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Page 10. MAINE COASTAL NEWS June 2016 Waterfront News News from the Apprenticeshop


Apprenticeshop hosts 2016 Breakwater Blast on May 1st


A grey and chilly Rockland Harbor was


brightened up on Sunday with spring High School Sailing action. The Apprenticeshop hosted the 6th annual Breakwater Blast, with 11 teams from Maine and Vermont competing: Northern Vermont, Chever- us High School, Boothbay Region High School, Searsport High School, George Stephens Academy, Rockland Community Sailing, Southern Maine High School, Yarmouth Academy, Mount Desert Island High School, Camden Hills Regional High School, and the Islesboro Central School. 14 boats were on the start line, the


most ever for the event, and 12 races were completed in a cool and steady 10-15 knot southerly breeze. The team from Northern Vermont, who drove 5 hours from Lake Champlain to compete, came out in front thanks to a dominant performance in the B division by Isaac Goldman and Lucia Pendolino, and solid racing by A division pair Ben Hunt and Kathryn Bird. Midcoast teams that practice at the Apprenticeshop took second, third, fourth, and fi fth place overall.


Camden Hills skipper Simon Morin and


crews Abby Chamberlain, Emmet Acosta, and Fiona Zizza claimed fi rst place in the A division, and together with B division skip- per Thomas McClellan and crews Amanda Mirabile and Sawyer King, took second place overall. Islesboro Central School fi nished third place overall by staying con- sistently in the top half of the fl eet. Seventh graders Rylee Sienkiewicz and Sophie Lau gave the fast Northern Vermonters a run for their money in the B division, and ended up in a comfortable second place. Emily Lau and Ava Schlottman rebounded from a somewhat disastrous 19-point fi rst set with two second places in the second set, and mid-fl eet fi nishes in the fi nal two A division races helped secure third place overall for the “She-gulls.” Volunteer power lends a great atmo-


sphere to these events, and this year was no exception. The race committee was led by Coach Peter Clapp and Sailing Director Tori Willauer with help from Apprenticeshop two-year apprentices João Bentes and Silas Rogers. Technical support was provided by veteran sailor Chris Schreiber and Appren- ticeshop Seamanship Director Terry Moore. Parents of local sailors provided a heaping table full of homemade snacks, which were greatly appreciated after a long day of rac- ing. The Apprenticeshop wishes to thank all the coaches, sailors, volunteers and parents who made the Breakwater Blast such a fan- tastic event. High School Racing continues next weekend: the Hospice Cup Team Race will take place at The Apprenticeshop on Saturday, May 7 with fi ve participating teams sponsored by local businesses. The Apprenticeshop off ers sailing from


March through October for all area youth and adults. Located at 655 Main Street in Rockland’s North End, The Apprenticeshop is a school for traditional boatbuilding, sail- ing and seamanship. It is home to a fl eet of wooden boats available through their boat livery, and various waterfront services for area sailors. Community Sailing is now en- rolling for spring afterschool sailing, spring adult sailing, and the summer season. The youth and adult summer sailing season be- gins June 22nd. For more information, visit www.apprenticeshop.org.


First Annual Team-Race Hospice Cup Regatta at The Apprenticeshop


On Saturday, May 7th, fi ve area high


school sailing teams gathered at The Ap- prenticeshop for the fi rst annual Team-Race to benefi t Coastal Family Hospice Volun- teers. The winds were light ESE from 5-10 with fog at the Breakwater. Though cool and damp, conditions were perfect for team rac- ing, a sport that involves signifi cant strategy and a good knowledge of racing rules. When team racing is done right, even land-lubbers take interest. The goal is to have your team fi nish each race with winning combinations and the lowest points. The Apprenticeshop’s fl eet of fi fteen 420 sailing dinghies sailed a total of 30 races between 10:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. Sailors raced in sets of two teams; 6 boats. One start was followed shortly by another start for 6 more boats, putting 12 boats and two races on the course at the same time. The additional team had a ‘bye’ and rotated in on sets. The Race Committee, made up of volunteers Peter Clapp, David Jones, and Mike Horn, along with the mark boats, did a great job adjusting the course quickly with wind shifts throughout the day.


Boothbay High School sailors Nolin


Conlin & Nate Graves, Gabby Boorda & Ella Beauregard, Hamilton Barclay & Tommy Thelander and Madison Allen had 3 wins and 9 losses, taking 5th


place. They


had by far the youngest sailor—in fi fth grade—and took the Most Improved Team for the event. Camden Hills Regional High School sailors Simon Morin & Renaissance Lyman, Hugh Levitt & Erin Dowd, Calvin James & Olivia Goodwin-Cook and Josh Underdown & Emmet Acosta had 4 wins and 8 losses, placing fourth. Team members Hugh Levit and Erin Dowd won the Chris Biggart award for demonstrating the best use of team racing throughout the day. Levit and Dowd held off on fi nishing, pinning their opponents while communicating to other team members on strategy ensuring good fi nishes. Rockland Community Sailing sailors Jesse Dunn & Claudia Fox, Elliot Spear & Hallie MacDougal, Andy Bird & Hannah Chase also had 4 wins and 8 losses tying Camden but winning the tie-break by beating Camden two matches to one, placing third. Islesboro Central School sailors Emily


JOHANSON BOATWORKS Full Service Yacht Yard


Lau & Ava Schlottman, Rylee Sienkiewicz & Sophie Lau, along with Camden sailors Thomas McClellan & Amanda Miribile had 7 wins and 5 losses, placing second. Mount Dessert High School sailors William Ratcliff & Kevin Elk, Christopher Booher & Chloe Vincenty, Kincaid MacCulloch & Lillian Anderson, and Alec Fisichella had 12 wins and 0 losses, placing fi rst. Mount Desert sail- ors not only demonstrated excellent sailing but a solid knowledge of team racing and sailing rules.


The matches were tight on the course


and many were not decided until just be- fore the fi nish, with quality racing moves executed by sailors to produce winning combinations. The Hospice Cup ended with a barbeque and awards ceremony. The Ap- prenticeshop and Coastal Family Hospice Volunteers wish to acknowledge the local businesses who sponsored the event: Arti-


san Boatworks, Lyman Morse, Hamilton Marine, Islesboro Marine Enterprises, Jo- hanson Boatworks, Journey’s End Marina, Ocean Pursuits Marine Services, Pendleton Yacht Yard and Rockport Marine. And a special thanks go out to the sailors who raced all day to benefi t Coastal Family Hospice Volunteers and raised $6,000. Many ded- icated volunteers, parents, and families of sailors rounded out the day, helping to make the event possible.


Coastal Family Hospice provides vol-


unteer support to Kno-Wal-Lin’s hospice patients and their families in Knox and Lincoln counties. Founded in 1979, they are a dedicated group of caring volunteers who believe that the dying deserve companion- ship, their caregivers deserve respite, and that no one should die alone or grieve alone. Learn more online at coastalfamilyhospice. com


WHOI Technology Used in Locating EL FARO Data Recorder


WHOI Technology Used in Locating El Faro Data Recorder


WOODS HOLE, MA – Technology and vehicles developed and operated by Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) scientists and engineers were instrumental in assisting the NTSB in locating the voyage data recorder (VDR) of El Faro. The cargo ship El Faro’s voyage data


recorder was located early Tuesday morn- ing, April 26, in 15,000 feet of water, about 41 miles (36 nautical miles) northeast of Acklins and Crooked Islands, Bahamas, by an investigative team comprised of special- ists from the NTSB, the U.S. Coast Guard, WHOI and Tote Services, the owner and operator of El Faro. “The search employed a suite of WHOI


vehicles working together in a ‘nested’ fash- ion to map the search zone, identify targets of interest on the seafl oor, and ultimately enable the NTSB to locate the VDR,” said Andy Bowen, the WHOI expedition leader onboard the oceanographic research vessel Atlantis, which is owned by the US Navy and operated by WHOI. In October and November of 2015,


the NTSB conducted a search mission to locate the sunken vessel and conduct an initial survey of the debris fi eld. All thought the VDR was not located at that time, data collected during that mission were used by investigators to plot “high probability” search zones for the current mission. Within one of the identifi ed search zones, the team used two underwater vehicles: The auton- omous underwater vehicle (AUV) Sentry, a one-of-a-kind vehicle designed and built by WHOI with funding from the National Science Foundation; and the towed, fi ber optically-controlled “Alvin Observation Ve- hicle” (previously called Camper) to collect video imagery around the site. Sentry is one of three unique vehicles


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in the federally-funded National Deep Submergence Facility, which is operated at WHOI and includes the human occupied submersible Alvin and the remotely operated vehicle Jason. Sentry is capable of operating in depths of 6,000 meters (~20,000 feet). It carries a variety of scientifi c sensors and uses sidescan and other sonar to create detailed maps of the seafl oor and is capable of sophis- ticated autonomous routines for conducting the types of surveys needed for this search. Its unique hovering capabilities enabled by thrusters mounted on its articulating fi ns allow it to operate over the large range of altitudes and survey speeds required for the various survey modes. These characteristics


have made Sentry particularly well suited to such a challenging and precise survey. The Alvin Observation Vehicle was de-


signed to aid the Alvin submersible and was adapted for use on the NTSB mission. The vehicle is suspended from the ship using a fi ber optic cable and is equipped with control and telemetry systems and two high-defi ni- tion color video and electronic still cameras transmitting imagery in real time to its op- erators at the shipboard control station. Two thrusters enable crew to position the vehicle over targets of interest selected from maps generated by Sentry. “Sentry and AOV were designed for


oceanographic research with funds from the National Science Foundation, but they’re also well-suited for the task of ocean search and recovery,” said Adam Soule, a geologist and chief scientist for Deep Submergence at WHOI. “It’s gratifying that they can be applied to help solve this national need.” Deep Submergence Tools for Search/ Recovery The system of operating autonomous


vehicles in tandem with human occupied or remotely operated vehicles was developed during research expeditions, and often to lo- cate hydrothermal vent sites on the seafl oor. The technique uses diff erent vehicles and sensors to methodically search a wide area in ever narrowing patterns, with increasing- ly higher-resolution imaging, to ultimately home in on the target. As an example, a debris fi eld could be


defi ned by an AUV like Sentry, conducting a multibeam sonar bathymetric survey that maps the shape of the seafl oor at resolutions of 1 meter or less to map where larger frag- ments of debris are located. Subsequently, Sentry can conduct a smaller scale sidescan sonar survey to resolve the physical char- acteristics of the seabed (e.g., roughness, refl ectivity, presence/absence of debris) at tens of centimeters or less. Finally, photo- graphic surveys with still cameras on Sentry or video cameras on OAV can be conducted to identify specifi c targets identifi ed from mapping surveys. The fi nal survey stage of digital photog-


raphy is generally the most time intensive as the vehicle must be very near to the seafl oor and thus can image only approximately 30 square meters at a time. In addition, the vehicle must travel at slow speeds and low altitudes to ensure crisp imagery. Perform- ing such work within a debris fi eld such as is associated with El Faro is challenging.


Continued on Page 19.


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