Oakcliff International - Remarkable level of competition on day 1

by Samantha Pilz on 5 Sep 2014 With the best match racers from around the globe, the 2014 Oakcliff International began with a remarkable level of competition during the first day of racing.

With lighter breeze in the morning, teams had to be on the top of their game. Riptide Racing, the current leader in the round robin, realized the importance of concentration against their toughest competitors.

'We did really well today,' said Christopher Poole, skipper for Riptide Racing. 'When we were behind, we tried to keep our head in the game to stay in the match. With a better mindset, the team was meshing better and sailing fast.'

When teams lost their attentiveness, they made significant small avoidable mistakes. During Flight two, Pierre-Antoine Morvan, current leader of the US Grand Slam series, and Dave Perry were battling downwind towards the finish line. With a penalty to kill, Morvan’s first kill attempt fell short after he did not reach a close-hauled course on port tack according to the umpires. During his second attempt, Morvan made contact with Perry, which gave him another penalty and cost him the race.

'During today, my team was able to learn a great deal during each race,' said Charlie Lalumiere, the skipper for the Oakcliff Sailing team. 'It is an honour to be racing out here with these incredible teams and have the chance to learn from them is amazing.'

With a promising forecast of six -twelve knots for Friday, racing is scheduled to begin with Flight 9 at 10 a.m.

Current results for the Round Robin are listed below:

Round Robin														W	%
Pierre-Antoine Morvan							0	0	0	1	1	0	1	3	43%
Eric Monnin								1	1	1	0	0	1	4	67%
Sam Gilmour						1	1	0	1		1	0	1	5	71%
Chris Steele						1	1	0	1	0		1	1	5	71%
Mark Lees				0	0					1	1	1	0	3	50%
Maximillian Soh		1		0	0					1	1	0	1	4	57%
Chris Poole		1	0	1	1					1	1	1		6	86%
Dustin Durant		1	0	0	0					0	0			1	17%
David Niemann		0	0		1	0	0	0	1					2	29%
David Storrs		0	1	0		0	0	0	1					2	29%
Dave Perry		1	1	1	0	0	1	0						4	57%
Charley Lalumiere		0	0	0	0	1	0							1	17%

For more information, please contact Samantha Pilz at pr@oakcliffsailing.org or visit Oakcliff Sailing.