2007 Paralympic Trials
The latest results can be found here. Latest commentary below.
Day 8
Log by Betsy Alison
Nick Scandone and Maureen McKinnon-Tucker clinched the berth to the Paralympics in the SKUD 18 class with two races to go. Their 3 -1 finishes on Saturday put the title out of reach for the rest of the fleet, and they became the first team to qualify for the 2008 Games. Second place in the SKUDs is still up for grabs - a double protest filed after racing between Karen Mitchell and Scott Whitman saw both teams disqualified for two separate incidents. Going into the final two races, Mitchell has a two point margin over Whitman. With Scandone opting to take the day off to go out and watch the competition from a spectator boat, it will become a who beats who scenario for the other two teams.
Consistency has been paying dividends for Mark LeBlanc in the 2.4mR fleet. He placed second and first in the two light air races. John Ruf took race one to close the gap with LeBlanc and tie for the lead, but LeBlanc came away with the second race and a two point lead when Ruf after doing penalty turns for Mark Bryant dropped to third. Sunday will see two races for the 2.4mRs and it will come down to the wire.
The biggest upset was in the Sonar fleet was in the protest room last night where Rick Doerr and Paul Callahan went head to head on a starting line incident. After much testimony and deliberation, Callahan was DSQ'd from the final race of the day - which he had won convincingly to take the standings lead by 4 points - only to find that lead sink to a 3 point deficit going into the final race. Now, the overall standings sit with Doerr in first with 36 points, Callahan and Bert Foster tied with 39 and Jennifer French right on their heels with 41. On the course, the racing was tight with multiple lead changes. David Schroeder was leading the first race only to see that lead vanish with a few small shifts up the beat. Callahan went from 5th on the final beat of the first race to catch a big righty to capture the win. Sunday's racing will be fast and furious with anything possible. Let's see how the cards fall...........
Day 6 & 7
Log by Betsy Alison
Deciding Weekend Ahead!
The team dog, Morrow II, contrary to popular opinion, did not eat the results for the past several days..... The racing has been tight on the waters of Narragansett Bay in Newport, RI. Conditions have been challenging for the sailors in the three Paralympic classes, and lead changes have not been uncommon. Since the lay day on Wednesday, we have had light shifty winds, a day with passing frontal systems and puffy breeze, and everything in between.
The most consistent team has been the duo of Nick Scandone and Maureen McKinnon-Tucker. Though they have not sailed an entirely flawless series, they have demonstrated an uncanny ability to come back when faced with adversity - like a collision with second place Karen Mitchell on the first run of the second race yesterday. Even after spinning a penalty turn, Scandone/Tucker worked there way back to the front of the fleet to take a bullet. After 12 races, they sit alone at the top of the leader board, with a mere 12 points and a seemingly insurmountable lead. There remains a tight battle for second between Karen Mitchell/JP Creignou and Scott Whitman/Julia Dorsett with 25 and 26 points respectively with 4 races to go and every single point important.
In the 4 boat 2.4mR clcass, John Ruf who was 5 points down on the lay day has raged back with a string of bullets to come within a single point of first place. In this small but competitive class, the leader at the end of each day has changed almost on a daily basis. On Thursday, Mark Bryant began the day at the top but had a series of unfortunate events capped by an OCS in the second race on Thursday to relinquish the lead to Mark LeBlanc. LeBlanc and Ruf traded wins on Thursday to allow LeBlanc to take the lead on the scoreboard, but Ruf's performance has brought him into serious contention. The jury is out as to who will win this fleet with 4 races left, but as things stand, LeBlanc has 21 pts, Ruf 22 and Bryant 24.
With the Sonar fleet having only three races left to sail (they got one race ahead of schedule earlier in the week), the racing is getting hotter than ever. Though Rick Doerr and his team have been at the top of the leader board for a lot of the event, a mid week charge by Bert Foster from Minnesota with three consecutive wins brought his team to the forefront. However, a pair of 5ths on Thursday brought the top three all to within a mere three points of eachother. The talent in this small fleet of 6 is so deep that it is not unusual to see 3 or 4 boats overlapped going into the finish line. FIrst place finishes are not easy to acquire they have been mostly spread among the top three teams, and as evidenced by the scores, consistency in performance is what have allowed the top teams to stay right there, at the top. Rick Doerr's team now sits with 29 points, Callahan and crew in second with 31 and Foster and his boys one back with 32. Jennifer French with Brad Kendell and Mike Hersey have put in some great performances over the past few days to bring them up in the scores, nipping at the heels of the other three.
Racing for the the next two days, Saturday and Sunday, will determine who our Paralympic Team to China will be. It is a close and well fought battle - the outcome unknown as this is written. Stay tuned for the final accounts and the announcement of who your team will be!
Day 5
Day off - all Paralympic classes.
Day 4
Dog (Morrow) ate it.
Day 3
ESPN coverage of US Paralympic Trials.
Day 2
Log by Betsy Alison
After arriving to the venue this morning to find a new twist of fate for two fleets - race #2 in each of the Sonar and 2.4mR classes had been abandoned by the RC - the three fleets took to the water for day 2 of racing. Though the air temperatures were cool - the highs were in the low 60s - the breeze was a nice NNE gusting to 22 knots early on. As the day progressed, the oscillating breeze decreased in overall velocity to a light 7-8 knots for the final 2.4mR race
The Sonars were scheduled to lead off at 10AM. A RC boat breakdown caused a delay of almost an hour before the 3 person boats could get out of the blocks. Rick Doerr continued where he left off in race #1, taking a bullet, closely followed by Paul Callahan and Bert Foster. In the second race of the day, Doerr and his team of Tim Angle and Bill Donohue once again took line honors with David Schroeder coming across the line in second. Callahan was third. The final race, to make up for the abandoned one from yesterday, saw Doerr with a bad start having to clear out right while most of the fleet worked left. His team once again worked some magic to take the victory followed by Callahan, Foster and Schroeder. However, a protest and counter protest was lodged between Doerr and Foster resulting in a DSQ for Doerr, denying him a perfect score in the first 4 racess.
On the SKUD 18 course, Nick Scandone and Maureen McKinnon-Tucker showed great speed and control in the breezy conditions. The duo led around the course in both races sailed today to lead the fleet with a 3rd and 3 bullets. World Champions Karen Mitchell and JP Creignou posted two seconds, and the team of Whitman and Dorsett had a couple of thirds. Scandone now sits alone at the top of the leaderboard with Mitchell and Whitman nipping at his heels.
FInally, the 2.4mRs took to the course. On their first race of the day, there was some confusion as to the posted course, and although Mark LeBlanc was leading the rest of the fleet with huge separation, the RC chose to abandon the race and restart it. Two races followed in a breeze that was decidely less than that which the other two fleets sailed in. In the first race of the day, Mark Bryant narrowly took the honors at the line over Mark LeBlanc. In the second race of the day, the two sailors traded positions acorss the line. John Ruf posted two thirds today. The 2.4mRs are the only fleet who are a race behind in the schedule so far. Hopefully the breeze will cooperate tomorrow to allow them to make up the missing race.
Day 1
Log by Betsy Alison
The first day of the Paralympic Trials in Newport saw SSW winds of 5-11 knots of breeze and intermittent haze and fog. Each of the three classes (2.4mR, Sonar and SKUD 18) completed 2 races in the 16 race series.
The 2.4mR class got the early start call for 10 AM. They had light winds that gradually built in velocity, shifting slighly to the left. In race #1, Charlie Rosenfield led the charge off the line, and led the 4 boat fleet at each subsequent mark to take the win. In the second race, John Ruf played the course a little better than the rest and took the second win. His 3 - 1 combination puts him at the top of the 2.4mR leaderboard closely followed by Rosenfield and Mark Bryant, both with 5 points.
In the Sonar fleet, positions changed among the sailors on the course and in the first race of the day, current differentials from side to side on the course had an impact on finishing positions. Jennifer French and her team led the fleet at the top mark, but 2007 IFDS World Champion RIck Doerr sailed the run in slightly more favorable current to snatch the lead from French, and take first in that fleet. French held on to second with David Schroeder in third. In race #2, Bert Foster and his boys won the pin, worked the left and led around the race course. Though there was some confusion as to which mark to round after the second beat to windward, but places remained the same, to see Foster cross the line in first, French working some magic to pass Rick Doerr on the final run to take second with Doerr doing penalty turns just before the finish to take third. After two races, Doerr (1-3) and French (2-2) lead the class tied on points, with Bert Foster 2 points back in third.
Last but not least on day 1 was the 5 boat SKUD 18 fleet. Racing here was tight, and after the strong US results at the World Championships last month in Rochester, NY nothing less was to be expected. World Champions Karen Mitchell and JP Creignou continued their winning ways to lead at the first mark and hold on til the finish where they just held off a last minute rush to the line by Scott Whitman and Julia Dorsett. Nick Scandone and Maureen McKinnon-Tucker took a third. In race #2, Whitman and Scandone came off the line at the pin end, worked over towards Goat Island and picked up a nice left shift which launched them to the front of the fleet. At the top Scandone led the group followed by Whitman, then Sarah Skeels. Those three held those places around an abbreviated course due to incoming fog and safety concerns. At the end of day one, Scandone tops the leaderboard tied with Whitman. Mitchell sits in third just one point back.
This Paralympic fleet is deep with talent and each fleet will provide close and interesting racing as the weeklong event unfolds. Nothing should be take for granted.