Live from China - The Kenny Read show / SOLD OUT

01/29/09
01/29/09 Newport RI, Sail Newport treated a capacity crowd to a fun and interesting evening with Kenny Read and Company at the Jane Pickens. Kenny was brought to the event live via video link live from China. The high tech hook-up enabled Kenny to speak directly to the audience, take questions, and chat with his brother Brad and team mate Jerry Kirby who were actually there.

The timing was perfect as PUMA just completed the crazy passage from Singapore - finishing 2nd. Big seas, big winds and heading north in January scattered and broke the fleet. PUMA snapped their boom, other boats were force to retire and there was the finger drama.

The technology that’s bringing us the Volvo Ocean Race is really changing the game. The crowd loved the images and live communication with the PUMA crew. It’s very cool to have Kenny (in China) and Jerry (in Newport) in the same room interacting with the same crowd; and if you haven’t been to the Jane Pickens that just adds to the experience. You could say it’s cozy, but there is nothing high tech about it.

Brad Read checks in: “The event was very good. We had high expectations and we met them. Mike Smith from Jane Pickens and Vinnie Pattavina form Sail Newport were up in the booth “hot swapping” the computers, Ipods, setting up skype calls etc. The original plan was to talk live to the boat via a teleconference through a server in the UK linked by satellite with il mostro. The reaching conditions brought them into China a bit quicker, so we went to plan b which turned out to be a straight video skype call. We got lucky with a perfect connection and there were no delays. We sold out the theatre with 430 people! There is talk of 2 more events. One in early April and one after the finish.

Boston will be a huge deal. Loads of volunteer opportunities, tons of great kid activities, the spectacle of the boats will be front and center at fan pier. The restart is hoped to be a quick windward leeward out in front of the city front then out of the harbor and across the pond to Galway. It was really great to have so many people there to watch the presentation. As Kenny told the assembled masses. Newport is the hometown for PUMA Ocean Racing and he is humbled by the huge amount of support from our community ”

Puma Ocean Racing
Sail Newport
image / Rick Tomlinson /Volvo Ocean Race

It’s Official - The start of the 2009 Rhode Island Boating season

01/29/09
01/29/09 Governor Donald Carcieri opened the 2009 Providence Boat Show and the Rhode Island 2009 boating season with the ceremonial ribbon cutting. Picture from left to right are: Ken Kubic, Providence Mayor David Cicilline, Nancy Piffard, Governor Donald Carcieri and Chris Ruhling.

Image courtesy of Bob Sharkey / New England Boat Works.

Providence Boat Show.

Update 02/02/09, Providence, RI…Producers of the Providence Boat Show, announced today that total attendance at the 2009 edition of its annual Show saw about a 10% increase in attendance and brought in a group of buyers equal to that of previous years. A perennial love of boating, great buys, financing opportunities and the drop in gas prices are seen as contributing factors.

Nancy Piffard, Show Director noted that “Saturday attendance is up by about 30%, while Thursday and Friday totaled just about the same as 2008. Sunday attendance saw an up-tick as well but, with Saturday always being the biggest day of the Show; overall attendance is likely to be up at least 10% once all the ticket sales are counted!”

Super Bowl and a boat show! Pretty good for February in Rhode Island. Let’s hope it falls on the same day again next year.

Goetz calls back boat builders

01/28/09
BRISTOL - Goetz Custom Boats, although still in receivership, has reopened and called back about two-thirds of its 75-person staff. “We’re not up to full capacity but we have brought back a number of people,” a company spokeswoman said. Story - Providence Business News

riy Calendar - upcoming events

Quonset developer drops shipbuilding plans

The Florida developer that had planned to construct a $150-million complex in North Kingstown to build and repair mammoth yachts has canceled the project, The Providence Journal has learned. Story projo.com

12 Metre Golden Year of Racing - Friends of the Library Sailing Series

01/23/09
Thursday January 29, 2009 7:30 PM until 9:00 PM hosted by the Jamestown Library. Jan Slee, President of the 12 Metre Association will discuss the upcoming 12 METRE GOLDEN YEAR OF RACING. A yearlong calendar of racing and events will celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the classic and elegant 12 Metre Class of boats in the America’s Cup Competition.

This “Golden Year” will highlight the famous 12 Metres with regattas in Newport, RI, Edgartown, MA, Nantucket, MA and New York City, NY. The centerpiece of the “Golden Year” will be the 2009 12 Metre World Competition in Newport on September 22-27. Up to thirty five 12 Metre yachts from around the world are likely to participate. Special events open to the public will include competition viewing, a dockside party, a lecture series, book signings and film presentations. Trophies and awards will be on display in addition to the slide presentation accompanying the talk.

This event is free and open to the public at the Jamestown Library - Meeting Hall. Refreshments will be served. Questions please contact Susan Lutes @ 423-7435 or call the library at 423-7280.

The 12 Metre Class

Image: Onne van der Wal / Jan Slee

Fast Sailing Foundation eyes Fort Getty location and gets closer to a deal

01/22/09
FAST (not an acronym) is working with Jamestown Town Planner Lisa Bryer on a project to develop a new sailing center at Fort Getty. FAST Sailing Foundation is a competitive sailing team for kids in New England that’s currently based at Fort Adams in Newport.

The team is composed of hard core dinghy sailors who want to continue sailing during the fall and spring to keep pace with their competitors who live in southern climates and sail year round. The team regularly brings in national level coaching for weekend training sessions and travels to national events with the same high level support. The athletes are from RI, MA, CT and other northeast states and typically sail with their local clubs in the summer. Since FAST would be most active at the Jamestown location from March - June and September - November, the town or another group could utilize the facility for teaching or other events during the rest of the year.

FAST is organized as a 5013C and is seeking donations to help build the facility. They are currently sailing Optimists, 420’s, Laser’s and the 29er. Contact Rob Salk for details.

fastsailing.net

related story - jamestownpress.com

Roundtable Discussion

As part of the Providence Boat Show at the Convention Center, the RI Marine Trades Association will present a discussion with The RI Economic Development Corp and local marine professionals. (more…)

Career building effort to be unveiled by RIMTA at Providence Boat Show

01/22/09
A new program will be presented in a huge pavilion on the top floor of the Providence Boat Show, January 29 - February 1 and include how-to demonstrations by workers and students in the industry. RIMTA (RI Marine Trades Association) is launching the outreach effort under the brand: “BOATS WORK for Rhode Island

Demonstrations such as Outboard Maintenance, Sterndrive Maintenance, Basic Fiberglass Repair and Electronic Installation will be offered at selected hours of the show. The pavilion will be shared with three post-secondary marine trades schools — the International Yacht Restoration School, MotoRing Technical Training Institute and New England Institute of Technology.

The Marine Industry is one of the few sectors of the Rhode Island economy that is growing. In a recent study, it was estimated that there are over 6,600 total jobs, paying nearly $260 Million in wages with an average salary of $39,400…higher than the average for all industries in the State! Over 2,000 businesses — nearly 10% of all private employers in Rhode Island — are involved in the boating industry.

Details at: www.rimta.org

GMT Composites delivers carbon rudder for 147′ sloop

01/20/09
Bristol, RI, USA - GMT Composites, recently shipped this extraordinary rudder to Vitters Shipyard in The Netherlands for installation in a 44.7 meter (147-foot) sloop under construction there. The GMT rudder is 6.1 meters (20 feet) in height, has a chord depth of 1.4 meters (4 feet 6 inches) and including the carbon stock, weights only 421 kg (926 pounds). The sloop Lady B. is a flush-deck mega-sailer with cutting-edge styling and state-of-the-art technology in construction, materials as well as gear and equipment. Lady B will cruise at over 20 knots, subjecting this rudder to extreme loads.

Image - GMT President David Schwartz stands between GMT-built carbon composite rudders for a Farr 44 (white) and the 147-foot Lady B (grey),

gmtcomposites.com
Lady B

Hard Water

01/17/09
01/17/09 Lake Wattuppa in Fall River is frozen shore to shore and the ice is pretty good. Saturday there were about 15 ice boats out sailing. Most were DN’s but there were a few home made designs and a couple of hand held kites. The crew reportedly started by checking the conditions at the Ninigret salt pond but is was soft and Worden Pond in South Kingston has snow on it. Wattuppa has a pressure ridge on the east end that isn’t passable but the rest is smooth / little bumpy with some patchy snow. Wind was south 5-10 knots. images Update 01/19/09, it’s now covered in deep snow.

Like this? - Sail Newport has even better video coming to the BIG screen!

01/16/09

Sail Newport, Rhode Island public sailing center is bringing never before seen footage of PUMA’s il mostro, to the Jane Pickens Theater in Newport. The show starts at 6:30 - Thursday - Jan 29. You’ll be treated to special (taped) commentary buy Rhode Island Puma team members Ken Read and Jerry Kirby and some of the correspondence with the students taking part in the globallearning-sailnewport.org school program. Peter Craig from Premiere Racing will be there to present details about the upcoming Boston Stopover in April / May. All proceeds to benefit Sail Newport’s Public Sailing Programs. Tickets and details are available online at: sailnewport.org

KVH hedges its bets - thriving in a volatile economy

It doesn’t take long for a visitor with a wireless Internet connection to figure out KVH’s roots when stepping into the company’s giant, marble-lined foyer at 50 Enterprise Way. The firm has three wireless networks named, appropriately enough, “Intrepid,” “Aurora” and “Courageous. EastBayRI.com

Hot Socks

01/11/09
Meet Katie Miller. University student, adventurer and English ocean racer headed our way. On May 25th Katie will be leaving Plymouth England in the 2009 OSTAR. (Original Single-handed Trans-Atlantic Race). The race crosses about 3000 miles of the North Atlantic and more because it will be upwind. The finish line is in Newport. Katie is currently both the youngest and the only female entrant. And she will be doing this in a 30′ boat.

The OSTAR is hosted by The Royal Western Yacht Club of Plymouth and the Newport Yacht Club. The 2009 race is limited to boats between 30′-50′ but open to monohulls and multihulls. It’s been raced in Open 60’s in the past. Katie’s entry (Hot Socks) is a Bénéteau Figaro ll. The Figaro is a 10.10m ‘one design’ class for offshore yacht racing and a fast little boat. Katie checks in:

“At the moment preparation for the race entails a lot of gym time, sailing time and finishing my university studies. The yacht is currently in the shed having a refit for the race, and is due back in the water at the end of January for some extensive training. That is alongside some shore based training including offshore sea survival, advanced first aid, weather, diesel engine maintenance etc, everything you could think possible for such a major trip.”

The OSTAR was first run in 1960 when it was won by Francis Chichester in Gipsy Moth III. The racers typically finish in an 18 - 40 day window. Beyond a successful completion of the OSTAR Katie’s ultimate goal is the 2016 Vendee Globe.

KatieMillerracing.com
OSTAR2009.com
Newportyachtclub.org

Laser fleet 413- winter series week 1

Newport Laser fleet 413 scores_010409