Vendée Globe: Leaders Cross the Equator & ‘Gutek’ Retires due to Autopilot Failures

Posted on by November 21, 2012

Zbigniew Gutikowski

The six boats leading in the Vendée Globe non-stop round-the-world single-handed yacht race have all crossed the equator and are heading for the Southern Ocean.  The leaders are, respectively – Armel Le Cléac´h,  François Gabart, Bernard Stamm, Vincent Riou, Jean-Pierre Dick, and Alex Thomson.  Meanwhile, Zbigniew Gutikowski, known as ‘Gutek,’  has retired from the race after facing repeated autopilot failures. ‘Gutek’ is the sixth of the original 20 racers to have retired from the race in the first eleven days of sailing.   ‘Gutek’ came in second overall in the 2010-2011 Velux Five Oceans singlehanded around the world race.

More Woes for the HMS Astute: Rusty, Slow & Leaky

Posted on by November 21, 2012

HMS Astute, the first of seven new submarines, was delivered two years late, was well over budget and thus far is not yet in service, despite being delivered in 2009.  Her career has been marked by elements of both comedy and tragedy.  In October 2010, the Astute was practicing dropping off commandos when it ran aground off Skye in full view of the Skye Bridge.  Embarrassing and not very stealthy. When it was towed off, it collided with a tug boat. Then on her first day back at sea following repairs, she broke down and had to be towed back to port.   In April of 2011, a sailor aboard the Astute killed on officer and wounder another in a shooting rampage during a goodwill visit to Southhampton.  Only a month later, the sub was gain under tow back to port after a major hydraulic failure.

It s now being reported that the submarine cannot maintain design speed and could have trouble keeping up with the fleet that it is supposed to protect.  There have also been reports of flooding during a routine dive, corrosion in   equipment, nuclear reaction monitoring instruments of the wrong type and concerns that the periscope is flawed.

HMS Astute: nuclear submarine beset by design problems and construction failures

Update: VESTAS Sailrocket 2 Shatters 500M Speed Sailing Record Averaging 59.38 Knots!

Posted on by November 21, 2012

Update: On Sunday, the VESTAS Sailrocket 2 set a new speed record for 500M of 59.38 knots and a new one nautical mile record of an average of 55.32 knots. Both records are subject to confirmed by the WSSRC.  The current holder of the nautical mile record is Alain Thébault on l’Hydroptère at 51.36 knots in Hyères, France, set in September 4, 2009.  If confirmed, the Sailrocket 2 will have beaten that record by almost 4 knots.

Vestas Sailrocket 2 Blitzes 500 Metre Record

Last year, we posted about the attempts by the VESTAS Sailrocket to break the sailing speed record. On Friday off Ludertiz, Namibia, they did just that over a 500M course, averaging 59.23 knots (109.69 Kmh, 68 Mph) with a peak speed of over 63 knots (116 Kph, 71 Mph). The record is still subject to World Speed Sailing Record Council (WSSRC) ratification.  The previous kiteboard record was 55.65 knots set by Rob Douglas in 2010.  A video of the record speed run:

VESTAS Sailrocket 2 Outright world speed sailing record holder. (subject to WSSRC ratification)

More Vendée Globe Gear Problems – Jérémie Beyou Drops Out After Keel Failure

Posted on by November 20, 2012

A week ago last Sunday, 20 boats sailed by 20 sailors set off in the Vendée Globe non-stop round-the-world single-handed yacht race. Now only 15 remain in the race.  Jérémie Beyou dropped out yesterday after the hydraulic ram on his articulating keel broke on his Open 60 class boat, Maître CoQ.   Of the five boats that have dropped out, there have been two keel failures, a dismasting and damage related to two collisions with fishing boats.

Alex Thompson sailing Hugo Boss has stayed in the race despite damage to a rudder tie bar.  Thompson successfully  performed emergency repairs while underway and sailing at 18 knots. Zbigniew “Gutek” Gutkowski sailing Energa, is having autopilot problems and considering his options. In today’s radio call he commented, “I’m very confused because the autopilot isn’t working. I’ve stopped and right now I’m fishing while I think about how to solve my problems. To be honest, right now, I have no idea what to do next.“

BOUNTY Reminiscences by John Fitzhugh Millar

Posted on by November 19, 2012

John Fitzhugh Millar is a historian, author, tall ship captain and the force behind the construction of the replica HMS Rose.  Here are his reminiscences of the HMS Bounty.  Reposted with permission of the author.

BOUNTY Reminiscences by John Fitzhugh Millar

Many Hampton Roads residents will remember fondly the jaunty blue Tall Ship Bounty, which was present here for many Harborfests and for last summer’s Operation Sail. She will now never return, but local artist Bob Holland painted a lovely portrait of her, from which prints are available.

Bounty was built for MGM Films in 1960 at Lunenburg, Nova Scotia in the same shipyard that built my own ship, the 24-gun Revolutionary War frigate Rose, in 1969 – another frequent participant in Harborfest until she moved to San Diego in 2002 to star in the Russell Crowe film Master & Commander: to the Far Side of the World. By amazing coincidence, the original Rose (built 1756) and the original Bounty (built 1784) were produced by the same shipbuilder, Hugh Blaydes, at Hull, Yorkshire.

Continue reading →

PortSide NY, the Tanker Mary A. Whalen, Superstorm Sandy and Redhook

Posted on by November 19, 2012

Rubber gloves drying – Portside & the Tanker Mary Whalen help in Red Hook recovery

Like most of the historic vessels in and around New York harbor, the tanker Mary A. Whalen survived Superstorm Sandy Sandy better than her shore based neighbors. The tanker, which weathered Sandy at the inshore end of Pier 9B in the Red Hook Container Terminal, suffering damage to their shore power supply and the flooding of some of their historic paper records, but otherwise was relatively unscathed. Their shore-side neighbors in the Red Hook section of Brooklyn were not so fortunate. In response, PortSide NY, the waterfront educational organization based on the Mary Whalen led by Carolina Salguero, set up a Recovery Center at 351 Van Brunt Street shortly after Sandy swept through Redhook. They moved computers, tables, chairs, modems and a printer off the tanker and set charging stations and phone landlines,  The Recovery Center has become a focal point for recovery advice and contacts and serves as a meeting space for volunteers and community groups. Click here to learn more – PortSide-Hurricane-Sandy-Recovery-Effort.

Remembering HMS Bounty

Posted on by November 18, 2012

The last image of HMS Bounty was brutal – sinking off Cape Hatteras with broken spars, most of the crew in lifeboats and the captain and one crew member missing. Here are a few photos from another time, way back in 1996, on a repositioning leg between New York and Newport Rhode, Island. The wind was light from the southwest and the sea was calm. All photos by Rick Spilman. Click on the thumbnails for a larger image.

Schooner Bessie A. White – Hide & Seek Beneath the Sands of Fire Island

Posted on by November 20, 2012

Bessie A. White – 1922 & Today

Last Wednesday, we posted about the wreck of a wooden ship uncovered by Superstorm Sandy beneath the dunes of Fire Island, east of Davis Park.  The remains are thought to be the Bessie A. White, more than 90 years old, said Paula Valentine, public affairs specialist for the park. The Bessie A. White was a four masted Canadian schooner carrying a cargo of coal.  This apparently is not the first time that the wreck of the schooner has made an appearance from beneath the sands.  The schooner was also exposed by the late October nor’easter which brought the North American blizzard of 2005. Previously the schooner had been uncovered by another nor-easter in the mid 1980s.

Continue reading →

Dismasting and Collision – Sam Davies & Louis Burton Drop Out of Vendée Globe

Posted on by November 16, 2012

Photo: Sam Davies / SAVEOL

After only a week into the Vendée Globe non-stop round-the-world single-handed yacht race, four of the twenty original sailors have dropped out due to casualties or gear failure. The latest include Louis Burton, who was in a  collision with a fishing boat off Portugal, and Samantha Davies whose boat suffered a dismasting last night.  Previously, Kito de Pavant also withdrew from the race following a collision with another fishing boat. Marc Guillemot was forced to withdraw after the keel on his boat Safran broke on the first day of the race.

Vendee Globe 2012-2013: Sam Davies crashes out after Saveol dismast as casualties mount

Update 2: Explosion on Oil Rig in Gulf of Mexico – Eleven Injured, Four Critically and Two Missing

Posted on by November 17, 2012

Update 2: Current reports say that eleven were injured, four critically. Two workers are still missing.

An oil and gas rig in the Gulf of Mexico, about 20 nautical miles southeast of Grand Isle, La., was hit by an explosion and fire this morning, injuring four and leaving two missing. The US Coast Guard is now searching for the missing crew members. The injured crew have been airlifted to a hospital for treatment. The production platform is owned by Black Elk Energy.

The explosion comes only a day after BP agreed to pay $4.5 billion dollars and plead guilty to 14 criminal charges related to the fire and explosion on the Deepwater Horizon in 2010, which killed 14 and caused the largest accidental marine oil spill in the history of the petroleum industry.  Thanks to Phil Leon for contributing to the post.

Oil Rig Explosion and Fire in Gulf Coast, Two Missing

White Humpback Whale Sighted Off Norway

Posted on by November 16, 2012

Yesterday, we posted about the Moby Dick Marathon NYC, which begins tonight. It is not as one reader suggested a porn event but rather the first-ever marathon-style reading in New York City of Herman Melville’s classic American novel, Moby-Dick. Fittingly enough in the news today there are reports of the sighting of a white whale off the coast of Norway near Spitsbergen. It is not a ship-killing sperm whale like Moby Dick, but a white humpback which has been nicknamed Willow.

Extremely Rare White Whale Spotted Off The Coast Of Spitsbergen

Continue reading →

Moby Dick Marathon NYC November 16–18

Posted on by November 15, 2012

The New York Marathon was cancelled after Superstorm Sandy swept through New York two weeks ago. The New York Moby Dick Marathon is on, however.

What is a Moby Dick Marathon, you might ask?  It is ” the first-ever marathon-style reading in New York City of Herman Melville’s American classic, Moby-Dick, Or, the Whale. Celebrating the anniversary of the novel’s publication in the United States on November 14, 1851, the inaugural NYC marathon will span three days, three bookstores, and two boroughs, featuring over 100 readers.”

The Marathon kicks off at 5PM on Friday, November 16 and runs through 4PM Sunday, November 18.  Click here to learn more – Moby Dick Marathon NYC.

The Moby Dick Marathon NYC should not be confused with the Moby Dick Big Read, in which actors and writers have been reading a chapter a day from Moby Dick and posting the chapters on-line as pod casts.

BP Pleads Guilty to 11 Felonies and Agrees to Pay $4.5 Billion to Settle Criminal Case on Deepwater Horizon Tragedy

Posted on by November 15, 2012

On April 20, 2010, the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig exploded and sank in the Gulf of Mexico, killing 11 platform workers and resulting in the largest accidental marine oil spill in the history of the petroleum industry. Today BP, the well owner, plead guilty to 14 criminal charges of which 11 were felonies. They also agreed to pay $4.5 billion in fines and other payments to the government. Two BP officials, Robert Kaluza and Donald Vidrine, were also charged with manslaughter realted to the 11 deaths, alleging that they were negligent in supervising tests before the well blowout and explosion that destroyed the rig. Prosecutors also charged David Rainey, BP’s former vice president for exploration in the Gulf of Mexico, with obstruction of Congress and making false statements about the rate at which oil was spilling from the well.

BP to Admit Crimes and Pay $4.5 Billion in Gulf Settlement

These fines and payments may be only the beginning, however. BP also may be liable under the Clean Water Act for the oil spilled with potentials fine between $1,100 to $4,300 per barrel spilled. These fines could total as much as $21 billion. Other civil lawsuits are also pending. Thanks to Phil Leon for contributing to this post.

Superstorm Sandy, the Aircraft Carrier Intrepid, the Space Shuttle Enterprise and the Titanic II

Posted on by November 15, 2012

Space Shuttle Enterprise Pavilion on SS Intrepid Before and After Sandy

When we posted yesterday about the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island being closed by superstorm Sandy, Liam Hegarty pointed out in a comment that the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum is also closed until December due to storm damage.

The museum’s newest exhibit, the Space Shuttle Enterprise was damaged by Sandy. It had been housed in a temporary inflatable enclosure on the stern of the aircraft carrier Intrepid.  When the storm struck, it flooded Pier 86 and knocked out the stand-by generators causing the enclosure to collapse. Reportedly the Enterprise’s tail was slightly damaged.   The Enterprise has not had an easy time since it arrived in New York, flying in on the back of its own 747. When in transit by barge from JFK airport to the museum on the Hudson River, one wing was damaged when it struck a railway bridge.  Such are the dangers of parking in New York City.

Intrepid Out of Commission from Sandy, Shuttle Sustains “Minor Damage”

Continue reading →

Shanty Sing at the Noble Maritime Collection at Snug Harbor this Sunday, Nov 18th

Posted on by December 15, 2012

Despite the best efforts of Superstorm Sandy, the monthly Sea Shanty Session at the Noble Maritime Collection at the Snug Harbor Cultural Center is carrying on and will be held this Sunday November 18, 2012 from 2 until 5 PM. Admission is by donation, and refreshments will be available for sale. Everyone is welcome to come join in the singing or just sit and enjoy.  If you are anywhere near New York harbor, it well worth stopping by.

A short video of one of the shanty sessions last year:
William Main Doerflinger Memorial Shanty Session

Continue reading →