Herreshoff boating program utilizes 1929 sailboat

Herreshoff boating program utilizes 1929 sailboat

Beautiful pictures and video footage of KESTREL from EastBayRI.com
The video features students from the Herreshoff Institute Seamanship program last summer.
Check it out!

Holiday Open House... great night!

Thanks so much to everyone who attended our holiday open house last night. Seems like lots of people got some shopping done and plenty of food and drink were consumed - we hope everyone enjoyed themselves! Now we're on our last push through the end of the season - the Museum and store close on the 23rd until next spring. However, we're busily working behind the scenes to plan this winter's lecture series, so we'll stay in touch... we're thinking about movie nights, lining up speakers, and working with some potential partners to make it more fun for everyone. We'll keep you entertained, informed, and thinking about sailing all winter long!

happy holidays, everyone....

-Sara

{HOLIDAY CHEER}

The lights are up and the tree is lit! It is starting to look very festive here at HMM - just in time for our holiday party next Thursday. This will be my first holiday at the museum and I am quite excited. We all had a fun time chatting and snacking after the Carlton Pinheiro lecture in October and we are due for another gathering. All are welcome to attend the party and I especially hope all of our volunteers can make it. It will be a great time to honor them for all of the work they do.

We will have special discounts in the store for the event. We have lovely prints which are newly framed, featuring the work of A.D. Blake, Scott Kennedy and John Mecray. I am also partial to our new 12 ½ clocks, made locally by Screencraft Tileworks (oh how I love that boat!) and the prism ornaments which are sweet and surprisingly affordable.

Local author Richard Simpson will be stopping by to sign books and the new America’s Cup calendar. Richard has written a number of books about Herreshoff and also about Bristol. Try to stump him on some local trivia. I challenge you! Louie Howland is also setting up shop to feature some beautiful books. Mariette and the Herreshoff Schooners by Jacques Taglang sells for $295. The book is stunning! We have one here in our museum library which I looked through last week. The photographs are absolutely beautiful and there are also plans and drawings. It will be great to have them here at the party for our visitors to ogle.

The Museum has been open this winter on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. We will continue to be open three days a week from 10 – 5 until the end of December. We have had a good number of visitors stop in to shop and tour. The weekend after Thanksgiving was busy with families and I’ve seen a number of locals coming by with out of town visitors. The Hall of Boats can be quite chilly on some days but it doesn’t stop the Herreshoff crowd. If you give folks a chance to board a Fisher’s Island 31, they’ll take it.

Hope to see everyone next Thursday, December 9^th from 5:30 to 8!

-Maggie

Dyer Jones has joined the Museum

For those of you who haven't read it in the news, we're excited to announce that Dyer Jones has come aboard the Museum as our new CEO. Dyer, a former New York Yacht Club Commodore, has served a variety of roles within the America's Cup community - as regatta director, chief executive for the challengers, and many race committee positions.

We're thrilled to have him here!

Still space available: official VIP Hospitality in Valencia

There is still space on the official VIP program, including the Foredeck Club and official VIP hospitality boat. Racing starts Monday 8Feb'10 at 10:00 AM Valencia time.

To book:
j.griffin@herreshoff.org

33rd America's Cup on the Internet

From the newsletter Scuttlebutt:

SCHEDULE: The Match is won by the yacht to first win two races. Racing will be attempted every other day beginning Monday February 8th. If a race is not started on a given day, or is abandoned for whatever reason, racing will continue on the next scheduled race date, (Wednesday the 10th, Friday the 12th, Sunday the 14th, etc.).

EVENT WEBSITE: The website for the 33rd America’s Cup has been launched, which has posted event documents and recent jury decisions. There will be forthcoming details on all the television and Internet options on how to view the event. Our information says the races will be broadcast free of charge on this site.

VIEWING: For the American audience, ESPN360.com will carry the coverage live with Gary Jobson and Randy Smyth commentating. Racing begins Monday, Feb. 8th at 3:45 a.m. ET. All races will also be available for replay.


VIEWING: If you were panicking that your internet provider would not deliver, BMW Oracle Racing announced that they will be hosting on their website the official live feed of the racing from the Host Broadcaster in addition to producing additional online coverage. The first live streaming event on the website is scheduled for Friday at 19:30 CET (13:30 EST, 10:30 PST) when team founder Larry Ellison (USA), CEO Russell Coutts (NZL) and skipper James Spithill (AUS) meet the media at the BMW ORACLE Racing team base in Valencia, Spain.

Security on the water in Valencia

Published 4 Feb'10 in the Valencia Life email newsletter:

It has now been revealed that over a thousand members of the Guardia Civil, National Police Force and the Navy will look out for the security of the 33rd Americas Cup. In addition a CN235 aircraft will patrol the skies overhead, whilst other sources stated that the very fact that the competition is to take place some forty nautical miles away from the coast means that it is strongly advisable that private craft do not even attempt to put to sea to follow the races. In addition, the conditions are expected to be very severe on the water, and adequate thermal clothing considered essential.

To subscribe to Valencia Life, email to publisher@valencialife.net

No agreement in Singapore. Racing starts February 8th.

Meeting in Singapore broke up after 2 days - no agreement (no surprise).

BOR: Brad & Hamish were ready to sign, but HQ told them not to.
Download PDF of their statement here.

Alinghi: BOR filed court motion during meeting, showed bad faith.
Read their statement here.

Each side with their own spin, of course.

Dockside gossip: Alinghi still wants to race on 8 Feb, but says BOR wants to delay because wing is not ready. We don't know what the real story is, but we look forward to the racing.

There are only five (!) weeks until racing starts. Still no agreement between SNG/Alinghi and the "Consorcio" as to what if anything will happen shoreside. We can only imagine how frustrating this is to the Valencian government.

Of course, there is also the small matter of the ongoing dispute between Alinghi and BOR about the compliance of the yachts with the Deed of Gift:

• Do Alinghi's sails need to be "constructed" in Switzerland? What about that new, longer bowsprit that was built in Switzerland but fitted in Ras al Khaimah - is that deed compliant?
• How about USA's wing - does it match the "sloop rig" announced in GGYC's challenge, made back in July 2007? The Deed of Gift calls for the Challenger to race in "a yacht or vessel propelled by sails only". Is a wing a sail?
• And where were the engines built that power the hydraulics on both yachts?

Do they really want to go "into the room" and let the International Jury decide these questions? Of course, they have been completely unwilling to consent mutually to anything for two and a half years - why should we expect them to start now?

Well, no matter what happens, if there is racing, then the Herreshoff Marine Museum will try our best to organize a trip to Valencia so you can see these yachts sail.

If you might be able to join us, email us at events@herreshoff.org ! We will keep you posted.