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SCUTTLEBUTT EUROPE #1492 - 22 APRIL

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

FORTISSIMO They hoped for a quiet beginning but Mother Nature loves to thwart forecasts. Far from the dreams of getting some rest on their first night, the 26 teams in the Transat AG2R had a very rough first night with winds from the Northwest at 30 to 35 knots. The ride under spinnaker through the Bay of Biscay tested all the sailors and boats.

After 11 hours the competitors had sailed nearly 200 miles, with average speeds of 13-14 knots and decks constantly swept by waves. Under a full moon the teams spent their first sleepless night, and the hours to come will give little respite. Tuesday is going to be a decisive day.

Taking a radical position to the west on Gedimat are Armel Tripon and Dominic Vittet; given the skills of these two navigators it's obvious that they did not take this radical option by chance. They remained quiet during the midday radio session. Psychological warfare?

* Phil Sharp and David Krizek have put in a good first night under clear skies and full moon, making speedy progress and climbing up from 17th yesterday evening to 10th at Monday morning's 0500 position report, only 5 miles behind the race leaders. The pair are currently reaching in 20+ knots of breeze making speeds of up to 14 knots though this will slow as the wind gradually moves forward and strengthens as the approach Cape Finistere. -- http://www.philsharpracing.com

Top ten at 05:00 22/04/2008:

1. Financo - Nicolas Troussel / Christopher Pratt, 3446.7 to finish 2. Cercle Vert - Gildas Morvan / Jean Le Cam, .8 3. Athema - Erwan Tabarly / Vincent Biarnes, .8 4. Les Mousquetaires - Bertrand de Broc / Gwen Riou, 1.1 5. Snef Et Cliptol Sport, Laurent Pellecuer / Jean Paul Mouren, 3.5 6. Suzuki Automobiles - Thierry Cabagny / Corentin Douguet, 3.7 7. Defi Mousquetaires - Thomas Rouxel / Erwan Israel, 4.0 8. Lenzele - Franck Gal / Erwan Le Roux, 5.2 9. Banque Populaire - Jenanne Gregoire / Nicolas Lunvan, 5.5 10. Concarneau St. Barth - Eric Person / Miguel Danet, 6.0

http://www.transat-ag2r.com

MISTRAL LIFTS FAVOURITES TO THE TOP The second day of racing in the 40th Semaine Olympique Francaise in Hyeres was blessed with ideal racing conditions and sunshine. The clouds and rain cleared quickly by mid-morning with the apparition of a steady 15 to 20 knots Mistral.

The class favourites claimed the top positions in most events with wind lovers making again the most of the day.

It was a faultless day for Nick Thompson (GBR) and Australians, Tom Slingsby and Sarah Blanck in the Laser classes.

2004 ISAF Youth World Champion, Nick Thompson has added two more bullets to his impressive score to take the lead in the 156 boats Laser fleet. Despite three race victories, World Champion and World #1 Tom Slingsby has to count an OCS from Monday’s second race and is recorded in 29th position overall. He should come back to the score when a race is discarded after Tuesday racing.

Sarah Blanck (AUS) is the new leader in the Laser radial. Coached by ex-Laser sailor Sydney Bronze medallist, Michael Blackburn, Blanck has enjoyed the breezy conditions with a total of three victories after two bullets today. She also gained average points on Monday’s second race, converted in two points.

Sofia Keplaka is the best ranked Polish sailor. She is leading the RS:X women with a 16 points advance on Ling Li (CHN) after a first and third places in the Mistral.

In the Men’s division, Przemyslaw Miarczynski scored a first and second to place 4th overall. The top three in the rankings collected similar results with the fight for selection intensifying between Casper Bouman leading the fleet and his direct opponent, Dorian van Rijssel by only one point. Swiss Richard Stauffacher is placed 4th.

While the Polish team of Patryk Piasecki and Kacper Zieminski realised the best scores with a first and a second in the 470 men fleet, the top placing goes to Team Skandia GBR Olympic representatives Nick Rogers and Joe Glandfield. The Athens Silver medallists despite having their mind, fitness and equipment tuned to Qingdao light weather have not forgotten how to perform in the breeze.

The 49er events saw another Polish victory with Marcin Czajkowski and Krysztof Kierkowski in 4th position. -- Corinne McKenzie

http://sof.ffvoile.net

BRAZIL STARTS 2008 WORLD TOUR SEASON Anticipation runs high today for tomorrow’s start of the Brasil Sailing Cup in Vitoria, Brazil, the first event of nine of the 2008 World Match Racing Tour (WMRT) season. As with all WMRT events, an impressive slate of 12 skippers and their crews representing America’s Cup teams, top-ranked positions on the ISAF Match Race Ranking List, and up-and-coming aspirants who have won qualifying events are all poised for battling each other for their share of WMRT ranking points and a piece of the US$150,000 prize money purse.

The venue is a spectacular amphitheater of a small bay enclosed by a long strand of beach in the pre-start area, with a narrow passage at the bay’s entrance framed by two rocky headlands that protrude into the South Atlantic Ocean.

Several veterans of America’s Cup teams are here who want to keep their skills honed while the legal battle continues between Alinghi and Oracle Racing, and two are returning from last year’s contest. These include Paolo Cian (ITA), of Team Shosholoza and Magnus Holmberg (SWE), of Victory Challenge, who finished third and fourth respectively. New to Vitoria is Mattias Rahm (SWE) also of Victory Challenge, and Adam Minoprio (NZL), of Emirates Team New Zealand.

Also returning to Vitoria to begin accumulating the points necessary to hold on to his top-ranked position on the WMRT ranking list is reigning World Champion Ian Williams (GBR) of Team Pindar. Challenging him will be Bjorn Hansen (SWE) and his Alandia Sailing Team, who is ranked 4th on the WMRT ranking list.

Racing starts tomorrow at 1000 BRT (GMT-3H) with the start of single round robin competition among Groups A and B in Stage 1. -- Yvonne Reid

Teams Ian Williams (GBR) Team Pindar Paolo Cian (ITA) Team Shosholoza Magnus Holmberg (SWE) Victory Challenge Adam Minoprio (NZL) Emirates Team New Zealand Bjorn Hansen (SWE) Team Apport.net Daniel Glomb (BRA) Team Bravissimo Torvar Mirsky (AUS) Mirsky Racing Team Peter Wibroe (DEN) Team Wibroe Pierre Morvan (FRA) Extreme Team Morbihan Mattias Rahm (SWE) Stena Bulk Sailing Team

http://www.worldmatchracingtour.com

B&G DECKMAN V9 WITH NEW FEATURES NOW AVAILABLE Leading race instrumentation manufacturer B&G has released the latest version of Deckman, its renowned tactical navigation software. Version 9 now allows the overlay of AIS data, allowing the navigator to view the position, course and speed of all leisure and commercial craft within range equipped with class A and B transceivers, and also includes an enhanced graphics engine with advanced layline options, including shaded limit layline sectors. Used by tacticians on sports boats and VOR contenders alike, Deckman is the undisputed leader in tactical navigation software.

Visit http://www.bandg.com or your local dealer for more information.

TALISKER TALES Pete Goss has teamed up with Talisker Single Malt Scotch whisky to raise money for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), the charity that saves lives at sea. Goss will be participating in a series of events called 'Talisker Tales' at sailing clubs across the UK. He will be joined by crew members from the RNLI to tell their tales from the sea. All funds raised on the evening will go directly to the RNLI.

'Talisker Tales' is part of a formal partnership between Talisker and the RNLI recently announced at the London Boat Show. The 'Talisker Tales' events will be small and intimate as the audience will be invited to gather round with a dram of whisky and share their tales. People will also have the opportunity to expand their whisky knowledge with a tasting of Talisker.

Pete Goss said: "Talisker Tales is a wonderful opportunity to support the RNLI. I have first hand experience of the RNLI as I was once rescued off the coast of the Scilly Isles whilst aboard Team Phillips, but if you want to hear more you'll have to come to one of the Talisker Tales evenings."

The first 'Talisker Tales' event took place at the Little Ship Club, London (18th April). Further events are to be held at the Royal Motor Yacht Club, Poole (2nd May) and the Talisker distillery on Skye following the Oban to Talisker leg of the Classic Malts Cruise (17th July). For further details visit http://www.taliskerwhisky.com

>From Yachting Monthly: http://www.ybw.com/auto/newsdesk/20080321145329ymnews.html

16-YEAR OLD TO CIRCLE THE GLOBE Californian sailor Zac Sunderland will set off from California next month with the aim of becoming the youngest person to circumnavigate the globe singlehanded.

Zac, 16, who already has 15, 000 miles under his belt, has recently purchased an Islander 36 which he is currently fitting out. He has so far replaced the running and standing rigging, chainplates, stanchions and lifelines, and has fitted new keel bolts and a custom fiberglass hard dodger.

The US website Latitude 38 is reporting that another 16 year old, Josh Clark from Panama, is planning a similar trip - meaning that Sunderland may have a race on his hands! -- Yachting Monthly, http://www.ybw.com

Keep up with his progress at http://ZacSunderland.com

See also: http://www.latitude38.com/lectronic/lectronicday.lasso?date 08-04-11&dayid=99#Story2

RKJ HEADS RADIO SOLENT BOATING PROGRAMME Sir Robin Knox-Johnston is heading up the new Radio Solent H2O show that will be broadcast every Friday night from 19.00 to 20.00. Working alongside RKJ will be powerboat champion Shelley Jory, bringing listeners special reports from around the region.

Radio Solent says the H2O show - broadcast to Hampshire and Dorset - will offer listeners all they need to know whether they spend their time on the water or in it, on a Friday night when they are planning their weekend.

The show will include weather forecasts, sporting events, What’s On information and other snippets like port traffic movements and, in a first for BBC Radio Solent, the show will also be available as a weekly podcast, at http://bbc.co.uk/hampshire and http://bbc.co.uk/dorset

Listeners will be able to download highlights of the show to their computer or MP3 player and listen whenever they want to. The H2O show will be added to the BBC’s existing portfolio of podcasts available at http://bbc.co.uk/podcasts

The H2O Show with Sir Robin Knox-Johnston and Shelley Jory started last Friday, 18 April, at 19.00 on BBC Radio Solent 96.1 & 103.8FM http://www.boatingbusiness.com

GOLDEN AGE OF BRITISH SAILING There was Robert Carlyle, Tom Wilkinson and Co doing the Full Monty. Then Helen Mirren, Celia Imray and Co fronting up in Dinner Ladies and now...

Well, so many people have stripped and posed for good causes that the, er, novelty has worn off.

Even so, meet Britain's Beijing-bound sailors from Skandia Team GBR. They previously got down to bare essentials prior to the Athens Games when KOS shot the images to raise money for Sail for Gold, the charity that helps put money into the hands of the sailors who in 2000 and 2004 made sailing Britain's most successful Olympic sport.

This time, nine hours of body panting by Phyllis Cohen and a 19-hour shoot was needed by Ranald Mackechnie to create the golden aura.

Notice how sports science has sculpted the sailors' bodies to the specific weight and musculature of the particular boats they sail. At one extreme there is Bryony Shaw. The RS:X windsurfer is probably the most aerobic of any Olympic discipline in any sport, requiring super fit arms and shoulders but the lightest possible body mass.

At the other end of the scale is Iain Percy, built like Ben Ainslie.

Not surprisingly they all eat different foods. It must be the cruellest part of Olympic sailing to live in the same base in Qingdao with Percy wolfing down steak and chips whilst the lightweights nibble at steamed fish and today's variation on the pasta theme. -- Excerpt from Tim Jeffery's blog:

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/sport/timjeffery/april08/goldenageofbritishsailing.htm

CHINESE YACHTS AT THE NAVAL COLLEGE GRAND PRIX The Naval College Grand Prix is fast approaching. In two weeks time, the start of 3 rounds of races off Brest, north-west Brittany, will signal the largest gathering of Sportsboats in Europe. 140 ‘latest generation’ yachts and 600 racers are expected in the Naval College with this year's star guest a Chinese boat, the Longtze Premier.

The Longtze Premier is a sportsboat designed by "China Team” who participated in the 32nd America’s Cup. Luc Gellusseau explains: “When we raced the Cup under the colours of China, the idea was to become involved in the development of sailing in China, by enabling the Chinese to sail at the top level as well including them in the construction of the yachts. As a result, we decided to manufacture a Sportsboat: the Longtze Premier. It was built entirely in China in a yard more familiar with the construction of dinghies.”

The upshot of this was a yacht measuring 6m80 long and 2m55 wide, a hull which is a highly reminiscent of the 505, rich in sensations at 6 to 7 knots, 4 or 5 crew required to handle it. 5 craft will attend the Naval College Grand Prix for their first ever presentation and sail in Europe. Mr Andre Annick, President of the Royal Belgium Sailing Club, Mr Koos Van Den Heuvel, Chairman of the CINMAR B.V. company, Seb Audigane, patron of the seventh edition of the GPEN (Naval College Grand Prix), Luc Gellusseau and Xavier Lesquen, China Team, Patrick Godeau and actor Charles Berling will be at the controls of these fine new boats. Belgian, Dutch, Swiss, British and Spanish racers will further boost the wealth of national participants on the pontoons of the Club Ailee, evidence of the continuing internationalisation of the event.

The series attending the GPEN: 747 OD, Melges 24, J80, Mumm 30, Open 750, Mach 650, Karver 650, Open 650, Open 570, Longtze Premier -- Translated by Kate Jennings

http://www.gpen.ecole-navale.fr

KEN RYAN INDUCTED INTO IRISH SAILING ASSOCIATION HALL OF FAME Ken Ryan, ISAF Vice-President from 1998-2004 and the 2006 recipient of the ISAF Beppe Croce Trophy, has been inducted into the Irish Sailing Association (ISA) Hall of Fame.

In the late 1970s there were no International Juries, just Protest Committees and with the Moscow Olympic Games (1980) approaching sailing was the only sport that did not have international judges or referees, a situation that need to be immediately addressed. Ken as Vice-Chairman of the ISAF Racing Rules Committee was charged with the development of an International Judges Programme to select and certify international judges in time for the Moscow Games.

Ken’s initial responsibility for Judges, expanded to Umpires, Measurers and Race Officers and at the time of his retirement from ISAF there were over a thousand certified Race Officials.

>From 1998 to 2004 Ken held the post of an ISAF Vice-President. Although his main focus during his 36 years as an international volunteer was the ISAF Race Officials Programme, he was also active in many other areas including Chairman of the International Judges Sub-Committee, from 1980 through until 1996.

In all Ken has attended nine Olympic Games in one capacity or another. From his first Games in 1972 as a member of the Irish team, he has attend every Olympics since, initially as chef de mission and more recently as an ISAF Judge and Olympic Jury Member.

The ISA Hall of Fame is an award presented to an ISA member who has made a significant contribution to the sport of sailing during their lifetime.

Irish Sailing Association - http://www.sailing.ie

THE LAST WORD The cure for anything is salt water - sweat, tears, or the sea. -- Isak Dinesen

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