Mendelblatt and Strube perfect at Star Europeans

by Andreas Kling on 9 Aug 2006 In an unprecedented performance at a major Star championship American duo Mark Mendelblatt and Mark Strube added two more first place results to yesterday's win, giving them a perfect record so far at the Star Europeans, part of Rolex Baltic Week, now in its third year.

The first race for the Stars today started with a giant wind shift to the left moments after the gun. This allowed German sailors Lars Kiewning and Uli Seeberger to make a do or die move, successfully port tacking the entire fleet - a brave tactic considering the high level of competition at this regatta. But on this occasion the Germans' heroic bid paid off and they led around the course until the final run.

Mendelblatt and Strube's start was more conservative in the middle of the line and they too tacked as the shift came through. 'The guys who were to the left of us looked like they had us for a long time, but we were just able to hold our lane, while the guys who started out by the boat were well behind,' recounted Mendelblatt.

The Americans closed up on the German leaders up the second beat and on the final run, in what would turn into a nailbiter of a finish, edged ahead with 200m still to go. 'We were pinning him [the Germans] out on starboard with one gybe left to the line and we gybed away because I was looking at the wrong finish line,' admits Mendelblatt. 'When we gybed away we were on the wrong layline to the start boat which I thought was the finish boat, so we had to gybe again and he was ahead of us and then we had to pass him again.' They managed this, but by only the smallest of margins.

The second Star race today saw the Polish team of Mateusz Kusznierewicz and Dominik Zycki come to the fore. The former Finn Gold medallist made a good start and did well playing the shifts up the first beat to lead from Danes Benny Andersen/Just Mogens and the German duo Matthias Miller/Manuel Vogt. While the lead duo remained the same at the leeward mark rounding, Mendelblatt and Strube had got into the lead by the time they reached the second weather mark.

'We were working the left early on the second beat and just sailed in phase with the shifts,' recounted Mendelblatt. 'At that stage we were up to third and the two leaders Benny and Mateusz I think missed one phase and they got to the right and the wind went hard right and all of a sudden we were leading.'

Mendelblatt and Strube scored their third win in as many races, something which the former Laser Olympic sailor turned Star helmsman from Florida said that he hadn't achieved since he sailed an Optimist as a child. 'It's been a while for sure. We're happy. I'm sure it'll turn around and the heat will come on tomorrow, but we are enjoying it while it lasts.'

The American duo's consistency is all the more amazing considering the conditions today - even more shifty than yesterday thanks to the dominant offshore gradient breeze, ranging from 6-15 knots and very patchy across the Bay of Lübeck. 'It was really up and down all day with bigger swings than yesterday,' said Mendelblatt.

Mateusz Kusznierewicz agreed: 'It was strange: When we spent two weeks over here in Travemünde we always had a sea breeze which was a beautiful steady wind. Yesterday and today it has been really shifty. Sometime you can predict it and sometimes something strange happens. But the regatta is long - we have eight races and the average will show.'

Edmund Peel, crew for Irishman Maurice O'Connell, currently 21st overall, outlined the important of reading the wind shifts right. 'We have been getting good starts and our boat speed seems fine, we're just missing the shifts. On the first race we were in phase and it was great and we finished 14th - we were really happy with. But in the second we missed two shifts and the leaders were gone.' In the second race today they finished a disappointing 33rd.

The boats in the IMS World Championship are expected to return to Neustadt tomorrow morning, when the Stars will be readying themselves for races four and five of their championship.

Results:

1 USA 8157 Mendelblatt, Mark Strube, Mark St. Petersburg / TAB 1 1 1 3,00pts
2 BRA 8127 Scheidt, Robert Prada, Bruno 2 8 6 16,00
3 GER 7991 Miller, Matthias Voigt, Manuel Rostock / UEB 8 6 5 19,00
4 ITA 8266 Negri, Diego Viale, Lugi Biano Marina / VE 10 7 11 28,00
5 POL 8252 Kusniercwicz, Mateusz Zycki, Dominik Warschau / 5 22 3 30,00
6 FRA 8107 Rohart, Xavier Rambeau, Pascal Martioues / NI 7 15 12 34,00