Around The World Of Sailing

Harken & US Sailing Team

US SAILING and Harken Yacht Equipment today announced a new five-year strategic partnership naming Harken as the "Official Hardware Supplier" and sponsor of the US Sailing Team. The US Sailing Team is working with its family of sponsors to act on a newly developed 20-year strategic plan to make dramatic increases in the support available to American sailors who are training to represent the U.S. in future Olympic and Paralympic Games.

"Harken is pleased to announce our partnership with the US Sailing Team," said Harken's Vice President Olaf Harken. "We are particularly excited about the prospect of playing an active roll in their new strategy that has been articulated so clearly about team's future,"

As part of the new partnership, Harken will supply the members of the US Sailing Team with the highest quality hardware, ensuring that the Team-members will be able to focus more on getting ready for the on-the-water challenges ahead.

"We are delighted to have a strategic partner such as Harken Yacht Equipment," explains Dean Brenner, Chairman of US SAILING's Olympic Sailing Committee. "They bring the best products, the experience, the technology, and the global service network to our members of the US Sailing Team. When the Team represents our country, traveling to seemingly endless regattas around the world, Harken will be there with them, providing the best hardware products."

Harken, Inc. is a leading manufacturer and distributor of innovative sailboat hardware and accessories. Headquartered in Pewaukee, Wisconsin, Harken manufactures in USA and Italy. Their network includes offices in Rhode Island, California, Florida, France, Italy, Japan, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.

The US Sailing Team is managed by US SAILING, national governing body of the sport. Headquartered in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, US SAILING's mission is to encourage participation and promote excellence in sailing in the U.S. US SAILING offers training and education programs, supports a wide range of sailing organizations and communities, and provides administration and oversight of competitive sailing across the country, including the US Sailing Teams and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Sailing Teams. For more information, please visit www.ussailing.org.

Team Racing PCC's

B&Q on Stand By

IN BRIEF:

* B&Q SKIPPER, ELLEN MACARTHUR, AND HER CREW GO ON STANDBY FOR THE RECORD SNSM, POSSIBLE DEPARTURE FROM LORIENT ON MONDAY

* THE RECORD SNSM IS A 284 MILE RECORD FROM ST NAZAIRE TO ST MALO

* B&Q TO ATTEMPT TO SET A NEW MAXI CLASS RECORD

IN DETAIL:

Ellen MacArthur is currently out boat testing with the 75-foot trimaran B&Q in Lorient, France, in preparation for their crewed attempt on the 284 mile Record SNSM. "The present forecast indicates a Monday afternoon (2.5.05) departure from Lorient, crossing the line at St Nazaire when the SW breeze fills in overnight on Monday," said Ellen. But, of course, as with all great weather predictions this could change and the crew have a standby period from the 1st-10th May to try and attempt this short record.

The Record SNSM is a 284 miles passage, passing the coasts of Loire Atlantique in Pays de Loire then the coasts of Brittany. This course highlights the 56 SNSM stations between Saint-Nazaire and Saint-Malo. The Socient Nationale de Sauvetage en Mer (SNSM) is the equivalent of the RNLI in the UK, and just like the RNLI is funded solely by public donations.

Only last week three of the ORMA multihulls skippered by Thomas Coville, Sodebo, Michel Desjoyeux, Geant and Thierry Dupré, Gitana X set out on 19th April to establish a new ORMA (60ft trimaran) record. Both Gitana X and Geant were forced to abandon only a few hours into the record attempt due to gear failure but Coville went on to cross the finish line off St Malo on Wednesday 20 April in a time of 1 day, 1 hour, 37 minutes and 17 seconds at an average speed of 11.04 knots.

Ellen and her crew of Loik Gallon, Charles Darbyshire and Jean René Keruzoré (cameraman) will be looking to establish a new Maxi class record and will be a good 'work-up' of the 75-foot trimaran following her refit over the last seven weeks.

Team Ellen Training

IN BRIEF:

* LEADING LIGHTS ANNOUNCES EXCLUSIVE TRAINING MODULE BASED ON THE SUCCESSFUL 'TEAM ELLEN' ROUND THE WORLD RECORD ATTEMPT

* EXCLUSIVE NEW LEARNING EXPERIENCE FOR BUSINESS LEADERS AND TEAMS

* DEVELOPED IN CONJUNCTION WITH ELLEN MACARTHUR’S OFFSHORE CHALLENGES SAILING TEAM

IN DETAIL:

Ellen's internationally acclaimed record-breaking journey to become the fastest solo sailor around the world provides the theme and content for a new set of learning experiences for business leaders and teams.

Working with members of the Offshore Challenges Sailing Team, Leading Lights have developed the official team story, 'Record Breaking Teamwork'. The story shares the experiences, insight and teamwork lessons learned against the backdrop of Ellen's race against time, from project inception to post-finish euphoria.

The training product is available in a number of formats, including a multi-media conference speech, a 1-day workshop and a team development programme aboard high performance yachts.

Mark Turner, CEO of Offshore Challenges Group, is excited about the value to business of this new training proposition: "Crossing the finish line of the solo round the world record attempt marked a milestone in what was already a two-year team project. There are so many parallels with the business world, and so many lessons to share from an environment that is very unforgiving on mistakes, and rewards first class teamwork, planning and preparation."

Mark Denton, Managing Partner of Leading Lights, followed the Team Ellen story every step of the way: "It is fantastic to bring something unique, engaging and inspirational to the training arena to help today's business leaders and teams enhance their performance. The Team Ellen workshop is a powerful development tool that can be applied at any level in any organisation and achieve results."

Notes to Editors:

About Leading Lights

Leading Lights is an innovative learning experiences and events company aligned to the ultimate team sport, professional ocean racing. Leading Lights works with athletes and teams from the world's top sailing events to capture their experiences, insight and lessons learned on how they achieve success.

Our mission is to share these powerful learning experiences with business leaders and teams, to enable them to learn, develop and excel.

http://www.leadinglights.biz

AC Deadline Passes...Team China

The 32nd America’s Cup is now a 12-team event. Prior to the 16:00 challenge deadline on Friday afternoon, two new challenging teams from countries that have never before participated in the America’s Cup presented their challenge dossiers to the defending yacht club, the Swiss Société Nautique de Genève (SNG).

Early on Friday afternoon, with all of its challenge formalities completed, the United Internet Team Germany, representing the Deutscher Challenger Yacht Club, was fully accepted as the tenth Challenger for the 32nd America’s Cup. The team, (formerly known as the ‘Fresh 17’ project) will be led on the water by Danish skipper Jesper Bank, a two-time Olympic gold medallist and previous America’s Cup skipper in 2002/2003 with Victory Challenge.

A challenge dossier from China Team arrived on Friday shortly before the deadline and must now be closely evaluated over the coming days by the Société Nautique de Genève, the Defending yacht club, before the team is fully accepted as a Challenger. Confirmation of the status of China Team as a challenger will be issued as soon as possible.

With the passing of the challenge deadline today, this edition of the America’s Cup stands as the most diverse in the 154-history of the event.

“With 11 challengers representing nine countries, this is not just one of the biggest, but it is by far the most diverse America’s Cup in history. We have three countries participating for the first time – South Africa, Germany and China, and five continents are represented, reinforcing the global appeal of the America’s Cup,” said an excited Michel Bonnefous, the CEO of the event organiser. “This is exactly what we wanted for the first America’s Cup in Europe. It is very gratifying to see the hard work that the teams and organisers have put in come to fruition.”

There were 13 challengers from six countries in Australia in 1987, the first time the event was held outside the United States and 11 challengers from seven countries in 1999 in Auckland. This 32nd America’s Cup will be among the largest in history. Between 1851 and 1967 each edition of the America’s Cup featured just two nations – one Defender and one Challenger. Since 1970 the number of challengers for each edition has steadily grown, further fuelled from 1983 by the structure of the Louis Vuitton Cup.

“On behalf of the SNG I am humbled by the scale and quality of the challenging group. Acting as Trustee and Defender of the America’s Cup is new to our club,” said Pierre-Yves Firmenich, President of Société Nautique de Genève. “We are of course now under no illusions about the size of the task that lies ahead and we are already willing our team, Alinghi, on towards a successful defence.”

All of the challengers, along with the Defender, Team Alinghi, will participate in 10 more Louis Vuitton Acts leading up to the main events in 2007. The Valencia Louis Vuitton Acts 4 & 5 will open the 2005 season with racing beginning on the 16th of June in the host city of the 32nd America’s Cup, Valencia.

Alex Thompson to sail 5 Oceans

Palma, Mallorca 29th April 2005 Hugo Boss, sponsored British Yachtsman Alex Thomson today announced his plans to compete in the forthcoming 5-Oceans Race, a solo circumnavigation with stopovers, organised by his sailing mentor, Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, Chairman of race management company Clipper Ventures.

“Robin has taken an historic oceanic yacht race and funked it up. I am really excited about taking on this challenge. The 5-Oceans, like any solo circumnavigation, is a massive undertaking and ultimately I am aiming to finish it. The format that Robin has developed means that it will be a thrilling and testing competition; it will attract the IMOCA Open 60 skippers who are at the top of their game and if I can win it then that is a bonus. But ultimately I want to use it as an opportunity to learn as much as I possibly can.” Said, yachtsman, Alex Thomson.

Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, Chairman of race management company Clipper Ventures plc, said "I am delighted that Alex is on board for the 2006 5-Oceans Race. He is an extremely talented sailor who's highly tenacious and prepared to push hard to win. Our association with Alex goes back to when he won our other event, the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race in 1998-99. I am delighted to see how his sailing career has developed and his success at working with his sponsors. It is like welcoming back a member of the family."

Alex Thomson broke the 24hr solo, monohull World Speed Sailing Record in December 2003 in less than perfect racing conditions, covering 468nm at an average speed of 19.5 knots during the Défi Atlantique, in which he finished 3rd,in a closely fought race. With major new sponsorship in 2004, the Open 60 boat - now named HUGO BOSS - has undergone a complete refit before lining up for an extensive tour of Europe, taking in races like the Gotland Runt and Fastnet, as well as events like the Monaco Grand Prix and Cowes Week

Linky Sailing News

Racing Trophee BPE. Antigua record.

News German AC Team. DC out. Cat rescue.

Great Lakes Ocean Vessel Permit Bill

College Sailing All New England Women's Team

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 +7
Difference from last month +4
Difference from last year +7
Difference from long term average for April -9
Difference from Record High -41
Difference from Record Low +23
Forecast for 29 May +3

Click for information on other lakes.

All New England Women's Team

2005 All New England Women's Sailing Team

Crews:

Christina Dahlman '07 Harvard
Jenn Hoyle '05 Yale
Liz Hyon '05 Dartmouth
Kristina Karl '05 BU
Elissa Leonard '07 Conn College
Liz McAlpine '06 BC
Meghan Pearl '06 Yale
Louise Sherman '05 Brown
Emily Simon '07 Harvard
Sally Walkerman '05 Brown

Skippers:

Kate Bogart '05 Conn College
Molly Carapiet '06 Yale
Annie Davidson '05 Brown
Sloan Devlin '06 Harvard
Emily East '06 Dartmouth
Emily Hill '07 Yale
Katie Lovelace '06 Brown
Lauran Padilla '05 Dartmouth
Genny Tulloch '05 Harvard
Julie Wilson '05 BC

Skandia ends up 6th

IN BRIEF:

* SKANDIA FINISHES IN 6TH PLACE AFTER CLOSE-FOUGHT BATTLE WITH MARC EMIG, 8 HOURS AFTER THE WINNER ERIC DROUGLAZET…

* AFTER 25 DAYS, 15 HOURS, 22 MINUTES AND 20 SECONDS SAM CROSSES FINISH LINE OFF CIENFUEGOS, CUBA AT 0430 BST, FINISHING HER LONGEST SOLO RACE OF HER CAREER…

* THIS RACE BOOSTS SAM'S CONFIDENCE HAVING KEPT PACE WITH THE LEADERS AND HOLDING 3RD PLACE AS THE FLEET REACHED THE CUBAN COAST…

* “IT WAS HARD TO LOSE PLACES LIKE THAT, BUT LOOKING BACK AT IT, I WAS STILL IN THE FRONT GROUP...”

IN DETAIL:

After 4,265 miles of solo racing from St Nazaire, France to the finish port of Cienfuegos, Cuba, Sam Davies skipper of SKANDIA crossed the finish line in 6th place after a close-fought battle with French skipper Marc Emig, TOTAL.

SKANDIA crossed the line at approximately 0430 BST in a time of 25 days, 15 hours, 22 minutes and 20 seconds completing the transatlantic race at an average speed of 6.93 knots. It proved to be a close finish for the front runners with SKANDIA finishing 8h, 11m, 31s after the overall winner Eric Drouglazet.

"I am SO glad to have finished the last miles were a real struggle, I was neck and neck with Marc, but he just beat me by roughly 1nm. The channel up to the finish was incredible, it was just like sailing into the land - you really had to trust your charts. Although it's late in the evening here there were a few boats out - one with loads of Skandia flags! A great reception!"

The Trophee BPE has been the longest solo race of Sam's career and although disappointed not to have retained a top 5 position, Sam's performance on the ocean crossing stage of the race before the Cuban coast proved her ability to compete against the very best solo Figarists as she held her third position against Eric Drouglazet, Charles Caudrelier and Gildas Morvan. Sam held her own and is more than happy with her performance on this part of the race course. The main focus of the season remains La Solitaire du Figaro in August.

TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO WITH SAM (0830HRS)

How are you feeling about your finish?
“It was hard at the end, hard to lose places like that, but looking back at it, it wasn’t so bad in the end. I was still in the front group and that was good for where I imagined myself to be.”

What was it like yesterday, knowing how close you were to Marc Emig & as you approached the channel?
“I was really stressed yesterday morning when I saw that Marc had got past me offshore because there was more wind offshore. At the time I thought I was really slow, and that there must be something wrong. I thought everyone was going to over take me so I was really stressed out. But then it was good because I was with Marc and I thought to myself, now I’m just going to try and sail with him to the finish and then we’ll stay fast. That’s what I did - I stuck with him. It was quite shifty and we both stopped dead in front of a really big rainstorm. He was in front of me at the time and I stopped dead before him and he trickled one a bit. Then this rainstorm just picked me up, and I had just got my spinnaker up and suddenly it was blowing 30kts! I was really unprepared for that because it had only been blowing about 5kts before then! So I was hooning down straight towards Marc who was still in nothing and I ended up going within 2 boat lengths away from him, we were both completely out of control cause neither of us were expecting it! I called him up on the radio and I think that was when I got unstressed for the first time for the past couple of days. We were just laughing and talking so it was quite nice and quite laid back. From then on I just thought, well I’m right next to him and I actually don’t mind who finishes first. For me I’m still at the back of that front pack and that’s good. I wasn’t actually stressed, my only stress was not running in to him. We were close and the conditions were so wild. Then we sailed into this little river so it was quite funny. In the end we both got stuck in no wind and he trickled off before I did in to the river in front of me .”

Looking back, you spent the majority of the race sailing at the front of the fleet, that must have been a huge confidence boost for you?
“The more I think about it, the more of a confidence boost it is. All the other skippers I’ve seen, all the good guys who were there when I arrived, have come up to me and were saying ‘You’ve sailed such a good race, your line across the Atlantic was just perfect you’ve done so well!’ When I look back on it I know that I’m not as fast as they are in a straight line so I have to do clever things to keep up with them. It’s nice to have real genuine respect from guys like that who I used to dream about racing against and now I was actually in front of them on a racecourse! When you’re out there and you get in to a position like that, for me the disappointment was just horrendous when I lost that position because I had got too confident in myself I guess, and that was where it was really hard for me because I couldn’t accept a bit of defeat which I probably I need to deal!”

You sailed a great race, and it was only in the final 600 miles that things changed. Do you think there was there a place in the race where you made a mistake or a wrong decision?
“I know there was one place in particular where I made a mistake, I went offshore and I should have gone inshore. Charles said to me if I had gybed then I would have been in front of them, which would have meant I would have managed to stick with Charles and Gildas a little bit longer. I may not necessarily have stuck with them to the finish because they’re just too fast, but that was where I lost a big gap and that was where I lost to Mino (Dominic). When I look back at it, the reason I made that mistake was because I was so completely exhausted. I’d been in no wind for longer than anyone else and I’d been sailing with Gildas and Charles for a long time. I’d been pushing myself a lot further than I should have done, so I was really tired. When I get tired I don’t think straight. One of my strong points is being smart and thinking straight so if I lose that then I lose one of my major strong points."

What are you going to do for the rest of the day?!
“Go to bed! I’ve been in for a little while now and I’ve had one beer which was really nice, and a lobster which his really nice. I haven’t eaten for 2 days because I was too stressed and too tired and too hot!"

Listen to the full audio from Sam at Audio/Video section of website.

Communications thanks to BT Broadband

PROVISIONAL RESULTS
(boat name / race duration / average speed/ time behind leader)

1st CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO, Eric Drouglazet 25d 7h 10m 49s, av speed 7.02kts
2nd BOSTIK, Charles Caudrelier 25d 11h 48m, av speed 6.97kts, +4h 37m 11s
3rd CERCLE VERT, Gildas Morvan 25d 12h 44m 15s, av speed 6.96kts, +5h 33m 26s
4th ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM, Dominic Vittet 23d 14h 11m 1s, av speed 6.94kts, +7h 12s
5th TOTAL, Marc Emig 25d 15h 5m 56s, av speed 6.93kts, +7h 55m 7s
6th SKANDIA, Sam Davies 25d 15h 22m 20s, av speed 6.93kts, +8 11m 31s
7th BANQUE POPULAIRE, Jeanne Gregoire 25d 18h 40m 35s, av speed 6.89kts, +11h 29m 46s
8th AQUARELLE.COM, Yannick Bestaven 25d 19h 1m 10s, av speed 6.89kts, +11h 50m 21s
9th GEDIMAT, Armel Tripon 25d 19h 31m 7s, av speed 6.88kts, +12h 20m 18s
10th COUTOT ROEHRIG, David Raison 25d 19h 54m 46s, av speed 6.88kts, + 12h 43m 57s

Click here for full positions report

Official race website: http://www.trophee-bpe2005.com (French only)

RACE SUMMARY - SKANDIA'S TROPHEE BPE 2005

Day 1 – 4
SKANDIA in steady 5th place in this ultra competitive fleet - unusually gentle start to transatlantic race, exiting the Bay of Biscay in 6th place. Sam’s co-skipper from last year's two-handed transat Jeanne Gregoire leads the fleet.

Day 5 –8 (7th-6th-8th-5th positions)
Cold, cold northeast winds up to 30 knots blast the fleet along at great speeds, up to 16kts boatspeed. BOSTIK hits the front with an impressive 20nm lead. SKANDIA 70nm behind, decides to sail slightly more southern route looking for more stable downwind conditions further down the fleet. Sam misses one 3am position report and ends up sailing slightly too much further south than required not making the gain she had hoped for.

Day 9 – 12 (7th-5th-5th-4th)
Sailing though the Azores, Sam sees her parents and their yacht, not so close as Sam is on a charge - 2nm behind 5th TOTAL. Sam takes the southern highway again, and as the boats in the north expect lighter winds. For 4 days SKANDIA is one of the fastest 3 boats in the fleet. Sam revels in the heavy downwind conditions – ‘sending’ it down waves. Ends up Day 12 in 5th place having made up 28nm in one 12hr period.

Day 13 – 15 (4th-3rd-3rd)
SKANDIA now 4th 27nm to leader, as conditions begin to change to lighter airs, and temperatures finally rise. First flying fish hits the deck for the first time – real sign of changing latitudes. Asymmetric spinnaker damaged luckily conditions change and allow sufficient time to make repair. Day 15, SKANDIA takes 3rd place, 33nm to leader CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO.

Day 16 –18 (SKANDIA holds 3rd)
Big change in conditions, warm enough for first ‘shower’ on deck…water warm enough not to make Sam scream, 1500nm to finish. Important weather front to negotiate meaning Sam must helm all night waiting for cold front, which when it comes, the conditions change very quickly - upwind on port, followed 1 hour later by reaching under repaired asymmetric spinnaker at 17kts boatspeed. Argos Tracking Beacon malfunctions, meaning Sam must manually report position.

Day 19 – 21 (3rd-3rd-4th)
Long-range forecast is for light airs, the fleet gybes downwind looking for extra pressure. The Fleet makes landfall in the Turks islands. The Atlantic part of this race is over with SKANDIA in 3rd place – the remaining 600nm of coastal racing is forecast is for very light winds, and becomes a mental race as the fleet compress.

Day 22 – 25 (4th-4th-4th-5th)
2nd, 3rd, 4th place all within sight, as coastal race becomes frustrating and unpredictable. Fleet closes up. Sam decides to risk sailing further offshore looking for more breeze – looses touch with BOSTIK and CERCLE VERT, and ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM creeps in - risk of losing 5th place to Marc Emig (TOTAL). Handle falls off toolbox, so to reduce stress it was fashioned into an ejector seat handle above chart table!

Day 26 – 27
Fleet is becalmed again, whole fleet averaging just 2kts for 4hrs, 100nm to go and TOTAL slips though. Sam races neck and neck with TOTAL, with final top 5 position at stake. On Day 27, after a close-fought battle to the finish, SKANDIA crosses finish line in 6th place in a time of 25 days, 15 hours, 22 minutes and 20 seconds, 8 hours behind leader Eric Drouglazet.

2005 FIGARO PROGRAMME
3 April: Trophée BPE 2005 (St.Nazaire – Cienfuegos, Cuba)
6-25 June: La Generali Solo 2005
1-28 August: La Solitaire Afflelou Le Figaro 2005

German Challenger

On Friday morning, just hours ahead of the challenge deadline, United Internet Team Germany became the 10th Challenger for the 32nd America’s Cup.

Willy Kuhweide, Commodore of the Deutscher Challenger Yacht Club, arrived in Valencia on Thursday night with his challenge dossier, and with all the necessary paperwork in order and fees paid, his challenge has today been accepted by the Société Nautique de Genève, the Defending yacht club.

“The first serious German campaign is now on its way to the starting line of the first America’s Cup to take place in Europe,” Commodore Kuhweide said. The team is supported by United Internet, a German internet service provider.

This will be the first German challenge to sail for the America’s Cup in its 154-year history. United Internet Team Germany, (formerly known as the ‘Fresh 17’ project) will be led on the water by Danish skipper Jesper Bank, a two-time Olympic gold medallist and previous America’s Cup skipper in 2002/2003 with Victory Challenge.

“We are extremely happy for the German team and very glad they beat the deadline,” said Michel Bonnefous, the CEO of the America’s Cup organisers. “Germany has a tremendous sailing heritage and has enjoyed success at all levels of yacht racing, from Olympic competition to races around the world. But German sailors have never before had the chance represent their country for the most coveted prize in yachting.

“This challenge from United Internet Team Germany now gives them that opportunity, and the 32nd America’s Cup will be a better event with them competing. There is a powerful television arrangement in Germany with ARD/ZDF, and now through this team, the German public will be able to experience the exceptional event that is the America’s Cup as never before.”

United Internet Team Germ any will compete in all of the Louis Vuitton Acts leading up to the main events in 2007. Their first racing on the water will be in Valencia in Acts 4 & 5 beginning 16th June. The team will compete closer to home in Malmö-Skåne, Sweden in August and conclude the season with racing in Trapani, Sicily at the end of September.

The deadline for challenges, as outlined in the ‘Terms of Challenge’ for the 32nd America’s Cup is 16:00 today, 29th April. More news will follow this deadline.

Oracle BMW Plans

BMW ORACLE Racing has a full racing calendar in May, fielding a team at each of three back-to-back match race events on the Swedish Match Tour. The first of this year's regattas on the internationally pre-eminent sailing circuit is the Toscana Elba Cup, 3 to 8 May in Italy, on the island of Elba. Match Race Germany follows from 11 to 16 May at Lake Constance, near Langenargen, providing the one German setting for the tour. The last highlight of the month will be the ACI HTmobile Cup, to be held from 23 to 28 May in Split, Croatia. The Tour involves a total prize purse in excess of one million Euro and a competitive field of America's Cup skippers, Olympic sailors and world champions.

In the starting event of May's three-regatta circuit, Gavin Brady will lead BMW ORACLE Racing's team of five. Together with their 31-year-old New Zealand helmsman, Dirk de Ridder, Sean Clarkson, Robbie Naismith and Brad Webb will be coming straight from training in Valencia, where the crew has been testing and training with their two America's Cup Class race boats. Brady comments: "The Elba regatta is the ideal supplement to our two-boat testing programme in Valencia. On the smaller boats, we can focus on our match racing
strategy and tactics against some of the best match racers in the world."

BMW ORACLE Racing's Bertrand Pace will be at the helm for the second and third stops on the May tour, Match Race Germany on Lake Constance and the ACI HTmobile Cup. In both events Brad Webb, Dirk de Ridder, Eric Doyle and Zach Hurst will be the supporting team for the 43-year-old Frenchman, who was the overall winner of the Swedish Match Tour in the year 2000. Pace says: "We are looking forward to some great racing in Germany and Croatia. Split in particular represents a major challenge -- after all, that is where I will be
defending my title from last year."

Rankings 4.26.05

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. Yale (1)
2. USC (5)
3. Hobart/WmSmith (3)
4. Harvard (8)
5. Brown (6)
6. UC/Irvine (7)
7. Tufts (9)
8. St. Mary's (12)
9. Dartmouth (2)
10. Georgetown (4)
11. South Florida (13)
12. Boston Coll (10)
13. Stanford (11)
14. MIT (20)
15. Old Dominion (15)
16. Charleston (14)
17. Washington Coll ----
18. Navy (16)
19. Kings Point (19)
20. Hawaii (18)
Also receiving votes:
Roger Williams
U/Washington
Connecticut Coll

WOMEN (prev rank)
1. Charleston (1)
2. Harvard (12)
3. Stanford (2)
4. Brown (4)
5. Yale (3)
6. Navy (7)
7. Dartmouth (5)
8. St. Mary's (10)
9. Georgetown (8)
10. Connecticut Coll (6)
11. Boston Coll (9)
12. USC ----
13. UC/Irvine (13)
14. Tufts (11)
15. Old Dominion (14)

Linky Sailing News

Racing Ynglings in France

News OZ Boys out. Youngest Dame. Pedro talks

Great Lakes The Cat June 17th

College Sailing Navy's strong weekend.

Bring on the Palma Crystal beer at the finish!!!!

IN BRIEF:

* SKANDIA IN 5TH WITH 100 MILES TO GO, "BRING ON THE PALMA CRYSTAL BEER AT THE FINISH!!"

* FLEET BECALMED ON APPROACH TO FINISH...

* RACELEADER CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO 25NM IN FRONT OF BOSTIK IN 2ND, CERCLE VERT 0.1NM BEHIND IN 3RD...

* FLEET STILL TO SAIL 6NM UP NARROW CHANNEL, JUST 100 METRES WIDE IN PLACES, BEFORE REACHING CIENFUEGOS...

IN DETAIL:

With less than 100 miles to go, the fleet are creeping towards the finish in around 4 knots of wind. This morning, progress has been painfully slow with the majority of boats averaging no more than 2.5 knots.

In the early hours of this morning SKANDIA was finally fast reaching with the asymmetric spinnaker but this didn't last long. The whole fleet have virtually come to a standstill and the leading boats have a boatspeed of no more than 1.5 knots. Eric Drouglazet (CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO) has established a comfortable lead, 25.8nm ahead of Charles Caudrelier (BOSTIK) in 2nd. Gildas Morvan (CERCLE VERT) is just 0.1nm behind in 3rd. SKANDIA is in 5th, with an estimated 40nm behind leader.

The light conditions are making it very difficult to predict an ETA for the fleet and finishing order, “My weather forecast says we should finish in 24 hours. There is a little bit of wind coming which is due to die again this afternoon, and it looks like it will stay light going into this evening.”

Before arriving in Cienfuegos, the fleet have to sail 6 miles up a narrow channel, to the bay 'Bahia de Cienfuegos'. The only thing that looks certain is that Eric Drouglazet is likely to enter the channel first, which at it's narrowest is just 100 metres wide - great for spectators but stressful for skippers! If it looks like the wind will remain light for this passage, the race organisers have the option of moving the finish outside the channel.

The Trophée BPE race organisers have an ETA for raceleader Eric Drouglazet between 1400-1700BST today - but only if the wind improves. With very little wind it is impossible to predict when Sam will finish, but she hopes to be in before noon tomorrow BST.
Updates on the finish & ETA's will be posted on the website later today http://www.samdavies.com/skandia

EMAIL FROM SAM (0200HRS)

Hello!

It is 1am GMT and FINALLY, we are doing what SKANDIA seems to like best - fast reaching with the asymmetric up! Hooray!

Today started Ok, with some breeze, sailing downwind towards the "Bretons" waypoint. But the situation quickly turned into more of the same - no wind! In fact, in the end there was so little wind that I dropped the spinnaker, and lashed the boom out to stop it "clack-clack-ing" so much!

The disappointing part was that Mino (Dominic Vittet) seemed to manage to slide away from me as the wind dropped. I did the same to Marc Emig behind me, however. I am frustrated to be paying so dearly for my small mistake last night and loosing the place to Mino. That is life!

When the wind came back, Marc came with it a bit and I could see him in the distance behind me as it got dark. This race is close!

Today seemed to be hotter than ever. It is hard to do anything in this heat, and impossible to sleep or eat. When the wind disappeared I managed to get below in the shade and I actually fell asleep, which is a good thing to have had some rest - I need more!! I keep myself going now with the knowledge that hopefully only one more day and I will be able to sleep for as long as I like in a REAL bed in a cool room!!!! I can't wait!

And I tried listening to music, but when the wind is so light, I like to be able to hear the sound of the boat in the water to feel how we are going, and the music is too distracting. Boo!!

I am also drinking heaps, including re-hydrating drinks like Isostar, and suncream is getting used in massive amounts, so I have not suffered adverse effects from the sun or the heat. I couldn't imagine having to race with heat or sunstroke.

Bring on the Palma Crystal beer at the finish!!!!

Sam x

EXTRACTS FROM AUDIO WITH SAM (1000HRS)

What are the conditions like right now?
"I've got 4 knots of breeze, just a little bit more maybe, and we're doing 3.5 knots over the ground. It's better than nothing!”

When did the breeze run out yesterday?
“Mid-afternoon, local time. It was still hot and the sun was quite high. We trickled along for a while with the genoa up, with 1-1.5 knots dead behind. I had the pilot on for a while, so I fell asleep for a bit. Then the breeze filled in from the West, and it was quite strong so we were happily hooning along at 8 knots! Then there was nothing again.”

How long do you think there is left of the race?
“My weather forecast says 24 hours. There is a little bit of wind coming which is due to die again this afternoon, then it is forecasted to stay light going into this evening.”

If there is no wind tonight, do you think the race organisers will move the finish to outside the bay?
“They might do…also if we are all so close together then they won’t have to spend very long out there waiting for us to arrive so it will be easier for them. They may want to keep the finish inside the harbour for the spectators, but if we finish at night this may not be important.”

With 24 hours to go, how are you feeling about the finish?
“I haven’t really thought it very much, I’m just concentrating as much as possible on my course and keeping the boat moving. The last few days have been really difficult for me so I will be happy to finish. This last part of the race has been so long and has dragged on a bit. I’m having a big lesson in patience and handling stress, frustrating is an understatement! It will be nice to look back at the good bits of the race and see everyone! I’m looking forward to chatting to everyone about it and finding out how they were feeling during the race. It will be good to look back and find out who went where and why!”

Communications thanks to BT Broadband

LATEST POSITIONS 1000 BST 28/4/05
(boat name / average boat speed /distance to leader)

1. CREDIT MARITIME - ZEROTWO / 1.1kts / 56.4nm to finish
2. BOSTIK / 1.4kts / +25.8nm
3. CERCLE VERT / 0.7kts / +25.9nm
4. ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM / 0.8kts / +35.0nm
5. SKANDIA / 1.0kts / +40.0nm (estimated)
6. TOTAL / 2.1kts / +51.6nm
7. AQUARELLE.COM / 1.5kts / +55.9nm
8. GEDIMAT / 2.4kts / +57.4nm
9. BANQUE POPULAIRE / 2.4kts / +59.2nm
10. COUTOT ROEHRIG / 2.2kts / +63.1nm
11. ENTREPRENDRE AU PAYS DE LORIENT / 2.4kts / 88.7nm
12. LITTLE BLACK SHARK / 3.1kts / +242.4nm

AC Deadline is Friday

The Friday afternoon deadline for teams to be accepted as challengers for the 32nd America’s Cup is drawing near. As written in the Terms of Challenge for the 32nd America’s Cup, challenges will be accepted “until 16:00 on the 29 April 2005”. No new challenges will be considered after the deadline passes.

AC Management, the organisers of the 32nd America’s Cup, along with representatives of the Defending yacht club, the Société Nautique de Genève, intend to communicate how many teams, if any, have submitted their challenge dossiers by the deadline on Friday afternoon. The identity of the teams and their status will also be revealed at that time.

Over the following days, more information will be released as appropriate to their status.

Prospective teams are still in contact with the Société Nautique de Genève and the event organisers, working to beat the deadline to become a challenger.

Earlier th is week, the Defender and the Challenger of Record clarified the intent of the language in the Terms of Challenge, stating that the ‘deadline’ refers to receipt of all necessary information (bank drafts, Notice of Challenge, several other sworn documents), as opposed to the information having been evaluated and accepted as bona fide by the Société Nautique de Genève.

The Leukemia Cup

The Leukemia Cup Regatta benefiting The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society takes sailing to new heights with a unique Genuine Risk partnership. Randal Pittman, owner of Genuine Risk an 89.9’ racing sloop is challenging the junior sailors of the San Diego Yacht Club to race for a cure.

Junior participants are committing to raising a minimum of $1,000 to race on this one of a kind boat on Friday, April 29th in the 8th Annual Leukemia Cup Regatta hosted by the San Diego Yacht Club. Over 19 juniors have agreed to participate in this challenge giving Genuine Risk the opportunity to fundraise over $20,000 for the mission of the Society.

The event offers a combination of sport and fundraising for a vital cause. Participants raise funds to find cures for blood cancers. “The need for cures is critical,” said Franklin Canning, Executive Director of the San Diego/Hawaii Chapter. “There are more than 712,000 people with blood cancers in the United States alone, and over 60,000 will die this year from these diseases.”

Last year, more than 17,000 sailors across America participated in Regatta events in their communities. Since 1993, the event has raised nearly $12 million for the mission of the Society to find a cure for leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease and myeloma and improve the quality of life for patients and their families.

“The regatta is more than a sail boat race,” said Gary Jobson, ESPN commentator and Regatta National Chairman. “Sailors experience the thrill of the competition and at the same time, they help save lives.” Gary has personally seen the benefits of the research dollars provided by The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and patient assistance during his recent battle with lymphoma.

Participants are also eligible to win prizes from regatta sponsors. Local sponsors this year include J-Boats, First by FARR, Ulman Sails, Firestone Walker.

1st Team Invatational

The marquee for the First Team Real Estate Invitational Regatta May 19-22 proclaims "The World's Biggest, Fastest Sailboats," and they showed it last weekend in the world's largest international yacht race.

Led by Roy Disney's maxZ86, Pyewacket, the first 10 monohulls to finish the 58th Newport-to-Ensenada contest were boats that will be racing around the buoys off Newport Beach next month.

Pyewacket was followed closely by Doug Baker's Magnitude 80, Mike Campbell and Dale Williams' new Peligroso and Randall Pittman's 90-foot Genuine Risk. Within the next 2 1/2 hours came David Janes sailing the Newport Sea Base's Scout Spirit, Paul Sharp's Taxi Dancer, Bob Lane's Medicine Man, Mark Jones's Flash, Ed McDowell's Grand Illusion and John MacLaurin's Pendragon IV.

Though winds to Ensenada were generally light, depriving him of an opportunity to attack his own record, Disney said Pyewacket and the others made the most of what breeze they had.

"These boats go so fast it's amazing," he said. "We saw 14 and 15 knots [on the speed instruments] at times. They're astonishing boats because they don't make a fuss doing it. You look up and you're doing 15 knots and you say, 'How are we doing that?' There's not a bow wave, there's no wake behind us. At times we were over double the wind speed with the Code Zero [headsail]. We'd be doing 10 and the wind speed would be 4.8."

Magnitude 80's runnerup effort against larger boats followed line honors in two previous races to Puerto Vallarta and Cabo San Lucas.

Peligroso, smallest of the four leaders, was declared overall winner among the 466 entries on corrected handicap time. Also, Lew Beery's It's OK and Craig Reynolds' Bolt were second and third in PHRF-A class---altogether a strong outing for 12 of the 20 boats currently entered in the First Team Real Estate Invitational Regatta.

Disney, 75, has said he will retire from racing after this year, and he is bent on going out on top. On a boat loaded with professional sailors and other veterans, he drove much of the 125 nautical miles himself.

But he also is looking forward to some closed-course racing as a refreshing change of pace from Pyewacket's normal fare of offshore races May 19-22.

Disney said, smiling, "There's something to be said for sleeping in your own bed on shore at night."

For the spectator fleet it also be an opportunity to see something usually seen only at sea: expert big boat crew work at close hand, hoisting spinnakers at the windward marks and dousing them at leeward marks, among other chores.

Boat for boat, Pyewacket's strongest competition should come from Genuine Risk, which has been running in bad luck in its first three outings on the West Coast---Pittman's foot injury that prevented him from sailing the February race to Puerto Vallarta, a broken ram on their canting keel bulb in the race to Cabo San Lucas in March and, on the way to Ensenada, something---kelp, trash, whatever---they collected on the bulb that cost them significant speed late in the race.

Disney looks forward to another meeting.

"They are longer than we are, narrower than we are, deeper than we are and taller than we are," he said, "so we'll just have to work a little harder than they do."

As the facilitating yacht clubs, Newport Harbor Yacht Club and Balboa Yacht Club will provide on-the-water race management for the regatta. First Team Real Estate is the title sponsor, playing a key role in the event preparation and sponsorship support. Silver Sponsors include Bank of America, Daily Pilot, Hewitt, Mellon, Merrill Lynch and MKA Capital.

Additional sponsorship opportunities are currently available. Event proceeds will benefit Hoag Heart and Vascular Institute.

About Hoag Heart and Vascular Institute

Hoag Heart and Vascular Institute, a designated Center of Excellence at Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian in Newport Beach, Calif., is Orange County’s highest-volume, highest-rated cardiovascular program and one of the preeminent cardiovascular centers on the West Coast. Specialties of Hoag Heart and Vascular Institute include diagnostic cardiology, cardiothoracic surgery, vascular surgery, endovascular diagnosis and treatment,interventional cardiology, interventional radiology, electrophysiology, cardiac rehabilitation, disease management, prevention services, and research. In 2001, Hoag Heart and Vascular Institute received Southern California’s highest rating in the state’s first public report evaluating hospital performance of heart bypass surgery, the California Report on Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Surgery: 1997-1998 Hospital Data.

About First In Our Hearts Foundation

In 2004, First Team Real Estate established the First in Our Hearts Foundation as a company wide philanthropy created to maximize the charitable efforts that have been an integral part of the company since its founding almost 30 years ago. Because their work brings them so close to homes, families, and neighborhoods, the tradition of giving back to the community runs deep among the sales associates and employees at First Team. Now, through the focused efforts of the First in Our Hearts Foundation their impact is greater than ever. And, in its inaugural year the Foundation is proud to announce its two-year commitment in support of Hoag Heart and Vascular Institute.

Entries to date:

America's Challenge (Volvo 60), Neil Barth, Newport Beach.
Bolt (Nelson/Marek 55), Craig Reynolds, Newport Beach.
Chayah (1D48), Oscar Krinsky, Long Beach.
Flash (Transpac 52), Mark Jones, San Francisco.
Genuine Risk (Dubois 90), Randall Pittman, San Diego.
Grand Illusion (Santa Cruz 70), Ed McDowell, Lahaina, H.I.
It's OK (1D48), Lew Beery, Glendora, Calif.
Magnitude 80 (Andrews 80), Doug Baker, Long Beach, Calif.
Margaritaville (Andrews 52), Jay Steinbeck, Los Angeles.
Medicine Man (Andrews 61), Bob Lane, Long Beach.
Peligroso (Dencho 70), Mike Campbell/Dale Williams, Long Beach.
Pendragon IV (Davidson 52), John MacLaurin, Los Angeles.
Pyewacket (Reichel/Pugh maxZ86), Roy E. Disney, Los Angeles.
Rosebud (Transpac 52), Roger Sturgeon, Santa Cruz, Calif.
Scout Spirit (Reichel/Pugh 78), David Janes, Newport Seabase
Syndicate, Newport Beach.
Skylark (Reichel/Pugh 77), Doug Ayres, Newport Beach.
Stark Raving Mad (J/145), Jim Madden, Newport Beach.
Taxi Dancer (Mull 68), Paul Sharp, Newport Beach.
Trader (Transpac 52), Fred Detwiler, Detroit.
Vicki (Andrews 68), Al and Vicki Schultz, Long Beach.

Ellen Back at It

IN BRIEF:

* Today at Buckingham Palace, Ellen attended her investiture along with 150 honorary recipients. At 28 years of age, Ellen is the youngest person to ever receive the honour of Dame.

* The 75-foot trimaran, <>, takes to the water again for her first boat test following her post-round the world refit in Lorient.

* What's in store for Ellen and <> for May and June? Hopefully, a couple of smaller record attempts to get Ellen and the tri back up to race form.

* The sailing world are reminded of the perils of trying to set new speed records as French sailor, Yves Parlier, capsizes his 60-foot catamaran during a 24-hour solo speed record attempt.

* Coming soon - the latest DVD of Ellen's solo round the world record attempt (English and French), advanced sales available online from beginning of May at http://www.teamellen.com

IN DETAIL:

DAME ELLEN MACARTHUR
Today at Buckingham Palace the Queen honored 150 recipients during the investiture ceremony including Ellen who was appointed The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire to be Dame Commander. At 28 years of age, Ellen became the youngest person to be named a Dame. "It was a very special occasion and bought back memories of receiving my MBE after the Vendée Globe in 2001 - a lot has happened since that time which has culminated in receiving this honour today. And although it was just me attending the investiture, I am definitely here on behalf of all my team who deserve to be recognised just as much as me for all their effort in achieving the new world record." The appointment came at the finish of Ellen's solo round the world record attempt in February when she set a new record of 71 days, 14 hours, 18 minutes and 33 seconds.

TRIMARAN B&Q BACK IN THE WATER FOR FIRST SAIL TEST
Since the 75-foot trimaran returned to Lorient in France at the begining of March, the trimaran has undergone a comprehensive seven-week check and refit. The six-man shore team headed up by Project Manager, Oli Allard, have been working flat out to get <> back in the water for her first boat testing period since the finish of the record attempt: "The refit has gone really well - there were not too many unwelcome surprises and the repairs and improvements have gone to plan so Ellen can go back out racing again very soon," said Oli today.

The refit focussed on the key areas of overall boat structure, mast and rigging, sails, deck gear and electronics as well as many other miscellaneous jobs involved with any boat refit. "The overall structure of the boat was good considering she has over 48,000 miles on the clock already only 15 months on from her launch in January 2004. We have had to work on the back of the boat following the movement of the starboard cassette rudder box which we have hopefully eradicated by increasing the size of the 'shims' [think doorstop wedges!]," said Oli. He continued: "The deck gear was as we expected after that kind of mileage and this has now all been repaired or replaced as required and all the winches serviced. But the main area of work came with the mast and, more importantly, the ball at the base of the mast and the supporting cup it sits in [the entire mast sits on this small ball approximately 80 mm in diameter, up to 60 tons of load]. We discovered a 4mm crack in the supporting cup and with the advice of our engineers at HDS have replaced the ball and cup and reinforced that area."

The full sail inventory has undergone a refurb at North Sails in Vannes, France and Future Fibres have replaced 99% of the rigging and all the rigging pins.

"We had our first sail yesterday in around 15 knot medium conditions so pretty good for what we wanted to do. We completed the rig tuning and set up so we are happy with that. Now we are waiting for Ellen to arrive back in Lorient at the end of the week so we can complete our boat testing programme," concluded Oli.

PROGRAMME FOR MAY & JUNE
Ellen had some well-earned down time over March returning to work in April and a whirlwind tour of Lorient, Geneva, Dublin, Cowes, Derby and London to undertake a round of boat, sponsor and media commitments. Ellen will rejoin the team in Lorient by the end of the week to complete the final boat testing programme.

A series of short 'standby' periods have been allocated in May and June to allow Ellen and the team to complete two to three smaller record attempts subject to the weather conditions. The first will be a crewed record attempt between St Malo and St Nazaire and could happen next week in the first standby period between 1st and 10th May. The Record SNSM is a 284 miles race, passing the coasts of Loire Atlantique in Pays de Loire then the coasts of Brittany. This course highlights the 56 SNSM stations between Saint-Nazaire and Saint-Malo. The Socient Nationale de Sauvetage en Mer (SNSM) is the equivalent of the RNLI in the UK, and just like the RNLI is funded solely by public donations.

Only last week three of the ORMA multihulls skippered by Thomas Coville, Sodebo, Michel Desjoyeux, Geant and Thierry Dupré, Gitana X set out on 19th April to establish the record. Both Gitana X and Geant were forced to abandon only a few hours into the record attempt due to gear failure but Coville went on to cross the finish line off St Malo at 17h54'04" on Wednesday 20 April setting a new first record of 1 day, 1 hour, 37 minutes and 17 seconds at an average speed of 11.04 knots.
"It's not an easy record because we start and finish in very different regions - starting in south Brittany and then finishing in northern Brittany so the wind will be very different at the start and at the finish. And, of course, there is always the risk of gear failure," concluded ellen.
For further information, please visit http://www.snsm.net/accueil.php

Also during May and June, Ellen and her team may attempt solo and crewed records such as the Cowes-St Malo and the round the Island (of Wight).

More details of Ellen’s programme for the second half of the year will be announced in the next few weeks.

OTHER NEWS: PARLIER CAPSIZES, ELLEN'S TEAMMATE SAM DAVIES CLOSES ON CUBA
During his bid to set a new 24-hour solo speed record, to surpass the existing 24hr record of 540 miles held by Laurent Bourgnon, French skipper Yves Parlier capsized his 60-foot catamaran Mediatis Region Aquitaine in the early hours of Monday morning (25.4.05). Parlier suffered a few broken ribs but was picked up by a Childean cargo ship and is expected to arrive in Tarragona, Spain, tomorrow. His shore team are looking to salvage the catamaran which is now drifting west of the Canaries. Evidence that pushing these boats to the limit solo, really is on the edge.
For further information, please visit http://www.parlier.org/hydraplaneur/evenements/records.php?id=20&lang=eng

Ellen's Offshore Challenges Sailing Teammate, Sam Davies, is on Day 25 of her solo 4,265 mile race from St Nazaire, France to Cuba. Sam, racing her Figaro Beneteau 32-foot one design boat Skandia, was in 3rd position as the 12-boat fleet finished the transatlantic stage last weekend. Since then the wind all but disappeared as the fleet regrouped and in effect re-started the race. The finish line is another 180 miles away and Sam is trying to keep her cool in intensely hot and frustrating conditions. Latest ETA Friday afternoon.
For further information, please visit http://www.samdavies.com

No gains offshore

IN BRIEF:

* SKANDIA LYING IN 5TH AFTER SEARCHING FOR MORE BREEZE OFFSHORE...

* JUST 15 MILES SEPARATE 2ND-10TH...

* RACE LEADER CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO STRETCHES LEAD TO 27NM AND REMAINS FASTEST IN FLEET...

* WIND EXPECTED TO DISAPPEAR BY TOMORROW NIGHT, "THERE’S A BIG HOLE OF NOTHING SO IT’S GOING TO BE A LOTTERY AGAIN"...

* SAM MAKES AN EJECT BUTTON ABOVE HER CHART TABLE, "IF IT CARRIES ON LIKE THIS IT COULD BE NEEDED!!!"

IN DETAIL:

SKANDIA is in 5th this morning, after Sam decided to gybe offshore last night looking for more consistent breeze. This didn't pay the dividends she hoped for, "I gybed offshore and stayed offshore – quite a bit further than the others. I thought it was a good thing but in fact I think it was a bad thing, which is a bit of a shame."

At 1000hrs, SKANDIA was back inshore 35.5nm behind the leader, sailing in a south-easterly wind of 12 knots and averaging around 7 knots boatspeed. Race leader Eric Drouglazet (CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO) has stretched his lead to 27.8nm ahead of CERCLE VERT, with BOSTIK 0.6nm behind in 3rd. Drouglazet has been the fastest in the fleet since last night. Overnight he was the only one to hold an average above 8 knots and at the 1000hrs report, he is still averaging the top speed, now sailing at 8.7 knots.

Dominic Vittet (ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM) has moved up the rankings and is now in 4th place. After being so far behind for most of the Atlantic crossing, it is frustrating for Sam to see Dominic now 2nm ahead, "He was lucky, everyone stopped & now he's gone all the way up the rankings. I'm depressed I've lost a place."

SKANDIA has just rounded the next landmark, Cabo Cruz which at 1000hrs was 5 miles east of her. The majority of the fleet are now sailing dead downwind, with less than 200 miles to go, "Nobody can go in a straight line to the finish – everybody is gybing still."

Although the distance between the top 10 has increased over night to 43 miles, this is due to the gains made by Drouglazet overnight who seems to be sailing his own race. The rest of the fleet, from 2nd-10th are within 15 miles. BOSTIK & CERCLE VERT are sailing alongside each other, with SKANDIA & ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM about 5 miles behind them.

The wind is stable at the moment, south-easterly between 15-18 knots. Forecasts say this wind will gradually get lighter, leaving the fleet with virtually no wind again, "Tomorrow night, there’s a big hole of nothing so it’s going to be a lottery again." The routing this morning shows SKANDIA finishing in the early hours of Friday morning (29th) but the forecasts are not proving to be very reliable so this is likely to extend to later in the afternoon GMT.

EMAIL FROM SAM (0200HRS)

Hello

Well, I have just gybed. It is a typical decision that was difficult to make. I think I am the most offshore boat, which I wanted to be because the wind is stronger and more stable, especially if I manage to get in the corridor of wind coming between Haiti and Jamaica... anyway, I just looked at the angles and the routing software (not very accurate here in the Caribbean) and decided to wait a little longer to gybe - just to the last minute. The others gybed a little while ago.

But I wasn't sure, and it is really difficult to do something alone (the others are more inshore). And it is even harder to be strong with decisions if you are tired. So, then I thought, perhaps if I am tired I am making stupid decisions. So, in the end, I allowed myself half an hour sleep, to get my head right, and also to check my decision.

After the half hour, the wind has shifted that I am now on the layline, so it is last minute, and with a clearer head (after 20 min VERY deep sleep) I gybed!!!!

And I am happy with where I am - I think!!!!

It is hard doing these gybes, where, now everyone has caught up, every mile counts. Normally I imagined that this last run in to Cienfuegos would be a bit of a procession.... Not sure which I prefer - I love this close tactical racing, but at the same time, after 4000 miles I could also do with a stress-free last 2 days and my comfortable 3rd place from before.... dream on!!

Today it was really, really hot again. I managed to find one spot of shade on the foredeck this morning, so I took my book, my water, the pilot remote control, the spinnaker sheet and a fleece (to sit on - the non-skid is pretty sore on bare flesh!) I tried to read a bit to relax, but the light (STILL) wind required a lot of spinnaker trimming.

Now there is a little more wind, so conditions are a bit easier to manage to get some sleep again.

This morning, the handle fell off my toolbox and I was, at the same time, a bit stressed and very keen to get to the end of the race, so I made my self an "eject" button for above my chart table, in case things get really dire... If it carries on like this it could be needed!!! (Click here to download photo)

Sam x

EXTRACTS FROM AUDIO WITH SAM (1000HRS)

How have the last 7 hours gone?
"I was scared of the land because it seems weird that there’s no wind there, but in fact, this last bit there was actually acceleration down the coast, which we haven’t had all the rest of the time. Actually when I got in to the coast, I saw that it is no longer mountains it’s a bit flatter so it’s really something to do with the geography of the coast. So I gybed offshore and stayed offshore – quite a bit further than the others and I thought it was a good thing but in fact I think it was a bad thing. And I think I’ve lost out quite a few miles on it, which is a bit of a shame. I know I’ve lost miles because when I sailed inshore, I gybed behind a boat and I was talking to Gildas (CERCLE VERT) and Charles (BOSTIK) and I was 4 miles behind the point and they had already gone round it. So I wasn’t behind them so it must be ‘Nio’ (Dominic Vittet) or even worse it could be one of the others but I hope it was Dominic (ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM). "

What is the forecast for the next 48 hours?
"Tomorrow night, the forecast I’ve got shows absolutely nothing, so all day today it’s gradually just going to get lighter and lighter and there’s a big hole of nothing in the night so it’s going to be a lottery again. At the moment we’re going dead downwind and I just gybed. Nobody can go in a straight line to the finish – everybody is gybing still. I think maybe I should continue my little offshore passage because this doesn’t seem to be such a good gybe."

You sound tired this morning – how are you feeling?
"I didn’t really sleep much in the night but then I crashed out in the cockpit and I’ve just woken up. I’m tired and depressed as well because I lost a place."

What is your ETA looking like at the moment?
"My routing, which is not necessarily right cause it isn’t a particularly good forecast, says that it’s the 29th at 0600ish which is the middle of the night our time, day after tomorrow."

Listen to the full audio from Sam at Audio/Video section of website.

Communications thanks to BT Broadband

LATEST POSITIONS 1000 BST 27/4/05
(boat name / average boat speed /distance to leader)

1. CREDIT MARITIME - ZEROTWO / 8.7kts / 181.2nm to finish
2. CERCLE VERT / 8.1kts / +27.8nm
3. BOSTIK / 8.0kts / +28.4nm
4. ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM / 8.4kts / +33.3nm
5. SKANDIA / 7.5kts / +35.5nm
6. TOTAL / 8.2kts / +39.2nm
7. AQUARELLE.COM / 7.9kts / +40.4nm
8. GEDIMAT / 8.2kts / +40.9nm
9. BANQUE POPULAIRE / 7.4kts / +43.1nm
10. COUTOT ROEHRIG / 7.4kts / +43.6nm
11. ENTREPRENDRE AU PAYS DE LORIENT / 3.5kts / 85.3nm
12. LITTLE BLACK SHARK / 4.6kts / +198.2nm

Ecover's new Keel

“The new keel for Mike Golding's Open 60 Ecover arrived in the UK from Canada on Friday, 15 April, and in a problem free exercise it has now been fitted in preparation for the first event of the 2005 IMOCA calendar, the Calais Round Britain Race.

The keel's arrival in the UK represents a gesture of genuine maritime solidarity. Canadian skipper, Derek Hatfield, generously agreed to sell the keel from his own boat. Hatfield is currently building an Owen Clarke designed Open 60 monohull to compete in the 5 Oceans race. The new keel, machined by Tycos Tool and Die, a Division of Decoma International, is a fully machined solid forged steel blade attached to a lead bulb, as opposed to the hollow fabricated blade that was fitted to Ecover for the Vendee.

"We are very grateful to Derek Hatfield who allowed us to buy his keel," said Mike Golding. "We wish to take this opportunity to thank him for his generosity, which has allowed us to continue to campaign Ecover throughout the 2005 IMOCA Circuit and in the IMOCA and FICO championships. "

The schedule is still tight but Ecover's team is working hard to be on time for the Calais Round Britain Race, due to start on 22 May 2006.

Merfyn Owen, Ecover's designer is not 100% sure of the cause of the failure although this has been narrowed down now to a number of possibilities. His team of experts are looking at what could have happened but as yet have to come to a definitive conclusion. The information will be released as soon as a degree of certainty can be ascertained.”

A new keel fin is currently being machined by Tycos for Spirit of Canada and will be completed by mid summer.

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College Sailing Dartmouth moves on, Tufts doesn't

AC Clothing

The America’s Cup will be proudly outfitted in Murphy&Nye’s ‘America’s Cup Collection’ through the America’s Cup Match in June, 2007.

Under a three-year agreement, Murphy&Nye has acquired an exclusive world licence to design and produce official men’s, women’s and junior collections for the 32nd America’s Cup. These will be marketed through its own distribution network as well as at the America’s Cup Store, on site at the AC Park in Valencia (and in Malmö-Skåne and Trapani for the 2005 Louis Vuitton Acts in those cities). Clothing will also be available on-line from www.americascupstore.com beginning in June 2005.

“This clothing collection by Murphy&Nye is a natural fit with the image and style of the America’s Cup,” said Gavin Brown, Licensing Manager for the 32nd America’s Cup. “Like the America’s Cup, Murphy&Nye has a long history and in fact, it has been a clothing supplier to teams many times in the modern era of the Cup. We think this is a great opportunity to outfit the first European America’s Cup in high quality, stylish clothing.”

“We’re very proud of this success, which means our company will be presenting ‘Made in Italy’ in one of the world’s most prestigious sports events,” said Giulio Sala, the Managing Director of Murphy&Nye. “This agreement gives us the chance to boost Murphy&Nye’s reputation enormously. The project will be supported by a series of sales and communication initiatives without precedent for the brand.”

Murphy&Nye is a part of Gruppo Sixty, which distributes in excess of 22-million items of clothing annually in over 90 countries.

First Aid Refresher

This article is based on a Red Cross online safety quiz. It's intended to review some first aid basics and get you in a safety mind set for the upcoming boating season.

If you are on board and skin a knee or cut yourself in the galley you should first wash it with soap and water. Then bandage it.

Why not use an antiseptic? These products kill white blood cells, which actually promote healing.

If you're on a cruise and have bandages make sure they are changed daily. This can help prevent infection.

Indeed a wound should be bandaged and not left to 'air out'. Air actually drys the wound, which prevents healing.

If you have a wound that's a bleeder keep adding bandages on top of the blood soaked one, do not remove bandages. This keeps all the contaminated bandages in one place. Still, universal precautions are always a good idea. These include wearing gloves, using a face shield and thoroughly washing hands after contact.

Burns such as sun burn and rope burn can occur. Although you probably have items like sun tan lotion, or butter/margerine onboard don't use these to treat burns. They can actually seal in heat. The proper treatment is cold water, ointment and a loose sterile bandage.

Should you have an object such as a knife blade or piece of glass get imbedded, you should not attempt to remove it. Rather bandage it in place and seek professional treatment.

If you see swelling, redness, throbbing, pus or fever you may have an infection. The initial infection can occur within 24 hours, but can then take three to four days before it can be seen so watch carefully.

Additionally sprains and strains can happen around the boat. Hopping down onto a dock can strain or sprain an ankle and breaks can occur.

Sprains are a stretch or tear of a ligament, the tissue connecting two bones while strains are a twist, pull, or tear of a muscle or tendon. Tendons are cords of tissue that connect muscles to bones.

Sprains often result from falling or twisting, while strains can be a result of a blow to the body or overuse (such as the muscles used when steering a boat).

Pain and inflammation are a sign of both. Since they are similar the RICE treatment will promote healing of both.

Rest: Rest the area to allow for healing.
Immobilize: Use a pressure/ACE bandage to prevent swelling.
Cold: Apply immediately to reduce swelling and then periodically for 48/72 hours for no longer than 20 minutes at a time. Icepack is best.
Elevation: Raise the injured area above the heart.

All parts of this should be done simultaneously if possible.

Those tips along with a proper First aid kit should add to your safety quotient.

170 Footers Match Off

Twenty one of the world's largest and fastest yachts are now due to take the start line of the New York Yacht Club's Rolex Transatlantic Challenge, celebrating the centenary of the Kaiser's Cup and Charlie Barr's historic record to the Lizard in the schooner Atlantic.

The Volvo Open 70 Telefonica Movistar has withdrawn from the race but has been replaced by Tempest, the classic 80-foot (24.4m) Sparkman & Stephens maxi ketch. Co-chartering and co-skippering Tempest, which has a Saltsjobaden, Sweden homeport, are Arthur Bugs Baer (Madison, Conn.), who was third to finish the DaimlerChrysler North Atlantic Challenge on board her in 2003, and fellow NYYC member William Hubbard III (New York, N.Y./Southport, Conn.). In the crew will be Hubbard's son, William Hubbard IV, currently captain of the Columbia University Sailing Team.

The 21st entry in the Rolex Transatlantic Challenge is another giant yacht, the 174-foot (53m) Drumbeat. Better known in sailing circles as Salperton, the yacht was acquired by her present owner in October of last year. A ketch, her mainmast towers 197 feet in the air, and both masts, made of carbon fibre, support a downwind configuration of 26,000 sq. ft. of sail. This is balanced by 91 tons of lead in a deep fin keel. Aside from the 250-foot (76m), three-masted square rigger Stad Amsterdam - chartered by members of the Storm Trysail Club - Tiara and Drumbeat are the largest entries in the Rolex Transatlantic Challenge, and due to their similarity, look set to match race their way across the North Atlantic come the start on May 21.

"I think the draw for the owner was celebrating the centenary of a great race and the opportunity to race against Tiara," says Drumbeat's British skipper Julian Spier. "And to be involved with the social events going on at the New York Yacht Club and the Royal Yacht Squadron, which are very attractive." This will be the first occasion on which the two giant yachts have raced one another.

While both Tiara and Drumbeat were designed by Dubois Naval Architects (as was Randall Pittman's entry, the 140-foot (42.7m) Whirlaway, and built by Alloy Yachts, there are some differences between them. Launched in 2004, Tiara is two years newer than Drumbeat and a fraction longer. She also has a helipad, but most significantly, while Tiara is a single-mast sloop, Drumbeat is a ketch.

"I think in terms of sail area we possibly have an advantage off the wind, and they have an advantage on the wind," says Spier. This is fortunate for Drumbeat, as the prevailing winds for the Rolex Transatlantic Challenge course are off the wind. While Tiara's rig allows her to carry bigger sails, Drumbeat's ketch configuration allows her to carry more sails, in particular mizzen spinnakers, to improve her performance downwind.

Another advantage for Drumbeat is that her crew has more experience racing her, as they have competed in regattas in the Mediterranean and Caribbean. This is the yacht's first oceanic race, however.

Despite Drumbeat's colossal size, Spier reckons they will compete in the Rolex Transatlantic Challenge with a crew of 18-20 divided into three watches. Thanks to modern aids such as hydraulic winches and hydraulic furling for the sails, Drumbeat can be handled by just six crew, although "we'll have experienced helmsmen along with crew who know how to sail the boat," adds Spier. Among the crew will be the yacht's designer Ed Dubois. For the race they are not going to strip the boat down but will remove superfluous items such as the tenders.

At present, both Tiara and Drumbeat are in Antigua, as are several other entries in the Rolex Transatlantic Challenge including Anemos and Windrose, but they will be heading north in the next week.

The Rolex Transatlantic Challenge is sponsored by Rolex and also by Moran Towing Corp., Sandy Hook Pilots, and P&O Ports North America. The race is supported by the City of New York and Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Showboats International is the event's official marine publication; program sponsors include Rolex, North Fork Bank and Holland Jachtbouw.

Dreaming of an English Breakfast

* 32 MILES SEPARATE TOP 10 BOATS...

* SKANDIA IN 4TH, FURTHER PLACE CHANGING EXPECTED TODAY WITH SUCH SMALL DISTANCES BETWEEN BOATS...

* SKANDIA SPENTS THE AFTERNOON SAILING ALONGSIDE 2ND & 3RD PLACED BOATS BOSTIK & CERCLE VERT. CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD PHOTO TAKEN BY SAM OF BOSTIK, METRES AWAY...

* WIND FORECASTED TO STABILISE FOR NEXT 36 HOURS...

IN DETAIL:

With just 32 miles separating the top 10 boats, this is one of the closest finishes ever seen in a transatlantic race. SKANDIA is now 4th, 4nm behind BOSTIK in 3rd and 0.6nm in front of 5th ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM. Race leader CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO has pulled away and is 16nm ahead of CERCLE VERT in 2nd.

At the 1900hrs position report last night, SKANDIA moved up to 2nd but considering the 5 leading boats are now within 22 miles of each other, it is no surprise to see SKANDIA back in 4th this morning. Further place changing is expected today as the fleet continue to compress averaging speeds between 5 and7 knots.

SKANDIA was not alone on the water yesterday, after spending the afternoon sailing alongside BOSTIK with CERCLE VERT just in front, "It’s quite nice to gauge my speed against them, and it was good to have Gildas and Charles next to me because they’re really fast!" Click here to download photo taken by Sam of BOSTIK (all images can be viewed in Gallery on website)

Conditions are forecasted to improve today as the sea breeze fills in later on. The next 36 hours will see the fleet gybing downwind, hopefully creating easier sailing conditions. Due to the closeness of this race, and their competitiveness, the 12 skippers are being forced into racing with the strategy they would normally adopt in a normal short race - minimal sleep and maximum time at the helm. After racing 3800nm across the Atlantic this is not recommended, "I think everyone's going to collapse at the end of this race!"

EMAIL FROM SAM (0120HRS)

Hello

I think I might melt if it gets any hotter!
The thermometer registered 43 degrees C today (in the sunshine) the one in the cabin was 36. I think I drank at least 5 litres of water / isostar today!

For me last night was the hardest night of the race. I was tired and stressed to see everyone behind catching up like that. It is so hard when you work hard and sail well to get ahead, then it is all for nothing as you get an unlucky break with the weather and everyone else catches up. Also there was little wind!

But the morning brought a better mood for me (even though I only managed to snatch 20 min sleep) and I realised that it is worse for others, when the boat next to me turned out to be Charles (Bostik) who had been stuck in no wind under the point for 12 hours! We had a long chat on the VHF and he told me that the first thing that came into his head when he saw me was that he would kill for an English breakfast!! (I keep a stock of Heinz baked beans in Concarneau and Romain and I cook English breakfast occasionally as an English treat for friends!! Charles is a fan!)

Unfortunately I don't have beans on board as they are too heavy! Charles is dreaming of food as all he has left is freeze dried (no treats or snacks!)

I was happy to be with Charles, and just in front of us was Gildas, so when the 2 knots of wind kicked in we went off together. That is good for me because I know that these two are some of the fastest boats in the fleet, and the two of them will be pushing each other, so if I manage to "hang on" to them I will be sailing fast. It was a case of "hanging on" but as night falls now, they are just ahead - infact, it was a case of rich get richer today and Gildas got away from Charles and he got away from me.

But it was another long and hot day at the tiller in the scorching heat!

Luckily, now, a little more breeze has filled in and I can put the pilot on - hooray! I think I might be able to get some sleep at last (I know that I am lacking in sleep)

Only 382 nm to go! But we are only doing 4.5 knots over the ground. There is one knot of current against us. So we could still be out here for 4 days! We are all checking we have enough water to last. I have more than 20 litres, so I will be OK - even if I drink 5 l /day! (it's possible!)

Anyway, I need to go trim the sails, then it is dinner. Now it is the night it is cool enough to eat (29 deg in cabin, less outside) - spaghetti bolognaise tonight - my favourite!

A demain...

Sam x

EXTRACTS FROM AUDIO WITH SAM (1000HRS)

How was your night?
“It was good, I slept most the night, the wind picked up to 15 knots and we were dead running, which is a bit annoying because you’re not heading for the mark. It was still slow but better than the last 4 days! I got the boat nicely trimmed, had some dinner then went to bed. There are quite a lot of ships around so you can’t sleep for a long time. I was sleeping for 30 minutes at a time and then going up and checking the trim, checking for ships, then sleeping again. When there was a ship close by, I had a little snooze in the cockpit on my beanbag. Now I’m feeling much more refreshed but the wind has dropped off now so it’s only 9-10 knots which is a bit frustrating. I thought it was because I gybed in shore but I gybed back out again and there was nothing left out there either. Right now, I’m on the gybe towards the shore, which I think is the paying gybe at the moment. I’ve lost my friends now, because when it got dark I couldn’t see their nav lights which was a bit disappointing, but I can hear them on the radio so they can’t be too far away!”

How is it looking for the next 24 hours?
“There is a little bit of wind and then the winds going to decrease again and we’ll be stuck in no wind again in about a day and a half I think. We’re gybing downwind to the tip, which will be the next 36 hours in fact, to get to Cabo Cruz. There should be a bit more sea breeze today because there’s a bit of gradient, so hopefully the sea breeze will pull that round and we’ll have a nice angle to gybe in to the point, which will be good. Hopefully sailing downwind they’ll be slightly easier sailing conditions so we can hide in the shade a bit in the heat and not have to stuck on the tiller with a sheet in our hand.”

What is it like sailing so closely to other boats? Can you gauge when they are sleeping and benefit from that?
“It’s quite nice to gauge my speed against them, and it was good to have Gildas (CERCLE VERT) and Charles (BOSTIK) because they’re really fast. So it’s good to have them but at the same time, it’s difficult cause if you push to hard then you completely wear yourself out. Then you fall asleep and lose them completely so you have to find a balance. You can’t tell when the other skippers are sleeping even when you’re sailing close to each other. It makes no difference to boat speed because you only sleep when you know there will be no change in boatspeed.”

Did you expect this race to be so close?
“No not really but then this isn’t a normal transatlantic race - it has a freaky finish and this has put a stop button on everyone. It’s not surprising at all. This 2nd stage of this race is like a completely different race. I can’t wait to finish now, not because I’m not happy out here, just because this last bit is really frustrating. All the hard work that we have done up until now has come to nothing.”

Listen to the full audio from Sam at Audio/Video section of website.

Communications thanks to BT Broadband

LATEST POSITIONS 1000 BST 26/4/05
(boat name / average boat speed /distance to leader)

1. CREDIT MARITIME - ZEROTWO / 5.0kts / 331.2nm to finish
2. CERCLE VERT / 6.9kts / +16.6nm
3. BOSTIK / 6.6kts / +17.0nm
4. SKANDIA / 5.2kts / +21.4nm
5. ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM / 6.9kts / +22.0nm
6. BANQUE POPULAIRE / 6.4kts / +30.0nm
7. AQUARELLE.COM / 7.0kts / +30.4nm
8. COUTOT ROEHRIG / 7.4kts / +30.9nm
9. TOTAL / 6.3kts / +31.1nm
10. GEDIMAT / 6.0kts / +32.6nm
11. ENTREPRENDRE AU PAYS DE LORIENT / 8.4kts / 63.3nm
12. LITTLE BLACK SHARK / 9.0kts / +211.0nm

Linky Sailing News

Racing Olympique. Bermuda Race Week report

News Tall Ships Bermuda. Ainslie out?. NZL Progress

Great Lakes Join Hands Day

College Sailing Yale qualifies to defend women's.

CL 16 Regatta

Entry numbers for the 2005 Annual Can- Am CL-16 White Sail Regatta near the half way mark

Hilton Beach, Ontario Canada- April 21, 2005. The winter months have now come and gone and for many the urge to set the sail for the open water is on the horizon.

The North Channel Yacht Club of Desbarats will be hosting its Second Annual Can-Am CL-16 White Sail Regatta in little more than four from now.

The 2005 Can-Am CL-16 White Sail Regatta is scheduled to take place August 6 and 7, 2005 off the shore of Hilton Beach.

Registration for the second annual Can Am CL-16 White Sail Regatta is limited to the first 30 entrants. Nearly half the registration spots have already been filled.

The Second Annual Can Am CL-16 White Sail Regatta will see the introduction of a second winner's cup, The Hilton Beach Cup. The Hilton Beach Cup will be presented to the winner of the fifth and final race, Sunday along with a purse of $2,500.

To qualify for the Hilton Beach Cup, the winning skipper must have started in the four previous races.

The newly introduced cup and prize money will be added to the existing total prize money of $5,000 (Canadian) and the CL-16 Can Am White Sail Regatta trophy. The CL-16 Can Am White Sail Regatta trophy will be presented to the skipper that has accumulated the most points in the five races.

All trophies and prize money will be awarded at the end of the regatta.

CL-16 CAN-AM WHITE SAIL REGATTA

FAST FACTS:

Definition:

A CL-16 is a 16-foot fiberglass sail boat manufactured in Fort Erie, Ontario.

White Sail means, the skipper and crew sail with the main sail and a jib only, no spinnaker.

Regatta is a group of sailing boats and its owner(s) enjoying a weekend of sail boat racing.

WHERE: Off the shores of the Hilton Beach Harbor, Hilton Beach on St. Joseph Island.

Hilton Beach is located on the northeast portion of St. Joseph Island. By land it's located 50-kilometres East of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. via Highway 17.

WHEN: Saturday August 6 and Sunday August 7, 2005.

COMPETITION: Maximum of 30, CL-16 sail boats competing in all races.

Qualifiers for Women's Nationals

Teams scheduled to attend the ICSA Women's North American Dinghy
Championship for the Gerald C. Miller Trophy at the University of Texas at Austin, June 1-3.

MAISA: St. Mary’s College of Maryland
MAISA: US Naval Academy 3RD IN 2004
MAISA: Georgetown University
MAISA: Old Dominion University

MCSA: University of Wisconsin
MCSA: University of Minnesota

NEISA: Harvard University 2ND IN 2004
NEISA: Yale University DEFENDING CHAMPION
NEISA: Dartmouth University
NEISA: Brown University
NEISA: Connecticut College

NWICSA: The University of Washington

PCIYRA: Stanford University
PCIYRA: University of Southern California

SAISA: Eckerd College
SAISA: College of Charleston

SEISA: Texas A&M University at Galveston
SEISA: Tulane University

Join Hands Day

IN the City for Good

Join Hands Day

Schedule of Events

May 7, 2005
Decorate two rooms for Webster House for Runaways: 9:00 am - 4:00 pm

Nims Neighborhood Landscaping at six sites
9:00 am – 11:00 am

200 Planters for Homebound Ministries
9:00 am – 11:00 am

Potluck at Margaret Drake Elliott Park
12:00 – 1:00 pm

Beach Clean up at Pere Marquette Park with Lake Michigan Federation 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm

Please call Kryssis Bjork, In the City for Good, Community Outreach Coordinator at 865-1373 for more information.

New Canopy

Now available from Taylor Made Products is a new easy-to-assemble canopy to protect the boat from sun, rain, leaves and debris.

The shelter frame is made of rust-resistant powder-coated metal poles 1-1/2” in diameter, and the top is made with the same material used in Taylor Made’s popular Ultimate Cover™. The lightweight fabric, with heat-sealed hems and extra reinforcement on the corners, is specially treated with UV absorbers to resist weathering, and is fire-resistant, mildewproof, rotproof and waterproof.

Each pole comes with a foot pad for stabilization. An optional anchor kit, consisting of screw anchors and mounting rope, is also available.

The canopies, which retail starting at $199.99, are offered in three sizes up to 12’ x 20’, and are ideal for boats, personal watercraft or vehicles.

Linky Sailing News

Racing Bermuda Race week Olympique

News VOR Plans. NZL moves

Great Lakes What if the Great Lakes drained

College Sailing Wisco takes MCSA women's

From Onboard

Alex left Gosport this morning to join his crew who have been sailing the boat to Mallorca for the Palma Boat Show and just to rub his nose in it they have sent us the latest onboard news about what a terrible time they are NOT having – well apart from the cold, wet, foggy bit at the start.

Clarkee writes;

“Finally we have left on the first leg of our summer tour. Palma here we come. The last few weeks have been very hectic - a poor excuse for the lack of an update I know.

The Boat is pretty much finished (if a boat ever can be) and is back to looking her Sunday best. We managed a few days sailing in the last week or so before we left, which gave the boat a good shakedown.

One of the days was particularly memorable for the massive smiles on the faces of Simon Hiscocks, Nick Rogers, and Paul Goodison who will be sailing with us at various events over the next year as part of the Volvo For Life team. To say the least it was a big day, top speed 28.6 knots helmed by Jeremy Robison which left everybody looking at Alex in a very different light – ‘You do this on your own?’.

As a team we had a small leaving party at Landers; the only casualty being Toby’s hair which got cut by a well known late night hairdresser. We can’t call him Samson any longer, but at least it does not seem to affect his strength.

t by a well known late night hairdresser. We can’t call him Samson any longer, but at least it does not seem to affect his strength.

And so we finally left on a cold Tuesday evening, thanks to all those who came to wave us off, I for one would have preferred to stay had we known what was in store for us. The first night was freezing cold, very wet and thick fog. The wind was on the nose so we opted to go out through the Forts (just outside Portsmouth Harbour) and around the back of the island (Isle of Wight), the further we went offshore the thicker the fog became and after a few worrying hours of 50m visability we decided to tack and head towards the land and away from the shipping out in the channel. With a nice wind shift (not) we were heading towards the needles, but at least we were out of the fog.

Big thanks to Mark for going to a lot of trouble to get the Radar working (2 trips to the manufacturers). Apart from a tricky first night, the trip so far has been pretty good. We are back into a watch system, have caught up on our sleep and recharged our batteries. We had a fairly quick trip across Biscay, the last half being classic Hugo Boss weather. Blast reaching (sailing very fast across the wind) in up to 35knots of wind for 18hrs was more testing on us than the boat.

It is pretty hard to keep a good lookout for ships (and there were lots) while having a water cannon fired at you trying to wash you off the back of the boat. To start with we all had grins like idiots as the boat planned at 20kts+ spray everywhere, but as the hours go by and the sail changes mount up and we still don’t slow down, one starts to realise that it is freezing cold, soaking wet, and possibly a little bit mad. (Try driving your car down the M1 in torrential rain with no windscreen). Needless to say Alex would have been in his element and speaking to him on the phone I knew he wanted to be onboard.

We had a nice run/reach down the coast of Portugal, sun out, clothes drying out on deck, and a chance to do some routine jobs. Last night was the first that I would almost call warm (compared to the previous few days) so it is true - it is warmer down south! We rounded Cape St Vincent early this morning, gybed and are now heading for Gibraltar. If the breeze holds (not forecast to) we should pass through the Straits late tonight, fingers crossed.

Balearics here we come! – I can hear the Sangria calling but more urgently in the immediate it’s my bunk, promise to send another update soon.

Love from us all on Hugo Boss - Clarkee, Ross, Jess, and Toby.”

SAISA Women's

REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS: Nice wind at 10-20 Knot from the southwest shifting west with a few puffs over 20 knots.
We raced 10 Gold Cup Races in each division. One protest was filled which
resulted in a DSQ for Eckerd. Thanks to doc for running the races and congratulations
to Eckerd and C of C for qualifying for the ICSA Women's Championships.

A division = 10 Races
B division = 10 Races
A B TOT
1. C of C 16 14 30
2. ECK 22 26 48
3. USF 27 23 50
4. Rollins 39 43 82
5. UF 46 45 91

A division = 10 Races
TOT
1. C of C 16 Sara Wilkinson '05 All
Susan Lintern '06 All
2. ECK 22 Lindsey Nahmais '06 All
Sarah Swan '08 All
3. USF 27 Kristen Herman '06 All
Jee Lee '06 3-6,9,10 Kristen Murray '07 1,2,7,8
4. Rollins 39 Jessica Wheat '06
Ashley Sakmar '06 All
5. UF 46 Courtney Whitehurst '06 All
Ashleigh Schmidt '06 All\

B division = 10 Races
TOT
1. C of C 14 Anne Bowen '05 1-6 Alana O'Reilly '06 7-10
Dani Neri '08 1-6 Anne Bowen '05 7-10
2. USF 23 Abby Ethington '06 All
Ashley Wierzbicki '06 All
3. ECK 26 Madeline Eustis '05 All
Allison Kribbs '06 All
4. Rollins 43 Livia Barton '05 All
Maggie Rhodes '06 All
5. UF 45 Elizabeth Ocipka '07 All
Wendy Brown '08 All

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 TOT
1
C of C A 1 1 1 1 1 4 1 1 3 2 16
B 1 1 2 2 1 2 1 1 2 1 14
2 4 7 10 12 18 20 22 27 30 30
2
ECK A 2 2 3 3 3 2 2 2 2 1 22
B 3 2 1 1 DSQ 3 2 2 3 3 26
5 9 13 17 26 31 35 39 44 48 48
3
USF A 3 3 2 5 2 1 4 3 1 3 27
B 2 3 3 3 2 1 3 3 1 2 23
5 11 16 24 28 30 37 43 45 50 50
4
Rollins A 4 4 4 4 4 3 3 4 5 4 39
B 4 5 4 5 3 4 4 5 4 5 43
8 17 25 34 41 48 55 64 73 82 82
5
UF A 5 5 5 2 5 5 5 5 4 5 46
B 5 4 5 4 4 5 5 4 5 4 45
10 19 29 35 44 54 64 73 82 91 91

WINNING TEAM : C of C
Sara Wilkinson '05 All
Susan Lintern '06 All
Anne Bowen '05 1-6 Alana O'Reilly '06 7-10
Dani Neri '08 1-6 Anne Bow

NWICSA Women's

REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS: Saturday morning brought clear skies and a puffy 2-6 kt Southerly, shifting to the Southwest. After completing 4 races in each division the ladies were sent in for an hour lunch break. After lunch a more consistent yet still puffy 8-10 kt Southerly filled in. By the end of the day, wind built to an 8-14 kt Southwesterly that let us complete the series with a total of 12 races in each fleet. No protests were heard and courses were windward/leewards once and twice around. A big thanks to the race committee and Sail Sandpoint for providing a fleet of FJ's and great facilities for this event. Racing was very close throughout the day and congratulations to the University of Washington Women who will represent the NWICSA at nationals in Texas.

A division = 12 Races
B division = 12 Races
A B TOT

1. U/Washington 16 21 37
2. Western Washington 22 18 40
3. University of Oregon 34 33 67

A division = 12 Races
TOT
1. U/Washington 16 Hayley Siegenthaler 07 All
Kate Selting 07 1-11, Elishia Van Luven 05 12
2. Western Washington 22 Jamie Albert 06 All
Lynsey Walker 06 All
3. University of Oregon 34 Kathleen Thurgate 07 All
Sarah Higginbothan 05 All

B division = 12 Races
TOT
1. Western Washington 18 Lisa Marsoudon 07 All
Sarah Kenote 06 All
2. U/Washington 21 Michelle Stitzer 08 All
Truda Peters 06 1-4, Lysondra Ludwig 06 5-12
3. University of Oregon 33 Jenny Dorner 06 All
Elizabeth Reed 05 All

NEISA Women's

REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS:
Saturday morning brought fog and no wind by report time. The huge breeze that was predicted never materialized but the SSE filled in at 12-18kts for six races in the morning. After lunch the breeze died down to 8-12kts and the rain came in buckets. Four more races were sailed in each division.

Courses were Gold Cup and Triangle Windward. Divisions switched boats
after race seven. One breakdown was awarded and no protests were filed.

Providence College sailed one set and left the regatta without any notice.

Sunday three more races were sailed in a 8-12knot SSE breeze. Racing was tight and it came down the last race in each division for the final spot.

Congratulations to Harvard,Yale,Dartmouth, Brown and Connecticut College for qualifying for the ISCA Women's NA's.

Jury-Sue Reilly,Becky Chwalk,Iain Anderson and Pat Dillon.
Race Committee Chairman- Ben Komar

Doug Clark

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

1. Harvard 41 55 96
2. Yale 51 52 103
3. Dartmouth 71 51 122
4. Brown 63 69 132
5. Connecticut College 62 77 139
6. Boston College 76 65 141
7. Tufts 90 58 148
8. Rhode Island 106 80 186
9. Boston University 101 129 230
10. Coast Guard 105 128 233
11. MIT 120 124 244
12. Vermont 128 124 252
13. Providence College 169 168 337

A division = 13 Races
TOT
1. Harvard 41 Genny Tulloch '05\ Emily Simon '07,
Jessica Baker '06
2. Yale 51 Molly Carapret '06\ Jenn Heyle '05,
Julie Papanek '05
3. Connecticut College 62 Amanda Clark '05\ Kirsten Barton '05,
Meghan Lucy '07
4. Brown 63 Anne Davidson '05\ Sally Walkerman '05,
Christine Starr '06
5. Dartmouth 71 Lauren Padilla '05\ Liz Hyon '05
Adele Wilhelm '08
6. Boston College 76 Julie Wilson '05\ Jen Doyle '05
7. Tufts 90 Lindsay Shanholt '05\ Meredith Ginley '08
Jen Giroux '07, Gretchen Curtis '07
8. Boston University 101 Molly Francis '05, Kristina Karl '05, Chanz
McManus '06\Kristina Karl '05, Kerry Sullivan'08
9. Coast Guard 105 Sarah Morin '06\ Betsy Tufts '07
10. Rhode Island 106 Benedikte Vermeersch '05\ Jen Curtin '08
11. MIT 120 Emma Bassein '06\ Sunny Wicks '06
12. Vermont 128 Gabby McCox '06\ Caitlyn Connolly '08,
Kim Petritz '07
13. Providence College 169 Ashley Hulst '07\ Kelly McFadden '07

B division = 13 Races
TOT
1. Dartmouth 51 Emily East '06\ Elisabeth Kreter '05
Clementine James '05
2. Yale 52 Emily Hill '07\ Meghan Pearl '06,
Kendra Emhiser '07
3. Harvard 55 Sloan Devlin '06\ Christina Dahlman '07,
Cassandra Niemi '07
4. Tufts 58 Kaity Storck '08\ Emily Randall '07
Lyndsey Gibbons-Neff '08
5. Boston College 65 Leigh Kempton '08\ Lizz McAlpine '06,
Joy MacDougall '05, Leland McManus '06
6. Brown 69 Katie Lovelace '06\ Louise Sherman '05
7. Connecticut College 77 Kate Bogart '05\ Elissa Leonard '07
Erin Riley '06
8. Rhode Island 80 Kerry Mahoney '05\ Kristen Johnson '07
9. Vermont 124 Kimmy Murtha '08\ Kate Massey '05
10. MIT 124 Jenny Hu '06\ Julie Arsenault '08
11. Coast Guard 128 Dianna Garfield '06\ Bobbie-Jean Felix '05
12. Boston University 129 Sarah Morang '05\ Liddy Ogdahl '05,
Chanz McManus '06
13. Providence College 168 Holly Ashton '08\ Maura Kennedy '06

SEISA Women's

SEISA Womens Champs 2005
University of Texas
April 23, 2005

Regatta Highlights: Saturday morning brought a strong breeze out of the
NE gusting up to 22. 12 races were sailed in each division as the breeze
finally settled into a good 12-13 kts around noon. Courses were modified
triangles twice around. No protests were heard but 2 redress were filed
by TAMUG in races 2A and 6B. UT would like to thank Vic Manning and
David Bernstein for volunteering their time to coming out and running a
great regatta. It was a close regatta but congratulations to Texas A&M
Galveston and Tulane who will represent SEISA at Nationals here in
Texas.

Final Results: (attached)

1. TAMUG 42
2. Tulane 48
3. UT 50

A Division
1. TAMUG Robin Reger '05 all
Maureen Frerichs 07 1-2, Angela Whitley '07 3-8,
Jillian Brueggeman '06 9-12
2. Tulane Corine Libby '06 all
Kimmie Bordeaux '07 all
3. UT Laura Donnelly '07all
Izzy Kerr '08 all


B Division
1. TAMUG Jenipher Cate '05 all
Christine Nguyen '08 1,2,11,12, Jillian
Brueggeman '06 3-6, Maureen Frerichs '06 7-10
2. Tulane Cookie duPont '05 all
Sarah Montgomery '05 all
3. UT Kristen Johnston '07 all
Veronica Parker '08 1-4, 7-12, Sarah Parker 5-6

MAISA Women's

REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS:
Saturday: Six races sailed in each division. Wind was S at 10-15mph. Racing was stopped at 4:45PM due to approaching thunderstorm.
No protests filed.

Sunday - Five races sailed in each division with WSW wind at 5-15mph. First four races in each division were sailed in the Washington Sailing Marina lagoon. The last race for each division was sailed in the River. Thanks to the many Georgetown sailors who helped out over the weekend. Our judges were Derek Webster, Bill Jorch and Thatcher Spring. They heard one protest resulting in one DSQ. The top four teams qualified for the ICSA Women's North American Championship.

Final Results
A division = 11 Races
B division = 11 Races
A B TOT

1. St. Mary's 22 38 60
2. Navy 39 33 72
3. Georgetown 51 24 75
4. Old Dominion 32 53 85
5. Hobart/William Smith 60 61 121
6. Washington College 85 72 157
7. Loyola 101 72 173
8. Cornell 72 105 177
9. Columbia 89 92 181
10. Kings Point 81 116 197
11. Fordham 120 113 233
12. Christopher Newport 137 118 255
13. Maryland 150 109 259
14. Drexel 117 146 263

A division = 11 Races
TOT
1. St. Mary's 22 Adrianne Patterson 08
Maggie Lumkes 08
2. Old Dominion 32 Anna Tunnicliffe 05
Emily Bartlet 08
3. Navy 39 Katie Whitman 07
Slava Haywas 07
4. Georgetown 51 Derby Anderson 06(1-10)/Cordo Carraher 05(11)
Barbara Hall 05(1-10)/Leigh Fogwell 08(11)
5. Hobart/William Smith 60 Emlie Barkow 05
Molly Lawson 06(1-10)/Kate Kana 05(11)
6. Cornell 72 Casey Williams 07
Jackie Holliday 07
7. Kings Point 81 Allison Davis 08
Brittany Rossi 08
8. Washington College 85 Vanessa Anderson
Tonie Domino
9. Columbia 89 Katie Simon 08
Elizabeth Scouler 07
10. Loyola 101 Elise Paul 07
Mallory Tarca 08
11. Drexel 117 Hallie Irvine 07
Jennifer Tan 07
12. Fordham 120 AnneMarie Martin 08
Katie O'Malley 07
13. Christopher Newport 137 Kate McClintock 08
Elizabeth Hund 08
14. Maryland 150 Becky Pederson 08
Alison Camp 08

B division = 11 Races
TOT
1. Georgetown 24 Blaire Herron 08
Emily Siguler 07
2. Navy 33 Charlotte Hill 08
Andrea White 07
3. St. Mary's 38 Jenny Gervais 06
Katie Tinder 06 (1-2), Doria MacKenzie 05
(3-11)
4. Old Dominion 53 Maureen Castruccio 05
Cara Disanti 07(1-4)/Jen Adams 08(5-11)
5. Hobart/William Smith 61 Augusta Nadler 06(1-6)/Kate Brush 07(7-11)
Kate Wilson 08(1-6)/Kate May 05(7-11)
6. Loyola 72 Alicia St. Jean 07
Katie Mackevich 08
7. Washington College 72 Meredith Dodd 08
Meredith Bluefeld 08
8. Columbia 92 Laura Parmington 05
Julia Werb 06
9. Cornell 105 Betsy Stearns 05
Hilary Johnson 05
10. Maryland 109 Kate Venezia 06
Emilie Vincent 06
11. Fordham 113 Jennifer Brandes 08
Jacky Monterosso 07
12. Kings Point 116 Constance Barela 07
Laura Beck 08
13. Christopher Newport 118 Paula Davis 05
Rebeca Casey 06(1-6)/Sara Hattore 08(7-11)
14. Drexel 146 Molly Stewart 07
Kimberly Mattia 08

George Morris Trophy

REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS:
Judges: Kerry Sherwin, Ethan Robbins, and Joe Duplin.
Race Management: Sat - Stan Shreyer and Arian Radman.
Sun - Brad Churchill and Will Charczuk.

Saturday - Rain all day. Winds: Morning E 2-4kts, Afternoon SW 15-30kts.
10 Races sailed; 3 sets in A division, 2 sets in B.

Sunday - Rain morning, sunny afternoon. Winds SE 5-12kts to SSW 10-12kts.
14 Races Sailed; 3 sets in A division and 4 sets in B

A division = 12 Races
B division = 12 Races
A B TOT

1. St. Mary's College 86 34 120
2. Conn. College 74 79 153
3. Charleston 107 55 162
4. Boston University 63 101 164
5. ODU 78 107 185
6. UVM 96 93 189
7. Dartmouth College 92 98 190
8. Tufts 75 120 195
9. Brown 105 91 196
10. Boston College 104 97 201
11. Bowdoin College 125 92 217
12. Salve Regina 118 106 224
13. URI 121 129 250
14. New York Maritime 122 137 259
15. Providence College 126 148 274
16. Northwestern Univ. 158 159 317
17. UNH 173 194 367

A division = 12 Races
TOT
1. Boston University 63 Craig Nale '06 All
Liz Var '07 All
2. Conn. College 74 Andrew Baler '06 All
Grace Kendell '07 All
3. Tufts 75 Bryan Prior '06 All
Chloe Starr '08 All
4. ODU 78 Charles Higgins '06 All
Ryan Kozoriz '07 All
5. St. Mary's College 86 John Howell '07 All
Megan Hawn '07 / Cotton Kelly '07
6. Dartmouth College 92 Todd Whitehead '06 All
Laura Sheinkopf '06 All
7. UVM 96 Ryan Brown '05 All
RJ Bouchard '07 All
8. Boston College 104 Jay Connolly '07 All
Asa Church '05 All
9. Brown 105 Isaac Stoner '07 All
Xay Khamsavorong '06 All
10. Charleston 107 Brendan Healy '07 All
Julia Southworth '08 All
11. Salve Regina 118 Jared Wallin '07 All
Kerry Armendinger '07 All
12. URI 121 Matt Kastan '07 All
Amy Combs '07 All
13. New York Maritime 122 Erich Hesse '05 All
Jill Decker '08 All
14. Bowdoin College 125 Simon Bolmgren '07 All
Morgan Pile '08 All
15. Providence College 126 Devin Hurson '07 All
Liz Sciuto '07 All
16. Northwestern Univ. 158 Brian Sabina '05 All
Asa Church '07 All
17. UNH 173 Benn Steinberg '06 (1-6) / Gus Aprans '06 (Rest)
Shannon Gray '06 All

B division = 12 Races
TOT
1. St. Mary's College 34 Justin Law '07 All
Jamie Gilman '06 All
2. Charleston 55 Russ O'Reilly '07 All
Kelley Bowers '05 All
3. Conn. College 79 Kit Will '07 All
Emma Haritos '07 All
4. Brown 91 Evan Freedman '06 All
Ele Drew '05 All / John Lykes-Dido '05 None
5. Bowdoin College 92 Rob Parish '08 All
Kelly Rula '07 All
6. UVM 93 Matt Clark '07 All
Grayson Helmuth '07 All
7. Boston College 97 Spencer Powers '07 All
Brooke Dow '07 All
8. Dartmouth College 98 Jimmy Attridge '07 All
Debbie Sperling '06 (1) / Meaghan Ferrick '07 (Rest)
9. Boston University 101 Ben Spiller '08 All
Lauren Kugel '07 All
10. Salve Regina 106 Jamey Randall '07 All
Jen Myer '05 All
11. ODU 107 Wade Schon '07 All
Bryan Otis '07 All
12. Tufts 120 Alex Singer '06 All
Eric Morley '06 All
13. URI 129 Jeff Kittredge '06 All
Irene O'Hager '07 All
14. New York Maritime 137 Chris Price '07 All
Mark Hammond '08 All
15. Providence College 148 Kevin Broome '05 All
Erin Kelly '06 (1-4) / Kelly McFadden '07 (Rest)
16. Northwestern Univ. 159 Jack McCallum '07 All
Erin Miller '08 All
17. UNH 194 Tiffany Skinner '06 All
Laurel Gaudet '06 All

MCSA Women's

Regatta Highlights: Strong winds and snow greeted the MCSA women at Notre Dame this weekend. Saturday winds were NNW 20-30. 7A-division and 6 B-division races were sailed before races were called off due to the conditions. Courses were modified triangles, modified windward-leewards, and modified olympics. 1 protest was heard. Sunday winds were NNW 15-25 and sailors had to shovel snow off the docks to launch their boats. 1 B-division race was sailed to complete the rotation. The course was a modified triangle.

Congratulations to the University of Wisconsin and the University of Minnesota for qualifying for the ICSA Womens NA's.

Many thanks to George Griswold and Jerry Thomas for judging the regatta. Notre Dame would also like to thank Diamond Lake YC for allowing them to host this regatta for the second straight year.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 TOT

1

Wisconsin A 4 1 1 2 1 1 1 11

B 1 2 1 1 1 2 1 9

5 8 10 13 15 18 20 20

2

Minnesota A 1 3 3 3 2 2 2 16

B 2 1 5 3 4 4 3 22

3 7 15 21 27 33 38 38

3

Michigan A 5 2 2 1 5 5 5 25

B 3 3 3 DNF 2 3 4 26

8 13 18 27 34 42 51 51

4

Miami A 6 5 6 6 7 6 DNF 44

B 4 4 2 2 3 1 2 18

10 19 27 35 45 52 62 62

5

St. Thomas A 3 4 4 5 4 4 4 28

B 5 5 6 4 5 5 5 35

8 17 27 36 45 54 63 63

6

MSU A 2 DSQ 5 4 3 3 3 28

B 7 7 7 6 6 7 6 46

9 24 36 46 55 65 74 74

7

ND A 7 6 7 DNF 6 7 DNF 49

B 6 6 4 5 7 6 DNS 42

13 25 36 49 62 75 91 91

A division = 7 Races

TOT

1. Wisconsin 11 Anne Porter '05 All

Anna Bargren '07 1-4 Patti Schmidt '08 5-7

2. Minnesota 16 Jessica Haverstock '08 All

Kelsey Dunigan '08 All

3. Michigan 25 Christina Falcone '07 All

Meredith Cochran '06 All

4. MSU 28 Mary Vorel '05 All

Michelle Cosier '06 All

5. St. Thomas 28 Lindsay Allen '06 All

Jamie Currell '06 All

6. Miami 44 Jocelyn Pollak '07 All

Anne Simiele '06 All

7. ND 49 Kristen Brahman '06 All

Kathryn Hoodecheck '06 1-4 Kat Sabloff '07 5-7

B division = 7 Races

TOT

1. Wisconsin 9 Liz Prange '07 All

Kelsey Cramer '07 All

2. Miami 18 Nichole Finefrock '05 All

Eryn Whistler '06 All

3. Minnesota 22 Andrea Porter '06 All

Jennifer Wilson '06 All

4. Michigan 26 Caitlin Delphin '06 All

Katie Dewitt '07 All

5. St. Thomas 35 Danielle Lindermaan '06 All

Molly Allen '08 3,4,7 Katie Allen '08 1,2,5,6

6. ND 42 Katie Thompson '05 All

Liz Ketterhagen '05 All

7. MSU 46 Carolyn Somes '08 All

Meghan Walter '06 All

Winning team: University of Wisconsin

Anne Porter '05

Anna Bargren '07

Patti Schmidt '08

Liz Prange '07

Kelsey Cramer '07

Women's PCC's

REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS: Two days of great racing, Saturday started with a shifty southerly due to a passing low. 10 races in A and 8 in B.

Sunday- Normal westerly breeze with puffs to 15. Congrats to Stanford and USC for qualifying for Womens Nationals.

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

1. Stanford 41 23 64
2. Univ of Southern Cal 46 45 91
3. UC Irvine 50 41 91
4. University of Hawaii 46 50 96
5. UC Santa Barbara 33 73 106
6. UC Berkley 79 73 152
7. UCSD 82 81 163
8. UC Santa Cruz 94 92 186
9. Cal State Monterey B 114 108 222

A division = 13 Races
TOT
1. UC Santa Barbara 33 Kate Conway '06, Monica LaHaye '05
2. Stanford 41 Liz Rountree 06 1-4,11-13, Evan Brown 5-10
Julie Pitts 05 1-4, 11-13 Mariana
Beardsworth5-1
3. Univ of Southern Cal 46 Krystin Munson '05, Megan Hoffman '06
4. University of Hawaii 46 Jen Warnock '05, Becky MaBardy '08
5. UC Irvine 50 Lauren Maxam '05 All
Emily Hembeerger '05 All
6. UC Berkley 79 Kristin Maberry 05, Michelle Lu 06 11-13
Rachell Maaxsom '07 1-10
7. UCSD 82 Ashley Rose '08, Margret Gonzales '07 1-4,
Darya
Pilram '06 5,6, 7-13
8. UC Santa Cruz 94 Sarah Mc Naboe '06, Crissie Fuller '06
9. Cal State Monterey B 114 Megan Comstock 06All
Jennifer Gaarcia '06 All

B division = 13 Races
TOT
1. Stanford 23 Caroline Young '07, Becca Levin '07 1-10
Alexa Binns '07 11-13
2. UC Irvine 41 Whitney Loufek '07, Maria Argould '06
3. Univ of Southern Cal 45 Melanie Roberts '07, Vanessa De Collibus '07
4. University of Hawaii 50 Renee De Curtis '05 1-4,11,12 Cassie Harris
'07
Tinja Anderson Mitterling '07 5-10,13
5. UC Berkley 73 Anne Conway '06, Sara Huey '07
6. UC Santa Barbara 73 Anna Brun '08, Courtney Careccia '06
7. UCSD 81 Heather Martinelli '06, Chelsea Valdiconza
'07
8. UC Santa Cruz 92 Jenna Granger '07, Anita Graffivs '07
9. Cal State Monterey B 108 Erica Rhyne-Christensen '08, Lauren Hoxsie

Thompson Trophy

Saturday Regatta Highlights: 10 races were sailed in each division in 6-14 knots. The breeze came in early from the south and built till midday also bringing intermittent rain. Thanks to all of the Conn Sailors who volunteered, and especially to Matt Parker 04 and Suzi Duncan 03 for judging and assistance.

Sunday: The breeze came up so that everybody in the vans got to sail. Seven races nearly completed the round robin, and one protest was heard. Thanks again to the Conn Sailors who helped out and Alums and to our PRO, Duffy Markham 02.

Official Scorer: Niko Kotsatos 05 (Retiring May 1s)

Thompson Trophy 05

Connecticut College

April 23-24 2005

FINAL RESULTS

A division = 17 Races

B division = 17 Races

A B TOT

1. USC 98 137 235

2. Yale 114 137 251

3. Hobart/WmSm 107 157 264

4. Harvard 185 81 266

5. MIT 114 162 276

6. South Florida 149 131 280

7. Brown 135 156 291

8. Georgetown 102 199 301

9. Washington College 157 145 302

10. Tufts 144 160 304

11. Dartmouth College 146 174 320

12. Navy 176 146 322

13. U Rhode Island 179 150 329

14. Connecticut College 192 149 341

15. Kings Point 210 145 355

16. Boston College 178 179 357

17. Coast Guard 231 186 417

18. Wisconsin 292 300 592

Greater New York Dinghy

GREATER NEW YORK AREA DINGHY REGATTA - Host: Fordham University - April
23-24, 2005

HIGHLIGHTS:

Saturday - At 0930, with the southeast wind blowing 15-18 knots, with gusts to 25; whitecaps covering Eastchester Bay & Western Long Island Sound; rain commencing to fall, and a weather forecast of winds increasing to 25-30 knots and gusts to 40, the Race Committee decided to postpone racing until Sunday.

Sunday - Racing commenced at 0930 and continued until 1530. Twenty-four races were held in a southerly wind of 15 - 18 knots with gusts 20 +, moving to the southwest and dropping to 12-16 knots. Many thanks to Charles "Bud" McEntee ' 72, Eileen O'Neill ' 06, Graham Farrell ' 07, Patrick James ' 08 & Will Nazar
' 08 for helping to run the races and man the safety boats; to NY Maritime for lending a safety boat, and to Morris Yacht & Beach Club Rear Commodore Paul Laddomada & Maura Mandrano for providing their 22' Mako as a Race Committee boat.

At the Awards Ceremony, a round of applause was given to the team from Monmouth College, which was competing in its first Intercollegiate regatta. They were feted by a delicious homemade Banana Bread baked specially for the occasion by Mrs. Sue Griffin, mother of Katie ' 08, and scrumptuous New York Cheesecakes from S&S Cheesecake in the Bronx served to all the sailors and guests.

Final Results:

Place/ School A B Total

1. Fordham 30 18 48
2. Kings Point 24 35 59
3. NY Maritime 34 38 72
4. Columbia 46 67 113
5. Webb Institute 60 54 114
6. Army 75 55 130
7. Monmouth 79 84 163
8 Stevens Institute 84 82 166

A Division - 12 Races

1. Kings Point - Aaron Thompson ' 08 & Mike Roselli ' 07
2. Fordham - Nate Powell ' 06 & Katie Griffin ' 08
3. NY Maritime - Rio Gordan ' 07 & Mark Bostick ' 07
4. Columbia - Did not complete RP form
5. Webb - Did not complete RP form
6. Army - David Wilson ' 05 & Ryan Bradley ' 07
7. Monmouth - Chrissy Mahoney ' 07 & Maggie Shaw ' 07 (1-4 & 9-12) & Jordan
Cohen ' 05 (5-8)
8. Stevens - Ben Testerman ' 09 & Marc Castells ' 08 (1-2, 5-6, 9-10) & Jon
Matos ( 3-4, 7-8, 11-12)

B Division - 12 Races

1. Fordham - Alex Baum ' 08 & Cristina Puglia ' 07
2. Kings Point - Ben Parrish ' 08 & Greg Forthuber ' 07
3. NY Maritime - Seth Harris ' 05 & Scott Adler ' 07
4. Webb - Did not complete RP form
5. Army - Josh Willens ' 07 & Mike Eisenlohr ' 07
6. Columbia - Did not complete RP form
7. Stevens - Sean Pedrizetti ' 06 & Beatrice Wilson ' 09
8. Monmouth - Jacob Folger ' 05 & Jessica Wojewodzki ' 06 (1-4, 7-10) &
Michael Gogolin ' 06 (5-6, 11-12)

NWICSA Team Race

NWICSA Team Racing Championships
University of Washington
April 24th, 2005

Final Results

Regatta Highlights: Sailors were greeted with lots of sun but no wind. After a short postponement, a light northerly filled in at 3-5 kts. As racing progressed, the northerly steadily built to a beautiful 6-10 kts. Three round robins and a total of 18 races were completed. Two protests were heard, both were disallowed.

A big thank you to UW Alumni Andy Schmidt, Guy Fielding and
Chris Mordue as well as Truda Peters for running great N course and triangle races. And even more thanks to Sail Sandpoint for continued support of college sailing. The University of Washington will be representing the Northwest at nationals.

University of Washington 9-0
Portland State University 5-4
University of Oregon 2-7*
Western Washington University 2-7

*UO beat WWU two out of three times which puts them ahead.

University of Washington
Brendan Fahey 06 (1-7), Alex Jones 06 (1-6), Zak Malbin 05 (1-6), Jon Kelch 07
(7-9), Paul Stewart 08 (7-9), Ben Young 08 (8-9) Lysondra Ludwig 06 (1-7), Ellie
Wilson 07 (1-6), Erin Bell 07 (1-6), Laurel Siegenthaler 07 (7-9), Kate Selting
07 (7-9), Emily Schneider 08 (8-9)

Portland State University
Jeff Causey 06, Anika Olsen 06, Kevin Stravers 07
Caitlin Coleman-Hulbert 05, Scott Caldwell 05, James Acton 08

University of Oregon
Rob Dubuc 07, George Yioulos 05, Kathleen Thurgate 07 (1,5,8) Jenny Dorner 06
(2-4,6-7,9)
Beth Otto 06, Jessica Andrews 08, Jenny Dorner 06 (1,5) Elizabeth Reed 05
(2-4,6-9)

Western Washington University
Randy Holt 06, Marc Snyder 05, Michael Peele 07
Jon Takao 07, Janna Ott 08, Katie Holmes 07

1 UO v PSU(1,3,5)
2 UW(1,2,5) v WWU
3 PSU(1,2,6) v WWU
4 UO v UW(1,2,5)
5 PSU v UW(1,2,5)
6 WWU v UO(1,2,6)
7 PSU(1,2,6) v UO
8 WWU v UW(1,2,5)
9 WWU v PSU(1,2,6)
10 UW(1,2,5) v UO
11 UW(1,2,3) v PSU
12 UO v WWU(1,2,3)
13 UO v PSU(1,3,4)
14 UW(1,2,4) v WWU
15 PSU v WWU(1,3,5)
16 UO v UW(1,2,3)
17 PSU v UW(1,2,6)
18 WWU v UO(1,2,6)

Ericsson to sponsor VOR Boat

Ericsson announced today its entry in the Volvo Ocean Race 2005. Ericsson, the world's leading telecommunications supplier, will be on the starting line on November 5, 2005 taking part in the most challenging and competitive ocean sailing race.

The Volvo Ocean Race gives Ericsson an unrivalled opportunity to reach its customers around the world, as well as showcasing how its solutions can help them develop relationships with enterprises and consumers. The yacht will be the only Swedish entry in the line up.

Ericsson will, together with Semcon as design and development partner, form the "Ericsson Racing Team". The campaign will be supported by Atlant Ocean Racing, which has a proven track record of success in the Volvo Ocean Race. The team's yacht is currently under construction at the world-renowned British shipwrights Green Marine in Lymington, UK, under the supervision of Jason Carrington. The launch is planned to June 2005.

"With Ericsson we have a truly successful formula," said Richard Brisius, project leader and founder of Atlant Ocean Racing. "They bring experience and understanding of how to drive complex projects with operational excellence in all aspects and we will have a crew and shore team who are all experts in their field. We have no doubt that the Ericsson Racing Team will be a real contender in this year's race."

Ericsson is committed to realising its vision of an all-communicating world. The Volvo Ocean Race allows Ericsson to bring this commitment to life and this team, more than any other, will use technology to take the experience of the race to the global audience.

"The Volvo Ocean Race gives us a strong platform to grow our business," said Bert Nordberg, Executive Vice President, Sales and Marketing, Ericsson. "It is an opportunity to reach a global audience and demonstrate our expertise and ability to deliver telecommunications solutions to our customers.

"This race is about speed, complex technology, fierce competition and extreme conditions. This mirrors the complexity of our global business. Our core values at Ericsson are professionalism, respect and perseverance, three qualities at the heart of a successful ocean racing team," Nordberg concluded.

"These are the most extreme mono hulls to ever race around the world," said Hans Johansson, CEO of Semcon. "We are proud and happy that Ericsson will use our knowledge to create a winning yacht."

GC V. AC

At the Global Challenge Public Open Day yesterday, SAIC La Jolla beat Team Shosholoza, the South Africa’s America’s Cup Team….in dragon boat racing!

Hundreds turned up throughout the day, including dozens of school children to take a look round one of the yachts and witness some heavy competition out on the water!

Jim Allen, Challenge Business’ roving reporter explains: “After heats throughout the afternoon between the crews, the final came down to SAIC La Jolla taking on a combined Spirit of Sark / Samsung alliance. Very quickly SAIC La Jolla settled into a steady rhythm and pulled away to a convincing victory. They then rose to the challenge of taking on Team Shosaloza, and although the local team had a significant weight and power advantage, SAIC La Jolla took an early start, settled into their rhythm and then held off the professionals all the way!”

This is the second time that Team Shosaloza have been involved with the Global Challenge during the Leg 4 stopover. They stepped into lend a helping hand when Me to You’s mast needed to come out of the yacht and offered their base so the technical team could repair the spreader bracket.

Cape Town, at present is in full swing with race start week, Leg 5 starting at 14.00 this Sunday (1st May 2005). Today the corporate sailing has started and then throughout the week a series of activities, events and celebrations are being planned. This includes the grand Leg 4 Official Prize Giving on Thursday night at the Rickety Bridge Vineyard where crews will be able to let their hair down for one last time before the longest leg from Cape Town to Boston starts.

The yachts are due to arrive in Boston around the 6th June 2005. The race restart in Boston is the 19th June before a sprint across the Atlantic to La Rochelle, the ETA approximating an arrival window of around the 4th July. The yachts’ final leg will be a short dash across the Channel to Gunwharf Quays in Portsmouth where the yachts are due to arrive in on the 16th July 2005.

OSTAR Update

Evening All!

Our own Phil Rubright is now somewhere between Charleston, SC and Horta, Azores, along with George Bergh and Lynn Hulber. As you know, Phil is competing in the OSTAR Singlehanded next month, and he is in the shakedown phase at present.

I received an email this morning from Phil's wife, Glenn Ellan. The contents are cut and pasted below:

< Phil is on his way to England. He left on Monday with a crew of two. The seas and winds have been very kind and they are having an excellent crossing, so far. The family always puts together a "letters and greetings from home" package for Phil to enjoy on his race home. I was wondering if you could get the message out to the GLSS members. If anyone would like to send Phil a greeting I need it before the 22nd of May. Our daughter Diane and I are going to Plymouth to see him off and will take the letters with us. Our address is 1740 Edgewood, Berkley, Michigan 48072.
Thanks for your help. Glenn Ellan Rubright>>

I can't think of a better way to show support for Phil, and to give him something to do when he's bored silly, becalmed during the race. Please take some time to compose one of those "letters or greetings" in the next week or so - just get it to Glenn Ellan before May 22nd.

Happy writing!

Cheers..............Tony

Under a Cliff

IN BRIEF:

* JUST IN FROM SAM AT 1335HRS, "I AM JUST IN FRONT OF BOSTIK, WHO (POOR THING) WAS STUCK UNDER A CLIFF ALL NIGHT. NOW I AM ALSO STUCK UNDER THE SAME CLIFF. SO IS CERCLE VERT WHO IS THE OTHER SIDE OF ME..."

* FLEET CONTINUE TO COMPRESS IN VIRTUALLY NO WIND...

* "THERE IS NO STEERAGE BECAUSE THE BOAT ISN'T MOVING SO I HAVE BEEN ON THE HELM ALL DAY, I'M SO TIRED...."

* WIND EXPECTED TO PICK UP A FEW KNOTS LATER TODAY...

IN DETAIL:

After a frustrating 48 hours of sailing in virtually no wind, the leaders are within 20 miles off the southeastern coast of Cuba. The fleet have continued to compress and now only 42 miles separate the top 10 boats. Sam is 4th place 3nm behind Gildas Morvan (CERCLE VERT) in 3rd, and 7nm ahead of Jeanne Gregoire (BANQUE POPULAIRE) in 5th.

"The last 2 days have been flat calm and so hot, boat speed has averaged no more than 2.5 knots. There is no steerage because the boat isn't moving so I have been on the helm all day. I'm feeling really tired - it's impossible to sleep in conditions like this."

With 400 miles to go and about 3 or 4 sailing days left, Sam has started to think about the finish, "I am happy to be here but I am looking forward to the finish now. For me the finish was when I when through the Turks & Caicos Island passage. Since then it's turned funny and feels like a completely different race. We knew that this race could finish like this all along but it is hard not to be frustrated by it. The leading boats who have worked so hard to get to where they are now being caught up by boats that were previously over 100miles behind. It just feels like all the work that has been done to achieve a good position has come to nothing."

Sam is not the only skipper feeling like this, when Sam spoke to Gildas Morvan (CERCLE VERT) on VHF yesterday, he mentioned that he and Charles Caudrelier (BOSTIK) were also talking earlier on in the day about the frustration surrounding the past few days of sailing. "Everyone at the front is in a grump!"

The wind is due to pick up later today and although this is only expected to be a few knots stronger, this will be a welcome sight after a painfully slow few days of sailing in no more than 4 knots of wind.

EMAIL FROM SAM (0120HRS)

Hello

The sun has just set over Cuba (yes - I can see Cuba) and SKANDIA is trickling along at 2.2 knots in 1.3 knots of wind (there is a bit of current)

That boatspeed and windspeed has been typical of all of today! With occasional 5 knot "gusts!" It has been shifty and really difficult to sail. A lot of the time I have been at the tiller to try to keep her moving. That is tough too because it is roasting hot (especially with no wind) and there seems never to be any shade in the cockpit.

It is difficult to concentrate for long periods of time too, so I have given myself "time off" to read my French comic book "Titeuf" that Caro gave me before the start - very funny! It is nice to have some light relief! (I have finished Robbie Williams!) It is almost impossible to sleep in the daytime heat, even though I know I am tired.

Also frustrating is that we can see (on the position reports) the boats behind zooming up on us in the breeze. I even heard Jeanne, Yannik and David talking on the VHF this evening, so I know they are not far. They were talking about how they had been stacking and filling their ballast - how depressing - all my gear is stacked forward and to LEEWARD to try to get some heel to keep the sails filled by gravity!

One bonus today though - I overtook Gildas! I was worried at how quickly he had got past me yesterday, and so it was a nice relief to reassure myself I am not slow, and just another proof of how fluky these conditions are. What a shame that this race is ending like this.

It was nice to see land - for the first time since the Azores - this morning I saw Haiti off to port. The visibility is impressive because it was over 20 miles away when I first saw it. I can still see it now... There was a paragraph in the sailing instructions that we should avoid the Haiti coasts because they are not secure - perhaps it is my chance to see Jonny Depp and his Pirates of the Caribbean..... I think I am far enough away to be safe!

Now there is even less wind. It is looking like a quiet night! The only trouble is that the pilot can't steer very well when it is so light and we end up doing 360 deree turns, so I need to steer.....

Better go......

Sam x

Communications thanks to BT Broadband

LATEST POSITIONS 1000 BST 25/4/05
(boat name / average boat speed /distance to leader)

1. CREDIT MARITIME - ZEROTWO / 0.6kts / 395.3nm to finish
2. BOSTIK / 1.8kts / +16.6nm
3. CERCLE VERT / 4.4kts / +24.2nm
4. SKANDIA / 1.9kts / +27.2nm
5. BANQUE POPULAIRE / 2.9kts / +34.4nm
6. ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM / 4.5kts / +35.5nm
7. AQUARELLE.COM / 1.9kts / +38.4nm
8. COUTOT ROEHRIG / 2.7kts / +38.8nm
9. GEDIMAT / 3.1kts / +40.2nm
10. TOTAL / 4.0kts / +42.2nm
11. ENTREPRENDRE AU PAYS DE LORIENT / 4.1kts / 134.9nm
12. LITTLE BLACK SHARK / 1.4kts / +256.6nm

Fighting for 3rd

IN BRIEF:

* ANOTHER DAY OF SLOW PROGRESS AHEAD FOR THE TROPHEE BPE FLEET, SKANDIA HOLDING 4TH PLACE AN ESTIMATED 9 MILES BEHIND CERCLE VERT

* SAM EXPECTING MORE LIGHT AND SHIFTY CONDITIONS TODAY - CUBA SHOULD BRING SOME SALVATION IN THE FORM OF THERMAL BREEZE

* SAM COPING WITH THE FRUSTRATION OF NO WIND: "I get less stressed than some of the other skippers in these kind of conditions so it's good for me..."

IN DETAIL:

SKANDIA has progressed only 100 miles since yesterday's position at 1000hrs BST making for slow progress in continuing light 2-6 knots of wind and shify conditions. Since navigating the compulsory waypoint south of the Turks and Caicos Islands, SKANDIA this morning is approximately 72 miles from the coast of Cuba lying in 4th place an estimated 9 miles behind third-placed Gildas Morvan on CERCLE VERT. "My GPS estimates it will take 16.5 hours to reach the coast," said Sam and, no doubt, it will be a long 16.5 hours as the leaders struggle to average one knot of speed. "It is a struggle between trimming and trying to sleep, there is not much you can do, except try to get to the coast of Cuba and the prospect of the new thermal breeze first." Thermal breeze generated by the land mass can be found as much as 30 miles offshore and SKANDIA will desperately be searching for that new breeze to help her reach the finish line that still lies another 484 miles away.

EMAIL FROM SAM (0148HRS)

Hello!

Yes, this racing across the Atlamtic is fun, but it is certainly not easy! After a realtively smooth night [Sam is talking about the previous night] with spinnaker, then genoa reaching, the wind gradually dropped until there was nothing. It was a beautiful sunrise behind a big squall cloud, but it was difficult to appreciate it because of the stress of no wind.

We drifted and "flapped" all morning, until a fickle breeze (1-3kts (!) filled in. On the nose! So we tacked our way slowly along. Gildas gained a bit because this new breeze filled in from the North (where he was) but I could still see him all day, which was a good gauge.

Now, we are very tight spinnaker reaching, slightly low of course, but fast with the spinnaker, in a realtive gale - 6-8kts! I am not expecting this breeze to last the night, however, so I imagine more "flap flapping" later on. Need to sleep now whilst the going is good!

I am going to need some good r&r at the end of this race. It is strange how your body keeps going with (little) complaint / need for rest for such a long duration, thanks to the adrenalin of the race. The reason why I thought about this was that I had been looking at my hands, which are a bit worse for wear, but I am sure that there is more than just my hands that need attention! For sure, I will need some good manicures to turn my hands back into girls hands!

I think that also, I will sleep 13 hours / night for at least 2 weeks!

Right, I had better go and do some whistling for some wind......

Oh, and one last thing before I go - spare a thought for the poor little flying fish that crashed into me at top speed. The impact was so great that his eyes popped out - literally! I found him lying on the deck this morning - eyeless - and one of his eyes was just next to him. Don't know where the other one went. Hope I didn't sit on it. ( I took photo evidence, but won't send it in case anyone is squeamish....) Speak to you later

Sam
x

EXTRACT OF AUDIO WITH SAM (1000HRS)

What is the hardest thing about these conditions?
It's a juggle between trying to trim the boat constantly and trying to sleep a bit. There has been a couple of calm patches but mostly a little trickle of wind which is a bit less demoralising than having no wind at all.

The wind is light, is it still shifty?
It's still really shifty and I am sitting here with my finger on the remote control playing every little puff that comes through. The wind is going from 2 knots to just less than 6 knots.

Will the land mass of Cuba bring more breeze?
Cuba is a big island and creates its own wind and even in no wind there is like little thermal depressions that form over Cuba so all the way round there is wind and I think the sea breeze can be quite strong and if you stick close to the shore you can get some kind of night breeze as well. The problem is where we are right now, between Cuba and Haiti, there is a bit of a fight going on between the two islands for the wind so that's why it is quite tricky to get through.

How are you coping?
I am managing to cope and I can cope better than some other people in these conditions. In other races I've seen people screaming on their boats and stamping on their decks in these kind of conditions so I imagine that when I am here on my own and think of the people getting more stressed than me! There is some luck involved in getting to the thermal breeze first but for now I am just going with the flow.

How far/long to Cuba?
Cuba is 72.5 miles away and my GPS tells me that is 16.5 hours away.

Landfall

IN BRIEF:

* BATTLE FOR 3RD POSITION IS ON AS CERCLE VERT SNEAKS AHEAD IN THE RANKINGS

* SKANDIA NEGOTIATES SERIES OF WAYPOINTS SOUTH OF TURKS IN THE EARLY HOURS OF THIS MORNING

* SECOND 'RACE' STARTS TO THE FINISH LINE APPROX 580 MILES TO GO IN LIGHT & SHIFTY CONDITIONS

IN DETAIL:

Yesterday afternoon Gildas Morvan on CERCLE VERT, who had been closing on SKANDIA for the last two days, finally came into sight and has now sneaked into 3rd position approximately 10 miles in front of SKANDIA in the official rankings at 1000 BST today (although her position is an estimate). Sam last saw him at the second bouy that marked the passage south of the Turk Islands before a big header saw them go in different directions: "I don't know where he is now, it is difficult to see the other boats at night but I think he stayed lower than me."

There is little distance between Morvan and Sam and, although depressed at being caught up, she is motivated to stay with Morvan and fight her way to the finish line. Only 75 miles now separate the top five boats and with the light and very shifty conditions currently dominating the leading group, no one is taking anything for granted. For Sam the dilemma is whether to sail to the wind or the compass - right now, SKANDIA is sailing to the wind which means being 20 degrees left or right of the direct course: "Think I will sail to the wind at the moment and right now we are going upwind so it seems the best thing to do..." With approximately 580 miles to go the finish, 'part II' of the Trophee BPE can be broken down into three 200-mile stages from the waypoint to the SE tip of Cuba, along the south coast of Cuba, then to the finish line off Cienfuegos. "It is going to be interesting - the wind is not doing what the forecast says at the moment and then the effects of the land and the cloud mass make it difficult to have any kind of strategy."

Sam refrained from using the word "lottery" but it is not the far from the truth as the leading group, re-group for this inshore part of this 4,265 mile solo race.

PS: Tomorrow Sam will set her own personal record for her longest solo passage at sea. Her previous longest passage was on the transatlantic Mini Transat race that lasted just under 20 days following the stopover in Lanzarote. That race was won by Yannick Besthaven who is currently lying in 7th place in this race.

EMAIL FROM SAM (0043HRS)

Hello

What a horrible day! It started to be horrible at about 5am (middle of the night here 22.4.05) when I saw a big rain squall coming my way. The wind shifted and increased. The shift was so big that I was way off course, so I decided not to run with it but to skim across the front.

Anyway, this little squall was developing into a massive cumulonimbus, right on top of me and there was no way of escape. Eventually the lightning and thunder started and I got a bit scared when I saw big bolts of lightning coming from the base of the cloud right down onto the horizon around me! I turned all my instruments off except the nke, in case I got hit.

The end of the thunderstorm coincided with dawn for me and I was left in ABSOLUTELY NO wind! Horrible, and nothing I could do. I sat there for 3 hours with the sails going "clack - clack" from side to side with the moition of the swell. That is so violent, that I was afraid something would break!

Eventually, I saw a sail on the horizon. That signified good news and bad news: The sail was full, so the good news was that the wind was coming back. Bad news - it was Gildas, who had been 8 miles behind, so my thunderstorm had lost me 8 miles. I was, as you can imagine, pretty depressed!

But, it was not my stupidity - the storm just happened to develop on top of me. AND, now I am with Gildas, it is motivating, like in the other shorter Figaro races as we are sailing and "speed testing" against each other all the time, so I am guaranteed to be sailing fast. I hope we keep the contact for a long time becasue I am sure we will gain on the others that way.

The rest of the day has been downwind in very light wind, sometimes "gusting" to 10 knots! We have been gybing together (me and Gildas) towards the Turks waypoint. Right now, it is 10 miles in front! Hooray - at last we are out of the Atlantic, and I have made it across in the "top" part of the peloton.

When we first saw each other, we had a little chat on the VHF. It was funny to talk to another skipper. We compared notes - breakages (none, except my spi and his twisted knee), diesel consumption, how good the pilots are and how stable the Figaro is under spinnaker going fast, solar panels...

Right now, it is still very light winds and we are trickling along. I hope that there will be some stable wind tonight because I have not rested since before my thunderstorm and I am starting to feel tired. It is getting hard to sleep during the day because it is so hot. But it is impossible to sleep if there is little or no wind and it is shifting all the time because you have to be constantly adjusting the trim.

Sam
x

EXTRACT OF AUDIO WITH SAM (1000HRS)

Have you managed to keep tabs on CERCLE VERT?
When it's dark it is really difficult to see each other - I saw him until the second bouy through the passage at the Turks and I was close to him at the next bouy but he stayed lower and sailed with his spinnaker for a while. Last time I saw him he was on my starboard beam then I went to sleep and when I woke up he was gone. But I was sailing a bit higher of the rhumb line and he was a bit lower.

Did you actually see land at the waypoint?
They are only small islands and were about 10 miles away. The nearest one we got to was 7 miles away but it was dark and I didn't even see the lights on the land.

Frustrating to see your advantage slip away and more frustrating times to come?
It's frustrating but I knew it would be like this. I am still really pleased that I got across the Atlantic in third and that is the big thing, I got it right. The next part is going to be really tricky, the wind is just shifting all over the place. Right now, when I am talking to you, I've got my finger on the remote control for the boat because the wind is shifting so quickly. Every time you sleep, you know that for some of that time the sails won't be trimmed properly or you won't be steering the right direction. For sure, it's going to be tricky but it's the same for everyone. It's another race, basically, and I am treating it almost like two races - I did the first bit really well and I am just going to have to see how I do on the second bit.

Are you expecting the conditions to stay light and what about local effects?
It's looking really light and shifty and it's difficult to make any kind of strategy from the weather because the wind is not doing anything like the forecast tells us it is going to do. It is all local depending on the clouds and the land. I am breaking the next part down into three stages - it will be light, frustrating but also treat it with a bit of interest because I know I will learn something.

How are you coping in the shifty conditions?
It's difficult to know whether to sail on wind or whether to sail on compass and continually adjust the sail...I am not quite sure what is the right thing to do. The wind has just headed so we are going upwind, so its probably best to sail to the wind right now.

What do you see as the pros and cons of being so close to another competitor?
The picture is a lot bigger than just one other boat - it's good to have another boat to check against but also it could be a trap to sail off and not to do what my feelings tell me to do so I have to try and balance between the two. But it will be good to see where he is when it's light!

Any other news?
Tomorrow will signify my longest time ever at sea on a race on my own! The Mini Transat was just under 20 days.

Listen to the full audio from Sam at Audio/Video section of website.

Communications thanks to BT Broadband

LATEST POSITIONS 1000 BST 23/4/05
(boat name / average boat speed /distance to leader)

1. CREDIT MARITIME - ZEROTWO / 7.6kts / 529.0nm to finish
2. BOSTIK / 7.1kts / +10.6nm
3. CERCLE VERT / 8.6kts / +42.0nm
4. SKANDIA / 4.8kts / +53.1nm
5. BANQUE POPULAIRE / 7.6kts / +75.1nm
6. GEDIMAT / 5.1kts / +82.6nm
7. AQUARELLE.COM / 6.0kts / +83.1nm
8. ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM / 1.6kts / +86.0nm
9. COUTOT ROEHRIG / 4.2kts / +87.9nm
10. TOTAL / 5.4kts / +113.6nm
11. ENTREPRENDRE AU PAYS DE LORIENT / 52kts / 177.8nm
12. LITTLE BLACK SHARK / 6.2kts / +273.3nm

OQ Farewell

The Oryx Quest 2005 has reached a successful conclusion. By any measure the race has been a success for both the individuals that took part, and the sponsors who put up the money to stage the event. When Tracy Edwards first announced the idea of a non-stop race around the world in the biggest and fastest sailboats ever built, her idea was heralded as another great leap forward for offshore ocean racing.
When she mentioned that the race would start and finish in the Gulf state of Qatar, many people had the same response. “Where’s Qatar?” In the interest of honest reporting I have to admit that I too asked, “Where’s Qatar?” I have now been to Qatar a number of times and can tell you that it’s a small, wealthy and unassuming country that juts out into the Arabian Gulf, south of Iraq and north of Saudi Arabia. It’s home to some of the nicest, friendliest and most interesting people who share a common love for sport. The country will host the Asian Games in 2006 and the amount of construction taking place is astounding. They are literally building a new city out of the desert sands.

Qatar is interested in top level sports and therefore the idea of a yacht race that would be contested among the largest, most high-tech sailboats appealed to them. The budget for the race, including the $1 million purse for the first boat back, was relatively small when compared to other events like Formula One racing. While the final hard numbers are not yet in, it’s safe to say that the media value of the Oryx Quest 2005 has been astounding. Via 50 international broadcasters in 80 countries and 10 airlines, the Oryx Quest 2005 reached an average weekly audience in excess of 134 million households in the Middle East, 120 million households across Europe and over 500 million households worldwide. In addition to this over 50 million readers in Europe and the Middle East read about the Oryx Quest in their daily papers. I am not sure how these numbers are quantified into an actual dollar value, but I do know that those people who do understand these things are impressed. The people in Qatar who put up the money and supported the event with their energy and enthusiasm, are impressed. So impressed in fact that there is a new mega-cat on order for the next race. Doha 2006 is one of the new generation maxi-catamarans but the boat is already five years old. The new mega-cat will be the largest racing multihull ever built. The next event, the Quest Qatar will take place in 2007 and be open to both monohulls and multihulls. The event will start and finish in the Middle East, but have stopovers in some of the major economic and commercial cities around the world. The interest in this race is pouring in and if all goes well it too will be a major success both for the sailors and for Qatar.

While pondering the numbers and the commercial reasons for racing around the world is nice, we often forget that it’s the people that make any event a success. Behind the scenes in Qatar there has been a dedicated staff working diligently to stage the race, but it’s not really these people I am talking about. I am talking about the sailors. The men and women who left loved ones at home and stepped up to the plate to take on the challenge of a non-stop race around the world. The crews were a mixture of professional sailors with vast offshore ocean racing experience, to some with very little experience. They were all there for the thrill of a unique challenge; to sail around the world using just the wind and their own strength and resolve. During the race we received some insightful logs from the teams. It has been my job to weave a story around their words. Along the way I have tried to add a little colour, give some insight into the attraction of offshore ocean racing and draw on my own experience as an offshore ocean sailor to tell the story of the Oryx Quest 2005. It’s their story, not mine, and so as a final farewell I leave you with a log from Will Oxley. I was going to attempt to answer the very question Will poses in his log in this report when suddenly his log appeared in my Inbox. Thanks to Will and all the crew who gave so freely of their time during the race to bring the stories from on board, and thanks to all who subscribed to the daily newsletter and visited the website to follow the event. The next note you will get from us will be indicating new images in the Gallery from the prize giving due to be held in Qatar on May 24. Until then, it’s been fun. Here is Will’s log:

“During the race I had time to ponder why. Why do we do this sailing caper? What's the attraction? Why would anyone choose to be constantly damp, perennially tired, and experience periods of rough and changeable weather that leaves you physically and mentally exhausted. There are also times when it is outright bloody dangerous! Perhaps most importantly, we are away from loved ones for extended periods of time.

At first glance it does not seem an easy question to answer. Nonetheless it is a question often asked by those who want to understand the life of an ocean racing yachtsperson (as distinct from those that have absolutely no interest and would prefer to think that people who go sailing actually just drink gin and tonics and swan around with rich people).

It is a good question to ponder especially after more than 60 days at sea. Whilst racing, I asked a couple of the crew, in between sail changes, the question "why" and got a variety of answers but there were some common themes which came out. They were:
‘Because it is a challenge.’
‘An interest in and passion for the ocean.’
‘The satisfaction of being "good" at sailing and achieving success.’

Thomas Coville and I had a long talk about "why" and we agreed that one of the reasons we have so much passion for ocean racing is that life on board is like a micro world, where to succeed you must create a really positive environment with people getting on, looking after each other, and ALL working together to achieve a common goal. This is in sharp contrast to the wider world where this is clearly not the case. There is almost a sense of opting out and choosing a 'better world'. Perhaps a bit philosophical I know, but then again you get plenty of time to consider such things when it takes more than nine days to sail from the equator to Doha (and Thomas did study philosophy at university)!

Finally, there is just the aesthetic and beauty of it all. Every new day brings great changes to the faces of the ocean and the sky. Life becomes very simple and is reduced to basics with reward and satisfaction coming from hard work. We are dictated to by our environment. We cannot decide not to go to work today and if we do not perform at our best then we will not succeed, and in some cases the consequences may be far more serious. There is something very refreshing and satisfying about such an environment. I get a great sense of being alive, and the harder the job is the more the sense of achievement. Of course you also put your wallet away for 60-70 days so that has got to be good!”

Quite a Gybe

IN BRIEF:

* SKANDIA HOLDING 3RD IN APPROACH TO WAYPOINT SOUTH OF TURKS & CAICOS ISLANDS...

* 4TH PLACED CERCLE VERT MAKING BIG GAINS ON SKANDIA AS BOATS BEHIND CLOSE GAP ON LEADERS...

* LIGHT WINDS AND LOCAL EFFECTS OF LAND WILL MAKE THE FINAL 600 MILES HIGHLY TACTICAL AND A LOT MORE NERVE-WRACKING FOR SAM...

* WINDSHIFT FORCES SAM TO GYBE MID-SHOWER, "CAN A GIRL NOT HAVE ANY PEACE FOR FIVE MINUTES?" SEE SAM'S EMAIL BELOW...

IN DETAIL:

SKANDIA is still in 3rd, 30.3nm behind leader CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO and 14.8nm behind BOSTIK in 2nd place. Gildas Morvan (CERCLE VERT) in 4th is closing down on Sam fast and is now only 11nm behind. As the wind lightens for the front runners the boats behind look set to catch up, arriving with a new and stronger breeze: "It could almost be like a new race". Frustrating and nerve-wracking times for the leading skippers who have dominated this race so far. As the leaders get closer to land, the vagaries of the 'local weather' will come into play combined with a forecast of lighter winds will make the next stage of the race highly tactical and nerve-wrackingly exhausting for Sam.

Earlier this morning, SKANDIA was on a dead downwind run to the next waypoint south of the Turks and Caicos islands but in her 1000hrs (BST) daily phonecall with her shore team, SKANDIA was in the midst of a thunderstorm sailing through rain and lightening in pitch darkness making only 2-4 knots of boatspeed : "It is really difficult to tell which shift is going to last, and which shift is just for 5 minutes."

At 1000 BST SKANDIA was approximately 66nm away from the entrance to the passage that marks the compulsory waypoints. The reason behind these racemarks is to keep the fleet north of Haiti and to ensure they pass safely through the unmarked rocks and shoals surrounding the Islands. The passage itself is approximately 25 miles and Sam expects to go through later tonight around 2000-2200 BST. Once through this passage, Skandia will cross Guantanamo Bay rounding the south coast of Cuba before heading towards the finish port of Cienfuegos.

This passage marks the end of the Atlantic crossing for the 12 skippers as they enter the Caribbean sea. Still another 600nm to go to the finish line and this race is far from over.

EMAIL FROM SAM (0700HRS)

Hello

Today has been the first day where I have been wondering which way to go! As we approach the Turks passage, we are running downwind and I have been gybing with the windshifts since last night. It is really difficult to tell which shift is going to last, and which shift is just for 5 minutes. So I have been watching the wind and attempting to keep SKANDIA on the favoured gybe.

Another first for this race - the wind has been light today! I think I have made a few miles up on BOSTIK, but I know also the others behind are making big gains on us three, as the closer we get, the less wind there is.... It is frustrating for the leaders, but it will make for good racing all the way to Cuba!!

I did my horrible job with the cheese today. (And yes, I did eat a bit - right from the middle of each cheese!) and jettisoned it, then double-wrapped the cling film and ziplock it was in, in 2 more ziplocks and into the rubbish bin! POOH! It really was ripe. I couldn't get rid of the smell, so in the end I had to have a "shower"!

But, due to the law of Sod, in the middle of my shower, along comes the next windshift, and it's a big one - I can't wait, I have to gybe. So, naked (apart from my harness), dripping wet, with shower apparatus in the cockpit, I gybe Skandia! (Must have been a funny sight!). Can a girl not have any peace for five minutes? Once settled on the good gybe with sails perfectly trimmed, I managed to get my rinse, and now I feel (and smell) great! I even put on my new shorts (bought for 5 Aus$ in Geelong (you will see why!) and a clean Musto dry-fit shirt to keep the sun out!

Now, as my pilot does an outstanding job of steering, I am studying all my notes on the approach to Cuba and light wind/sea breeze sailing, from the lessons we had at Finistere Course au Large. I have begun to make notes for myself, so that I can get the best possible route through the islands, and if things get tough, and I am tired, I will have my notes already prepared and hopefully it will be easier to understand.

Next time I write, I will no longer be in the Atlantic, but entering the Caribbean! Wow - I can't believe I have sailed all that way already!
Sam x

EXTRACT OF AUDIO WITH SAM (1000HRS)

What are the conditions like at the moment?
"I'm in a really big thunderstorm, it's been brewing for the last 3 hours and there's just started to be bolts of lightening going from the clouds in to the sea which is quite scary! It's difficult knowing when the wind is going to shift next and trying to decide when is a good time to gybe - especially for the last approach which is going to be in quite light winds. It will be nice to be able to come in at a good angle but it's really difficult to predict that. It's a bit like cross your fingers and hope it's ok..."

What is your ETA for the passage through the Turks and Caicos Islands?
"I have no idea how fast I'm going to go today so it's about 10-12 hours away, which is late afternoon/early evening today for me, I should be going through there. It's quite a wide passage and we have to leave 2 points to starboard and 2 points to port, so there are 4 points we have to make sure we sail the correct side of. Then we're free again to head over to Cuba."

The boats seem to be closing in on you, how are you feeling about that?
"I expected it to happen. The people behind are in strong winds and we are sailing out of it first. Actually, the wind is coming back and they will bring the wind back with them so they won't even stop as quickly as we did. It will definitely concertina and it will almost be like a new start for probably about 6 or 7 boats at this passage so there is everything still to...it's still quite a long way to the finish so anything can happen."

Listen to the full audio from Sam at Audio/Video section of website.

Communications thanks to BT Broadband

LATEST POSITIONS 1000 BST 22/4/05
(boat name / average boat speed /distance to leader)

1. CREDIT MARITIME - ZEROTWO / 9.0kts / 661.5nm to finish
2. BOSTIK / 8.1kts / +14.8nm
3. SKANDIA / 6.7kts / +30.3nm
4. CERCLE VERT / 6.5kts / +41.3nm
5. BANQUE POPULAIRE / 5.8kts / +79.9nm
6. ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM / 7.3kts / +91.1nm
7. GEDIMAT / 6.5kts / +92.5.5m
8. COUTOT ROEHRIG / 8.3kts / +98.2nm
9. AQUARELLE.COM / 9.7kts / +102.7nm
10. TOTAL / 8.6kts / +124.1nm
11. ENTREPRENDRE AU PAYS DE LORIENT / 5.8kts / 184.5nm
12. LITTLE BLACK SHARK / 9.3kts / +313.5nm

Linky Sailing News

Racing Laser Nationals

News AC $. New Pegasus boss

Great Lakes Dredging cutback

College Sailing Gtown qualifies

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 +5
Difference from last month +2
Difference from last year +7
Difference from long term average for April -11
Difference from Record High -43
Difference from Record Low +21
Forecast for 22 May +4

Click for information on other lakes.

Linky Sailing News

Racing OQ 2nd plce finisher

News OSTAR. AC pollution. Record project

Great Lakes Bay Harbor pollution. Straits tourism

College Sailing Tufts 9th

3rd as it Goes Light

IN BRIEF:

* SKANDIA IN 3RD, MAKES 10NM GAIN ON LEADER OVERNIGHT...

* LIGHT WINDS COULD SEE CONCERTINA EFFECT THROUGH THE FLEET, "THE RACE COULD TURN UPSIDE DOWN"...

* TRANSATLANTIC RACE EFFECTIVELY OVER WITH GRUELLING COASTAL SECTION TO FOLLOW...

* SAM NOT NECESSARILY DISADVANTAGED BEHIND LEADERS...

IN DETAIL:

SKANDIA has made a 10 mile gain overnight on leading boat CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO who is just 38.4nm ahead. Sam has also narrowed the gap between SKANDIA and 2nd place BOSTIK to 17nm. This morning, SKANDIA was averaging 8.9 knots, and sailing at least 2 knots faster than two leadings boats. CERCLE VERT remains in 4th, 48nm behind Sam & BANQUE POPULAIRE is now 5th, 90nm behind.

The fleet spent the night sailing under spinnaker in steady conditions and Sam used this opportunity to catch up on some sleep in preparation for the next few days. “I’m trying to get more rest, and I’m consciously putting the pilot on more. I‘ve done a lot of things to take care of me so I’m on top form for the last 600miles. "

As forecasted, the leading boats have hit lighter winds and conditions are expected to stay like this for the next 5 days. This is frustrating for them as the boats behind are gaining, sailing faster until they too hit the wall of lighter wind. The next week of racing for the skippers is almost a completely different style of racing compared to the past 18 days. The transatlantic race is effectively over and now they have a gruelling coastal section to sail - back in a more traditional 'Figaro' mode until the end of the race, but a lot more fatigued than they would normally be. In addition to this, they will need to keep an eye out for passing ships, fishing vessels, cruising boats and possibly pirates. This is the first time the skippers have raced to Cuba so it unknown territory for everyone. The last 200nm of the course in particular is littered with dangerous reefs, and underwater sea-mounts which could provide interesting sea conditions.

"The whole thing about a transatlantic race is to get first across the Atlantic but that’s one of the characters of this race - there is a coastal finish and anything could happen."

Going in to the next stage of this race, the boats behind will be able to benefit from knowing which route the boats in front have taken and use that to their advantage, "If you’re behind, you can see the other people sail in to light winds or stop, and sail round them. Having two people in front could be a nice indication for me when I’m choosing which way to go, and working out how to get through the light spots. There is definitely no disadvantage in being just behind those two…”

The boat that has sailed the longest course so far, at the south of the fleet ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM, is now at the same latitude as race leader Eric Drouglazet, but 150nm behind. ATAO was the fastest in the fleet overnight, averaging 11 knots while the rest of the fleet were attaining no more than 9 knots.

EMAIL FROM SAM (0700HRS)

Good morning!

I am gybing downwind in towards the Turks and Caicos Islands, where we will pass through into the Caribbean. I have just passed a really weird ship, that was pretty big, but when I got closer it seemed to have masts and sails! Either it is Jonny Depp and his Pirates, or it is the beginning of the luxury cruising liners that we see here! I think it was probably the latter, as I am sure that Jonny Depp would not have nav lights!

It seems like the beginning of the final stage of this race, as things become more tactical, and less straight line sailing. I can feel it is going to be tiring!

I had a nasty thought earlier. I was reminiscing about my last orange (that I ate yesterday!) and I remembered the other "fresh" food I have on board - my CHEESE!! Oh dear! I had forgotten about my cheese, since I confined it to the gas locker (outside in cockpit) about 4 or 5 days ago! And even then it was beginning to make signs that it would be able to climb out alone! I wonder what it will be like now. I am going to have to go in tomorrow and check, which is a job I am not looking forward to!

The wind is dropping now too, tomorrow will be hot, and so will the next 5 days as not much wind is forecast. I am going to get some rest now, whilst the wind is steady!

Speak soon

Sam x

EXTRACT OF AUDIO WITH SAM (1000HRS)

If you were Eric Drouglazet, in the lead now, what would you do?
“The same as what I’m doing now. You can’t protect your lead. The position reports we have are too far apart and it’s difficult to cover anyone - for 8 hours you don’t see them and they could go off in a completely different direction. I think it’s important to sail your own race, go with the shifts, follow your instincts and do what your weather forecast tells you to do. I don’t think it’s any different if you’re first or last. If you’re behind, you can see the other people sail in to light winds, you can see people stop and sail round them, so it could be an advantage in that way to have two people like that just in front. It could be a nice indication for me when I’m choosing which way to go, and working out how to get through the light spots. There is definitely no disadvantage in being just behind those two…”

Are you feeling nervous as you approach the last, coastal section of this race?
“Yeah for sure. The other day I was thinking I wish it wasn’t this close because it could all turn upside down. The whole thing about a transatlantic race is to get first across the Atlantic. If I was Droug (Eric Drouglazet) I’d be really nervous and wishing there was a finish at this first waypoint, but that’s one of the characters of this race. There is a coastal finish and anything could happen. It could be really frustrating sailing all that way and making all those gains and then losing everything in 6 hours by getting stuck under a cliff - but that’s life! For me I’m really chuffed I’ve got across the Atlantic in 3rd place. It’s good to have a bit of a cushion behind me so if I do get stuck under a cliff for 6 hours I might still get away with it!”

Have you managed to sleep in preparation for this next stage?
“I’m trying to get more rest, and I’m consciously putting the pilot on more. I know it’ s going to get really hot now the wind is dying down, so I’ve got to be careful to drink enough and not get sunstroke. It’s been quite a cool and not too heat-stressful race so far. I‘ve done a lot of things to take care of me in the past few days so I’m on top form for the last 600miles. It’s tricky because the nearer we get, the more shipping there is. I’ve been trying to sleep and every time I have the wind steady and I don’t need to gybe or trim, the active echo starts beeping!”

Listen to the full audio from Sam at Audio/Video section of website.

Communications thanks to BT Broadband

LATEST POSITIONS 1000 BST 21/4/05
(boat name / average boat speed /distance to leader)

1. CREDIT MARITIME - ZEROTWO / 5.4kts / 800.4nm to finish
2. BOSTIK / 6.3kts / +21.2nm
3. SKANDIA / 8.9kts / +38.4nm
4. CERCLE VERT / 8.8kts / +86.9nm
5. BANQUE POPULAIRE / 9.4kts / +127.3nm
6. GEDIMAT / 7.9kts / +137.5m
7. COUTOT ROEHRIG / 7.2kts / +140.2nm
8. AQUARELLE.COM / 9.5kts / +159.6nm
9. ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM / 9.2kts / +220.5nm
10. TOTAL / 8.8kts / +173.2nm
11. ENTREPRENDRE AU PAYS DE LORIENT / 9.9kts / 238.8nm
12. LITTLE BLACK SHARK / 7.9kts / +397.4nm

Team Daedalus takes second

All good things come to an end. For Tony Bullimore and his crew on Daedalus the end came not a moment too soon. 75 days, 0 hours, 20 minutes and 48 seconds after leaving Doha, the multinational crew returned to Doha to a triumphant welcome. If the final week had been painstakingly slow for Tony and his team, it was nothing compared to the final night, in fact the final few miles were probably the worst. At dusk on Wednesday evening the boat was still moving, albeit slowly, however as darkness descended on the Arabian Gulf the last whisper of wind left with the last light of day. Daedalus was once more flat becalmed on a glassy, heaving sea. There was not much the crew could do other than to try and eke a tenth of a knot of boat speed from the listless sails. Dawn brought little relief, but by midmorning a gentle wind filled in allowing Daedalus to scoot towards the finish. No sooner was the line in sight than the wind died again leaving them becalmed once more. Race officials came alongside and together they marveled at how the small bubbles in the water were overtaking the giant cat. Finally at 11:20:48 GMT (14:20:48 local time) they crossed the finish line three miles off Doha’s lovely waterfront to take second place in the Oryx Quest 2005. A week of chasing passing zephyrs and dodging passing ships had finally come to an end. The crew set off flares to celebrate and a huge smile of relief and happiness crossed the skippers weathered face. It was a job well done, despite the frustrations.

When Daedalus showed up in Qatar earlier this year ready for another race around the world, more than a few people smiled at the audacity of a skipper who would enter an older yacht against some of the newest and fastest multihulls in the world. True, Daedalus is an old warhorse with many miles under her twin daggerboards. The skipper, also an old warhorse, has many miles under his belt and together they looked slightly incongruous alongside the likes of Doha 2006 and Geronimo. Despite a recent refit Daedalus still bore the scars of many miles of tough offshore sailing. At a pre-race press conference Tony smiled when asked how he planned to spend his prize money should he win. It was a wry smile; perhaps the skipper knew more than the journalists in attendance. He knew that in order to win you have to finish and history is a great teacher. Most around-the-world races have some attrition and Tony knew that if he could hang tough, sail smart and keep a clean nose he might be in for a chance. In the end he did more than that. He sailed a great race, took on the challenge, dodged a few hurricanes, set a new record from the Cape of Good Hope to Mauritius, and took a well deserved second place in the inaugural Oryx Quest event.

Throughout the last 75 days Tony has kept a steady head. His daily logs reveal a thoughtful skipper, quick to praise his crew and quick to praise his boat. It really does take skill, cunning and a lot of luck to finish a non-stop sprint around the planet and Tony was blessed with all of the above. His daily logs dwelt a lot on food and now that this race is finally over, Tony can tuck into a mind numbing hot curry and chase it with a few glasses of festival water. Both the meal and the drinks will taste sweeter after almost three months at sea, and they will be well deserved. Same too for the crew. Alongside the more professional teams on Cheyenne, Doha 2006 and Geronimo, the Daedalus crew looked relatively green, but they too persevered, sailed smart and in the end prevailed. They deserve much of the accolade being lauded on the boat.

In a few days the Team Daedalus gang will disburse. Tony will return to Bristol and likely stop by his local for a glass of something cold. His friends will ask what he’s been up to, and Tony, with a slight smile, will probably tell them that he’s been out for a sail. Only he and his crew will know just how tough the last three months have been. They have endured the heat of two tropical crossings and the cold of a sprint around Antarctica. They have also been well rewarded for their efforts. $300,000 awaits them on prize giving night, their reward for a second place finish. Our reward was tuning in to watch their courage and commitment as they girdled the globe. So thanks to Tony and his team for the fun few months we have had following your progress, and thanks to all who have followed this great race. All the competitors are back on dry land safely; not much more can you ask from an event that pits frail humans against the wrath of the mighty oceans of the world. All the crews are back safely to enthrall us with their stories and inspire us with their lust for life. There will be a final wrap-up story posted tomorrow, then this scribe is going to take short break before staring the book.

5.2 knots

Another flat calm sea greeted Tony Bullimore and his crew on Daedalus as they started day 72 of their around-the-world odyssey. They are becalmed once more, this time among the shipping and fishing traffic in the Strait of Hormuz. At the 07:00 GMT poll Daedalus was officially around the corner and pointing her bows directly towards Doha for the first time since leaving Qatar many weeks ago. If man had the ability to see over the horizon, Tony would be able to see the towering sand dunes and palm trees that are the hallmark of the Gulf State. Instead all he can see is a glassy ocean dotted with oil rigs and gas drilling platforms, also a hallmark of Qatar. “So near and yet so far,” Tony noted in his daily log.

From the bend in the Strait it is 275 miles to Doha. They may well be the longest 275 miles endured by the crew since setting off on the race as the forecast holds little hope of a fast and furious finish. The Met office in Doha is reporting 10 to 20 knots of wind from the northwest during the day today, but also reports variable 2 to 5 knots in the Strait. Tony and his team are going to have to get free from the grip of sultry air before they find fresh breeze, by which time it’s likely to be nightfall and the entire Arabian Gulf usually becomes flat calm during the dark hours. Like the crew on Doha 2006 before them, Tony and his team are just going to have to be patient. The race always comes to an end; it’s just the when it will end that remains a mystery. In a short missive Tony gave his best ETA estimate of Wednesday afternoon, local time.

Before daybreak this morning Tony sat at the navigation station and typed his daily log. It’s a habit that’s become routine. It has also been a good time to reflect on the day past and the day ahead and to keep the thousands of people around the world that are following the Oryx Quest 2005 appraised of life on board Daedalus. In what may be his final log of the race Tony described the conditions. “It's a dark night but we have lots of lights around us,” he wrote. “Oil tankers, container ships and small coastal traders that have been plying the Arabian Sea for thousands of years, and will probably still be plying these seas in thousands of years to come. Can you believe it, we passed so close to a small coastal trader today that we waved at each other and we could see the smiles on the faces of the crew of the other ship. It was all good stuff. The winds are exceedingly light and very fickle. One minute we build up a boat speed of around 8 knots and the next the wind has almost completely gone. This is a real assault course, but it is the kind of stuff that you sharpen your ability on and if you come out of it with a smile and a good stride, you have gained a little more in your life.”

The time spent at the nav station is also good for ‘what ifs’. Tony and his navigator Nick Leggatt have been calculating their performance in the Oryx Quest and measuring it against the performance turned in by the late Peter Blake and Robin Knox Johnston on the same boat when it was named ENZA. It’s an apples and oranges type of comparison, but if they cross the finish line before 09:15 GMT on Thursday they would have bested ENZA’s performance when the boat broke the Jules Verne round the world sailing record in 1994. Considering the current wind conditions it may be a close race against the ghost crew of ENZA. In any event Tony is pleased with their performance n this race and credits much of it to his crew. His log continues; “For us to drive the boat hard enough to break the old record, come second in the Oryx Quest 2005 race, get at least one of the leg records on the way round the world, and have several 500 mile plus days runs, is something all the crew can be very proud of. It is a statement of what a team of enthusiastic sportsman can do when put to the test. l can say that l have really enjoyed racing with all the guys on board, whether they are the crew with a lot of racing experience, such as Nick Leggatt, or have hardly done any sailing which applies to one or two of the crew. Without doubt l applaud each and every one of the Daedalus team for consistently giving it there best shot. They deserve it.”

In order to arrive before 09:15 GMT on Thursday, Daedalus will need to average 5.2 knots, precisely the speed the boat was traveling the last time it was polled.

Under 1000 Miles to Go

IN BRIEF:

* SKANDIA IN 3RD AND NARROWING GAP TO LEADING BOATS...

* LESS THAN 1000NM TO FINISH & 460NM TO NEXT WAYPOINT AT BAHAMAS...

* SAM PREPARES FOR PASSAGE THROUGH ISLANDS...

* DOWNLOAD PHOTO OF SAM'S SMALLEST 'ROADKILL' VICTIM SO FAR...

IN DETAIL:

SKANDIA remains in 3rd, increasing her lead over 4th place CERCLE VERT to 57nm and narrowing the gap to the leading boats. Sam is now 47.7nm to leader Eric Drouglazet and 28nm behind Charles Caudrelier (BOSTIK). At 1000hrs SKANDIA was averaging the fastest boat speed in the fleet, sailing at around 10 knots.

Sam had the opportunity to test out her repaired asymmetric spinnaker all day yesterday, "My repair seems (touch wood) to be working absolutely fine! The tack is still attached to the ring of the asymmetric - hooray! And I have tested it well - all day with 20-28 knots wind!!"

SKANDIA has less than 1000nm to go until the finish and approximately 460nm until the next waypoint at the Turks Islands in the Bahamas, "It definitely signifies the end of the race once you get on to the 1000 mark. Especially when it’s conditions like that, the 100’s seem to tick down nicely and you do countdown to the finish..."

The fleet are well aware that as they approach the Turks Islands the race is far from over, "Normally in a transatlantic race when you see land you’re finished. It’s a bit of a trap here because we get to the Caribbean and we still have another 500 miles. It’s a strange situation but it will be interesting. I’ve never done a race like that, where you finish by racing along 500 miles of coast!"

Sam is preparing herself mentally and physically for the passage through the islands, “There are loads of little trip-ups which could catch you out. Once we get inside these islands we cross a big shipping lane and there’s going to be cruising boats, fishing boats and pirates off Haiti...It will be good for these last 2 nights to get some good rest for that. It’s going to be more like a Figaro race – I’m psyching myself up for a Figaro type sprint.”

After having no communication with the race organisers or his family since Saturday, last night race HQ received news that Dominic Vittet (ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM) is safe and well. He passed a cargo ship yesterday evening who had VHF contact with him at 22h40. Everything is ok on board, but Dominic has confirmed he has no more satellite communication. All is well with the rest of the fleet today. Antonio Pedro da Cruz (LITTLE BLACK SHARK) has repaired his autopilot and Gildas Morvan (CERCLE VERT) is feeling much better today after sleeping for 3 hours overnight!

The fleet are now sailing in a stable northeast wind of around 15-25 knots. This is forecasted to strengthen this afternoon and then turn light as they near the Turks Islands, “It should get a bit stronger during the day today which will be fun and I'm going to put the big spinnaker up and send it! As you get near Turks it should drop off and go a little bit to the north. There's a funny little depression forming just to south of us, which is due to take our wind away. “

SKANDIA has had a few more visitors onboard... CLICK HERE to download photo of Sam's smallest 'road kill' victim so far...barely the size of her thumb. (All images can be seen in the Gallery on http://www.samdavies.com/skandia)

EMAIL FROM SAM (0100HRS)

Hello

I have just escaped a near nasty experience - I was enjoying a beautiful evening of trade winds surfing - moonlight, great waves, 25 knots wind, asymmetric spi (still holding up OK).... and then something whizzed past my face, missing my nose by about 5cm! That something being a very lucky flying fish!

So I decided I had had my luck and to escape whilst the going was good!!! It is a good thing, because I need to rest and it is hard to leave the tiller when the sailing is as good as that!

My repair seems (touch wood) to be working and the tack is still attached to the ring of the asymmetric - hooray! And I have tested it well - all day with 20-28 knots wind!! I only collapsed it once, and I have to say I am being more careful than normal!

And, only one week to go! I started thinking of some of the things that I am looking forward to once back on dry land. In no particular order:

Drinking tea (Earl Grey) out of a china mug
Seeing my boyfriend
Dry feet
Toilet, with seat, that flushes
Bed, with sheets, that stays still

And things that I don't want to give up:
Not having to brush my hair
Surfing at 16 knots all night
Being able to eat sweets for breakfast
Staying up all night
Sleeping during the day

I am hoping I have a little more wind than the others at the moment (it says so on the weather info) to try to catch back up a bit. Tomorrow looks like we will have a lot of wind (possibly more than 30 knots) - downwind - later on in the day, as a little low-pressure forms just to our East. So it's going to be yee-ha conditions, which means I need to really try to get some rest now.

Sam x

TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO WITH SAM (1000HRS)

What is your sail configuration?
“I had the asymmetric up, and I was sending it well with that all day. The repair is absolutely fine – probably better than it was before so that’s cool! I thought it would be fine overnight with the pilot driving. At the start of the night, I decided should rest because I really needed sleep, so I climbed in to my bunk, and the boat started accelerating and accelerating! The whole boat was shaking – it was fine but I looked out and the wind speed was up to 27knots! I thought to myself, I don’t really want to crash right now because I know that there are people who have broken things and it’s nearly the end of the race, so I changed down to the small spinnaker and also the wind was coming aft. The asymmetric is not so good with the pole aft so I needed to change anyway. I decided for the night, so that I could sleep properly, I’d put the small one up, so I could go pole back and the boat was absolutely fine. We’re still surfing and doing mostly over 10 knots so I think it’s good!”

So is the photo you sent back a sign that you are heading for warmer weather?!
“The kamikaze 'trying to smash in to my face' flying fish are always a good sign! The fish in the photo was so small and so perfect!”

Is it bikini weather yet?!
“No not yet - still in mid-layer and my foul weather gear on deck. I'm a wimp but I know and there are probably people in shorts and t-shirts but I don't like getting wet, as you know! You have to stay nice and dry to keep your skin good!”

Do you have the same conditions for next 24 hours?
“It should get a bit stronger during the day today which will be fun and I'm going to put the big spinnaker up and send it. As you get near Turks it should drop off and go a little bit to the north. There's a funny little depression forming just to south of us, which is due to take our wind away. “

Later today you’ll be inside the magic '1000 miles to go'… how are you feeling about that?
“It’s cool actually, at the moment it’s 1044 so in a couple of hours it will be gone. Yeah it’s definitely signifies the end of the race once you get on to the 1000 mark. Especially when it’s conditions like that, the 100’s seem to tick down nicely and you do countdown to the finish. It’s funny in this race, getting through to this waypoint at the Turks because normally in a transatlantic race when you see land you’re finished. It’s a bit of a trap here because we get to the Caribbean and we still have another 500 miles. It’s a strange situation but it will be interesting. I’ve never done a race like that, where you finish by racing along 500 miles of coast – another challenge! Hopefully I’ll have the chance to get a suntan before the arrival.”

What are you expecting to happen as you pass the Turks waypoint?
“I hope it's not going to be a big pile up! That would be a shame from my point of view because I’m in a good position! I’m sure there could be possibility that everyone will end up all in the same place together after sailing all the way across the Atlantic. We’ll see…looking at the weather forecast, I’m not sure what will happen because every time I get a new grib file it says something different."

The Turks waypoint in the Bahamas is the end of ocean sailing. Are you ready for the coastal section of the race?
“There are loads of little trip-ups which could catch you out. Once we get inside these islands we cross a big shipping lane and there’s going to be cruising boats, fishing boats and pirates off Haiti. There’s all kind of things in our way so we’re going to have to be a lot more vigilant. I don’t think there’s going to be any sleeping in the bunk anymore. It will be good for these last 2 nights to get some good rest for that. The wind’s going to shifting all over the place. I’m ready, I’ve been thinking about it a lot – to prepare myself so that it won’t be a shock and really tough. I think it will be mentally and physically quite hard. Even though there will be light winds there will be a lot of trimming and moving the weights in side to keep the boat upright or heeled over if necessary. It’s going to be more like a Figaro race – I’m psyching myself up for a Figaro type sprint. I know I’m tired already so I know I can’t go completely like I would do when I’d start refreshed. It will be nice to go through the Turks hopefully still in 3rd position. For me that’s my transat and I’ve done a good one!”

Listen to the full audio from Sam at Audio/Video section of website.

Communications thanks to BT Broadband

LATEST POSITIONS 1000 BST 20/4/05
(boat name / average boat speed /distance to leader)

1. CREDIT MARITIME - ZEROTWO / 9.3kts / 1005.0nm to finish
2. BOSTIK / 9.2kts / +18.9nm
3. SKANDIA / 10.3 / +47.7nm
4. CERCLE VERT / 9.8kts / +102.5nm
5. BANQUE POPULAIRE / 8.6kts / +139.3nm
6. COUTOT ROEHRIG / 7.5kts / +150.7nm
7. GEDIMAT / 9.8kts / +152.5m
8. AQUARELLE.COM / 9.0kts / +167.0nm
9. TOTAL / 9.3kts / +194.0nm
10. ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM / 9.4kts / +220.5nm
11. ENTREPRENDRE AU PAYS DE LORIENT / 8.9kts / 257.6nm
12. LITTLE BLACK SHARK / 7.0kts / +375.4nm

Linky Sailing News

Racing Trophee BPE

News VO 70 at the horn

Great Lakes Ohio scene. Ballast water danger

College Sailing Yale stays # 1

Rolex Backs Big Boat Series

The St. Francis Yacht Club has announced Rolex Watch U.S.A. as the title sponsor of the club's well-known Perpetual Trophy Series. The regatta, now in its 41st year, will be known as the Rolex Big Boat Series. The 2005 edition is scheduled on San Francisco Bay for September 15-18 and is expected to draw over 100 boats in 12 one-design and handicap classes including the explosive TP52 class as well as many of the notable entries from July's Transpac Race.

"Rolex is especially delighted to be associated with one of the most challenging regattas in the world," said Allen Brill, President and CEO, Rolex Watch U.S.A. "The Rolex Big Boat Series is recognized by sailors as a formidable test of ability, preparation and tactics. Rolex takes great pleasure in joining the St. Francis Yacht Club in celebration of this classic West Coast regatta."

"The St. Francis Yacht Club is thrilled that our partner Rolex will help us take the Big Boat Series to the next level," said Doug Holm, Commodore StFYC. "With their support we will be able to guarantee that the Rolex Big Boat Series continues as the premier West Coast regatta."

Coveted prizes for the fleet are six perpetual trophies - Richard Rheem, St. Francis, City of San Francisco, Atlantic, Keefe-Kilborn Memorial and the Commodore's Perpetual Trophy. Specially engraved Rolex timepieces also will be awarded to the perpetual trophy winners.

Racing takes place on San Francisco Bay within viewing range of Pier 39 and the Marina District, between Treasure Island and the Golden Gate Bridge, with the finish line set off the St. Francis Yacht Club Race Deck.

Regarded by sailors as one of the world's premier sailboat racing events, the Rolex Big Boat Series joins the list of other prestigious Rolex-sponsored events in 2005: the Giraglia Rolex Cup, Rolex Farr 40 World Championship, Rolex Fastnet Race, Maxi Rolex Cup, Rolex Middle Sea Race, the Rolex Miami OCR, Rolex International Women's Keelboat Championship and the Rolex Sydney Hobart Race.

For more information about the Rolex Big Boat Series, contact the St. Francis Yacht Club Race Office at 415-820-3713 or www.stfyc.org.

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

Dave Perry Seminar

Announcing an unforgettable sailing seminar available in your area this weekend!

On Sunday April 24th at Macatawa Bay Yacht Club (MBYC) and its junior sailing association Macatawa Bay Junior Association (MBJA) are sponsoring a seminar by renowned rules guru Dave Perry. The new Rules went into effect January 1st, 2005 and contain many significant and subtle changes that sailors, race officers, and judges need to be aware of. Nothing is more embarrassing than getting thrown out of a race because you don’t know the rules, or didn’t know they changed while you were hibernating, so be sure to come out and get your brain geared up for sailing!

Sunday, April 24th, 2005
12:30-4:00pm
Macatawa Bay Yacht Club
2157 South Shore Drive
Holland (Macatawa), Michigan

To sign up for this seminar, PLEASE CALL 616-335-5815.
You may also email reid@mbja.com and indicate who’s coming.
The cost is $10 for youth, and $40 for adults, on a space-available
basis at the door.

About Dave Perry:

Dave is currently the Director of Athletics at Greens Farms Academy in Westport, Connecticut, a K-12 co-ed independent school. He received his undergraduate degree at Yale, and has received
an honorary Doctorate of Education from Piedmont College. He has been a member of the US SAILING Appeals Committee since 1986, and is a Senior Certified Judge. He has authored three books on the sport, Understanding the Racing Rules of Sailing, Winning in One-Designs, and Dave Perry’s 100 Best Rules Quizzes. He is a two-time All American sailor, two-time Congressional Cup winner, and a member of the Sailing World Hall of Fame. He has conducted thousands of “rules
talks” and seminars on the sport, and is best known for his clear, humorous and highly interactive
presentations.

Passing Through the Inbox

Here are some marine items that have passed through my inbox recently.

During a single handed race in the San Francisco area an Aeorodyne 38 suffered a rather dramatic grounding.

After a spinnaker wrap pinned the boat the skipper attempted to start the engine. The boat was so far heeled over that the prop would not bite and the boat washed ashore.

The grounding took place near Pt. Bonita Lighthouse which is the only US lighthouse reach by suspension bridge.

FYI Charleston Lighthouse is the only elevator equipped US light.

Latitude 38 will have more on this incident.

Season 2 of Lake Michigan being a 2 ferry lake begins May 12th with the SS Badger's 1st trip with Lake Express beginning on May 14th.

The Badger has made a number of upgrades including ventilated kennels for pets.

Lake Express is in Sturgeon Bay WI having stabilizers installed to provide a smoother ride.

Team New Zealand's Dean Barker was the winning skipper at the recently completed Congressional Cup. 2nd was New Zealander Russell Coutts, and 3rd Chris Dickson also a Kiwi.

These three represent a lot of America's Cup and New Zealand sailing history. Dickson was at the wheel of the 1st New Zealand challenge in 1987 and was the Congressional Cup winner in 1990 & 1991. Coutts of course skipper Cup winners for New Zealand in 1995 & 2000. Barker succeeded Coutts and was then beaten by Alinghi/Coutts in 2003. None the less Barker's win is his 2nd after he won the event in 2000.

As one who works at a full service marina I'm not unfamiliar with customers who feel boat maintenance and repair is too expensive.

The 1 year old Spirit of Ontario ferry which was in service for 11 weeks, needs new head gaskets and work on it's turbos. Total cost $ 2.8 million. The ferry's new owners and the engine builder are splitting the cost.

It's all relative....

This is a 2 parter....an art review and a volunteer opportunity.

Recently the Lake Michigan Federation became the Great Lakes Alliance. Along with the name change they unveiled a new logo:

Can't say I'm a big fan. Perhaps the lines are supposed to be a wave?

What I am a big fan of is their adopt a beach program. This a simple grass roots program that any beach goer can participate in. Many of us go to beaches around the Lakes. Many more of us should take some responsibility through Adopting a beach.

Whale Sighted

IN BRIEF:

* SKANDIA 3RD AFTER SAM SPENDS THE NIGHT HELMING THROUGH THE COLD FRONT...

* SAM WILL MANUALLY REPORT POSITIONS FROM NOW ON AFTER ARGOS BEACON FAILURE...

* WIND FORECASTED TO STABALISE LATER TODAY AND TRUE DOWNWIND SAILING EXPECTED IN NEXT 24HRS...

* SAM SEES HER FIRST WHALE, "IT WAS AN AMAZING SIGHT! IT MADE MY DAY!"

IN DETAIL:

SKANDIA remains in 3rd this morning, after an exhausted Sam spent the majority of last night helming through the cold front. It was a night of tricky sailing with a variable wind gusting up to 30 knots, 90 degree wind shifts and rain squalls. Later on the wind dropped but with constant changes in wind direction, Sam was forced to take the helm for the duration, "I didn't want to miss the new wind when it came in, so I was working the boat all the time." The asymmetric spinnaker was hoisted overnight for the first time since the repair and so far so good. Sam managed to finally put her head down and catch up on some sleep at 0400 this morning, and at the 1000hrs phone call with her shore team she was feeling much better.

There had been some concern at the lack of automated positioning from SKANDIA, and after testing the Argos Beacon, which reports SKANDIA's position back to the race organisers, it appears to have failed completely, "I really am alone on SKANDIA now that Alex the Argos beacon has konked it on me! He's dead. Tried on and off -ing him and various tests but he is not responding." From now on, Race HQ will not automatically be able to receive position reports from SKANDIA. Sam continues on course and positions will be worked out manually from now on. Sam will phone in her position to Race HQ twice a day but depending on when she does this, she may she excluded from some of the rankings, despite very much being in this race.

Sam witnessed her first whale yesterday, initially thinking she was dreaming until it jumped out for a second time, "It was absolutely incredible, and absolutely ENORMOUS! Just her front half to the fins was almost the length of SKANDIA! It was such an amazing sight - I have never seen a whale that big before. It made my day!"

Flying fish have also been visiting SKANDIA but this is not always a welcome sight…or smell..."I discovered various skid marks where Kamikaze flying fish had met their messy end - one big one on the mainsail and one on the genoa. Both were impressively high altitude stunts. Only one fish discovered under a spinnaker on the rail just before the tack, very smelly!"

The wind started to fill this morning and is expected to stabilise by this afternoon. This new wind should allow the fleet to hoist their big spinnakers and start enjoying true trade wind sailing for the first time in this race, "The last time we were in the trade winds we were really tight reaching. This time we’ll be spinnaker running and it looks like there’s going to be 20-25 knots of wind which could be quite hairy but should be great fun!"

Sam is already starting to work on her strategy for the finish, "It’s not looking as quite as rosy as it was before! It’s looking really light, which could be quite frustrating but also quite interesting. I think it will be quite close in light winds, which will be great for watching the race but might be quite stressful for us inside it! I’m definitely looking that far forward to get an idea of what’s coming up."

Looking at the rest of the fleet, Gildas Morvan (CERCLE VERT) is currently enjoying the benefits of passing through the shift early and sailing in stable conditions, at the 1000hrs positions Gildas was the fastest boat in the fleet, averaging 9.4 knots. The race organisers have not been able to establish contact with Dominic Vittet (ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM) since Saturday 16 April at 08h37. All skippers have a spare iridium phone onboard and they have tried to call him on numerous occasions but not made contact. Dominic has had problems with his ribs since an accident at the beginning of the race so there is a growing concern for his silence. However the race organisers are looking very closely at his positions and for now they appear to indicate a yacht under full control of her skipper.

EMAIL FROM SAM (0400HRS)

Hello

I am writing this right now because it is the only way I can guarantee that I will stay awake until my 03.10 vacation radio. I need to stay awake because I am so tired that I know my alarm (it is a full-on claxon!) will probably not wake me up (that has happened before.)

The reason I am tired is because it has been tricky sailing to get through this front. It all started last night with some rainsqualls. That meant constant trimming to keep up with the shifts (no rest). The squalls continued and the wind veered during the day - it was so unstable that it was better if I helmed (no rest!) The biggest squall that came through was a 30 knot one. Then, the wind started to drop and continued to veer as we approached the front so I continued to helm (no rest)

The front went through very clearly (a real "auto-tack" - directly onto a reach -very impressive) and then we were fast reaching. I knew that this wind would be only temporary, and would shift all the time, so, again, no rest! And, in the end the wind has dropped right off and it has been all over the place, so I have been watching it, changing trim (or sails!) all the time. I don't want to miss the new wind when it comes in, so I have been working the boat all the time. So, added to being already a little tired (due to spinnaker repairs) now I am REALLY tired. I am struggling to stay awake, even now. I catch myself nodding off mid-sentence and falling off my seat (must be funny to watch, but it isn't funny here!) Now I know how it feels when you have taken a sleeping pill and you try to stay awake!

Today I saw a MASSIVE whale jumping. I am not up to scratch with my whale types, but she looked like a blue whale. She was jumping out until her fins were out, and then falling back onto the sea with a big splash. The first time I saw her I thought I was dreaming, but then she did it again - absolutely incredible, and absolutely ENORMOUS! Just her front half (to the fins) was almost the length of SKANDIA! I ran to get my camera, and she must have heard me because I never saw her again. It was such an amazing sight - I have never seen a whale that big before. It made my day!

Other wildlife (not so nice) was that as the sun came up this morning, I discovered various skid marks where Kamikaze flying fish had met their messy end - one big one on the mainsail and one on the genoa. Both were impressively high altitude stunts by the aforementioned fish. Only one fish discovered under a spinnaker on the rail just before the tack, very smelly!

And other interesting things - I found a rope on my keel earlier - a huge rope, must have been about 30m long, because I could see it behind my boat (under the water for as far as I could see! I did a back down and luckily it fell off! It is just frustrating that there are things like this floating around the ocean.

Now, I have made it awake to my vacation, and the wind is filling in, so things are looking up!

I had photographer's block today - sorry - and after the whale, nothing was going to compare.

I'll keep my eye out...

Speak soon
Sam x

TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO WITH SAM

How are you feeling at the moment?
“It was very tiring last night but I’ve have actually been sleeping since 4am this morning, on and off, between trimming sails and I’m feeling much, much better than I was before. The longer I’m here the more I get in to it. Obviously it will be great to get to the finish but I’m actually quite happy sailing along on my little SKANDIA and not missing people. I’m really getting into the sailing and it’s great! It’s the first time I’ve felt like I’ve been in a routine and been able to sleep properly, manage my body and my head, and not get so completely tired that I do stupid things! I’m feeling a lot more at home in this race than ever before in a long race.”

What is your strategy when you look at the weather – do you concentrate on what is coming up in the next few days or are you already looking at the forecast for the finish?
“Just before I called I was just looking at the latest weather which takes me all the way to the 25th April and actually it’s not looking as quite as rosy as it was before! It’s looking really light coming in to the finish. It could be quite frustrating and also quite interesting from the spectators point of view because I think there could be some pile up of everyone arriving quite close in light winds which will be great for watching the race but might be quite stressful for us inside it! I’m definitely looking that far forward to get an idea of what’s coming up. Especially if it’s going to be like that, it’s quite nice to psyche yourself in to it rather than expecting an easy run and then struggling for 5 days around the coast of Cuba. I like to be prepared for what’s coming up so I do look quite a long way ahead.”

How is it looking for the next 24 hours?
“Fantastic! It’s going to turn in to proper trade wind sailing for the first time in this race really because the last time we were in the trade winds we were really tight reaching. This time we’ll be spinnaker running and it looks like there’s going to be 20-25 knots of wind which could be quite hairy but should be great fun and really fast to nearly get us to the waypoint at Turks. I’m looking forward to putting my big spinnaker up and going downwind. It’s not easy because it ‘s quite scary going downwind when you have to sleep and leave the boat on the pilot. It’s a new challenge for this race because we haven’t done that yet. It will be interesting, I always get the impression that I don’t lose out that when I’m under spinnaker sailing the boat fast compare to the others, it seems to be a strong point of SKANDIA and hopefully we’ll be able to gains some more miles in the next few days!”

Adopt A Beach

Anyone interested in helping out a local beach anywhere along the Great Lakes can now participate in an award-winning Adopt-a-Beach program, thanks to a new online starter kit offered by the Alliance for the Great Lakes.

As the Adopt-a-Beach program launches its third season, the Alliance -- formerly the Lake Michigan Federation -- is releasing the starter kit to increase the reach of its popular program, much as the 35-year-old organization's new name change is meant to aid its work on behalf of all the Great Lakes.

Today marks the opening day of the weeklong volunteer Adopt-a-Beach program, now in its third year. Participants in the program, which coincides with Earth Day on April 22, visit their favorite stretch of coastline several times a year to pick up and record debris, and monitor water quality in an effort to educate the public about beach health and the need for policy changes.

In Illinois alone, volunteers have collected an average of 10,000 cigarette butts per hour during the program's major cleanup day in September, which the Alliance coordinates every year at sites on four of the five Great Lakes: Michigan, Erie, Huron and Superior.

"Adopt-a-Beach unites efforts at individual beaches into one voice for Great Lakes stewardship," said Stephanie Smith, education program manager for the Alliance. "At the same time that returning participants are kicking off the Adopt-a-Beach season this week, our online starter kit makes it easy for new volunteers to get involved -- allowing virtually anyone now to participate anywhere on their own terms."

The Adopt-a-Beach program, with more than 100 volunteer groups, is a hallmark of the Alliance's work to engage people at the local and community levels in connecting and caring for the lakes.

"At a time when the Great Lakes need so much care, we want to step up and help lead the effort," said Dale S. Bryson, president of the board of directors of the Alliance for the Great Lakes, formerly the Lake Michigan Federation. "If water is the lifeblood of our region, then the Great Lakes are the heart. Adopt-a-Beach volunteers are showing that they're heroes in the effort to protect the whole heart -- not just one of the chambers."

The Adopt-a-Beach program's active volunteer participation lends grassroots' strength to a congressional push to fund comprehensive restoration of the Great Lakes. That effort is embodied in two bills currently pending in the U.S. House and Senate.

To view the new starter kit and for a list of groups participating in this week's kickoff, see: www.greatlakes.org

Linky Sailing News

Racing Antigua Classics

News 100 v. 140

Great Lakes Drilling. Toronto terminal

College Sailing Harvard at Admirals Cup

US Multi Hull Championship Concludes

For Greg Thomas and Jacques Bernier (both from San Diego, Calif.), a dream came true on Sunday when they won the U.S. Multihull Championship for US SAILING's Hobie Alter Cup. Thomas and Bernier had been trying to win the National Championship for years without success, but this year they were ready for the challenge. After qualifying to compete in the event by winning their US SAILING Area qualifier last year, Thomas and Bernier continued to train together. They competed in the Hobie Tiger World Championships last month and finished in a respectable fifth place, the highest U.S. finishers in the event.

Every year, the U.S. Multihull Championship travels to a different part of the country and a different multihull class is chosen for the competition. When Alamitos Bay Yacht Club was selected to host this year's event with Hobie Tigers as the boat, Thomas and Bernier knew they'd have a good chance to do well in the event. They both work at the Hobie factory in Oceanside, Calif., which provided the boats.

"This is good," said Bernier. "It's the most prestigious event for multihull sailing in the U.S. and considering the people who were here, like Jay (Glaser) and Pete (Melvin), it's a very good win."

Thomas, 35, and Bernier, 34, took the lead on the first day of racing and never relinquished. But it wasn't as easy as it sounds. They beat 19 other teams from across the country and Mexico. All the other teams had also qualified for the event by winning other qualifying events or by winning a national championship in another multihull class. The list of competitors included 1984 Olympic silver medalist Jay Glaser (Long Beach, Calif.) who sailed with A-Class World Champion Pete Melvin (Huntington Beach, Calif.), Hobie 16 North American Champion Armando Noriega of Mexico, just to name a few.

The final scores of the event reflect the close competition: there was a three-way tie for second place. In the end, Stan Schreyer (Woodbury, N.J.) and Jonathan Farrar (New London, Conn.) took second place, followed by Pete Melvin and Jay Glaser in third, and John Tomko (Canyon Lake, TX) and Ian Billings (Dallas, TX) in fourth.

End on Positive Note

After a hard-fought and frustrating week at Long Beach Yacht Club’s 41st Annual Congressional Cup match race regatta, presented by Acura, Annapolis-based Chris Larson and Team Henri Lloyd ended their match racing competition on a positive note. Coming into the final day of racing with a 3-15 record with two of their wins recorded on the penultimate race day, the team fought their way out of the bottom of the rankings and won the 9-10 sail-off to finish the regatta in ninth place overall. They received $1900 in prize money for their efforts.

Racing against a stellar roster of current and former America’s Cup helmsmen and European match race champions, Team Henri Lloyd won three of their last four races. Reflecting on the team’s development, Larson reported “We won 12 of 19 starts and led at the first windward mark in 13 of 19 races, yet we posted only four victories. Early on we had some issues that kept us from holding our lead going downwind on the second leg,” he continued. “We got a quick lesson on how hard you have to work when you are ahead going downwind and you need to get clear air on the next jibe. It’s all about boat positioning and the really good guys that match race all the time are excellent at it – it’s hard to defend being lead boat downwind in a light breeze.”

Larson, in his first appearance as a skipper at this event, was joined by his resolute crew - Ian Gordon, Steve Inman, Rick Merriman, Matt Reynolds, and Jonathan Swain. “The guys and I feel that we sailed together really well as a team. We improved dramatically all through the week,” he said. “We also want to thank Henri Lloyd for their support of our team at the Congressional Cup,” Larson stated.

100 feet v. 140 feet

Two of the world's fastest racing monohulls are set to go head-to-head during the upcoming 2005 Rolex Transatlantic Challenge. The race starts May 21st off New York and after passing through a gate off The Lizard, finishes at The Needles, on the Isle of Wight, UK.

Robert Miller's 140-foot (43m) Mari-Cha IV may be a similar size to some of the giants in the Performance Cruiser class, but she differs in being an out-and-out racer, with a utilitarian interior free from any luxury.

For Robert Miller, competing in the historic Rolex Transatlantic Challenge has been a priority since the design stage of his futuristic-looking schooner. Mari-Cha IV has already earned her stripes on this course: in October 2003 she set the present New York to The Lizard monohull passage record with a time of 6 days, 17 hours, 52 minutes, and 39 seconds.

"It would be great to get the race record and to give our transatlantic passage record a nudge," says Mari-Cha IV's racing skipper Mike Sanderson. Although it is highly weather dependent, achieving this goal is very possible. "It was all pretty tame when we did it last time, as it was our first big trip," he continues. "We did our first 525-mile day and half of us didn't even get our wet-weather jackets on. We were just cruising along at 25 knots."

Over this winter Mari-Cha IV has been modified to improve her performance further with a general diminishing of her weight. While the boat has movable ballast in the form of a massive canting keel and water ballast to keep her upright, she has also been fitted with twin daggerboards which, Sanderson says, should make a dramatic improvement to her upwind performance.

Aside from the boat's physical upgrade, 18 months on since her launch Mari-Cha IV's crew are now more familiar with the boat and are able to push it harder. "We've got better sails for the trip, and I think it is a no-brainer that we'll be able to kick off a quick time given some good conditions," sums up Sanderson.

By coincidence Mari-Cha IV's main competition in the Rolex Transatlantic Challenge is from New Zealand -- the brand new 100-foot (30.5m) Maximus owned by Bill Buckley and Charles Brown, the latter of whom is Sanderson's step uncle.

Designed by Greg Elliott, who was also part of Mari-Cha IV's design team, Maximus may be 40 feet shorter than her rival but benefits from state-of-the-art technology, maintains Charles Brown. He too is enthusiastic about the race celebrating the anniversary of Charlie Barr and Atlantic's record-breaking voyage. "It is the greatest challenge, a 100-year-old record, what better could you do? Charlie Barr was the most famous yachtsman in the world. It has everything to do with why we built the boat. And it is extreme stuff. You go north, near the ice, and it is 3,200 miles - a really fantastic race."

Despite the length difference, Brown is confident about his chances against the big schooner. "They have a 40-foot advantage, and waterline length is the key to reaching. But we have the advantage of having caught up with two years of technology. In even breeze, obviously the odds should be all on them. So I am not saying we are going to be faster than them, but I am very happy. There may be some windward work coming out of New York, and there may be some coming in. If we get ideal winds we can do 1.5 - 2 knots faster than wind speed."

For this special event, the crew on both boats will include some of the greatest contemporary names in yacht racing from the America's Cup and the Volvo Ocean Race, including Mike Sanderson, Mike Quilter, and Jeff Scott. The Rolex Transatlantic Challenge concludes with a weekend of activities in mid-June, including the prize giving at Osborne House on June 12 and the Rolex Race Around the Isle of Wight on June 13.

The Rolex Transatlantic Challenge is sponsored by Rolex and also by Moran Towing Corp., Sandy Hook Pilots, and P&O Ports North America. The race is supported by the City of New York and Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Showboats International is the event's official marine publication; program sponsors include Rolex, North Fork Bank and Holland Jachtbouw.

Diesel Craft

It is estimated that eight out of every ten diesel engine failures have been directly related to poor quality and contaminated fuel. The build-up of contaminates in the fuel systems and storage tanks can quickly clog filters, thus resulting in engine shut down, fuel pump wear, and diesel engine damage.

The Dieselcraft Fluid Engineering has developed a “Fuel Purifier” that removes over 99 percent of the water and over 95% of the natural contaminates found in diesel fuel. This is all done without the use of replaceable, changeable or cleanable filter elements. There are no moving parts, except the fuel inside the purifier. There are no elements to clean and dispose of, only purging the water and particulates.

Centrifugal force is used by The Dieselcraft Purifier to separate the water and contaminants from the fuel. The fuel enters the purifier, which is located between the fuel tank and before the primary filter. As the fuel moves in this circular manner, it collides with deflector and bifurcation plates that stops the spinning motion and separates water and contaminants down to 10 microns, from the fuel. The impurities accumulate at the bottom of the purifier and remain there until the drain is manually opened. The clean fuel continues on into the fuel system.

Cleaner fuel reduced downtime, extends pump and injector life, as well as adds two to three times the filter life.

Dieselcraft manufactures 20 models to fit any application. The smallest unit is the Model 275x6, that measures 2 ¾ inches in diameter by 6 inches long and with a flow rating of 120 GPH and the largest is the Model 15x73 ( 15 inch diameter by 73 inches tall) that can handle flows to 24,000 GPH.

The primary markets are diesel powered generator sets, marine engines and ground transportation equipment. The system also works in fuel transfer applications of jet fuel and in Biodiesel applications. The Dieselcraft Purifier can be mounted on the engine, at the fuel dispensing pump, where it cleans the fuel before it goes into a vehicle or in a fuel polishing and re-circulating application.

If you are a distributor of diesel powered equipment this product will save your customers lot of time and money if you choose to join the team and introduce them to Dieselcraft…the answer to their fuel problems.

For further product information see the Dieselcraft web page at: http://www.dieselcraft.com

1500 to go in 3rd

IN BRIEF:

* SKANDIA IN 3RD, 49NM BEHIND LEADER - LESS THAN 1500NM TO FINISH...

* REPAIRED ASYMMETRIC SPINNAKER NOT YET TESTED...

* SAM HAS FIRST SHOWER SINCE THE START, "I TREATED MYSELF TO 1 LITRE OF FRESH WATER TO RINSE!..."

* DOWNLOAD PHOTO SAM SENT BACK THIS MORNING OF SKANDIA AT SUNSET...

IN DETAIL:

With less than 1500 miles to the finish, SKANDIA holds 3rd place, 49nm behind the leader. The fleet are heading down towards the Bahamas passage under genoa in a varying southerly wind between 7 and 20 knots, averaging speeds of 7-8 knots. Eric Drouglazet (CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO) is still leading, 22nm ahead of BOSTIK in 2nd. Sam has increased her lead over 4th place Gildas Morvan (CERCLE VERT) to 20nm. David Raison (COUTOT ROEHRIG) moved up to 5th place overnight, now 94nm behind leader.

SKANDIA spent the majority of yesterday under autopilot allowing Sam to spend some valuable time studying the weather and to decide on a strategy for the next few days, and for the next waypoint - a passage though the Turks islands of the Bahamas. She also took advantage of the stable conditions and managed to re-connect one of her solar panels, tidy up a few things, catch up on some sleep and have her first shower since the start two weeks ago!

"The "shower" consists of throwing buckets of sea over my head! The sea is pleasantly warm (I didn't scream - that is normally how I judge the temperature). It was SO GOOD to wash my hair. John Frieda shampoo and conditioner - luxury. At the end, I treated myself to 1 litre of fresh water to rinse! Then I spent the rest of the day being really careful to not get a splash of salt water on my clean body!"

After spending two hours repairing the asymmetric spinnaker in the early hours of yesterday morning, Sam has not yet had the opportunity to test it out. The fleet should pass through a cold front sometime later this evening, and after a few more hours on the breeze the wind should move more North - allowing Sam to test her sail repairs. However if the breeze shifts further, and more quickly after exiting the front it's more likely that she will set one of her two big spinnakers. The two leading boats now only have 1 of their 2 spinnakers after damaging them earlier on,

"I’ve got two proper, nearly untouched, big spinnakers so I’m happy about that! I heard that Droug (Eric Drouglazet) and Charles (Caudrelier) have exploded one of their big spinnakers which is nice to know! We’re allowed to take two big spinnakers on this race so they will still have one but if you know you’ve only got one left then you probably won’t sail as fast as you would if you had two. It’s a psychological game…!”

The cold front should pass over the fleet tonight/tomorrow morning bringing less wind, but Sam thinks she may have a small corridor with more wind, "It looks tricky for tonight but after the front, my path should "sneak" through and avoid the big patches of light air to the north and south of me. This could all change by tomorrow, so it is a lot about keeping fingers crossed too."

The current ETA for the first boats to arrive in Cuba is the afternoon of April 26th, well ahead of pre-race expectations.

CLICK HERE to download photo Sam sent back this morning of SKANDIA at sunset (all images can be viewed in the Gallery on http://www.samdavies.com/skandia).

EMAIL FROM SAM (0400HRS)

Hello

Today was a nice break, but at the same time frustrating, as I know that the boats to the north would have had more wind than me and made gains (nothing I could do)

We have been genoa reaching all day (I still haven't tried out my repair on the spinnaker) and at this angle, it is the pilot who steers best as he steers a very straight line (without getting bored or distracted!) So, I had the chance to use my time to do other things. I re-did one of my solar panel connections, I cleaned up inside (after last night's repairs) and I had a "shower"!

The "shower" consists of throwing buckets of sea over my head! The sea is pleasantly warm (I didn't scream - that is normally how I judge the temperature). This was the first shower in 2 weeks (since the start!) and it was SO GOOD to wash my hair. John Frieda shampoo and conditioner - luxury (it works with salt water, contrary to rumours, just doesn't lather as much.) At the end, I treated myself to 1 litre of fresh water to rinse!

Then I spent the rest of the day being really careful to not get a splash of salt water on my clean body!

I also got some rest, because with the sail-making action of last night, I was lacking some sleep. These races are run on "almost empty" in the sleep department - you get just the bare minimum - so when you have a "crisis" that involves missing sleep, you are very quickly "in the red". Today was a perfect opportunity to top up my sleep bank. (I also managed to get a good few chapters of Robbie Williams in!)

The rest of the day was spent studying the weather (over and over again) to work out how to get through the cold front, and watch the models evolve (the closer we get, the more accurate) to find the good passage through. Obviously, I placed myself south several days ago, so I need to try to make the most of this. At the moment, it looks tricky for tonight (less wind) but after the front, my path should "sneak" through and avoid the big patches of light air to the north and south of me. (This could all change by tomorrow, so it is a lot about keeping fingers crossed too.)

I'm off to check the sail trim, rescue the flying fish that has just landed in the cockpit, and then get some sleep...

Speak tomorrow...

S x

TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO WITH SAM

How are you getting on?
“Still on course, still reaching at the moment for another 6-8hours, black rain clouds coming through with some big wind shifts inside them, so that will be interesting. Actually I just did a high resolution model and worked out that in 9 hours time I will tack.”

What do you expect to happen weather-wise today?
“The way I’m looking at it – there’s a really small corridor of more wind, and I’m going to hopefully pass right through it which will be good. I lost a bit last night because I had less wind than the others and if I’m lucky I’ll have a bit more wind than the others passing through the front."

What are the conditions like at the moment?
“I have 20 knots of wind but it’s varying from 7 knots to just over 20 knots and there is some really big black rain squalls. They don‘t have lots and lots of wind inside them they’ve just got wind shifts and if anything less wind which is really disrupting to your sleep pattern, as I discovered all night! Every time I decided to lie down for half an hour, about 10 minutes later the boat came upright and I had to go up and trim everything and the last few as well it‘s been pouring with rain so you can’t just nip outside. You have to put all your kit on ‘cause I can’t stand being wet! I made a big error yesterday - I opened the side hatch next to the bunk where I’d been lying down yesterday afternoon. The breeze increased and I filled up the ballast tank. When you fill the ballast you keep it going so it flows out, so all the air comes out. So obviously that runs out straight down the deck, over the combing and straight through the window and in to my bunk, which incidentally also has my clothes bag underneath it, which was open! so double horror! Luckily I managed to get by, I’ve still got dry clothes so I’m ok!”

Gildas (CERCLE VERT) is now heading up northwest, what do you think about his positioning?
“Where he is the front is a lot less sharp and so he has to go round a big curve. Where it passes over us, it’s going to do a really big wind shift really quickly so we shouldn’t be deviating from our direct route very much. Maybe he’ s got more wind but I think he’s got to also cover more miles. Afterwards we’ll be at a better angle for the first downwind bit and he’ll be with the wind right up his bum and we’ll be more reaching.”

How is it looking for the next few days?
“It looks like there’s quite a lot of wind downwind so it will be very nice – more trade wind style sailing rather than tight reaching how we’ve been recently. I’ve got two proper nearly untouched big spinnakers so I’m happy about that cause I heard that Droug (Eric Drouglazet) and Charles (Caudrelier) have exploded one of their big spinnakers which is nice to know! We’re allowed to take two big spinnakers on this race, one extra than normal Figaro rules because it’s such a long distance, to allow for breakages. The extra one has to be a second hand one - it can’t be a brand new spinnaker so it depends which one they’ve broken. They will still have one but if you know you’ve only got one left then you probably won’t sail as fast as you would if you know you have two. It’s a psychological game…!”

Linky Sailing News

Racing Barker beats Coutts. US Multihull championship

News Sailor finds lady

Great Lakes Huron Light Houses Ferry Changes

College Sailing Rainier Cup.

Next for Tony

Tony Bullimore is one of the most interesting sailing personalities to come along in the last few decades. When you first meet him there is nothing about his persona that strikes you as unusual. He is small in stature, his accent is distinctly west coast England, and his unassuming nature is deceiving. One could hardly be blamed for mistaking him for a night club owner from the back streets of Bristol, which, incidentally, he was for many years. World class yachtsman, sailor of the year, and survivor are not words that spring to mind right away, but spend some time with Tony and you will discover a heart of gold, a tenacious spirit and wealth of stories that were only touched upon in his best selling book, Saved.

As Daedalus nears the hairpin bend in the Strait of Hormuz and closes the finish of the Oryx Quest 2005, it’s perhaps time to take a look at this remarkable man. It’s a story longer than this column allows and much has already been written about Tony. Let’s instead discover the man through a few anecdotes, his own and some of mine. First start by asking yourself how many men at the age of 65 are spending their time sailing big, highly strung catamarans non-stop around the world. This is the second time in four years that Tony has raced this boat around the globe and it’s one of his most successful races in the last few decades. People may scoff when they discover that Daedalus came second in the Oryx Quest 2005, beating both Cheyenne and Geronimo, but those that know sailing know that you have to finish to win and finishing is the hard part. Tony’s expertise as a seaman and leader of men has shone through throughout this race and he is to be credited with his fine second place finish. It takes courage and determination to take a relatively inexperienced crew (with due respect to Nick Leggatt who already has a big cat circumnavigation under his belt) and an old boat, and race it non-stop around the world, and it takes skill, spades of it, to come up trumps and take second place in a grueling offshore race. Tony Bullimore has plenty of all of the above. Take this excerpt from his daily log written on Sunday afternoon as an example of his competence as a race skipper.

“We have had our trials and tribulations as we have raced around the world,” he wrote. “But we have not made a song and dance of it. We have been low profile on these issues to ensure that the millions of people around the world who have been following the progress of the race and the competitors were not distracted by the wrong kind of publicity. For instance, one of the whisker wires that holds on the seagull striker to the forward crossbeam, that in turn plays a major role in holding up the mast, broke. On another occasion, one of the cap shrouds, the windward one, broke. It was so easily to believe that we would lose the mast, but we did not. With sensibly approaching these problems and speedily making repairs, we got things under control and kept going. It is a fact that one has got to continuously maintain and service the boat's equipment when one is tackling this kind of challenge. It is all part of the game. The Daedalus crew have proved themselves and l would really like to feel that the younger guys on board who are making the sport of yacht racing there vocation in life, have gained a lot of experience and opened there eyes to what it is like at this end of the sport.”

Behind every good man is a good woman and Tony is blessed to have a strong and kind wife who has stuck by his side through triumph and near tragedy for more than three decades. Lalal hails from Jamaica, a country known to produce sturdy stock. Her faith, however, was sorely tested when Tony went missing in the Southern Ocean while on a solo non-stop race around the world in 1997. His boat, Exide Challenger, had capsized and no one knew for sure if Tony had survived the capsize, and if he had, that he would survive in the upturned hull for almost a week. The interior was full of freezing cold water sloshing from side to side while Tony, with a crushed and bloodied finger, hung just clear of the water in a makeshift hammock. His survival is one of the great sea stories to come along in a long while. It’s a testament to the trust Lalal has in her husband that she has since let him go off on two more circumnavigations. As Tony prepared to leave the dock in Doha before the start of this race, Lalal remarked quietly to those around her, “I wonder which country he’s going to call me from next.” It was said with soft Jamaican lilt and twinkle in the eye that comes from years of having the courage to let go.

There was an old British explorer by the name of Bill Tillman who was an inspiration to a generation of ocean voyagers. Tillman lived simply. His small boat, aptly named Mischief, took him to the four corners of the globe where he climbed high peaks and took great gulps of life along the way. Tillman advertised for crew with a simple classified ad that read: “Crew needed, no pay, no prospects.” Tony Bullimore is a modern day Bill Tillman. He too has inspired and given opportunity to a generation of young sailors all done in the quaint old fashioned way of a nod and a handshake. Take this excerpt from the same Sunday log; “l must say that Simon Redding, who is a highly professional boat builder and who came along as crew, has played a major part in sorting out problems and keeping the boat going in whatever conditions being chucked at us. I have known Simon for a few years and he was one of the team that refitted the boat and got her into mint condition for the round the world race. Simon asked if he could be one of the crew delivering the boat from Bristol to Doha and could he do more work on the boat once we got to Doha just to ensure that it was ready for the race. As stories go, Simon worked so well and was so enthusiastic whilst he was on board. When we were in the Mediterranean I asked him if he would like to join the crew for the round the world race, and Simon said 'I thought you would never ask'. We agreed terms, l gave him the proverbial shilling, and we shook hands. I said you are now official crew, so how about organizing a couple of mugs of tea, and some chocolate digestive biscuits, and we can take it from there.”

These days, where professionalism, big bucks and greed have made their way into ocean racing, it’s a breath of fresh air to find sailors like Tony Bullimore still plying their trade on the oceans of the world. He is a simple man, honest to the end and loyal to all with whom he comes into contact with. As Daedalus looks set to close the loop on a successful circumnavigation, Tony is already looking ahead at his next project; a bigger, faster, more radical and more innovative catamaran to take on some of the long standing offshore ocean records. His log concludes: “What is next? Well, l have been looking at some tremendous ideas and l do believe l will be going for some records, getting a new boat so as l can enter the future racing organised by Qatar International Sports Events, and of course, l will be putting together a first class crew and a dynamic shore team. This all seems familiar, but that is what putting a first class racing team together is all about.”

At 07:00 GMT Daedalus had 356 miles to go to the finish. Tony is predicting an ETA of Wednesday morning. Sound familiar?

Barker Beats Coutts

The stuff of folk tales became real life

Saturday when Dean Barker, the bruised and humbled former apprentice, lived to defeat his mentor, Russell Coutts, for victory in the 41st Congressional Cup, presented by Acura.

Coutts said the better man won.

"We had a chance to win, but we never really deserved to win," said Coutts, who sailed with Jes Gram-Hansen and his Danish crew. "It's not a bad situation. They sailed great all week. They were a little sharper than us."

That, from the man who had eliminated Chris Dickson, CEO and skipper for BMW Oracle Racing's America's Cup team, 2-1, in the semifinals while Barker was coming from behind to oust France's Mathieu Richard by the same score.

When Dickson beat Richard, 2-1, for third place, it meant that Kiwis would finish 1-2-3, but the top two remained to be settled in a match rife with human elements.

Barker succeeded Coutts as skipper for Team New Zealand (now Emirates TNZ) when Coutts switched to Switzerland's Alinghi in 2003, then gave his former understudy a 5-0 whipping in the title match. But this success was less revenge than a coming of age as a key player at Valencia in 2007---an event Coutts will miss after his separation from Alinghi.

Now Barker again has donned the Crimson Blazer he first wore when he won the Congressional Cup in 2000---the year Coutts let him drive the clinching race against Prada.

"It was tough racing in the semifinals and finals," Barker said. "I was very impressed with the way Mathieu Richard sailed. He showed why he's ranked number four [in the world by the International Sailing Federation]."

It was clear that the bonds remain strong between Barker and Coutts as they sat next to each other at the evening press conferences, leaning together to exchange personal thoughts.

As for his first encounter with Coutts since that forgettable fiasco on the Hauraki Gulf five years ago, Barker said, "The Alinghi team was much better prepared, but it's always nice to meet Russell because he's such a good competitor. It's a healthy relationship. In the America's Cup it's never one individual against another, but team against team."

On the water they were intense adversaries. As the sun dipped late in the afternoon, spectators jammed onto Belmont Veterans Memorial Pier watched at close quarters as the pair swapped straightforward wins in their first two matches, Barker winning by 33 seconds, then Coutts by 17.

But with the wind dying from a peak of 9 knots to less than 5 near the shore, principal race office Mike Van Dyke was forced to make the difficult call of moving the windward-leeward race course a half-mile out, far from view of the pier but into better wind for a fairer final race.

Both went left from the starting line, and Barker seized a controlling windward advantage as they tacked at the port layline to lead by 6, 10 and 11 seconds at the marks and 19 at the finish.

On the final run to the finish a 120-degree wind shift to the from southwest to east caught both teams by surprise and revived a bitter memory for Barker's tactician, Terry Hutchinson, who lost the lead and the Congressional Cup to Ed Baird when the wind died on him on the last leg of the last race.

Hutchinson said, "About 30 seconds before it happened I said, 'I think the breeze is going hard left.' "

When it did, down came the spinnakers, up went the jibs and all Coutts could do was to follow Barker on a straight reach to the finish.

Hutchinson won the Congressional Cup as skipper in 1992 and as tactician for Ken Read in 2003. Now a teammate of Barker's, he said, "It's a little redemption from last year, but we still have a lot of hard work to do."

For another American on the crew, pitman Moose McClintock, it was his fifth victory in the event with four different skippers. Other crew members were main trimmer Skip Baxter, headsail trimmer James Dagg and bowman Jeremy Lomas.

Spinnaker Repair

IN BRIEF:

* SKANDIA SLOWS UP OVERNIGHT AFTER DAMAGING ASYMMETRIC SPINNAKER...

* "I WOKE UP AND LOOKED OUT OF THE WINDOW I COULD SEE THE SPINNAKER FLAPPING AROUND..."

* "IT COULD HAVE BEEN A LOT WORSE, PERHAPS IT WAS A GOOD WARNING SIGN...”

* DOWNLOAD PHOTOS SENT BACK FROM SAM THIS MORNING OF SPINNAKER DAMAGE AND REPAIR...

IN DETAIL:

SKANDIA slowed up overnight and is back in 3rd position, after damaging the asymmetric spinnaker forcing a slow down due to not having the correct sails set. The webbing on the tack ring had completely ripped through, breaking the spinnaker away from the tack ring. This occurred in the early hours of this morning just as Sam had settled down to sleep,

"It was really frustrating, it was the first time there were light airs and this was a great opportunity to sleep. It had taken me ages to go to sleep because I wasn’t used to the boat being so still and calm and I was worried I’d need to go and trim, or change something. I woke up and the boat was really sloppy...when I looked out of the window I could see the spinnaker flapping around!" Click here to see photo of the damage to the spinnaker.

"After reflecting on various ways to repair the tack, I decided that the only way to pierce it with a needle in order to sew it back on was to use a hot needle. I made all my holes and then I sewed the webbing on. Then I made some bigger holes with a screwdriver and used some spectra to make a lacing as well to reinforce it. Two and a half hours later, I had finished. I don’t know if I’ve got enough stitching because making holes like that is quite time consuming. I wasn’t sure how many to do and I don’t know if I’ve done enough but we’ll see...” Click here to download photo of Sam and her repair (all images can be viewed in GALLERY on website).

It's difficult to say how many miles Sam lost while sailing only with her mainsail and while she carried out the repair. At the 0300hrs positions Sam was 33nm behind leader Eric Drouglazet (CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO). At 1000hrs his lead increased to 41nm but bearing in mind what had happened in those 7 hours, the 8 miles lost were minimal and Sam counts herself lucky.

“I was thinking about that this morning and I was really cross. This is the first time I’ve been in a race when I’ve really felt like I can win. Things change when you get into the lead and you get greedy - you stop thinking reality and you start dreaming. It was a good reality check. It could have been a lot worse. It will make me take a lot more care between now and the finish. Perhaps it was a good warning sign...”

SKANDIA has got her speed back now and is sailing along at 8knots. SKANDIA is currently 13nm behind BOSTIK and now 15nm ahead of Gildas Morvan (CERCLE VERT) in 4th. The conditions over the next few days are still looking unstable as the cold front passes over the fleet. The forecasts are inconsistent and finding the best route through is proving to be very difficult.

EMAIL FROM SAM (0200HRS) BEFORE REPAIR

Pants!
I was sleeping - and it had been difficult to sleep because we were slower than the last few days and it took a while getting used to. Anyway, I woke up because the motion was different...
I could see straight away that the spinnaker was not in its normal position. It was flapping around behind the boom, the tack point not any more attached. I immediately assumed that the sparcraft had popped open so I ran up to bring back the guy and re-connect it. When I got forward, I saw the problem: the sparcraft was still attached - to the tack ring, and the webbing had completely ripped through, to break the spinnaker away from the ring!
This is a particularly annoying part of the spinnaker to break because it is practically impossible to repair effectively. This part of my spinnaker is so hard that I cannot get a needle through it. So, after many days work, the asymmetric finally came down and has been put to bed, and I am a bit disappointed (understatement) because it was a great sail - fast, easy for the pilot and easy for me!

Luckily, tomorrow should show the wind head us more and more and it won't be long until we need to be under genoa, so I shouldn't loose out too much. I will also contemplate means of repair.......

Apart from that, not much news, as we continue through the trade winds! It is getting hotter (I am boiling at the moment, having just run around doing spinnaker dances!)

Things are looking really tricky ahead, as this low pressure / cold front will pass us. Each forecast shows something different and it is really hard to work out how to get through. (My "virtual races" with my Maxsea routing software produce a different winner each time!) I have to continue to study the grib files and the weatherfaxes to try to get a clear picture in my head.

And finally, yes - I am really happy to see that Skandia got into second position today. It's going to be hard to hold onto I think!

See you tomorrow........
Sam xx

EMAIL FROM SAM (0700HRS) AFTER REPAIR

OK, so it probably isn't a perfect job, but it is better than not having an asymmetric!
After reflecting on various ways to repair the tack, I decided that the only way was to pierce it with a needle in order to sew it back on was to use a hot needle. So, 1 hour of slaving over the cooker and heating the needle for each hole (sometimes twice per hole) I had enough holes to sew the webbing back on. I also made some bigger holes with a screwdriver (hot too!) to make a spectra "lacing" as a safety...Two and a half hours later, I had finished.
Then I went to put it up and the wind went forward! So it is genoa! But I am sure this windshift will not last and I will be able to try my repair shortly!
Sam x

TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO WITH SAM

What did you first think when you saw the spinnaker?
"It was just really frustrating ‘cause I had just gone to sleep. It was the first time it was light air and this was a great opportunity to sleep. I was lying there and it had taken me ages to go to sleep because I wasn’t used to the boat being so still and calm. I was worried I’d need to go and trim, or go and change something. Then I woke up and the boat was really sloppy and I thought ‘oh my god it’s really light now, well just try and sleep’…. Then I was thinking ‘no there really is something wrong you need to look’ and when I looked out of the window I could see the spinnaker flapping around and I just thought to myself, ‘how long has it been like that for’ because I had been asleep for about 40 minutes by then. It could well have been like that for 40minutes for all I knew, which is the worst thing. I hope that I woke up just after it happened with the change of motion but I don’t know. I couldn’t really see my track on Maxsea to see what I’d lost but I think I lost some miles then by just sailing along with mainsail up. I was really gutted because it was such a cool spinnaker, then I was cross! Something I hadn’t noticed before is that it looked so underdone there with only 3 pieces of webbing on a tack that takes loads of force. So I was thinking to myself, ‘why didn’t I notice it before and make it stronger? and why didn’t I asked North Sails to make it stronger?’. Then I just thought I’m never going to repair this, so I dropped it and put the big spinnaker up. The big spinnaker was just hopeless. So I realised I had to repair the asymmetric whether it was possible or not. I was working how to do it and not very hopeful, so I got my toolbox out. It’s really solid where the tack is, so to be able to get a needle through that is almost impossible. I was trying to think of ways to make some holes and I didn’t have a drill with me, so I couldn’t drill any holes. I looked in my tools to see if there was anything to make holes. Then I thought about finding the biggest needle, heating it up and putting a hot needle through – so I did that for every single hole. I heated the needle up until it was red and then put it through to make the hole. I made all my holes and then I sewed the webbing on. Then I made some bigger holes with a screwdriver and used some spectra to make a lacing as well to reinforce it. I don’t know if I’ve got enough stitching because making holes like that is quite time consuming. I wasn’t sure how many to do and I don’t know if I’ve done enough but we’ll see...”

Your objective before the start of this race was to finish the race with SKANDIA in one piece. Has this changed slightly since you have been in the leading pack?
“I was thinking about that this morning and I was really cross. This is the first time I’ve been in a race when I’ve really felt like I can win. I was concentrating so much on winning and being in front and I had stopped thinking about the fact that it isn’t just a race across the channel, to win you actually have to get there – in one piece. Things change when you get into the lead and you get greedy - you stop thinking reality and you start dreaming. It was a good reality check. It could have been a lot worse – it could have been the head of the sail blowing up and I would have to climb the mast to get it as well as fixing it. It was good and it will make me take a lot more care between now and the finish. So perhaps it was a good warning sign.”

“It’s a really hard balance, especially with this fleet because everyone is so competitive. All the boats are identical so it’s really difficult to get any kind of advantage so to be conservative is almost giving you a disadvantage straight away. You have to sail in your rhythm. Earlier on in the race, the other guys were really, really tired - they pushed too hard and they were in front of me at the time. Maybe they pushed too hard because of that and I was in a better shape and managed to get around them and make better decisions. It’s a balance about your boat but also about you – keeping your head sane, not tired and stupid!”

Listen to the full audio from Sam at Audio/Video section of website.

Communications thanks to BT Broadband

LATEST POSITIONS 1000 BST 17/4/05
(boat name / average boat speed /distance to leader)

1. CREDIT MARITIME - ZEROTWO / 9.5kts /1586.8nm to finish
2. BOSTIK / 8.3kts / +28.1nm
3. SKANDIA / 8.1kts / +41.5nm
4. CERCLE VERT / 8.8kts / +56.9nm
5. BANQUE POPULAIRE / 8.0kts / +105.5nm
6. COUTOT ROEHRIG / 9.0kts / +107.4nm
7. GEDIMAT / 7.6kts / +132.9m
8. AQUARELLE.COM / 8.4kts / +140.1nm
9. TOTAL / 8.2kts / +178.7nm
10. ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM / 78.0kts / +206.0nm
11. ENTREPRENDRE AU PAYS DE LORIENT / 9.3kts / 227.4nm
12. LITTLE BLACK SHARK / 8.3kts / +272.4nm

College Sailing Forum

Approximately 20 people attend the College Sailing Forum, which was held
at the Newport Hyatt on Saturday, April 2, 2005. Discussion was lead by
Mitch Brindley, President of ICSA. Attendees included Janet Baxter,
President of US SAILING, Gary Bodie, High Performance Director of the US
SAILING Olympic Committee, Larry White, President of ISSA, and Sherri
Campbell and Eric Wallischeck of ICSA. The following are highlights of
the discussion.

* What is ICSA's relationship to Olympic sailing?

o What is ICSA's role as a feeder organization to the Olympics?

o ICSA involves about 7000 sailors nationwide, but only a handful
goes on to the Olympics. Any changes made should not lose sight of the
needs of the majority.

o In the last decade, high school sailing (through ISSA) has
developed significantly, and now plays a significant role in competitive
development, a role which had been college sailing's exclusively.

o Olympic "branding" is very beneficial to host institutions.

o Should ICSA develop specific opportunities for high-performance,
Olympic sailing (boats, regatta format, etc.)?

* Has the ICSA regatta format become stale?

o Low performance boats

o Boat speed skills are less of a factor

o Less challenging (no trapezes)

o No progression (freshmen sailing is the same as senior year)

* Is there a need for "regulation"?

o What is ICSA's role in promoting social and academic
responsibility?

o West Coast model (fewer events)

o Season limits - the group felt a need for shorter seasons.

o Roster limits - the group felt it could promote the development
of tier 2 or 3 teams.

* For a high-school senior, there are three options:

o Traditional ICSA route (sail primarily in collegiate events)

o Don't compete in ICSA while in college, and sail on your own.

o Hybrid: race 2 years in college, then spent 2 years sailing
internationally (2 years, then "go pro").

* Things haven't changed significantly in college sailing in 25
years.

o Is that a good thing?

o Is that a bad thing?

o Does it mean anything?

o Should there be change? If so, radical or incremental change?

* Boats

o Should ICSA commission a new design?

o Should ICSA designate the boats used in future championships,
similar to the system used in designating the Olympic classes?

o Someone can go through college sailing and never fly a
spinnaker.

* Diversity of college sailing programs

o About 40 1st tier elite, varsity teams which are consistently
competitive at the national level.

o About 150 other programs, ranging from 3rd tier, loosely
organized clubs to strong 2nd tier teams competitive in district and
intersectional competition.

o What should relationship be between different level programs?

* What should the role of US SAILING be in encouraging growth?

o Use of US SAILING volunteer network

o Involve ICSA student administrators in US SAILING

o Role of Regional Sailing Associations in supporting ICSA - need
for communication

o Golden Anchor program?

* Where to women sailors go after college?

o Current college sailing model (small to medium-sized male
skippers, tiny women crews) does not support post-graduate competition.

o Should ICSA add to or modify existing format to address this?

* Afterguard

o Specific team development

o National development

o Need for Membership Database

* Miscellaneous comments

o Pool or circuit coaches

o President Baxter was planning to participate in the Afterguard
Regatta on Saturday, June 4th at Austin Yacht Club.

Respectfully submitted,

CAPT Eric Wallischeck

ICSA Secretary

Yale Wins Admirals Cup

Regatta Highlights:

Saturday: A strong Northerly held throughout the morning and the
heavies started the day in 420's. Breeze ranged from 18 dying to 8. 6 races in A and B were finished before lunch and 5 in C. The breeze
clocked to the East and put on a good show of bouncing from Northeast to East to Southeast and back again and so we waited. A nice Southwesterly filed finally and finished the day with 8 races in each division in 5-8 knots. Courses were Modified trapezoids with separate start finish lines, all three divisions were on the same course.

Sunday: No Wind, although for those out there who competed it is 4:27
and a nice 8 knot sea breeze is in, bummer. Thanks to Peter Wilson and Bill Ludlum our judges for sticking around for no races. Special thanks to all the Midshipmen on a very well run event. Yale takes home the Admiral's Cup for the first time.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 TOT

1

Yale A 18 11 5 1 8 2 3 4 52

B 2 1 13 9 12 2 4 1 44

C 7 8 5 16 9 7 16 3 71

27 47 70 96 125 136 159 167 167

2

Tufts A 12 7 12 9 6 7 10 6 69

B 15 12 9 3 9 3 7 9 67

C 3 3 7 1 3 18 3 5 43

30 52 80 93 111 139 159 179 179

3

USC A 10 3 3 4 7 6 5 15 53

B 6 3 14 16 17 5 9 11 81

C 17 11 1 6 7 5 2 1 50

33 50 68 94 125 141 157 184 184

4

Boston College A 13 10 10 10 1 9 11 12 76

B 12 13 17 4 3 12 3 13 77

C 2 6 2 3 6 4 6 4 33

27 56 85 102 112 137 157 186 186

5

St. Mary's A 11 8 4 7 15 15 9 17 86

B 10 10 1 13 5 13 6 6 64

C 1 4 3 2 1 6 8 12 37

22 44 52 74 95 129 152 187 187

6

Harvard A 14 13 7 3 9 1 12 11 70

B 1 8 8 2 1 11 2 12 45

C 5 7 9 BKD 19 17 7 9 83

20 48 72 87 116 145 166 198 198

7

Brown A 2 4 6 2 2 5 4 5 30

B 14 6 10 10 18 8 14 4 84

C 13 13 15 7 15 13 1 8 85

29 52 83 102 137 163 182 199 199

8

Dartmouth A 1 12 2 5 5 17 18 3 63

B 18 11 5 6 2 1 17 16 76

C 11 2 12 10 2 3 13 10 63

30 55 74 95 104 125 173 202 202

9

Stanford A 5 16 9 8 11 14 8 1 72

B 3 2 16 5 14 15 11 2 68

C 9 1 6 5 8 8 12 DSQ 70

17 36 67 85 118 155 186 210 210

10

Hobart/WmSmith A 4 14 11 11 12 11 7 2 72

B 4 5 2 1 4 6 12 15 49

C 15 14 10 11 11 12 14 13 100

23 56 79 102 129 158 191 221 221

11

Georgetown A 3 1 8 6 OCS 8 2 16 65

B 7 17 6 12 7 10 5 3 67

C 10 15 17 12 12 11 11 17 105

20 53 84 114 154 183 201 237 237

12

USMMA-Kings Point A 8 9 15 12 10 19 17 13 103

B 5 14 3 8 OCS 9 15 5 80

C 4 5 4 4 13 10 5 14 59

17 45 67 91 135 173 210 242 242

13

Washington College A 7 6 13 15 4 10 14 8 77

B 13 4 12 7 6 14 13 10 79

C 16 19 8 13 18 2 18 2 96

36 65 98 133 161 187 232 252 252

14

Old Dominion A 6 2 18 13 17 18 6 14 94

B 11 16 11 11 8 4 8 6 75

C 8 10 13 9 5 15 9 15 84

25 53 95 128 158 195 218 253 253

15

Charleston A 16 15 16 17 13 3 1 7 88

B 8 9 7 14 11 7 1 17 74

C 12 16 16 14 4 14 15 18 109

36 76 115 160 188 212 229 271 271

16

Roger Williams A 15 5 14 14 18 4 20 10 100

B 9 15 4 18 10 17 10 14 97

C 6 9 14 15 14 9 4 7 78

30 59 91 138 180 210 244 275 275

17

NAVY A 9 18 1 16 OCS 13 19 9 106

B 16 7 15 17 16 16 16 7 110

C 14 12 11 8 10 1 10 6 72

39 76 103 144 191 221 266 288 288

18

NY Maritime A 19 17 20 19 19 20 13 18 145

B 19 19 19 15 19 18 19 18 146

C 19 18 18 17 16 16 17 11 132

57 111 168 219 273 327 376 423 423

19

Cornell A 17 20 17 20 16 16 15 19 140

B 17 18 18 19 13 19 18 20 142

C 20 20 20 19 17 20 20 16 152

54 112 167 225 271 326 379 434 434

20

Michigan A 20 19 19 18 20 12 16 20 144

B 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 19 159

C 18 17 19 18 20 19 19 19 149

58 114 172 228 288 339 394 452 452

A division = 8 Races

TOT

1. Brown 30 Pat Rynne 05, all

Arlene Chung 06, all

2. Yale 52 Stu McNay 05, all

Meredith Killion 05 7,8/Giovanni Zevi
Della Porta 07 1-6

3. USC 53 Mikee Anderson 06, all

Vanessa Decollibus 07 7,8/Ben Palmer 05
1-6

4. Dartmouth 63 Erik Storck 07, all

Clemintine James 05 1,/Jimmy Attridge 07

5. Georgetown 65 Andrew Campbell 06, all

Caroline Lamotte 07, 1-4,6-8/Nick Deane
06, 5,6

6. Tufts 69 Dave Siegal 06, all

Anna Martin 07 7,8/Bryan Prior 06 1-6

7. Harvard 70 Vince Porter 06, all

Ruth Schlitz 06 1,7-8/ Laura Schubert 05
2-6

8. Stanford 72 Peter Deming 05, all

Lucy Horton 05 1,7-8/Jomal Sew 07, 2-6

9. Hobart/WmSmith 72 John Storck 05, all

Jay Mills 08

10. Boston College 76 Jeff Bonanni 05, all

Joy MacDougall 05, 5-8/ Mike Grasso 06,
1-4

11. Washington College 77 Carl Horrocks 06, all

Alex Starks 08, all

12. St. Mary's 86 Justin Law 07, all

Hilary Wiech 07 1,4,5,7-8/Blake Deboer 07
2,3,6

13. Charleston 88 Russ O'Reilly 07, all

Joel Labuzetta 07, 1-6/ Kelley Bowers 05,
7-8

14. Old Dominion 94 Charles Higgins 06, all

Ryan Kozoriz 07, all

15. Roger Williams 100 David Hyer 07, all

Elizabeth Wishe 05, all

16. USMMA-Kings Point 103 Peter Young 05, all

Sonny Bilunas 08 1,7-8/Mike Roselli 07
2-6

17. NAVY 106 Garth Fasand 08, all

Kristen Sproat 08, 1,2/Kevin Peartree 08
3-8

18. Cornell 140 Scott Grandt 08, all

Tom Hull 06, all

19. Michigan 144 Dave Ellis 06, all

Lisa Vandenbossche 07, all

20. NY Maritime 145 Chris Price 07, all

Jill Decker 08 1-3,7,8/Mark Bostick 07,
4-6

B division = 8 Races

TOT

1. Yale 44 Molly Carapiet 06, all

Jenn Hoyle 05 all

2. Harvard 45 Clay Johnson 07, all

Kristen Lynch 07, all

3. Hobart/WmSmith 49 Trevore Moore 07, all

Augusta Nadler 06, all

4. St. Mary's 64 Andrew Watters 07, all

Paige Hannon05 all

5. Georgetown 67 Steve Streit 05, all

Emilie Bogrand 07, all

6. Tufts 67 Jeff Cruise 06, all

Chryssa Rask 08, all

7. Stanford 68 Eddie Conrad 08, all

Avona Vu 08, all

8. Charleston 74 Brendan Healy 07, all

Suzy Lintern 06, all

9. Dartmouth 76 Andrew Loe 06, 7,8/Peter Fleming 05, 1-6

Killarney Loufek 07 1- / Todd Whitehead
06

10. Boston College 77 Ben Gent 05, all

Caitlin Gill 05, 1,3-8/ Alden Reid 08, 2

11. Old Dominion 77 Bill Berg 05, all

Jennifer Adams 08, all

12. Washington College 79 Alex Hood 08, all

Hannah Lee 08, all

13. USMMA-Kings Point 80 Andrew Bercovici 07, all

Scott Gilmore 07, all

14. USC 81 Harrison Turner 05, all

Melanie Roberts 07, all

15. Brown 84 Charlie Enright 07, all

Janelle Sing 07 1,3-8/Jennifer Baver 06,
2

16. Roger Williams 97 Andy Goetting 08, all

Alex Boudreau 08, all

17. NAVY 110 David Parker 08, all

Lauren Sutehall 07, all

18. Cornell 142 Andre VanRynbach 07, all

Jared Sbaans 08, all

19. NY Maritime 146 Rio Gordon 07, all

Arielle Knuttel 07, all

20. Michigan 159 Sally Jacquemin 06, all

Evan Quasney 06, all

C division = 8 Races

TOT

1. Boston College 33 Reed Johnson 08, all

2. St. Mary's 37 Alex Steele 07, all

3. Tufts 43 Zander Kirkland 06, all

4. USC 50 Greg Helias 07, all

5. USMMA-Kings Point 59 Chris Branning 08, all

6. Dartmouth 63 Mike Wilde 07, all

7. Stanford 70 Emery Wager 07, all

8. Yale 71 Matt Barry 07, all

9. NAVY 72 Chuck Fulmer 06 1,6-8/Steven Gay 05, 2-5

10. Roger Williams 78 Robart Koar 05, all

11. Harvard 83 Kyle Kovacs 08, all

12. Old Dominion 84 David Tunnicliffe 07, all

13. Brown 85 Andrew Perry 08, all

14. Washington College 96 Colin Robertson 05, all

15. Hobart/WmSmith 100 Jay Mills 08, all

16. Georgetown 105 Langdon Mitchell 07 3,6-8

JB Turney 07 1-2,4-5

17. Charleston 109 James Kimball 06, all

18. NY Maritime 132 Stuart Grulke 08, all

19. Michigan 149 Ben Seppah 07, all

20. Cornell 152 Matt Richwine 08, all

Moody Trophy

2005 Moody Trophy
University of Rhode Island
April 16 & 17, 2005

FINAL RESULTS

REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS:

Day One: Northeast breeze 8-15kts shifting to the south-southeast by midday and diminishing at the end of the day
Courses were triangle windwards and triangle windward leewards.
8 races sailed in "A" division and 7 sailed in "B" division before the breeze shutoff.

Day Two: Perfect day of sailing on the Salt Pond. Steady Seabreeze 11-16kts. 7 Races in "A" division and 8 races in "B" were completed for 15 races overall.

A division = 15 Races
B division = 15 Races
A B TOT

1. St. Mary's 109 79 188
2. South Florida 108 86 194
3. Yale 87 109 196
4. MIT 105 118 223
5. Brown 90 136 226
6. Connecticut College 122 106 228
7. Hobart/WmSmith 118 118 236
8. Rhode Island 142 106 248
9. Kings Point 151 106 257
10. Boston College 154 112 266
11. Dartmouth 146 129 275
12. Roger Williams 128 164 292
13. Coast Guard 157 149 306
14. Boston University 160 164 324
15. Georgetown 155 190 345
16. Columbia 175 214 389
17. Vermont 206 225 431
18. Michigan State 254 261 515

A division = 15 Races
TOT
1. Yale 87 Zach Brown 08
Sarah Himmerfarb 06
2. Brown 90 Ripper Hale 06
Monica Stein 07
3. MIT 105 JM Modisette 05
Cha-Ling O'Connell 07
4. South Florida 108 Kevin Reali 06
Ashley Reynolds 06
5. St. Mary's 109 Aubrey Mayer 07
Megan Hawn 07 1-10 Jamie Gilman 06 11-15
6. Hobart/WmSmith 118 Lee Sackett 05
Molly Lawson 06
7. Connecticut College 122 Amanda Clark 05 1-8 Hans Jensen 07 9-15
Kirsten Barton 05 1-8 Liz Colburn 06 9-15
8. Roger Williams 128 Drew Hamilton 06
Sarah Henley 06
9. Rhode Island 142 Matt Kastan 07
Kristen Johnson '07
10. Dartmouth 146 Ben Sampson 08
Meaghan Ferrick 07
11. Kings Point 151 Chris Alexander 08
Laura Beck 08
12. Boston College 154 Frank Ustas 05
Kelly Dusenberry 05
13. Georgetown 155 Ed DuMoulin 06
Theresa Salerno 07
14. Coast Guard 157 Chris Greenough 07
Mallorie Schell 07
15. Boston University 160 Craig Nale 06
Liz Varr 07
16. Columbia 175 Chris Fleming 08
Julia Werb 06
17. Vermont 206 Matt Clark
Heidi Denton 07
18. Michigan State 254 Rob Linden 06
Meghan Walter 06

B division = 15 Races
TOT
1. St. Mary's 79 John Loe 08
Galen Brew 08
2. South Florida 86 Andrew Bloom 06
Liz Foy 08
3. Connecticut College 106 Charlie Modica 08
Forbes Barber 06 1-6 8-15 Amanda Calkins 05 7
4. Kings Point 106 James Givens 08
Greg Forthuher 07
5. Rhode Island 106 Craig Thompson '08
Kerry Mahoney '05
6. Yale 109 Phil Stemler 07
Hilary Shapiro 08
7. Boston College 112 Jay Connolly 07
Erin Morley 07
8. Hobart/WmSmith 118 Brian Clancy 07
Laura Golson 08
9. MIT 118 Jack Field 08
Wyman Li 07
10. Dartmouth 129 Garrett Holmes 05
Debbie Sperling 06
11. Brown 136 Wardo Young 05
Elizabeth Greenberg 06
12. Coast Guard 149 Ben Komar 07
Libby Hetrick 05
13. Boston University 164 Kyle Assad 06
Bora Panduku 06
14. Roger Williams 164 Jamie Pattio 06
Kristin Pappas 06
15. Georgetown 190 Berry Kurland 06
Clare Starshak 06
16. Columbia 214 Weston Friedman 08
AMy Stokes 07
17. Vermont 225 Cleve Rueckert 06
Caitlyn Connolly 08
18. Michigan State 261 Mills Farni 08
Carolyn Somes 08

Dellenbaugh Women's

19th Dellenbaugh Trophy
Brown University
April 16-17

FINAL RESULTS

REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS:
Saturday: Beautiful day with temps in the mid 50’s and lots of sun. Wind was extremely shifty from E/SE to E/NE at 0-12 knots. Huge puffs and lulls meant lots of inconsistency in the fleet. No breakdowns and one protest resulting in one DSQ. Course were Gold Cups. B-division starts tomorrow. Thanks to judges Whitney Besse, Emma Lichtenstein, Marisa Ihara, and Vanessa Lipschitz, all former Brown Bears. Also thanks to Brown sailors Evan Freedman, Sam Porter, Christina Starr, and Ben Siegal for all of their RC work.

Sunday: Another perfect weather day with a building southerly as the day went on. Began at 4 knots and filled to 14 knots by the last race. All courses were W/L twice around with leeward gates and all races were sailed right off of the Edgewood docks. One protest that was disallowed and no breakdowns. Thanks to Brown sailors Merebea Danforth, Doug Allen, and Preston Linson-Gentry for their RC help and the same judging crew from Saturday. A special appearance was also made by Brad Dellenbaugh which capped off a great weekend.

A division = 15 Races
B division = 15 Races
A B TOT

1. Brown 97 68 165
2. Charleston 110 74 184
3. Navy 106 94 200
4. Harvard 98 102 200
5. Yale 116 127 243
6. Dartmouth 105 145 250
7. Georgetown 139 115 254
8. Saint Mary's 109 147 256
9. Boston College 135 132 267
10. Tufts 151 117 268
11. Old Dominion 93 176 269
12. South Florida 198 126 324
13. Boston University 196 130 326
14. Eckerd 165 185 350
15. Connecticut College 149 211 360
16. Coast Guard 191 202 393
17. Santa Barbara 197 206 403
18. MIT 210 210 420

A division = 15 Races
TOT
1. Old Dominion 93 Anna Tunnicliffe '05 all
Emily Bartlett '08 all
2. Brown 97 Anne Davidson '05 all
Sally Walkerman 05 all
3. Harvard 98 Genny Tulloch '05 all
Emily Simon '07 all
4. Dartmouth 105 Emily East '06 all
Elisabeth Kieter '05 all
5. Navy 106 Katie Whitman '07 all
Slava Haywas '07 1-14, Cat Long 07 15
6. Saint Mary's 109 Adrienne Patteison '08 all
Maggie Lunkes '08 all
7. Charleston 110 Sara Wilkinson '05 all
Meg Callahan '08 all
8. Yale 116 Emily Hill '07 all
Hannah Oakland '07 1-8, Meghan Pearl 06 9-15
9. Boston College 135 Julie Wilson '05 all
Jen Doyle '05 all
10. Georgetown 139 Derby Anderson '06 all
Barbara Hall '05 all
11. Connecticut College 149 Kate Bogart '05 all
Elissa Leonard '07 1-13, Megan Lucy 07 14,15
12. Tufts 151 Lindsay Shanholt '05 all
Katie Mims '06 1-8, Chloe Star '08 9-15
13. Eckerd 165 Lindsey Nahmias '06 all
Leo Calzadilla '06 all
14. Coast Guard 191 Sarah Morin '06 all
Betsy Tufts '07 all
15. Boston University 196 Chanz McManus '06 all
Lauren Kugel 07 all
16. Santa Barbara 197 Kate Conway 06 all
Monica LaHaye 05 all
17. South Florida 198 Abby Ethington 07 all
Ashley Wierzbicki 07 all
18. MIT 210 Emma Bassien '06 all
Sunny Wicks '07 all

B division = 15 Races
TOT
1. Brown 68 Katie Lovelace '06 all
Louise Sherman '05 all
2. Charleston 74 Alana O'Reilly '06 All
Anne Bowen '05 all
3. Navy 94 Charlotte Hill '08 all
Andrea White '07 1-14, Cat Long 07 15
4. Harvard 102 Sloan Devlin '06 all
Christina Dahlman '07 all
5. Georgetown 115 Blaire Herron '08 all
Emily Siguler '07 all
6. Tufts 117 Kaity Storck '08 all
Lyndsey Gibbons-Neff '08 all
7. South Florida 126 Kristen Herman 07 All
Jee Lee 07 All
8. Yale 127 Kendra Emhiser '07 all
Natalie Kitchen '05 all
9. Boston University 130 Molly Francis '05 all
Kristina Karl '05 all
10. Boston College 132 Leigh Kempton '08 all
Lizz McAlpine '06 1-12 14-15, Leland McManus 13
11. Dartmouth 145 Adele Wilhelm '08 1-6 Lauren Padilla '05 7-15
Liz Hyon '05 1-12, Adele Wilhelm 08 13-15
12. Saint Mary's 147 Jenny Gervais '06 all
Katie Tinder '06 all
13. Old Dominion 176 Mo Castruccio '05 all
Cara Disanti '07 all
14. Eckerd 185 Maddy Eustis '05 all
Allison Cribbs '06 all
15. Coast Guard 202 Dianna Garfield '06 1-10, Brittani Lashaway 11-
Bobbie-Jean Felix '05, All
16. Santa Barbara 206 Casey pelletier 06 All
Anna Pollock 08 All
17. MIT 210 Jenny Hu '06 all
Julie Arsenault '08 all
18. Connecticut College 211 Emily Whipple '06 1-12 15, Erin Riley 13-14
Elizabeth Hawkins '08 1-8 13-14, Erin Riley 9-12

Rainier Cup

Rainier Cup
University of Oregon
April 16-17, 2005

REGATTA HIGHLIGHTS:
The Gorge did exactly what it does this time of year, produce wind and rain.

Saturday saw a brief wait for breeze, which filled in rapidly to 18kts. Wind eased and 8-12kts were enjoyed the rest of the day of racing.

Sunday saw lighter conditions and brief periods of sun. 6-12kts

A division = 12 Races
B division = 12 Races
A B TOT

1. UW 24 23 47
2. PSU 38 52 90
3. UO 42 70 112
4. UW Women 69 43 112
5. UCLA 91 47 138
6. WWU 90 49 139
7. OSU 55 103 158
8. L & C 77 85 162
9. WWU Women 79 84 163
10. UO Women 112 108 220
11. WSU 115 109 224

A division = 12 Races
TOT
1. UW 24 Brendan Fahey06(1-4, 7-12) Paul Stewart08(5-6)
Lysondra Ludwig06(1-4,7-12) Emily Schneider(5-6)
2. PSU 38 Jeff Causey 06
Caitlin Coleman-Hubert 05
3. UO 42 Rob Dubuc 07
Beth Otto 06
4. OSU 55 Andrew McDade 08
Danny Norlander 07
5. UW Women 69 Hayley Siegenthaler 07
Elishia Von Luven 05 (1-4, 7-12) Kate Selting5-6
6. L & C 77 Kyle Eaton 06
Karen Coffman 07 (1-6), Kevan Coffey 07 (7-12)
7. WWU Women 79 Jamie Albert 06
Lynsey Walker 06 (1-6), Sarah Kenite 06 (7-12)
8. WWU 90 Randy Holt 06
Jon Takao 07
9. UCLA 91 Matt Sirigano 07
Elizabeth Schwegler 07
10. UO Women 112 Kathleen Thurgate 07
Sarah Higgenbothem 05
11. WSU 115 Scott Wilson 06
Charissa Benson 08

B division = 12 Races
TOT
1. UW 23 Jones(1,2,5,6,9,10)Malbin(3,4,7,8)Young(11,12)
Wilson(1,2,5,6,9,10)Bell(3,4,7,8)Siegenth(11,12)
2. UW Women 43 Michelle Stitcer 08
Truda Peters 06
3. UCLA 47 Sam Wheller 08
Leah McFadden 07 (1-8), Brent Wisner (9-12)
4. WWU 49 Marc Snyder 05
Janna Ott 08
5. PSU 52 Scott Caldwell 05
James Adon 08
6. UO 70 George Yioulos 05
Jessica Andrews 08
7. WWU Women 84 Lisa Marsaudon 07 (1-6)
Sara Kenote 06 (1-6)
8. L & C 85 Alan Worf 07
Leah O'Bryany 08 (1-8), Morgan Mathews (9-12)
9. OSU 103 Gillian O-Brien 05
Chris Brown 08
10. UO Women 108 Jenny Dorner 06
Elizabeth Reed 05
11. WSU 109 Vince Rozau 05
Vanielle Baker 07

24 Hour Record Ratified

The WSSR Council announces ratification of the following new record:

RECORD: Longest distance sailed by a Monohull in 24 hours
Yacht: Telefonica Movistar
Sailed by: Bouwe Bekking and crew.
Dates: 4th April to 5th April 2005
Distance sailed: 530.19 nm:
Average speed: 22.09 kts

The previous record was held by MariCha IV, Robert Miller, with a distance of 525.7 nm.

AC Race Officers Named

The America’s Cup has announced the appointment of several Race Officials for the first event of the 2005 racing season, the Valencia Louis Vuitton Acts 4 & 5 beginning on the 16th June.

Peter ‘Luigi’ Reggio will return as Principal Race Officer, the same role he had for the 2004 Louis Vuitton Acts. He will be joined by New Zealander Harold Bennett, the Principal Race Officer for the last two America’s Cup Matches in New Zealand, Rafael ‘Rafa’ González, from Madrid, and Javier Escolano Hernández from Cádiz.

With additional Competitors for the 2005 season, the Louis Vuitton Acts in Valencia, Malmö-Skåne, and Trapani will require two race courses operating simultaneously during the match racing portion of the events. In Valencia, Peter Reggio and Rafa González will be on one race course, with Harold Bennett and Javi Escolano in command of the second race a rea.

“This is a very strong team of Race Officials,” said Dyer Jones, the Regatta Director for the 32nd America’s Cup. “All four officials bring a wide range of international experience and ability, and have earned the respect of the sailors through consistently good Race Committee work over the years.”

Peter Reggio has been involved in race management for nearly 30 years, and has been a full-time Race Official since 1996, working on a wide range of events internationally including World Championships for everything from Finn class dinghies to Maxi yachts. ‘Luigi’ was Deputy Race Officer for the 1999/2000 Louis Vuitton Cup, and Principal Race Officer for the 2002/2003 Louis Vuitton Cup.

Similarly, Harold Bennett has been involved in yachting administration, coaching and race management for 35 years. He’s been the National Youth Coach in New Zealand, and coached sailors at six Olympic Games, from Los Angeles in 1984 to Athens in 2004. Bennett was Princi pal Race Officer for the ‘Road to America’s Cup’ regattas, as well as the 30th and 31st Matches for the America’s Cup.

Javier Escolano Hernández served as Reggio’s Deputy Race Officer for the 2004 Valencia Louis Vuitton Acts. He has previously held a variety of race management roles for World Championships and European Championships, as well as international Spanish events such as the Princess Sofía Trophy, Barcelona Olympic Week, Carnival Race, and the Hispanidad Trophy.

The fourth member of the race management team, Rafael ‘Rafa’ González has served as Regatta Director or Principal Race Officer for 21 World Championships over the past 15 years. He held both posts for the 2003 ISAF World Sailing Championship, and is among the most senior and experienced race officials in Spain.

“I’m really looking forward to working with Javier and ‘Rafa’ again,” said Peter Reggio. “Both of them are excellent, experienced, Race Officers. Harold Bennett will be respons ible as Principal Race Officer for the second race area, and his experience from the past two America’s Cup Matches will be invaluable to all of us in ensuring that Acts 4 & 5 run as smoothly as possible.”

From the Old Ford Van onward....

Early Sunday morning found Tony Bullimore and his team on Daedalus sailing close to the coast of Oman. At the 07:00 GMT poll the boat was just 20 miles off the coast still hampered by fickle winds and frustrating conditions. It has been a whole lot of stop and go for the crew as first they find some breeze and squirt ahead only to find themselves wallowing in the leftover slop waiting for the next ripple on the water’s surface to herald the start of another shot of boat speed. The good news is that each passing gust brings them closer to the finish and at the same 07:00 poll Daedalus was just 10 miles from the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz. From there it is an easy 300 miles to the hairpin bend of the Strait and then another 275 miles to Doha. By my calculation they are less than 600 miles from the end of their voyage; less than a Fastnet or Bermuda or Sydney to Hobart Race to name some of the famous ocean races.

On board Daedalus skipper Tony Bullimore is pensive about the impending end of their circumnavigation. For Bullimore it’s the second around-the-world race on board this boat and he seems in no mind to retire from ocean voyaging. Offshore sailing is one of those insidious afflictions. Each time you race around the world you swear to yourself, and your long suffering loved ones, that this will be your last trip. You know that there are other things to do in life, but a few days after you set foot on dry land you suddenly forget the wet, cold and frustrations and immediately start looking for the next boat to race. Ocean voyaging gets under your skin and there is no known antidote. Once a traveling man, always a traveling man (or woman, not to forget the famous females that raced Doha 2006 so hard around the planet). In his daily log Tony pondered what it is that draws him back to the ocean time and again.

“I am often asked why l do what l do,” he wrote. “Why have l done so many thousands of miles single handed, racing in most of the oceans of the world, and it is still difficult to come up with a straightforward answer. I do remember buying a Ford 500 cwt van when l was 17, l had just got my driving license, and that opened a whole new world to me. l could now venture off in all directions, without relying on other people. Myself and my school friend Tony James planned to cross the Sahara Desert and make our way through Africa, as far south as we could get. After months of planning and preparing the old van, which by the way, cost £25, a lot of money in those days, we thought we were ready. But we now had to get in touch with the French Embassy in London to get the necessary permits and licenses to go on our adventure. That proved to be so very complicated mainly because the Ford van did not comply with regulations to cross the Sahara desert, and quite frankly, Tony and myself, did not have enough experience to take this on. In fact, we did not have any experience, we aborted what we were planning. However, one has to start to get going somewhere, if one wants to go somewhere, and this could have been it. It was a year later that l took off for Africa on my own. Tony had pulled out and l have been taking on different ventures ever since.”

As Daedalus sails slowly up the coast of Oman, they are getting bombarded by hundreds of flying fish. It’s the same phenomenon that the crew on Doha 2006 wrote about two weeks ago when they sailed the same waters. There is something about sailing a catamaran through tropical waters. It seems that the twin hulls scare up a schools of fish and they take off only to crash into the hull or shred themselves in the netting of the trampoline. This part of the ocean seems particularly rich with sea life and Tony reports seeing both masses of flying fish and a couple of dolphins. His log continues; “It happens a little in the daytime, but at night it seems to really get going, and that is flying fish either bashing into the side of the hulls or landing on the nets. The small ones wriggle through the holes in the nets to drop back into the water, and the bigger ones need a little help from us. It was fun earlier today, when we saw a couple of dolphins swimming near to the boat. The hung around for five minutes and then got a little fed up with us, and took off.”

The end of the Oryx Quest 2005 is in sight for the crew of Daedalus. It’s still hard to predict an ETA and no one is foolish enough to hazard a guess. I am, however, willing to stick my neck out. I say daybreak on Wednesday morning will see the big cat lope over the horizon to take second in the race. Time will tell, as it always does.

A Cup of Tea

IN BRIEF:

* SKANDIA 3RD WITH A VERY HAPPY SKIPPER...

* "IT’S SATISFYING TO SHOW THAT MY STRATEGY PAID OFF AND WHAT I DECIDED TO DO WAS THE RIGHT THING..."

* "INSTEAD OF CELEBRATING MY THIRD POSITION WITH A BEER, I TOASTED SKANDIA WITH MY CUP OF TEA, EARL GREY OF COURSE, WITH MILK... "

* CONDITIONS FORECASTED TO TURN UNSTABLE IN NEXT FEW DAYS...

* DOWNLOAD PHOTO SENT BACK FROM SAM THIS MORNING...

* VIEW SHORT VIDEO CLIP OF SAM WITH A FRENCH MESSAGE FROM ATLANTIC...

IN DETAIL:

SKANDIA has continued to move up leader board and is now in 3rd, only 17.8nm behind the new race leader Eric Drouglazet (CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO) who is just 9.9nm ahead of 2nd place Charles Caudrelier (BOSTIK), both previous Solitaire winners. SKANDIA is currently averaging 1.5 knots faster than BOSTIK. CERCLE VERT moves down to 4th, 14nm behind SKANDIA.

Sam celebrated her 3rd place with a cup of her favourite tea, Earl Grey! "It’s satisfying to show that my strategy paid off and what I decided to do was the right thing, also it’s good knowing that I’m not in 3rd place by accident but because I took myself there."

Click here to download photo of Sam toasting Skandia (for all images go to the Gallery on http://www.samdavies.com/skandia)

The winter training at Port La Forêt training as part of the Pôle Finistère Course au Large team, has proved to be advantageous for those skippers involved, "It has definitely helped and it seems to be the Finistère Course au Large lot who are generally slightly further ahead than the others, so that’s a good sign for us that we have good boat speed."

SKANDIA is again one of the southern most boats, 50nm south of CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO and 100nm south of BOSTIK. "It seems that my position a little bit south is still a benefit and I have slightly more wind than those to the north of me..."

The conditions over the next few days are forecasted to turn much less stable. Sam has been trying to rest as much as possible in preparation for this, "I think it will be tricky sailing to negotiate the next weather system, lots of shifts, changes in windspeed (even rain!) and I will need to be alert."

SKANDIA has been spinnaker reaching in the same conditions for the past 8 days, this is expected to continue for the next day at least, after which Sam predicts they will tack as the cold front arrives. The northern boats will go through this depression earlier than the boats in the south, which also means the northern boats will leave it earlier...

With only 30nm separating the top 4 boats, and 100 miles separating the majority of the fleet, every mile counts for the 12 skippers. Their objective - to be the first boat to get past this new weather system, out the other side and into the trade winds as quickly as possible.

View short video clip of Sam, with a french message from the Atlantic, at the Audio/Video section of the website.

EMAIL LOG FROM SAM (0300HRS)

Hello from halfway between the Azores and the Turks waypoint!

So, it is Friday night. For me the Friday nights are the most difficult, because my body tells me that I should be in "Le Bidule" drinking a beer, and not in a little boat in the middle of an ocean! It is also a way of marking the race: this is Friday night number 2, hopefully only one more Friday night to endure until the finish...

So, instead of celebrating my third position with a beer, I toasted SKANDIA with my cup of tea (Earl Grey, of course, with milk). And I can continue to dream of that first beer at the finish, thanks to the "Palma Cristal" beer label that is stuck on my chart table (as motivation - Palma Cristal is "La preferida de Cuba") - a present from Estelle and Mumu!

Today was again, another great sailing day. It seems that my position a little bit South is still a benefit and I have slightly more wind than those to the North of me, so I continued to make gains!

We have been reaching on port gybe now for 8 days!! I am going to have one leg longer than the other soon!! My predictions are that in two days time we will tack, as the cold front passes over us! What a relief for my wrist too, which is pretty painful.

I am trying to make the most of these last two days of "stable" conditions to get as much rest as possible, because I think it will be tricky sailing to negotiate the next weather system, lots of shifts, changes in windspeed (even rain!) and I will need to be alert because it will be really important to get out the other side and into the trade winds as fast as possible. But it isn't really easy to rest now either, because the wind changes all the time and we are tight spinnaker reaching...

I will do my best!

Sam x

TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO WITH SAM

How does if feel to be in 3rd?
“It’s good, I’m very happy! It’s satisfying to show that my strategy paid off and what I decided to do was the right thing, also it’s good knowing that I’m not in 3rd place by accident but because I took myself there. I know sometimes you end up hooning up the ranking and you’re not entirely sure why or how it happened. I know why, so I’m happy about that.”

We’ve seen you moving up the leader board, do you think that this can continue up to 2nd and maybe up to 1st?
“Possibly, but I think I’ve taken my big gain now and I think now there’s going to be a bit more luck involved in getting through the cold front and out the other side in to the trades winds again. It’s really difficult to predict. Every new grib file says a different thing, even looking at the weather fax map it’s not easy to predict which way is the best route through. Hopefully I can keep my 3rd place, I don’t feel too threatened from Gildas (CERCEL VERT) because I think he’s too far north and I’ll try and hang on to BOSTIK & CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO because they sail really fast and if I hold on to them I hopefully I should get a good finish."

You’re surrounded by Solitaire winners – how do you get yourself to be in that position? Do you think it’s your winter training with the Finistère Course au Large team, at Port La Forêt that has helped you to get the right speed and right tactics?
My winter training has definitely helped and it seems to be the Finistère Course au Large lot who are generally slightly further ahead than the others. That’s a good sign for us that we have good boat speed. I think the work I did with Jean-Yves Bernot (one of the world’s top weather experts) looking at the weather really helped. We did one session with Finistère Course au Large and Jeanne Gregoire (BANQUE POPULAIRE) and I had one session with just the two of us. This has given me more confidence in being able to make the decisions. When I went south I knew I’d lose miles to start with so you have to be brave enough to accept that and be confident in your feelings that you’ll gain those miles back again. That’s difficult and something that I’ve only just been able to start doing - being able to have confidence in myself and knowing that I do actually know enough and what I’m thinking is probably going to be right. I think doing the AG2R last year really helped aswell, it’s not the same route but it’s a similar crossing with the same weather scenarios.”

Do you think CERCLE VERT, being in a different situation, might benefit from the unstable weather, which is forecasted?
“Yes I’m sure that’s why he’s stayed north, and he hasn’t given up and dived south to follow the rest. He’s got nothing to lose where he is and quite rightly, he could do a riser. I have a feeling not but we’ll see…"

Day 13th: 4th Place

IN BRIEF:

* SKANDIA 4TH AND FASTEST BOAT SINCE 0400HRS WITH ONLY 24.8NM SEPARATING TOP FOUR BOATS...

* SAM, "ROUTING SIMULATION TO THE BAHAMAS LOOKS FAVOURABLE FOR US"...

* THE FIRST FLYING FISH IN THIS RACE - A SIGN OF CHANGING LATITUDES...

* SAM MAKES PREDICTIONS FOR NEXT FEW DAYS, "TOMORROW I THINK IT WILL TURN IN TO A LOTTERY - IT’S JUST GOING TO ABOUT ACCEPTING WHERE YOU ARE AND GETTING THROUGH IT AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE"...

IN DETAIL:

SKANDIA remains in 4th and as the fastest boat in the fleet since 0400hrs, has continued to make up miles on leader BOSTIK who is now only 24.8nm in front. Sam is currently 17nm from 3rd place Eric Drouglazet (CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO) and sailing 4 knots faster, “I figured it would happen, it went a bit light last night as the sun set, the new winds are coming from the south so seeing as though I’m at the south, I’m going to get it first – so that’s cool.”

Sam has witnessed her first flying fish which is a true sign of the changing latitudes, "I need to get my flying fish bag out. Last year I had a ziplock especially assigned to putting on my hands to rescue flying fish with – they absolutely stink. If you pick one up with your bare hands, no matter how many baby wipes you use, you can’t get rid of the fish smell from your hands!"

Conditions are really changing onboard, the fleet were experiencing lighter winds yesterday and t-shirt weather for the first time since the start! This is allowing the fleet to dry their clothes, tidy their boats and carry out boat checks. The wind has has returned this morning and the warm temparatures are here to stay, “The temp inside the boat is 22degrees, and baring in mind the sun has just risen, it’s going to be a warm one today (as the weather forecasters say in America say)! Today the wind’s come back and it’s blowing 20 knots!"

Sam has spent some time looking at the long range forecasts and playing with the Maxsea routing software, to try and predict what may happen in the fleet as they approach the Bahamas passage. "I ran a routing simulation on my computer to see who has the advantageous position, because I believe it is me and also I want to see how Gildas (CERCLE VERT) will manage to get back South! I did a routing run for all the boats in the front row, BOSTIK, CERCLE VERT and GEDIMATto compare the differences in latitudes. It ran the movie with all 4 boats sailing in the weather we will are forecast to receive in the next few days. SKANDIA won the race by about 6 hours to BOSTIK!"

Although the majority of the fleet are now in the trade winds, it was important for the fleet to remain in the curve of the high pressure for as long as possible to benefit from the best gradient which Sam has managed to do. If you are too far north like Antonio Da La Cruz (LITTLE BLACK SHARK) the wind could be south or south west - leaving the skipper unable to sail the course with a spinnaker, if you are too far south the wind turns to the east which Dominic Vittet (ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM) is experiencing - this leaves you a little too deep and means you have to keep gybeing to avoid getting too far south.

While the weather over the next 2 days appears to be stable, Sam makes predictions for later on, "Today and the beginning of tomorrow is fine but then it turns in to a lottery. I think it’s just going to about accepting where you are and getting through it as quickly as possible. Luckily the low pressure seems to be moving quite fast, hopefully the new high pressure that comes in behind will make the trade winds establish and we’ll be able to get down the Turks quite quick after that."

EMAIL LOG FROM SAM

Hello!

The drying out process on board Skandia is really getting somewhere now! I even managed to take off my oilskin trousers and get down to a T-shirt for the first time. Suncream is out!

Part of this is also "recovery" process from the physical first week. Some of my aches and pains are disappearing now, but also I have the wear and tear showing up. In particular, my hands are agony! Little cuts are slightly infected, the palms are red and sore from pulling ropes, my fingertips (just under the end of each nail) feel bruised (even typing hurts!) and my right wrist is aching from steering too much! Poor me!

I also saw my first flying fish today, which is a good sign of getting into warmer climes! We had less wind too, today, which was a little disappointing, but as I write this the wind is back and we are doing 9-10 knots again.

Today, I ran a routing simulation on my computer to see who has the advantageous position (because I believe it is me and also I want to see how Gildas will manage to get back South!) I put CERCLE VERT, BOSTIK, SKANDIA and GEDIMAT and ran a simulation race (to the Turks passage) with the latest grib (weather) file that I had downloaded from Chopper, and our polar file (boatspeed)

I created it into a "movie" and watched it! The charting software Maxsea that we have on board is incredible in its ability to do such things as this. Being able to receive weather and work on it to make tactical decisions is incredible, I am really enjoying this part of the race too. Anyway, SKANDIA won my little simulated race (yippee!) BOSTIK second, GEDIMAT 3rd and CERCLE VERT very last! Perhaps I was being optimistic by not putting Droug (CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO) into my race!

So, my work confirms that I am happy with my position in the fleet, that Gildas will have a tough time in the next week, and also now I have the detailed breakdown of the optimum route to the Turks passage. This work takes not very long (30 min), and I do this every time a new weather file is available (four times per day). I am careful to use it only as a guide, because it is a weather forecast (and we know that sometimes the forecasters don't get it exactly right) especially once I am looking beyond 3-4 days ahead. I also compare the forecast from Chopper (our permitted source for grib files) to the weather maps that I am continuously receiving on the weather fax. The charts from Boston are the ones I am finding the most useful.

So, now I just need to sail SKANDIA as fast as Charles is sailing BOSTIK to make sure I can make the most of my advantageous position!

See you soon

Sam x

TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO WITH SAM

How has your morning gone?
“The sun has just risen - a really, really nice one where you can see it coming right through the horizon. The temp inside the boat is 22degrees, and baring in mind the sun has just risen, it’s going to be a warm one today (as the weather forecasters in America say)! Today the wind’s come back and it’s blowing 20 knots! We’re still reaching with the asymmetric spinnaker. I was talking to Lionel Pean (Race director) last night about the asymmetric because it’s 1.2; it’s quite heavy cloth so that you can use it in just about anything. When it was new it was really hard, so when it collapsed and refilled it BANGED really hard and I didn’t like it on the rig. That was the reason why I changed down to the small spinnaker before, refilling the asymmetric was too powerful and the small spinnaker was not new so the cloth was more stretchy, but now when the asymmetric when it collapses and refills, it’s like an elastic band! It’ll probably come down in about a day and a half…”

So tell us about the Maxsea routing computer game you’ve been playing with the other boats, in a race to the Bahamas?
“It’s really clever and such a powerful tool. I’ve used all the time and used last year in the AG2R but this race is the first time I’ve got in to doing it really regularly. It’s quick and easy for me to do. (Obviously relying on the accuracy on the forecasting we can read with the software.) Last night I was looking at all of the boats in the front row, so to speak, of the race across and we’re so far spread from north to south. There’s quite a strange situation coming across – a low pressure which seems to develop in to 3 low pressures and all go off into 3 directions. So I wanted to see who was in the best position for getting to the passage at the Turks. So I put my navigation on to do the reckoning so I can move my little boat on the chart. I did a routing run for each of us – me, BOSTIK, CERCLE VERT and GEDIMAT - to compare the differences in latitudes. You do each routing separately and then you click on them all and create a movie. It will run the movie with all 4 boats sailing in the weather we will be receiving in the next few days. It’s really interesting and my little SKANDIA won the race by about 6 hours to BOSTIK! The trouble is, the situation that’s coming is really unstable and really unpredictable. Each forecast we get is completely different and this low pressure off the Bahamas is doing strange things so I don’t think you can read anything from my little race I did last night - but it was quite fun. It was satisfying for me to know that at the time with the information I had I put SKANDIA in the right place for the approach to the Bahamas so I was happy with that!”

What would you be thinking at the moment if you were Gildas Morvan on CERCLE VERT (boat 2nd furthest north)?
“I’d be a bit apprehensive about having to go upwind for a while but I think he’s probably doing the right thing compared to what TOTAL did. If he heads south now then he basically quits and gives in and as I said, with this low-pressure thing which is really uncertain at the moment, anything could happen. He could get away with it, come over the top and get back down in the new trade winds, which will be formed by the high pressure which follows the low so he might well be ok. I think he’s doing the right thing – sailing as fast as possible. He’s got nothing to lose."

What do you think will happen over the next few days?
Today is fine and beginning of tomorrow is fine but then it turns in to a lottery. I think it’s just going to about accepting where you are and get through it as quickly as possible. Luckily the low pressure seems to be moving quite fast, hopefully the new high pressure that comes in behind will make the trade winds establish and we’ll be able to get down the Turks quite quick after that.

At the 1000hrs positions, you are 24.8nm from BOSTIK and sailing at 9.3 knots compared to his 8.1 knots, so you’re just over 1 knot quicker…
“I figured it would happen, it went a bit light last night as the sun set, the new winds are coming from the south so seeing as though I’m at the south, I’m going to get it first – so that’s cool.”

How have you been eating over the past few days?
“Much better. In the last few days to start with after the Azores I was just tired. Then once I had recovered a bit, I was really hungry and I think I’ve eaten a bit more than I had before the Azores and now I’m back to normal - except there’s less nice things on board! I wish I had more interesting things to eat but it’s probably a good thing for the shape of me when I arrive in Cuba that there’s isn’t so much crisp and chocolate. It’s good – I’ve still got lots of oranges left which is a real luxury. Last night I have to confine my cheese from my airtight container into the gas locker in the cockpit because the cheese is now so ripe that it’s capable of climbing out of the airtight container on it’s own. I’m not sure how long it’s going to stay onboard but it’s tastes great. It just absolutely stinks! I’ve still got some cherry tomatoes aswell. It’s incredible the difference when you eat a cherry tomato one day after the start, and now when I eat one the taste is incredible! I always drink a tea just before sunset when I’m steering – that’s one of my little routines I have on long ocean races. I love to steer just before sunset with a cup of tea! It’s a habit and it’s keeping me happy!"

Have you found any flying fish victims onboard?
“No kamikaze fish yet – but normally there are plenty but I try and rescue them as well. I need to get my flying fish bag out. Last year I had a ziplock especially assigned to putting on my hands to rescue flying fish with – they absolutely stink. If you pick one up with your bare hands, no matter how many baby wipes you use, you can’t get rid of the fish smell from your hands. So you have to put your hand in to a ziplock before you try and catch the slippery, slimy, wriggly thing and put it back in the ocean!”

Kiwis Move On

There was only one pertinent question for Dean Barker going into Saturday's championships sailoffs of the 41st Congressional Cup, presented by Acura: who's it gonna be---fellow New
Zealanders Chris Dickson or Russell Coutts or France's Mathieu Richard?

Tip: It probably won't be another Kiwi.

The skippers for two of the top-rated three America's Cup teams in 2007---Barker with Emirates Team New Zealand and Dickson with BMW Oracle Racing of San Francisco---are both former winners of the Crimson Blazer (Dickson has two) and each finished the double round robin with 14 wins and 4 losses Friday after splitting their head-on matches, but Barker gets to select his semifinal opponent by virtue of beating Dickson in their most recent race.

"We haven't chosen yet," Barker said at the evening's press conference. "We'll sleep on it tonight."

Although Barker lost the undisputed lead to Dickson, it was only because Coutts, the only three-time America's Cup winner, interrupted his 10-race win streak. Otherwise, he had a 3-1 day and has won 11 of his last 12 races.

He also has an American wild card on board: pitman Moose McClintock, who has sailed in 16 Congressional Cups since 1983 and been on four winning boats---two with Dave Perry and one each with Barker's tactician, Terry Hutchinson, and Ken Read.

"These guys are really sailing well," said McClintock, who isn't a regular member to the team. "It's a privilege to be with them."

Coutts (12-6), his former mentor, said he didn't think Barker would pick him---"but he might."

The smart money says that Barker will tag France's Mathieu Richard (11-7).

Nodding to Dickson seated on his left, Coutts said, "I think it's likely we'll be racing Chris again tomorrow."

They split their two races, both on Friday.

Richard doesn't care. "I just feel very happy being in the top four," he said.

None of the Kiwi troika considers the lesser-known Richard to be a pushover. Although he has no America's Cup connections, he is rated No. 4 in the world by the International Sailing Federation, beat Dickson 2-0 in the semifinals of a recent event at Marseilles---and more than held his own against them this week, 1-1 across the board.

Dickson had said earlier, "So we'd be happy if we weren't racing Richard. It's one of those times when you're happy not to have to choose."

The semifinals and finals are scheduled as best-of-three, although an uncertain wind picture puts that at risk. Friday found what locals call a "Catalina eddy" condition when the sea breeze arrives from the south off the east end of Santa Catalina Island 23 miles away, instead of down the San Pedro Channel in an accelerating funnel between the island and the mainland.

The breeze hit a brisk 10 knots for the last of four rounds sailed, reducing the potluck factor a bit.

Either way, Finland's Staffan Lindberg will take it. After winding up tied with England's Chris Law at 9-9, he said, "To be out there on a boat all day is great. Normally [in other venues] you sit on the shore a lot and wait."

Dickson lost the first race of the day to Coutts---a makeup of their Round 9 postponement---and then posted the day's best scorecard with four consecutive wins, including a closing 20-second victory over Coutts to even their score.

"The first one we rolled him on the run but couldn't stay there," Dickson said.

In the second, they split opening tacks, and Dickson kept attacking from the left on port and Coutts, with starboard right of way, kept bouncing him off with lee-bow tacks until Dickson finally made it stick and pushed his bow out of Coutts' wind shadow into clear air. He rounded the weather mark first and stretched his lead unchallenged.

Coutts figured that, like his golf, he isn't quite on his game.

"I started better today," he said, "but I'm making some stupid mistakes. I probably could have held him off with a better tack, but I tacked too early. But we're still in the regatta, so I'm happy with that."

Racing will start at noon, conditions permitting. The non-semifinalists will return to the course to sail off for fifth, seventh and ninth places and determine their shares of the $40,000 purse.

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 +5
Difference from last month +2
Difference from last year +7
Difference from long term average for March -11
Difference from Record High -43
Difference from Record Low +21
Forecast for 15 May +4

Click for information on other lakes.

Linky Sailing News

Racing Congressional Cup Day 3

News Speed Records. Bertarelli

Great Lakes Alliance for the Great Lakes. Water Level

College Sailing Rankings

Yale, Charleston Top Rankings

COED (prev rank)
1. Yale (2)
2. Dartmouth (10)
3. Hobart/WmSmith (4)
4. Georgetown (3)
5. USC (5)
6. Brown (6)
7. UC/Irvine (11)
8. Harvard (1)
9. Tufts (12)
10. Boston Coll (7)
11. Stanford (14)
12. St. Mary's (8)
13. South Florida (13)
14. Charleston (15)
15. Old Dominion (16)
16. Navy (9)
17. Roger Williams ----
18. Hawaii (17)
19. Kings Point (18)
20. MIT (19)
Also receiving votes:
Connecticut Coll
U/Washington
Eckerd

WOMEN (prev rank)
1. Charleston (1)
2. Stanford (4)
3. Yale (2)
4. Brown (3)
5. Dartmouth (6)
6. Connecticut Coll (5)
7. Navy (11)
8. Georgetown (7)
9. Boston Coll (12)
10. St. Mary's (8)
11. Tufts (10)
12. Harvard (9)
13. UC/Irvine ----
14. Old Dominion (13)
15. Hawaii (14)
Also receiving votes:
Boston Univ
South Florida

Congressional Cup Day 3

It felt like it was coming together for Dean Barker Thursday---not just the 41st Congressional Cup, presented by Acura, but the America's Cup in Valencia in 2007.

Barker, skipper for Emirates Team New Zealand, won all five of his races, including a final light-air runaway against Chris Dickson that allowed him to leapfrog the CEO and skipper for one of his fellow AC challengers---BMW Oracle Racing---two years hence.

Barker is 11-3 after 14 of 18 matches in the double round robin, followed now by Dickson, who is 10-3 but has one makeup race in hand against Russell Coutts, who is third at 9-4. That race, postponed a day earlier when Dickson's traveler car broke, will be sailed Friday or Saturday before the semifinal sailoffs.

However it turns out, the teams with America's Cup intentions should be the better for the experience. It's different from sailing in the big one but a good training ground because of the smaller boats, shorter courses and shorter races.

"When things happen a lot quicker, it puts pressure on everybody," Barker said. "That makes you better. This is the first time I've sailed with our team in an event on the [march racing] circuit. We talk a lot between races about how we can do things better."

As for that next America's Cup, Coutts, sailing here with tactician Jes Gram-Hansen's Danish crew, will be a spectator after playing the key role in the previous three victories over the past decade. But in posting a 4-1 record Thursday he was sailing with the command he showed then and in winning three events on the Swedish Match Tour in the past year.

Barker's crew here includes two Americans: tactician Terry Hutchinson and pitman Moose McClintock, who is sailing his 16th Congressional Cup with his fourth skipper. The others are Kiwis Skip Baxter, main sail trimmer; James Dagg, headsail trimmer, and Jeremy Lomas, bow. All except McClintock are TNZ members.

Barker said, "Everything fell our way today. We were lucky to pick the right side most of the day . . ."

"Lucky?!" Hutchinson interrupted, feigning indignation.

A year ago, in dying breeze on the last leg of the last race, Hutchinson appeared to have a grip on his second Crimson Blazer symbolic of victory in this event. In fact, Dickson trailed by 2 minutes 14 seconds at the last mark after sailing into the same area on the second upwind leg where Hutchinson's hopes died against Ed Baird a year earlier.

Against Dickson, Hutchinson said he was thinking, "This is about the same lead we had on Baird. We did a lot better today in sailing with more conviction and not sailing the other guy's race. Until now we've just spent a lot of time hanging our together, and we have two years to get to the level where we can win the America's Cup."

Barker and Dickson are good bets to reach the semifinals, but the other two positions are up for grabs among Coutts, France's Mathieu Richard (9-5) and England's Chris Law and Finland's Staffan Lindberg, each 8-6.

Lindberg said, "We're still in the hunt, but the heat gets turned up in the kitchen tomorrow."

Lindberg survived by beating Law in the last round of racing Thursday, as the winds diminished from a peak of 13 knots to light and patchy.

Earlier, Law and Denmark's Lars Nordbjerg, who has local veteran Steve Flam calling tactics, had what Law called a "ding-dong match."

The second time upwind, with Nordberg trailing and carrying a pre-start penalty, Law crossed him with starboard tack right of way, then wheeled back so aggressively that he drew a red flag penalty from the umpires for a flagrant foul---meaning that he was required to do the penalty turn immediately.

As Law did his turn, Nordbjerg came at him hoping to draw a foul that would cancel his own but drew another instead. Then, with a slight lead and a controlling position downwind, he took Law outside the committee boat well past the finish line, then turned back hoping to do his turn before Law could pass. Instead, Law poked his bow inside and Nordbjerg left too little room between his boat and the committee boat, Law bounced off both, Nordberg took another penalty and it was over.

Earlier, Law had opened the day by beating Coutts, who could never shake off an early penalty.

"Coutts said, "The last time we raced Chris [in the first round] we had four penalties, so one is a big improvement."

There were 41 protest flags in the 25 races and 15 penalties imposed. Racing continues through Saturday.

After a three-year involvement the Congressional Cup is no longer part of the Swedish Match Tour. As the new presenting sponsor, Acura will raise the purse to $40,000, up from $25,000 last year.

New Speed Records

The Outright World Sailing Speed Record
and the 10 sq,m Class Record

Windsurfer F2/Naish
Sailed by: Finian Maynard BVI, at St Maries de la Mer. France.
10th April 2005
Time: 20 seconds over 501 metres
Speed: 48.7 kts

Previous record: Finian Maynard. 46.82 kts in 2004.

The Outright World Women's Sailing Speed Record
and the Women's 10 sq.m Class Record

F2/Arrows.
Sailed by: Karin Yaggi SUI at St Maries de la Mer. France.
10th April 2005
Time: 23.61 seconds over 501 metres
Speed: 41.25 kts

Previous record: Babethe Coquelle F. 40.05 kts in 1993.

Global Challenge Protest Result

Following the outcome of a protest hearing for Leg 4 in the Global Challenge the overall learderboard table has changed

Pindar was protested by the Global Challenge Race Committee “for a breach of RRS [Racing Rules for Sailing] 42.1 following notification, under General Sailing Instruction 20, of the use of their engine in reverse gear at 1530 (local time) on the 27th March 2005.”

In the heat of the moment Pindar engaged their engine for 1 – 3 minutes, to remove some kelp, which was stuck on the rudder.

Nominated Global Challenge Race Committee representative, Matthew Ratsey explained: “The jury met for about an hour, considered the various facts and awarded a 40-minute penalty on time, based on a judgement about how long the manoeuvre would have taken had they not started their engine … They accepted Loz’s statement that it was an error of judgement and wasn’t deliberate.”

Before the hearing, Pindar was provisionally in joint 9th with VAIO on 32 points, but will now slip to 10th on 31 points.

The race is still so close that one point results in a position change for both teams on the overall table. SAIC La Jolla had provisionally been in joint 4th with Samsung, but with their extra point, their tally will rise to 42 and they will take sole claim on 4th, relegating Samsung to 5th.

Loz Marriott, skipper of Pindar, was asked about the incident in question after the hearing:

“If I look back I had several options,” he replied. “One was to try and sail the boat backwards, which I felt was an unsafe manoeuvre at the time considering the conditions we were in. Another option would have been to put someone in the water, which at 48° South in the Southern Ocean didn’t even cross my mind, and the other one was to drop all the sails. So there were of course other options but in the circumstances I unwittingly made a rash decision. I realised we had broken the Class Rules after I had done it so I sent the email immediately.

“The protest [hearing] went very well – one of my crew, Damian Vaile, headed the protest up as he is a lawyer back home and I was called as a witness. He put the case across very nicely and I believe it was a very lenient penalty – a 40-minute time penalty. There is a knock on effect though, 40 minutes doesn’t sound too bad, but because SAIC La Jolla were only six minutes and six seconds behind us it means we go into 6th place and we lose a point so I’m effectively being deducted a point and a position.

"It’s a bit of a kick in the teeth but it was our mistake and we made that decision. We could have kept it quiet but we’re an honest boat and don’t want to be classed as liars or cheats. Pindar will be back and ready for the next leg.”

In other parts of the race the skippers and crews left their yachts today in the very capable hands of the Challenge Business Technical Team who will start work on preparing the fleet prior to the longest stretch of the race – Cape Town to Boston.

Me To You’s mast is currently receiving some extra attention thanks to the South African America’s Cup team who are enabling the team to use their base to take the mast out.

The spreader bracket is being repaired as the team had a problem during the last 10 days of the leg and a crack has appeared in the weld on the second spreader. The standing rigging will need to be let go and the mast taken out.

Matthew Ratsey, Technical Director explained: “We could do the work with the mast in the boat; the actual plate is held on with about 20 stainless steel machine screws so to take all of those out whilst 45 feet in the air isn’t the easiest thing to do, compared with doing it on the ground. The South African America’s Cup team have really stepped in and been very helpful.

“That’s one of the most substantial things we’ve got to do, which is fairly major. The biggest part of the job is letting the rig go and putting it back in again, the actual job itself is only around 3 or 4 hours work.”

Luckily there has been little other major damage on the toughest leg of the race, testament to how well the skippers and crews have looked after the yachts. Matthew continues: “Other than that we have all the usual [stopover] work. When the yachts arrive we have to lay up all the water makers so that the membranes don’t get contaminated while they are not being used for the next month. We’ll service all the generators, they’ll all have an oil change and injector change here, and we change all the steering cables.”

"We’ve got a lot to do, but it is what we would expect at this stage after a Southern Ocean leg and not forgetting most of the boats have done in the region of 24,000 miles. There’s nothing fundamental to change just dealing with the damage caused by another 7000 miles - and in the most inhospitable waters on the planet!"

Skandia Moves Up

IN BRIEF:

* SAM GAINS 27NM ON LEADER, CHARLES CAUDRELIER (BOSTIK) AND MOVES UP TO 4TH POSITION...

* SKANDIA 17.4NM BEHIND CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO IN 3RD, AND 22NM AHEAD OF AQUARELLE.COM IN 4TH...

* "I’M NEARLY HOOKED IN TO THE TRADE WINDS WHICH ARE STRONGER SO I HAVE A BETTER ANGLE OF THE WIND AND GREATER STRENGTH..."

* SAM HAS CLOSE ENCOUNTER WITH LARGE OIL TANKER...

IN DETAIL:

SKANDIA has moved up to 4th place overnight after gaining an impressive 27nm on leader BOSTIK. Sam was also the fastest boat in the fleet yesterday, winning the "Top Chrono" (fastest 24 hour record of the day) with 238.7nm.

There is a possibility that we will see further gains for SKANDIA today as the wind lightens for the leading boats to the north.

“At the moment, there’s the Azores high pressure which we’re running away from as it spreads out, so we’re not in any risk of being in no wind. We’re right on the big curve of the high pressure - because I’m nearer the south I’m nearly hooked in to the trade winds which are stronger and more east [in direction]. So I have a better angle to the wind and greater strength. BOSTIK and CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO are nearly there but they are just right in the curve, the isobars are further apart where they are and they’ve just got lighter winds for the moment.”

Sam is now 17.4nm behind CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO in 3rd, and 22nm ahead of AQUARELLE.COM in 4th. BOSTIK is now just 15nm in front of CERCLE VERT in 2nd.

The fleet are not as divided as they were a few days ago, the northern and southern fleets are coming closer together. SKANDIA remains almost exactly mid-way between the most northern boat, and the most southern boat. Eight of the 12 boats are now south of the Rhum Line (direct course between St.Nazaire & Cuba). CERCLE VERT in 2nd is one of the only leading boats in the north, while BOSTIK, CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO & SKANDIA are each about 50miles apart forming a line advancing towards Cuba.

Everything is well onboard SKANDIA with "fantastic" sailing conditions under asymmetric spinnaker which is newly allowed under the class rules for this race! Although SKANDIA had an uncomfortably close encounter with an large oil tanker yesterday afternoon, "I was surprised because it was fairly close and my "Sea Me" had not begun to beep. The ship got closer and closer and still no signal. In the end, when the ship was on my beam I called him up and asked if he could see me on his radar, they replied, "You'll have to wait three minutes - I'll just ask them to turn the radars on and they need time to warm up...!!!" Read Sam's full story below...

Current weather still looks to favour SKANDIA - but with CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO and BOSTIK taking miles south where possible, the advantage that Sam holds weather-wise, is likely to be reduced. As the boats get into the established trade winds keeping the boat sailing at optimum pace will become very important, any downtime due to skipper fatigue, or gear failure will quickly transfer to miles added to the leader board and a slip down the rankings.

EMAIL LOG FROM SAM

Hello

I am sitting at the chart table and we are trundling along, tight spinnaker reaching (8-9 knots boatspeed). We had a light patch earlier on in the afternoon, but not too light and now, I hope we will have the wind increase some more. This will be good, because I know that the boats to my north slowed down more than this.

I can hear my "Sea Me" alarm beeping away regularly, as the radar of a nearby ship activates it. It is comforting to know that the ship is there, so I can go and keep a visual watch of it's position, but also, the alarm tells me that my radar transponder is sending a magnified echo back to their radar, so hopefully they are more likely to see me.

Unfortunately, this afternoon, I discovered that it doesn't work like that all the time out here....

I was at the chart table, when I saw a large oil tanker on the horizon heading in my direction (as a wave picked up the transom and I had a clear view out of the hatch.) I was surprised, because it was fairly close and my "Sea Me" had not begun to "beep" - I thought that maybe the "Sea Me" was playing up, but it was bizarre because normally it works all the time. The ship got closer and closer and still no signal. In the end, when the ship was on my beam I called him up and asked if he could see me on his radar:

"You'll have to wait three minutes - I'll just ask them to turn the radars on and they need time to warm up..." !!! OK, so that explains my "faulty" radar transponder! Sure enough, three minutes later, I could clearly detect their TWO radars functioning. When I asked if they could see me on their screen, the answer was (a disappointing) negative - I was lost in the wave clutter......... However, if they never use their radar, I wouldn't be surprised if they just had the settings wrong! I had done the same test with my parents and they had managed to spot me. (albeit just)

I am surprised that ships like this turn their radar off. I wonder why? Are they trying to conserve energy? I can't imagine a radar would make a difference.... I don't know the laws for shipping, but I would be happier if I knew that radar was compulsory, then cruisers and short-handed racers in small boats (without radar) can be safer with their radar transponders. If there is a risk we can be lost in clutter on their screen, at least it is better for us to have the alarm function to warn us there is a ship in the area and enable us to avoid getting into a dangerous situation.

And now SKANDIA and I are getting used to the more normal pace of this race after yesterdays "Top Chrono" day of high-speed sailing! We were very happy to hear that we were the fastest boat of the fleet yesterday - very cool. It was fun sailing, and surprisingly easy (thanks to North Sails France's super asymmetric spinnaker)!

I had better go, and check where that ship got to...........

A demain...

Sam x

TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO WITH SAM

Why do you think you’ve been doing better overnight than the boats in the north?
“Where I am is, there’s the Azores high pressure which is spreading out from the Azores, and we’re basically running away from the high pressure as it spreads out, so we’re not in any risk of being in no wind. We’re right on the big curve of the high pressure, the curve as the wind turns from the easterly trade winds to the southerly winds that are associated with the next low that’s coming along. Basically because I’m nearer the south I’m nearly hooked in to the trade winds which are stronger and more east[in their direction]. So I have a better angle of the wind and greater strength. BOSTIK and CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO are nearly there but they are just right in the curve so the isobars are further apart where they are and they’ve just got lighter winds for the moment.”

How long do you think you'll have the advantage for?
“It’s difficult to tell, it’s stayed in my advantage for a while as far as I can see it. Maybe I have a biast opinion but it seems to me that the further south boats will do better because the further north you are the more you have the wind forward of the beam. CERCLE VERT will almost certainly be in the genoa when I will be in the spinnaker which can only be a good thing for me! The winds are going to be a little bit stronger if I’m further south...until we get to this cold front which is going to pass in 3 days time and then that’s going to be interesting. Every model I get shows a different thing happening on the cold front so it will be really close to the time to try and pick the passage through keeping the most wind. Then the guys in the north could come out with the luck of the draw."

You seem to be having the best sailing conditions so far in this race…
“It’s fantastic, we’re so lucky! It’s brilliant and fast with spinnaker up! Thank goodness for the decision of the class Bénéteau Figaro (which I was actually a bit against) to allow an asymmetric spinnaker. Basically since 3 days out from St.Nazaire I’ve been under asymmetric sail all the time. And the sail I have which is made by North Sails France, was designed with our consultation (me and Gildas Morvan (CERCLE VERT) who is also with North Sails). We told them we wanted a spinnaker that we could use for when we’re in our bunk and it’s just that. Even when I did my 24 hour average of 10 knots, 4 hours of that I was actually in my bunk properly with the blanket over. Not 4 hours a once but in various spots. The sail in so much more stable than a normal spinnaker.”

Usually in a Figaro race you spend most the time at the helm? How are you managing in this race?
“I have been steering a lot because I love it - it’s such fun. As soon as I get off the phone in a minute I’ll be out on the helm because it’s just great, hooning along and surfing down the waves. Also with the big waves you can get a bit more speed because you don’t collapse the spinnaker so much. Sleep and being able to make good decisions is so important though. I think if you are well rested and you have a sensible head on rather than a tired head on, it‘s a lot easier to see situations clearer and to make decisions. Some decisions you have make from quite a long way out, so I’ve decided to take the strategy to push the autopilot a little bit more than pushing me on the helming. Having said that, I’m not helming too much right now…I’ve helmed so much because it‘s so much fun, but it’s all been on port gybe and now my right wrist is in absolute agony! If I helm for any length of time then it hurts too much. I’m not very good at helming left-handed on port gybe, I can do it but it’s not the same. So I’m trying to restrict my self a little bit to try and make my hand better so I don’t end up with only one usable arm at the finish!”

How many hours a day are you steering for?
“I try and steer for as many of the daylight hours as possible because it’s obviously easier steering in the day, than in the night so the I can do things at night in the dark. I don’t know really, because in the day we have to do our vacation radio, get the weather forecast and eat but I would have thought a good 6-8hours.”

This is quite a long race, having already sailed just over 2000nm you have another 2250nm to go. How are you enjoying this compared to other Figaro races?
“It’s completing different but I am enjoying it, I kind of thought I would but I wasn’t sure because it’s been ages since I’ve done a long solo race. I’m almost enjoying it a lot more than I expected. I’ve fully got in to the rhythm. I thought I’d be a lot more stressed than I am. The AG2R (double-handed transatlantic race last year with Jeanne Gregoire) was a really stressful race and I think it was because we were in the lead right at the beginning and there was a lot of pressure on us all the time. This race I’ve been mid-fleet and it feels like there’s less pressure, well I’ve put less pressure on myself anyway.”

Do you think that having done a Mini-Transat and the Transat Jacques Vabre you may have a better handle on the kind of pace a race like this needs, compared to the skippers?
“I kind of hoped I would but these guys are pretty experienced anyway. They’ve done double-handed long races but never single-handed long races so after the Azores there were a lot of people very tired and not being able to make decisions because they were too tired and confused. I had one morning when I felt like that but that was quite along time before the Azores but apart from that I’ve really felt on top of it!”

What kind of weather are you expecting in the next few days?
“Now I’ve benefited from the south it’s going to be a bit more complicated. There’s a depression coming across and it has a few funny little depressions off the end of it’s cold front, so we’ll have to see what happens and might have to work out how to positions ourselves for that in 3 days time.”

1st Saltie in Indiana

Earlier today, the Federal Mackinac became the first international vessel to call on the Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor in 2005, wrapping up its maiden Great Lakes voyage.

Built in 2004, the Mackinac arrived at the port Wednesday morning carrying cargoes from Belgium and Germany. During its trek through the Great Lakes/St. Lawrence Seaway, the vessel also called on ports in Windsor, Ontario, and Milwaukee.

From April to December each year, the Great Lakes/St. Lawrence Seaway opens its international waterway to ships calling on U.S. and Canadian ports throughout the Great Lakes. Industry officials have labeled this shipping route "Highway H20" because it is such a prominent thoroughfare linking the top two consumption markets in the U.S. and it presents an efficient and environmentally friendly alternative for shipping cargo to and from America's Heartland.

This was the Mackinac's fifth voyage overall, four of which have taken place in 2005. At Burns Harbor, Federal Marine Terminals, the port's general cargo stevedore, will off-load the ship's 9,653 metric tons of steel cargoes from Antwerp, Belgium, and 3,398 metric tons of steel and general cargoes from Bremen, Germany. It is scheduled to leave port on Saturday.

"Last year was an excellent year for Federal Marine Terminals," said General Manager Ian Hirt. "It will be challenging to repeat in 2005, however, barge tonnage in the first quarter was 50,000 metric tons higher than in 2004, so we have gotten off to a good start. We've also got an upcoming export shipment of steel to Bangladesh, which is a positive sign that U.S. steel can compete in the world market."

The International Longshoremen's Association - Local 1969 provides a labor force of 200 to 300 workers for loading and unloading vessels at the port. Because of their expertise and average tons of cargo handled per man hour, they are generally regarded as the most efficient workforce on the Great Lakes.

"We're anxious to show our stuff again," said Andre Joseph, business agent for the International Longshoremen's Assoc. - Local 1969. "The first ship of the season brings a lot of the excitement to the port for our workers. It means the start of another year and opportunities for people to get back to work. It looks like we might be increasing our total tonnage and man hours this year. We're looking at possible increases in barge traffic as well as ships."

The Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor is a 600-acre port and maritime industrial park located on Lake Michigan just 18 nautical miles from Chicago. The port has year-round barge service through the Inland Waterways System and access for ocean-going vessels via the Great Lakes/St. Lawrence Seaway. The port has 12 ship berths and 25 tenant companies within its boundaries and is part of a state-wide system of ports operated by the Ports of Indiana. For more information, please visit www.portsofindiana.com.

Source: Ports of Indiana

Linky Sailing News

Racing Congressional Cup Day 2

News Parlier working 24 hr. record. Tough Training. Record account

Great Lakes Port of GB. $ 1.3 million tune up

College Sailing Stanford Rankings

Congressional Cup Day 2

Chris Dickson took his first and only loss Wednesday so remains atop the leader board after the first round robin of the 41st Congressional Cup, presented by Acura, but those old adversaries in his rear view mirror are having fun, too.

Russell Coutts, making a move expected of a three-time America's Cup winner, won his first two races before losing to former Team New Zealand understudy and opponent Dean Barker by three seconds---half a boat length.

"The last time I raced against Dean," Coutts said, "he couldn't keep his boat afloat"---a reference to TNZ's near-sinking when Barker was defending against Coutts' Alinghi team in the 5-0 trashing at Auckland in 2003. "This time it didn't sink."

Barker, seated alongside, responded, "[Today's win] was pretty easy. We were trying to keep it close by slowing down."

Behind the laughter, the standings showed Dickson at 7-1, following his only loss by 16 seconds to Finland's Staffan Lindberg. Barker, England's Chris Law and France's Mathieu Richard are tied at 6-3, with Coutts at 5-3.

Coutts and Dickson are a race shy because their ninth-round match was called off after Dickson's Catalina 37 had a broken traveler car that required overnight repair. Whether it will be sailed later may depend on if it matters in the final round robin standings as the event winds down to the last days Friday and Saturday into the championship sailoffs.

Wednesday's racing was delayed an hour because of light winds and fog, then conditions settled into Long Beach's celebrated southwesterlies building from 8 to 15 knots through the afternoon.

"It was fantastic," Dickson said. "There's enough going on that the boat behind has a chance."

Races were closer than Tuesday—the closest being Richard's one-second photo against fellow Frenchman Philippe Presti. Even luckless Chris Larson of Annapolis, 0-9 as the lone American in the lineup, came close with losses to Coutts and Law by a mere seven and eight seconds.

But Larson's worst moment came in a race he led against Presti. Instead of rounding the leeward mark at the end of the first lap around the quarter-mile windward-leeward course, he kept on going through the finish line, thinking the race was over.

"We wanted to quit while we were ahead," he said---then explained later that he and his crew were confused but in agreement about a signal flag on the committee boat.

Earlier, he had said, "Frustration started to get hold of us."

It was a better day for Scandinavians. Lindberg and
Denmark's Lars Nordbjerg were each 3-1 and sit in the middle of the pack at 5-4 and 4-5. Nordbjerg's biggest win was against Barker, but it turned on a foul.

Nordbjerg, leading the race, took Barker wide of the finish pin, then jibed for the line. Barker, with a slight leeward overlap, tried to draw a foul by luffing up. There was contact, protest flags, and the umpires ruled that Barker luffed so hard that he gave Nordbjerg no opportunity to keep clear.

Like Barker, Law also might have second place to himself except for a single error when he led Richard around the leeward mark. Spinnaker lines became entangled as the pole dipped in the water, then the Team Shosholoza crew from South Africa's first America's Cup campaign couldn't get the jib up as Richard sailed by.

"We sailed really well," Law said, "but one mistake is all it takes here."

There were 37 protest flags in the 19 races but only five penalties imposed. Racing continues through Saturday.

After a three-year involvement the Congressional Cup is no longer part of the Swedish Match Tour. As the new presenting sponsor, Acura will raise the purse to $40,000, up from $25,000 last year.

Race video provided by t2p.tv

Results:

ROUND 6--- Russell Coutts, Aarhus Sejlklub, Denmark, def. Chris Larson, Annapolis YC, 8 seconds; Philippe Presti, Union Nationale pour la Course au Large, France, def. Scott Dickson, Long Beach YC, 18 seconds; Mathieu Richard, APCC-Voile Sportive, France, def. Chris Law, Royal Cape YC, South Africa, 13 seconds; Staffan Lindberg, Aaland Islands YC, Finland, def. Chris Dickson, Golden Gate YC, San Francisco, 16 seconds; Lars Nordbjerg, Skovshoved Sejlklub, Denmark, def. Dean Barker, Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron, 7 seconds.

ROUND 7---Law d. Larson, 0:07; Lindberg d. S. Dickson, 0:4; Barker d. Presti, 0:10; Coutts d. Richard, 0:18; C. Dickson d. Nordbjerg, 0:19.

ROUND 8---Barker d. Coutts, 0:03; Lindberg d. Richard, 0:06; C. Dickson d. Law, no time; Nordberg d. S. Dickson, 0:22; Presti d. Larson, DNF.

ROUND 9---Nordbjerg d. Larson, 0:17; Richard d. Presti, 0:01; Barker d. Lindberg, 0:11; Law d. S. Dickson, 0:15. (Coutts vs. C. Dickson postponed, because of boat breakdown.)

Standings (after xx of 18 rounds): 1. C. Dickson, 7-1; 2. tie among Barker, Law and Richard, 6-3; 5. Coutts, 5-3; 6. Lindberg, 5-4; 7. Nordbjerg, 4-5; 8. Presti, 3-5; 9. S. Dickson, 2-7; 10. Larson, 0-9.

Day 11

IN BRIEF:

* SKANDIA HOLDS 5TH POSITION AND GAINING VALUABLE MILES ON BOSTIK...

* ETA BAHAMAS PASSAGE IN 10 DAYS..."I THINK IT CAN STILL BE QUITE CLOSE..."

* "I'VE BEEN COMPARING THE DIFFERENT ROUTES AND IT SEEMS TO GAIN A LITTLE BIT FROM THE SOUTH BUT NOT IMMENSELY. I THINK IT WILL BE A BIT OF A LOTTERY..."

* VIEW SHORT VIDEO CLIP SENT BY FROM SAM THIS MORNING AT AUDIO/VIDEO SECTION OF WEBSITE

IN DETAIL:

SKANDIA holds 5th place after being the fastest boat in the fleet yesterday, averaging 11.4 knots of boatspeed. This has enabled Sam to gain some miles on the race leader Charles Caudrelier (BOSTIK) and pull away from TOTAL in 6th who is 9 miles behind Sam. The fleet are continuing to average speeds of around 10knots, spinnaker sailing in a southeast wind of 10-20 knots. BOSTIK has stretched his lead to 26 miles but with only 30 miles separating the leading three boats, more place changing occurred this morning as CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO snatched 2nd place, now 3nm ahead of CERCLE VERT in 3rd.

The 2 boats furthest south, Armel Tripon (GEDIMAT) & Dominic Vittet (ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM), lost a few miles overnight but at 1000hrs this morning ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM was the quickest boat in the fleet so could make up some of that up...

Antonio Pedro da Cruz, skipper of the most northerly boat LITTLE BLACK SHARK has electronic problems with his autopilot which is making it impossible for him to sleep. He is working on repairing it but until it is completely fixed, he can't trust it...The autopilot is essential to continuation the race and the sanity of the skipper. Early this morning he confirmed his greatest fears, "I know that without the pilot, I am not really in the race anymore, but I will continue for everyone who is supporting me."

Sam has estimated that the fleet will be passing the Bahamas in about 10 days time, but will the fleet be as close as they are now or will the gap have widened?

“I really have no idea, I think it can still be quite close. I hope it will be quite close because it will make it fun and great for everyone watching. I’ve never sailed round there before so I don’t know whether there’s opportunities or passing lanes but I believe anything can happen right to the finish.”

There is less than 2500miles to the finish, but as Sam said earlier today, "It’s such a long way to go, at the moment I’m not thinking too much about positions in the fleet, in terms of finishing because there’s so many things that could happen between now and Cuba..."

EMAIL LOG FROM SAM (0600HRS)

Hello!

I know I keep saying this, but this is SO cool! What perfect race this is - we have been fast spinnaker reaching for nearly one whole week. I don't know what the average speeds are, but we must be doing pretty well.

For SKANDIA, today was a brilliant day. We were the fastest boat in the fleet all day, which is good because we must be making miles up...I am happy with my option to be south of the "pack" I am in, because it looks like there will always be a bit more wind. I think that my boatspeed is also due to the set-up I have on SKANDIA. I played with trying different spinnaker combinations, and realised that the Asymmetric is definitely the best kite for these conditions. I seem to have found a nice trim for me to drive to (adjusting spi sheet, vang) and a different trim that suits the pilot to drive to, so I alternate between the two. I am not sure who is fastest! (I should run my "sail testing" software Aquilon and I could do a test, but I don't want to find out that my pilot drives better than me!)

The only problem with fast reaching is that it is damp. Everywhere on deck, all the time - no running out to change the trim "just quickly - it'll be OK" - that is guaranteed to get the best wave of the day directly into the cockpit! I haven't taken the risk because I haven't enough clothes to get one set drenched!

I resorted to drastic measures for drying my socks (don't tell health and safety) which works pretty well! The trick is to fill the kettle quite full to leave plenty of hot water inside after you have made your tea, then it stays hotter longer and your socks dry more! (See photo!)

Luckily, it is getting warmer (sleeping gloves have been made redundant) and slowly there are signs that the sun will come out. I helmed last night through the sunset (behind the clouds) and it was beautiful - I had "Dire Straits" playing at the same time. Since then, the sky has cleared and it is a dream night - with the black sky full of stars. It is a pleasure to be on deck, although with no moon yet, it is still pretty dark and difficult to steer, but the darkness intensifies the stars.

I am dying to go on deck and lie on my back to watch the stars. The only problem at the moment (apart from flying squids) is that I am likely to get a facefull of water! I am sure that as the wind drops in the next few days I will have the opportunity.

Sam xx

VIEW SHORT VIDEO CLIP SENT BACK FROM SKANDIA THIS MORNING at Audio/Video section of website

TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO WITH SAM (1000HRS)

How has your morning been?
“It's almost warm now - it's nice. Not bikini weather, unless you want a wash but apart from that it's fleece and foul weather gear. I'm quite hot though because i've just changed sails - well it was an auto-change really. I was thinking it's getting really tight and every time we surfed down a wave the spinnaker was collapsing and I wanted to stay south. Then I was going to change to genoa but didn't want to be slow - I couldn't decide. The sheets blew off the tack just as the Sparcraft blew open so the spinnaker was flying like a flag off the front so I had to drop the spinnaker anyway so that was obviously fate - so I put the genoa up! So I'm hot because I've just been running around!"

Your south position has meant you’ve been a lot quicker than other boats…
"Well I seemed to be yesterday, I haven't looked at positions this morning but it seemed to pay off. I think I gained a few miles on Yannick Bestaven”

How are you feeling about your position now?
"I don't know, I've been playing with the routing software to compare the different routes and it does seem to gain a little bit from the south but not immensely. I'm not holding my hopes out too much because the depression that is going to go over top of us has an cold front and there's a light patch. It seems to be that every grib I get, every different weather model seems to decide to put the light patch in a different place. I think it will be a bit of a lottery who gets the least wind for the longest amount of time. It definitely re-establishes itself from the south so hopefully it should pay off.”

This morning you’re 5th and have made up another 5 miles in last 4 hours…
“That’s cool, good! I’m happy! It’s such a long way to go, at the moment I’m not thinking too much about positions in the fleet, obviously I’m am thinking about positioning myself north and south in the fleet, but in terms of finishing or anything like that because there’s so many things that could happen between now and Cuba and especially between Turks and getting to Cuba. It could change everything. I’m just thinking about sailing fast, racing fast!"

How many days do you think you have to the Bahamas?
“My latest estimate is about the 23rd April, 10 days time.”

Do you think everyone will be fighting for positions until then or do you think fleet may have spread out by then?
“I really have no idea, I think it can still be quite close. I hope it will be quite close because it will make it fun and great for everyone watching. I’ve never sailed round there before so I don’t know whether there’s opportunities or passing lanes but I believe anything can happen right to the finish.”

This race is closer than other transatlantic races. How does this compare to your last solo transatlantic, the Mini-Transat , when you didn’t receive any positions at all?
“It’s great and makes it a whole lot more interesting. In the Mini-Transat there was nothing, but it’s probably just as well – in my Mini-Transat the pilot didn’t really steer it very well so I was at the helm the whole time! This race is a lot more tactical and it’s about balancing the boat so the pilot can steer while you can be working out if you’re in the right place, taking the positions, sending back emails and photos so it’s makes it a lot more interesting. I guess it’s the next level up.”

Have are your feet warm now you’re socks are dry?!
“The thing is the boots are wet in inside so you dry one pair then you have dry feet for about half an hour and they’re warm. Then they get wet because they’re wet from the inside of the boots so then you have to start the cycle again. I’m hoping that one day my boots will be dry from the inside so I’m saving some clean socks for that occasion.”

So, when it gets to bikini weather – will it be bikini and trainers, or bikini and boots?!
“Bikini and boots probably although I do have my trainers. I like my boots!”

Did you manage to have a wash yesterday?
“No - too wet, too cold! And it was cloudy yesterday- not really inspiring to remove any layers at all! Today I’m already nearly not in my foul weather gear and the sun’s out so it’s gotta be time!”

Have you found any other victims since Sid the squid?
“I checked in my spinnaker bag, I left it in the same place again and there was no road kill to be seen this morning. Except I did find an ancient road kill…when I put the genoa up there was a rather shrivelled looking whitebait which has been compressed between 2 folds and it’s now stuck on the boat. I hope it’s fallen off by now! Those are the nasty ones that you don’t really like finding – especially if you put your hand on it in the night. So I’m quite glad I put the genoa up in the daylight!”

Linky Sailing News

Racing Congressional Cup Day 1

News Schwab report. Dodge Morgan. Top 10 endurance races

Great Lakes Launch release

College Sailing Tufts news

US Sailing Team Named

US SAILING, national governing body for the sport, today announced the members of the 2005 US Sailing Team. The US Sailing Team was created in 1986 to recruit and develop top sailors in the country for upcoming Olympic Games. The Team annually recognizes the top-five ranked sailors in each of the boat-classes selected for the next Olympic competition. For the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China, those classes are: 49er, 470 (Men and Women), Finn, Laser, Laser Radial, RS:X (Men and Women), Star, Tornado, and Yngling. Due to unavailability of the newly selected Neil Pryde RS:X, no Team-members have been determined for this class (Men and Women). More information on the RS:X will be made available this spring.

Rankings on the US Sailing Team are based on attendance and performance at qualifying events. Athletes who have qualified for the US Sailing Team are identified as strong contenders for an Olympic berth and, as members of the Team, they will be assisted with coaching, training, and other benefits.

The members of the 2005 US Sailing Team are:
49er
1. Morgan Larson (Capitola, Calif.) and Pete Spaulding (Miami Beach, Fla.)
2. Dalton Bergan (Seattle, Wash.) and Zack Maxam (Coronado, Calif.)
3. Ty Reed (Santa Barbara, Calif.) and Bora Gulari (Detroit, Mich.)
4. David Fagen (St. Petersburg, Fla.) and Ned Goss (Madison, Conn.)
5. Sam Kahn (Aptos, Calif.) and Paul Allen (Santa Cruz, Calif.)

470 Men
1. Mike Anderson-Mitterling (Coronado, Calif.) and David Hughes (San Diego, Calif.)
2. Stu McNay (Boston, Mass.) and Graham Biehl (Point Loma, Calif.)
3. Seth Siegler (Charleston, S.C.) and Michael Miller (Charleston, S.C.)
4. David Dabney (Charleston, S.C.) and Hunter Stunzi (Marblehead, Mass.)
5. Aubrey Mayer (Orient, N.Y.) and Cotton Kelley (Annapolis, Md.)

470 Women
1. Amanda Clark (Shelter Island, N.Y.) and Sarah Mergenthaler (Harvey Cedars, N.J.)
2. Erin Maxwell (Stonington, Conn.) and Alice Manard (New Orleans, La.)
3. Allison Jolly (St. Petersburg, Fla.) and Isabelle Kinsolving (New York, N.Y.)
4. Molly Carapiet (Belvedere, Calif.) and Whitney Besse (Guilford, Conn.)
5. Genny Tulloch (Houston, TX) and Lauren Maxam (Coronado, Calif.)

Finn
1. Kevin Hall (Ventura, Calif.)
2. Zach Railey (Clearwater, Fla.)
3. Bryan Boyd (Annapolis, Md.)
4. Darrell Peck (Gresham, Ore.)
5. Andrew Casey (Mill Valley, Calif.)

Laser
1. Brad Funk (Belleair Bluffs, Fla.)
2. Andrew Campbell (San Diego, Calif.)
3. John Pearce (Ithaca, N.Y.)
4. Ryan Minth (New York, N.Y.)
5. Matthew Sterett (Corpus Christi, TX)

Laser Radial
1. Paige Railey (Clearwater, Fla.)
2. Anna Tunnicliffe (Norfolk, Va.)
3. Leah Hoepfner (Corpus Christi, TX)
4. Lindsay Buchan (Seattle, Wash.)
5. Stephanie Roble (East Troy, Wis.)

Star
1. Andy Horton (Newport, R.I.) and Brad Nichol (Hanover, N.H.)
2. Mark Mendelblatt (St. Petersburg, Fla.) and no qualified crew
3. Mark Reynolds (San Diego, Calif.) and Phil Trinter (Lorain, OH)
4. John MacCausland (Cherry Hill, N.J.) and Brian Fatih (Miami, Fla.)
5. Eric Doyle (Costa Mesa, Calif.) and Brian Sharp (Franklin, Mass.)

Tornado
1. John Lovell (New Orleans, La.) and Charlie Ogletree (Kemah, TX)
2. Rob Parrish (Brunswick, ME) and Lars Guck (Bristol, R.I.)
3. Robbie Daniel (Clearwater, Fla.) and Enrique Rodriguez (Key Largo, Fla.)
4. Don Thinschmidt (Holland, Mich.) and Andrew Wierda (Miami, Fla.)
5. Michael Grandfield (Oak Bluffs, Mass.) and Mike Kuschner (Coon Rapids, Minn.)

Yngling
1. Sally Barkow (Chenequa, Wis.), Deb Capozzi (Bayport, N.Y.), and Carrie Howe (Grosse Pointe, Mich.)
2. Carol Cronin (Jamestown, R.I.), Kate Fears (Ocean City, Md.), and Jaime Haines (Jamestown, R.I.)
3. JJ Isler (San Diego, Calif.), Pease Glaser (Long Beach. Calif.), and Laura Schmidt (Chicago, Ill.)
4. Liz Baylis (San Rafael, Calif.), Nancy Haberland (Annapolis, Md.), and Katie Pettibone (Port Huron, Mich.)
5. No qualified team

The 2005 US Sailing Team is coached by High Performance Director Gary Bodie (Hampton, Va.), and Olympic Coaches Luther Carpenter (Laporte, TX) and Skip Whyte (Wickford, R.I.). Sponsors of the 2005 US Sailing Team are Extrasport, Gill, Harken, Nautica, New England Ropes, Rolex Watch U.S.A., Sperry Top-Sider, Team McLube, Vanguard Sailboats, Vineyard Vines, and Zodiac of North America.

Congressional Cup Day 1

It was like old times with everybody chasing Chris Dickson after opening day of the 41st Congressional Cup, presented by Acura.

Fourteen years after he won the granddaddy event of match racing for the second time, he returned with a crew from the BMW Oracle America's Cup team he leads to sweep five races for a narrow lead over a real granddaddy, England's Chris Law, 52, and France's Mathieu Richard, each 4-1.

Russell Coutts? He's tied with Dean Barker, his successor at Emirates Team New Zealand, at 3-2. His day started slowly when he missed the skippers' meeting and then launched the completion in a slugfest with Law in which he drew four penalties but was still in the fight to the finish.

It was a memorable race but a forgettable start for the three-time America's Cup winner who said at the evening press conference, to all-round laughter, "I can't remember anything about the day."

It ended with a loss to Dickson's younger brother Scott, who caught a puff in the dying breeze to slip past and win handily.

"It's a tricky place to sail," said Coutts, who won an Olympic gold medal in the Finn class on these waters in 1984.

The wind was a soft but satisfactory 8-11 knots for the first four rounds of 18 in the double round robin schedule. Prospects were for more of the same Wednesday, when Coutts will meet Dickson, Barker, Richard and winless Chris Larson to wrap up the first round.

Chris Dickson, 42, raised the curtain with a comfortable win against Scott, 32, then defeated France's Philippe Presti, Richard, Larson and Barker—the latter showing disappointment in attributing his 50-second loss to "brain fade." Only the race against Richard, who is ranked No. 4 in the world by ISAF, was close.

Dickson beat Richard by nine seconds---the closest race of the day---because, the Frenchman said, "I made a bad mistake just before the start."

That was when he offset an earlier pre-start foul by Dickson by drawing one of his own. "But it was a good day for us," Richard said, adding that he was concerned about his unfamiliarity with the boats.

"It was the first time [sailing the Catalina 37s] and I was uncomfortable," he said. "Usually we sail on smaller boats, like 24 feet, with only four people on the boat."

Dickson said, "We're privileged to be 5 and 0 because the results are a little more impressive than the sailing."

The rest of the crew is tactician John Kostecki, main trimmer Paul Westlake, trimmer Ross Halcrow, bowman Kazuhiko Sofuku and pitman Craig Monk.

Although Dickson has sailed only four match racing events in four years, he said, "We've all been sailing together for two years and a bit of that showed today. John Kostecki made some good calls."

Law, sailing with a crew from South Africa's Team Shosholoza America's Cup campaign, tangled with Coutts at the leeward mark and Coutts got all the worst of it, drawing successive penalties and hitting the mark.

Law conceded, "We were lucky. We probably should have given him room, but the calls can go that way and we'll take it."

A lap later Coutts had recovered to claim the inside advantage as they sailed to the finish and took Law past the outside of the line. But when he turned back hoping to scrub off his remaining penalty turn and beat Law to the line he pinched off his opponent between himself and the committee boat, causing a bump or two and his final penalty.

All told, in the day's 25 races there were 41 protest flags waved by the sailors and 14 penalties imposed by the umpires---about average.

Racing continues through Saturday.

After a three-year involvement the Congressional Cup is no longer part of the Swedish Match Tour. As the new presenting sponsor, Acura will raise the purse to $40,000, up from $25,000 last year.

Race video provided by t2p.tv

Results:

ROUND 1—Chris Dickson (n/a), Golden Gate YC, San Francisco, def. Scott Dickson, Long Beach YC, no time; Dean Barker, Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron, def. Chris Larson, Annapolis YC, 25 seconds; Chris Law (No. 51), Royal Cape YC, South Africa, def. Russell Coutts, Aarhus Sejlklub, Denmark, 19 seconds; Mathieu Richard, APCC-Voile Sportive, France, def. Lars Nordbjerg, Skovshoved Sejlklub, Denmark, 43 seconds; Staffan Lindberg (No. 12), Aaland Islands YC, Finland, def. Philippe Presti (No. 6), Union Nationale pour la Course au Large, France, no time.

ROUND 2--- S. Dickson d. Larson, 0:34; Richard d. Barker, 0:13; Law d. Nordbjerg, 0:40; C. Dickson d. Presti, 0:36; Coutts d. Lindberg, 0:28.

ROUND 3---C. Dickson d. Richard, 0:09; Barker d. S. Dickson, 0:11; Law d. Presti, 0:42; Lindberg d. Larson, 0:10; Coutts d. Nordbjerg, 0:54.

ROUND 4---C. Dickson d. Larson, 0:18; Richard d. S. Dickson, 0:29; Nordbjerg d. Lindberg, 0:10; Barker d. Law, 0:34 Coutts d. Presti 0:21.

ROUND 5---C. Dickson d. Barker, 0:50; Richard d. Larson, 0:53; Law d. Lindberg, 0:53; S. Dickson d. Coutts, no time; Presti d. Nordbjerg, 0:11.

Standings (after 5 of 18 rounds): 1. C. Dickson, 5-0; 2. tie between Law and Richard, 4-1; 4. tie between Barker and Coutts, 3-2; 6. tie between Lindberg and S. Dickson, 2-3, 8. tie between Nordbjerg and Presti, 1-4; 10. Larson, 0-5.

Winless Day

Faced with an opening day of match racing crammed with top-notch competition at Long Beach Yacht Club’s 41st Congressional Cup, presented by Acura, Annapolis-based Chris Larson and Team Henri Lloyd came up short at the end of the regatta’s opening five flights.

The first Flight’s racing started in a light 6-7 knot breeze. In Match 2, Larson and team led America’s Cup skipper Dean Barker on the first leg upwind. The lead changed going downwind after rounding the windward mark and Larson and Team Henri Lloyd never had the opportunity to play catch up. Larson and crew drew a penalty flag at the start of Match 1 in Flight 2, racing against the Long Beach Yacht Club’s representative Scott Dickson. Despite leading on every leg, Larson’s team was unable to complete their penalty turn in time before the finish of the race, losing the match on the final run.

In the pre-start phase of Flight 3 Match 4, the judges on the race course ruled that Finland’s Staffan Lindberg fouled Larson’s boat. After completing his penalty turn at the end of the match, Lindberg managed to catch up and cross the finish line first, winning by a scant ten seconds. Later in the afternoon during Match 1 of Flight 4, the wind built to 12-13 knots. Racing against New Zealand’s Chris Dickson, the two teams engaged in a tacking duel uphill on the first leg with Dickson rounding the windward mark ahead by ten seconds. Maintaining the lead the rest of the match, Dickson defeated Larson by 18 seconds.

Team Henri Lloyd controlled French skipper Mathieu Richard at the start of Match 2 in Flight 5 while the wind predictably dropped late in the day. Richard, the 2004 European Match Race Champion, drew a penalty flag at the start but managed to make up for it on the race course as Larson and team found a windless spot on the track, crossing behind Richard at the finish line.

Still upbeat after the day’s standings, Larson was happy that his team pulled off some great starts and managed to draw penalties on more than one team during the day’s competition. “The score doesn’t really reflect our efforts of today – we sailed well and feel that we have a good chance to climb back up in the standings,” said Larson. “We race against Russell Coutts in our first match on Wednesday and had some good practice races against him on Monday. There is plenty of racing to come tomorrow,” he continued.

Ellen the Influential

Solo record breaker Ellen Macarthur has been named to Time Magazine's 100 Most Influential People In The World list for 2005. The list features, "global icons whose achievements, accomplishments and innovations are having the greatest impact in 2005." Previously she was a 2004 Time Magazine European Hero

The list is broken down into categories. How does the solo sailor compare with other honorees?

In the Leaders and Revolutionary categories there is: George W. Bush, Hu Jintao, and Barack Obama. When Ellen reached land after her record she drew a Presidential sized crowd. Ellen probably isn't well known in Jintao's China but don't rule it out. Obama's trips from the margin to the US Senate is similar to Ellen's trip from a land locked part of England to the oceans.

The Artists and Entertainers grouping includes: Ann Coulter and Clint Eastwood. Ellen is kinder than Coulter but surely tougher than Eastwood or his characters.

Scientists and thinkers include Karl Rove and Burt Rutan. I suppose some might compare Mark Turner's support of Ellen to Rove's support of President Bush. Rutan's record breaking planes and space craft surely have technological similarities with Ellen's boats.

The Google Guys and Craig Newmark of Craig's list fall under builders and Titans. Macarthur has 268,000 results on Google and the Internet is a key component of her visibility.

Ellen along with the Dali Lahma, Lebron James and Oprah Winfry is in the Heroes and Icons category. I'm nor sure of Ellen's spiritual leanings, nor am I sure if the Dali Lahma sails. Lebron James is younger even than Ellen but not as accomplished in her sport. Don't see Ellen as a talk show host anytime soon.

Sailing is not a mainstream sport. It's a lot to ask one person to make people change their habits, but if one sailor can single handedly cause growth it's Ellen.

Rhythm of Passages

Brian Hancock has been producing daily reports for the Oryx Quest. Unfortunately it's not been much of a race. Still Hancock is a fine writer and has produced interesting reports. After Doha 2006 crossed the line to take 1st Hancock wrote about the attraction of around the world racing.

Hancock writes movingly about how ocean racing brings focus, simplicity, a measurable goal, and freedom.

Here is an excerpt:"There is something uniquely addictive about racing a boat around the world. It’s about focus.... It’s only natural to accumulate things, but one by one each possession adds clutter to our daily lives. When you head out to sea for a lengthy period you leave behind most of those things. Your life suddenly becomes much more simple... There are watches to keep; meals to make and a boat to race. You also have a fixed goal; to race the boat as fast as you can and as safely as you can around the world. For many people having a very real and tangible goal is an exhilarating experience especially when you can see each day just how much progress you are making towards your final objective.

Then there is also the simplicity. After two weeks at sea you suddenly realize that you can no longer remember any advertising jingles. The inside of your head is free from noise and it’s an amazing sound..."

While I have not raced around the world as Hancock as done and have little multi hull experience unlike the Doha 2006 crew I can attest to the fineness of the rhythm of sea.

If you've not gone offshore, which I'll define by saying a passage of a week or more, you should. It'll clear the head space!

I'm particularly attracted to the simplification. The idea that you keep your watch and get your rest and you have satisfied your requirements can be much more attractive than a multi faceted on land to do list.

Many boats run on a 3 watch system. There is an on watch, a standby and an off watch. The on watch is steering, trimming etc. The standby may help with sail changes etc., but may also rest if things are easy. The off watch is below in a bunk.

Perhaps this simile is a bit of a big sail for this breeze but the on/stand by/ off model might be a good one in general. Work or parenting is on watch. A movie or a stroll around the neighborhood is stand by. Sleeping, napping etc. is off watch. Maybe this can bring some of the desired simplicity home when we step ashore.

BPE Day 10

IN BRIEF:

* SKANDIA IN 5TH AND FASTEST BOAT IN FLEET OVERNIGHT...

* "THERE WAS THIS THING SITTING IN MY SPINNAKER BAG STARING AT ME! IT WAS JUST THE PERFECT SQUID!..."

* SAM GIVES A LESSON ON "WAVE TYPES"...

* "I'VE TAKEN A LAYER OFF - I MIGHT EVEN TRY AND WASH TODAY - AND MAYBE CHANGES MY CLOTHES!..."

IN DETAIL:

After spending from midday yesterday until sunset on the helm, sending SKANDIA surfing down the waves, Sam continued sailing at a high speed during the night with the boat on autopilot, "It was quite weird because it the first time last night where I got in to my bunk with the pilot steering, with the boat doing 14 to 15 knots under spinnaker!"

SKANDIA was the fastest boat in the fleet overnight until 0400hrs this morning, averaging 10 knots. This morning speaking to Sam at 1000hrs, she was maintaining good boat speed sailing at 12.4knots, in an easterly wind of 18 knots with occasional gusts up to 26knots. SKANDIA is currently at the edge of the pressure that creates the trade winds...every mile south is a mile closer to the trades. "I think I’m sailing a bit higher than some people. My objective is to go high and fast at the moment because I don't want to get trapped in the high pressure so I'm going a bit further south"

Sam had an unexpected but welcome visitor onboard SKANDIA this morning, "I went up on deck just as it got light and there was this thing sitting in my spinnaker bag staring at me! It was just the perfect squid - it was so cool! Unfortunately it wasn't alive and I haven't got a frying pan so I couldn't do Calarami!"

Other skippers have been having a tough time and experiencing problems. Dominic Vittet onboard ATAO AUDIO SYSTEM is still suffering after his accident 5 days ago when he was thrown across the boat, and fears he may have a few broken ribs. Every movement is causing him pain. Marc Emig (TOTAL) has had a few technical problems onboard and has been up the mast to investigate a problem he had with a shroud. Eric Drouglazet (CREDIT MARITIME-ZEROTWO) who is currently in 3rd, announced the yesterday that he no longer had the use of his iridium phone as the charger was out of service. This morning, he called in for his compulsory safety vacation after managing to fix the problem over night. This is the only contact the skippers have with land so it is a huge relief for everyone that he is now contactable.

After a few places changes overnight, the fleet remain in 3 groups. The boats in the north and in the middle are still fairly close together but the boats taking the southerly route are more spread out now. The majority of the fleet are sailing in a South-East wind of 10-20 knots, because of the divide in the fleet this can be up to 25 knots for the boats that have gone farthest south. The group of boats in the north, are being forced to sail a lot closer to the wind, in order to get South - as a high pressure threatens to envelop them.

EMAIL LOG FROM SAM (0800HRS)

Hello, good morning!

FINALLY - the sun came out! (I had actually checked on a satellite image that I received by fax from Boston to see when the cloud ended!) I was a bit too chicken to take off my boots though, because there were still waves coming over the deck (we're just going too fast, you know!) However, the sun was warm, and everything began to dry. I spent the morning tidying up a bit, looking for the next couple of days food (food bag happens to be at bottom of stacking pile!) etc etc...

Obviously, when I am not steering, I am trimming the sails and the pilot controls (settings, damping, gain etc) so that we are going just as fast as if I was steering (sometimes faster!) So, doing anything takes a while, because it is constantly inter