AMERICAONE TEAM REMAINS IN CONTROL OF EAST COAST OPPONENT
AUCKLAND, New Zealand, December 10, 1999 – AmericaOne, the San Francisco-based St. Francis Yacht Club’s America’s Cup 2000 challenger, won its 7th race of the series today against New York Yacht Club’s USA 58 by 1m 8s, in light and somewhat unstable southeasterly winds ranging from 8-10 knots. Paul Cayard, at the helm of AmericaOne, (USA 49) and Ed Baird, at the helm of Young America, engaged in a showdown match with Cayard remaining in control of the wind phases for the duration of the race. AmericaOne’s win today against Young America puts its East Coast opponent in jeopardy of not qualifying for the Louis Vuitton Semi-Finals.
At the onset of the match, a 10 minute weather delay was called due to unstable winds, which was followed by a 20 minute delay requested by Young America to, reportedly, repair a winch. The race finally underway, Baird had a half-boatlength lead as the gun sounded but AmericaOne had won the left side of the course. AmericaOne Tactician, John Kostecki, meticulously called the shifts and the team extended on starboard tack to get to the left-hand side of the course picking up a notable header and moving into the lead. Despite Young America’s attempts to tack on small shifts, AmericaOne covered and remained between the mark and Baird. Approaching the first leeward mark, USA 49 had out maneuvered USA 58 and was well in the lead. The Cayard-Kostecki duo was in phase with the shifts and locked out the New Yorkers with no passing lanes for the remainder of the race.
“Starting from a disadvantageous position off of the line,” explains AmericaOne Boat Captain Josh Belsky. “We gained speed and picked a favorable long-term windshift and cashed it in.”
RR3/Race 8 Starting Line-Up: Curtis Blewett of Los Angeles CA, bow; Ralf Steitz of Port Washington, NY, mid-bow; Bill Bates of San Diego, CA, mast/sewer; Josh Belsky of Hood River, OR, pit; Matt Welling of Bay Shore, NY, grinder; Phil Trinter of Lorain, OH, grinder; Jim Nicholas of San Diego, CA, grinder; David McClintock of Portsmouth, RI, upwind trim; Carter Perrin of Houston, TX, downwind trim; Lexi Gahagan of Wilmington, DE, runner; Paul Cayard of Kentfield, CA, helmsman; John Kostecki of Fairfax, CA, tactician; Morgan Larson of Capitola, CA, traveler; Terry Hutchinson of Annapolis, MD, mainsheet; Sean Clarkson of Middletown, RI, main assist and Gavin Brady of Annapolis, MD, navigator. The 17th crew person was Mr. Jim Butler of Telcordia Technologies.
Final Scores To Date:
AmericaOne / 99 points
America True / 92 points
Prada / 91 points
Nippon Challenge / 74.5 points
Stars & Stripes / 63.5 points
Le Defi Francais / 50 points
Spanish Challenge / 44 points
Abracadabra 2000 / 43 points*
Young America / 42 points
Young Australia /18 points
FAST2000 /8 points**
* Abracadabra had BYE today.
**FAST 2000 has withdrawn from the Louis Vuitton Cup.
Other Delta Results:
America True beat Nippon Challenge – Delta 00:06
Prada beat Young Australia – Delta 00:55
Stars & Stripes beat FAST2000/FAST2000 WITHDREW DUE TO A BROKEN MAST
Le Defi Francais beat Spanish Challenge – Delta 04:15
AmericaOne ‘s schedule for the remainder of Round Robin 3 is as follows:
