Thursday, September 28, 2000

Foerster, foes can't sail without wind

By Bernie Wilson
Associated Press

SYDNEY, Australia - No wind. No winners.
   The U.S. men's and women's 470 crews, each in position to win Olympic medals on Wednesday (Tuesday night CDT), instead spent most of the day hanging out on shore, victims of the fickle winds that puff over Sydney Harbor.
   For U.S. women's skipper J.J. Isler of San Diego and crewmember Pease Glaser of Long Beach, Calif., it was the sailing equivalent of a rain delay and a false start. They actually got to go out on the water with the rest of their fleet because officials thought they could squeeze in the final fleet race.
   But once there, they found that the breeze had died to a whisper. Sit around and wait. Now, go out and sail - oops, come back.
   "The first word in our weather forecast today was 'chaos,' " Glaser said.
   The 470s were to try to get in their deciding race on Thursday (Wednesday night CDT), but the races were again being delayed due to lack of wind on a rainy day. If the winds return, the seven remaining classes can sail up until the end of the regatta on Saturday. If the wind stays away, all classes have sailed enough races to decide the medalists.
   Corpus Christi native Paul Foerster and crewman Bob Merrick of Portsmouth, R.I., were in second place, behind an Australian crew. Foerster was the Flying Dutchman silver medalist in 1992.
   Isler, the 470 bronze medalist in '92, was third, behind Australia and Germany.
   Isler, 36, and Glaser, 38, are the oldest of the 470 sailors. Glaser is making her Olympic debut, but had been through the trials three times before.
   "Pease and I probably spent more races postponed than most of these girls have sailed races," said Isler, the 1992 bronze medalist. "It's hard to know what other people are thinking, but you know everyone's nervous. The good thing about our trial system is we know we can sail well even when we're nervous and under that pressure."
   Isler and Glaser won the winner-take-all U.S. trials last fall.
   Sydney's winds are notoriously unstable in September. Since it's early spring, it's not warm enough to get a steady seabreeze. Starting races in light, shifting wind can be disastrous, especially in races with such huge consequences.
   During the first 49er fleet race last week, the wind shifted 180 degrees, leaving the leaders practically dead in the water.
   Races in the Star, Finn and Laser classes also were postponed.
   Thursday's schedule also was to include a one-race sailoff between the Soling crews from New Zealand and the Netherlands to decide the fourth and final spot in the match-race round robin that will decide the medals.
   New Zealand's skipper, Rod Davis, has won Olympic medals for both New Zealand and the United States, and has sailed in the America's Cup for the United States, New Zealand and Australia.
   U.S. Soling skipper Jeff Madrigali was eliminated in the second round-robin.
  
  

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