This latest video from Bernardo gives you some views from around Qingdao.

Here is another video sent in to us from Bernardo Santos. Shows the boat getting measured in for the games. Only 2 days to go before the event starts.

We have some video sent to us from our friends Bernado Santos and Afonso Domingos. They are representing Portugal in the Star class. We’ll keep adding more as we receive them.

We hope these videos and photos give you a feel for the sailing venue and from the athlete’s perspective.

This first video was taken during the opening cermony:

This video was taken around the olympic village. They ran into a rather large man from China:

This video was taken around the sailing facilities:

Here are some more photos:

The Bacardi Cup is about a week away and it looks to one to remember.

Right now there are 109 Entries and I would expect that number to end up between 115 and 120.

Looks like 27 countries will be represented.

Just a reminder that we will be provided daily updates from Miami during Bacardi Cup.

To see the list entries go to: http://stardistrict20.org/bacardi/entries.htm

There were several boats at the US olympic trials using fiberglass whisker poles and you are going to see more and more folks using them. The advantage is the weight savings especially on the ends of the pole. In light air and choppy water the jib leech will stay very stable downwind.

We will have a small quantity available at Bacardi Cup. If you want to reserve one drop us an email.

The sections are made by the renowned composite spar makers, Southern Spars of New Zealand. Cost is $525 complete.

These have been standard for a couple of years in the Lillia and now we have these available. This block allows you extra purchase on your upper backstay without having to us the wire block above the upper backstay tackle. We use Movstar 5mm SSC with this block and that line runs very well.

We expect this to be the hot star item in 2008 and we now have some in stock. The gauge reads in Kg and the typical range for the star uppers will probably be around 105 to 111.

I would recommend using both the Loos gauge and the Rig Tune Pro the first time out to get a feel for where the settings are in relation to each other. I think you will quickly see how much more accurate the new Harken Rig Tune Pro is compared to the Loos gauge.

Three of these units where tested down a Commodore’s cup a few weeks ago and all measured within 2kgs of each other.

Here are some links with more information on the unit:

As we get more definitive tuning numbers we will publish them.

The other great thing about them is that they use a standard 9v battery that you can change out.

The decision was posted at 11:40 am after the teams hit the water yet the Horton decision was subsequent but posted earlier in the day. So, essentially the jury had to interpret the individual recall rule. Under the rule, the RC must promptly notify the early starters that there are premature starters… not who they are… just that someone started early. This will genarally alert the fleet that someone started too soon, after that, it is up to the individuals to determine if it was them and if so go back and restart and play catch up. “Promptly” is the key word. What is prompt. Certainly, flying the flag at the windward mark is not prompt nor is half way up the leg. How about two minutes aftert the start, no probabaly too late. If you were not sure if you were early, and the RC did not fly a flag then you would continue racing. Two minutes would put you at least four minutes behind the fleet by the time you got back into the game. So, one minute seems like a close call. One minute is slow but you could get back into it. Don’t forget, you were the one who started ahead of everyone, it was your fault, you were afoul of the rules and sailing with an unfair advantage. How about 30 seconds? Still the RC is delinquent but not too bad. A month ago, I was OCS and the RC flew the signal 30 seconds late. I sailed back. I was mad but I sailed back. I yelled at the RC but I sailed back. Interestingly, I started right next to the RC, dead silence. They could have whispered to me… “hey, tom you blew it buddy, restart you sorry sack.” They did not. They waited 30 seconds… but I sailed back.

This jury determined that the RC waited 16 seconds and that this was not promnpt. 16 seconds. Four seconds longer than a good bull ride, three seconds longer than I can straight-leg hike, two seconds longer than I can hold out while making love, etc… you get the picture. 16 seconds. Would 15 seconds suffice? Is it me or is this sould like splitting hairs and drawing artificial lines in the sand. So from now on, 16 seconds will be too long. Hell, we now have a precedent that 16 seconds is too long to fire a individual recall. From now on, every jackass competitor will protest and say 15 seconds is too long, and fourteen etc… this is embarrassing and I am sure that RC’s across the counrty just cringed. Now all RC actions will be reviewed in terms of seconds? What about starting properly! By the way, it would suggest that not one of them would have gone back anyway, if fact one team admitted as such. What about starting properly? Ironically, Joe and Mark scored a second today and an OCS. For the record, they did not protest. But for the OCS and the wholesale redress, Joe and Mark would be in fourth. Ifs and buts.

Since the black flag was not displayed. Reynolds need not leave the racecourse in order to be able to discard the race in the event he lost his protest, so he was not as reckless as I had so characterized. By the way, this was how Eric Doyle lost the World Champs in 1997 in Boston. He was identified as OCS but refused to leave the race course and then not permitted to discard the OCS, otherwise Doyle would have won the Gold Star in 1997.

Still, the jury findings have not been posted jury. We may never know the basis for redress because the jury’s findings have not been posted but I assume it has something to do with failing to fly the individual recall flag or failing to appropriatly fire another gun, or maybe the RC dropped the flag and the sailors thought they were clear and when they arrived at the mark it was too late to correct the false start.

Appendix 10 on redress allows the jury to award, “c) points based on the position of the boat in the race at the time of
the incident that justified redress.” So, Horton’s request was not so far flung. However, it is presumptious to suggest that after one leg he would have certainly won the race. Also, the incident probably occured not at the windward mark but at the starting line. Finally, one of the reasons that he was first at the mark was because he started too early, a headstart. You know the routine, “hey, I was winning the race when I found out I was OCS, I should have a bullet on my score not a last place.” Yeah, and if I can start before eveyone else, and gas my competition up the weather leg I might lead the race as well. OCS guys never seem to get that point.

I was wrong. Mendelblatt was not over.  However, somebody did seek redress because they felt spectator boats were causing him too many waves. They lost.

The jury’s decision is not posted and so the competitors have no idea of the basis for the redress. But Reynolds, MacCausland, Brown, Horton, Stout, and Anderson received redress in the form of average points but the jury does not indicate the basis for the award. For reasons unknown, Horton, who already received redress and thereby average points, protested again asking the jury to award him first place points since he was in first when he withdrew from the race. He failed. This time the jury did post its findings. It found that Horton started on the course side of the starting line and that average points was the appropriate remedy. However, there has been no posting by the jury of the basis of the award of average points for all of these teams? But it can be assumed by the Horton ruling that the jury found all these competitors started on the course side of the line… so the fifty dollar question, why the wholesale redress?