No one told Paul and Bill that the official name of the 470 regatta in Toronto included the word "Icebreaker." On May 15th our two local boys moseyed to the airport and headed toward a three day, teeth-chattering event called the Olympic Classes Icebreaker Regatta. This was their first 470 race of any significance as a team and the beginning of a three-year journey to represent the United States in Sydney, in 2000.
The more races Paul and Bill sailed up there, the more they appreciated the name "Icebreaker." According to Bill, it only took a few slaps of the frigid water to sufficiently numb your entire head. "It gave you an 'ice cream headache' for the rest of the day," explained Bill, "but after a while, you couldn't feel it much, so it was ok." To back his testimony, all teams were required not only to check in every day with the race committee, but were required to sign out once back on shore as well. This was to avoid a repeat of a tragedy that happened a few years back when a 505 sailor fell off his trapeze wire and froze and sank to the bottom of Lake Ontario. Apparently it was several hours before they missed him and several days before they found him. The water temperature during the Icebreaker this year was 39 F.
Of course, it didn't take our guys long to find a warm spot to thaw out. James' father's condominium had a workout facility complete with hot tub for regaining all feeling back into fingers and toes. Better yet for Paul, a basketball court was also available. James and Pierre Olivier suggested a rally of two-on-two basketball with Bill and Paul, "I tried to tell them that it should be three-on-one against Paul, but they wouldn't listen," said Bill. Paul and his teammate "P.O." as they called Pierre, stomped Bill and James to a pulp.
Paul's Report: "It was a good experience for us. James and P.O. have been sailing 470s for the last 6 years and Bill and I have been sailing for one month, yet we still had a chance to beat them going in to the last race. We got to sail a fairly new boat and actually use some new sails (heaven compared to our practice boat). The Canadians arranged the boat for us. Mostly we learned how much we still need to improve. A big thanks to Jim Craig for getting us the plane tickets and Carrie Foerster for organizing everything."
The next stop for the team is the Barrington Olympic Classes Regatta on June 14-15 in Rhode Island. Then they go to the World tune up regatta on July 12 - 13 in Newport, RI. With enough support they will go to the 470 World Championships in Tel Aviv, Israel on August 24 -30. This is the plan, anyway. But first the team needs a good racing boat, plane tickets, sails, parts and a lot of help in organizing this thing because it is only going to get larger.
If you can help, talk to Carrie Foerster, Jim Craig, Peter Gerard, Jennifer Draheim or Bill Draheim.