Rich Roberts Reports
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Congressional Cup
2002 - Day 2 Report HOLMBERG'S BAND EXTENDS STREAK TO 9-0 AT HALFWAY
MARK LONG BEACH, Calif.---They are Moose and Battler and John, Graham and Brad, and in the back of the boat it's Humbug at the helm, and together they comprise the deadliest strike force in match race sailing. "Teamwork," skipper Peter Holmberg said---he's "Humbug"---after continuing his domination of the 38th Congressional Cup with a 9-0 record at the end of the first round robin Wednesday. "We're just getting more confident with each other. It's a rhythm, like a band that plays together." Holmberg's combo is pounding the opposition like a steel drum band back home in his U.S. Virgin Islands. They have won the last two events on the Swedish Match Tour to boost their skipper to No. 1 in the world rankings and haven't made a seriously wrong move in two days against a strong field in contrasting conditions---light wind under an overcast sky Wednesday after a brisk breeze Tuesday. Holmberg's crew is all New Zealanders, and all are key players in software billionaire Larry Ellison's Oracle Racing America's Cup campaign for San Francisco's Golden Gate Yacht Club. "Moose" is main sail trimmer Mike Sanderson, "Battler" is trimmer Robbie Naismith, and the others are tactician John Cutler---himself a major player in three previous America's Cups, pitman Graham Fleury and bowman Brad Webb. "We all have different jobs," Webb said, "but we back each other up and cross over occasionally to do whatever needs to be done." The other nine skippers will have one more chance at Holmberg's rockin' group in the second round robin starting Thursday, trying to block Holmberg's bid to win his fourth Congressional Cup in five years. The top four then will advance to Saturday's semifinals and finals. The wind never reached double digits Thursday while oscillating
through 30 to 40 degrees, making strategy---whether to hit the left
or right side of the windward-leeward course---more important than boat
speed. Thus, there were many lead changes that had severely shuffled
the field by the end of Ken Read, leading the Team Dennis Conner bid, is Holmberg's nearest
threat with a 6-3 record, but nobody else has managed to put two decent
days together. Team New Zealand's Dean Barker and Prada's Rod Davis
got back into contention with 3-1 afternoons, but Denmark's No. 3-ranked
Jes Can any of them catch Holmberg? "He's just on a roll right now," Britain's Andy Green said. "He's sailing really well, he has a really tight team, and when you're going that good you get more and more confident." Davis is the only four-time winner of the event, while Barker (2000) and Brady (1996-97) also own Crimson Blazers symbolic of victory. Two other former winners are serving as tacticians---Chris Dickson ('90-91) for his younger brother Scott and Terry Hutchinson ('92) for Read, so the strength of the competition is clear. Brady was particularly frustrated after another run-in with the on-water umpires, who black-flagged him off the course in his last match against Baird for not executing a penalty turn after acquiring a second penalty. That followed an unusual sequence with Baird as they approached the last windward mark. Brady, in the lead, whipped his Catalina 37 through several thrashing maneuvers trying to force Baird into a foul that would cancel the one he was carrying, but all he did was to draw another on himself. "We really didn't disagree with the call when we got the black flag," Brady said. "We did disagree on an incident before that when the boats touched and the umps brought out the green flag, but that's the way it goes." Otherwise, there were only 23 protest flags waved and 8 penalties imposed, compared to 42 and 6 the previous day. None of this seemed to matter to Holmberg and his boys. "At the moment things are going our way," Cutler said. "Pete's been doing a nice job in the starting area. We've worked hard on key things like that." And Holmberg credited Cutler with finding the most favorable wind direction, including in a race against Barker when the Oracles went right the first windward leg and left on the second-and came out better both times. "Life is good," Holmberg said. "New Zealand's a nice country, Larry's taking care of us and I'm sailing for a living. But we still have an uphill road ahead, so we'll keep pushing hard." The action in the Long Beach outer harbor may be viewed from the end of Belmont Pier, where there is commentary for spectators at no charge. Racing starts at noon each day, wind conditions permitting. The Congressional Cup's total purse is $25,000. The top eight finishers receive Swedish Match Tour Championship Prize points. The top eight point leaders at the conclusion of the Swedish Match Tour divide a $200,000 prize purse, with the Swedish Match Tour champion receiving $60,000. Congressional Cup sponsors include F&M Bank,
Trojan Battery, Jones Lumber,
Results
ROUND 6
STANDINGS (after 9 of 18 rounds) MORE INFORMATION: Congressional Cup Mike Van Dyke Rich Roberts Shawn McBride |
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