News Rolex Miami OCR 2007 - Still Wind Stalls And Challenges Racers

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Light air slipped in to tease the 855 sailors from 49 countries who were anxious to start their second day of racing at US SAILING's ISAF Grade 1 Rolex Miami OCR. Amongst the sailors to perform well in the lighter conditions was 2006 ISAF Rolex World Sailor of the Year Paige RAILEY (USA), who maintained her consistent form to take the lead in the Laser Radial fleet.

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Re: News: Rolex Miami OCR 2007 - Still Wind Stalls And Challenges Racers

Sounds like Paige and Anna are getting pretty worked up over this regatta. (Read Anna's version of what happened in race 3 with Paige http://www.annatunnicliffe.com/ )

Should make for a very interesting rest of the year up to the Trials...
 
Re: News: Rolex Miami OCR 2007 - Still Wind Stalls And Challenges Racers

Year after Year UUSailing wastes millions of dollars in community and individuals dollars, bringing sailors from all over the world to sit on shore or be towed back and forth to non-race courses because the Miami OCR is held at an expensive venue and during a time of the year when decent racing conditions happen on about 50% of the days.

When will the idiocy stop??
 
Re: News: Rolex Miami OCR 2007 - Still Wind Stalls And Challenges Racers

Fred:

WHAT is your problem with racing on Biscayne Bay?
Everytime somebody mentions a regatta there you chime in with how it is the worst place in the world to sail, which it is not. In the last five years I have been seriously racing Lasers you haven't even set foot anywhere in the state of Florida, much less down here. Ok, so back in the '80's some cocaine kingpin jacked your rental on the way to the Grove? Get over it!
 
Re: News: Rolex Miami OCR 2007 - Still Wind Stalls And Challenges Racers

Actually I love sailing on Biscayne Bay and wish I could do it lots and lots. Especially adding to the experience is all the nice folks who live there and make the visit special.

But...The Miami OCR is USSailing's self described premiere event....

Most sports have governing bodies that schedule their championships when the competitors are at their very most practiced ( as in the end of season championships) and in carefully selected venues known for the very most challenging conditions.

USSailing, rather than giving careful consideration to the US sailing season and the very best opportunity for US sailors to perform at their highest level holds the Miami OCR during what is the off season for most of its members.

Rather than choosing a location and time with with inclusion of considerations related to the very best odds for championship level conditions, USSailing has to sail its off season regatta in a location where there is any sailing available at all.

Sometimes, Biscayne Bay beats the odds and produces a few days of wonderful sailing during the time preiod selected by USSailing, but the regatta has been hampered repeatedly by lack of sailable much less world championship conditions.

The very first question event schedulers must always ask simply has to be, "Will the people we invite to come play with us be afforded the very best odds possible of having few or zero lost days due to lack of sailable weather?"

Certainly I would never schedule any event in Texas in September. The wind rarely blows in the daytime in September here at all. I would not invite people to sail here in January or February because the odds are only 50 / 50 for wind and the weather may be insufferably cold as well.

I do put my money where my mouth resides and look at the weatehr history before inviting people to spennd time and money on a trip to my events. In the 24 years I have hosted a regatta of my own, we have actually sailed all but four or five of over 125 scheduled races.

If half the time I invited people to my venue to race, the sailors didn't get to race, I would expect the sailors to lose respect for my abilty to host.


The very best sailors show up at Miami OCR because they are held hostage to the event by USSailing. Unfortunalty, USSailing chooses to hold those sailors hostage to an event that could be scheduled at a different time and be the super event it should be.

Summary: My gripe as most certainly NOT with the good people of Florda or with the Florida sailing experience. My gripe is with those who use their administrative power to drag sailors to events that are held at a time and place where history demonstrates the weather will not provide a quality event.
I believe we can do a lot better with the scheduling of the OCR and I certainly believe Miami should occasionally host events of this sort.
 
Re: News: Rolex Miami OCR 2007 - Still Wind Stalls And Challenges Racers

Day 4, A Northerly passing thru, 16-20 kts. rain too. Race 1, Anna and the LTU girl are the only contenders in top 10. Race 8 underway.

Go Anna, Paige, and Michelle! Also Andrew, Brad and the whole USA Team.

Check out Anna's live blog. It's great.
 
Thanks for the explanation, Fred! I will stop taking this personally.

By the way, today was very sailable. OK, it was cold and it rained, but the wind blew like stink which is a good thing in my book.

PS, vtgent49, thanks for the good wishes, although my name doesn't belong in the same sentence with Paige and Anna...
 
PS, vtgent49, thanks for the good wishes, although my name doesn't belong in the same sentence with Paige and Anna...


Golly whiz whillikers...

Let's help with that...
Name three women who make regattas more fun for everybody else..

Or How about...

Who are three sailors who ( I I were standing out on te wire) I would love to have at the helm?


Don't sell yourself short!!
 
Sort of on the same topic:
I get really sick when I think of how much money is spend on the Key West Race Week. I think it might be worth it to go down to Florida to sail in the OCR, if the weather would be good. However, many more people go down to Key West to spend a ridiculous amount of money in order to crew on some big boat. I know people who spend $2000 on housing and flight alone (before the party starts). Maybe it is worth it for them, but that would be more than my whole regatta budget for a year! And I know these folks don't have a lot of money either.
Maybe I have a weak stomach, but if I start to think about the costs of transporting the boats down there, fees and preparing the boats (let's not even consider the costs of the boats and maintaining them) I get a little sick.
The OCR is still about sailing, but Key West makes sailing into a pure elite sport. Of course, it is a free world, but it is hard for me to imagine that the racing would worth all that much.

Georg
 
If it makes you feel any better...I have used money made prepping boats for Key WEst to go to the Miami OCR, The Laser Midwinters, The J-22 and J-24 Midwinters and I am certain every year some of teh money spent prepping boats for Key west triclkes down as chocolate bunnies for the easter laser regatta.

The people who can afford Key West are richer by a factor that exceeds the difference in price between campaigning a Laser and a J-105 or Farr boat
 
Last race today for top 10 - forecast is 10-15 SSE

Anyone know the story behind Paige's scores ?
 
Paige got her third flag, in Race 10 I think. After three you have to withdraw completely. I think her 2nd was race 6 or 7, while leading on the run.

Anna is in 5th, with a medal race today. Nice live reports on her BBoard, and nightly wrap ups.

The Rolexmiami site has the full list of 42 violations, and it's a big list.

Al
 
I am certain every year some of teh money spent prepping boats for Key west triclkes down as chocolate bunnies for the easter laser regatta.

Great! :)
You are in the right position to appreciate the wealthy folks who are willing to spend the money. And, of course, it is great for people like you as well as for many boat builders, sailmakers, sparmakers, riggers, trasnporters, and so on. You all work very hard to make them feel good during a regatta, so that whatever they are lacking is compensated. Nice BIG shiny fast EXPENSIVE boats :D Isn't it amazing though how many of these new fast boats are designed? It seems that every week a new boat design is launched.

On the violations:
I saw the list on the website. That is pretty long, especially among the lasers! Does anyone know something more on that: are they really strict? It seems that laser sailors are always very close to violating these rules. Are the judges more strict here, or is it similar with other events like this?

G
 
As a rule, North American sailors do not experience much competition under the control of experienced international juges.
That does not apply to Paige and I am truly surprised she is having difficulty competing within rules as applied by international judges.

But.. For those who have never sailed with judges present, the "calls made" can come as a total surprise.

Example: You cannot occasionally pump on a reach and get away with it. One pump is illegal unless the pump is to initiate planing AND planing conditions MUST exist. The NA sailor who thinks maybe he/ she can catch a wave and fails...when nobody else is planing either...gets tossed on that first pump.

The judges can see clearly from their perch behind the fleet. If your mast does something no other mast does...They can see that.

If your mast leans to weather, your bow damn sure better head off to leeward at the same time or you will be flagged.

I believe it is quite possible to learn the international game and to play it at your own version of full speed in very short order.

BUT: Remember....I think kinetics and their effective use SHOULD be a HUGE part of our ATHLETIC game. I got to pump like hell as a teenager and beat up on the fat old men. Now the fat old men my age are telling the kids to sit still...because it isn't fair for the kids to use their physical skills....Because it would ruin the game...

Yeah right. Like the game was SOOOO ruined in the seventies when they were selling 200,000 nrew sailboats every year and Lasers regularly fielded 200 boats at big regattas and 100 boat regattas were common.
Everybody knew you had to be a jock to win. And you had to be a hell of a sailor as well.
If the game sucked so bad. Why were ten times as many people buying boats, building yacht clubs and racing their toys??
 

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