March 12, 2002

By Grzegorz | March 12, 2002

Big Daddy Turns 20

March 12 – Richmond

Richmond Yacht Club’s Big Daddy Regatta
celebrated 20 years of racing for fun last weekend, with two
standard races Saturday, a pursuit race on Sunday, and a spring
break-themed party in between.

Saturday’s top finishers were:

FLEET I (158 and less) – 1) Swiftsure
II, Schumacher 54, Sy Kleinman, 2 points; 2) Astra, Farr 40,
Mary Coleman, 5; 3) Bullseye, N/M 49, Bob Garvie, 6. (5 boats)

FLEET II – 1) Q, Schumacher 40, Glenn Isaacson,
3 points; 2) Bodacious, Farr One Ton, John Clauser, 4; 3) Wired,
Beneteau 40.7, Rob Weed, 5. (5 boats)

FLEET III (72-93) – 1) Elan, Express 37,
Bill Riess, 3 points; 2) Larrikin, J/105, Stuart Taylor, 5; 3)
Petard, Farr 36, Keith Buck, 7; 4) Oni, Beneteau First 36.5,
Peter Krueger, 10. (7 boats)

J/35 – 1) Fast Lane, John Wimer, 4
points; 2) Jarlen, Bob Bloom, 5; 3) Kiri, Bob George, 7; 4) Raptor,
Jim Hoey, 8. (9 boats)

99ers – 1) Run Wild, Olson 30, Dale
Scroggin, 3 points; 2) Razzberries, Olson 34, Bruce & Lina
Nesbit, 5; 3) Mischief, Soverel 33, Jeff McCord, 7; 4) Goldilocks,
Morgan 36, Noble Griswold, 8. (10 boats)

SF 30s – 1) Jeannette, Tartan Ten,
Hnery King, 4 points; 2) (tie) Ixxis, Olson 911-S, Ed Durbin,
and Takeoff, Laser 28, Joan Bryne, 5; 4) Wishful Thinking, Tartan
Ten, Lester Gee, 6; 5) Enigma, Capo 30 mod., Bob Hultman, 11.
(11 boats)

WYLIECAT 30, etc. – 1) Silkye, WylieCat
30, John & Rina Skinner, 4 points; 2) El Gavilan, Hawkfarm,
Jocelyn Nash, 5; 3) Uno, WylieCat 30, Steve Wonner, 7; 4) Fast
Freight, Newport 30, Bob Harford, 10. (9 boats)

ANTRIM 27 – 1) Nemesis, Martson/Shortman,
3 points; 2) Always Friday, John Liebenberg, 4; 3) Kind of Blue,
Steve Saperstein, 5. (6 boats)

EXPRESS 27 – 1) Exocet, Jason Crowson,
3 points; 2) Baffet, Tom Baffico/Forest Baskett, 5; 3) El Raton,
Ray Lotto, 6; 4) Abigail Morgan, Ron Kell, 10; 5) Swamp Donkey,
Doug Robbins, 10. (13 boats)

OLSON 25, etc. – 1) Bewitched, Merit
25, Laraine Salmon, 5 points; 2) Barking Dog, Olson 25, Jeff
Kroeber, 5; 3) Csardas, Moore 24, Torben Bentson, 6. (7 boats)

WYLIE WABBIT – 1) Mr. McGregor, Kim
Desenberg/John Groen, 3 points; 2) Kwazy, Colin Moore, 3; 3)
Furrari, Pete & Angie Rowland, 7. (8 boats)

Sunday’s pursuit race wasn’t the usual
around Alcatraz and Angel Island course, but rather a double
star shape that included lots of reaching in a strong ebb. And
no, you didn’t get to pick which direction to go!

Saturday’s racing finished before
the rain started.
Photos Latitude/Rob

PURSUIT RACE – 1) Bullseye, N/M 50,
Bob Garvie; 2) Mr. McGregor, Wabbit, Kim Desenberg/John Groen;
3) The White Boat, Wabbit, Andy Hamilton; 4) Kwazy, Wabbit, Colin
Moore; 5) Run Wild, Olson 30, Dale Scroggin; 6) Fast Lane, J/25,
John Wimer; 7) Silkye, WylieCat 30, John Skinner; 8) Sleeping
Dragon, Hobie 33, Mark & Susan Halman; 9) Maximus, Express
27, Josh Grass; 10) Always Friday, Antrim 27, John Liebenberg.
(72 boats)

Complete results are available at www.richmondyc.org/racing/results/big_daddy/bd_results.html
and be sure to check out our feature article with more photos
in the April issue of Latitude
38.

Orange
Meets St. Helena

March 12 – Atlantic Ocean

As of this morning (Tuesday), the maxi
catamaran Orange had notched up 531 miles in 24 hours
in her attempt on the Jules Verne around-the-world record. Their
average speed was somewhat slowed by a broken padeye. That failure
has been taken care of, but the crew is wary of the padeyes and
is making constant checks, climbing the mast several times a
day. Besides keeping an eye on potential hardware problems, they
are now concentrating on the St. Helena High Pressure Zone, sailing
at 20-22 knots off the coast of Brazil.

Gilles Chiorri reports from onboard, “We
should draw a nice little curve towards the east before sailing
downwind for about 36 hours, finally catching a line-up of low
pressure systems around March 14. We’ll hit the gas to go after
these systems, jump aboard and surf down to 40º/50º
South.”

Skipper Bruno Peyron adds, “We’re
ready for the deep south. In two days we’ll be starting serious
business. There is going to be a lot of deck work to do and everyone
shall have to know how to adapt himself to all types of weather
conditions – keeping in mind that we’ll have to try and ‘cruise’
in 30 to 35 knots of wind. We all are getting ready.”

To beat the record set by Olivier de Kersauson,
Orange must cross the finish line (between the Lizard
Cape Lighthouse in England and Ouessant Island) before May 12
at 23:57:29. At 11 days into her attempt, she is currently 1,308
miles ahead of the record.

For continuous updates on Orange’s
progress, see www.maxicatamaran-orange.com/site/en/index2.cfm.

illbruck Challenge Out of A-Cup

March 12 – Leverkusen, Germany

illbruck Challenge, Germany’s professional
sailing team and leader of the Volvo Ocean Race, have just contacted
us to let us know that they are discontinuing all preparations
for America’s Cup XXXI effective immediately. It would have been
the first-ever German participation in the 151-year old America’s
Cup. Despite intensive efforts to find a corporate sponsor, a
commercial partner has not been found to finance the campaign,
Michael Illbruck, 42, Chairman of the illbruck Challenge, announced
today.

“This decision to discontinue plans
for the America’s Cup, which starts October 1 in Auckland, New
Zealand, with the Louis Vuitton Challenger Selection Series,
in no way impacts the team’s current successful participation
in the Volvo Ocean Race Round the World 2001-2002,” Illbruck
said. The illbruck Challenge is the overall race leader with
four of the nine legs completed. The race, which finishes in
Kiel in June is now in its fifth stage from Rio de Janeiro to
Miami.

The illbruck Challenge is a professional
international sailing team and an extension of the illbruck-supported
PINTA racing teams that over the past 30 years have earned success
at many of the world’s top regattas. The illbruck Challenge was
representing the Duesseldorf Yacht Club. For more on illbruck
Challenge, see www.illbruck-challenge.com.

YOTREPS

March 12 – The Pacific Ocean and Cyberspace

Who is out making passages in the Pacific
and what kind of weather are they having? Check out YOTREPS –
‘yacht reports’ – at http://www.bitwrangler.com/yotreps/

Weather Updates

March 12 – Pacific Ocean

San Francisco Bay Weather

To see what the winds are like on the Bay
and just outside the Gate right now, check out http://sfports.wr.usgs.gov/wind/.
The National Weather Service site for San Francisco Bay has moved
to www.wrh.noaa.gov/Monterey/.

California Coast Weather

Looking for current as well as recent wind
and sea readings from 17 buoys and stations between Pt. Arena
and the Mexican border? Here’s the place – which has further
links to weather buoys and stations all over the U.S.: www.ndbc.noaa.gov/stuff/southwest/swstmap.shtml.

Pacific Winds and Pressure

The University of Hawaii Dept. of Meteorology
page posts a daily
map of the NE Pacific Ocean barometric pressure and winds.

Pacific Sea State

Check out the Pacific Ocean sea states
at: http://www.mpc.ncep.noaa.gov/RSSA/PacRegSSA.html.

For another view, see http://www.oceanweather.com/data/global.html.

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