Posts Tagged ‘Russia’

The main protagonists have just crossed under the Oresund Bridge which you can see below. It is the bridge that runs between Denmark and Sweden and marks the entry to the Baltic Sea. The inaugural Vendee St. Petersburg race for 50 foot multihulls started on Sunday from Saint-Gilles Croix de Vie, in Vendée, on France’s Atlantic coast with the first leg finishing in St. Petersburg, Russia. And there was little more than a frog’s pubic hair, split down the middle and sanded on both sides to separate Franck Yves Escoffier’s Crepes Whaou 3 from Yves le Blevec’s Actual.

The Oresund Bridge which links Denmark with Sweden - photo courtesy of www.wonderfulinfo.com

They still have about 550 miles of the Baltic to cross but unless there is a major upset, victory is now within the grasp of one of the two frontrunners.

The class rules for the Multi50 were drawn up to limit the cost of constructing and maintaining boats, while leaving enough room for designers and sailors to work their magic.

- Maximum length: 15.24 metres (50 feet)
- Maximum beam: 15.24 metres
- Maximum air draught: 23.77 metres
- Canting masts are forbidden
- Six sails on board including a storm sail and a mainsail
- It is forbidden to use certain expensive materials like titanium.
The use of carbon is also limited for some parts.

The winner should arrive within the next 2 days and then it will be a matter of waiting for the stragglers before the return leg from St Petersburg toSaint-Gilles Croix de Vie starts. It is estimated the multihulls will be back in Vendee on June 4th or 5th.

For further information go to the race website which can be found using this linkhttp://www.vendee-saintpetersbourg.org/en/news/headlines.html

A new race reserved for Multi 50s has been created: the Vendée Saint-Petersburg. The first edition of the race is due to start from Saint Gilles Croix-de-Vie on 16th May with a total distance there and back of 3790 miles. Nine crews will be lining up at the start, including two of the latest racing machines in the class: Actual and Crepes Whaou !

The new race forms part of the celebrations of 2010 France – Russia, aimed at restoring and building  the historic links between Russia and France, and to set up cultural, scientific, economic and sports projects between the two countries.

Below is Franck-Yves Escoffier’s Crepes Whaou – photo courtesy of www.vendee.fr

While most races see the competitors heading off to the west to cross the Atlantic, Vendée has come up with a new route for the Multi 50s, (50-foot trimarans), with the Atlantic, the English Channel, the North Sea and the Baltic ahead of them. In all, the race will cover the territorial waters of 14 countries before they finish in Saint-Petersburg in Russia on around 20th May 2010.

The best boats like Franck-Yves Escoffier’s new Crêpes Whaou ! and Yves le Blevec’s Actual could complete the first stage of the race in less than five days at an average speed of 16 knots. The race will be holding a stopover for around ten days in Russia, before the start of the return leg on 31st May 2010, with the finish forecast in the port of Saint-Gilles Croix de Vie around 4th June 2010.

Sunday 30th May is a date to remember: It marks the anniversary of the founding of Saint-Petersburg by Tsar Peter 1st, and the Multi 50s will carry out a parade on the Neva, under the windows of the famous Hermitage museum.

The other original feature of this race between Vendée/Saint-Petersburg is that it will be raced with a crew of three sailors, and the members of the crew can switch over between the two legs.

Nine Multi 50 crews have signed up for the first edition of the Vendée/Saint-Petersburg. Alongside Yves Le Blevec (Actual) and Franck-Yves Escoffier (Crêpes Whaou !), there will be Hervé Cléris (CLM), Erwan Leroux (Fenêtréa-Cardinal), Anne Caseneuve (Croisières Anne Caseneuve), Etienne Hochédé (PIR2), Philippe Laperche (Gamin), Lalou Roucayrol (Région Aquitaine-Port Médoc) and Loic Fequet (Crepes Whaou’s second boat).

The race is due to take place every four years alternating with the Vendée Globe and is sure to generate great interest amongst sailing enthusiasts and the public alike – there is nothing like watching these extreme sail boats powering across the water at speeds of up to 50 knots. The video comes from Whaou56 and shows their trimaran in action – awesome!

Yesterday we talked about the skeleton event at the forthcoming Winter Olympics to be held in Whistler, Vancouver, Canada and today we turn our attention to an extreme sport that is closely related to skeleton – the luge.

In luge – the French word for “sled” – racers begin by sitting on open fibreglass sleds. Pulling on fixed handles in the ice, they burst out of the start. After this explosive start, they use spiked gloves on the ice surface for extra acceleration before lying down on their backs, feet stretched out in front of them, heads back to be as aerodynamic as possible. Luge racers steer using their legs and shoulders, and brake by sitting up, putting their feet down and pulling up on the sled runners.

Therefore the fundamental difference between skeleton and luge is that the skeleton pilots go down the track head first lying on their stomachs whereas the luge pilots are feet first lying on their back. Which is crazier we are not sure – but a similarity would appear to be that you can see very little be it luge or skeleton.

Luge races have grown considerably faster with refrigerated luge tracks and aerodynamic equipment, so that speeds now regularly reach 140 kilometres an hour or more and G-forces reach over 5G.

The singles events consist of four heats over two days. The individual with the lowest combined time over the four runs wins. Men and women compete on the same track, but the women and doubles begin further down the course. The four-run format is unique to the Olympic Winter Games and designed to reward consistency, endurance and ability to withstand pressure – particularly on the second day.

The doubles event consists of two runs over one day, with the fastest total time determining the winner. All events in luge are timed to the thousandth of a second.

Two athletes — Peter Minsch of Switzerland and George Robertson of Australia — who in February 1883 instigated what was called “The Great International Sled Race”. Their time: 9 minutes and 15 seconds, to slide down a four kilometre track joining the Swiss villages of Klosters and Davos was nothing very special but that didn’t matter – it was the idea that mattered.  But it was not until 1964 that luge for men, women and doubles made its Olympic debut at the Games in Innsbruck.

The action kicks off right at the beginning of the games with the men’s singles competition being held over the 13th and 14th Feb. Then it is the turn of the girls who race over the 15th and 16th of Feb – and finally the doubles who compete on Feb 17th.

The favourites for medals in the luge are the Germans who have dominated the event for the last 10 years and in all probability they have a very good chance of winning again. But strong competition usually comes from Austria, Italy, Russia and the USA but with home advantage see what the 2010 Olympics Luge Coach Wolfgang Staudinger says about the Luge Canada team’s chances at the Vancouver 2010 Games. Thanks RayVanEng for the video.

The Canadian team have monopolised the tracks at Whistler in sports such as the skeleton – gaining an advantage over their opponents. All the other visiting nations will have just six practice runs under Games conditions when they get to Whistler to take them to a total of 40 descents each on the track before the skeleton gets under way on 18 February. The Canadians will be up near the 400 mark.

There are two individual skeleton events in the Olympic Games: one for men and one for women. Both events consist of four heats held over two days, timed electronically to 0.01 seconds. The individual with the lowest combined time wins. The tracks run from 1200 – 1650 m, 1200 m of which are downhill

Men’s skeleton was raced at the 1928 and 1948 Olympic Winter Games, both in St. Moritz. Skeleton then re-appeared as a permanent Olympic sport for both men and women at the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City.

Skeleton got its name from the sled used — originally metal, now fiberglass and metal — as it resembles a human skeleton. To start, a skeleton slider grasps the handles on either side of the sled, runs as fast as possible for approximately 50 metres, then dives head first onto the sled. Sliders lie on their stomachs and steer by shifting their bodies very slightly.

Like the other sliding sports of bobsleigh and luge, the start is crucial in skeleton — where a tenth of a second lead at the start can become three-tenths of a second by the bottom of the run. These athletes train much like sprinters to develop the powerful legs they need to explode onto the track. But speed is not the only factor: they must also find the best line and steer smoothly through each turn to keep their speed high.

Canadian skeleton slider Mellisa Hollingsworth won a bronze medal for Canada at the Torino 2006 Olympic Winter Games shortly after winning the overall World Cup title that season and will start as one of the favourites for the women’s event in Whistler.

She will have to be in top form as speeds of up to 140 kmh can be achieved on what is believed to be the fastest track in the world. Athletes  from Germany, Latvia, United States, Great Britain, Italy, Austria, Canada, Korea, Australia, Russia, Norway, Japan, Romania, Spain, Switzerland, France, New Zealand, Ireland, Slovenia,  Bermuda will be lining up to challenge her.

And why not use the home advantage – wouldn’t you – and what else is home advantage for? The Canadians deserve a good return in terms of medals for putting on what we are sure will be a great Winter Olympics – bring them on!

The video below from Blickinsfreie shows you how skeleton is done.

This video from newsliders gives you an idea of the speed you attain as it is filmed from a camera attached to the helmet of the skeleton pilot – terrrrifying!

It looks like the 20th annual international snow sculpture competition which is held in Breckenridge, Colorado from Jauary 26th to 30th is going to be a give away to the very strong team from China.

But the competition comes from around the world with thirteen teams from around the globe competing from seven countries including the Czech Republic, Canada with 2 teams, Lithuania, Mexico, Russia and the U.S. as well as the Chinese.

The United States has 5 teams from Alaska, Colorado, Idaho, Minnesota and Wisconsin. Snow Sculpting is attended annually by more than 30,000 people of all ages from across the U.S. and the world.

The four-person teams are assigned 12-foot-tall, 20-ton blocks of machine-made Colorado snow. These teams work within a five-day period to create their sculptures. From these blocks of snow, the teams often craft enormous pieces of whimsy, although some deliver powerful political or social commentary.

The finished pieces are achieved after a total of 65 intense hours of work without the use of power tools, internal support structures or colorants — just the ingenuity of the sculptors and a medium that lends itself, if only temporarily, to the persuasion of hand tools. When the sculptures are finished on Saturday, Jan. 30, a panel of well-known artists and patrons of the arts serve as judges. Awards are presented to the first, second and third place sculptures on Sunday, Jan. 31.

Last year it was a team Canada for taking first place with their sculpture titled ‘Family Reunion’ and the Chinese could only manage second place with their sculpture entitled ‘The march of Spring’ – as seen in the photo below.

Awards are also given for People’s Choice, Kids’ Choice and Artists’ Choice. There are no cash prizes; the artists instead revel in the reward of hard work, forged friendships, freedom of artistic expression and the satisfaction of long hours of preparation that lead to the event.

But if the annual International Ice and Snow Festival  which has just begun in Harbin, northern China, featuring giant luminous ice sculptures and a fireworks display is anything to go by the other teams have no hope. Check out what the ‘land of the many’ can do, in the video below from ReutersVideo , when they turn their energies to sculpting ice – impressive.

Back to reality – the Snow Sculptures at Breckenridge are located in the area around the Riverwalk Center at 150 West Adams Avenue, Breckenridge, CO 80424. If you want further information we suggest you visit the website http://www.gobreck.com/events/townevents/budsnowsculpture/

Its gonna be a lot of fun!

Mount Elbrus is the highest peak in Europe, and one of the Seven Summits. It’s located just in Russia, though it is only a few miles from the border of Georgia. Though Elbrus is the highest summit in Europe, it is one of the technically easiest of the higher peaks on the continent. The mountain is in the Caucasus Mountains, which is one of the most rugged mountain ranges in the world.

Elbrus may not be that rugged of a mountain, but that is not the case with all the surrounding peaks! The standard route up Elbrus is long and strenuous but not technically difficult. The biggest danger is the weather which can be particularly nasty on this mountain. Besides the standard route, there are many much more difficult routes on the mountain, though they are very seldom climbed, and little information is available.

Mount Elbrus above – at 5,642 metres or 18,510 feet is Europe’s highest mountain, not considered to be a serious challenge for experienced mountaineers.

Elbrus is an extinct volcano, having it’s last eruption around 50 AD, and it’s crater (300-400 metres in diameter) is now filled with ice and snow. The mountain still retains it’s gently sloping, conical shape. The mountain has two main summits; the Western summit at 5,642.7 metres (18,513 feet) elevation and the Eastern summit at 5,621 metres (18,442 feet) elevation. The saddle between the two summits is at ,5416 merers (17,769 feet) elevation.

The first ascent of the West Peak of Elbrus occured on July 1874. The climbers were F. Crauford Grove, F. Gardiner, H. Walker, A. Sottajev, and P. Knubel. The first ascent of the East Peak was in 1829 by Killar Hashirov.

Routes

The majority of climbers use the standard route via the south face and Azau valley. This route starts at either the Barrels Hut at 3,900 metres (12,795 feet) or Azau Valley at 2,350 metres (7,700 feet), climbs up to the Diesel Hut at 4,157 metres (13,638 feet), climbs up past the Pashtuhova Rocks at 4670 metres (15,321 feet), up to the Saddle between the peaks at 5,416 metres (17,769 feet), and to the West summit at 5,642.7 metres (18,513 feet). The route is pretty straight forward (Russian Grade 2B) in good weather and is usually marked with wands. There are no real crevasses provided you don’t wander of the standard route.

The climb can still be a trial in bad weather, so go well prepared. Total elevation gain from the Barrels hut is 1,743 metres (5,718 feet), and the climb usually takes 6-9 hours up. Descent usually takes 3-6 hours although as can be seen in the video some people descend the mountain in rather a quicker fashion.

The biggest danger on Elbrus is the weather. Sudden storms and extremely cold weather are very common. Although the standard route is free from crevasses, this is not the case if you wander off route. During storms, several climbers have become disorientated, wandered off route and were never seen again. There are many frostbite and hypothermia injuries and deaths on the mountain every year.

The normal climbing season for Elbrus is from mid-May to mid-September. The very easiest time (and the most crowded) to climb the mountain is said to be mid-July through mid-August, followed by early July and late August. September is OK too, but the weather is usually colder and the routes can become icy. In May and June, the snow is usually softer than is in July or August, and the weather is usually colder.

As with all the mountains we have discussed in this series on the Seven Sisters acclimatisation is essential – Mount Elbrus is a moderately high mountain, so acclimatization is very important, especially since most people will be arriving from Moscow at a very low elevation. Altitude sickness is very common on Elbrus. Preferably, at least a week should be spent at altitudes of 2,500-4,500 metres (8200-14,800 feet) to acclimatize before making the final ascent.

Do not underestimate the red tape involved in getting the go ahead to climb Elbrus – let us just say that it is significant – here is a resume of what is required – good luck is all we will add:

1. Russian visa.
2. Voucher with Elbrus region mentioned.
3. OVIR registration.
4. Elbrus Area Preserve permission.
5. Immigration card.

The video below from JustGoRussia shows you in graphic form what conditions you can expect.

Well what about it – climb Europe’s highest mountain and then ski or snowboard down – something to talk about and rather extreme we suggest.