As Gold Medalist Found Out, More Coverage Is Mixed Blessing for Sailing

Ben Ainslie of Britain is on the cusp of becoming among the most decorated Olympic sailors ever. A victory in his Finn dinghy on his home waters of Weymouth at this summer’s Olympics would give him four consecutive gold medals, tying the sailing record of Paul Elvstrom of Denmark. So successful was Ainslie that there was speculation he could lead the British delegation at the opening ceremony in London. One thing could have stopped Ainslie, the clear favorite: his temper. At the Finn world championships in December in Perth, Australia, Ainslie was disqualified from two races after an altercation with a media motorboat driver and a cameraman. The penalty cost him a sixth world title. He was cited under the sport’s Rule 69, a sportsmanship violation akin to receiving a red card in soccer. The penalty led to reviews and investigations by governing bodies in Australia and Britain and by the International Sailing Federation. Britain’s Royal Yachting Association and sailing federation had the power to suspend his eligibility for the Olympics. All eventually cleared the way for Ainslie, 35, to continue his Olympic quest, with the International Sailing Federation announcing its decision last month. But the incident in Australia brought into focus the sport’s relationship with television coverage, which it desperately needs but which sailors have struggled to adapt to. From the current Volvo Ocean race to the America’s Cup and Olympics, sailors’ every move and sound are now being recorded. NBC recently acquired the rights for next year’s America’s Cup, which will be the first one broadcast on network television since 1992. “Sailors are not used to playing their game under the spotlight,” said Gary Jobson, the president of U.S. Sailing and an ESPN and NBC commentator. “Sailors have a long history of salt-and-pepper language. If sailors as a whole want media coverage, they have to be accepting.” Ainslie, having just started his own America’s Cup team, said that the use of helicopters and motorboats to capture the racing was important for the future of the sport, but that “there just has to be clear boundaries and a mutual agreement between the sailors and the media.” According to several international judges, verbal and even physical altercations between sailors in races are not unusual. But the fight between Ainslie and the camera boat at the 2011 world championships was. In the ninth race of the 11-race series, Ainslie was straining as he rocked his boat and pumped the sail rapidly while trying to overtake Pieter-Jan Postma in first place. On the final leg, a camera boat, broadcasting the racing live, weaved in front of him to get a close-up of Postma, and possibly slowed Ainslie’s boat with its wake. Inspection of images of the incident and reports by witnesses revealed that after finishing second in the race, Ainslie raced to the camera boat, jumped aboard, grabbed the driver and shouted at him. He then moved to the cameraman, lifted him, and yelled at him before pushing past and diving into the water to retrieve his boat. In sailing, misconduct is dealt with by the broadly written Rule 69 under the international Racing Rules of Sailing, which deals with competitors accused of “gross breach of a rule, good manners or sportsmanship,” or who “may have brought the sport into disrepute.” Standard rules infractions between boats are handled through written protests by competitors, and are heard by a committee or jury off the water. Rule 69 violations result in penalties given to individuals, not boats, in a regatta. Juries are not required to act on a Rule 69 report, but can initiate a hearing themselves. On shore, Ainslie and the camera crew apologized to each other. According to the event manager in Perth, John Longley, the media boat violated race guidelines for support boats. But the international jury at the championship held a hearing and decided that Ainslie committed “gross misconduct.” The jury disqualified him from Race 9 and the subsequent Race 10, in effect ending his run at the title.

The GPS built JUST for sailing with Bluetooth Wind Monitoring

One of the problems of using GPS chartplotters on a sailboat is that it is extremely difficult to calculate accurate arrival times given the amount of tacking often involved. Now there's a purpose-built Sailing GPS that not only accounts for the tacking that sailboats do, but can can tell you the optimal tacking angles and your Tacking Time to Destination (TTD). Standard GPS chartplotters do not account for the fact that sailboats tack back and forth, so it makes sense that if they don't know your tacking distances, how can they calculate your Estimated Time of Arrival (ETA) correctly? The Sailing GPS solves this problem. It displays exactly how far each tack is, how long it will take to sail each tack, and the optimal tacks to arrive earliest. Pretty amazing. You can also use Google Maps to easily mark waypoints, connecting via Bluetooth with the Sailing GPS, which is much easier than manually entering long strings of numbers for the latitude/longitude of multiple waypoints. The Sailing GPS can even learn the unique "polar plots" for your individual vessel. This is not just a generic polar plot for all sailboats of a certain type, or estimates from a simulation - the Sailing GPS learns your unique vessel's actual performance on all different points of sail. It can then calculate your optimal tacking routes and Tacking Time to Destination (TTD). Later, you can transfer the polar plot data via Bluetooth to a PC, if you want to see your boat's unique speed profile across wind angles and wind speeds. SailTimer Inc., the manufacturer of The Sailing GPS, received final patent approval in March of this year for its pioneering R&D. "This technology is a big step forward for sailors" said Dr. Craig Summers, the President of SailTimer Inc.: "People assume that since GPS satellites can pinpoint our location on the Earth, everything shown on a GPS chartplotter must be very accurate", said Dr. Craig Summers, the President of SailTimer, "but if you head upwind on a tack, standard GPS units view your tack as cross-track 'error'." "They also don’t account for tacking distances in your ETA, and even if your speed remains constant VMG decreases all by itself the longer you stay on the tack. In the digital age, sailors need a GPS that displays simple, safe, correct information." The new patent, titled 'Navigational Planning and Display Method for the Sailor's Dilemma When Heading Upwind', was granted by the US Patent and Trademark Office this year, and originally filed in 2006. The navigation functions in The Sailing GPS include support for the new wireless, solar-powered SailTimer Wind Vane which will be available this (Northern Hemisphere) summer, offering the ability to continuously update your optimal tacks with real-time wind data via Bluetooth. The Sailing GPS comes with a free waterproof DryPak soft bag with tie-downs. Unlike smartphones and tablets, the Sailing GPS is just as easy to see in direct sunlight, and with polarized sunglasses on. The screen of the Sailing GPS is protected by Lexan, which is very strong and won't break if it's dropped, and ... it floats. The polycarbonate Sailing GPS case is scratch- and UV-resistant, small enough for a coat pocket, and durable enough to remain unharmed with a bit of rough treatment, which is much easier than trying to protect and view an iPad in the cockpit (and the ETA won't go blank every time you tack). The Sailing GPS displays your tacking angles in a diagram and in degrees for each heading, but is not intended to replace a chartplotter. Nevertheless, even fully-equipped cruising yachts will not have the features provided by The Sailing GPS, including the quick and easy display of your optimal tacks and Tacking Time to Destination (TTD). The Sailing GPS costs US$399 and can be purchased online.

Sailing adventures to Greece and the Galapagos

Call it a ‘sail sale’: G Adventures (formerly GAP Adventures) is offering up to 50 per cent off Greek Island sailing adventures, as well as discounts for sailing trips through the Gulf of Thailand, the Galapagos Islands and the Maldives, plus kayaking excursions in destinations as diverse as Crete, Yellowstone and Brazil. It’s all part of the company’s ‘Bazaar’ sale, an ongoing promotion with new deals every two weeks. In the Greek Islands, itineraries range from eight to 15 days on small but comfy yachts - it’s just you, the skipper and seven other ship-mates - from Athens to Mykonos, (April 29 departure), Santorini to Mykonos (May 13), Santorini to Kos (May 6) and more (promo code G12GRKSAIL50). In the Gulf of Thailand, four and seven day itineraries are sale-priced at 20 per cent off (promo code BZ-THAISAIL20). Both the Galapagos and the kayaking trips are on sale to the tune of 15 per cent (BZ-GPS15 for the Galapagos and BZ-KYK15 for kayaking). And the Maldives discount comes in at 10 per cent, for seven-day cruises (BZ-AFMS10). The booking deadline for the Greek Islands sale is April 28, and for the rest, it’s April 9. See www.gadventures.com.

Intrepid sailors prepare for £50,000 fundraising challenge, sponsored by Ramada Plaza Southport

A pair of sailors whose plans for an extreme nautical challenge were scuppered last year due to bad weather are preparing to try again, with backing from the Ramada Plaza Southport. The hotel is sponsoring former Southport man David Summerville and fellow sailor Steve Cockerill as they attempt to cross the Irish Sea in two single handed Laser class dinghies – which are only 4m in length each. The duo had planned to make the crossing last September, but 50 knot gale force winds and a 12 foot tidal swell sadly forced them to cancel their plans. Now, they will be attempting the challenge from mid-April, waiting for a window of good weather before they begin the voyage. Ramada Plaza General Manager Enda Rylands said: “David and Steve will be covering 115 nautical miles during the challenge. They will set off from my own home town of Dublin and finish in Southport, aiming to raise £50,000 for mental health charity Mind and the John Merricks Sailing Trust. “It was a real shame that they had to postpone the challenge last year, but they have had several months to ensure they are at the peak of physical fitness for the challenge, which is a really epic endeavour. “David actually learned to sail on the Marine Lake which the hotel overlooks - so it is very fitting that the Ramada Plaza should sponsor him in this challenge.” David, who grew up in Rawlinson Road and attended Christ the King Catholic High School in Stamford Road, is a championship sailor, winning regional and national titles in the UK and the Middle East. The 53-year-old grandfather of two explained that he was keen to raise money for Mind having been diagnosed with bipolar disorder 16 years ago. “Mind has really helped me control my condition,” he said. “A fellow sailor friend from Dublin has also lost two friends to mental illness, so together we formulated the idea to sail from Ireland to England in aid of Mind. “I have also been a supporter of the John Merricks Sailing Trust for a long time. It helps many young sailors and youth sailing organisations to achieve their goals and fulfil their dreams.” David, who now runs a boat repair business in Hertfordshire, said the date of the challenge would again depend on the weather and tidal conditions. “We will be fully prepared and ready to go from mid-April through to mid-September, which will give us a possible 65 days for the crossing over this five month period.” Enda added: “We wish David and Steve all the very best in their challenge and hope that the weather proves to be kind to them. We’d also urge as many people as possible to donate to the cause and raise thousands for Mind and the John Merricks Sailing Trust.”

Yacht Club Spotlight Erith Yacht Club

Sailing clubs awarded

SOMERSET Youth & Community Sailing Association (SYCSA) and Durleigh Sailing Club have gained full status as a clubs that delivers safe, efficient racing and race training. The clubs were awarded the Volvo Champion Club award at the Royal Yachting Association (RYA) Dinghy Show at Alexandra Palace. The award was presented by Saskia Clarke and Hannah Mills from the women's Team GB Olympic 470 sailing team. SYCSA chairman Peter Branson said it had taken three years to achieve the award. He said: “We are so proud of all of our young sailors and volunteers who have helped us achieve full VCC status. “It has taken a while to get there, but now we are there we can savour the moment. We are sure that the publicity will attract more youngsters into sailing.”

Sailors To Attend World Record Regatta In Italy

The 30th Lake Garda Optimist Meeting in Italy runs from 5th – 8th April, and with the largest number of single-class boats in the world taking part, the event will be officially classified as a “Guinness World Record”. Over 1,100 Optimist sailors are already entered to race and e26 nations will be represented including Bermuda. Sailors are entered in the Juniors Fleet for kids aged 12-15 and the Cadetti for under 12 age group. 15 of the sailors have competed in Bermuda recently at the Ren Re Junior Gold Cup and the Bermuda National Championships. While the Bermuda Team of 5 older and more experienced Optimist sailors compete at the IODA South American Optimist Championships in Argentina, The Bermuda Optimist Dinghy Association has encouraged the up and comming Development Squad sailors to attend the Lake Garda Regatta. Youngsters Campbell Patton (11) and Matilda Nicholls (10) are both Junior Squad Sailors from from the Royal Bermuda YC Sailing Academy and Junior Members of Sandys Boat Club. They will be travelling to Lake Garda in Italy to compete in this Guiness World Record Regatta over the Easter weekend. Campbell and Matilda have both won their classes at International Regattas in the past 12 months and have been training hard in the build-up to Lake Garda. Patton won his age group at the Canadian National Championships in August 2011, while Nicholls won the Regatta Racing Fleet at the UK National Championships in July 2012. Their Coach in Bermuda, the Director of Sailing at RBYC, Tom Herbert-Evans said “This is an huge undertaking by these youngsters, they will have an experience of a life-time to be sailing in a fleet rapidly approaching 1,000 boats. Here in Bermuda we think a Fleet of 20 boats is a good turnout, the Under 12 Fleet is ten times that amount…. just image the spectacle of racing against 1,000 boats!” Former Olympian and now Olympic Coach Zizi Staniul will assist the Bermuda sailors on the water in Italy, they will be joining his elite squad of Internatrional sailors from Germany, Poland and Switzerland. After 4 days of practice on Lake Garda just prior to the event, they will compete for 4 solid days against some of the world’s best Optimist sailors. Coach Zizi said “It is important that Bermuda’s talented sailors travel to larger overseas regattas to gain the all important big fleet experience. Development is all about focused practice and gaining experience, many of the World’s top Olympians regard Lake Garda as one of the best sailing venues in the World and the Fleets do not get any bigger than the Lake Garda world record breaking Optimist Regatta! Not only will it be good experience, it will also be very good practice for the 2013 Optimist World Championships at the same venue.”