Sailboat Races

Playing against type, I decided to see how many races we could do in 90 minutes if we just ran short courses inside Sanchon. We got 12 races off... I think we could have pushed it to 13 if we really tried, but since it was already the 13th of the month, that seemed like asking for trouble. Who says sailors are superstitious, anyway?

With 12 races, there were three throwouts, and Static was convincing with all firsts and seconds after the throwout races. Mel made a welcome return to the racing scene and got second place, and Skippy got 3rd place overall and won three races. This is the first event she has won a race in, so the practice seems to be paying off. Skippy also joined the racing outlaws club (I'm a charter member) by getting protested and withdrawing from one race. Since this is all in good fun, sailing agressively and getting protested is just part of the game as far as I am concerned.

Speaking of games... after the races were over, a few of us retired to the pirates pub, rehashed the races, and talked about the VYC Challenge to SYC. Is anyone awake over there in SYC? Let's do a real club vs. club match race series, for fun and glory. I hope to represent SYC and beat VYC (ok... I AM strange), so I'm interested in hearing what the SYC selection criteria will be. Come on... it will be fun!


official results:
1,) Static Sprocket 0.75 2 - - 0.75 2 2 0.75 2 0.75 - 0.75 11.75
2.) Mel Fitzcarraldo - 3 2 2 2 0.75 3 - - 2 2 2 18.75
3.) skippy Spatula 2 - 3 0.75 - 3 4 4 0.75 2 0.75 - 20.25
4.) Oliphant Ming 5 0.75 - 4 3 4 0.75 2 - 4 - 3 26.5
5.) Pixeleen Mistral 3 5 0.75 5 5 - - 3 - 5 3 4 33.75
6.) Polkerface Mahoney 4 4 - - 4 - 6 5 3 6 5 6 43

withouth throwout races:
Static Sprocket 0.75 2 4 3 0.75 2 2 0.75 2 0.75 4 0.75 22.75
Mel Fitzcarraldo 7 3 2 2 2 0.75 3 6 4 2 2 2 35.75
skippy Spatula 2 6 3 0.75 7 3 4 4 0.75 2 0.75 5 38.25
Oliphant Ming 5 0.75 5 4 3 4 0.75 2 7 4 6 3 44.5
Pixeleen Mistral 3 5 0.75 5 5 5 5 3 7 5 3 4 50.75
Polkerface Mahoney 4 4 6 6 4 6 6 5 3 6 5 6 61


for extermely earthy, erudite, and exciting details, see: the Second Life Sailing Federation forums!

Pixeleen,
Do you remember after you broke away from Starboards Yacht Club when I wouldn't give in your way of running things? On December 12 we had a race in which you participated and ended up protesting the last place boat and then publicly humiliated the skipper of that boat in a series of public posts on the forum?

At the time of the incident and prior to your ill-treatment of the skipper on the forums the others told you it was bad idea to do such a thing. You argued with them, myself included, and then you said this:

"No, I'm going to ignore you all".

This was in response to several folks who tried to reason with you about your abrasive and unfeeling approach.

The clarity of that moment really speaks to how you treat people who disagree with you. So you went on to start what might be called a flame war in the forum. To my way of thinking that really solidified the distinction between my approach to nurturing a sailing community in SL and your approach. A gap that despite a sincere public effort on my part not too long ago to heal that wound was rejected by you.

Because I regret having participated in the forum discussion above, I made a conscious decision not to respond to your baiting remarks in recent posts about a challenge between SYC and VYC. (posts which included more than one implied insult to my honesty and integrity).

When we were all discussing the formation of an SL Cup everyone agreed that it should be something to build the community, not continue to flaunt past bad blood between you and me. You were the only one that kept pushing for a SYC v VYC format, this in spite of the fact that nearly the entire active racing community sails in both venues. Any analog to a true club challenge is spurious since we don't have separate rosters of active skippers.

Lets put this one to rest. I will not agree to a SYC v VNC contest because:
1.In the present environment, It can only serve to continue the differences between you and I.
2.It would be a sham because the rosters of active skippers are pretty much identical
3.The final reason is that I will not give in to your bully tactics. I know that pisses u off and for those reading this, now maybe they can see why the bad blood still seem to exist between us.

So continue your snipping posts if you will, you can’t have your way on this one.

1.) I don't expect the differences to go away. I do think it would be interesting to see how each club would handle the qualification/selection series, and the publicity could be good for the awareness of racing in SL. We would not need to agree on how each club runs it's selection series since they would be run independently. We would need to agree on tunning the finals at a neutral site, so there would be no grounds for whining on either side.

2.) In RL racing these days, sailors from country A sail for boats representing country B. I don't think that is a sham. Why should SL be any different?

3.) It was clear you and Al were not giving any of my suggestions serious consideration at the SL Cup discussion May 7th. Dialog was impossible with one person running away from the discussion until I left and another threatening to do so until that person was called out for acting childish. So my only option was post to the forums.

So let's see... if I want to do an America's Cup, I need another yacht club that will accept a challenge, but SYC will not. Hmmmm... I have an idea for how to solve this problem. I'll post that shortly.

Meanwhile, some background reading:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Americas_Cup

...The America's Cup regatta is a challenge-driven yacht series
that involves match racing (a duel between two boats) and,
recently, fleet-racing (racing with three or more boats)...

...The syndicate which owned the America donated the Cup through
a Deed of Gift to the New York Yacht Club on July 8, 1857. The
trophy would be held in trust as a 'challenge' trophy to promote
friendly competition between nations...

...One of the most famous and determined challengers was Scottish
tea baron Sir Thomas Lipton. He would mount five challenges between
1899 and 1930, all in yachts named Shamrock, two of which were
designed by William Fife. One of Lipton's motivations for making
so many challenges was the publicity that racing generated for his
Lipton Tea company, though his original entry was at the personal
request of the Prince of Wales in hopes of repairing trans-Atlantic
ill-will generated by the contentious earlier challenger...

I have come to the conclusion that two sailboat racing-oriented yacht clubs in SL are not enough, since I cannot seem to get a challenge driven yacht racing series off the ground.

If anyone feels like launching a racing oriented yacht club, I'll do anything I can to help. Vagabonds Yacht Club was started on a whim last December, and rather than splintering the sailing scene into something too small to be self-sustaining, we actually helped expand the scene by providing some fresh perspectives, new venues and more opportunities to race and learn. Different people run different style events, and one (or even two) groups are not enough.

When VYC was just starting out, generous people gave us the use of their water, encouraged us, and helped with event announcements, advice, and support. I'd like to pay the community back by returning the favor if there is a new yacht club that wants to get going... on the condition that serious consideration be given to acceptng a club vs. club challenge so we can run a pretend America's Cup.

Running a yacht club and races is actually pretty easy, and I can give any aspiring sailboat race directors some advice on mistakes I made and how to avoid them. Water access is less of an issue than it used to be, we have a nice templates for race announcements and rules/protests that can easily be copied, and there is a much better awareness of the yacht racing rules now.

So, if anyone is interested, let me know. I'd enjoy the chance to race in an event where I do not have any responsibilities other than trying to finish in first place, and we can probably get the SL pretend America's Cup going, too!

I also encourage the development of other SL yacht clubs and offer Starboard's Yacht Club support as well. In the past we have had co-marketing with two other sailing venues and offer the same to any new clubs that are formed.

With new boats coming out and others on the drawing board SYC plans to offer racing opporunities for these designs and cooperation with any clubs that that form around these designs.

Myrrh, get your club going soon and let Nber and I know when you are taking charter membership applications. Grin.

I meant to post this much earlier, but I've been slacking.

SAILBOAT AND PIRATE SHIP SHOW! ARRRRR!
Start Time: 6 PM SLT, Saturday, 20 May, 2006
End Time: 6PM SLT, Tuesday, 23 May, 2006
Location: Sanchon(224,91)
Hosts: Static Sprocket and the Vagabonds Yacht Club

Calling all sailors and builders!

You are invited to display your custom boat builds at the upcoming Sailboat and Pirate Ship Show at the docks in Sanchon(224,91) this coming May 20th! A competition will be held specifically for boats that use the Flying Tako sailboat scripts found either at the LSL Wiki (Flying Tako 2 script) or in-world at Gray(34,163) (Flying Tako 3 script).

This is the second boat show hosted at Sanchon, and hopefully we've ironed out a few of the quirks from the previous show. Thanks to the donations of the Foundation for Rich Content, the Second Life Sailing Federation, and a top-secret pirating society, we currently have over L$15,000 to give away to the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place finishers in categories such as Best Sail, Best Hull, Best Theme, Deadliest Pirate Boat, and Best Overall.

The official unveiling of boat entries will be at 6 PM SLT this Saturday, May 20th, but you are welcome to bring your boats by at any time if the time zone or other committments prevent you from attending. Voting will start later in the night and be ongoing to all the public until 6 PM SLT the following Tuesday, May 23rd. Presumably you'll be allowed to change your vote up until the deadline, to accommodate for newer entries that strike your fancy.

Any boat is welcome, so long as it sails!

Grog will be available at the Pirate Pub. Har!

More information (such at Tako templates, voting procedure, and crucial pirate translations) is available along the boardwalk at Sanchon.

Questions? Answers? Send IM to...
Event Organizer: Static Sprocket
VYC Contact: Pixeleen Mistral
Person Mostly Likely to Respond: Pacifien Massiel

series 43 - saturday may 20

Since Sanchon harbor was filled with boats for the big boat show,
we took the racing show on the road and sailed from the SLSF starting
line VYC sponsors in Torch. I wish I would say that the sailing was good,
but for some reason there was much more lag than I have seen in the
Sea of Sighs in the past. Perhaps there was some lag inducing activity
in the neighborhood, or the void sims in the sea of sighs are now paired
with void sims somewhere else or something. In spite of the adverse
conditions, there was some very tight racing.

official results
1 Static Sprocket 2 0.75 - 0.75 3.5
2 Pixeleen Mistral 0.75 - 0.75 3 4.5
3 Sifu Luan - 2 2 2 6
4 skippy Spatula 3 - 3 4 10

without the throwout race:
Static Sprocket 2 0.75 4 0.75 7.5
Pixeleen Mistral 0.75 3 0.75 3 7.5
Sifu Luan 4 2 2 2 10
skippy Spatula 3 4 3 4 14

for earthy yet elegant details, see: the Second Life Sailing Federation forums!

series 37 - saturday april 1


I'm catching up on scoring some old series here. My excuse for not
doing these sooner is that sundays have typically been my catch up
day for sailing related maters, but the "discussion" of Al Kaiser's
proposed events on two consecutive sundays took time and energy
away from more useful pursuits like scoring races. But I need to
get these done so I can work on my comix, so for you history fans
here it is:


official results:
1 Static Sprocket 2 - 0.75 0.75 3 0.75 0.75 8
2 Pixeleen Mistral 0.75 0.75 - 2 0.75 2 2 8.25
3 Susan Dangle 2 3 3 3 - 3 4 18
4 skippy Spatula - 2 4 4 2 4 3 19


without throwout race:
Pixeleen Mistral 0.75 0.75 2 2 0.75 2 2 10.25
Static Sprocket 2 4 0.75 0.75 3 0.75 0.75 12
Susan Dangle 2 3 3 3 4 3 4 22
skippy Spatula 5 2 4 4 2 4 3 24


for enigmatic yet elegant details, see: the Second Life Sailing Federation forums

more historical results. I recall this was a nice turnout on
a tuesday night, and I was getting use to my new Mac which
did not crash once!

official results:
1 Static Sprocket 0.75 - 4 0.75 0.75 0.75 2 9
2 Pixeleen Mistral 2 - 3 3 4 3 0.75 15.75
3 Pacifien Massiel 5 0.75 2 6 2 2 - 17.75
4 skippy Spatula 4 2 - 5 3 4 3 21
5 Myrrh Massiel 3 3 0.75 2 - 8 8 24.75
6 Polkerface Mahoney 7 7 7 4 5 5 - 35
7 Theodore Polonsky 6 5 5 - 8 8 8 40


without throwout race:
Static Sprocket 0.75 4 4 0.75 0.75 0.75 2 13
Pixeleen Mistral 2 6 3 3 4 3 0.75 21.75
Pacifien Massiel 5 0.75 2 6 2 2 8 25.75
skippy Spatula 4 2 6 5 3 4 3 27
Myrrh Massiel 3 3 0.75 2 8 8 8 32.75
Polkerface Mahoney 7 7 7 4 5 5 8 43
Theodore Polonsky 6 5 5 8 8 8 8 48

for enigmatic yet elliptic details, see: the Second Life Sailing Federation forums

series 42: tuesday may 16

Since VYC is training for the upcoming America's Cup, I decided we needed to get some practice at starts and tactics, and ran 12 short course races in 92 minutes inside Sanchon. We even had a 5 minute break (so Mel could clear his cache and reload). Pacifien won, but skippy was right on her heels with impressively consistent finishes.

I pulled off one amazing port tack start (and won that race). I also screwed up another port tack start and did a 720 when protested by Pacifien. One thing that was different about this series was that there was a bit more variablility to the wind, so one side of the course was not consistently advantaged, and starts were tricker. There were two cases of one or more people trying to barge at the start that ended in tears for those trying that tactic. I strongly suggest everyone take a look at this web page

http://www.rit.edu/~wjbite/ramya/Starting.htm

which explains nicely why barging at the start is nice if you can slip in, but that you really have no right of way when you try this maneuver, and should look out for others who may cut you off, force you to tack, or force you over the line early. Barging at the start can be a lot like the port tack starts in that if it works you look great, but you are also taking a big right of way risk. This sort of thing is what makes sailing into such a cool dynamic chess match. Racing is not just about speed, its also about positioning.

1 Pacifien Massiel 0.75 0.75 0.75 2 - 3 - - 3 0.75 2 2 15
2 skippy Spatula 3 3 3 - 3 0.75 5 0.75 0.75 - - 0.75 20
3 Pixeleen Mistral 2 - - 0.75 2 4 2 2 - 2 4 5 23.75
4 Static Sprocket 4 4 4 4 - 2 0.75 3 2 - 0.75 - 24.5
5 Luis Desoto - - 5 6 4 5 3 5 4 3 - 3 38
6 Mel Fitzcarraldo 5 2 2 3 0.75 7 - - - 10 10 10 49.75
7 Cutter Rubio - - - 10 10 10 6 6 6 6 5 4 63
8 Alyssa Jessop - - - 10 7 6 10 10 10 10 10 10 83
9 Theodore Polonsky 7 6 - - - 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 83

without throwout races
Pacifien Massiel 0.75 0.75 0.75 2 5 3 4 4 3 0.75 2 2 28
skippy Spatula 3 3 3 5 3 0.75 5 0.75 0.75 5 3 0.75 33
Pixeleen Mistral 2 5 6 0.75 2 4 2 2 5 2 4 5 39.75
Static Sprocket 4 4 4 4 6 2 0.75 3 2 4 0.75 6 40.5
Luis Desoto 6 7 5 6 4 5 3 5 4 3 6 3 57
Mel Fitzcarraldo 5 2 2 3 0.75 7 10 10 10 10 10 10 79.75
Cutter Rubio 10 10 10 10 10 10 6 6 6 6 5 4 93
Alyssa Jessop 10 10 10 10 7 6 10 10 10 10 10 10 113
Theodore Polonsky 7 6 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 113


for enigmatic yet erudite details, see: the Second Life Sailing Federation forums

It was my sad duty to tear down the boat show in sanchon saturday so that we could go back to racing (I loved that boat show... sniff, sniff). However, I consoled myself with being able to sail in a low lag environment again. That was small consolation since I was firmly stuck in the middle of the fleet. I thik I have been spending too much time working on real SL Comics, or something.

Myrrh won the regatta convincingly, and skippy again came in second place, followed by Faykin. We did 12 races in 90 minutes, and given what a pain it is to score these monsters, I think I'm going to run some longer courses, just to keep from getting swamped by race results. I do think everyone's starts are improving though, so maybe this is worth the trouble.


official results

1 Myrrh Massiel 3 0.75 - 0.75 0.75 0.75 - - 2 4 0.75 0.75 13.5
2 skippy Spatula - 4 0.75 3 2 - 2 0.75 3 0.75 - 2 18.25
3 Faykin Odets 0.75 3 3 2 5 2 0.75 2 9 - - - 27.5
4 Static Sprocket 2 - 5 4 3 - 5 - 0.75 2 2 4 27.75
5 Pixeleen Mistral - 2 - 5 4 4 4 3 - 3 3 3 31
6 Theodore Polonsky - - 2 - 7 6 3 5 6 5 4 5 43
7 Pacifien Massiel 4 5 6 6 6 3 6 - 4 - - 9 49
8 Ken Freeman 9 7 7 8 9 9 9 9 - - - 9 76



without throwout races:

Myrrh Massiel 3 0.75 4 0.75 0.75 0.75 7 4 2 4 0.75 0.75 28.5
skippy Spatula 6 4 0.75 3 2 5 2 0.75 3 0.75 5 2 34.25
Static Sprocket 2 6 5 4 3 7 5 6 0.75 2 2 4 46.75
Pixeleen Mistral 5 2 9 5 4 4 4 3 5 3 3 3 50
Faykin Odets 0.75 3 3 2 5 2 0.75 2 9 9 9 9 54.5
Theodore Polonsky 7 8 2 7 7 6 3 5 6 5 4 5 65
Pacifien Massiel 4 5 6 6 6 3 6 9 4 9 9 9 76
Ken Freeman 9 7 7 8 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 103



for enigmatic yet emphatic details, see: the Second Life Sailing Federation forums

Time to catch up on Starboard Yacht Club Weekly Regatta results. Thanks to Nber Medici for running the regatta on May 28th while I was busy with my daughter’s wedding and tons of out of town guests. The May 28th results have already been posted on the SLSF forums. Here are the summary results for May 14 and May 21.

HOLLYWOOD – May 14, 2006 Faykin Odets was our winner again in a six boat regatta.

1. Faykin Odets 3.50
2. MarkTwain White 5.75
3. Suzanne Zeluco 8.00
4. Cutter Rubio 14.00
5. Polkerface Mahoney 15.00
6. Al Kaiser 18.00

HOLLYWOOD – May 21, 2006 A large 13 boat field showed up for the May 21 regatta. Faykin Odets and Suzanne Zeluco ran first and second. SYC Co-Commodore Nber Medici looked good in rising to third place honors. There were four races with a throwout.

1. Faykin Odets 2.25
2. Suzanne Zeluco 4.75
3. Nber Medici 10.00
4. Static Sprocket 12.00
5. TekTrixter Division 15.00
6. Susan Dangle 20.00
7. Noland Brokken 21.00
8t Myrrh Massiel 22.00 (3 DNF)
8t Al Kaiser 22.00
10 Cory Copeland 23.00
11t Clive Walsh 25.00
11t Kumiko Takashi 25.00
13. Pacifien Massiel 26.00 (3 DNF)

For more information on sailboat racing see the Second Life Sailing Federation forums.

Our regularly scheduled class for novice sailors is at 2PM with our weekly regatta at 3PM. I have been trying to post the events on the Events pages. They appear to be broken however.

We had a scant turnout on tuesday. I suspect it could have had something to do with self replicating lilies clogging SL partly... I had a hard time logging in and rezing objects from inventory seemed slow, but we raced anyway. Here are the results:

official results

1 Static Sprocket 0.75 0.75 0.75 0.75 - 3
2 Theodore Polonsky - 2 3 2 2 9
3 Pixeleen Mistral 2 - 2 3 3 10
4 Chase Speculaas - 4 4 5 5 18


without throwout race:
Static Sprocket 0.75 0.75 0.75 0.75 0.75 3.75
Theodore Polonsky 3 2 3 2 2 12
Pixeleen Mistral 2 3 2 3 3 13
Chase Speculaas 5 4 4 5 5 23



for enigmatic yet emphatic details, see: the Second Life Sailing Federation forums

Race results for June 3 (Saturday)

The throwout races saved Static... Myrrh would have won if we did not have two throwouts.

official results:
1 Static Sprocket - - 2 0.75 0.75 0.75 0.75 5
2 Myrrh Massiel 0.75 0.75 - - 2 2 2 7.5
3 Pixeleen Mistral 2 - 0.75 3 3 - 4 12.75
4 Kumiko Takashi 3 3 3 4 - - 5 18
5 Sifu Luan - - 7 7 7 3 3 27
6 James Newcomb - - 7 5 5 7 7 31


without throwout races
Myrrh Massiel 0.75 0.75 4 2 2 2 2 13.5
Static Sprocket 7 2 2 0.75 0.75 0.75 0.75 14
Pixeleen Mistral 2 4 0.75 3 3 4 4 20.75
Kumiko Takashi 3 3 3 4 4 7 5 29
Sifu Luan 7 7 7 7 7 3 3 41
James Newcomb 7 7 7 5 5 7 7 45


for enigmatic yet emphatic details, see: the Second Life Sailing Federation forums

tuesday may 30

This turned out to be a big fleet and we managed 8 races. It was great fun.
The new observation Pagoda in Sanchon has been a nice addition to the scene.

official results:
1 Myrrh Massiel - 2 - 3 0.75 2 0.75 0.75 9.25
2 Static Sprocket 2 - 0.75 2 3 3 - 2 12.75
3 skippy Spatula 4 0.75 2 4 4 - - 3 17.75
4 Faykin Odets 0.75 - 3 0.75 - 0.75 3 12 20.25
5 Pixeleen Mistral 3 5 - - 2 5 2 4 21
6 Sabbie DeGroot 7 3 7 5 5 4 - - 31
7 Luis Desoto 5 6 4 - - 7 4 6 32
8 Theodore Polonsky 9 - 8 8 - 8 6 5 44
9 Kitty Sprocket 11 9 9 7 12 12 - - 60
10 Occam Bock 8 11 10 10 12 12 - - 63
11 Courtney Boffin 10 8 11 11 12 12 - - 64

without throwout races:
Myrrh Massiel 6 2 6 3 0.75 2 0.75 0.75 21.25
Static Sprocket 2 4 0.75 2 3 3 12 2 28.75
skippy Spatula 4 0.75 2 4 4 6 5 3 28.75
Pixeleen Mistral 3 5 5 6 2 5 2 4 32
Faykin Odets 0.75 7 3 0.75 6 0.75 3 12 33.25
Luis Desoto 5 6 4 9 7 7 4 6 48
Sabbie DeGroot 7 3 7 5 5 4 12 12 55
Theodore Polonsky 9 10 8 8 12 8 6 5 66
Kitty Sprocket 11 9 9 7 12 12 12 12 84
Occam Bock 8 11 10 10 12 12 12 12 87
Courtney Boffin 10 8 11 11 12 12 12 12 88



for enigmatic yet emphatic details, see: the Second Life Sailing Federation forums

Saturday June 10

An shorter than usual event so that we could all get cleaned up and go to the Exhibition Regatta and SLSF Cup announcement.

official race results
1 Oliphant Ming 0.75 - 0.75 3 0.75 0.75 2 - 8
2 Static Sprocket 2 0.75 - 0.75 2 - 0.75 2 8.25
3 Pixeleen Mistral - 2 4 2 - 3 4 0.75 15.75
4 Theodore Polonsky - - 3 5 4 2 3 6 23
5 Riffey4 DeGroot 3 4 - 4 3 4 - 6 24

without throwout races:
Static Sprocket 2 0.75 2 0.75 2 5 0.75 2 15.25
Oliphant Ming 0.75 3 0.75 3 0.75 0.75 2 6 17
Pixeleen Mistral 4 2 4 2 5 3 4 0.75 24.75
Riffey4 DeGroot 3 4 5 4 3 4 6 6 35
Theodore Polonsky 6 6 3 5 4 2 3 6 35

for enigmatic yet emphatic details, see: the Second Life Sailing Federation forums

HOLLYWOOD June 4 & 11, 2006 – Suzanne Zeluco continued her winning style in both the June 4 and June 11 weekly regattas. Both regattas are summarized in this posting.

Our novice class continues to be a popular event with 6 novices on June 4 and eight on June 11.

June 4 Weekly Regatta Results
1. Suzanne Zeluco 2.25
2. Faykin Odets 7.75
3. Static Sprocket 8.00
4. Jamey Sismondi 10.00
5. Cory Copeland 11.00
6. PENNIE Sassoon 17.00
7t Susan Dangle 18.00 (3 DNS)
7t Ydris Jamberoo (3 DNS)


June 11 Weekly Regatta Results
1. Suzanne Zeluco 3.50
2. MarkTwain White 5.75
3. Nber Medici 8.00
4. Riffey4 DeGroot 13.00
5. Dook Buckenburger 16.00
6. Sabbie DeGroot 17.00
7. Lorenzo Benmergui 18.00


Caption: Our June 11 novice race had as many boats as a typical weekly regatta.

TEAM TRIALS HAVE BEGUN!

The first four weeks are dedicated to team selection amongst sponsor clubs. Major venues will likely host a series of regattas to determine their club champions, but many smaller clubs will also be actively recruiting crew throughout the various sailing fleets. The best way to secure a position on a sponsored team is to get out on the water and sail - keep an eye on the Second Life Sailing Federation group forum's Upcoming Events, talk to people at the major club regattas.

Inquire with any sailing club director for more information about sailing on their team. Clubs already conducting team trials include:

Starboards Yacht Club - Hollywood (96,149,25)
Thursdays 6PM SLT, Sundays 3PM SLT
Vagabonds Yacht Club - Sanchon (225,91,22)
Tuesdays, Saturdays 7PM SLT

THE SUMMER 2006 SLSF CUP SERIES...

The Second Life Sailing Federation Cup is a perpetual challenge trophy for friendly competition between sailing clubs. Modeled after the real-life America's Cup, the SLSF Cup regatta series encourages the proliferation of sailing enthusiasm across Second Life through a season of realistic fleet and match racing between club-sponsored teams of Second Life's top sailors.

The Summer 2006 SLSF Cup season lasts twelve weeks:

10 June - 10 July - Team Selection
15 July - Challenger Act 1
22 July - Challenger Act 2
29 July - Challenger Act 3
05 Aug - Challenger Act 4
12 Aug - Challenger Act 5
19 Aug - Challenger Act 6
26-27 Aug - Challenger Cup
02-03 Sep - SLSF Cup

WHO CAN PARTICIPATE?

Anyone! Challenger teams consist of up to four crew, with a minimum of one skipper and one tactician required to sail in any particular race. The only requirement is that teams be sponsored by an active sailing club. Team trials last four weeks, and are at each sponsor club's discretion.

Can't find a sponsor club to suit your needs? Start your own! It's very easy to qualify as an active sailing sailing club: simply agree to host six public regattas over the next six months. The SLSF is full of resourceful people eager to help new clubs get off the ground, so don't hesitate to ask.

New to sailing, but still interested in participating? Teams need crew! Inquire with the SLSF or any participating yacht club for a bounty of experienced real-life and second-life sailors raring to take new people under their wing.

TEAM TRIALS ARE UNDERWAY!

The first four weeks are dedicated to team selection amongst sponsor clubs. Major venues will likely host a series of regattas to determine their club champions, but many smaller clubs will also be actively recruiting crew throughout the various sailing fleets. The best way to secure a position on a sponsored team is to get out on the water and sail - keep an eye on the Second Life Sailing Federation group forum's Upcoming Events, talk to people at the major club regattas.

Inquire with any sailing club director for more information about sailing on their team. Clubs already conducting team trials include:

Mowry Bay Yacht Club - Nightly, 7PM SLT
Starboards Yacht Club - Thursdays 6PM SLT, Sundays 3PM SLT
Vagabonds Yacht Club - Tuesdays, Saturdays 7PM SLT

THE SUMMER 2006 SLSF CUP SERIES...

The Second Life Sailing Federation Cup is a perpetual challenge trophy for friendly competition between sailing clubs. Modeled after the real-life America's Cup, the SLSF Cup regatta series encourages the proliferation of sailing enthusiasm across Second Life through a season of realistic fleet and match racing between club-sponsored teams of Second Life's top sailors.

The Summer 2006 SLSF Cup season lasts twelve weeks:

10 June - 10 July - Team Trials
15 July - Challenger Act 1
22 July - Challenger Act 2
29 July - Challenger Act 3
05 Aug - Challenger Act 4
12 Aug - Challenger Act 5
19 Aug - Challenger Act 6
26-27 Aug - Challenger Cup
02-03 Sep - SLSF Cup

WHO CAN PARTICIPATE?

Anyone! Challenger teams consist of up to four crew, with one skipper and one tactician required to sail in any particular race. The only requirement is that teams be sponsored by an active sailing club. Team trials last four weeks, and are at each sponsor club's discretion.

Can't find a sponsor club to suit your needs? Start your own! It's very easy to qualify as an active sailing club: simply agree to host six public regattas over the next six months. The SLSF is full of resourceful people eager to help new clubs get off the ground, so don't hesitate to ask.

New to sailing, but still interested in participating? Teams need crew! Inquire with the SLSF or any participating yacht club for a bounty of experienced real-life and second-life sailors raring to take new people under their wing.

Sailed in real-life and curious what this SLSF Cup thing is all about? Never sailed before, but intrigued enough to put in a couple months' intensive training that'll serve your first life as well as your second? Just want to be able to follow all the clamour surrounding the real-life America's Cup?

I'm looking for a couple of top-notch tacticians to sail under Kazenojin Seiringu sponsorship. With all due immodesty and hubris, you'll be joining the fastest crew in the fleet.

IM me, Myrrh Massiel, if you're interested in ten weeks of the most fun you've ever had at your keyboard!

TEAM TRIALS CONTINUE!

Just two weeks remain to join a team sailing for the SLSF Cup! Major venues are hosting a series of regattas to determine their club champions, but many smaller clubs are also actively recruiting crew throughout the various sailing fleets. The best way to secure a position on a sponsored team is to get out on the water and sail - keep an eye on the Second Life Sailing Federation group forum's Upcoming Events, talk to people at the major club regattas.

Anyone can sail, regardless of experience. Inquire with any sailing club director for more information about sailing on their team. Clubs presently conducting team trials include:

Mowry Bay Yacht Club - Nightly 7PM SLT
Kazenojin Seiringu - Saturdays, Sundays 10AM SLT
Starboards Yacht Club - Thursdays 6PM SLT, Sundays 3PM SLT
Vagabonds Yacht Club - Tuesdays, Saturdays 7PM SLT

THE SUMMER 2006 SLSF CUP SERIES...

The Second Life Sailing Federation Cup is a perpetual challenge trophy for friendly competition between sailing clubs. Modeled after the real-life America's Cup, the SLSF Cup regatta series encourages the proliferation of sailing enthusiasm across Second Life through a season of realistic fleet and match racing between club-sponsored teams of Second Life's top sailors.

The Summer 2006 SLSF Cup season lasts twelve weeks:

10 June - 10 July - Team Trials
15 July - Challenger Act 1
22 July - Challenger Act 2
29 July - Challenger Act 3
05 Aug - Challenger Act 4
12 Aug - Challenger Act 5
19 Aug - Challenger Act 6
26-27 Aug - Challenger Cup
02-03 Sep - SLSF Cup

WHO CAN PARTICIPATE?

Anyone! Challenger teams consist of up to four crew, with one skipper and one tactician required to sail in any particular race. The only requirement is that teams be sponsored by an active sailing club. Team trials last four weeks, and are at each sponsor club's discretion.

Can't find a sponsor club to suit your needs? Start your own! It's very easy to qualify as an active sailing club: simply agree to host six public regattas over the next six months. The SLSF is full of resourceful people eager to help new clubs get off the ground, so don't hesitate to ask.

New to sailing, but still interested in participating? Teams need crew! Inquire with the SLSF or any participating yacht club for a bounty of experienced real-life and second-life sailors raring to take new people under their wing.

The SLSF Cup notice of race doesn't specify the boat being sailed. Is it the Defender? The Tako? I'd like a clarification, please!

-JS

For the 2006 Cup, it will be the Tako, version 3.2 (IIUC) in a special no-mod SLSF Cup Edition.

Theodore is wise.

Yes, we'll be sailing an SLSF Cup special edition of the Flying Tako 3.2, no-mod, to be distributed to all Challenger crew before the first Challenger Act takes place. Any changes to the boat will be cosmetic, so you can train on a stock Tako 3.2 until then.

The Class Rule will detail all the technical requirements for boats, but it will be the final governing document we issue, possibly two weeks before it's out. In the meanwhile, this post clarifies most people's concerns.