Last Year's Winners Team Extreme Takes Early Lead at U.S. Team Racing Championship

October 1, 2010

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Jake Fish
US SAILING Communications Manager
jakefish@ussailing.org
or
Kurt Koehne
(206) 335-8776
 

SEATTLE, Wash. (October 1, 2010) - After racing at Friday’s first round robin stage, the top two teams from last year, Team Extreme and the New York Yacht Club’s Silver Panda, are again atop the leader board. Sixteen teams representing three countries are sailing Vanguard 15s with a three boat, six sailors per team format for the U.S. Team Racing Championship. Some of the best team racers in the world are contending for the prestigious George R. Hinman Trophy on the waters of Lake Union for three days of racing.

Team Extreme finished the day 11-1, while Silver Panda, the four-time champions, went 9-2. They are followed closely by Tall Boyz, Who Dat, and the West Kirby Hawks from Great Britain. They are each 8-4 through 12 races. A puffy and shifty southerly breeze kept racers guessing as they learned the nuances of the confined spaces of Lake Union.

Team Extreme, consisting of all Yale University graduates, is right on track after the first day. They likened it to sailing in the urban setting of the St. Charles River in Boston. None of the team members had raced on Lake Union before, but all were impressed with the setting. The only blemish on Team Extreme’s day came at the hands of the West Kirby Hawks. Team Extreme is led by skippers Zachary Brown (New Haven, Conn.), Thomas Barrows (St. Thomas, USVI), and Stuart McNay (Boston, Mass.).

Silver Panda’s losses came against Buns And Ammo (6-6) and the only local team, Seattle Sideshow (6-6). The home team also handed the West Kirby Hawks, the 2009 Wilson Trophy winners, one of their three defeats. Skippers Amanda Callahan (Canton, Mass.), Clay Bischoff (Newport, R.I.), and Peter Levesque (Tiverton, R.I.) lead Silver Panda. 

The objective of the round robin stage is to determine the top four teams for the next round. Teams in fifth through eighth place will have their own consolation round Saturday to determine which four advance and race against the top four teams. They will represent the bottom half of the eight team fleet for the elimination round.

A total of 96 races were sailed, with just one breakdown. Only twice did the course have to be reset due to wind shifts. Increasing darkness finished racing for the day at 6:30 p.m. PST.  

The weather cooperated with ample wind, and occasional gusts over 20 knots. The urban surroundings deliver some formidable geographical shifts, while the float planes and other lake traffic lend a unique setting. The bright sunshine of the morning and early afternoon eventually gave way to overcast skies and a slight chill to the air. While there was only one capsize, nearly everybody spent the day wet.