alex Jones
Laurel Siegaituale 1,2,5,6 Lysondra 3-4, Ellie
8. Stanford Women 120 Caroline Young 1-6, Jo Madsen 7-13
Ali Salatti 1-6, Carrie Pewing 7-13
9. UCBerkeley Women 130 Rachel Maxson
Michelle Lu
10. CMA 138 Nathan Prather
Shauna Glasser
11. UofO 142 George Yiocles
Erin Erkman
12. UCBerkeley 148 Logan Jager
Karen Hsu 1-6, Bo Kim 7-13
13. UCSD 155 Nick Ward
Alexis Steiner
14. UWashington Women 156 Emily Hawken 1-2, 5-6, 9-10, 13, Michelle Stitzo
Paige Hardman 1-2, 5-6, 7-10, 13, Truda Peters
15. UCLA 208 Sam Wheeler
Kelly Rogers
16. UCSC Women 214 Jenna Granger
Kellye Edwards
17. Western 215 Ethan Ott
Johan Pettersson
18. UMBC 215 Will Rhodes
Jessica Teunis
19. Western Women 235 Lisa Marsaudon
Cherlynn Petso
20. UCSC 240 Matthias Kennerknecht
Vince Harrington
21. CSUMB 277 Ren Herring
Lauren Hoxsie
22. SCU 292 unknown
unknown
23. UCLA Women 340 Tara Misra
Sarah Lears
October 8, 2004
College Sailing Rankings
Sailing World College Rankings
Determined by Sailing World's coaches' panel:
Michael Callahan, Georgetown; Ken Legler, Tufts; and Mike Segerblom, USC
COED (prev rank)
1. USC (1)
2. St. Mary's (4)
3. Dartmouth (3)
4. Yale (5)
5. Boston Coll (2)
6. Tufts (9)
7. Hobart/WmSmith (12)
8. Georgetown (7)
9. Harvard (6)
10. Roger Williams ----
11. Kings Point (10)
12. Connecticut Coll (8)
13. Brown (13)
14. Hawaii (11)
15. Stanford (14)
16. UC/Irvine (15)
17. Washington Coll (16)
18. Charleston (19)
19. Rhode Island (17)
20. South Florida (20)
Also receiving votes:
U/Washington
MIT
WOMEN: (prev rank)
1. Harvard (3)
2. Yale (1)
3. Brown (2)
4. Navy (4)
5. Old Dominion (6)
6. Dartmouth (5)
7. Charleston (7)
8. Connecticut Coll (8)
9. Boston Coll (9)
10. Georgetown (10)
11. St. Mary's (11)
12. Stanford (13)
13. Hawaii ----
14. USC ----
15. South Florida (12)
Also receiving votes:
Hobart/WmSmith
Eckerd
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 +6
Difference from last month -5
Difference from last year +12
Difference from long term average for October -12
Difference from Record High -52
Difference from Record Low +19
Forecast for 8 November 2004 -3
Slippers Surfs Portugal
Each day as the yachts race in the Global Challenge, teams will file daily logs via satellite to the web site.
These log entries are designed to be more than simple position and status reports; they are the teams' way of sharing the excitement and drama as it is seen and felt by those aboard.
Via the Global Challenge's RSS Feed ATWOS will feature selected daily logs.
Today's log is from Team SAIC La Jolla & features John 'Slippers' Wilkinson. SAIC is currently 8th having sailed 232 miles in 24 hours.
Off the coast of Portugal, eager to keep on movin'. We've had our headsail poled out, keeping in mind that our spinnakers need to be saved. The wind gradually built and we're seeing mid twenties, surfing down waves.
The wind will increase by tomorrow morning, while we skirt around a low pressure moving up the Portuguese coast - will keep you posted as to its, and our, progress over the next 2 days. Should be in for some more high octane downwind surfing.
Today saw the first 'dry' shower for Sarah, Anne and Andrew. A form of talcum powder shampoo. It had a picture of a dog on the front but Anne assured everyone that it was not flea powder.
Food on the agenda. 'Fisherman's pie' -all of it ready to go with a short boil and instant mashed potatoes! Actually it wasn't too bad, especially with Jules's mum's fantastic brownies to finish off. Mmm brownies. I'm sure we'd all like to be eating more though, for sailing in heavier air often means more physical exertion. Otherwise, spirits seem to be on a good level; we are eager to catch up and bite away at the leaders. We want to be smart about the boat's gear and the rig, but it's important to keep in mind that we want to race well too! We are desiring the hot weather now, but it'll be the opposite in a short while. The doldrums are 'around the corner.'
Now running under flanker (the heavy spinnaker). Speed is up but so are nerves-so many things can go wrong in heavy downwind conditions with the kite up. This sail is key to the leg so we're keen to keep it happy & healthy. Skipper is driving, and we know we have to preserve our assets and take care of the boat.
Next in the series of crew biographies focuses on our navigator / tactician/ weather expert John Wilkinson aka Slippers. So called as he sits at the chart table for so long that we think he needs his pipe and slippers for comfort. In case he forgets to do it himself by the end of the race, there will be a medium size pair of Musto foulies for sale on eBay, virtually brand new. This may appear a harsh comment until it was noted that when he got splashed on deck today by a wave, he promptly headed down below. To be fair to Slippers, he is an excellent helm as well and maintains great boat speed for us. Fortunately his liking for speed back in the UK and his need to be unavailable for various traffic related court appearances is the primary reason why we find him sailing with us around the world. And guess what, he is also a star in our team.
Regular readers of this column will note certain references yesterday to Finesterre and Portugal. Slippers would like it to be noted that Finesterre is in fact in Spain. We sincerely apologise for this error and for any distress caused to a sensitive navigator.
And finally on the assumption that this will be on the Challenge website on Friday 8th October, a very happy birthday to Jim's mum! As a special treat, he will be the focus of our crew biography tomorrow.
Linky Sailing News
Racing Double W's for ENZ's new team learns
News Vote for the 2004 Sailors of the Year. ENZ dynamics. Blake book
Great Lakes Manty reunion
College Sailing Stanford defends Stony Burke
Adams Trophy
US SAILING's U.S. Women's Sailing
Championship will be held next week in Kaneohe, HI. Judging by the list of experienced competitors from across the country, this year's event promises some tight racing. Last year's winner, Joni Palmer (Annapolis, MD) is returning to defend her title against a number of previous winners and competitors including 2002 winner, Vicki Sodero (San Francisco, CA) and Meg Dempsey (Stamford, CT). Kaneohe Bay Yacht Club is the host of the event. Rolex Watch U.S.A. is a proud sponsor of the U.S. Women's Sailing Championship.
The winning team of the Championship will be awarded the Mrs. Charles
Francis Adams Trophy, which is believed to be "the first women's
championship ever held in the world" and surely the first in North America.
Fedor in Falmouth
Currently moored alongside the pontoon in front of the National Maritime Museum Cornwall is the celebrated wanderer Fedor Konyukhov and his giant maxi yacht Trading Network Alye Parusa (Scarlet Sail).
Fedor Konyukhov is the most recognised Russian explorer in the world. Among the many strings in his bow he is also a traveller, artist, and journalist. He has written eight books, painted over 3000 pictures and carried out 40 unique expeditions and ascents. He is also the only man to have travelled to all five poles of the earth (including three visits to the North Pole and one to the South Pole) and he has spent over 1,000 days solo voyaging.
His 85 foot maxi yacht, Alye Parusa, is the largest of its kind in the world and was built in 1999 in France. Alye Parusa will be moored up outside the museum until October 20 when Fedor begins his next challenge – an attempt to break the record for the fastest single-handed non stop round the world voyage. It is the first time that a yacht of this size has been sailed single-handed and a small bit of the Museum will be sailing with him.
Having struck a fond relationship with the Museum, Fedor asked if he could have one of the Maritime Museum’s flags so that it could sail with him on his travels and cover the incredible journey representing Falmouth and the Museum around the world. Naturally, the Museum was delighted to hand over a large battle flag.
Fedor Konyukhov already holds the record for the fastest trans-Atlantic crossing from Plymouth to Boston which he completed in 14 days and 7 hours. He is the only Russian to have climbed the highest peaks of all seven continents in the world and even has a Vodka named after him by the Moscow Stella factory! The indefatigable Russian traveller is also the holder of a Friendship of Peoples Order, one of Russia’s highest honours.
At the end of 2002, Fedor set another world record when he crossed the Atlantic alone in his rowing boat Uralaz in 46 days and four hours. Fedor's solo rowing marathon across the Atlantic started on October 16 2002, in the port of San Sebastian in the Canary Islands - the departure point of Columbus' adventures 510 years ago. On December 1, Fedor landed on the coast of Barbados 11 days ahead of the previous record owned by Emmanuel Coindre of France who covered the distance in 57 days.
Fedor has been moored in Falmouth for several months now while Pendennis Shipyard has carried out work reconstructing the keel, and fitting new solar panels. Fedor said: “I have visited over 70 countries and the people of Falmouth are among the friendliest I have met. The hospitality we have been shown has been overwhelming.”
When asked what the biggest challenge of the solo circumnavigation would be Fedor replied: “My boat has not been tested in the southern ocean. Although I have crossed the Atlantic ocean twice in this yacht, the winds and the waves will be very different in the southern oceans. That will be my biggest challenge.”
National Maritime Museum Cornwall in Falmouth has given Fedor Konyukhov several souvenirs that he will carry with him including a card signed by museum staff and volunteers. Fedor expects to complete his journey in 120 days. You can follow his progress on the project website www.konyukhov.ru/eng
October 7, 2004
Weather Delay
IN BRIEF
* BIG LOW WEATHER SYSTEM DELAYS SKANDIA'S DEPARTURE FROM COWES FOR VENDÉE START PORT
* AMERICAN SKIPPER, BRUCE SCHWAB ARRIVES IN LES SABLES D'OLONNE BUT TWO COLLISIONS DURING DELIVERY MAY WRECK HIS CHANCES OF STARTING...
* 31 DAYS TO GO TO START AT 1200 GMT ON SUNDAY, 7TH NOVEMBER...
http://www.nickmoloney.com/skandia
IN DETAIL
With a month to go to the start of the 2004 Vendée Globe, the 24 skippers are planning their arrival in the start port of Les Sables d'Olonne by the October 16th deadline. Nick Moloney decided to delay the delivery of Skandia from their home base in Cowes as a low weather system moves north-east across the planned route to France bringing strong to gale force winds. "We still have time on our side and there is just no need to go out there in conditions like this and then break something," said Moloney. "We will have plenty of that to come when the race starts!" Skandia now plan to depart on Tuesday, 12th October.
Five boats have arrived in Les Sables d'Olonne one of these is American Skipper, Bruce Schwab, on Ocean Planet, the delivery from the States had its drama with Schwab reporting two mid-Atlantic collisions inflicting substantial damage. Schwab like Moloney is the only competitor from his country (USA). Ocean Planet will be hauled out in Les Sables d'Olonne to asses the damage but Schwab's shore manager estimates the costs to be in the region of $50,000 US Dollars. Although still in an optimistic mood, Schwab does not have the money or corporate support to match his competitors, much of his funding has come from thousands of personal donations. The outcome could be heartbreaking and put an end to years of preparation and Schwab's dream of becoming the first American to complete the Vendée Globe.
For the full story or to lend support visit http://www.bruceschwab.com
Schwab's dilemma, highlights the struggle nearly every skipper on the start line will have been though at some point in their sailing career. Just under a year ago, Nick Moloney was contemplating having to surrender his Vendée Globe dream as the race to finance the campaign was running out of time. It was Skandia's decision to support Nick after he had qualified for the 5th edition of the Vendée Globe by finishing the solo Defi Atlantique race, that resurrected his dream. "Without Skandia's commitment I could not have got to the start line," said Moloney. "The comfort zone of knowing you have a committed sponsor is invaluable because you know that if things go horribly wrong, they will 9 times out of 10 step into the void. I feel so bad for Bruce but I hope that the damage to his boat is not as serious as they are predicting and that he can find the support to get back out there."
WEATHER PART 3
Cape Horn
Approaching Cape Horn the only real turning point on the course, needs to be done with extreme care. The area is a 200-mile wide bottleneck between Latin America and Antarctica and all the weather systems rolling around the Southern Ocean must pass through this gap.
North through the Atlantic
From sailing downwind in strong conditions to turning the corner and sailing up the east coast of Argentina and Brazil sees many changes coming quickly. The wind turns to a headwind and the temperature starts to rise pretty quickly. The shortest route to the equator is again up along the coast, although this represents upwind sailing just about all the way.
The Doldrums again have to be tackled on the way north up the Atlantic and the north-east Trades mean more upwind sailing in tired boats with tired skippers north of the Equator.
Approaching the Azores High skippers have to anticipate at which point they will tack onto port to start to their approach to the European Continent. Too early and they will end up sailing in upwind conditions for longer, too late and they will sail extra distance in light airs.
Heading for home
As the fleet approach Spain and Portugal, the sheets will be eased and faster straight-line progress will be made again. The fleet will, however, be extremely spread out at this stage and skippers will be sailing conservatively just to keep their boats in one piece until the finish line.
The current record is 93 days, 3 hours, 57 minutes and 32 seconds which means the leading boats will start to arrive early February, still very much winter in Europe with still the possibility of bad winter storms at or near the finish.
Double Victory for ENZ
With two tough races against the pre-regatta favourites Alinghi and Oracle ahead of them, Day 3 of the second act of the 2007 America’s Cup, was never going to be easy for Emirates Team New Zealand.
And it wasn’t. But with wins against both of their opponents, Emirates Team New Zealand finished the day happy with their performance and looking forward to a day off tomorrow.
With race four abandoned on Wednesday, flights five and six were scheduled and sailed today. Race four will be sailed at the end of the first round on Saturday. Friday is a lay day and three flights are scheduled for Saturday.
First up against Alinghi today, Emirates Team New Zealand crossed the finish line 1min 40sec ahead of the Swiss defender of the America’s Cup.
Then it was head-to-head with BMW Oracle. It was a tight race all the way, with anxious moments for both teams with NZL81 holding on to win by 31 seconds.
For Grant Dalton it was a major step forward in building a new team, but as he says, there’s still a long way to go.
He said yesterday’s debrief “determined that we had to be more aggressive in the starts – and today we were. We fought for the right at both starts and then we worked hard to keep it.
“I can’t say enough about the crew and their performance today. It was great to watch the afterguard of Dean Barker, Terry Hutchinson, Ben Ainslie and Kevin Hall and with Adam Beashel up the mast calling the shifts, working as a unit.
“They were confident; the calls were clear and concise. They worked well and the rest of the crew rose to the occasion. It was a great overall effort.”
Today the light breeze was again a factor although the fleet left the dock on schedule at 11.30am and delays in the start were minimal compared with the almost four hours of yesterday.
The first matches were sailed on the now familiar windward-leeward course with four legs of two nautical miles.
Emirates Team New Zealand‘s match against Alinghi was the second race to start at 1.40pm. The breeze was about six knots from the north-west.
King Juan Carlos of Spain, an accomplished yachtsman, sailed on board Alinghi as 18th man.
ETNZ got a good start after aggressively claiming the right of the course. There was nothing in it for half the first beat, then NZL81 picked up a shift in the right and started to extend a slender lead.
At the first mark NZL81 had a 50 sec advantage and sailing conservatively and cannily maintained the margin around marks two and three and extend on the final run to 1min 40 sec.
By the time the second race started at 4.20pm, the breeze had built to about 10 knots.
Later in the afternoon, the breeze filled in a little and NZL81 again won the start and held on to the right of the course. There was little in it for most of the first beat, and then NZL81 gained an advantage and at the first mark led by 15 seconds.
Oracle gained ground on the first run and led through the gate by 5 seconds. At the end of the second beat ETNZ had a three-boat length lead. But Oracle again showed downwind speed and ate into the lead. Then, on the final third of the run, NZL81 opened up a modest lead and was 31 seconds ahead at the end.
What Went Wrong
Anticipated to be the top match today, Alinghi lost to Emirates Team New Zealand in a race that the Kiwis controlled from the first beat, taking the race by 1:40 seconds. King Juan Carlos of Spain sailed as 18th man on board Alinghi in the team's first match against Emirates Team New Zealand in Act 2. Alinghi, Emirates Team New Zealand, and Luna Rossa now share top position on the leaderboard.
Racing got away on time at just after 1:30pm in about 8 knots and a light swell. SUI 64 and NZL 81 entered into a mellow dial up, playing lead and follow with Alinghi trailing prior to the two boats diverging for an even split tack start. Alinghi, headed out to the left while Emirates Team New Zealand took the right, with Alinghi quickly tacking back to join them. With the right once again the more favoured side, it didn't take much for the Kiwis to slip into a slight lead from which they moved into the dominating position for the remainder of the race, never for a minute giving their arch rival Alinghi the slightest opportunity to pass.
More breeze filled in for Race 2, giving Alinghi a fair chance to resume its winning streak taking a race from Le Defi. The pin end was more favoured with the breeze forecast to swing right. Phillipe Presti helming Le Defi and with starboard advantage was out circled by in the pre-start by the Swiss efficiency and experience. An even start ensued and the French sailed out to the right, Alinghi took the left and immediately tacked onto port to come back to Le Defi. The French kept pace with Alinghi for the early part of the first beat until Alinghi made sufficient gain to consolidate their lead, winning by a solid 2:27 second margin.
Closest of battles today was that between Emirates Team New Zealand and BMW ORACLE Racing. With lead changes and tight racing all the way to the finish, the Kiwis beat the Americans by 31 seconds to end a successful day for them defeating the top two teams. Luna Rossa comfortably collected two points from K-Challenge and Shosholoza, the Italians proving in this series that they are serious contenders. The Spanish King enjoyed a win aboard K-Challenge in Race 2 against Italian team +39 by 1: 39 seconds.
Overall Results:
-------------------------
Team Alinghi - 4 points
BMW Racing Oracle - 3 points
Luna Rossa - 4 points
Emirates Team NZ - 4 points
K-Challenge - 1 point
Le Defi - 1 point
+39 - 1 point
Shosholoza - 0 points
Quotes of the day:
-------------------
Jochen Schuemann: "What went wrong (in Race 1) is that we started on the wrong side! We had 8-9 knots but it was very hazy and so difficult to make a judgement about what looked good or bad out there. So it was all decided by the starting positions."
Francesco Rapetti: "In the first race we lost control to the starboard side where the shift was going on. Team New Zealand sailed well and it was a good day for them. Jon Bilger our weather guy told us the right was okay and it shows how difficult it is to come back against a strong team."
Will McCarthy, Trimmer: "In the first race we got a good start and got the start we wanted but the right was favored. We met Team New Zealand at the cross, they tacked back to the right and continued to protect that side. There's not much difference in speed in the light stuff."
2-0 Day for Team New Zealand
Two full flights were sailed at the Valencia Louis Vuitton Act Two on Thursday, on an afternoon when His Majesty King Juan Carlos of Spain sailed aboard Team Alinghi. The weather conditions were good for racing, with a 10-knot gradient Northeasterly replaced by a light sea-breeze as the afternoon progressed. The wind became very light towards the end of the final races, making for some tough decisions by the tacticians.
Emirates Team New Zealand played the role of giant killers on this day, as they defeated Team Alinghi, the America’s Cup Defender, and BMW ORACLE Racing, the top team from the Marseille Louis Vuitton Act 1. Both races were close, and in particular, the match against BMW ORACLE where the outcome was in doubt all the way around the race course.
In this Match of the Day, Emirat es Team New Zealand helmsman Dean Barker made a strong recovery on the start, circling back around the Race Committee boat from the course side of the start line, crossing the line just moments after the gun fired. BMW ORACLE helmsman Gavin Brady elected to simply dip below the line and also started strongly, the teams taking opposite sides of the race course for the first leg. Barker and his team used the power of the right to continually bounce BMW ORACLE to the left side of the course. This strategy didn’t pay off until the end of the leg, when the Kiwis were able to sail the American boat past the layline and lead around the mark.
The new afterguard on NZL 81 made a brave decision to gybe around the mark and thus separate from BMW ORACLE, a tactic that appeared to put their lead in jeopardy. The teams chose opposite sides on the leeward gate and rounded within seconds of each other. BMW ORACLE, now on the right, didn’t engage New Zealand on this leg and near the top mark, Emirates Team New Zealand found the shift it needed to round with a 36-second lead. But on the final run, with the wind becoming very soft, each team appeared at different times to be making up time on its opponent. But in the end, this day belonged to Emirates Team New Zealand who knocked off BMW ORACLE in a thrilling match.
Earlier in the day Barker had won the starboard side of the course which proved valuable mid-way up the beat when a little right hand shift allowed his team to realise a handy gain. The Kiwis never looked back, and converted the win for their second consecutive victory over Team Alinghi, the team that they lost the America’s Cup to in March, 2003.
The K-Challenge is winning a lot of moral victories at the Valencia Louis Vuitton Act, but until the last match of the day has had little to show for it on the leader board. The French team had been gaining the respect of its peers with several strong performances in the Louis Vuitton Acts, but in the end, the top teams are proving too powerful for the new team with its 2000-generation boat.
On Thursday it was the Luna Rossa team that was forced to battle through the first leg with the stubborn K-Challenge before superior speed downwind allowed the Italians to put some distance between themselves and the French. Luna Rossa helmsman James Spithill was never seriously threatened the rest of the way and his team earned its third win from four starts.
K-Challenge skipper Thierry Pepponet didn’t let the disappointment of that first session affect him in his second match on the day, as he dominated the start over Iain Percy on +39. K-Challenge converted that wonderful start into a solid victory to earn its second win from five starts.
Iain Percy’s +39 crew had a better showing in its first match, with a strong race against Team Shosholoza. The boats split at the start with the South Africans taking what appeared to be the favoured right hand side of the course, but +39 was able to slowly creep ahead up the beat, rounding the top mark 30-seconds to the good. Shosholoza made a good effort on the run to gain some of that back, but a poor gybe and spinnaker drop at the leeward gate allowed the Italian team to open up again, and +39 went on to earn its first victory of the 32nd America’s Cup.
The BMW ORACLE squad led by skipper Chris Dickson, overpowered Philippe Presti’s LE DEFI team in their morning match. Presti then had the misfortune of meeting Alinghi in the afternoon session, and despite some strong moments early in the race, succumbed to the America’s Cup holder.
Friday is an ‘off day’ at the Valencia Louis Vuitton Act 2. Racing will continue on Saturday.
Louis Vuitton Act 2 – Results and Leaderboard
Flight 5
Match 1 ITA 74 beat FRA 57 delta 1:04
Match 2 NZL 81 beat SUI 64 delta 1:40
Match 3 ITA 59 beat RSA 48 delta 0:38
Match 4 USA 71 beat FRA 69 delta 1:11
Flight 6
Match 1 SUI 64 beat FRA 69 delta 2:27
Match 2 NZL 81 beat USA 71 delta 0:31
Match 3 ITA 74 beat RSA 48 delta 1:33
Match 4 FRA 57 beat ITA 59 delta 1:39
Low A Comin'
Now past Finisterre, the crews in the Global Challenge are getting into the swing of life onboard with smooth spinnaker rides, warm sunshine and wildlife perking the crews up following the tail end of Hurricane Lisa. However, they know this cannot last as a large, intensive low-pressure system is set to hit the fleet in the next 24 hours.
The teams are facing the onslaught of the low in two distinct groups. Imagine It Done (9th) is leading the back of the fleet on a westerly course along with Pindar (10th), Me To You (11th) and Team Save the Children (12th), who are all most likely contending with lighter winds than the leading pack as they gybe downwind in an attempt to maintain the optimum wind angle without moving too far off their desired course.
Looking at the yachts’ courses Challenge Business’ sailing manager, Cal Tomlinson explained: “This morning Barclays Adventurer (4th place) was making some interesting choices as any yacht moving towards the east would have been heading for tactical suicide. Looking at this afternoon’s poll, they seem to have changed their mind, along with Spirit of Sark, and have opted for a move out west - perhaps after the daily chat show revealed the other teams’ positions.”
After holding a commanding lead, Spirit of Sark may well be relegated from the top spot overnight as BP Explorer heads towards the low from a more westerly position. To the south and east of BP Explorer, Spirit of Sark’s approach could leave them stranded in the middle of the system with less wind than their nearest rivals.
The 24-hour forecast shows that the sea legs developed during the bow submerging ride down the Channel will soon be put to the test again with wind speeds up to 40 knots expected when the low-pressure system moves up to meet the fleet.
Racing hard, the crews all seem on top form, Team Save the Children’s Anthony Cambell explaining that his yacht resembles Big Brother, as the yacht is equipped with a number of additional cameras. “I think some of the crew are feeling a bit like reality TV stars with all the filming going on.
“Despite our current position in the fleet, spirits aboard are sky high. Everyone feels as though we have come through the decidedly rough first few days with flying colours.
“We have had dolphins swimming and jumping in pairs of mother and calf on the bow and last night a whale was spotted.”
There have been no reports of any damage to any of the spinnakers, which have been playing a major part for most of the fleet in the past 24 hours and will continue to be used. Team Save the Children has reported sail damage after tearing their Yankee 2 headsail, although this has now been fixed and is fully operational.
Emma Lacey’s daily log explained the relief aboard Barclays Adventurer that their water maker is now working: “Having gone from the thought of capturing rain water in the sails to being able to go back to hot drinks, showers and our luxury cakes - I can smell the flapjacks cooking as I type with the sun beating down through the aft hatch and the sounds of gentle snores surrounding me at the back of the yacht.”
The next few hours are vital for the tactical decisions made by skippers and crews as they race towards the Cape Verde Islands and on to Argentina.
K-Challenge gains Sponsor
K-Challenge, first French official challenger for the 32nd America’s Cup, is very honored to introduce its first sponsor : AIGLE, the outdoor and leisure wear specialist, which officially joins the team now until 2007.
« The AIGLE company successfully caters for outdoor sports enthusiasts who want to pit themselves against the elements and sporting challenges and offers an extensive ultra-performance line reserved for sailing enthusiasts : deep sea sailing or sports regattas.»
America’s Cup is the most prestigious sailing competition ever, and above all, it is a human story between men when looking at the past editions. Today, this is the beginning of a new story between K-Challenge and AIGLE.
Yves Mouriès, AIGLE’s CEO, explains the reasons that have convinced them to become a sponsor for K-Challenge :
« America’s Cup is back in Europe, we wanted AIGLE to be part of it. We have waited till the Louis Vuitton Act I in Marseille and then, we noticed the motivation and how serious the K-Challenge organisation was, we have then decided to become their sponsor. »
Recognized by the public as the outdoor and leisure wear specialist, it already shows a strong link with the K-Challenge philosophy : a team opened to capabilities coming from everywhere, a multicultural philosophy shared by all the K-Challenge team members, and part of the team’s key values.
« We are proud and honored that one of the most recognized water sport brand on the French market has chosen K-Challenge and is engaged with us for 3 years. We are also convinced that the trust that AIGLE has put in K-Challenge is the first reward for all the efforts that the team has put in place for 2 years and a half, also proving that the visibility, the partnership programme and the feedback offered by K-Challenge are very satisfactory for demanding sponsors. So this is the beginning of a long story that we will build together all along this 32nd America’s Cup and that we are signing up today », says Stephane Kandler, K-Challenge’s CEO.
Recent American Olympian Meg Gaillard in new role as K-Challenge crew and aerial wind reader.
Photo: Franck SOCHA
AIGLE becomes an Official Supplier for K-Challenge, and takes advantage of the exclusivity for the « sports clothing and shoes » category. AIGLE will supply exclusively the K-Challenge team members (clothes and shoes, for sailing – Actimum collection – and on shore).
As counterpart, K-Challenge will offer to AIGLE innovative rights allowing them to put their products in the front, affirm their values and enrich their image, entertain and develop their clients networks, federate and motivate the internal teams. K-Challenge is also offering to AIGLE a tailor-made partnership organization.
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A Good Nites Sleep....Not!
Each day as the yachts race in the Global Challenge, teams will file daily logs via satellite to the web site.
These log entries are designed to be more than simple position and status reports; they are the teams' way of sharing the excitement and drama as it is seen and felt by those aboard.
Via the Global Challenge's RSS Feed ATWOS will feature selected daily logs.
Today's log is from Bill Lane of BG Spirit which is currently 6th, 44 miles out of 1st.
Well the best laid plans of mice and sailors. So much for a good nights sleep. Having got to bed nice and early I was, of course, wide awake. Partly because of an attack of the snuffles, eventually I dropped off just to be called on deck to assist with a sail change. Drop one spinnaker and then hoist another, stronger one as the wind was getting up. This done, a quick hand packing the old one and back to bed.
BG Spirit crew prior to the start
Again sleep did not come quickly and yes once more extra hands were needed on deck. This time it started as a simple gybe but because of the ever changing conditions it turned out to be a spinnaker drop and head sail hoist. So a ten minute job turned into an hour and a half. Pity I only had my base layer trousers, foulie jacket and deck shoes on. This would not have been a problem, as it was not that cold except we ended up with a foot and a half of water going across the deck! Then finally, just before getting up time it was up again to help with another spinnaker recovery! Still the bread I made yesterday for breakfast today turned out well, though I wish I could have managed to cut either of the small loaves into more than 14 slices!
Act II Light & Tricky
It was a difficult day for the sailors at the Valencia Louis Vuitton Act 2 on Wednesday, as very light conditions made for a day of snakes and ladders on the race course, with teams realising big gains or losses with each puff of breeze.
Racing was delayed for nearly four hours with low cloud cover and haze inhibiting the sea breeze. But Principal Race Officer Peter Reggio’s patience was rewarded and he was able to start one full flight of races on the day. The light, shifty conditions meant that some races that appeared as though they might be relative mismatches were in doubt until the finish gun sounded.
The first match had great potential for upset throughout the first lap of the course, as the K-Challenge built a nice lead on the America’s Cup Defender Alinghi. Skipper Thierry Peponnet found a nice right-hand shift just after the start and converted that into a 23-second lead around the top mark. The team was able to fend off Alinghi nearly all of the way down the course, but on the final gybe for the leeward gate, K-Challenge wasn’t able to sheet in the gennaker, and that allowed Alinghi helmsman Peter Holmberg to roll over the French boat, and round the leeward mark with a one-second lead. Alinghi covered the rest of the way for the win.
In the second match, LE DEFI helmsman Philippe Presti appeared to have his counterpart Iain Percy in trouble upwind of the start line just a minute before the start, but Percy was able to wriggle off the hook, and within moments of the start was flying up the right hand side of the course. But the +39 crew switched sides later up the beat, and LE DEFI was able to make the pass. The French extended the rest of the way for a well deserved win.
This third flight was the Match of the Day with Luna Rossa and Emirates Team New Zealand i n a heated battle all of the way around the race course. Helmsman James Spithill earned full marks on this pre-start and was in control for the entire five-minutes. Out of the dial-up, Spithill was in a strong position to leeward of Dean Barker on NZL 81, and was able to keep Barker vulnerable as the boats eventually turned for the starting line. On the run back to the line, Spithill luffed up and shut NZL 81 out from the start, Barker with no choice but to stall head to wind until ITA 74 cleared the start line. Trailing early, NZL 81 appeared to be right back in the race after a favourable shift when Luna Rossa allowed some separation, but at the top mark, the Italians were in control, and led by 30-seconds
The Luna Rossa afterguard made some brave decisions on this day, often allowing the trailing NZL 81 to separate by hundreds of metres, potentially very dangerous in the light, patchy, and shifty conditions. Even on the final run to the finish Barker and his afterguard w ere able to find some room on their own on the left-hand side of the race course. But each time the boats converged, the wisdom of the decision-makers on the Italian boat was borne out, and despite some anxious moments, Luna Rossa earned a big win on a difficult day.
In the final match, BMW ORACLE was simply too powerful for Team Shosholoza, and led this race from start to finish.
The results leave the Defender, Team Alinghi, alone at the top of the leaderboard with a perfect record of three wins from three starts.
Racing will continue on Thursday with Flights 5 and 6. Flight 4 will be sailed later in the week when the schedule permits.
Louis Vuitton Act 2 – Results and Leaderboard
Flight 3
Match 1 SUI 64 beat FRA 57 delta 1:17
Match 2 FRA 69 beat ITA 59 delta 1:55
Match 3 ITA 74 beat NZL 81 delta 0:57
Match 4 USA 71 beat RSA 48 delta 4:01
October 6, 2004
Little Pressure
Alinghi capitalized on a mistake by K-Challenge on the first run to move into the lead in what was looking to be a race that the French could have won today. Leading for the best part of the first two legs, K-Challenge encountered a problem with the spinnaker sheet heading out of a jibe at the leeward mark, allowing Alinghi to slip inside and into the lead. Only one race was sailed today due to a late start. Results today: Team Alinghi 1 point vs. K-Challenge 0 points; BMW ORACLE Racing 1 point vs. Shosholoza 0 points; Luna Rossa 1 point vs Emirates Team New Zealand 0 points; Le Defi 1 point vs. +39 0 points.
Plagued with extremely light air again today and equally as shifty conditions, racing finally got underway about 4:30pm in just 5 knots of breeze. SUI 64 and FRA 57 took a split tack start, Alinghi heading out on starboard to the left showed good speed over the French boat which appeared sluggish coming out of a tack to port at the line. However, it was soon clear that the right was advantageous as the French neatly moved into the dominating position to lead by several lengths up the beat and rounding the first mark 23 seconds ahead of Alinghi. Looking for an opportunity to cross, Alinghi, flying both a staysail and asymmetric kite, eventually tacked behind K-Challenge just before the French ran into trouble with a spinnaker sheet approaching the leeward mark. Just the loophole Alinghi needed, they took the inside track to lead around the mark. While the boats remained close, it was up the final beat that the Swiss capably managed the shifts to extend their lead comfortably,
crossing the finish 1:17 seconds ahead of K-Challenge.
In other racing today, anticipation was full on when Luna Rossa met Emirates Team New Zealand in their first race together in this series. With Aussie James Spithill up against Kiwi helmsman Dean Barker, both superb match racers, the pressure was on from the get go. The close race saw both teams play the shifts well and top match racing performance by the experienced crews on both boats. As anticipated, BMW ORACLE Racing overwhelmed the new Shosholoza team, and a solid performance by Le Defi saw that French team win over +39. Today'