ISAF Sailing World Cup Miami- Day 3 - US Sailing have eight in Top 10

by Will Ricketson on 29 Jan 2015 Day 3 of ISAF Sailing World Cup Miami, presented by Sunbrella marked the midpoint of North America’s biggest Olympic and Paralympic classes regatta.

With bright sunshine and fresh breeze in abundance, the world’s top athletes in 13 classes were treated to the conditions that exemplify why Miami is a preferred international sailing destination.

In the Women’s 470, Annie Haeger (East Troy, Wisc.) and Briana Provancha (San Diego, Calif.) improved to sixth overall.'Our speed is as good as it’s ever been,' said Provancha. 'We just need to finish more consistently.'

Dave Ullman, the three-time 470 class world champion (’77, ’78, ’80) who has been coaching the world #2 ranked pair since last April, noted that he’s been enjoying getting back to his roots as a sailor through working with the US Sailing Team Sperry. 'The boats have not changed, but the game certainly has,' said Ullman. 'It is more professional now than when I sailed the 470, and teams train much harder.'

The men’s 49er team of Brad Funk (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.) and Trevor Burd (Marblehead, Mass.) remained in the top 10 despite an offshore breeze that brought radical shifts and puffs throughout the day. 'We didn’t have any really bad races, and did a pretty good job of being consistent,' said Burd. 'If we sail as well as we know we can, we can definitely jump higher in the standings. Many boats ahead of us have at least one deep score.'

The best US Sailing Team Sperry performance of the day came from the Paralympic Sonar team of Rick Doerr (Clifton, N.J.), Brad Kendell (Tampa, Fla.) and Hugh Freund (South Freeport, Maine) who notched a 1, 2 scoreline today and moved into the overall lead. 'There is no margin for error in the fleet,' said Freund.

'Yesterday we did pretty well with a fourth and a second, but actually dropped a place. Our mindset definitely won’t change now that we’re in first.' US Sailing Team Sperry Paralympic Coach Betsy Alison (Newport, R.I.) said she was proud of her sailors today. 'They were definitely not conservative, and took some smart risks that paid off,' said the 5-time US Sailing Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year and longtime national team coach. 'Brad and Hugh had a great day tactically, and Ricky kept the boat going fast.'

In the Laser Radial, US Sailing Team Sperry’s Paige Railey (Clearwater, Fla.) dropped slightly to seventh, with US Sailing Development Team standout Haddon Hughes (Houston, Texas) sitting right behind in eighth. Hughes continues to have an impressive scoreline for an athlete competing in her first World Cup event against elite competition.

The US Sailing Development Team’s Raoul Lopez (Miami, Fla.) had a nice moment today in the Men’s RS:X fleet when he recording a bullet in race nine, becoming the second American board sailor to win a race after Marion Lepert (Belmont, Calif.) in the women’s fleet. 'I had a bad start, but figured out that the strongest puffs were coming down the center of the course, and stuck with that strategy,' said Lopez. 'Downwind I worked hard as well, and it’s nice to see that maybe some of my training is paying off.'

Notable US Results, Overall: Day 3

Sonar (10 boats):

• Rick Doerr, Brad Kendell and Hugh Freund, first overall

470 Women (30 boats):

• Annie Haeger and Briana Provancha, sixth overall

Laser Radial Women:

• Paige Railey, seventh overall
• Haddon Hughes, eighth overall

2.4mR (17 boats):

• Daniel Evans, seventh overall
• John Ruf, eighth overall

Finn Heavyweight Men (40 boats):

• Caleb Paine, 10th overall

49er Men (54 boats):

• Brad Funk and Trevor Burd, 10th overall

RS:X Women:

• Marion Lepert, 13th overall

Laser Men (103 boats):

• Charlie Buckingham, 15th overall

470 Men (42 boats):

• Stuart McNay and David Hughes, 17th overall