Friday, November 12, 2004
Have A Wetass Weekend...:
(Photo Scott Markewitz; Location: Whistler, British Columbia)
(Photo Scott Markewitz; Location: Whistler, British Columbia)
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 11:25 AM 
Vendee Globe Update--Next Up, Cape Verde: The lead boats are south of the Canary islands and getting into lighter trade winds. They're headed for the Cape Verde islands, which are the next waypoint on the sprint to the Equator. Big move in the fleet overnight came from Jean Le Cam ("King Jean" as he is known on the solo sailing circuit) on Bonduelle. Le Cam has rocketed his way into second place; see the latest standings here. There is now a distinct leading group of six boats, with about 70 miles separating first and sixth. Then there is a gap of 90 miles to seventh, which is a gap that will be hard to jump anytime soon. In his latest radio conversation Nick Moloney on Skandia provided some interesting insights into the stresses of solo racing, and the difficulty of sleeping in an Open 60 race boat rocketing through the seas, always on the edge of disaster:
"Bit of sleep during the night, it was tough though, with my inexperience its very stressful to rest...stressful when pushing, sails flapping, lot of water everywhere, sheets banging again the hull as chute collapse and refills. Every time you engage you pilot, go below and try to shut your eyes, boat goes deep [ie wind goes right behind the boat, with risk of an involuntary gybe, and resultant chaos/damage] down a wave, heart in throat, run on deck to try and stop the gybe...NOT CONDUCIVE TO SLEEP AS YOU CAN SEE!
I'm used to handing the helm over to someone else, not to an electronic box. I reckon I've slept only 9 hours since the start!"
The Vendee Globe website also has in interesting article about dealing with the noise of racing. Just one of the elements that makes the Vendee one of the world's most extreme competitions...
"Goddamn, this tub is noisy. I might as well be in a subway car..."
"Bit of sleep during the night, it was tough though, with my inexperience its very stressful to rest...stressful when pushing, sails flapping, lot of water everywhere, sheets banging again the hull as chute collapse and refills. Every time you engage you pilot, go below and try to shut your eyes, boat goes deep [ie wind goes right behind the boat, with risk of an involuntary gybe, and resultant chaos/damage] down a wave, heart in throat, run on deck to try and stop the gybe...NOT CONDUCIVE TO SLEEP AS YOU CAN SEE!
I'm used to handing the helm over to someone else, not to an electronic box. I reckon I've slept only 9 hours since the start!"
The Vendee Globe website also has in interesting article about dealing with the noise of racing. Just one of the elements that makes the Vendee one of the world's most extreme competitions...
"Goddamn, this tub is noisy. I might as well be in a subway car..."
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 11:02 AM
The Ugly Face Of North Shore Surfing...: TWC recently posted an item (click and scroll down to Tuesday's posts) about a gang of vigilantes enforcing surfing etiquette with their fists at Pipeline on Oahu's North Shore. The surfing establishment took an ambivalent attitude about this ugly practice, rationalizing the violence with the argument that it was necessary for the greater good: to keep Pipeline surfing safe. Well, now there are some videos of this goonery in action. They document the savage beatdown of a guy who apparently breaks the "rules" during a surfing competition, and then tries to defy the enforcers. This long version puts the confrontation in context, listing the victim's etiquette infractions. And this shorter version just shows the assault and battery. I don't know enough about surfing to know how egregious the victim's infractions are. But I do know enough to know that no matter how punkish his behavior these videos depict a crime. Plain and simple. And I defy any surfer, or member of the surfing media, to watch this beatdown and defend it. Is this really the image they want surfing to have? It made me sick...
"What? You want me to police the beaches?
Update: Here's a response from my surfing buddy Wyatt. I still don't agree that violence is justified (think of the riot the outdoor world would become if bikers, climbers, paddlers, sailors, and divers also responded to novices crowding the best spots with their fists...). But it's interesting to get the surfer perspective:
"Settle down! Listen, you gotta understand what's happened to surfing and surfing culture. It has been inundated by popular culture, especially Hawaiian and Australian surfing. It used to be that someone that was interested in trying to surf learned through the watch and try method. No one got or gave lessons, that would be for Barneys and kooks. As a greme (beginner) you got yourself a board and went off somewhere alone and struggled until you got it to the extent you could venture into a lineup where the waves were better. You wouldn't go to the BEST spot but to a spot a little better than where you were before. Eventually you would work your way through the pecking order of spots and would then be allowed to hang with the big boys. Attrition thinned out the wannabees and every now and then some kook would show up at a premiere break without the necessary skills or local knowledge and often they would not show the proper respect and get their ass kicked. As a kid I often got my ass kicked but not at the beach and I always showed respect to the top of the pecking order because they would give hints (under their breath, where no one was around) to improve my surfing. Now every wannabee in the world, from Kansas to DC wants to surf and the real CREW is culturally assaulted by these people, who don't have the interest or desire to treat surfing and real surfers with the respect they deserve—and have earned. Bottom line this guy from who knows where, goes to one of the WORLD’s best breaks, during a contest, and when asked to do the right thing and leave, refuses!....Hell yeah, that's justification for an ass kicking. He didn't get it that bad either. It is all about respect for the old ways..."
"He didn't get it that bad either." I love it...
"What? You want me to police the beaches?
Update: Here's a response from my surfing buddy Wyatt. I still don't agree that violence is justified (think of the riot the outdoor world would become if bikers, climbers, paddlers, sailors, and divers also responded to novices crowding the best spots with their fists...). But it's interesting to get the surfer perspective:
"Settle down! Listen, you gotta understand what's happened to surfing and surfing culture. It has been inundated by popular culture, especially Hawaiian and Australian surfing. It used to be that someone that was interested in trying to surf learned through the watch and try method. No one got or gave lessons, that would be for Barneys and kooks. As a greme (beginner) you got yourself a board and went off somewhere alone and struggled until you got it to the extent you could venture into a lineup where the waves were better. You wouldn't go to the BEST spot but to a spot a little better than where you were before. Eventually you would work your way through the pecking order of spots and would then be allowed to hang with the big boys. Attrition thinned out the wannabees and every now and then some kook would show up at a premiere break without the necessary skills or local knowledge and often they would not show the proper respect and get their ass kicked. As a kid I often got my ass kicked but not at the beach and I always showed respect to the top of the pecking order because they would give hints (under their breath, where no one was around) to improve my surfing. Now every wannabee in the world, from Kansas to DC wants to surf and the real CREW is culturally assaulted by these people, who don't have the interest or desire to treat surfing and real surfers with the respect they deserve—and have earned. Bottom line this guy from who knows where, goes to one of the WORLD’s best breaks, during a contest, and when asked to do the right thing and leave, refuses!....Hell yeah, that's justification for an ass kicking. He didn't get it that bad either. It is all about respect for the old ways..."
"He didn't get it that bad either." I love it...
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 10:09 AM
Transatlantic Beach Cat Record--Homann Holds Up: The Canaries is a busy place right now. But one sailor who apparently won't be joining the action is beach cat sailor Greg Homann, who was on the verge of setting out to try and break the transatlantic beach cat record. No real explanation is given for this decision, and his web site says that the voyage is only "suspended." But it doesn't sound good. The decision to "review his program" followed his trial sail to the Canaries. Must have been a very nasty voyage...
Beach Cat Revelation: "Hmmm. Twenty days of this will turn me into one big salt water sore..."
Beach Cat Revelation: "Hmmm. Twenty days of this will turn me into one big salt water sore..."
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 9:51 AM
Francis Joyon Transatlantic Record Update: Solo sailor Joyon is into the second day of his east/west transatlantic record run, and is right now weaving his way through the Canary Islands (hope he doesn't hit any of the Vendee Globe racers...). Check out his position reports here. The big man is doing okay, sailing over 700 miles in 36 hours, for an average speed north of 19 knots (he needs to average about 17 knots to break PlayStation's record of 9 days and 13 hours). But things get trickier as he makes the transition to the Trade winds. And its downwind from there. I'm almost willing to say that I'll eat my laptop if Joyon breaks PlayStation's record. Almost...
"What? Zimmermann said he'd eat his laptop? That I'd like to see. Sheet on..."
(Photo: F. Van Malleghem / Mer & Média)
"What? Zimmermann said he'd eat his laptop? That I'd like to see. Sheet on..."
(Photo: F. Van Malleghem / Mer & Média)
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 9:38 AM
Thursday, November 11, 2004
Wetass Video Of The Week Follow Up...: This mountain biker really DID go over the side of a cliff. Check it ouch. Key piece of dialogue: "Look at the penalty for failure, Dude." Reaction 1: poor riding, Dude. Reaction 2: nice of your friend to keep filming. Reaction 3: he's aliiive!...
Is that all...?
Is that all...?
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 11:55 AM
Vendee Update--Canaries Ho': The lead boats will be in amongst the Canary Islands tonight, setting a Vendee record of just 5 days to get there (in 2000 it took the leaders six days). Check out the leaderboard here. The big change is that Wetass favorite Mike Golding has climbed into third place. How did he do it? From his website:
“I didn’t do anything special,” says Golding. “All the special stuff was done about two days ago when we chose to gybe. Obviously delaying that gybe cost me some positions and I’ve just got them back again.” To the west there has been more wind and a more easterly wind angle that allows them to sail faster than boats out to the east.
Being further west has also kept Ecover out of the worst of the window shadow of Madeira, the Portugese islands the leaders passed in the early hours today.
“I wanted to be well clear of Madeira,” says Golding. “It is always a problem and invariably it is on your track and there is a great temptation to cut it close and fall into the flat water behind it. I was trying to respect a cone shaped area on the back of the islands.” The wind shadow of Madeira, as with all the islands down the African coast such as the Canaries and Cape Verdes, can affect the winds up to 150-200 miles to leeward of them.
Yesterday Golding recorded the highest speed of the passage so far – 29 knots thundering down a wave. As conditions got a little lighter at 0400am today he changed up to his larger Code 5 reacher and full mainsail and he says he is still regularly accelerating up to 24 knots.
Although the boats’ record breaking speed south is impressive, Golding does not feel the pace is excessive. “It is hard work, but this is the Vendee Globe – what do you expect? I wouldn’t say we are pushing any harder than normal. Look at the attrition rate - there hasn’t been much breakage. We are so much faster because we have had such a favourable weather system since the start. Since we started we’ve been on a roll.”
Admittedly race leader Vincent Riou is more than 50 miles ahead but Golding thinks he can reel him in. The forecast shows the rapid run south drawing to a close for a while tomorrow before the Trade Winds re-establish themselves on Saturday.
“He’ll run out of these breeze first and we’ll compress back up. So I am concerned by it, but I don’t think it is a killer lead. What is concerning me more is that he is able to do that in these conditions which are roughly Southern Ocean conditions. While I haven’t absolutely had my foot to the floor for the whole time, I hope not to have to sail the race like that. Then it becomes a gamble over who breaks.”
Already, there are some fascinating story lines shaping up in this Vendee: the surprising pace of darkhorse Vincent Riou on older generation PRB; the obvious talent--and obvious inexperience (he got stuck in the wind shadow of Madeira)--of lightning fast Alex Thomson; and the old Vendee lions, Golding and Roland Jourdain on Sill, making all the right moves and patiently waiting for the boats around them to either blow up or make tactical mistakes in the pressure of the chase. If they do neither, it's going to be a hell of a drag race across the Southern Ocean...
Ecover From Above: Stalking the leaders...
“I didn’t do anything special,” says Golding. “All the special stuff was done about two days ago when we chose to gybe. Obviously delaying that gybe cost me some positions and I’ve just got them back again.” To the west there has been more wind and a more easterly wind angle that allows them to sail faster than boats out to the east.
Being further west has also kept Ecover out of the worst of the window shadow of Madeira, the Portugese islands the leaders passed in the early hours today.
“I wanted to be well clear of Madeira,” says Golding. “It is always a problem and invariably it is on your track and there is a great temptation to cut it close and fall into the flat water behind it. I was trying to respect a cone shaped area on the back of the islands.” The wind shadow of Madeira, as with all the islands down the African coast such as the Canaries and Cape Verdes, can affect the winds up to 150-200 miles to leeward of them.
Yesterday Golding recorded the highest speed of the passage so far – 29 knots thundering down a wave. As conditions got a little lighter at 0400am today he changed up to his larger Code 5 reacher and full mainsail and he says he is still regularly accelerating up to 24 knots.
Although the boats’ record breaking speed south is impressive, Golding does not feel the pace is excessive. “It is hard work, but this is the Vendee Globe – what do you expect? I wouldn’t say we are pushing any harder than normal. Look at the attrition rate - there hasn’t been much breakage. We are so much faster because we have had such a favourable weather system since the start. Since we started we’ve been on a roll.”
Admittedly race leader Vincent Riou is more than 50 miles ahead but Golding thinks he can reel him in. The forecast shows the rapid run south drawing to a close for a while tomorrow before the Trade Winds re-establish themselves on Saturday.
“He’ll run out of these breeze first and we’ll compress back up. So I am concerned by it, but I don’t think it is a killer lead. What is concerning me more is that he is able to do that in these conditions which are roughly Southern Ocean conditions. While I haven’t absolutely had my foot to the floor for the whole time, I hope not to have to sail the race like that. Then it becomes a gamble over who breaks.”
Already, there are some fascinating story lines shaping up in this Vendee: the surprising pace of darkhorse Vincent Riou on older generation PRB; the obvious talent--and obvious inexperience (he got stuck in the wind shadow of Madeira)--of lightning fast Alex Thomson; and the old Vendee lions, Golding and Roland Jourdain on Sill, making all the right moves and patiently waiting for the boats around them to either blow up or make tactical mistakes in the pressure of the chase. If they do neither, it's going to be a hell of a drag race across the Southern Ocean...
Ecover From Above: Stalking the leaders...
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 11:09 AM
The Wetass Life--Tim McKenna: This dude has it wired. McKenna started life in Australia, but wandered the world until he ended up in Tahiti, as a sports photographer. Now he travels non-stop and cranks out stunning photos and portraits, covering surfing, snowboarding, windsurfing and rockclimbing. And in his spare time he photographs the beauty of Polynesia, including not very modest Vahines. McKenna's work is stunning, and you can check it all out at his first-rate website. Here's a taste of it. Bastard...
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 10:33 AM
Warren Miller Blowout...: It's almost ski season so it's time to start slobbering over big air and big powder. And who better to get you off, than Warren Miller, longtime wildman of ski films. Miller is celebrating 55 years of following the snow, with the release of a new movie, IMPACT. Check out the trailer here. It'll bring a smile to your face. Guaranteed...
"Okay, Warren, you geezer. I'm getting tired of landing on my head to make you look good, so this is the last take..."
(Photo: Dan Hudson via Skiing magazine)
"Okay, Warren, you geezer. I'm getting tired of landing on my head to make you look good, so this is the last take..."
(Photo: Dan Hudson via Skiing magazine)
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 10:23 AM
Wednesday, November 10, 2004
Vendee Globe Update: Not much has changed as the boats rocket south toward the Canaries in strong northeasterlies (which will slowly fade, but not before they give Francis Joyon a solid push; see below). Roland Jourdain has racked up a 385 mile day, the best 24-hour run of the race so far. And Vincent Riou on PRB is still leading the pack. Update here. Position table here. Some of the sailors are starting to suggest that Riou is pushing too hard, and setting a pace that will eventually blow the fleet up. But to hear Riou tell it, he's having a pretty relaxing time:
"All's well, gliding along. I haven't been helming much, it's wet outside and I don't like the water! I almost have to force myself to go on deck and helm just to check that everything's balanced as the boat really just sails itself in these conditions. Managing sleep is easy right now and I'm getting 5/6 hours a day in 30 minute chunks and I've still got fresh food for a few days."
If Riou is telling the truth, instead of trying to play with everyone's head, he could turn out to be a formidable dark horse in this race. He certainly knows his boat PRB well: Riou was responsible for preparing it for winner Michael Desjoyeaux during the last Vendee Globe...
Race-leader Riou: "Heh-heh. They all think I'm sleeping, but instead I'm out here helming my ass off..."
"All's well, gliding along. I haven't been helming much, it's wet outside and I don't like the water! I almost have to force myself to go on deck and helm just to check that everything's balanced as the boat really just sails itself in these conditions. Managing sleep is easy right now and I'm getting 5/6 hours a day in 30 minute chunks and I've still got fresh food for a few days."
If Riou is telling the truth, instead of trying to play with everyone's head, he could turn out to be a formidable dark horse in this race. He certainly knows his boat PRB well: Riou was responsible for preparing it for winner Michael Desjoyeaux during the last Vendee Globe...
Race-leader Riou: "Heh-heh. They all think I'm sleeping, but instead I'm out here helming my ass off..."
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 3:05 PM
Wetass Video Of The Week...: Today, TWC brings you mountain bike-madness. Click here to watch the thrills and spills. All I can say is the last guy is lucky to have fallen off where he did, because if he had been with his bike for the next few seconds he would have needed a Medevac...
"Dude, how about we make a hard left and huck this cliff..."
"Dude, how about we make a hard left and huck this cliff..."
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 10:49 AM
Francis Joyon Hits The Route Of Discovery: Supersailor Joyon got underway from Cadiz this morning. He's got 3884 miles to go, and 9 days, 13 hours to get there. That means an average speed north of 16.92 knots. Along the way Joyon hopes to take a crack at the solo 24-hour record, which stands at 540 miles. You can follow Joyon's progress on this position table. Once Joyon's on the western side of the Atlantic, there'll be nothing left for him to do except take a crack at the west/east record from Ambrose Light to the Lizard. I love this guy...
Flying Francis Joyon: "Why do I sail? Well, it's obvious I wasn't going to be a movie star..."
(Photo: Fabrice Thomazeau)
Flying Francis Joyon: "Why do I sail? Well, it's obvious I wasn't going to be a movie star..."
(Photo: Fabrice Thomazeau)
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 9:09 AM
Tuesday, November 09, 2004
Vendee Update--First Damage, Leaks And Collisions: A broken bowsprit on UUDS, a trip up the mast for Alex Thomson, and collisions with tree trunks and underwater objects unknown. No one ever said the Vendee would be easy, even when it's supposedly on the easy part of the course. Check out the latest report here. Through it all Vincent Riou, on PRB, continues to lead as the boats head out into the open Atlantic past Finisterre (rankings here). Next landmark on the way to the Equator: the Canary Islands. Our man Alex Thomson is in second, despite a trip up the mast to retrieve a running sail that had wrapped itself in knots. Mike Golding is in 6th, biding his time and conserving his boat and energy. Special feature of the day comes from Nick Moloney, on Skandia, who managed to transmit some video. Definitely check out "Aft Camera at 20 Knots," and "Mast Camera At 20 Knots." Not so sure what the video ambiguously titled "Morning Number 2" is, but I'm not sure I want to find out...
Reality Racing On Skandia?: "Damn, all that freeze-dried fiber is really kicking in. Better flip on the autopilot and fetch the video camera..."
(Photo: DPPI)
Reality Racing On Skandia?: "Damn, all that freeze-dried fiber is really kicking in. Better flip on the autopilot and fetch the video camera..."
(Photo: DPPI)
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 10:48 AM
Annals Of Adventure--Francis Joyon Hits The Route Of Discovery: When we last checked in on French solo sailing supremo Joyon, he had just smashed the solo round-the-world record, and had become the first multihull sailor to complete a circumnavigation solo and non-stop. Now Joyon is gearing up his 90-foot trimaran, IDEC, for a run at the east/west transatlantic record, from Cadiz, Spain to San Salvador, The Bahamas. Joyon says he will be setting off Wednesday morning, and the time to beat is 9 days 13 hours 30 minutes and 18 seconds. That mark was set by Steve Fossett and the full PlayStation team in February 2003 (with yours truly as chief bottle washer and grinder grunt; see my story about the run here). For Joyon to beat this record alone, on a smaller boat (PlayStation is 125 feet), seems ridiculous. But Joyon's solo round-the-world record also crushed many a crewed multihull time, so you can never count him out. He's one of the most formidable racing sailors out there, and TWC will have to monitor this one closely...
IDEC At Speed: "Fossett has a two dozen world records so I couldn't care less about relieving him of this one. But that pathetic Zimmermann guy. This is his only one..."
IDEC At Speed: "Fossett has a two dozen world records so I couldn't care less about relieving him of this one. But that pathetic Zimmermann guy. This is his only one..."
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 10:14 AM
Sandy Point Speed Week--Final Results: No new records, but some incredible sailing in monster winds. Check out the daily summaries here, and the final results here. Top run was 40.3 knots, but everyone is still talking about the Big Wednesday, when the winds were a steady 40-50 knots. Here's a taste of what it was like:
"10.00am. James is running. 5.7m and Missile. Ian grabs 5.8 and S-Type but hesitates. This is not what it seems. James on the course and the SW wind is here. Big time. 40-50 kts and solid. Sand hurled across the inlet in Mars like clouds. Chop develops immediately. Water sucked away in clouds. James makes it about 500 massively overpowered metres, then "parks" it in the face of a rampant waterspout that charges across the sandbar and threatens to tornado him off the course. Ian on the course now with 5.0m but getting totally worked. Gets the run in but it's all over the shop just staying alive. A few others decide to give it a try but it's not looking real good. Nor safe. Andy McDougall tries a run and his boom has a serious disagreement with his face. That was close. And that boom again. Chris tries a few runs on his 5.6m and custom 50cm, holding on but struggling in the low 30's. Wind pulls hard S and course becomes unworkable. Gear starts flying in the launch area and most run for cover. No serious damage or injury. That might have been a portion of luck.
3.00pm The action starts in earnest. Chris (5.6m), Andrew/s Daff and McDougall (3.7m) Craig Hollins (3.2m then 4.7) and Ian (5.0m then 4.2) all start to make some tentative runs. Chris is the only one looking anything near comfortable at speed. Andy Mc takes a massive overpower wipeout on his windup onto the course. James goes for it again on 5.7 and Missile but eats it big after just a few hundred ugly meters. Chris really starting to fire and opening up big on the bottom end of the inlet, the increase in speed visible as he turns broad and cranks it on. Even from spectator area, the speed at a distance of up to nearly 2km's away is clear. The guy is on fire and each run gets better. Flying back up into the launch area on reverse tack each run, he yells new higher peak speeds to the appreciative crowd. There's definitely an atmosphere of excitement on the beach, those present can feel something special (other than the 40-50 kt windchill). This is a new Australian record going down here, and we're not sure where the action will stop...Ian tries a 4.2 wavesail in desperation but results aren't worth the effort. Back on his S-Type, he ejects big time in a gust coming back up the course, board and rig cartwheeling outta sight in the wind and leaving him to swim for it and a rescue boat ride to recover his gear. Some gear is working here, some is clearly just not right for these conditions. Chris is getting more and more wound up. His times clock on up to 41, 42 then even a 44 peak. But more impressive are the runs - once he gets that throttle open he just holds it and each run became really visibly consistently fast thru the sand fog that clouds the Inlet. Daffy comes back modestly proud with a peak over 40, but complaining he can't stop at the end of the run. Craig chugging away in the mid 30's but surviving (!!) and getting down the course, winds it up to a solid 34.9 over 500 and even decides to throw a few chop hops on the way back up. It's on ! Few can even get down the course, and many others (maybe wisely) decide to not even give it a try. Sand blows in constant clouds over the course, making sailing with your eyes shut (!!) essential. Chris arrives back in the launch area his face completely caked with sand. Holding rigs and boards down at the bottom end of the course becomes impossible, they suck off the water and flail horizontally while riders struggle simply to hold the mast tip. Ok, now it's windy."
Sounds like a wild, wild time. Now it's up to Finian Maynard and his Masters Of Speed, halfway across the world in France...
Big Wednesday Wind Chart: Holy cr*p! They went sailing in that...?
"10.00am. James is running. 5.7m and Missile. Ian grabs 5.8 and S-Type but hesitates. This is not what it seems. James on the course and the SW wind is here. Big time. 40-50 kts and solid. Sand hurled across the inlet in Mars like clouds. Chop develops immediately. Water sucked away in clouds. James makes it about 500 massively overpowered metres, then "parks" it in the face of a rampant waterspout that charges across the sandbar and threatens to tornado him off the course. Ian on the course now with 5.0m but getting totally worked. Gets the run in but it's all over the shop just staying alive. A few others decide to give it a try but it's not looking real good. Nor safe. Andy McDougall tries a run and his boom has a serious disagreement with his face. That was close. And that boom again. Chris tries a few runs on his 5.6m and custom 50cm, holding on but struggling in the low 30's. Wind pulls hard S and course becomes unworkable. Gear starts flying in the launch area and most run for cover. No serious damage or injury. That might have been a portion of luck.
3.00pm The action starts in earnest. Chris (5.6m), Andrew/s Daff and McDougall (3.7m) Craig Hollins (3.2m then 4.7) and Ian (5.0m then 4.2) all start to make some tentative runs. Chris is the only one looking anything near comfortable at speed. Andy Mc takes a massive overpower wipeout on his windup onto the course. James goes for it again on 5.7 and Missile but eats it big after just a few hundred ugly meters. Chris really starting to fire and opening up big on the bottom end of the inlet, the increase in speed visible as he turns broad and cranks it on. Even from spectator area, the speed at a distance of up to nearly 2km's away is clear. The guy is on fire and each run gets better. Flying back up into the launch area on reverse tack each run, he yells new higher peak speeds to the appreciative crowd. There's definitely an atmosphere of excitement on the beach, those present can feel something special (other than the 40-50 kt windchill). This is a new Australian record going down here, and we're not sure where the action will stop...Ian tries a 4.2 wavesail in desperation but results aren't worth the effort. Back on his S-Type, he ejects big time in a gust coming back up the course, board and rig cartwheeling outta sight in the wind and leaving him to swim for it and a rescue boat ride to recover his gear. Some gear is working here, some is clearly just not right for these conditions. Chris is getting more and more wound up. His times clock on up to 41, 42 then even a 44 peak. But more impressive are the runs - once he gets that throttle open he just holds it and each run became really visibly consistently fast thru the sand fog that clouds the Inlet. Daffy comes back modestly proud with a peak over 40, but complaining he can't stop at the end of the run. Craig chugging away in the mid 30's but surviving (!!) and getting down the course, winds it up to a solid 34.9 over 500 and even decides to throw a few chop hops on the way back up. It's on ! Few can even get down the course, and many others (maybe wisely) decide to not even give it a try. Sand blows in constant clouds over the course, making sailing with your eyes shut (!!) essential. Chris arrives back in the launch area his face completely caked with sand. Holding rigs and boards down at the bottom end of the course becomes impossible, they suck off the water and flail horizontally while riders struggle simply to hold the mast tip. Ok, now it's windy."
Sounds like a wild, wild time. Now it's up to Finian Maynard and his Masters Of Speed, halfway across the world in France...
Big Wednesday Wind Chart: Holy cr*p! They went sailing in that...?
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 10:00 AM
Monday, November 08, 2004
Vendee Globe Underway...: No drama yet, with the fleet arrowing toward Cape Finisterre in moderate winds. Check out the latest news, and the latest positions. Our man Bruce (Schwab) is in 15th, about 40 miles behind the leader, Frenchman Vincent Riou on PRB. But TWC's other favorites, Alex Thomson and Mike Golding, are in second and third, just a few miles behind Riou. Golding checked in with race HQ and you can hear him talk about his first day at sea on the Vendee audio page. He's very happy to be sailing along. During the last Vendee, Golding dropped his rig on the first night out. He returned to the start, scared up a spare mast and set out again eight days later, sailing the entire course while knowing he never had a chance. That's guts.
Coolest feature found so far: Conrad Humphreys' Flash console, which provides real-time physical data (heart-rate, calories consumed, total sleep) and race data (heading, speed, web cam shots, etc). Humphreys, on Hellomoto (and currently in 10th), is one cool cat. His heart rate hasn't cracked 110 beats per minute yet. Can't wait to see it in the Southern Ocean...
Humphreys Chillin' On Hellomoto: "Damn, it's too rough for Tai Chi today..."
Coolest feature found so far: Conrad Humphreys' Flash console, which provides real-time physical data (heart-rate, calories consumed, total sleep) and race data (heading, speed, web cam shots, etc). Humphreys, on Hellomoto (and currently in 10th), is one cool cat. His heart rate hasn't cracked 110 beats per minute yet. Can't wait to see it in the Southern Ocean...
Humphreys Chillin' On Hellomoto: "Damn, it's too rough for Tai Chi today..."
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 11:32 AM
Monday Morning Media Madness: A sampling of the Internet's video wealth. Today, calling all soccer fans...
Click here to watch the world's easiest soccer goal. D'oh...
Click here to watch an amazing soccer goal. We are not worthy...
Click here to watch the world's easiest soccer goal. D'oh...
Click here to watch an amazing soccer goal. We are not worthy...
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 11:23 AM
Annals Of Inanity--Hold The Starch: I can't really explain it (and I don't really care to), but the sport of extreme ironing just keeps getting more popular with every shirt pressed in an odd place. Five-time British Olympic medalist Steve Redgrave has even gone so far as to suggest that extreme ironing to be made an Olympic sport. Meanwhile, a German extreme ironist (sounds like a radical philosophical sect) named Alois Laumer has taken the sport to new heights, doing a bang-up job on a shirt from the seat of his microlight. Laumer's only comment was that "The difficulty of ironing in an open aircraft is that you need both hands to fly properly." Hey! That's why it's called EXTREME, baby! Here's his pic:
Not to be outdone, a group of Australian ironistas have gone in the opposite direction, and set a new extreme underwater ironing record, somehow convincing 43 scuba divers to waste, I mean spend, an afternoon ironing in the murky waters of Port Phillip Bay. Don't get overexcited, but you can see their video here. Hooked yet? Then it's time to start buying your friends and family the gift they never expected: the 2005 Extreme Ironing Calendar. What a world. What a sport...
Underwater Ironing Record: "Let's make this really, really extreme...and start plugging the irons in!"
(Photo: Paul Selwood via DiveOz)
Not to be outdone, a group of Australian ironistas have gone in the opposite direction, and set a new extreme underwater ironing record, somehow convincing 43 scuba divers to waste, I mean spend, an afternoon ironing in the murky waters of Port Phillip Bay. Don't get overexcited, but you can see their video here. Hooked yet? Then it's time to start buying your friends and family the gift they never expected: the 2005 Extreme Ironing Calendar. What a world. What a sport...
Underwater Ironing Record: "Let's make this really, really extreme...and start plugging the irons in!"
(Photo: Paul Selwood via DiveOz)
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 10:37 AM
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