2014 Detroit Cup - Quarter-finalists determined

by Dobbs Davis on 23 Aug 2014 2014 Detroit Cup - In a day that featured challenging light air conditions and strong currents, the top eight teams in a field of twelve from six countries have been determined to go through to the Quarter Final stage of the 2014 Detroit Cup, the second stop on the ISAF Grade Two US Grand Slam series. And among these four pairs the first flight of a first-to-three point series has also been completed, even with the threat of abandonment looming, as the breeze died at day’s end and race managers from Bayview YC decided to call it a day.

Local-based Matt Graham and his Rowdy Racing team won the Round Robin on an impressive nine - two record, and in so doing had the first choice of who to play in the Quarter Finals. Graham chose Wataru Sakamoto, and in a long light air match, managed to defeat the team from Japan and take an early lead of one - zero.

The runner-up in the Round Robin was another Bayview YC local, Ian Hollerbach, who chose another Asian-based team, Maximillian Soh from Singapore. Soh struggled in the start against Hollerbach, but in the vagaries of a very light air match he and his Team Red Dot managed to take the lead and hold it to take their first point in the series and go ahead one - zero.

The closest match in this light start to the Quarter-Finals was between Pierre-Antoine Morvan from France and David Storrs from Connecticut, where Storrs yielded to Morvan at the start but managed to keep the pressure on throughout the match.

And the last pairing between Chris Poole from New York and Sam Gilmour from Australia had Gilmour take the early lead on the first beat, but lose that to Poole as the breeze died. Poole stayed in just enough pressure to get past Gilmour and his Neptune Racing team, get around the first top mark, and then open up enough of a lead – nearly an entire leg – to do not only one penalty turn earned in the pre-start, but another one assessed by the umpires for sculling in the worst of the light air. Poole nonetheless stayed well ahead and continued on to win his first point in the series and go ahead on a score of one - zero.

Racing will resume tomorrow with a Consolation series of three flights to determine nine – twelfth place, a fun Pro-Am race for the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Detroit, and then a continuation of the Quarter Finals with a possible start to the Semi-Finals as well, weather permitting.

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