Celebratory Fundraiser Event at Centerport Yacht Club, Sunday, February 12

A Medal Race Win and Silver Medal to Start 2012!

It was an exciting finish to the end! The Medal Race was sailed in a light, but building Easterly breeze. It was almost a carbon copy of last year’s Medal Race, and we remembered what paid that time. Going into the race, we had to make sure the Finnish team did not beat us by more than six boats.

At the first windward mark we found ourselves in 9^th and the Finnish in 2^nd. If the race ended there, we would have given up our silver medal. We had our work cut out for us. We took a split on the downwind from most of our competition by straight-setting and staying deep into the middle of the run. We rounded in nearly ninth again at the leeward mark, with room to run to the left side of the course. We took all the leverage we could, and found our way to the top mark in 3^rd, just behind the Finnish. We could breathe a bit easier, but the race wasn’t over!

As we approached the finish line, we positioned ourselves slightly low of the Finnish, on the starboard layline to the boat end. The Austrians, who had been leading, gybed away from the side a bit early, and were forced to do extra maneuvers in light pressure. We sailed the boat as deep as we could for as long as possible to keep our air clear, and then made a move at the last possible moment. We managed to sneak in and take the race win by inches in a photo finish! It was exhilarating to cross the line with our home crowd cheering as we took the silver medal in decisive fashion. Final results can be seen here.

We will certainly take many lessons away from this week. The best takeaway, however, has to be confidence. We will look to build on that as we continue our training and competition later this spring, as it will be the most important thing going into the Olympics.

Thanks to all of our supporters and sponsors, including Sperry Top-Sider. We would also like to thank the sponsors and supporters of the US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics especially our title sponsor AlphaGraphics and Gold Partners Atlantis and Rolex.

Erik

Storck Moore Sailing

Tough Day on the Water; Medal Race Tomorrow!

It was one of those days for us. We managed only a 3-8-14 on the day, which keeps us in second overall, but outside of striking distance to first. It is frustrating to have sailed such a great event and lose a chance at the win in the final race, but we have definitely learned from it.

The first race today had more breeze than any other of the week, with puffs near 16 knots. It was fun to be in those conditions again, and we found ourselves leading around most of the racecourse. We gave up one position by forcing ourselves into a tight mark rounding at the final windward mark, and we lost another boat thanks to some poorly timed motorboat chop on the final run to the finish. Either way, we knew we had sailed a good race. The second and third race we did not sail as well. We gave up points in places we shouldn’t have. In the same way we talked yesterday about the ability to fight back and salvage a good finish, we need to be able to handle situations like today. This is why we sail so many regattas.

Tomorrow is the double-points Medal Race. We cannot move into first, and we have to protect our second place position by not allowing the Finnish to beat us by more than six boats. Our goal is to win the race, while keeping an eye on the boats closest behind us. You can see the standings here. There will be live tracking tomorrow on the regatta website, here. Our race is scheduled to start at 12:20 PM.

Thanks to all of our supporters and sponsors, including Sperry Top-Sider. We would also like to thank the sponsors and supporters of the US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics especially our title sponsor AlphaGraphics and Gold Partners Atlantis and Rolex.

Erik

Storck Moore Sailing

Still Tight at the Top! In 2nd before Friday!

It’s getting exciting here in Miami with three races to go before the Medal Race. We scored an incredibly hard fought 4-3-3 today in difficult conditions. We are now just four points back of the Austrians with nearly thirty points behind us to third overall. Results can be seen here.

The race of the day, or even the regatta, was the third one of the day. We were very close to being over at the start, and we decided to play it safe and return to clear ourselves. We started at least 10 seconds late of the gun, on port heading out right. The right side had been paying, and we knew we had the boat-speed to make some gains. We sailed all the way to the corner, taking advantage of good pressure and angle back towards the mark. We were able to round in about 6^th position. From there, we passed a couple more boats each leg and secured a top-3 finish at the race. Since the Austrians were able to win the race, it was crucial for us to not allow them to put any more points between us.

A comeback like the one we mounted in the final race today gives us supreme confidence going into this season. We say it over and over, but consistency wins medals. Turning a potential 20^th into a top-3 finish will separate those who stand on the podium in London and those who do not.

Stay tuned for what is sure to be an exciting finish to the week over the next two days!

Thanks to all of our supporters. We would also like to thank the sponsors and supporters of the US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics especially our title sponsor AlphaGraphics and Gold Partners Atlantis and Rolex. Finally, we want to extend a special thanks to our sponsor, Sperry Top-Sider who has a great presence here in Miami.

Erik

Storck Moore Sailing

Past the Halfway Point and Looking Good!

We had two very solid days of racing yesterday and today in Miami, and we are now sitting one point out of the lead in second overall. We put up a 2-3-OCS yesterday and a 3-2-4 today. It’s difficult to match what the Austrian team did today as they posted a 1-1-1. Of course, being only one point away is a fine place to be with seven races to go, including the double-points medal race on Saturday.

Today’s finishes were hard-fought on our end. We found ourselves behind at the weather mark more than once. The left side usually pays in the direction we have been sailing in this week on Biscayne Bay, but today was different. We had good starts today, and went middle left, only to see boats that had been flushed to the right side crossing us at the top. It took us until the third race to figure it out, but we did. The only problem was that by then everyone was on the same page. Anyway, we are happy to have been able to pass boats all the way around the racecourse.

We will be starting at 1 PM the next two days, with three races each day. Since we are carrying an OCS, we will be cautiously aggressive in our approach. We aim to go into the medal race with a chance to win this event. Results can be found here.

Thanks to all of our supporters. We would also like to thank the sponsors and supporters of the US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics especially our title sponsor AlphaGraphics and Gold Partners Atlantis and Rolex. Finally, we want to extend a special thanks to our sponsor, Sperry Top-Sider who has a great presence here in Miami.

Erik

Storck Moore Sailing

In the Lead After Day One!

The 2012 Rolex Miami OCR got underway today, and we posted some solid finishes. We tallied a 1-2-6, which was good enough for a 5-point lead over our closest competition. Most notably, it was the first day we raced with our new boat! Needless to say, we are happy with how she performed.

The racing was close at the top today. We were lucky enough to have a jump on the competition in race one, and we extended around the course. The second race was tight all the way to the finish, and we discovered only after finishing that our Finnish training partners ceded their second to us due to a black flag penalty at the start. The final race was sailed in the least breeze of the day, down to 6 knots at times. We were a bit more in the thick of it around the course, and finished mere seconds behind first in an incredibly close finish.

It’s a long week of racing, and our goal is to put up four more days of good scores before the Medal Race on Saturday. Stay tuned to the regatta website, here, for results, media, and tracking.

Thanks to all of our supporters. We would also like to thank the sponsors and supporters of the US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics especially our title sponsor AlphaGraphics and Gold Partners Atlantis and Rolex. Finally, we want to extend a special thanks to our sponsor, Sperry Top-Sider who has a great presence here in Miami.

Erik

Storck Moore Sailing

New Year, New Boat, Same RMOCR!

It’s been a busy few weeks for us since becoming Olympians in Perth! We are going full-speed ahead into 2012 as we focus all our energies on brining home a medal from Weymouth. The first step is to get our equipment sorted. We are very proud to share the news of our christening USA 1273 “Wendy.”

Thanks to the many-talented Coach Dave Hughes for the artwork.

Wendy was properly christened, with a small but enthusiastic crowd, before going sailing in Miami for the first time this week. By popping the champagne and giving her a good spray down before launching, we know she’ll treat us well. So far, so good! There are some things you can tell about a new boat, and this one has high marks. She is incredibly balanced, and we’ve been very fast in our lineups so far.

We are now in Miami with our new boat for the 2012 Rolex Miami OCR. While there are only 23 boats in our fleet, it is top-heavy. There are a number of very solid foreign teams here for us to go up against on home waters. We are thrilled to be here in Miami for our fourth consecutive RMOCR together as a team. It’s amazing how time flies! A few things have changed. We have more support, like that from Sperry Top-Sider. The new performance footwear is phenomenal.

The regatta website, here, will have results, tracking, and media throughout the week.

Thanks to everyone for their support and for following along. We would like to thank the sponsors and supporters of the US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics especially our title sponsor AlphaGraphics and Gold Partners Atlantis and Rolex.

Erik

Storck Moore Sailing

 

 

Ninth in the World!

It was a rollercoaster of a Championship for us. We stood everywhere from 17^th to 2^nd in the standings throughout the week, and we were in 5^th with a chance at a silver going into the Medal Race. For the next six months, until the next World Championship is held, our sail number will be USA 9! With our stated goals going into the event to win our trials, qualify the US for the Olympics, and to finish top ten, it was an all around success.

The Medal Race was the best sailing, conditions-wise, of the entire week. The famed “Fremantle Doctor” sea breeze finally filled in with peaks up to 17 knots. For us to win a silver medal, we had to beat the three boats immediately ahead of us by 7, 6, and 4 places respectively from 2^nd down to 4^th. Obviously, that is far too much for us to be able to control outside of putting ourselves as far ahead in the race as possible; so that is what we did. We started on port tack, ducking the boats on starboard. We sailed to the right side, beating out the boats around us on pure boat speed, and rounded the windward mark in first place. We led all the way around the course for 4.5 out of 6 laps. Then disaster struck. Our rudder pin sheared off at the base, leaving us capsized with no hope to finish the race. At the time of the incident, we would have finished 4^th overall in the Championship. We were certainly disappointed, but at the same time we know we sailed a fantastic event.

Leading the fleet around the gate towards the grandstands! Fried Elliott photo

We are about to head home for some much-needed family time. The next time we sail together will be in 2012, in our new and probable Olympic boat. We are now Olympians, and we have a huge amount of confidence in our ability to win a medal at the Games. Our performance here in Perth, while far from being a perfect event for us, proved this to ourselves and to everyone in the fleet.

We need to thank everyone at home who sent us such overwhelming support and accolades throughout this week of competition. Everyday brought more congratulations, good luck, and well wishes from so many of our friends and family. We sincerely appreciate being in your thoughts, and please know that you are always in ours. Your contributions, both financial and emotional, will sustain us on our final push to bring home the Gold this summer. Please see our website, here, for details on sponsorship and donations.

We would like to thank of our supporters and sponsors, including Sperry Top-Sider. Thanks also to the sponsors and supporters of the US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics especially our title sponsor AlphaGraphics and Gold Partners Atlantis and Rolex.

Erik

Storck Moore Sailing

Into the Medal Race!

We have insured ourselves a top ten finish at the 2011 Worlds. We didn’t have a great day to finish out gold fleet racing, but it was good enough to keep us in sixth place going into the Medal Race.  The sailing today was very difficult as the sea breeze struggled to fill. We got a 16-11-8 in the three races.

Tomorrow is our first World Championship Medal Race. We are in sixth place, seven points out of fifth, eight points out of fourth, and eleven points out of third. Of course, it is close behind us as well with 10^th only eleven points back. A great deal can still change in the double points ten-boat race tomorrow. It will certainly be exciting. Our scheduled race time is 2:10 PM local time.

Results can be seen here. Tracking, video, and other media can also all be found at the regatta website, here.

We would like to thank of our supporters and sponsors, including Sperry Top-Sider. Thanks also to the sponsors and supporters of the US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics especially our title sponsor AlphaGraphics and Gold Partners Atlantis and Rolex.

Erik

Storck Moore Sailing

Three Races left in Gold, Sitting in 5th Place

We needed to pick ourselves up after some mediocre sailing over the past two days, and we did just that. Sailing in a very tricky offshore breeze at 9 AM, we put up a 9-6 in the first two races of the day. After a trip back to shore to wait for the sea breeze to fill, we posted a 3^rd, which moved us up to 5^th overall. It feels great to put up consistent scores in gold, especially after our last three races leading up to today’s racing.

The first two races were incredibly challenging. The wind was going through 40 degrees and from 4 to 12 knots, oftentimes at the same time on opposite sides of the racecourse. We did a good job of being patient and waiting for our area of the course to fill in. In the first race, we managed to move up from the twenties into 9^th by passing a number of boats on both the second upwind and downwind legs. In the second race, we rounded the leeward gate in 2^nd, only to see the boats to our left wind inside of us. In the final portion of that leg, we found a small righty to carry us across and minimize our losses. It paid in the end to be patient!

The third race was a different game altogether. The Fremantle Doctor finally made it! We won the boat, crossed the fleet, and rounded the first two marks in first. After a less than perfect leeward mark rounding and giving our opponents a split, we lost a pair of boats, but held on to finish third in the race. All in all, it was a good day.

Around Ahead! Dave Hughes photo

There are three last races in gold fleet tomorrow before the Medal Race on Sunday. With the fleet still as close as it is, we can only worry about ourselves. We will try to simply go out and put up three solid races.

Results can be seen here. Tracking, video, and other media can also all be found at the regatta website, here.

We would like to thank of our supporters and sponsors, including Sperry Top-Sider. Thanks also to the sponsors and supporters of the US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics especially our title sponsor AlphaGraphics and Gold Partners Atlantis and Rolex.

Erik

Storck Moore Sailing