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The
2005 Nelson Mandela Bay
Isuzu Week got off to a
windy start in Port Elizabeth on Sunday.
In fact it was too windy. Gusts of 35 plus knots from the southwest and
an average wind speed that couldn’t have been much less than 30 knots meant
that survival was the order of the day. That really isn’t any way to go yacht
racing, especially on the first day of a regatta when the championship classes,
J22s and Hobie 16s aren’t racing, and the majority of the Class 1, 2 and 3
fleets are more cruising than racing orientated boats and sailors. The net
result is that while some made it around the course most didn’t event start, of
those who did few finished, and the damage count was huge. So, one race sailed
and more than half the fleet already have their discard! Now I really don’t
want to be seen to be slagging off the race management, but I think that when
things are wrong someone has to say so and I am. The race management decision that
led to the first race of NMBI Week being sailed was a very bad one. Bad for the
regatta this year, bad for many competitors final result, not to mention their
cost of competing and bad for next year’s organising committee when they try to
garner entries for the 2006 event. In an event such as this regatta organisers
should be doing everything possible to get as many boats and sailors on the
water and once they are there ensure that they have as good a time as possible.
Regattas should be run for the majority of competitors. Yesterday that didn’t
happen and it was only a very small minority that had a good time. Really, who
is that good for? Today, Monday, the wind was lighter from the word go but the
race committee was considerably more circumspect in their decision making,
choosing to keep the keelers in the harbour while they assessed the wind that
the harbour master tells me didn’t get above 23 knots today! Meanwhile the
Hobie 16s got out on time and looked to be having some excellent racing this morning.
Still, after yesterday’s conditions one cant fault them for their more cautious
approach this morning. On the up side the regatta has attracted a fairly good
fleet. Out on the bay this afternoon the fleets, Hobies and keelers on separate
courses, made a spectacular sight with weather marks placed relatively close to
the shore. Hopefully that’s what we get more of for the rest of the week! I
don’t have the full results just yet but from what I saw yesterday Warrior
cleaned up in Class 1 while the ABYC’s Lipton Cup entry, Stanley, turned in an
excellent performance to win Class 2 by a massive margin. The regatta continues
until Friday and we will endeavour to post the results on the Smooth Sailing
web site just as soon as they are made available to us!
“Twenty One years ago on 26 April, the worst yachting tragedy ever to occur in this country saw a fleet of 33 yachts take a massive pounding, and five lives being lost when the yacht Rubicon went down with all hands. Another five yachts were lost. For many crew it was a life- changing experience.
In memory of those who perished and suffered in that fatal storm, the Point Yacht Club is organising a function on Tuesday evening, 26 April, for all crew who competed in that race. It’s not a memorial service, nor a celebration, but rather a chance for sailors to get together and reacquaint themselves with old friends, the terror of the storm, and remember those who perished on that fatal night.
Storms are common along our coast, and yachtsmen are always prepared for them, but that night’s storm was particularly severe as it quickly whipped up massive seas which in the end proved fatal for some. The very strong South Westerly wind pushing against the fast south-flowing Agulhas Current caused massive seas - estimated at the height of the storm to be way taller than the masts of the competing yachts, was the main cause. The massive waves coupled with the 60- plus knot winds, devastated the fleet.
Some yachts were dismasted, others were completely rolled by the massive force of the huge waves and sunk, while one ran aground and was wrecked on the Wild Coast.
But thanks to the experience of the skippers and competing crews plus the stringent safety measures in place for the race, just one yacht perished with all hands. Rubicon was skippered by Sigi Eicholz of East London,. one of the country’s most experienced ocean racing sailors. To this day there has never been a trace of the boat or any equipment, despite lengthy sea and air searches.
With crews scattered around
the world, and others having hung up their sea boots after that race, the Point
Yacht Club should be abuzz on Tuesday 26 April when that fatal race will be
remembered.”
The eyes of the sailing world were focussed on South Africa on Friday
when the hull of the world's first fully constructed new
generation V5.0 America's Cup class yacht - Shosholoza RSA 83 - was revealed for the first
time. Ultra hi-tech with structural features that evolved from leading edge
designs incorporating aerospace technology and research similar to that used in
both aircraft and Formula One racing cars, it is the first America's Cup class
yacht to be designed and built in South Africa. It is also the first in the
world to be purpose designed and fully constructed to meet the new Version 5.0
rule of the 2007 America's Cup. The new V5.0 boats will weigh 24 tons - one ton
lighter than the 2003-generation boats, have a deeper keel, and carry more sail
area with spinnakers 8 percent bigger - all making the boat faster. The crew number has increased by an extra
man to 17, plus an 18th man as a spectator on board. The ultimate aim being to
increase performance and bring more drama and razzmatazz to the racecourse of
the 153-year-old event which is expected to attract a television audience
exceeding 4 billion world-wide. South Africa's huge new hull, was trucked from
a boat yard in Somerset
West near Cape Town to the city's
Royal Cape Yacht Club, the country's official America's Cup challenge club,
where it was formally revealed to the public today during a festive champagne
popping function. Attended by national and city dignitaries, admirals of the SA
Navy, and members of the local sailing community, the function also served as
an official send-off for Team Shosholoza who leave for Europe next month (May)
Team Shosholoza's official chief sponsor is T-Systems, the business customer
brand of Deutsche Telekom.
Mediterranean Shipping Company has sponsored the team since its inception
a year ago. The hull, sporting the distinctive Shosholoza graphics inspired by
Ndebele and Zulu beadwork, was officially unveiled by Mrs Sandra Sarno,wife of
Captain Salvatore Sarno, managing director and the driving force behind Team
Shosholoza. "What you see here today is the first evidence of the
realization of our African Dream for the world's oldest and most prestigious
sporting trophy," said Capt Sarno, who is also chairman of Mediterranean
Shipping Company (MSC) South Africa. "Any nation can enter the America's
Cup but it is only the most technologically advanced countries in the world
that can effectively do so. "Our campaign is not only about sailing, but
rather a perfect opportunity for showcasing South Africa's technology,
incredible human initiative, skills and expertise in a way that few other
international campaigns can," said Capt Sarno. Capt Sarno said this first
new yacht was the result of approximately 15 000 hours of research and design
by a highly skilled and mainly local team led by leading British naval architect,
Jason Ker. This team is comprised of Specialist engineers, fluid dynamicists,
experts in composite structures and other software experts who in many cases
were previously involved in the South African aerospace industry. The mainly
local build team led by Tony Evans and Petri Vainio put in around 25 000 hours
of build time since the November 2004 start of construction, creating the first
truly advanced yacht structure to be built in Africa. High security in both the
Team Shosholoza design office and boat yard
was strictly enforced to avoid
information leaks on the advanced "oven baked" construction
techniques and the unique design aspects during the six-month build period.
Designer Jason Ker has pointed out that while the team was less than 10% of the
way through its long-term hull research phase when construction started, this
first yacht does give the team a great starting point from which to develop
their second new and final race-yacht which will be used in the Americas Cup
qualifying series in 2007. The hull will leave Cape Town for Valencia, Spain
tonight (Friday) aboard an MSC container ship. She will be fully assembled and
fitted with her keel and mast in Valencia where she will be officially launched
as yacht Shosholoza RSA 83 in Mediterranean waters on May 19. The Commodore of
Royal Cape Yacht Club, Mr Russell Vollmer wished the team well for the upcoming
six 2005 Louis Vuitton Acts or pre-America's Cup regattas which will be raced
in Spain, Sweden and Sicily this year. Messages of support were also given by
Admiral Koos Louw of the SA Navy and Mr Wolfgang Jakob, CEO of T-Systems, South
Africa, the business customer brand of Deutsche Telekom and the official chief
sponsors of Team Shosholoza.
For
those who subscribe the pay web site, www.thedailysail.com, published and excellent interview with Shosholoza Designer Jason Ker on
Monday 25 April. In the interview Ker discusses the new boat and the
intricacies of designing something so complex from a clean sheet of paper as
well as his views on what will be fast and what not in the next generation of
Americas Cup class boats.
Malcolm Osborne sent us the following report on the recent Benoni Sailing Club Trophy
that was
sailed at the Pretoria Sailing Club:
“Benoni Sailing Club succeeded in
comfortably retaining their grip on the
prestigious NSA Inter Club Trophy, in a regatta held at PSC. VLC,
PSC, MPYC, Wits and BSC entered teams
of one Laser, Laser II and Sprog each. 7 races were held over two days,
although conditons improved on Sunday. In Laser II, it was apparent that Ivan
Gibbons (BSC) was in a different class - winning 6 of the races. In Laser, it
was also BSC's Grant Caroline who mastered the conditions the best, emerging
the winner in this class. In the Sprog fleet, it was Wits' Graeme Willcox who
was consistently up front. He was
however closely chased by PSC's Bronwen Klaas and BSC's Leon de Raay, who tied
on points for 2nd spot in this class. Overall team performance produces the
final result. Here, it was once again
Benoni Sailing Club who comfortably retained the NSA Interclub Trophy, with a
clear margin of points. PSC narrowly secured 2nd place by one point over Wits
Y.C. - this result was decided by a protest decision.”
For the Full Results
visit the Smooth Sailing Racing Reports web page.
The Notice of Race for the 2005 MSC Regatta that is set to take place from the 2nd
to the 8th of July in Durban was recently posted on the Smooth
Sailing web site. Most readers will know that this is one of the best regattas
on the national calendar with Durban offering fantastic winter sailing
conditions. It is also the only regatta in the country that offers completely
free shipping. That’s right, no wharfage, crane and transport costs, completely
free!! All you have to do is get your boat to the designated harbour or
container loading area in your coastal town and it will be shipped to Durban,
transported to the harbour and launched free of charge! What more could one ask
for? For those who don’t have the good fortune to live by the sea and have to
trail their yachts more than 150kms to Durban a generous travel allowance is
available. And making life even easier, once you get to Durban for the regatta
itself, all competitors from outside of KZN will be served a complimentary
breakfast each day of the event. Sailors who want to take advantage of the
shipping offer however need to move fast. The Point Yacht Club needs to know by
the 1st of May which boats need to be shipped and from where so that
the shipping arrangements, which are never easy for the regatta organisers, can
be made. Full details of the event including all the shipping information can
be found on the Notice of Regatta at www.smoothsailing.co.za/msc05nor.pdf.
I am pleased to say that despite some
serious alarm bells ringing recently the Notice of Race for the 2005 Lipton Challenge Cup arrived in my inbox last week. The NOR, along
with all the other regatta documentation, has been posted on the Smooth Sailing Notices of Race web page.
Our Notices of Race page on the Smooth Sailing has all the NOR’s available to us. If you
have a regatta coming up and would like to make the NOR available online then
e-mail it to hethcot@iafrica.com and it will be posted and
listed in this newsletter. To get your copy simply click on the name of the
regatta you are interested in below:
|
Regatta |
Venue |
Dates |
|
Various KZN Clubs |
October 2004 to July 2005 |
|
|
Hermanus Yacht Club |
6 to 8 May |
|
|
Dar Es Salaam Yacht Club |
4 & 5 June |
|
|
Point Yacht Club |
2 to 8 July |
|
|
Table Bay, Cape Town |
20 to 26 August |
|
|
Grand Baie & Royal Natal
Yacht Clubs |
10 September |
|
|
Henley Midmar Yacht Club |
24 to 27 September |
|
|
Henley Midmar Yacht Club |
22 & 23 October |
|
|
Hobie Beach, Port Elizabeth |
25 October to 4 November 2005 |
|
|
Royal Cape Yacht Club |
4 January 2006 |
The Smooth Sailing Classifieds are a free service for private advertisers only. This service is not available to any commercial enterprise or service provider. To place an ad, e-mail the details to andrew@smoothsailing.co.za.
FOR SALE
Posted:
06/04/05
Contessa 35
Built by
Jeremy Rogers
As
"Bootlicker" and won a Fastnet race (1975)
Currently named "Odyssey".
Good sails.
Engine needs some work.
US $34,900-00
Located in
Luperon Bay in the Dominican Republic.
Contact: Gil
McWhirter
E-Mail: mcwhirtergil@gmail.com
Posted:
06/04/05
Sail # 90576
In Durban
Excellent condition on galvanised
trailer
Original spinnaker and pole,
competitive boat ready to race.
Contact: Jon Marshall
E-Mail: jon@enviroconsult.co.za
Ready to race
or just sail.
Sail No:
41239.
Recently
refurbished by Sailing Inc and in excellent condition.
New Sheets
and Trampoline.
Mast is
straight and sealed, hulls are solid with no hull rot.
On a licensed
roadworthy trailer with a spare tyre, tailboard and large sail tube.
Extras
Asking R12
000
Contact:
Gavin Hayhurst
Mobile:
0832120135
E-mail: gavinh@mtn.co.za
Sail No. 12560
Narrow Hull
Built 1980
Excellent
condition, varnished deck, white hull
Proctor Mast
and Spinnaker Pole
With:
Measurement Certificate, 2 x Full Suites of Sails,
Dolly and Boat
Cover
R7 000-00
Contact: Dennis
Cell:082 908
0998
Posted:
29/03/05
New jib.
Reasonable condition with dolly.
Johannesburg region
R 4500.00
Contact Sakkie
Cell: 083 461 2143
Good
condition. In regular use.
R5 000-00
Or
Swap for
Laser in good condition
Make an offer
Cape Town
area
Contact:
Lance McIntosh
Phone:
021-785 5332
Cell: 084 426
3475
GRP Construction
90% Complete
Inventory available on request
R450 000-00
Contact: Chris
Cell: 083 702 2057
Mainsail,boom,rudders,trampoline frame
Rigging,mast(bent),no hulls.
Tel: 082 379 3467
Posted: 21/03/05
Marine Ply & Fibreglass Hull
2 Masts, 3 Sets of Sails
What Offers
Contact: Steve Pender
Posted: 23/02/05
Contact: Marius Mans
E-Mail: mariusm@jse.co.za
Including Tiller
Ideally Second Hand
Contact: Marty Russell
E-Mail: martruss@mailweb.co.za
Ready to Sail
Contact: Andy Radford
Cell: 082 882 0312
Posted: 29/03/05
Sonnet
Good Condition
Will Swap for Fireball
Advertised Above
In decent
condition
Under R6
000-00.
Must have road
trailer
Eastern Cape
Contact: Kyle
MacLachlan
E-Mail: 08kylem@kc.ecape.school.za
Cell: 082 923
7785
Posted: 21/03/05
Need to transport yacht from Vaaldam to
Centurion.
Contact: Paul Botha
Cell: 0824523081
Posted: 02/03/05
Andrew Heathcote
Mobile: +27 (0) 83 783 8805
This newsletter is
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Please note that the views
contained in this newsletter are those of the authors concerned and in no way
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