Preview- Breitling Regatta in Medemblik

by Marni Lane on 17 May 2007 Twenty-two US Sailing Team members and 29 Americans total are gearing up for the Breitling Regatta, formerly known as the Holland Regatta (and prior to 2005, the SPA Regatta), on the IJsselmeer off Medemblik, The Netherlands.

An International Sailing Federation (ISAF) Grade 1 Event, the Breitling Regatta will take place from Wednesday, May 23 through Sunday, May 27. The competition will be raced in all 11 classes chosen for the 2008 Olympic Games: 49er, 470 (Men & Women), Finn, Laser, Laser Radial, Neil Pryde RS:X (Men & Women), Tornado and Yngling.

Medemblik is the smallest and oldest city of the West-Friesland region in the northern part of The Netherlands. The city is located along the windward shore of the IJsselmeer, approximately 40 kilometers north of Amsterdam. In addition to the Breitling Regatta, the Regatta Center in Medemblik hosts European and World Championships in several classes, such as the combined 420 and 470 Junior European Championships. For more information, including the Notice of Race and entry list, as well as results once racing begins, please visit the event web site at www.breitlingregatta.org/2007

The following USST members are registered to compete:

49er: (72 entries): Morgan Larson (Capitola, Calif.)/Pete Spaulding (Santa Cruz, Calif.); Tim Wadlow (Beverly, Mass.)/Chris Rast (Wake Forest, N.C.); Dalton Bergan (Seattle, Wash.)/Zach Maxam (Coronado, Calif.)

Finn (88 entries): Zach Railey (Clearwater, Fla.); Geoffrey Ewenson (Annapolis, Md.)

Laser Radial (88 entries): Anna Tunnicliffe (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)

RS:X Men (78 entries): Ben Barger (St. Petersburg, Fla.); Bob Willis (Chicago, Ill.)

Star (50 entries): John Dane (Gulfport, Miss.)/Austin Sperry (Gulfport, Miss.); Andy MacDonald (Laguna Beach, Calif.)/Brian Fatih (Miami, Fla.)

Tornado (49 entries): Johnny Lovell (New Orleans, La.)/Charlie Ogletree (Kemah, Tex.); Don Thinschmidt (Holland, Mich.)/Drew Wierda (Miami, Fla.)

Yngling (33 entries): Sally Barkow (Chenequa, Wis.)/Debbie Capozzi (Bayport, N.Y.)/Carrie Howe (Grosse Pointe, Mich.)

US Sailing Team Coach Luther Carpenter will join the team in The Netherlands.

Cascais, Portugal is the Place to Be
Several USST members just finished training camps on the waters of Cascais Bay in Portugal, home of the ISAF Sailing World Championships from June 28-July 13. This regatta is the first Olympic qualifier for all classes. For 470 Women sailors Molly Carapiet (Belvedere, Calif.) and Molly O'Bryan (San Diego, Calif.), also known as 'Team Molly,' it was an excellent opportunity to try out a new mast, which they hope will significantly help their speed. They also continued to work on our boat handling, specifically their upwind technique, during informal races with 6-12 other boats. After six weeks of competing and training in Europe, including in Cascais, Team Molly shared their report:

'We feel more confident in the boat, which is shown in our more aggressive boat handling and racecourse placement. Our speed is definitely better in a lot of conditions; we are able to hang in much tighter lanes than we used to. Furthermore, our communication and racecourse management has become stronger; we are able to make better decisions quickly.'

470 sailor Mikee Anderson-Mitterling (Coronado, Calif.) told the Spotlight why the ISAF Sailing World Championships are especially significant for him and his crew, Dave Hughes (San Diego, Calif.):

'The Worlds are very important on a few different levels. First, we, as a team, are focusing on peaking and Worlds is a great test for that. The location of Worlds put a huge emphasis on boat speed, so the training in Cascais will greatly help us out for trials. The Worlds are also very important for funding. If we get another Top 10 finish and, even better, a Top 3 finish, we will be able to qualify for more funding. This is always an important aspect. Finally, doing well at Worlds will be a great confidence booster, and we all know how important that is.'

For more information on the ISAF Sailing World Championships, please visit the event web site at: www.cascaisworlds2007.com

Next up for the US Sailing Team's 470 sailors is the 470 European Championship in Thessaloniki, Greece, which begins June 1. www.ncth.gr

2007 Upcoming Events

May 23-27: Breitling Regatta, Medemblik, The Netherlands
www.breitlingregatta.org/2007

June 1-10 : 470 European Championship, Thessaloniki, Greece
www.ncth.gr

June 1-9: Finn European Championship, Balatonfoldvar, Hungary
www.spartacus.hu/eng/fooldal.htm

June 2-9: Laser European Championship and Laser Youth European Championship, Hyeres, France

June 5-15: RS:X European Championship, Limassol, Cyprus

June 14-17: Laser North American Championship, Hyannis, Mass., USA

June 16-30: Kiel Week, Kiel, Germany
www.kieler-woche.de/eng/englishdefault.htm

June 28-July 13: ISAF Combined Olympic Class World Championship in Cascais, Portugal (first Olympic Qualifier for all classes)
www.cascaisworlds2007.com

About the Teams
The 2007 USST consists of the top three-ranked sailors in each of the nine classes (11 events) selected for the 2008 Olympic Games: Finn (men); 470 (men and women); Laser (men); Laser Radial (women); Neil Pryde RS:X (men and women); 49er, Star, Tornado (all open); and Yngling (women). For a complete list of the 2007 USST and their hometowns, please visit:
www.ussailing.org/olympics/2007/team.asp

The 2007 USDST also consists of the top three ranked sailors in each of the three classes chosen for the 2008 Paralympic Games: the 2.4mR, the Sonar, and SKUD-18. For a complete list of the 2007 USDST and their hometowns, please visit:
www.ussailing.org/olympics/paralympic/2007/team.asp

Newly launched in 2007, the Elite Youth Development Team represents the country's top youth sailors in the Laser and Laser Radial. To help the athletes gain more sailing experience at the highest levels, members of the Team will travel to major international regattas worldwide and be supported by elite-level coaches. To meet the members of the 2007 UYDT and read their bios, please visit:
www.ussailing.org/olympics/EYDT/2007/team.asp

Sponsors of the 2007 US Sailing Teams are: Rolex Watch U.S.A., Vanguard Sailboats, Nautica, Gill, Sperry Top-Sider, RIBCRAFT, Harken, New England Ropes, Extrasport, Nikon and Team McLube.