2008 Paralympic Sailing Competition - Day Three

Birthday lift for Rickham as Paralympic sailing resumes

Alex Rickham had plenty of reasons to smile on her 27th birthday as she and helm Niki Birrell picked up their first race win of the 2008 Beijing Paralympic Regatta in Qingdao today (Thursday 11 September).

With just one of today’s three scheduled races sailed due to a lack of wind, birthday girl Rickham and Birrell, racing in the SKUD-18 two-person keelboat, overcame a poor start when racing did eventually get underway after a three-hour delay to hold their nerve in a tense sprint for the line to take the sole race victory.

The result elevated the duo to fourth in the overall standings on 23 points, 10 points off the podium places but with five races still scheduled to take place before Saturday’s medal ceremonies. Nick Scandone and Maureen McKinnon Tucker (USA) consolidated their lead in the fleet, sitting on seven points.

A buoyed Birrell said: “I spotted a special line of wind on the left-hand side of the course immediately off the start and although we didn’t start well that gave us a massive lift, got us straight back into the race and we rounded the first mark in first. It was another very tricky race but we’re looking forward to the rest of the regatta.”

Following their indifferent start to the event in the opening two days of racing this week, the British sailors took advantage of yesterday’s lay day to get some important fine tuning under their belts.

And RYA Olympic Team Manager Stephen Park felt there was a noticeably rejuvenated mindset among the sailors as they sat waiting for the wind to fill in and racing to commence today.

“We spent the whole day with everyone on the water yesterday,” he said. “We ran a whole pile of races to get them into a more positive frame of mind and then we took them out for dinner last night to get them out of the Olympic Village and keep them relaxed.

“We were confident there was going to be some wind today it was just a case of how much and how long it would last and our sailors were chomping at the bit to get out there. Within five minutes of the flag coming down they were all ready to go.”

Helena Lucas in the 2.4mR one-person keelboat was unlucky not to pick up her second third placing of the regatta, when she was pipped on the line by Germany’s Heiko Kroger and forced to settle for fourth.

The 2006 World silver medallist got away from the start well but a big wind shift immediately afterwards saw her forced to tack behind the rest of the fleet before she eked her way back through the field to end the day in seventh place overall on 26 points, eight points off bronze medal position. John Ruf (USA) has taken over at the top of the pile on 17 points.

Also suffering an unfortunate break with the wind was the British Sonar three-person keelboat crew of John Robertson, Stephen Thomas and Hannah Stodel.

Sat in third place with 100m of the race remaining, Robertson’s team found themselves stranded as they lost the breeze seeing a number of boats pass them en route to the line and having to settle for a seventh place.

They also lie seventh overall on 30 points after the six completed races, 11 points behind the German team currently in third. French trio Bruno Jourdren, Herve Larhant and Nicolas Vimont-Vicary continue to lead on nine points.

The Paralympic Regatta is scheduled to consist of an 11 races series for each of the three classes - when nine races have been completed, sailors can discard a second score from their series.

Three races are scheduled to take place for all classes tomorrow, with racing due to commence at 12pm local time (5am British time).

Unlike the Olympic Regatta, there is no double points’ medal race sailed on the last day of the regatta rather the sailor(s) finishing on the lowest number of points at the end of the series wins the gold medal. The series is now scheduled to conclude with races 10 and 11 on Saturday.

Park added: “The race committee seems determined to get the five remaining races in so there really is an awful lot still left to play for. We remain optimistic that if we get enough wind to get all five of those races in we can still be pressing for podium finishes.”

For the lowdown on the Paralympics GB team sailors and the most-up-to-date information straight out of the British camp in Qingdao, visit www.rya.org.uk/beijing2008

Irish Update (from Bernadette Fox)

Ireland’s Sonar Sailors 5th in Race 6

Ireland's Paul McCarthy, Paul Ryan and Richard Whealey in the Sonar (3 person keelboat) placed a respectable 5th in race 6 today and lie 11th overall. Bruno Jourdren, Herve Larhant and Nicolas Vicary of France continue to hold the lead.

In the Skud 18 (2 person keelboat) class Amy Kelehan and John Twomey remain in 10th place after another 10th position in today’s only race. America’s Nick Scandone & Maureen McKinnon Tucker continue to lead the fleet.

Just one race took place in both the Sonar and Skud 18 classes today in Qingdao. Racing will resume tomorrow (Friday, 12th September)

The 11 race series are now two races behind schedule. With no remaining reserve days the Race Management Committee will hope to increase the number of races each day to complete the series.

USA Update (from Marni Lane)

Team USA lead two classes, despite light air

Light and variable air forced extremely tight racing today in the Paralympic Regatta, but Nick Scandone (Newport Beach, Calif.) and Maureen McKinnon-Tucker (Marblehead, Mass.) and John Ruf (Pewaukee, Wis.) sailed well and ended the day leading the SKUD-18 and 2.4 mR classes, respectively. After three hour postponements, sailors were finally able to get in one out of three scheduled races today, but it was more like a crawl than a race.

“We couldn’t be happier that our team is on track and sailing fast and well,” said Head Coach Betsy Alison (Newport, R.I.). “We’re halfway through the regatta now and as long as we stay calm and focused, we’ll get the job done. We’re making the U.S. proud.”

The SKUD-18s and 2.4 mRs endured challenging conditions today on their shared course, including low pressure and 3-5 knots of wind in a transitional current. “The conditions were the stuff they promised we wouldn’t have and it turned out that we did,” said McKinnon-Tucker. “It turns into a crap shoot because one little cat paw breeze or two waves crush you and you’re done. It is so difficult to get speed.”

Once the SKUD-18 fleet started racing after 3 p.m. in light winds, boats from both sides of the first windward leg converged at windward mark. On the next run, they spread out slightly, and five countries led the pack: Great Britain, Malaysia, USA’s Scandone and McKinnon-Tucker, Australia and Canada. The positions moved around slightly on the run, but the racing was very tight. On the final run through the gate on the way to the finish line, those same five boats appeared to be in an overlapping cluster. At the same time, there was so little wind that all of their spinnakers collapsed. “They hung limp like dish rags,” said McKinnon-Tucker.

Suffering from a complete lack of wind, a pack of boats headed for the right gate and Scandone and McKinnon-Tuckler gybed into the left gate and passed everyone except the British, who finished first. Scandone/McKinnon-Tucker followed in second place, and Malaysia finished third.

“It was a very hard-fought race,” said McKinnon-Tucker. Their second place finish in today’s race further established their overall lead, and they sit five points ahead of second-place Australia.

“Boat speed can make you feel smart, but when you don’t have it, you’re constantly wondering, ‘are we doing the right thing?” said McKinnon-Tucker. “It’s difficult to be patient. We weren’t going any slower than anyone else, even though we’re going painfully slow. We knew the finish line would come eventually!” Her spirits were boosted by seeing her eight-year-old daughter, Dana, on the spectator boat, waving a homemade sign that read, “Go Mom! Win the gold!”

Looking ahead to tomorrow, McKinnon-Tucker and Scandone hope for at least 5 knots of breeze. Their goal is to broaden their lead ahead of Australia and Canada, who sit in second and third place. McKinnon-Tucker also hopes the next few days of racing won’t be as long as today, so they can conserve Scandone’s energy. Scandone suffers from ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease), a neurodegenerative disease that affects the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. Every day is a challenge for him, and the support team makes sure he is getting the rest he needs.

The 2.4 mR started racing after the SKUDs on their shared course, but experienced even lighter breeze than the first fleet, which forced another tight race. “It really becomes a game of who rolls the dice,” said Ruf.

Fortunately for Ruf, he grew up sailing on inland Pewaukee Lake in Wisconsin, where the air is typically light. “It came in handy today,” he said. Ruf sailed a successful race today by seeking out the puffs and staying in the pressure downwind. The last downwind seemed to last an eternity, and at the last third of the beat, the wind shut off and the boats drifted past the finish line. “It was complete misery,” he said. “You didn’t know where the wind was going to come from next. It was touch and go.” Ruf ended up finishing seventh in the race, but his closest rival in the overall standings, Canada’s Paul Tingley, finished after him, pushing Ruf into first place overall.

The Sonar team of Rick Doerr (Clifton, N.J.), and his crew, Tim Angle (Marblehead, Mass.) and Bill Donohue (Brick, N.J.), experienced slightly more breeze than the other two fleets, and they were able to race in 4 ½ -6 knots on a short, double windward/leeward course. Doerr and his crew were in fifth place at the top of the windward leg, but when they gybed to port to catch a more advantageous current, the pressure filled in the opposite side of the race course. Unfortunately, their calculated risk didn’t pay off, and they lost several boat positions on the final run, finishing tenth overall.

“They plan to go out and attack the race course tomorrow,” said Alison. “They’re looking forward to an awesome day on the water tomorrow.”

Because the racing is behind schedule, the Race Committee scheduled three races tomorrow, starting an hour earlier, at 12 noon. If they get three races in tomorrow, which will be nine races total, sailors will be able to drop their two worst scores. The regatta includes a total of eleven races over five days throughout the week. Medals will be awarded on the final day of racing, Saturday, September 13. There will not be a medal race in the Paralympic Regatta, unlike the Olympic Regatta last month.

For full results please visit ISAF’s web site.