Hello again from St. Petersburg, FL.
We started the U.S. Pre-Olympic Trials yesterday. This regatta is designed to allow the St. Petersburg race committee to practice running trapezoid courses and to allow competitors to check out the water and wind conditions for next year's U.S. Olympic Trials. It also is the last qualifier for next yearıs U.S. Sailing Team. (This does not mean a whole lot to us since we have already clinched first place on the team with our win at the Nationals and our ninth place at the World Championships in Spain).
Thursday's Racing - 15 October 1998
We started the first race at 9:30 a.m. Fourteen menıs and four womenıs teams are participating. We are racing in separate fleets. The courses are trapezoids.
Race 1
Winds were 7-12 knots out of the east, with a 0.5 knot current going
upwind at about 45 degrees.
The women started first, so we had the second start doing an inner loop on the trapezoid course. We had a good start and tacked out going right on the first shift. We tacked on a couple of shifts out on the right, but Morgan/Kevin got the last shift and rounded ahead with the Hunt team winning. We passed Morgan/Kevin on the run but missed a big right shift that put them in the lead by a ways.
We rolled the Hunt team on the first reach and held them off to the finish for a second place.
It turns out that seven of the eleven boats were over early that race and were scored "OCS" (On Course Side). Neither Morgan/Kevin nor we were one of them.
Race 2
We had an okay start on this one but decided to go right and tacked
and made a big duck off the starting line. There also was a boat
below us that kept us from going full speed once on port tack.
Well, we never got the lefty and rounded the weather mark in fourth, with Morgan/Kevin winning--but we were not far behind. We jibed immediately and took off in clear air. When we jibed back, Morgan/Kevin were only a boat length ahead. We passed them near the bottom gate and went back upwind in first place.
We leebowed Morgan/Kevin near the port lay line and gained a little on them before the weather mark, then rounded ahead by about five boat lengths.
We took off on the reach with our spinnaker up. When we finally looked back, we noticed that Morgan/Kevin had not put their spin up and other boats were passing them. They had ripped their spin at the leeward mark.
We went on to win the race, and Morgan/Kevin did not finish. This meant that the Mexican team was in second after the day of racing.
Fridayıs Racing - 16 October 1998
It was a little windier today: 10-15 knots with some good chop. Wind was out of the northeast, and the current was running upwind about 30 degrees left of the wind at 0.5 knots. There were good puffs and lulls, so changing gears was important. Also, the yellow flag was up which meant we could engage in unlimited kinetics (pumping the sails).
The course was a 3"O", which meant an outer loop with three loops around the outer course. It was hard to keep track of the loops, so we figured out that we would have to go the outer loop leeward mark four times. We counted out loud each time we rounded it.
Race 1
We had a good start in the middle of the line but were pinned to the
port lay line. (The legs were very short since we were going so
many times around). That was okay because Morgan/Kevin were
pinned there, too. The boats finally tacked, and we did, too, just in
front of Morgan/Kevin.
We overstood the weather mark and rounded in third with the Canadians in second and the Katcha/Elvart team in first. We caught up a little bit on the first reach, then on the run passed the Canadians with Katcha/Elvart ahead by two boat lengths. We got a little lift on port, so held on after rounding. Katcha/Elvart had tacked out, leaving us in clear air. We went all the way to the starboard lay line and came across in first place. The Canadians were in second about three lengths behind.
We went downwind and gained a little more with not much happening, and then did the same on the last lap. We went on to win, with the Canadians in second and Morgan/Kevin in fourth.
Race 2
We had a terrible start here and tacked out right in a clear lane. We
were going well and tacked short of the starboard lay line.
Morgan/Kevin tacked below us. We got a little puff and lift, had good
speed and moved ahead of them. We footed a little to give them
some bad air, which was a mistake because we lost some distance to
the others and had to do some bobbing and weaving at the windward
mark.
We rounded about fourth and rolled one boat that was having problems with his spinnaker and another one that was below him. We went into second, but Morgan/Kevin were now in a position to roll us. We finally got settled down and stayed ahead of them.
We went downwind after the reach mark and jibed for the leeward mark. Morgan/Kevin brought a puff up to us, and I messed up and let them roll us before the leeward mark.
We tacked out immediately at the leeward mark and went under some spinnakers. This must have worked out okay, because coming back on port we crossed Morgan/Kevin. The Tuboreck team was winning, but we had very good speed and caught up with them at the weather mark, with Morgan/Kevin four lengths behind.
We jibed inside of the Tuboreck team and led at the leeward mark by a couple of boat lengths. From there we got farther ahead during the next lap and won the race, with Morgan/Kevin getting second.
Some good racing, and we got a little better in these small fleets.
We had a practice race after that with the combined fleets. It was a 4W which meant a windward/leeward four times around.
We had a great start at the boat and were going pretty well. By the end of the race, we were half a leg ahead.
More good practice to end a good day, but we still need to get better.
More racing tomorrow.
Paul and Bob
Team 2000
Hello from the Sunshine State.
Today was the third day of the U.S. Olympic Pre-Trials Regatta. The wind was similar to yesterdayıs, but a knot or two less--maybe 8- 13--out of the northeast. Current was going upwind parallel to starboard tack.
Race 1
Our course was a 2I: a double inner loop.
The start was very ugly for us. We had a clear lane, but I could not see the pin, so we ended up being way over at the start. I should have just looked at the guy calling the line at the boat. You can sometimes find the line that way.
Well, we went back; but the worst part was that we half swamped the boat with water doing a bat turn [bat turn?] going back. Also, we were going against the current, and it took an extra long time to get back. We opened the bailers to let water out and started going upwind to the right pretty far behind. One quarter of the way up the beat, our boat finally was dry and we actually had gotten a shift. By the weather mark, we were closer to the fleet but still in last place.
We had a good run and had clear air. (Last place boats usually have clear air downwind.)
We rounded the bottom mark mixed up in the fleet and headed left looking for a shift to come back on. We actually found one, and when we tacked back we were in SECOND, just ahead of Morgan/Kevin, with the Katcha/Elvart team winning.
We headed off on the last run, just passed the lead boat at the leeward mark and headed out right. We caught a couple of shifts and gained a bunch. A good thing, too, because they had changed the weather mark to the right but also had left the old weather mark in. So when we rounded the weather mark to go off on a reach, we reached to the old weather mark and rounded it while the other guys didn't and, instead, went straight to the correct reach mark. We lost a little but still were 200 yards ahead by the time we got to the correct mark.
We went on to win, with Morgan/Kevin in second; but, as it turned out, there were four boats (including Morgan/Kevinısċ) over early that did not go back.
Race 2
We had a better start this race. There were a lot of boats over early
on the last start, so everyone was being conservative; but we still
were right on the line. We were lifted at the start and held our lane
well, gaining on the boats to leeward. When the first header came
through, we were able to tack and cross most of the boats to
windward. Morgan/Kevin tacked to leeward of us and were going a
little faster. They, along with Peter and Jim, beat us to the weather
mark.
On the first run, we did a better job of surfing waves, passed Morgan/Kevin and rounded just behind Peter and Jim. We were lifted when we rounded the gate, so we hung onto Peter and Jimıs hip while Morgan/Kevin tacked out. We rounded the windward mark in second and passed the lead boat on the run, again surfing the waves a bit better. On the next beat, the fleet followed us out to the corner, so we were able to cover everyone quite easily.
The next leg was a reach followed by a run, and then a reach to the finish. We extended our lead on all of these legs to finish well in front of the second place boat.
We have two races left tomorrow, although we have won the regatta already.
The practice can't hurt.
See you at home.
Your traveling sailors,
Paul and Bob
Team 2000
Today was the last day of racing in the Pre-Trials regatta. Two races were scheduled; but with our previous finishes, it was impossible for us not to win. We thought it would be good practice to have two good races anyway.
It was windy on the way out, but the wind died off to about 10-12 knots before the first race. We were lifted off the starting line, then tacked on a shift and looked good with respect to everyone to the right of us. When we got closer to the weather mark, a few boats left of us looked like they could cross us; but we went a little beyond the lay line to get a nice puff and footed over them to round first.
We're doing an O3 course: an outer loop trapezoid with three windward/leewards on the outside portion of the trapezoid. It's a beat followed by a reach, three windward/leewards, a run, then a reach to the finish. Sydney Harbour is a bit strained for space, so the committee has modified the Olympic trapezoids for this quadrennium.
This race was a yellow flag race, so we could pump the sails all we wanted. We've learned a neat trick from the Ukrainians for pumping on the reaches: Paul cleats the guy back by him so I can grab it between the twing and the cleat and pump it to catch waves while I'm on the wire. We extended our lead by doing this on the first reach. Morgan and Kevin were about one hundred yards behind us and stayed there the rest of the race while we both extended from the fleet. We won the race, with Morgan/Kevin in second.
Race 2
We had a good start in the middle of the line, but the individual
recall flag went up on the committee boat, indicating that a few
boats were over early. Morgan/Kevin were just to leeward of us and
went back to re-cross the starting line to exonerate themselves.
They have had two over earlies this regatta and couldn't afford a
third.
Our throw out at this point was a second, so we continued racing, having nothing to lose. As it turns out, we were not over early, nor were Morgan/Kevin. Their going back made it an easy race for us. We went fast up the first beat and rounded in front again.
For the rest of the race, we tried to pretend that the Ukrainians were just behind us so that we would keep sailing fast. We don't want to get lazy and develop bad habits. The Ukrainians passed us a bunch of times that race as Morgan/Kevin worked through the fleet to finish second. We won the race and the regatta, counting all firsts and throwing out our second in the first race.
We need to continue to improve. We will do a clinic given by the U.S. Olympic Sailing Team head coach in November, then we are off to Australia in December and January for the World Championships.
We want to thank everyone, especially CompuCom, Kitty Hawk, Roland Arthur and Raytheon for your support. We feel very fortunate to be able to become the best sailors possible and to represent America as the best sailing country in the world.
See you at home,
Paul and Bob
Team 2000
Note: The last two regattas in St. Pete were an important measuring stick for Paul and Bob. It now is obvious that all the international regattas they have attended in the last year have measurable and visible results.
In discussions among the sailors during the last four days, it has been mentioned frequently that a sailor is only as good as his/her local fleet. Paul is very lucky to have a wonderful pool of talent in Texas to keep pace with, but by extending his "local fleet" to include European champions for the last seven months, he and Bob have been able to increase their skill level and knowledge in the boat significantly and to build their confidence. Hopefully, this time next year we will see equally positive results; only next year Morgan will have had plenty of time in the boat as well in Europe and Australia. The next twelve months will be interesting . . . never a dull moment!