May 31, 2005
Movi Star Nears Home
Atlantic Ocean, May 31, 2005. Closer to home than ever, the Volvo Ocean Race entrant VO 70 “movistar” is fast making its way towards the Azores Islands, her final stop before reaching Vigo, Spain.
Since leaving Rio de Janeiro last May 17, the RCN Sanxenxo boat has sailed nearly 3,200 miles North through the Atlantic Ocean, crossing the legendary zero latitude, the Equator. “This has been one of the most hysterical moments of the journey, especially for the rest of the crew” says Iker Martínez, Offshore Helmsman. “But for Xabi and me, it was sheer misery. As the only two rookies on board who had never crossed the Equator, our mates prepared us a little private celebration we will never forget”.
“The last report sent in by the “movistar” indicates they are some 800 miles off the Azores; – calculates Pedro Campos, General Manager – and we estimate they are just a couple of days from arrival. From the Azores, they will have to sail 1,000 more miles before reaching Galicia, where we will cheerfully welcome them next Sunday or maybe Monday”.
Skipper’s log: 750 miles to the Azores
Skipper Bouwe Bekking tells of their treck aboard the “movistar”: “I don’t know what happened last night, but suddenly we were in the middle of a storm, not of wind and water but of hundreds of flying fish. While the slippery creatures rained down upon us from all sides, Xabi screamed out: “I’ve been hit! I’ve been hit!” and we feared the worst. But when we checked him out on deck, it turned out that one of the flying fish had hit his foot with exacting precision. We had a laugh over it and everyone relaxed a bit. Nonetheless I’m afraid Xabi is going to have to hear this
story for a long time”.
“Life aboard is truly and adventure from all angles. What we all really want is a bath, something we haven’t been able to do yet – complains Xabi Fernández, Jib Trimmer – At the speed we are sailing, it’s impossible to throw a bucket to the sea to collect some water to shower ourselves!”
“We have been sailing northbound since we left Rio de Janeiro- continues Bekking-, from one latitude to the next; we departed at 22 South and headed straight toward the 39 North, where the Azores are located. From there, we’ll change course and sail eastbound, benefitting from the favourable current and the downwind. I’m confident we’ll pick up good speed on our way to Vigo”.
“Things are going along at a good pace for the time being, sailing at an average speed of 14 knots, but we can feel already the first signs of a high-pressure system, resulting in a shift in the wind direction and an unstable force”.
Record to be Broken
Owner Robert Miller (Hong Kong/New York, N.Y.) and his crew on board the 140-foot (43m) schooner Mari-Cha IV are at present on course to pass Lizard Point tomorrow morning to better Charlie Barr and the schooner Atlantic's 100-year-old race record by more than two and a half days.
"This is my seventh transatlantic crossing, and I can safely say that it has been by far the toughest one for me," Robert Miller confided. "Not only has the weather been in our face for the first six days, making life extremely difficult, but since then we have always been sailing close to the limit, which means that there is the risk of hurting the boat and the crew.
"At times, I've felt that perhaps the ghost of 1905--Charlie Barr--is looking down on us and enjoying every bit of hardship we are encountering. But there is not time to dwell on that, as we have a race to win. The competition has also been tough, but I must say enjoyable--Maximus and ourselves have spent the whole race running close together and have been, at times, only 15-20 miles apart."
Despite Mari-Cha IV being 40 feet (12.1m) longer than the newly launched Maximus, the two boats have remained together as if attached by elastic, with the giant schooner regaining the lead on Sunday for the first time since sustaining damage to her rig. At 12:48 UTC, Mari-Cha IV had Maximus still 30 miles astern with 390 miles to go to the Lizard. According to navigator Jef d' Etiveaud, she was making 20 knots, broad reaching/running in 20 knots of southwesterly wind. "We are pushing the boat. We know that on this point of sail we and Maximus are very even," he said, adding that despite last week's rig problems, they have once again been pushing the boat to 100%. "Everyone is concentrating very hard, but as long as we can keep them a few miles behind, we are happy."
While Mari-Cha IV and her crew may tomorrow be able to bask in the glory of having set the fastest race time to the Lizard, handicap victory in the Grand Prix class seems equally assured for Maximus, as the larger schooner must give the smaller sloop 79 minutes time per 24 hours. Given their present speed and separation, tomorrow morning might see the two boats finishing between 90 minutes and two hours apart on the water.
A majority of the fleet, from the front runners back, are now enjoying favourable 20-30 knot southwesterly winds, making for a much faster run than they have experienced to date.
In the match race of the Dubois-designed 170 footers in Performance Cruising class 1, the sloop Tiara and its charterers from the Societe Nautique de Geneve remain ahead of the ketch Drumbeat. But leading, it is Chris Gongriepe's smaller Dutch spirit of tradition schooner Windrose on a course farther south than that taken by the Grand Prix maxis.
Some 450 miles astern of the 170 footers, Tempest, the 80-foot (24.4m) Sparkman & Stephens maxi chartered to Bugs Baer and William Hubbard III, is currently leading Performance Cruising class 2. Her crew is enjoying the ride, reports Bugs Baer: "Racing in 30 knots is strenuous. We had a chute blow out, but it is already under repair and it should be back up soon. We've had some minor equipment problems. There are no injuries other than some aches and pain and strains. Everyone will arrive healthy I think. But it is tough going--hard steering, a lot of strains in the equipment. We have to replace the chafing gear on halyards and guys."
This morning, Tempest was experiencing 27-knot winds and 8-foot seas from the southwest, big enough to get some exciting surfs. Otherwise the Atlantic is a lonely place. "We haven't seen any other boats for seven days," said Baer. We had a conversation with a 30-foot boat that was racing from Barbados to the Azores. They saw a mast and called us, but we never saw theirs."
For the Classics, A. Robert Towbin's Sumurun holds a 140-mile lead on the water over Dr. Hans Albrecht's Nordwind.
>From on board Atlantic on day 10 of the race for the Kaiser's Cup, Frederick Hoyt wrote:
"Worse and more of it. On going on deck for the morning sight, it was blowing a whole gale from the southwest and a heavy sea was on the quarter.
There were four oil bags strung at intervals along the weather side, but they did not seem to have much effect. The ship was under nothing but the squaresail and fore trysail in a heavy following sea with both quartermasters lashed to the wheel, and once in a while the whole quarter deck flooded with the top of a wave which would slop over the rail."
USCG MKG Open House
This past weekend the Coast Guard station in Muskegon hosted an open house. The public was allowed to tour the station, the boats and gain a detailed look into day to day Coast Guard life. Here are some pictures that show aspects of the Coast we might not all normally see.
On Memorial Day weekend the colors were flying
27 Footer used in Search and Rescue.
Dry Suits, tested this winter by station personnel swimming in their boat basin off the Muskegon Channel.
PFD with room for gear.
Grounding cable used in helicopter resuce.
The station watch room's chart case showing that the USCG still makes use of paper charts.
Aft Control station in the 49 footer used to set buoys and other aids to navigation.
The Coast Guard does not go unprepared or unarmed.
Did you know....the 1st 2 numbers this sequence equal the boats length. Same with any other Coast Guard Vessel
TP 52 Med Cup
The Transpac 52 Fleet take to the waters of Punta Ala, Italy, showing the spectacular and competitive nature of real time racing.
CAIXA GALICIA LEADS AT THE START OF THE BREITLING MEDCUP
Pisco Sour, Skippered by Vasco Vascotto, and Caixa Galicia, with Roberto Bermudez at the helm, set the markers at the start of the Breitling MEDCUP.
Punta Ala – Italy, 30th May 2005: Seven Transpac 52s, from Chile, Italy, Greece, USA and Spain, have performed spectacularly in the two races disputed today. This was a day that demonstrated the close similarity between the vessels performance and the great importance of the tactics and crew performance, where mistakes are heavily paid for.
At the end of today’s racing, Caixa Galicia leads, with a one point advantage over Atalanti XV owned by George Andreadis, and beating the Pisco Sour team by two points.
Behind the tight leader group, in fourth place was the Bribon-Movistar, owned by Jose Cusi, designed by Farr, and in fifth, Russell Coutts’s team, Lexus, followed by the Orlanda-Olympus in sixth, and USA’s Bambakou closing the classifications.
At 12.45 with ideal sailing conditions – a west-northeasterly wind, of up to 14 knots, the starting signal was given.
The start of the first race, as in the rest of the regatta, the Chilean Pisco Sour, skippered by Vasco Vascotto took the lead in a leg with a close rivalry from beginning to end. Atalanti and Caixa Galicia were behind, followed by Orlando Olympus, in a close battle resulting in a third place position fro Caixa Galicia.
The leaders were closely followed by the 3 times Americas Cup winner, skipper Russell Coutts, on Lexus, then by Bribon – Movistar.
At the tail of the race was Bambakou, who were relegated to the last position due to a tactical error and found themselves unable to make up the metres lost by getting tied up with a buoy when they were fighting for third position.
The second race was a true dance of positions in each marker, due to a drop in wind-speed. After a fairly even start the Bribon-Movistar performed an excellent upwind stretch, where only a boat’s length behind Lexus, Caixa Galicia and Pisco Sour were fighting for second place. However the Bribon decided to jibe a few metres, and allowed Lexus to squeeze through, who passed the leeward marker in first position, and with Caixa behind.
Russell Coutts’ team lead was shortlived, as a decision to do to the left of the regatta course, didn’t turn out as planned. So Lexus went from being in first position to being in the last, passing the windward marker almost three minutes after Caixa Galicia who maintained a leading position until the end of the race.
The Bribon crossed the line little more than a minute after the Caixa Galicia team, followed by Atalanti and Lexus who managed to miraculously recover, with Pisco Sour, Bamabkou and Orlanda behind.
Quotes:
Vicente Tirado, owner Caixa Galicia
“It’s been a very competitive day’s racing, and I am very happy for myself and the team. We sailed two good races, and everything has turned out perfectly. In the first race we were fighting for a leading position , although an incident with Bambakou meant we lost three lengths. We also lost a length in the last downwind stretch, but we can comfort ourselves in the fact that we sailed a fabulous second race, and are honoured to be the first crew to head the classifications in the “Premiere” of the Breitling MEDCUP.”
Vasco Vascotto, Skipper, Pisco Sour.
The first thing this Italian Skipper did at the end of the racing, was to pick up the phone to call the ship builder, Ximo Lopez, to let him know the news about their win in the first leg.
“It’s like starting school again, working out how things work. The decision to stay right turned out to be a good one , as we got into first position and then we just had to keep an eye on the rest of the fleet.”
Linky Sailing News
Racing Sill wins, Ecover 2nd. OSTAR. Mari-Cha 4 leads perhaps in record time.
News TP 52 Med Cup
Great Lakes Registrations decline
Kite Sail Record
The WSSR Council announces the ratification of a new kite sail record:
Outright Women's KiteSail record
Charlotte Corsorti, FRA
Windsurther with a kite sail.
at Leucate France.
20th April 2005
33.47 kts.
The previous record was also held by Charlotte Corsorti at a speed of 33.24 knots
Oops Cup Update
The russian-swedish trimaran Stena Sovcomflot dominated this Sundays Stockholm City Race in the Nokia Oops Cup. The Swiss skipper Steve Ravussin and his Swedish navigator Roger Nilson left all the competitors in their wake in four of the five races.
– All the six boats in Nokia Oops Cup are pretty equal. The difference is rather the fact that we have been training far more than the other teams lately and has gotten a very strong team, says Roger Nilson, navigator on Stena Sovcomflot.
After finishing first in four races the Russian-Swedish team decided to not push to hard in the last.
– We had already won the race, so we had the luxury of going easy on the boat in the last race, says Nilson, who eventually finished third in that race.
The wind was gusty and at times hard just outside Stockholm this Sunday. The tris hit the lower end of 30 knots at time and the gusts tore up quite a few sails during the day. Nokia ripped one sail in the first regatta, HiQ broke two battens in the main and had to do repairs rather that race the second heat and TietoEnator, the Finnish project with Tomas Johanson at the helm, also had sail problems and only sailed two of the races.
Team Academy, last year’s winner of Nokia Oops Cup with Knut Frostad as skipper, is obviously back up to speed and secured second place in today’s races. The fight for third was hard between Nokia, HiQ and Roman Paszke on Bonduelle. But Magnus “Mange” Olsson finally beat the two other boats. Bonduelle got fourth place, while HiQ and skipper Klas ”Klabbe” Nylöf ended up in fifth place. With only two out of five races sailed, TietoEnator had to settle with last place in Stockholm City Race this Sunday.
Next event in Nokia Oops Cup will take place in Gothenburg on June 6th with a Speed Race and the first offshore race in the cup. The Union Race starts in Gothenburg and will finish in Oslo June 7th.
Results Nokia Oops Cup, Stockholm City Race: 1) Stena Sovcomflot, Russia/Sweden, 2) Academy, Norway, 3) Nokia, Sweden, 4) Bonduelle, Poland, 5) HiQ, Sweden, 6) TietoEnator, Finland.
Total in Nokia Oops Cup after 2 of 11 races: 1) Stena Sovcomflot 2 points, 2) Academy 6 p, 3) Nokia 6 p, 4) HiQ 7 p, 5) Bonduelle 10 p, 6) TietoEnator 11 p.
May 30, 2005
Mari-Cha Leads
At the front of the Rolex Transatlantic Challenge fleet, both race leader Mari-Cha IV and Maximus are now making good progress directly toward Land's End, the southwestern tip of mainland Britain before they turn and cover the final 20 miles to the race's first finish line off the Lizard. At noon today, just 32 miles separated the two boats on the water, with 835 miles left for Mari-Cha IV to sail.
According to Mari-Cha IV's project manager and navigator Jef d'Etiveaud: "The boat is nicely sailing at 22 knots in good running conditions.finally, after a long upwind poker game with Maximus over the last two days. It has been quite intense for all on board, especially for the afterguard, which has been trying to anticipate the opposition's moves on the water. Are THEY going to stay north? Are THEY going to go south just after the position report?"
After spending Saturday night with its mainsail down as the crew attempted to repair the broken headboard car, Maximus is now fully back up to speed jib-top reaching. On board, navigator Mike Quilter says they have been averaging around 19 knots, while his computer is predicting an arrival time at the Lizard of 1000 UTC on Wednesday, June 1. But to do this, they must sail perfectly, and it also relies on their headboard repair holding. To beat Atlantic's 100-year-old record, a yacht must finish by Friday, June 3 no later than 22:11:19 UTC.
Co-owner Bill Buckley's dislocated shoulder is now almost fully mended, and he is back on deck. "We got all the medical books out, and there was plenty of discussion," recounts Quilter of how they fixed the shoulder. "We lay him face down on the bunk and gradually dropped his shoulder over the side of the bunk towards the ground, and that slipped it back in. Once the shoulder was back in, you could see in an instant him becoming much more comfortable. He's a tough old bugger."
On board Chris Gongriepe's Windrose of Amsterdam, captain Nick Haley says that yesterday they set a best day's run for the boat of 346 miles. By coincidence, this was the same day in the transatlantic race 100 years ago that Charlie Barr, at the helm of Wilson Marshall's Atlantic, a New York Yacht Club vessel, also scored the largest run of his crossing--341 miles. "She [Atlantic] was a bigger boat, but we were happy, because it beat our previous record by 20 miles," said Haley.
This morning, after the "upwind slog" as they crossed the Grand Banks, Windrose was fully powered up and making 14.5-15.5 knots at the front of the Performance Cruising class 1. "At the moment, we have 25-28 knots of true wind, and the breeze is 200-220 degrees true. We have full main, full foresail and staysail and code zero up," said Haley, who tentatively estimates their ETA at the Lizard sometime on June 3rd. "There is a long way to go between now and then," he says. "We are not getting too confident just yet. With the boat being pressed so hard, the number one priority is to keep the boat in one piece. We are in a nice band of southwesterly flow, and we should be sailing fast on the starboard gybe all the way in. It looks like the breeze is dying out slightly as we close to the finish, but we are hoping we still have good pressure as far as the Lizard. Some of our pictures show the Channel might be a bit slow, but if we can get to the Lizard still traveling fast, we'll be happy with that."
Last night, Jose Aguinaga's 77-foot (23.6m) Ocean Phoenix, racing in Performance Cruising class 2, retired from the Rolex Transatlantic Challenge, the third yacht to do so. "We are on route to the Azores to effect repairs and then continue to England afterwards some time in June," wrote skipper Charlie Carlow. "Our sail wardrobe has taken a hammering, and with such a distance left to go, and continual attempts to fix sails, it's beginning to make our ETA very far away. The race rules state that there is no time limit. However, some of our crew have other fixed obligations, and these will not be met with our current speed or our long-range weather forecasts."
Leading the charge to the British Isles in Performance Cruising class 2 is John "Hap" Fauth's Whisper, and in the Classic division, A. Robert Towbin's Sumurun was 313 miles ahead of Dr. Hans Albreicht's Nordwind at noon today.
100 years ago, on day eight of the race for the Kaiser's Cup on board Atlantic, Frederick Hoyt wrote:
"As soon as it was light enough to see, the mainsail with a single reef was hoisted, which did a lot to stop the rolling, and by daylight in the morning we were running before a strong southwest wind under fore and mainsails, squaresail, raffee and two topsails, the mizzen staysail being put on just after noon. It was a dark, cloudy, disagreeable day with rain most of the time, and there was no chance of getting sights, so we had to depend upon our dead reckoning. This branch of navigating a ship is often done in a very slipshod manner, the chances being taken that there will be sights, but Captain Barr is most thorough and our courses, speed, deviation and variation are entered in the log every hour, and when we picked her off at noon today she was just on the circle and we had made the course determined upon at noon yesterday."
May 29, 2005
Toll Shows
While several boats competing in the Rolex Transatlantic Challenge have sustained damage since last Sunday's start off New York, over the last 48 hours it has been the turn of their crews.
The injured crewman, reported yesterday on Peter Harrison's Sojana, was Mal Parker, a highly experienced sailor and the upwind trimmer for Harrison's GBR Challenge in the last America's Cup. At 1100 GMT on Friday, the crew was in the process of reefing a headsail when Parker's left arm was pulled into a winch, breaking it in two places. Parker had his broken arm splinted and immobilised, as Sojana immediately ceased racing and turned to make for the island of Saint-Pierre et Miquelon to the south of Newfoundland.
"Mal was transferred to a hospital ashore, where the arm was x-rayed, and he was given morphine for pain relief," wrote Sojana's skipper Marc Fitzgerald. "The arm will require surgery to pin the broken bones, which cannot be done at the facility in Saint-Pierre, so he will fly today to Montreal to undergo surgery there, before returning home to Tasmania to recuperate." Parker is being accompanied by Sojana's navigator Graham Sunderland. Since then, Sojana has asked the Race Committee permission to rejoin the Rolex Transatlantic Challenge, and this has been granted. This morning, they were rounding Cape Race, the southeasternmost tip of Newfoundland.
On Friday, aboard the race's on-the-water leader Maximus, Bill Buckley--the Kiwi sloop's co-owner and one of New Zealand's most prominent engineers--took a fall, dislocating his shoulder. The crew was forced to sail downwind in the opposite direction to the course for some hours while on-board medics relocated the limb.
While Mari-Cha IV's crew spent Thursday making repairs to the boat's rig, Maximus's co-owner Charles Brown revealed that his crew, too, has been experiencing its share of technical problems with the brand new boat. "While running at up to 30 knots under full main and fractional gennaker, the switch for the canting keel failed during the gennaker drop, causing the keel to cant to the wrong side. Fortunately, our back-up keel control system allowed us to remedy a potentially dangerous situation for the boat and crew.
"Sometime later, our mainsail tore up the leech above the first reef point. Reefing padeyes, ripped from the mast, caused the crew a lot of downtime!" Brown added. This morning has seen Robert Miller's 140-foot (34m) Mari-Cha IV regain the lead on the water from Maximus, the noon position update showing the giant schooner to be ahead by 13.2 miles. With a depression due to pass to their north in the early hours of tomorrow morning, both boats have chosen their latitude carefully in order to be as far north as possible: to get close to the great circle and minimise the distance they have to sail while staying far enough south--away from the centre of the depression--to remain in fresh breeze. From here, the run to the Lizard and on to the ultimate finish line off the Needles, Isle of Wight, should be fast, thanks to a favourable forecast predicting regular 20-25 knot southwesterly winds until the middle of this week. At noon today, Mari-Cha IV still had 1,293 miles to go before reaching the first finish line of the Rolex Transatlantic Challenge off the Lizard. If she covers 400 miles per day, this will see her finishing on Wednesday afternoon (GMT), well within Atlantic's 1905 race record time of 12 days 4 hours 1 minute and 19 seconds.
It is not only the maxis in the Grand Prix division that have suffered their share of boat breakage. Racing in the Classic division, Dr. Hans Albreicht's Nordwind suffered a broken spinnaker pole end fitting.
The night before last, the crewmembers on board Carlo Falcone's 67-year-old yawl Mariella from Antigua, spent their time putting in and taking out reefs as they were chased by lightning and 35-knot squalls. The short mizzenmast on this Fife-built yacht was proving particularly troublesome, on one occasion its staysail tearing on the doghouse as it was rehoisted. It was replaced by an older staysail, and this worked well until the halyard block at the top of the mast sheared off. This, too, was successfully repaired, but still it was not over. As crewwoman Sophie Luther describes it: "With a fantastic, gut-wrenching splitting sound, the mizzen staysail plummeted to the deck for the second time today, but this time, unfortunately, it was due to the top of the mizzen mast snapping off just above the spreader. The broken top of the mast hung there limply, swinging around while the three crew on deck surveyed the damage and woke the others. Luckily, all our communications seemed to be unaffected by it, and we didn't have to cut anything away. We all realised there was nothing we could do until morning except strap it all down and have a nice mug of hot chocolate." Elsewhere in the race, Mike Slade's Leopard has now dropped to third on the water in Performance Cruising class 1 behind the substantially larger Tiara and Chris GonGriepe's Windrose. Similarly, Clarke Murphy's Stay Calm is now lying third in distance to the finish in Performance Cruising class 2, astern of Whisper and her larger sister, the Swan 80 Selini. A. Robert Towbin's Sumurun leads the Classic division.
On day seven on board the schooner Atlantic in the 1905 race for the Kaiser's Cup, Frederick Hoyt wrote:
"Of all days, today is the day which will ever be fixed in our minds with the greatest pride and joy, for the good yacht Atlantic broke the record held by the old Dauntless since 1887 for the greatest day's run on the passage from New York to England, travelling during the 23h 31m 30s from the noon of the 23rd May to the noon of the 24th, 341 miles or 14.20 miles per hour, the record so long helmed being 328 miles."
Podium for Virbac
Jean-Pierre Dick is known for having a motivation of steel when sailing solo. A driving force which kept him going through the last Vendée Globe. The same applies when sailing crewed ! And just to prove it, this afternoon, he finished 3rd in the Calais Round Britain Race, an event raced by the finest 60 foot monohulls of the moment and which is "just as beautiful as it is difficult".
JP and his young crew from the Figaro circuit can hold their heads high. In a race time : 7 days, 1 hour, 56 minutes and 2 seconds around the British Isles in a clockwise direction over a 1815 mile long course with a wide range of weather conditions on the menu. Never once did the crew lack the determination necessary to make sure they were in the rear view mirror of the leaders, Sill and Veolia helmed by Roland Jourdain and Ecover with Mike Golding at the helm. Virbac-Paprec closed the podium gate finishing 3rd in a race where four other boats retired. An interview with the skipper :
First impressions
"This race was just as beautiful as it was difficult. We have been through seven very intensive days over a tough course. Strategy was paramount. But it was great fun sailing downwind in a blow . I’ll never forget the Shetlands which added an exotic touch. It’s not the sort of place you sail through every day (61° North) ! I’m pleased to have made it into the top three after having made a bit of a comeback on the leaders. After the Vendée Globe I really appreciated being able to sail alongside specialists of single handed sailing. They have found out what it is like to sail a 60 foot monohull, but already knew all about sailing close to the coast and at close quarters with their opponents. A rich experience all round… "
Sailing crewed after sailing solo
"It certainly is a little strange to sail crewed three months after the Vendée Globe. Quite a break from the bachelor lifestyle ! This type of race gives you the chance to exchange and explore new areas. In the end you get to know the boat better. With the four year programme I have lined up and the preparation for the next Vendée Globe, I’m hoping to broaden my horizons a little more. This is why I turned to young sailors from the Figaro circuit. They are experts in solo sailing - really pleasant guys full of energy. And they get down to it ! A thoroughly interesting race from a human point of view."
The race itself
"Getting into the swing of things was not easy. We had a couple of difficult moments at the start, then we managed to come back on Bonduelle (Jean Le Cam) in particular. We had to fight hard to keep up. The fact that we lost our Solent (ed’s note – a headsail used in wide-ranging conditions) very early on held us back quite a bit. Our only regret was not having been able to keep in closer contact with the leaders although we are satisfied that we never gave up. It really is a beautiful race. I feel sorry for Jean Le Cam having dismasted as I am for all the others who were forced to retire. Bravo Bilou ! I’m pleased that he won after having seen his Vendée Globe participation come to a halt much too early. He and his crew really sailed a fine race."
Facts and figures - Virbac-Paprec
Start from Calais : Sunday 22nd May at 14h30 (French time)
Finish in Calais / Virbac-Paprec : Sunday 29th May at 16h26
Race time : 7 days, 1 hour, 56 minutes and 2 seconds
Behind the leader : 09 hours, 12 minutes, 41 seconds
Average speed : 10.68 knots
Crew : Jean-Pierre Dick, Nicolas Abiven, Charles Caudrelier, Erwan Tabarly et Nicolas Béranger.
May 28, 2005
Crew Injured
There was concern in the Rolex Transatlantic Challenge yesterday for Peter Harrison's Sojana when her track showed her heading in a northwesterly direction, 90 degrees away from the proper race track to England.
In a communiqué with the New York Yacht Club Race headquarters, skipper Marc Fitzgerald explained that a crewman on board the 115-foot (35m) ketch had broken his arm in two places, and they were heading for the remote French island of St-Pierre, part of the St-Pierre et Miquelon group immediately to the south of Newfoundland. There they would take the stricken crewman to a hospital before rejoining the race. Prior to diverting, Sojana was leading the Rolex Transatlantic Challenge's Performance Cruising class 1 on handicap.
Following her rig damage and a subsequent day of repairs on Thursday, Robert Miller's Mari-Cha IV is now closing on Charles Brown and Bill Buckley's New Zealand 100 footer Maximus. At 0800 GMT this morning, Mari-Cha IV was approximately 35 miles astern.
"We are able to sail at about 85 % of our potential at the moment, but if we are lucky enough to get some reaching and running conditions, then we will be back at 100%," recounted racing helmsman Mike Sanderson yesterday. "The whole deal has cost us around 95 odd miles to Maximus." Both boats are now off the Grand Banks but over Flemish Cap, properly into the Atlantic, sailing upwind into 25-knot east-southeasterly winds.
With Sojana temporarily out of the running, the lead in Performance Cruising Class 1 has been taken by Tiara, at 178-feet (54.3m) the largest yacht remaining in the race following the retirement of Stad Amsterdam.
"Due to the southern route option, we were able to miss most of the bad weather some of the other competitors had," reported Alexis Lombard, whose father has chartered Tiara for the Rolex Transatlantic Challenge with a group of fellow members from the Societe Nautique de Geneve, the club defending the America's Cup,. "After two to three days of warmer weather in the south, we have been back in the mist and cold weather for a couple of hours. All eyes are on Drumbeat's position. They have sailed a great race since leaving New York--taking a different strategy--but the Lizard still seems very far away from here. Losing the staysail was a tough moment, but all the crew on board seems to be back on track today. Our focus over the coming days is to keep boat speed at a good level. Having as much fun as the Atlantic and the wind can give us stays our priority, as well as challenging our most similar competitor Drumbeat!"
At present, the slightly shorter ketch-rigged Drumbeat is almost 100 miles astern of Tiara, having taken a course more to the northwest. Between them, in terms of distance to finish, is Mike Slade's Leopard. "The game of cat and mouse, with low and son of low, continues for this big cat," reported Leopard's navigator Julian Salter. "We have been sailing our upwind modes on starboard tack for four days now--a subtle game of wind angle, heading and sail combinations played out more brutally on deck with headsail changes and reefs in and out, in cool 25-35 knot conditions, with an ever-changing sea state. As time goes on, we are making good progress and looking forward to some faster conditions."
Salter expects them to be off the Grand Banks to the southeast of Newfoundland later today. "Then," he says, "we will be free of the limited visibility, oil rigs and fishermen who are out there somewhere. Below deck, condensation is king in the Labrador current."
Further down the fleet in Performance Cruising class 2, where John "Hap" Fauth's Whisper continues to lead on the water over Clarke Murphy's Stay Calm, Joe Hoopes, owner of the Little Harbor 75 Palawan, was loving the conditions. "The wind is 19 knots out of the southwest. We are running under headsail and main with the staysail set as well, making between 8 and 10 knots depending upon the wind and the wave. The crew is fine. We've just had a pancake breakfast - no freeze-dried food on this boat!"
Hoopes reported having seen everything from flat calms to massive squalls since last Sunday's start off New York Harbor. "We got hit by a microburst a couple of days ago, which tore our mainsail. We had to take it down and repair it. We did see 55 knots in that. We are still on the edge of the [Gulf] stream, and we are getting a little bit of a lift and the weather is warm. It is 62 degrees (F), so it is very comfortable sailing, and we are about to change watch. We're going to rig the spinnaker pole to the jib, to wing it and head a little farther north."
Despite the conditions, Palawan has remained dry down below. "She is very comfortable. Everyone gets a shower every day and three square meals," says Hoopes. Although this is Hoopes's fourth Atlantic crossing in Palawan, it is his first in a race.
On board the schooner Atlantic in the 1905 race for the Kaiser's Cup, Frederick Hoyt wrote:
"On going on deck at 5.30 this morning there, on our lee beam about five miles away was a berg which must have been half a mile long and 300 feet high. It certainly was a beautiful sight with the morning sun reflecting from it. Our topsails have been going from bad to worse and after the watch had cleared up the decks, the skipper had the mizzen down on deck and took a cloth off the after leech. The main will have to go through the same operation later, while the fore seems to be fairly good still.
"By 11 o'clock the sail was out and at once bent, it being a great improvement. Today was a great change from the preceding night, the thermometer standing at 72 degrees and all hands going around in their shirt sleeves, whereas last night there were not overcoats enough on board to warm one. Cold on the ocean will go through the heaviest clothes and one cannot realise how it penetrates until it has been experienced."
May 27, 2005
Maximus Leads, Mari-Cha Repairs
At the front of the Rolex Transatlantic Challenge fleet, the riveting match race between the two Grand Prix class maxis suffered a blow yesterday, with Maximus extending its lead on Mari-Cha IV. Robert Miller, Mari-Cha IV's owner, described the situation on his boat: "It has been a testing day-and-a-half for us here. Around 36 hours ago, in very tough conditions, we launched off a gigantic wave, and as the boat came crashing down, we broke the headboard car and so were forced to drop the mainsail, which meant, at one stage, we were down to just a storm jib and trysail.
"Since then, we have been sailing at around 80%, with just the #4 jib, a trysail and a triple-reefed mizzen, but because of the considerable extra force put on the mizzen, we have now also damaged the mizzen luff track. This means that we're back to the #4 jib and a trysail only."
With the breakage snowballing, the crew was forced to stop the boat yesterday to effect repairs. "We just had to bite the bullet," recounted racing helmsman Mike Sanderson. "We literally stopped the boat for 12 hours, and for a few of them, we were going the other way." Having cobbled together every spare piece of wire on board, they made a long extension cable, and with two men up each mast they set about redrilling and tapping the mast tracks back on as another team repaired the mainsail's headboard.
At 1800 GMT last night, the work was complete, and they were back on course, although Sanderson admits they are not pushing as hard. As a result, the latest position reports show that Charles Brown and Bill Buckley's Maximus has been able to extend her lead farther--now up to 141 miles.
The match race between the two Performance Cruising class 1 leaders, Peter Harrison's Sojana and Mike Slade's Leopard, has taken both boats far north of the bulk of the fleet, with Sojana (to the northwest) just 75 miles from Newfoundland's south coast. Their crews are hoping that the wind will veer southeast enough to make it around Cape Race and Point Alpha.
About 160 miles south-southeast of Leopard, navigator/designer Gerard Dijkstra on Windrose described conditions on board: "The sails are new, but the load on them in 35-knot gusts, sailing to windward, is awesome. The sails survive. First casualty was the Dorade cowl over the crew mess. That was washed overboard by a wave. The crew mess quickly turned into a real mess with the water pouring in. It is surprising how quickly the interior deteriorates with this type of sailing. Water finds its way to the interior in mysterious ways, and, also, each change of watch brings wet oilskins into the saloon." As of this morning, the conditions have begun to get lighter for the giant Dutch schooner.
Overnight, the Clarke Murphy-chartered Swan 70 Stay Calm has lost her on-the-water lead in Performance Cruising class 2 to John "Hap" Fauth's Whisper. The crew on board the Swan experienced some panic when, at around midnight last night, they ran into a sleeping whale. Although the boat speed dropped by five knots, the collision wasn't serious, and most of the crew even slept through it.
Like Sojana and Leopard, Stay Calm has been sailing a course well to the north of her competitors. Pried away from his poached egg breakfast, skipper James Small described the conditions: "The wind has gone into the south, so after two-and-a-half days of 25-30 knot headwinds, we have a more relaxed reaching scenario. Everyone on board is well, and apart from now being able to see our breath down below, everything is fine. It was quite warm when we got into the Gulf (Stream); now it is a little on the chilly side." At the time, they had 16 knots from due south and were heading 060 degrees, making 9.5 knots.
"We are looking forward to a flatter downwind sailing vessel rather than the hectic jumbled up situation we've got at the moment," continued Small. "We've had things flying, such as the odd drawer and a couple of leecloths blown out. And the forepeak.that is a whole new experience going up there.. But it is nothing out of the normal for going to weather in what was a nice cruising boat."
Back in the Classic fleet, the boats have been having a tough time of it. "Wet, wet, wet that's what we are," reflected Sophie Luther from on board Mariella. "If it's not pouring down, then we're getting drenched by the particularly large and irregular sea out here in the Gulf Stream, but it's definitely worth it." She added: "Lightning storms seem to be following us at the moment. Again last night, we had an even worse one, which was actually strangely beautiful, with sheet lightning flashing horizontally across the sky and then bolt lightning hitting the water, uncomfortably close. Squalls came through, with the wind going from nothing to 25 knots and hailstones."
At present, A. Robert Towbin's Sumurun is leading the Classics both on-the-water and on handicap.
100 years ago, on the sixth day of his voyage on board the schooner Atlantic, Frederick Hoyt wrote:
"The balloon main topmast staysail and balloon jib were also set and finally the spinnaker, and with all the light canvas drawing, the ship began to walk off at a nine-knot clip. Afternoon sights put us to the east of our dead reckoning, but that was probably owing to the patent log not registering at the very slow speed we were going previous to the time the southerly breeze stuck in. Between eight in the morning and noon we had covered just four miles. The southerly breeze continued to increase until we were forced to take in the balloon sails and set the working ones in their places. Also the temperature of the water began to go down steadily and quickly and at nine in the evening had reached 35 degrees, showing that we were in the immediate vicinity of ice and presently the lookout saw a good-sized berg about a mile to leeward of us."
Virbac Round Britain Report
After having pushed through wind of 30 to 44 knots, the fleet has been twiddling its thumbs in light air (15 knots) on board Virbac-Paprec since this morning. Jean-Pierre and his Figaro sailors have their spinnaker up. The sun has got its hat on, but is not sure if he is coming out to play or not. We’re not in the Southern Ocean here. This is the North Sea and it’s cold. JP : "You’d think we were in a fridge. It's very chilly !" Now Virbac-Paprec is on the home straight. "We reckon we should make it to Calais Sunday night/Monday morning."
"After some heavy weather sailing yesterday, we are in light air now. We are really sorry for Bonduelle. It’s true that conditions were really hard-going. We took a couple of reefs in the main to get a better control of the boat. We’re in a NW flow, but the wind should be veering SE in the afternoon. We’re trying to get into a better position for the wind shift so that we can gybe at he right moment. During the race, the Figarists who are familiar with smaller boats have taught me a lot about analysing the course They’ve got a much more down to earth approach when it comes to the tactic to adopt. Talking to them is very interesting indeed. I’m thoroughly enjoying sailing crewed. It’s nice to have a bit of company. Except when the guys dump their soaking wet oilskins on your bunk ! Looks like we’re in for a close finish, unless we manage to give the other gays a real thrashing ! We’ll probably make it to Calais by Sunday night/Monday morning… At least I hope so "
College Nationals Predictions
We've previewed all the teams that will begin competing in the Spring College Sailing Championships beginning June 1st. Below are predictions for the top 3 in each event. 2 of the 3 are defending champions.
You can see all the previews in our College Sailing Category
| Place | Dinghy | Team | Women's |
| 1st | Hawaii | Hobart and William Smith | Yale |
| 2nd | Harvard | Dartmouth | Charleston |
| 3rd | Gerogetown | USC | Navy |
College Nationals Preview: Hawaii & Michigan
This is the final preview article in a series covering college sailing's spring nationals.
Hawaii will compete in the dinghy and team race competitions. They are ranked 12th but are the defending dingy champions. They were tied for 1st at their district elims and return most of their '04 title team. Brian Lake is the experienced successful team leader. Look for Hawaii near the top.
Michigan won the MCSA team race elims and also qualified for the dinghy contest. Meredith Cochrane is one of the teams all district sailors. They'll hope to improve on their '04 Nationals performance and battle the other MCSA teams.
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 +1
Difference from last year 0
Difference from long term average for May -12
Difference from Record High -42
Difference from Record Low +19
Forecast for 27 June +4
Linky Sailing News
Racing Mari Cha problems. Maximus leads. Bonduelle dismasts Ecover leads. ACI H1
News Team GBR
Great Lakes Spring Opener
College Sailing Final Previews: Michigan and Hawaii
Macarthur's Plans
IN BRIEF:
* ELLEN MACARTHUR CONFIRMS PLANS TO MAKE HER SECOND BID FOR SOLO TRANS-ATLANTIC RECORD ON BOARD THE TRIMARAN <
* FRENCH SKIPPER FRANCIS JOYON LEFT NEW YORK YESTERDAY TO MAKE HIS BID TO LOWER THIS RECORD BUT HAS ABANDONED HIS ATTEMPT THIS MORNING.
* MACARTHUR & ROLAND JOURDAIN PLAN TO ESTABLISH A NEW CREWED PLYMOUTH-ROSCOFF RECORD ON FRIDAY, 3RD JUNE TO CLAIM THE BRITTANY FERRIES 100 MILE TROPHY.
* MACARTHUR ALSO PLANNING TO RETURN TO THE SOUTHERN OCEAN THIS WINTER AS PART OF A RESEARCH TRIP TO SOUTH GEORGIA.
For updated information, please go to http://www.teamellen.com
IN DETAIL:
<
From the 1st September this year, Ellen MacArthur will go on standby for her second attempt on the solo transatlantic record from New York (USA) to Plymouth (UK) on board the 75-foot trimaran <
"We need to have a pretty perfect weather window to have any chance of breaking this very fast record. Last June we were forced south of the route and had to sail more miles than Laurent, in the end too many to break his record. Attempting the transatlantic record is very different to a round the world record and it is hard to compare the two. After failing to break the record by just 75 minutes on the last attempt we are under no illusions as to how big this challenge will be. The timing of departure will be critical, everything will have to go right, the weather, the boat and there will not be room for mistakes. To stand a chance of breaking this record we will have to go flat out and just go for it all the way to the English Channel."
The west-east solo transatlantic that starts at Ambrose Light off New York and finishes at the Lizard off the south-west coast of England, is perhaps one of the hardest records to break which is why Bourgnon's record has now stood for over a decade. The passage that is just a shade under 3000 miles is completely dependent upon hooking into the right weather window to propel <
French skipper Francis Joyon on board his 90-foot trimaran IDEC, who previously held the non-stop solo round the world record that MacArthur beat by a day in February this year, left New York yesterday to make an attempt on Bourgnon's record but decided to abandon his attempt earlier this morning as he failed to play catch up to hook into the back of a fast-moving weather system. There is another possible weather window shaping up for next week. The weather dictates that this record can only really be attempted in the spring/early summer months (Laurent Bourgnon set his record in June, right at the end of the weather window available) or the post-summer/autumn months to take advantage of the low pressure systems that sweep across the Atlantic at this time of year. In addition, Thomas Coville, skipper of the 60-foot trimaran SODEBO has also announced his intention to bid for this record.
Just as was the case with the round the world record when B&Q was first launched, come start day for Ellen the bar may well have been raised yet further by Joyon or Coville for the solo transatlantic record.
http://www.sailspeedrecords.com
http://www.trimaran-idec.com
http://www.sodebo-voile.com
<
On Friday, 3rd June Ellen MacArthur and crew will leave Plymouth to establish a new crewed Plymouth to Roscoff record to claim the 'Brittany Ferries 100 Mile Trophy'. The trimaran <
Joining MacArthur on board <
As the Pont Aven can reach a top speed of 27 knots, it is unlikely the trimaran will find the perfect weather to dock in Roscoff before the passengers disembark the ship but, hopefully, a new record will be established!
For further information on the Brittany Ferries 100 Mile Trophy, please contact Stephen Tuckwell on +44 (0)20 7610 4028 or email stephen.tuckwell@brightergroup.com
http://www.brittany-ferries.com
http://www.teamellen.com
MACARTHUR PLANS TRIP TO SOUTH GEORGIA FOR RESEARCH
This winter, MacArthur plans to join a special research programme to the Antarctic island of South Georgia. A key part of the project is to highlight the plight of the wandering albatross that has been named by the RSPB as a species facing the prospect of extinction from the threat of long-line fishing. MacArthur is a keen supporter of the albatross cause and recently attended a dinner held by the RSPB to raise awareness for their plight. MacArthur will join Sally Poncet, biologist and researcher, who has spent the past 20 years studying sea birds in the Southern Ocean during her research programmes on South Georgia and the Antarctic. MacArthur met Falklands resident Sally Poncet during her stay in the Falklands when she was returning from Australia with the newly launched <
Sally Poncet on South Georgia: "South Georgia is an island that captivates your heart, it’s a wilderness with the kind of wildness that is all too rare today, glaciers and mountains in the middle of the ocean, beaches teeming with seabirds and seals, one of Earth’s special places."
Current plans are for Ellen to leave for South Georgia in December this year.
For further information on Sally’s work and the albatross go to:
http://www.rspb.org.uk/international/albatross_appeal/index.asp
http://www.acap.aq
http://www.sgisland.org
IDEC Turns Back
Francis Joyon has had to give up on his North Atlantic record attempt, as the weather was not developing favourably. After just a few hours at sea, the IDEC trimaran saw her speed gradually drop off. Another opportunity lies ahead early next week.
It’s back to North Cove Marina and the Manhattan Sailing Club for Francis Joyon and IDEC… In the end, the wind that the yachtsman was hoping to find at sea did not materialise, as Jean-Yves Bernot explained to us this morning: «The low-pressure centre has grown, and Francis had to turn further south, thus extending his journey, hoping to meet up with a stronger breeze, fifty miles or so ahead of him. As IDEC advanced, her speed tended to fall off, and when you face that sort of situation, there are no two ways about it: It’s back to base to wait for another window of opportunity.» It was clearly the right moment to turn back, so the decision was easy to take, in spite of the understandable frustration caused by this false start. «Another opportunity looks likely early next week,» the router explained this morning. For Francis and IDEC, the waiting game continues!
May 26, 2005
IDEC is Off
Having left New York this afternoon in order to reach the Ambrose light, Francis Joyon crossed the starting line of the W to E Transatlantic record at 19h03'36'' GMT (15h03'36'' local time). The trimaran set off at more than 15 knots, and the French skipper hoped to catch a more solid breeze further away from the coast.
To beat Laurent Bourgnon's record, IDEC has to reach the Lizard (GB) before June the 2nd, at 21h37'16'' GMT.
Mid Ocean Match Races
Over the last 24 hours, the Rolex Transatlantic Challenge's two leaders, Robert Miller's Mari-Cha IV and Charles Brown and Bill Buckley's Maximus, have finally moved in front of the virtual position of the 1905 transatlantic race winner Atlantic. Slowly, they have turned north, having had a difficult night of big winds and lumpy seas.
"This race so far seems to have been all about no wind or too much," reported Mari-Cha IV's racing helmsman Mike Sanderson last night. "Over the past eight hours, we have got back to the stage of having to slow the boat down to try and make sure that we don't break anything major that will stop us racing the boat. It is easy to forget, at times, that there are still 2,300 miles or so to go in this transatlantic race. We are happy to give up some of our lead to Maximus just so that we can be sure to be there when the reaching and running conditions start in a few days time." At the time, the 140-foot schooner was sailing in 37 knots in "survival conditions."
Meanwhile, Maximus has split from her larger rival and is now 25 miles to Mari-Cha IV's northwest. But in terms of distance to finish (DTF), Maximus has taken the lead, 15 miles ahead at noon today.
The British match race for the on-the-water lead in Performance Cruising class 1 also continues, with just two miles DTF separating Mike Slade's Leopard from Peter Harrison's Sojana. Leopard, too, has split on the course with Sojana and is 48 miles to the northwest.
In a third match race between what are now the two largest boats in the fleet (following Stad Amsterdam's retirement), the 170-foot ketch Drumbeat is now 57 miles ahead of her sloop-rigged near-sistership Tiara. "Earlier this morning we had 40 knots of wind, and we have just broke the head of the staysail," recounted Tiara's captain Pascal Pellat-Finet. "It is nothing dramatic, but we have had to slow down quite a bit. We will wait for nicer weather to pull out a bigger sail."
Alexis Lombard, on Tiara, described their race so far. "The strategy for the last three days was to go south back to 38 degrees north to avoid the worst of the storm. We had little wind Sunday and Monday, and since then the wind and the sea have been getting stronger and stronger, and we still have the southeast wind. We were going very well for 24 hours at an average of 13-14 knots, so everything was quite fine - a lot of rain, a lot of wind and then the staysail broke. Everything, otherwise, is perfect on the boat. We are having fun. We are having rough conditions, but this is the Atlantic and we were looking for that."
Steve Frank, owner of the Swan 112 Anemos, said they had generally been suffering from a lack of wind but had a glorious sail yesterday in 35 knots. "From 1100 until 2000 it was bright sunshine, fetching, which is what we wanted to do. The steering and sailing was magnificent. It was absolutely her seaway. I haven't had that much sunshine and that much breeze in 40 years. It was well worth it."
But in the process, they got too far north, and when they gybed back, they ran out of wind. "Since then, they've kind of turned off the fan," continued Frank, who is sailing his first transatlantic race.
While the conditions have been extremely trying for the first four days of the Rolex Transatlantic Challenge, this should change in 24 hours time, said Ken Campbell of Commanders Weather, which is advising 16 of the boats competing. "This is the last day of the storm system that we were concerned about pre-start and that we have been sailing with for a couple of days now, which has produced totally screwy conditions. There are two lows. The western low is about 100-150 miles SSW of Nantucket. The eastern low is located in the western third of the fleet, 200 miles southeast of Nantucket, and they are rotating counterclockwise. The low that is in the middle of the fleet is going to head towards Nantucket today, and they will all congregate this evening 50-100 miles southeast of Nantucket, and they'll start to move northeast like weather systems are supposed to move."
At present, the leaders and northerly boats are in easterlies, while those to the south and east are transitioning from easterlies to southerlies as they get out of the clutches of the depression. The depression is set to move across the Atlantic, and from the weekend on, all the boats in the fleet should enjoy a prolonged period of favourable westerly or southerly winds.
Elsewhere in the fleet, Clarke Murphy's Swan 70 Stay Calm continues to lead Performance Cruising class 2, while Carlo Falcone's Mariella has moved ahead among the Classics.
100 years ago on day four of his transatlantic race on board the schooner Atlantic, Frederick Hoyt wrote:
"The breeze kept dropping during the afternoon and by sundown we were not doing more than three or four knots. A heavy southwesterly swell on the quarter did not help matters either for it rolled us about so that with the light breeze all the booms had to be gotten onboard to save the sails and gear. The squaresail and raffee were the only sails which did any work.
"Much to the disgust of everyone the breeze continued to drop and all the evening the ship hardly had steerage way. It was a beautiful night for lovers and steamers but as a racing proposition it might have been improved upon."
Joyon to Start Today
The call to arms has begun for Francis Joyon, who will be crossing the starting line for the North Atlantic record at the foot of Ambrose Light this afternoon at 6 p.m. GMT (2 p.m.local time). For the moment, IDEC is undergoing the final touches in North Cove Marina before she sets sail.
As forecast yesterday when the weather data was sifted and analysed by Jean-Yves Bernot, the weather situation is relatively favourable and an attempt at the record for the crossing between Ambrose Light and The Lizard is worth trying. Francis Joyon, contacted this morning at 6h00 local time, «I’m finishing off the final preparations, and taking one last look at the wind charts. I should be setting sail in a northerly, once I have reached the starting line, which will take me around two hours. The low is centred in my path, but in theory it should be moving off fairly quickly and not holding me up. It is moving up and therefore the wind should back westerly and then south westerly later on. Ideally, I would have liked to start out in a south westerly hoping to keep it throughout the crossing: that is what we have been waiting for over the past two months, but it isn’t going to be like that, and it was time for us to take a decision! For the first stretch of the journey, I should be in a flow staying below 30 knots, and I think my route will take me slightly south to avoid getting stuck in the centre of the low, where the wind drops off. One positive thing is that the seas won’t be hindering the boat’s progress.
As far as the preparation is concerned, we were still putting on strips of stratification yesterday evening, because we had a bit of a shock, when we discovered that a boat must have hit my port floater: I found a crack not far from the shroud plate. Even if the internal skin hasn’t been affected and the damage is only superficial, it’s never very nice… but there’s nothing to worry about.
The trimaran is well and truly ready and in perfect shape, so all that’s left now is to get underway. That’s something we’re going to have to have to get a move on with, as the theoretical route doesn’t leave us much margin over the record we are attempting to beat.»
The dash across the Atlantic can begin…
College Nationals Preview: Dartmouth & Tulane
Between now and the 27th we'll preview all the schools that will compete in college sailing's spring nationals.
Tulane qualified for the co-ed and women's regattas. They are unranked with their women's team showing stronger in elim's. In 2003 the women's team was 12th at nationals and some of those sailors return.
Dartmouth enters with two top 10 ranked teams and having qualified for all three regattas. They were 3rd in their women's elims winning B division, while at the Co-ed elims they won A Division. They won the New England team race championship. They appear to be peaking in time to best their top finish from last year- a 3rd in team racing.
Linky Sailing News
Racing Ecover leads Round Great Britain. Pace undefeated. Rolex Challenge
News New TP 52
Great Lakes Wednesday nite
College Sailing Nationals Previews Tulane & Dartmouth
AC to Visit Italy
The 32nd America’s Cup is coming to Italy. With three Italian teams, two Louis Vuitton Acts, and a leading Italian broadcaster covering all of the action, the 32nd America’s Cup clearly has an Italian flavour, especially in 2005.
On Thursday, the America’s Cup organisers held a press conference in Rome to present the Trapani Louis Vuitton Acts 8 & 9, the closing competition of the 2005 season, which begins on the 29th of September. A double regatta, the Trapani Louis Vuitton Acts feature the 12 competitors of the America’s Cup battling in Match and Fleet Racing events. The trophies the teams will be fighting for, the Louis Vuitton Cup, and the America’s Cup, were on display during the event.
“It’s exciting to be here in Rome, one of the oldest cities in the world, with the America’s Cup, the oldest sporting trophy in the world. Italy is among the strong est examples of what we had in mind in bringing the America’s Cup to Europe,” said Michel Bonnefous, the CEO of the America’s Cup organisers. “Italy has had a good presence in the modern era of the Cup, with challenges dating back to 1983.”
“But this year, with three Italian teams, the excitement about the America’s Cup in Italy is unprecedented. And now, by bringing meaningful America’s Cup racing to Trapani, in Sicily, Italian fans can see for themselves why the America’s Cup is so exciting and has such a strong appeal. I’m very excited about the racing in Trapani, and I know that Trapani Louis Vuitton Acts are going to be a tremendous success.”
Italian television coverage of the 32nd America’s Cup is very impressive as well, with the Telecom Italia Media Group acquiring the rights to broadcast the 32nd America's Cup on La7. In total, La7 is scheduled to show about 240-hours of live and recorded action dedicated to the America's Cup.
With the stunnin g Egadi Islands as a backdrop in the distance, the racing in Trapani will conclude the 2005 racing season for the America’s Cup, and following the Trapani Louis Vuitton Act 9, the season champion will be crowned, the title going to the team which has performed best across the events in Valencia, Malmö-Skåne, and Trapani this summer.
Michel Bonnefous was joined by representatives from the three Italian teams, including Lorenzo Rizzardi Head of the +39 Challenge, Luna Rossa's Paolo Martinoni, and skipper Vasco Vascotto from the Mascalzone Latino - Capitalia Team. Leading Italian politicians involved in the project were also among the guests. Senator D’Ali, from Sicily, said hosting America’s Cup racing in Trapani was very important to the region.
The 2005 America’s Cup season opens with the Valencia Louis Vuitton Acts 4 & 5. Racing begins on the 16th of June in the host city of the 32nd America’s Cup.
ACR joins up with Volvo Race
ACR Electronics, Inc, the world leader in safety and survival technologies for the marine industry, has been selected as the Official Supplier of Marine Safety Electronics for Volvo Ocean Race Round the World 2005-06.
South Florida-based ACR will supply the racing teams with EPIRBs (emergency position indicating radio beacons), search and rescue transponders (SART), GMDSS VHF survival radios and other high-tech safety equipment.
"For nearly half a century, ACR Electronics has focused on making high quality, reliable safety and survival products," said Paul Hardin, executive vice president of sales and marketing for ACR Electronics. "This long record of safety first and foremost is something we have in common with Volvo, and together we are making every effort to support the teams with the best equipment over the course of this incredible race."
Andy Hindley, Race Director for the Volvo Ocean Race added, "We take safety very seriously. We chose ACR as our supplier for safety electronics in the knowledge that the equipment they are providing will be the most effective in an emergency situation and has the strength to survive the testing conditions of the race. Should a team release an EPIRB, we are confident that the coordinates will be reported back to Race HQ in the minimum time possible."
Each boat will be equipped with a GlobalFix(tm) 406 EPIRB, which includes an integral 12-channel parallel GPS to add latitude/longitude coordinates to the emergency signal transmitted by the unit.
In addition to internal GPS, the GlobalFix(tm) 406 features a chip that will acquire a GPS position three to five times faster than a conventional GPS from a cold start. Each team will also be equipped with two RapidFix(tm) 406 EPIRBs to be secured in the liferafts as well as a PathFinder3(tm) SART (search and rescue transponder). This is a new generation survival craft transponder features intensified radar tracking and a built-in test mode with visual and audible feedback.
May 25, 2005
Joyon May be a Go
After waiting for more than a month for an opening in the weather, Francis Joyon is now ready in New York, where it may well be possible for him to set sail within the next 24 hours. Indeed, his router, Jean-Yves Bernot, confirmed to us in that a decent weather system looks like it may be on the horizon.
The skies seem finally to be clearing in front of the IDEC trimaran, signalling the (possible) end to her stand-by period. Chasing after records can easily become a long game of patience, which is bad news for those yachtsmen, who are in a hurry.
However, it would appear that a start is indeed not far off this time. Jean-Yves Bernot: «It may be tomorrow, as a small low-pressure area is moving in. What is important now is to watch how it develops. Once we start, the conditions will be good, but Francis will nevertheless have to manage to cover the 100 miles or so separating him from the zone, where he will pick up the weather system. Lows are created around Cape Hatteras (North Carolina) and initially tend to be rather unpredictable, before they gradually settle down into a pattern. In theory, the wind conditions should be good – 25 to 30 knots, hardly any stronger – and in any case, we shall be setting out, if we see that the journey is possible within less than 7 days *.
With winds of this strength and a decent angle of 110° to 130° from the real wind, we can easily keep up an average of 20 knots without too much effort, but of course, we can’t expect perfect conditions throughout the whole trip. The main risk on this route is to see the flow drop off towards the finish, to the extent that we’ll be getting home in pre-summer conditions. Having said that, a lot of records have been broken in late June or early July. If tomorrow’s opportunity is confirmed, the start will take place around 6 p.m. GMT. If not, there will be other occasions later in the week or early next week. We’ll keep you informed…
The record live
Follow Francis Joyon’s progress on the website www.trimaran-idec.com, thanks to a position update every two hours and a comparison with the relative positions of Laurent Bourgnon, the record holder *.
Next press release tomorrow morning
*Atlantic record: the important facts and figures
Route from New York – The Lizard (theoretical distance calculated by the WSSRC) : 2925 miles (5417 km)
Single-handed record: Laurent Bourgnon, Primagaz, 7 days 2 hours 34 minutes 42 seconds
(June 1994)
24-hour single-handed record: Laurent Bourgnon, Primagaz, 540 miles (June 1994)
Retirements
After a high-mileage Tuesday, the pace has slowed for race leaders Mari-Cha IV and Maximus as they negotiate a warm front that will see the wind filling in from the east. Both boats are heading just south of due east and making a more modest 10 knots compared to the high 20s they were seeing yesterday.
"Picking our way through some pretty rotten weather out here," commented Mike Sanderson from on board Robert Miller's 140-foot schooner Mari-Cha IV. "We've got some really light airs this morning, and so lost a bunch to Maximus.. We'll have to fight to get those precious miles back."
This morning at 0800 GMT, Charles Brown and Bill Buckley's 100-foot sloop Maximus was just 32 miles astern, a fine performance against Mari-Cha IV.
"We are pootling along, no problems," reported Maximus' veteran navigator Mike Quilter, in a jovial mood. "We are leaving the low pressure, which we've been having a lot of fun with, and we are heading off across the squeeze between the high off of Newfoundland and the low pressure over by America. We are just cracked off. Expecting a reasonable amount of wind tonight, nearly upwind, 25-30 knots for 12 hours or so, and then we get over into the high pressure by Newfoundland, and it will be holiday time!"
This is the first major test of the New Zealand maxi, which has a state-of-the-art rotating wing mast and a retractable canting keel. "It is a brand new boat, and there have been an endless number of small issues on board, but we have overcome them all," said Quilter. "We have a good 'Mr. Fix-it' on board in Jeff Scott, so we are in reasonable shape."
The third yacht in the class--Carrera, owned by Stamford, Connecticut's Joe Dockery--has retired from the race, citing in an email from captain Simon Davidson "catastrophic mainsail failure while beating upwind in 40 knots of wind and very large seas in the Gulf Stream." The yacht is heading back to Newport, R.I., and does "not require outside assistance." Continued the email: "Carrera's crew has made the unfortunate decision that it would not be prudent to head farther into the North Atlantic with a mainsail that was so badly damaged in the first storm."
At the front of the Performance Cruising class 2, Mike Slade's Leopard is having a close battle on the water against fellow countryman and former British America's Cup challenger head Peter Harrison on Sojana, the two boats just one mile apart in terms of distance to finish at the noon position update.
"We're doing okay," commented Sojana's skipper Marc Fitzgerald. "We're hammering along at 12 knots right on course, right down the great circle at 075 degrees true. There are quite a few small issues on board. Some of the electronics aren't working as well as they used to, but we are reasonably happy. We haven't seen much of Leopard, but we have never been far from them. They went to the south of us first and then went off to the north of us." Yesterday afternoon, Sojana was ahead of Leopard on the water, but this morning they are just behind, but Fitzgerald says they are still easily ahead on handicap.
The average speed of boats in the rest of the fleet has picked up since yesterday, most boats averaging between five and seven knots. However, this is just not fast enough for some.
The race is also over for the biggest boat in the fleet, the Storm Trysail Club-chartered 250-foot (76m) clipper ship Stad Amsterdam. A delayed start and a prolonged period without wind has forced the captain to turn on the engine.
"This night we have taken the decision to retire. That is because we came into an area with not much wind and our charter will end on 8 June in Cowes," explained Captain Pieter Brantjes. "To be there in time, we have to use the engine. At 0130 GMT we started the engine, and we are under power heading towards Cowes. It is a bitter disappointment as you would imagine, but we have no choice. There have been too many lulls and not enough wind for the vessel. This vessel needs wind and if we have no wind or headwinds, it is difficult for us."
On the water at present, Stay Calm continues to hold a decisive lead in Performance Cruising class 2, while Nordwind is just six miles ahead of Sumurun among the Classics.
100 years ago on board the schooner Atlantic, Frederick Hoyt wrote:
"At 5 p.m. another steamer was made out ahead, which later proved to be the Minnetonka. She also acknowledged our number and in answer to our inquiry said she had seen no ice, but had thick fog, giving the latitude and longitude where it was encountered. Towards sunset the southwest began to look black and as the wind was all letting go we were afraid that there would be some disagreeable weather before long. We were not disappointed for at 9 o'clock as pretty a little squall as one often sees came whirling out of the south and backed to west. It blew hard enough to take in both spanker and mainsail but the worst was over in half an hour and by 11 the sails were again hoisted and the ship on her course. Just at the end of the squall a large White Star Line steamer passed close ahead. We exchanged signals and she gave us three blasts of the whistle."
College Nationals Preview: TAMGAL & HWS
Between now and the 27th we'll preview all the schools that will compete in college sailing's spring nationals.
Texas A&M Galveston enters the spring nationals having won last falls sloop championships. They swept the SEISA elim's. This probably overates their prospects a bit. Last they finished from 12th (team racing) to 17th (womens. A top 10 finish would add to their fall achievments.
Hobart and William Smith stands a good chance to join TAMGAL as a national champion. Ranked 3rd HWS was had two podium finishes at the '04 nationals. They qualified with a pair of wins in the tough MAISA elims. Their women's team also qualified. Team leaders include Junior Augusta Nadler and Senior John Strock.
Linky Sailing News
Racing Mari-Cha takes lead. Round Britain. ACI H1.
News Joystick sailing. Gold winner v. hubby
Great Lakes Mac Island Summer. Ferry security. Freighter learning.
College Sailing Nationals previews of TAMGAL and HWS
AC TV
The 32nd America’s Cup Match will be seen live on Swedish television, along with seven other Northern European countries following an agreement between the America’s Cup organisers and Viasat Broadcasting, a leading European broadcaster. Viasat Broadcasting has acquired exclusive television rights to the 32nd America’s Cup for Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Hungary. Programming will begin this year with coverage of the Louis Vuitton Acts, and magazine programs.
“We are delighted to have Viasat as our broadcasting partner for eight Northern European countries,” said Michel Bonnefous, the CEO of the America’s Cup organisers. “With the America’s Cup in Europe for the first time, the Swedish Victory Challenge returning as a competitor and the Louis Vuitton Acts 6 & 7 in Malmö-Skåne this sum mer, Northern Europe and Scandinavia in particular, is more involved in the America’s Cup than ever before. We are very happy that so many people in the region will now be able to enjoy all of the action through Viasat broadcasts.”
In 2005, there are three venues hosting double Louis Vuitton Acts – Valencia, Spain, Malmö-Skåne, Sweden and Trapani, Italy. For each venue, Viasat will broadcast up to seven highlight programmes, in addition to daily news feeds. There are a further 15 magazine programmes between now and the start of racing in 2007.
In 2007, the television action is live, and beginning in April 2007, Viasat will bring live coverage from all of the Round Robins, Semi Finals and the Final of the Louis Vuitton Cup, as well as the 32nd America’s Cup Match in June of 2007, to viewers across Northern Europe.
“We will also be providing high quality news, profiles, analysis and updates from the world's premier sailing competition, the America’s Cup, ” said Magnus Dahlborn, Head of Viasat Sport Sweden. “With the highly competitive Swedish team, Victory Challenge, following its huge success in Auckland in 2002, we are delighted to have acquired the broadcasting rights to the overall event, which will enable viewers to follow the regattas in Valencia, Malmö-Skåne and Sicily this year.”
Viasat Broadcasting is a leading European broadcaster, with over 30 channels in 19 countries, with distribution through satellite, cable, terrestrial services, and broadband television.
This television agreement is similar in terms and scope to those previously reached with leading broadcasters, including TVE in Spain, Canal+ in France, ARD/ZDF in Germany, and La7 in Italy. More television agreements for the 32nd America’s Cup are expected to be announced in the coming weeks.
May 24, 2005
Sponsor Named
US SAILING, national governing body for the sport, has announced that Extrasport, the well-known manufacturer of lifejackets, has been named the Official Personal Flotation Device Sponsor of the US Sailing Team, the US Disabled Sailing Team, and the US Youth World Team. Under the multi-year agreement, which runs through 2009, Team-members will receive an Extrasport lifejacket.
"Extrasport has been a proud US Sailing Team supplier for several years and it has been a valuable partnership for us," said Greg Enos, Extrasport Brand Manager. "Thanks to feedback we've received from the members of the Team over the years, we've been able to continue to create the highest quality safety gear. In return, we're proud to supply the best sailors in the country with our best products."
According to Dean Brenner, Chairman of US SAILING's Olympic Sailing Committee, the renewed partnership acknowledges Extrasport's long-time support of competitive sailing. "It's important our sailors can compete on the water with the best safety gear on the market and Extrasport is able to supply our best athletes with exactly that."
Weather and Strategy
Thankfully, the severe winds forecast yesterday have not materialised for a majority of the Rolex Transatlantic Challenge fleet.
On board the 174-foot (53m) Drumbeat, navigator Adrienne Cahalan reported conditions as being generally light, although it had piped up to 20 knots during the night. "It is changing a lot with the path these lows are taking. You are still going to have to stay below 40 degrees north, and we might get some strong southerlies near the end of the week. At the moment it is not too bad." The noon position update showed Drumbeat in third in the Performance Cruising class 1.
Up until last night, the massive ketch Drumbeat had been match racing her sloop-rigged near-sistership Tiara. "They disappeared off south," continued Cahalan. "We didn't want to dive south, and they didn't come up on the last position report, so we are wondering what they are up to."
While conditions are light and sunny down the fleet, they couldn't be more different for the leaders in the Grand Prix class. "We have a lot of wind right now--40 knots from 200 degrees (south-southwest)," reported Mari-Cha IV navigator Jef d'Etiveaud. "We are just changing from a No. 4 jib to a storm jib. We are doing between 25 and 30 knots, averaging probably 24 knots. We are pushing 30 in the gusts." Now into the Gulf Stream, the seas are hammering the state-of-the-art 140-foot maxi schooner. "This morning we had to slow down the boat, because it was so bad," continued d'Etiveaud. "It was a big sea with square waves, very big waves."
Mari-Cha IV and Maximus continue to take a long loop south while Joe Dockery's Carrera perseveres with the great circle route, closer to the shore, but with the prospect of facing severe headwinds. This morning, Mari-Cha IV was leading on the water, but at the noon GMT update, Carrera had once again regained first place, sailing the more direct course to the north.
Mari-Cha IV has been maintaining its southeasterly course in order to get across the path of the oncoming depression and into favourable winds on its eastern side. D'Etiveaud believes the present blustery conditions will stay with them for the next 20 hours. Yesterday, they celebrated owner Robert Miller's birthday on board with a cake.
While Peter Harrison's ketch Sojana leads on the water in Performance Cruiser class 1, Clarke Murphy and the crew of the Swan 70 Stay Calm are putting in a blistering performance at the front of Performance Cruiser class 2--66 miles astern of Carrera. "It has been a bit bumpy," described Mike Broughton, Stay Calm's navigator. "We have 10 knots from the north east, and we are pushing the boat as hard as we can to drive ourselves through the centre of this flabby area of low pressure, which is making it all a bit difficult. The next 15 hours will be quite tricky for us." Conditions have been "fitful" on board Stay Calm, the wind going up and down between 5 and 15 knots. A light spinnaker has shred seam-to-seam and is now in the process of being fixed.
Like most of the leaders, Stay Calm is currently heading for the Gulf Stream, some 200 miles offshore. "We are aiming for the top of this warm core eddy, and hopefully that will keep us moving," said Broughton. Planting themselves into a favourable north-easterly-flowing eddy can add three or four knots of boat speed, but to achieve this, they must monitor sea temperature closely. "The temperature started at 14 degrees Celsius back in New York, went down to 8 and up to 14, and now we're at 16-17. We are hoping in the next four or five hours it should go up quite a lot, and then we should get into the stream properly."
To date, Stay Calm's track has been with the more northerly group. "Some of the boats farther south will get into the westerlies quicker," explained Broughton, "but will be dead downwind in lighter conditions with quite a choppy seaway, which might be quite dodgy with spinnakers. Whereas we'll be closer hauled, which should help us drive through the waves."
In the Classic class, Dr. Hans Albreicht's Nordwind is leading on the water over race chairman A. Robert Towbin's Sumurun.
>From on board Atlantic 100 years ago Frederick Hoyt wrote of their progress on day two:
"A fresh westerly breeze and bright warm weather greeted us when we came on deck this morning. It was the first day warm enough to get a morning bucket over one and as fresh baths are forbidden the water supply being limited it helped out wonderfully.
"At 0930 a small hole developed in the spinnaker and to save it from growing the sail was taken in. As it continued to breeze on, it was decided not to risk carrying that sail and the square sail was set in its place with the weather raffee above the yard. The same weather continued with a fresh westerly breeze the ship going between nine and ten miles - the sea making up all the time but the rolling of the yacht being very easy and not in the least uncomfortable. Toward evening the breeze came more westerly and to save it from banging to pieces, the mainsail was taken it. A beautiful night followed with just enough breeze to keep the sails quiet. The moon added to the beauty."
