US Sailing Team at London 2012 - Day 5: High winds and waves

On a day where extreme weather threatened Weymouth & Portland, sailing at the Olympic Regatta was faced with high wind, waves and unpredictable conditions. Day 5 racing results for the U.S. Olympic Sailing Team: Erik Storck and Trevor Moore 13th in the 49er; Zach Railey 12th in Finn; Mark Mendelblatt and Brian Fatih 6th in Star; Stuart McNay and Graham Biehl 21st in Men’s 470; Farrah Hall 20th in Women’s RS:X Windsurfing; and Bob Willis 18th in RS:X Men’s Windsurfing. Another win for Anna Tunnicliffe, Molly O’Bryan Vandemoer and Debbie Capozzi increased their round robin record to 6 wins, 3 losses. Today was a scheduled reserve day for Laser and Laser Radial fleets.

Full results on the ISAF London 2012 Results Centre

Highlights:

49er – Erik Storck & Trevor Moore

Erik Storck and Trevor Moore added two races to their score line – 20th and 18th – to bring their overall standing in the men’s skiff (49er) fleet to 13th. “We have seven races left before the medal race,” said Storck, who went on to explain that each day is an opportunity to improve the overall score.

“The pressure is still the same,” said Moore about the fleet of 20 boats. “You just have to go out and execute, and we didn’t do that today. There is little room for error in this fleet. You make one mistake and the fleet is going to pounce on it. Going into tomorrow, our speed is still there, our starts are still there. We have to go out and execute and capitalize on the strengths that we have. We have to minimize the mistakes on the course. Everyone makes mistakes and some can be more costly than others.”

Three races are scheduled for Aug. 3, with a reserve day on Aug. 4 before racing resumes on Aug. 5.

Women’s Match Racing – Anna Tunnicliffe, Molly O’Bryan Vandemoer, Debbie Capozzi

By defeating the Dutch team, Anna Tunnicliffe, Molly O’Bryan Vandemoer and Debbie Capozzi added another win to their round robin results in Women’s Match Racing. Round robin racing continues on Aug. 4 after a scheduled reserve day on Aug. 3.

The team – currently ranked #1 in the world – will face Sweden and Great Britain in the last day of round robin racing. The top eight teams, based on win-loss records, will advance to the quarter finals.

“The round robin you try to win as many races as possible and make it through to the quarter finals,” said Tunnicliffe. “Everybody is really good and there is going to be a battle in all of the line ups.”

Men’s 470 – Stuart McNay and Graham Biehl

The Men’s Two Person Dinghy event – Men’s 470 – began with two races. Stuart McNay and Graham Biehl collected the first two finishes of 17th and 22nd, to establish an overall position of 21st.

“We had an OK start, but missed two opportunities to come back, and that set the pace for that race,” said Biehl after racing. “It was tough to find some lanes and a bit tricky. The second race we fouled the Spanish guys off the line and we were back from there. We were lucky to pass a few boats. I thought we were going pretty well, speed-wise in the second race, but we were pretty far back from the get go.”

Finn – Zach Railey

Two more races were held in men’s dinghy heavy (Finn) with Zach Railey finishing 11th and 8th. He is now in 12th overall with two races to be completed in the 10-race series on August 3.

“Obviously things haven’t gone the way I wanted them to,” said Railey after racing. “It’s very disappointing to set high goals and not be there at the end of the week. I’m not going to let this get me down. I have two more races tomorrow. I’m going to go out and do the best that I can.”

Star – Mark Mendelblatt and Brian Fatih

With a 5th and 10th, Mark Mendelblatt and Brian Fatih find themselves in 6th overall. The men’s keelboat event – Star – has two remaining races on August 3. The medal race, where the top 10 finishers advance, is scheduled for August 5.

Men’s RS:X Windsurfer – Bob Willis

After a disappointing black flag penalty at the starting line, Bob Willis received a score of 39th for race 5 and a 28th in the following race to bring his overall standing to 18th.

Women’s RS:X Windsurfer – Farrah Hall

Farrah Hall continued her 10-race series in women’s windsurfing. By adding two more scores – 20th and 22nd – she is now in an overall position of 20th.

Upcoming on Aug. 3

Aug. 3 will see racing continue in 49er, Star, Finn and Men’s 470, while racing will resume in the Laser and Laser Radial fleets. Racing begins in the Women’s 470. It is a scheduled reserve day for RS:X Men’s and Women’s Windsurfing, and Women’s Match Racing.

At the Helm – Dean Brenner’s daily blog

For an insider’s view of the U.S. Olympic Sailing Team, tune in to Team Leader Dean Brenner’s daily blog “At the Helm.” Each morning, Brenner will give a perspective honed from eight years of leading the U.S. Olympic program. Read the Aug. 2 blog here.