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SCUTTLEBUTT EUROPE #1529 - 5 JUNE

Brought to you by boats.com Europe ( http://www.boats.com ) and Yachtworld.com Europe ( http://www.yachtworld.com ) Scuttlebutt Europe is a digest of sailing news and opinions, regatta results, new boat and gear information and letters from sailors -- with a European emphasis. Contributions welcome, send to editor@scuttlebutteurope.com

IMOCA OCEAN RACING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP French sailor Yann Elies has taken the lead of the IMOCA ocean racing world championship after the first solo transatlantic race of the year : The Artemis Transat (yearly ranking is based on previous and current year's results). Team Generali has seen its continuous efforts bring some well deserved results, as they never abandoned any race since 2007.

Second place of the IMOCA championship goes to Marc Guillemot onboard his "Safran". Guillemot has had good results since his boat was launched in July 2007. He came 4th at The Artemis Transat after having sustained some serious rib injury on the first days of the race.

Third place goes to the winner of this "Transat Anglaise": Loick Peyron. Peyron wins this race for the third time, beating the record holder, French sailing legend Eric Tabarly. The first woman, English Samantha Davies (Roxy) is 8th. There are 4 different nationalities within the top eleven (Fra, UK, Sui, Spa).

Two "exhibition races" are still on the program for the IMOCA fleet this summer: - "Voiles de course" during the maritime event of Brest 2008 from 11th to 17th July where more than 100,000 people per day are expected. - The Artemis Challenge in Cowes, Isle of Wight on the 5th August 2008.

The boats will then prepare for the biggest event of the IMOCA Ocean Racing World Championship: the non-stop, solo, round the world race: The Vendee Globe. 30 boats will be expected on the starting line in les Sables d'Olonne, France, on November 9th for what is already defined as the biggest planetary yacht race ever.

Current IMOCA ranking after The Artemis Transat

Rank Skipper Nat Total 1. Yann Elies, FRA,. 92 2. Marc Guillemot, FRA, 88 3. Loick Peyron, FRA, 82 4. Dominique Wavre, SUI, 82 5. Armel Le Cleac'h, FRA, 81 6. Alex Thomson, GBR, 76 7. Jean Pierre Dick, FRA, 72 8. Samantha Davies, GBR, 68 9. Bernard Stamm, SUI, 64 10. Jean Le Cam, FRA, 60 11. Javier Sanso, ESP, 57 12. Michel Desjoyeaux, FRA, 51 13. Arnaud Boissieres, FRA, 50 14. Yannick Bestaven, FRA, 47 15. Servane Escoffier, FRA, 40 16. Mike Golding, GBR, 39 17. Dee Caffari, GBR, 38 18. Kito De Pavant, FRA, 36 19. Vincent Riou, FRA, 36 20. Jeremie Beyou, FRA, 31 21. Jean-Baptiste Dejeanty, FRA, 29 22. Steve White, GBR, 26 23. Jonathan Malbon, GBR, 12 24. Unai Basurko, ESP, 9 25. Richard Wilson, USA, 6 26. Guillermo Altadill, ESP, 0 27. Derek Hatfield, CAN, 0 28. Sebastien Josse, FRA, 0 29. Roland Jourdain, FRA, 0 30. Brian Thompson, GBR, 0

http://www.imoca.org

BMW ORACLE RACING TEAM LEADING SECOND MEDCUP EVENT Marseille, France (June 4, 2008) If the opening day of the City of Marseille Trophy regatta offered a modest introduction to 'Mistral-lite' conditions, 15-19 knots, Wednesday's two windward-leeward contests met with conditions much closer to the upper racing limit for the fleet of TP52's during the second event of the 2008 Audi MedCup Circuit. After an initial postponement, waiting for the wind to drop enough, there were still 22 knots blowing from the Mistral's hallmark North West direction, and with the windward mark set under the cliffs of the Isle du Frioul, the breeze may have been strong but it was erratic at times on the approach to the top turn.

The first race was a showdown between the two BMW Oracle Racing crewed boats designed by team designer Reichel/Pugh. Both the 2007 circuit winner Artemis, with tactician John Kostecki (USA) helping owner-helm Torbjorn Tornqvist (SWE), along with the USA-17 team of Larry Ellison, Russell Coutts, and Jim Spithill, found the conditions to their liking, with the later getting a close win while both running away from the fleet in the opener. For the second race, Artemis turned in another steady score of third, but it was starting line confusion for USA-17 that would result in a protest against the race committee.

Deemed over early, USA-17 restarted, but then successfully proved that it was neighboring Cristabella (GBR) that were the offending boat, which has both similar hull color and bow number. USA-17 has received for race 5 average points from races 1 through 4, with the average also to include Friday's inshore score, but will not include the distance race on Thursday, nor the final inshore schedule on Saturday. -- Marcus Hutchinson

Event website: http://2008.medcup.org/home/

* BMW ORACLE Racing said Tuesday that it will compete only at the Marseille stop of this year's MedCup Circuit as the team's number one priority is to now get ready for the next America's Cup.

"This is a great circuit, but we have decided to now put our focus very firmly on getting ready for the America's Cup," said team skipper Russell Coutts. "We are pleased we will still have a number of our sailing team continuing on the TP circuit with Artemis. "And meanwhile we look forward to a great regatta here in Marseille this week against this highly competitive fleet."

Competing for the City of Marseille Trophy, USA 17 has Larry Ellison at the helm with Russell Coutts calling tactics. James Spithill is the strategist and Michele Ivaldi the navigator.

Another ten BMW ORACLE Racing team members are in Marseille racing with Torbjorn Tornqvist on board the TP 52 Artemis, with John Kostecki calling tactics.

The team is stepping up its multihull training, including more time on its two X-40 catamarans and with the 60-foot trimaran Groupama 2 in Lorient. -- http://www.bmworacleracing.com

RIGGERS - TUNE YOUR CAREER Rig Pro | Southern Spars requires experienced riggers and project managers for servicing yacht rigs in its La Ciotat (France) centre. Working on a variety of projects from superyachts to grand-prix racing yachts, you'll need experience in reading rigging specifications and drawings, fabrication/assembly of fittings, and testing of rigging through to sea-trials. Rig Pro prides itself on providing exceptional customer service so a passion for achieving 'excellence' is essential. Rig Pro is an international rig servicing operation with centres in USA, South Africa, New Zealand, France, and is part of the Southern Spars company.

Please send enquiries to: vincent.patricelli@southernspars.com

VOLVO MELGES 24 WORLDS: COMPETITION HEATS UP AFTER DAY FOUR Porto Cervo, Italy: There was only one race on each course today at the Volvo Melges 24 Worlds, hosted by the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda in Porto Cervo, but what an amazing race it was. For the second day running, the competitors awoke this morning to brilliant sunshine and a fantastic warm Mistral-driven breeze of about 16 knots from the northwest.

The day's initial objective was met: to complete the sixth and final race of the Round Robin series, after which the competitors returned ashore to hear any protests and finalised the split into Gold and Silver Fleets for the remaining races of the series. The Race Committee had also hoped to get the fleet back out on the water in the late afternoon to complete race seven, but a strong, building wind of 22-25 knots with regular gusts of near 30 knots made it impossible.

With six of the possible 12 races now completed and a race discard in play, it all changed at the top of the leader board. Just ten points separate the top four boats, and the spread between first and tenth is only 23 points. Racing on both courses proved incredibly tough and thrillingly close, and spectators clung to the edge of their seats as the teams battled each other and the spectacular conditions.

Overall top ten:

1. Alina Helly Hansen, Luca Valerio Maurizio Abba, ITA, 8 points 2. Pilot Italia, Alberto Bolzan Gianni Catalogna, ITA, 11 3. Uka Uka Racing, Lorenzo Bressani Lorenzo Santini, ITA, 12 4. Blu Moon, Flavio Favini Franco Rossini, SUI, 18 5. Saetta, Nicolo Bianchi Nose Sailing Team Ass. Sport, ITA, 24 6. Marchingenio, Nicola Celon Giorgio Marchi, ITA, 24 7. Full Throttle, Brian Porter Brian Porter, USA, 24 8. Poizon Rouge, Jean Jean-Marc Monnard, SUI, 30 9. Altea, Andrea Racchelli Andrea Racchelli, ITA, 31 10. Brontolo Ab Medica, Matteo Ivaldi Filippo Pacinotti, ITA, 31

http://www.melges24worlds2008.com

ROYAL CORINTHIAN YACHT CLUB VICE ADMIRAL'S CUP The 2008 edition of the Vice Admiral's Cup, hosted by the Royal Corinthian Yacht Club, Cowes, was plagued by lack of wind and as a result racing was only possible on one of the three scheduled days. Four races were the minimum required but unfortunately none of the four fleets participating were able to achieve this and so the series is incomplete.

The regatta opened on Friday 30 May but there wasn't a breath of wind to be found on the Solent. After a day spent checking reports from weather stations and scanning the horizon for any hint of wind the Race Committee were eventually forced to abandon hope and call it a day. Saturday brought an initial postponement but by lunchtime a light sea breeze had materialised and racing got underway on both courses. On the big boat course PRO Bob Milner took the fleet to the Western Solent and was able to run two races in a 10-12 knot breeze.

The Quarter Tonners had a general recall in their excitement to get the first race away after waiting a day and half but this was quickly followed by a new start and Darren Marston's Catch won two races and Chris Frost and Kevin George's Tom Bombadil the third putting them in first and second overall respectively. Newcomer David Tydeman and his recently fitted out Snoopy made a good start to the regatta and finished third overall on the day. The boats returned to the marina around 6.30 pm to enjoy a fish pie and sausage and mash supper at the Royal Corinthian Yacht Club.

In an effort to achieve a series, the X35s and Quarter Tonners went out on Sunday morning to try and find the breeze to squeeze one more race in to achieve a series before the 2.30 pm cut off but to no avail. The big boats didn't leave the marina with event instigator Peter Morton liaising closely with the PRO to make sensible calls on keeping the boats in the dock. Sadly the Vice Admiral's Cups will not be presented this year, although glassware was presented to the overall day winners on Saturday.

Results for Saturday's racing are available at http://www.rcyc.co.uk

WHAT IS AN OLD GAFFER? For centuries, sailing boats have favoured a sail with a spar at the top. Just think of a Viking long ship or even the "Cutty Sark". These are known as "square rigged" ships.

A more handy development is the "fore and aft" rig, where sails run the length of the boat rather than across. These boats can sail closer to the wind than a "square rigger". There are numerous examples of this rig with all sorts of variations. The Thames barge is fore and aft rigged but its mainsail is a spritsail, as is the sail of the little Optimist dinghy in which thousands of youngsters have learned to sail. There is also the lugsail which was very popular with fishing vessels before being supplanted by steam. Although a powerful rig, it is rarely seen in the Solent, with the exception of the little Scows, which are to be seen nipping about locally.

Since the times of King Charles I, yachts and many fishing boats favoured the gaff rig, where the mainsail has a spar at the top (the gaff, hence gaffer), and at the bottom, (the boom).

In the 1920's a new rig (Bermudian) was developed, which has a triangular mainsail with a boom at the bottom only. Yachtsmen were initially reluctant to adopt the "new-fangled" rig despite its simplicity and improved windward performance, but now most yachts and dinghies have this rig. Many Gaffers, however, have been preserved and today they are being built in modern materials.

In 1959 three Gaffer skippers organised their own race in the Solent and did so each year with increasing numbers of entrants, until 1963 when another race was started on the east coast with equal success. The two groups combined to form the Old Gaffers Association which now boasts over 1,400 members in the UK.

http://www.yarmoutholdgaffersfestival.co.uk

PORTOFINO PANTS For a night out with the crew or for racing offshore, these canvas pants are perfect for all activities. This modern, classic, Italian design is also great for crew dress uniforms!

The Portofino Pants are made from 9 oz. brushed, soft cotton canvas. They have a relaxed fit with plain front, hemmed legs, zipper fly, belt loops, two deep side pockets, and two stitched rear-pockets with Velcro closures. They are designed with a double seat for protection and gusseted crotch for full range of motion. The stone colored front and mist gray or khaki back give these pants a unique look.

http://www.camet.com

AN INTERVIEW WITH DEREK HATFIELD Canadian Yachting: Derek, it's been a long and arduous trail to get qualified for the 2008 Vendee Globe around the world single-handed race. You've made steady progress since announcing your intent to carry Canada's colours around the world again, with many milestones. I'm sure it has been up and down, how is it really going?

Derek Hatfield: Well, all the Open 60 skippers respond in the same way when describing the process of entering the Vendee Globe..."the hardest part is getting to the start line". I can certainly attest to this fact - that's for sure. It's been just under five years since finishing the Around Alone. Within a month of finishing that race, Patianne and I decided to build the new Open 60 and see what the team could do against the best single handers in the world.

The build of the open 60 was much more difficult than I ever expected; mainly because of the manpower issues. When you build a state of the art open 60 in carbon and nomex, there are no corners to cut. The construction of the boat is what it is, and takes what it takes. In the end, it cost twice as much as I originally thought because we had to continually bring in new boat builders to keep the project going. It took twice as long as well and by the time we were ready to launch the boat; it was too late to do the Velux 5 Oceans. I wasn't too disappointed by this as I had already done this race around the world in 2002. The V5O is a great race and given the chance, I would do it again.

It's always been my philosophy to pay the expenses for everything as we incur them and not have outstanding bills. Our fundraising efforts were going ok, just not fast enough to keep up with the expenses of the build of the boat. I approached Paul Phelan at the PJ Phelan Sailing Foundation to discuss bridge financing and he agreed to help finance the finishing of the boat. Basically, if it wasn't for Paul, we would have been forced to stop the build until we could raise more money. We are required to pay back the loan after the finish of the Vendee in 2009.

After we launched the Open 60, we were still short on money and I still hadn't ordered a mast yet. I had a great opportunity to buy the spare rotating wing mast from Mike Golding from ECOVER. But I waited too long, basically because I was raising money to pay for it (mast). Finally, we had sufficient funds to pay for it and ship it from England. Two days before it was to be loaded on a ship to Canada, Mike dismasted in the Southern Ocean after rescuing Alex Thomson on Hugo Boss. Of course it made perfect sense that Mike keep the spare mast so I had to find more money to design and order a new one to fit our boat. The design process went on for six months or so and made the program even later. The Vendee Globe has always been the goal so we started right away to get ourselves qualified for this race. There have been a lot of hurdles, mostly of the financial kind and we have been to the brink of total financial collapse a number of times but in the end, we have always been able to find the money to move forward.

I'll share all the nitty gritty details and the many intriguing stories of the build and the constant hunt for money in the Spirit of Canada book that I will be writing after we finish the Vendee Globe next March.

The full interview at http://www.cymagazine.ca/index.php/Home-Page-Main/Countdown-to-2008-Vendee-Globe.html

http://spiritofcanada.net

SHORT TACKS * Pete Goss has set a launch date for his 37ft (11.3m) wooden lugger, Spirit of Mystery, covered in the magazine's news section (CB236). The launch, on 21 June, will be at 5pm with celebrations carrying on into the long summer night. The event, at Millbrook Boatyard, Torpoint, in south east Cornwall, is open to all. Goss plans to sail the boat, with crew, to Australia this October, in a reenactment voyage in the wake of seven Cornishmen, who, in 1854, sailed to Australia to try their hands in the gold rush. -- Steffan Meyric Hughes, Classic Boat, http://www.classicboat.co.uk/auto/newsdesk/20080504140200cbnews.html

* There will be a meeting at the Island Sailing Club on Saturday, 7th June at 18:00 to finalise the 2008 racing programme for the newly formed Division. Class Captain Mark Hall, Class Secretary Tina Scott and Cowes Divisional Organiser Jeremy Field will be attending. Everyone with an interest in the XOD Class is very welcome to attend. -- Eddie Mays

* Northern Divers (Eng) Ltd have been approached to provide diving services with the lifting and moving of the UB38. The First World War German submarine currently lies in 27-34m of water in the English Channel. The need to move UB38 comes from the amount of deep drafted vessels moving over it.

The operations will be conducted from the heavy lift barge `Norma` and will initially start with a detailed diving inspection of the boat to determine its condition and position on the seabed. From this survey the lift plan will be formulated.

The lifting will consist of passing wire strops under the U-Boat and connecting them to spreader beams on the port and starboard side. Onto these beams the main lift wires will be connected from the lift barge. Once all rigging is completed UB38 will be lifted approximately 3-4m clear of the seabed, then carefully towed two miles to its new resting place. Once in position, it will be lowered back onto the seabed and the lifting wires will be disconnected. -- http://www.northerndivers.co.uk/UB38.html

For more information: http://uboat.net

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR - editor@scuttlebutteurope.com Letters are limited to 350 words. No personal attacks are permitted. We do require your name but your email address will not be published without your permission.

* From Sebastien Destremau: Although even Alinghi has acknowledged errors in their protocol due to a 'condescending attitude', it is common knowledge that at one moment of time, ACM/Alinghi had 13 challengers subscribing to the Protocol and to the AC90 Rule, the Competition rules and the Event regulations which they contributed to write. That day, they had a city contract, potential sponsors, etc. Furthermore they invited BMWOracle to observe the committee that was writing the AC90's rules. Only one brake: BMWO. What more could Alinghi do to demonstrate their 'fair-play' attitude!

Now, I agree that 'should Alinghi have accepted the compromise offered by BMWO last year..." however how does one manage a valid contender who has no intention of entering the competition? Each change that Alinghi and the other Challengers accommodated at BMWO's request/demand, including Protocol changes and AC90's displacement, BMWOracle wanted even more. Fact is they never had the genuin intention to enter and they only gained some momentum in the public opinion's race thanks to a masterful PR strategy! Fortunately the tide is turning in this department too!

So going back to the early days of the Protocol is wrong, and when John Harwood-Bee says: "That the nonsense should have been accepted just for the benefit of keeping the crews employed" he's out of his sense. What he called a non sense has been supported by 13 teams in addition to the Defender.

Isn't it wiser to think that BMWO had either to enter or to lay flat and let those who wanted doing it?

Anyway, in my books, a team that is able to spend 1.5 million euros on a TP52 launched a couple of weeks ago only to be ditched this week or design and construct a multi million dollar multihull months before even becoming The AC Challenger, has obviously more money than sense!

* From Suzie Marwood: So John Harwood-Bee thinks that Valencia was a "run down, second rate city" before the AC came to visit?!?!? Valencia is and was a beautiful, gracious city (with dodgy bits - just like 99.9% of cities in the world) I don't know where he hails from, but presumably it's better than somewhere with stunning architecture, both ancient and very, very modern, surrounded by 75,000 hectares of vinyards and long, sandy beaches, that grows the world's best rice for the world's best Paellas, that hosts both the magnificent Las Fallas festival and La Tomatina, the tomato fight festival, a fabulous market, an amazing proliferation of fancy dress shops, the warmest, most friendly people I've ever come across, and a marvellous climate. What other city, given the opportunity to turn it's dried up river bed into a motorway, elected instead to turn it into elegant public gardens? The AC may come and/or go, but Valencia will always be a fabulous city.

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THE LAST WORD The difference between burlesque and the newspapers is that the former never pretended to be performing a public service by exposure. -- I. F. Stone

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