Full Report - Day 1
Today marked the first day of the 2007 U.S. Men's and Women's Championships, hosted by Southwestern Yacht Club in San Diego. The conditions seen were not normal for September- a southerly breeze blew 8-10 with gusts of up to 15 knots all day, starting at 8:00am and continuing into the late afternoon/ early evening. Seas were lumpy and surfable, yet this converted to choppy conditions during the competitors' boat rotations between races.
Competition was tight amongst the racers, more so with the Women's then the Men's. Notably, the racers were a tighter fleet then what is normally seen in the San Diego Etchell fleet. All of the starts were very competitive, with boats on the line and OCS in every race. the Men's fleet had a general recall in the 2nd race. With the wind from the left, the pin end of the start was favored all day. Boat handling was a key element in today's racing, and was especially apparent during critical boat passing opportunities during mark roundings.
Area J, with the hometown advantage, after three races has three of the top four spots in both the men's and women's. In the Adams, Colleen Cooke of SWYC is leading overall with 7 points, Kaitlyn Storck of MITNA is in 2nd with 9 points and, Betsy Altman of the Chicago YC is in 3rd with 11 points. In the Mallory, Chris Busch of SDYC is leading overall with 7 points, Brian Camet, another San Diego sailor, is in 2nd with 9 points and, Paul Wilson of Vineyard Haven YC is in 3rd with 11 points.