Rich Roberts Reports
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Click on Burgee to go to ABYC's site GAILLARD LOOKING LIKE AMERICA'S QUEEN OF THE EUROPE CLASS LONG BEACH, Calif.--Halfway between Olympic years, Meg Gaillard is on schedule to claim the United States team berth that eluded her by a single point two years ago. Gaillard, 28, of Jamestown, R.I., won all four Europe races on the second day of the 42nd Olympic Classes Regatta at Alamitos Bay Yacht Club Saturday. That gave her a headlock not only on the regatta but the top spot in the US Sailing Team rankings for 2002, for which this is the final qualifying event. Most of her rivals are in the 23-boat fleet, so her overwhelming performance
is significant. But she is trying not to get too excited about it and
peak too early, which she may have done before losing the U.S. "If you get tired of sailing, that can be bad," she said. "I learned a lesson." The important perk about being No. 1, she said, is the health insurance that goes with it. After an overnight rain, the wind didn't blow as hard as it had on Friday, but it was more than enough for the 143 boats in nine classes to start on time and log their daily quota of races before wrapping it up Sunday. The 49ers, Mistrals and Finns-the male counterpart to the Europe as a single-handed class-also are contesting their final rankings. If Gaillard is queen of the Europes, Mistral sailor Peter Wells of Newport Beach is chairman of the board. He stretched his unbeaten streak to seven. But in the Finns it's a serious dogfight among the group that will probably produce the American rep at Athens in 2004. Bryan Boyd of Florida held onto his lead by winning two of the four races Saturday, although Darrell Peck, Geoffrey Ewenson and Mo Hart are within reach. The 49ers have split into A and B fleets. The Tim Wadlow/Pete Spaulding pair from San Diego remained in first place but now by a single point over Seattle's Andy Mack and Adam Lowry after both tossed 21-point DNFs after 11 of 15 scheduled races. Then there is Honolulu Laser sailor Andrew Lewis, who is stateside on more of a lark. His place on the US Sailing Team already secured, he has won five of seven races while pronouncing the conditions a bit cool for a Hawaiian but otherwise "ideal." "I've been sailing in 30 knots off Kaneohe," he said, "and this is just good practice. There aren't many [Lasers] in Hawaii." He plans to compete extensively in Europe this year to narrow the gap in a class where "Americans tend to struggle," he said. Lewis, 19, is among a flashy group of newcomers as young as 17---contrary to some of this weekend's rivals who include San Francisco's Russ Silvestri, the USA's Olympic Finn class rep at Sydney who stands in 10th place. At 40, is Silvestri, a Finn sailor for two decades, launching a new career? "Oh, no," he said. "This is fun!" Racing is scheduled to start at 11:15 a.m. Sunday, conditions permitting. The Finns, Stars and Solings are sailing on the open ocean, the Europes, Mistrals and Lasers are inside the breakwater, while the 49ers are sailing off the beach.
Class leaders (protests pending): LASER (47 boats)-1. Andrew Lewis, Honolulu, Hawaii (1-1-1(3)-1-1-2),
7 FINN (15)-1. Bryan Boyd, Jacksonville, Fla. (1-2-2-3-1-1-(4)), 10. MISTRAL MEN (7)-1. Peter Wells, Newport Beach, Calif. ((1)-1-1-1-1-1-1), 6. MISTRAL WOMEN (2)-1. Sherry Burgess, Victoria, B.C. ((3)-1-2-1-3-1-1), 9. STAR (13)-1. Mike Dorgan/Eric Weintraub, San Diego, Calif. 49ER (20)-1. Tim Wadlow/Pete Spaulding, San Diego EUROPE (23)-1. Meg Gaillard, Jamestown, R.I. (2-1-(3)-1-1-1-1), 7. SOLING (7)-1. Ian Wareham/Colin Baden/Andrew Vance, Eastsound, Wash. SNIPE (6)-1. Ken Redler/Julie Redler, San Diego, (1-1-2-2), 6. INFORMATION Co-chairmen: PUBLICITY |
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