Hey look - Da-Woody is a star! And would ya look at that shirt he's wearing. Good job, Woodster. Funny, you don't appear to be nearly the kook you are in the forums! And when did your name become Woody Dennis?

The conclusion to Surf City Catamarans' interview with multihull legend and BMW/Oracle coach Glenn Ashby:

SA: Speaking of the engineers, I heard you take them sailing on a pair of Wildcat F18s to help them to understand the functions of the boat?

GA:Yeah, I hope to get out there in the next half hour or so actually - I just had a few of the boys show up. We get out once or twice a week to be honest, and they’re loving it. The shore guys are getting out, there are a lot of guys that haven’t done that much sailing on catamarans are having a crack. It’s an absolute godsend having those. We’ve been able to use them a lot and get some guys out on the water that would not necessarily do a lot of sailing that just helps them with the engineering and the design side of things with the big boat.

SA: Engineers, designers, everyone's sailing them?

GA: Yeah, definitely. It’s just perfect to have them there, and they’re not like an Acat where you have to be a little gentle with the gear and stuff. You can sail them pretty hard, you know, they stand up to capsize and double trap with big guys.

SA: I never thought about getting the design crew on the small cats.

GA: Yeah it’s good. They come back with big grins on their faces. Everyone’s a winner.  
   
SA: Converts!

SA: Do you think the AC's very visible multihull excitement will produce more multihull converts?

GA: Yes I believe it will - for sure - open peoples' eyes to the excitement and speed of multihull sailing at all levels. I can’t wait to see these 2 giant monsters of the sea go head to head and race like dinghies. I have always sailed both catamarans and monohulls and I can appreciate both for what they are. However for those who have not sailed multi-hulls, they don’t realize what they are missing.

SA: Do you think it will help get a multihull back in the Olympics?

GA: I am not sure.

SA: How about the crew. What’s it like to train some of the top monohull sailors on how to adapt to racing a multihull?

GA: It is a great honor for me to have the opportunity to work with and alongside many of the worlds best monohull sailors, many of whom are now mixing it up and beating many of the worlds best multihull sailors.  They are keen learners and have the skills to adapt to many different kinds of sailing and racing on many different types of boats. So my job as sailing coach has been very enjoyable thus far and satisfying.

SA: Sounds like they’re fast learners. How quickly and competently are they adjusting to the steep learning curve that this project has placed upon them? What have you been using to teach them about multis?

GA: Most of the guys have taken to multihull sailing extremely well and are all very adaptable to the changing and dynamic circumstances that this cup is shaping up to be. All the guys have been sailing on various smaller multihulls from Aclass and F18, through to Extreme 40’s and Orma 60’s.

SA: How different is it now sailing on possibly the biggest sailing team in the world with large numbers of crew on board. Have you had to change your communications skills at all?

GA: For sure being a people person helps and getting on well with everyone is a bonus. Its not really much different than being part of a successful small team. Good communication is key ,especially on the water, and its always a learning process for everyone which you need to keep in mind always.

 SA: Let’s talk tactics. What are the biggest differences in boat handling and tactics between sailing a 90' cat or tri around a course and how do you foresee the starts?

GA: The starts will be very exciting and most likely different to a standard monohull match race start. The closing speeds of the boats will be very, very high.

SA: Since there will almost certainly be a difference in speed between the two boats, once the boats are off the line, how do you plan and practice race tactics to deal?

That’s a good question for John Kostecki…….

SA: Are there any 'secret weapons' in the BMW ORACLE arsenal, and did they surprise you at all when you first learned of them?

GA: No, not really…

SA: You have seen what the BOR 90 has for speed and maneuverability, how do you think it handles and responds in relation to A5?

GA: I think both boats will be very closely matched by the time the event starts. Both boats will have a small speed advantage at some particular times on the course. Which boat will have the advantage and when is anyone’s guess at the moment with the continued development from both teams.  

SA: What do you think will be most likely the first thing to break on either boat?

GA: That’s a good question and I am not sure on the answer. Both boats are extreme in their design and construction so I guess there could be a number of reliability issues for both teams. However as time gets closer to the event both boats become more reliable as the testing phase ends and the racing phase begins. Thus the chances for a breakage on either teams boats during racing would be no more than on a maxi monohull.

SA: What sort of loads are you seeing on the tri? Say mainsheet load, runner loads? forestay tension loads?

GA: No comment….

SA: You read in the threads here on SA about the controversial engine. What’s your view on it?

GA: The engine has certainly taken away the human powered element of the Cup which has never been seen before in the history of the event which I think is sad. In my mind it has certainly taken away from the sporting aspect and athleticism that attract the sailors to the event. There is no doubt that the boats are easier to sail with an engine doing all the hard work and trimming the sails becomes easier. However I am not in favor of the engine over human power for the Cup.

SA: As you said, these boats are pretty extreme in their design. How much real sensation do you feel on USA and, for example, do you have to hang onto fittings when she accelerates?

GA: The sensation on the big boat is quite different to sailing a small boat. I liken it to accelerating fast in a racing truck compared to a racing go cart. The top speed is much higher in the truck but the speed sensation is much more real  and in your face lower to the ground and being smaller. In other words sailing downwind on an F18 standing on the transom doing 25 kts compared to nearly double speed on the big boat feels faster and more on the edge to me. However in saying that, the horse power and acceleration of the big boat is most impressive and hard to explain. A bit like a lightweight flying aircraft carrier…

SA:  With all that power do you still have the helm and boat response that you find in the smaller cats?

GA: The helm is very similar to smaller cats and the boat is amazingly responsive for its size. Like all high performance multi-hulls, you can throw them around. However being smooth and having good anticipation is the key to maintaining top performance.

SA: BOR90 has many different foil configurations from straight canted boards to c-boards and now what looks like j-boards, what are the different aspects and performances between these?

GA: Well, they all work and have their preferred conditions. I am not an expert in this area but feel like it will be like selecting the right fin for your sailboard on a good wave sailing day….

SA: You’re really into this board sailing thing these days.

SA: To stay on task here, what legs or roundings do you expect to be the most challenging or potentially dangerous, how about windward mark roundings bearing off in a sizable breeze?

GA: Unless it is over 25kts I don’t think any roundings will be too bad. The big boats go round corners a bit easier than a moth or 49er as far as stability goes.

SA: Has anyone soiled themselves on a ‘big boys' bearaway?

GA: Not sure about the change of underwear, but you do need to hang on at times. The g forces get up there for sure but as the boat is so big the sensation is much less scary than trying to bear away an Extreme 40 for example in 25kts.

SA: Right on Glenn, thanks for taking time out of your schedule and hashing a few questions with me. Always good to talk with you and if you make your way up here, stop by the shop.

GA: No worries, mate. 

We all bitch about the lack of 'mainstream media'  sailboat racing coverage, so here is a chance to have a vote. From SA kook, Da-Woody:

OK everyone FOX-5 in DAGO is running the BMW-O story on their web site IT IS A TEST - they are trying this out to see what interest is out there I assured them the stats will go off the charts once the world finds out Spread the word Send them a Thank You the result will be ---> MORE Coverage <--- WIN WIN WIN Go check it out NOW and check back often BMW-O Video on FOX-5 San Diego

With more than 20,000 views of the "Rig Dropped" thread in which Mer broke the news to the world, we're sure anyone who gives a shit already knows that BMW/Oracle's mast went over the side today in around 10 knots of breeze off San Diego.  Early reports indicate it was either a terminal end or buckling of the mast itself that caused the problem, and with the engineering limits being pushed by both Alinghi and Oracle, it's a bit of a surprise that this is the first dismasting we've seen.

With no injuries and minimal damage to the boat, the loss of this expensive piece of plastic may actually accelerate the program to introduce the hard sail to DoGzilla.  Ya gotta race whatcha got.  Pic of Jimmy The Spit by Squid, with piles more here.  There's some more info on the new but wholly uninspiring BMW Oracle blog as well.

If timing is everything, then we missed on this one! Good stuff regardless.

Glenn Ashby is one of the most accomplished multi-hull sailors in the world, and his current job is certainly his biggest challenge yet.  Ashby is tasked with coaching BMW Oracle to victory with the giant trimaran, and his incredible winning record and solid communication style make him the perfect guy for the job.  Anarchist Surf City Catamarans put together this interview using questions from the Anarchists as well as his own knowledge, so his meandering style had to stay slightly on task, but it's a solid Innerview with a good snapshot into Ashby's life as part of BMW/Oracle Racing.

SA: Let’s jump right in. First, so I get it right ,what do you guys call the boat?

GA: We really don’t have a name for it, we just call it the B-O-R 90, or the 9-0. I started calling it that in my reports and way back when I first started and it just sort of stuck, I guess.  I just put it out there a few times and everyone started calling it that.

SA: Are you having fun with those guys?

GA: Yeah, mate it’s awesome. It’s really, really good fun, It’s certainly a lot of excitement and learning lots all the time; we're putting as much effort as we all can to make sure we all get out there and do the job. Of course it’s a hell of a lot of work, but it’s such a great thing to be a part of. Everyone’s putting their money’s worth into it, and so we can achieve the ultimate result at the end of the day. It really is a lot of money and a lot of time that everyone puts into it. It’s a lot of personalities, and a lot of fun. It’s a great life experience that I’ll never forget or regret.

SA: You've done a lot of shit in your life, and this experience is really going to round out your resume, isn't it?

GA: I know. I shouldn’t complain about the hours are long and hard, whether you’re in front of a computer or out on the water sometimes you just have to step back and pinch yourself and say, shit man, this is really cool.    

SA: Other than this, what have been some of your most memorable moments in your vast sailing career?

GA: Probably the most memorable moments would have been winning my first world championship on my first ever trip to Europe at the age of 18 sailing the A class catamaran against the current Gold and silver medalist in the Tornado class and against 86 other competitors in  L‘Estartit, Spain in 1996. Looking back, I really was just a kid and had only been sailing A class catamarans for 3 months prior to the worlds. It certainly was an eye opener on and off the water and definitely gave me the travel bug for future events and overseas competition.

Winning my first Tornado worlds in Argentina sailing with Bundock in Dec 2006 with all the countries fighting out for Olympic selection was also one of the highlights of my career, especially using my own sails! The Olympic games in China for me would have to be also one of the mist memorable moments after a life long ambition to get there. Winning a medal looking back now over 12 months later, was just a bonus. 

SA: Speaking of the Olympics, how involved are you or will you be in the fight to get multihulls back in the Olympics?

GA: I will be like all other multi-hull sailors, super keen to see the multi-hull be represented in the 2016 games.

SA: If we do get a multi back in the big O, do you think it should stay as the Tornado or go F18/Tiger or A class?

GA: Definitely not A class. But I would not be against a single-handed high performance multi-hull. I don’t mind if it was a Tornado or one design  F18 either. I think as long as the multi-hull is represented, I don’t mind what type. Personally If I could choose a boat, a light weight very high performance double hander that can be sailed by an average weight and size sailor that can be purchased all over the world easily would be a good choice.

SA: With multi-hulls out of the Olympics for 2012, what are your plans outside of the A-class and F-18's?

GA: I have just purchased an RS:X sailboard to see if I can sail it and will look to do some regattas next year. I am also obviously very busy working with Oracle for the next Americas Cup.

SA: If Catamarans are reinstated into the Olympics, will you resume your campaign to win that Gold?

GA: Yes I will indeed.

SA: Let’s change gears a bit. Are you currently running your business Ashby Sails as well as working with BMW ORACLE?

GA: Yes, the business is still running well and my wife Melissa is keeping it under control whilst I am working with the team. We have many good people working with us to ensure the quality and performance.

SA: Speaking of your wife Mel, I know you had a little girl a few months ago.

GA: Yeah, a little girl. She’s doing really well, she just turned 6 months old just a couple of weeks ago. She’s growing really quick, and I’m just loving being a dad. My wife Mel and little one Loni are still there back in Australia. Hopefully they’ll come over in a couple of weeks mate and we could all catch up with your crew.

SA: Well congratulations on that, they definitely grow fast!

SA: With the amount of F18 racing that you currently do, are you considering designing and building boats for this class? Will there be an Ashby F-18? 

GA: Not in the near future that’s for sure, maybe one day when I am too old to get on the trapeze I will have a go at that! Maybe 10, 15 years time, certainly, but I’ve got so many other things going on right now. The sail-making side of it I enjoy, and I love doing the A-cats as well. I’m sort of thinking at the moment that with the way sailing is going with the cup stuff and windsurfing I think I’m going to take more of a back seat for the next 5 or 10 years and just concentrate on my sailing career. When I get a bit older and my body’s not bouncing back as well, maybe I’ll look at spending more time on that side of the business. In a couple of years things might change, but at the moment I’m happy where I am. It’s a hell of a lot of work to design and build and it’s very, very expensive, and it’s a tough market.

SA: Let’s talk about the transition from the smaller multis that you’re used to and these giant multis. First, do you like the fact that this AC will raced on state of the art multi-hulls?

GA: Absolutely! For me it is the pinnacle of big multihull racing and technology. I have been playing with model trimarans and catamarans since I was a child and to be able to play with one full scale and even over size,  is incredible. Being able to work alongside some of the best designers, builders and sailors and be part of one of the world’s best teams is a fantastic experience in sailing and in life.

SA: How much of the foil technology that both teams are using will be able to translate into Acats in the future?

GA: I think the big boys learn from the little boys and vice-versa. Many of the ideas for big boats world-wide get trialed initially on little ones.

SA: What differences, and adjustments have you had to think about between sailing smaller cats and the 90? On some levels it's a big Acat but there must be some giant differences?

GA: For sure some things are very similar, but some are also vastly different. The loads on the big boat are simply mind blowing. That is the scary part for me. The speed and the actual sail part is no worries. Standing next to blocks and parts that have loads measured in the tens of tons is a bit different to what I have experienced in the past. However, the boat is engineered and built to take the loads the same as a small boat is. So you need to trust the engineers and the designers have done their job. I think I could bulid a pretty nice A cat if I had our team behind me! Things also happen a lot slower on the big boat on the water sailing but have a much more serious consequence if they go wrong. The big boat really is just a little one that has taken steroids!

SA: Speaking of the engineers, I heard you take them sailing on a pair of Wildcat F18s to help them to understand the functions of the boat?

Continued tomorrow...

When the IRC East Coast Champs are discussed, my thoughts generally run to "cold, wet hate mission in Annapolis."  But as usual, I can't say no to a sailing opp, especially when it's a hot new IRC 52 footer on her first buoy regatta.  So when the phone rang two weeks ago I was auickly working out how to fit the ECCs into a 9-day period that included hauling and storing our Farr 36 'Meridian," a trip to Florida, and a day job.  Come last Tuesday, we cinched down the last straps on the Farr and I was off to go racing.

Practice on Wednesday was in very light air, probably 6-10 knots, though instruments were on the fritz, so that’s a best guess.  Got familiar with the boat, started a jobs list, just the general first day stuff.  Vela Veloce is a beuaty though - I highly recommend anyone with a spare million or two laying around to look into one.  A good bit of work tidying up the new ride and getting her into 'round the cans mode included several rigging items handled Wed afternoon, Code 0 twingers added, halyard tails lengthened, and so on. Second practice Thursday in more very light airs saw crew work coming together very nicely, another few hours of rigging barber haulers, new trav line (protrim has my total ire now), getting the proper number of bearings in the trav cars, adjustment of staysail sheet length, minor tweaking of vang cascades, and more of the many details that encompass sailboat racing.   A new quiver of sails from Quantum for the week, and these are far and away the best product I have ever seen from the angry green doughnut.  Seriously, the lamination on these things was a work of art.

Friday’s distance race provided a great warm up, but unfortunately for us, turned into a total crap shoot.  At least we went to all the right marks (sorry KP kids, had to get one shot in there!).  Vanquish would go on to flex her muscles later anyway, so nothing to feel bad about there.  Light air is not Vela Veloce’s forte, she carries a bit more junk in the trunk than most of the other 52’s, but we did come up with a pretty good mode at the end of the day - but nine points did hurt. Saturday dawned with promise however, and some decent breeze awaited us on the course.  With a bit more knowledge in our arsenal, we started to click really well, and our upwind wheels started to show a bit - surprisingly, downwind did as well.  With a max of about 22 knots of breeze (we hear, still no instruments) we found a mode that was considerably faster down wind.  Great communication between the helm and trimmers really started to make gains, and we started to get closer to the boat's potential.  A bullet in the first race helped our stoke out a bit too.  Day three, Sunday, and the weather I envisioned was here.  Cold, drizzle, and general suck pervaded the course.  VV’s wheels were coming through though, and a 2, 3 for the day wasn’t a bad way to finish off.  Those kids on Vanquish I was ribbing earlier were shot out of a cannon and took a string of 4 bullets - nice job, boys.

All in all a fun weekend, with an immensely fun boat that has a ton of upside left to go, and a top shelf crew.  - Graham ‘doghouse’ Garrenton.

In one of the first incidents of piracy on a yacht in the area in a decade, an old friend with the strange name of Juan Pablo Del Solar Goldsmith (J.P. Del Solar to racers everywhere) and his crew were tied up and robbed by pirates last week.  J.P. is the current Audi Melges 20 National Champ and a long time anarchist who's been a sailing coach and Melges racer out of Holland, MI for the past few years.  Get to know JP here, a super nice guy who decided to take his dad's Beneteau First 47.7 from the Great Lakes to Chile - little did he expect he'd end up in his own little Pirates of the Caribbean drama. Here's a video we did with him at the Melges 20 Nationals.

In their last hop between Roatan, Honduras and the Panama Canal, JP and crew spotted a small green panga approaching their yacht, and when it got close enough, the crew of 4 Nicaraguans pulled out pistols and shotguns.  "Of course there is nothing you can do," JP told me.  The pirates jumped aboard , tying up J.P. and crew and stealing everything of value aboard.  Cash, video and still cameras, booze, navigational equipment, food, computers - all gone, and the pirates were convinced they could find drugs aboard, but didn't.  When J.P. resisted, the pirates shot into the air and told him they would kill him, so he gave up his resistance.  Strangely, they left J.P. his iPhone for navigating to Panama, maybe out of respect for another Spanish speaker.

JP has already replaced the shit he needs to get to Chile, but now he's looking for crew.  So if you're interested in getting some serious sea miles with a pro sailor on a voyage through the Panama Canal, to the Galapagos, and on to Chile and you're able to get to Panama immediately, get your ass in gear and go sailing with JP.  Email him here.  Chance of a lifetime, folks.

A NYYC anarchist just reported seeing an unusual group around a table at the New York Yacht Club that included Bryan Willis, Hamish Ross, Lucien Masmejean, Melinda Erkelens, Tom Ehman, and a couple of other suits.  Is this the first sign that the sides may be coming together to get their issues sorted out for the 33rd Cup?  One can only hope...

From the book Saving Sailing, by Nicholas Hayes

Of the approximately 1.2M registered sailboats in the Unites States, only about 20% are actively raced. Sailboat racing, like all sailing in the U.S., is in decline, with a meager 3/10ths of 1% of the population, including kids, doing it today (compared with about 3% of the population just 30 years ago). Racing is down almost 88% (you read that right) since 1979, shedding almost 6 million participants.

Let’s look at the facts.

A few races (less than 2% of all starts) are major media events, hosted by professional managers who provide services like entertainment, provisioning, coaching and photography, who rally spectators and sponsors and publishers, and promise branding on a large scale. These are the exception, not the norm. But these are also the events that most will see in a late-night mention on cable TV and that shape the public’s view of sailing in general.

The vast majority, more than 98% of all starts, are far more modest. Most races began with a few sailors saying, “Let’s go here to there and see who gets there first” followed by a gradual evolution to something more complex and socially interesting. Since racing often involves an assortment of buoys to define a course and timekeepers to set starts and finishes, most events are the product of systematic volunteerism, coalescence and cooperation on par with that found in a large church or temple. Many yacht and sailing clubs can trace their roots to basic race organization, often provided by member-racers who took turns setting buoys and time to make racing possible for their competitor-friends. 

Once the racing begins, favorite flavors emerge. Most sailboat racers fall into one of two categories: 68% who sail on a boat designed for dual, triple or more purposes and 32% who prefer racing identical boats.

If you visit any of the online discussion boards regarding sailboat racing, you will inevitably confront a heated debate of the merits of handicapping verses sailing one-design. There, sailors will often insist that their favored design is the solution to waning participation. As you might guess, one-design sailors want their design to be the popular standard, and handicap sailors do not see how a one-design fleet will meet their needs. It is notable that only 7% of all the sailboats in the U.S. meet a one-design criteria.

But the argument is mostly wasted breathe, at least as suggested by the data:

Among 164 U.S. sailing clubs surveyed (by US Sailing) in 2007, there are 215 different, active one-design fleets, and another 3 or 4 fleets each of handicap racers of various pedigree. This means that sailboat racing as a whole has the burden of attempting to appease, or at least juggle, about 500 tiny special-interest groups, each with only a few dozen (or less) members but with very definite opinions about what is right and wrong in their sport. It also means that fleets must, by this market design, constantly shrink, rather than grow, to adjust to the latest fad.

Mathematicians have names to describe trends in group dynamics like these. Fragmentation is when the group is breaking apart, and in doing so, becoming weaker. Coalescence is when a group is coming together and as a result, becoming stronger.

When groups coalesce they gain buying power, competition increases and prices fall, creating access. That is precisely why sailing clubs formed originally; by tapping the buying power of a group, access to lakes and oceans and boats became a reality for the group.

Conversely, when groups fragment, entry barriers like financial or time costs rise. Without a club, an individual has to bear all costs of access, training or coordination. As cost and access barriers climb, popularity must eventually and inevitably drop, although it may not seem so at first.

Since about 1980, Americans have assumed that we would have unlimited discretionary income and the ability to buy into whatever personal entertainment we wish, without need to share access. A strange period of cheap money and ample toys created a false sense of unlimited buying power. It hasn’t felt as if there was much need to coalesce, so many clubs witnessed major shortfalls in member recruitment — even as marinas expanded and prices for basic services increased. The average cost to dock a sailboat rose 8 times faster than inflation in the last 10 years, even as overall demand measured in usage dropped. Now, fewer people sail on bigger and bigger boats that consume more and more lake frontage.

More important perhaps, during this time, many clubs became sellers of support services, including those required for racing, as opposed to self-sustaining groups of volunteers. So in some places, only those that can afford to buy the time of others can afford to race, and those with time to spare and some interest can’t. More people inside and outside of sailing think that sailing is a professional sport of sponsors and celebrities, when, according to the numbers, it isn’t and will never be.

Basic supply and demand theory tells us that this had to end.

Now that the economic bubble has popped we can see that coalescence is healthy for a community in both good times and bad, but fragmentation is especially visible and threatening in the bad. What can be done? It’s pretty simple:

• Join a club, and if there isn’t one within reach, form one
• Share boats if necessary
• Set a race course
• Enter whatever boat you have access to
• Take your turn doing race committee
• Take your kids and their friends

Like this stuff? Then get the book!