Sea, Sail & Surf newsEra PWA Formula Racing World Cup
Allen in tune with the conditions in Poland !
vendredi 9 août 2002 –
The Australian race specialists superb performance has moved him up into second position overall behind Brzozowski whilst Micah Buzianis (Drops, North) of America has also moved up in the rankings into third. In the women’s racing, Dorota Staszewska (Starboard, Neil Pryde) added a further three victories to her tally much to the delight of the Polish crowds. Staszewska, the women’s world champion now stands in an extremely commanding position having won six out of the seven races.
Today’s conditions were lighter than yesterday and racing was held in winds blowing between 8 and 10 knots. In the first race Steve Allen immediately took control and stormed ahead of the fleet ahead of Micah Buzianis and Pieter Bijl (Neil Pryde) of Holland. Using the same uphaul, upwind technique as Antoine Albeau, Allen hit the upwind mark well ahead of the pack. He remained in the lead for the rest of the race and made it to the finish line with a comfortable margin.
In race two, Brian Rogild (Starboard, Gaastra) of Denmark was in the lead at the windward mark. Rogild’s lead did not last for long however after Allen screamed past with superior speed on the downwind leg. The battle continued after Rogild gained ground on the second upwind lap but Allen hung onto his lead and pulled away again on the downwind run. Kevin Pritchard (Gaastra, Bic) of America was hot on their heals around the course and took third just ahead of Jarek Miarczynnski (Starboard, Neil Pryde) of Poland.
Allen continued to stamp his authority in the remaining races much to the delight of his wife back on the beach. With the Aussie dictating the pace at the front of the field it was soon becoming apparent that the battle for the rest of the fleet was all about who could take second place. In race three, Ross Williams (Gaastra, AHD) of England was the man on form although he was under threat for much of the race following another strong challenge from Dutch sailor Pieter Bijl.
STEVE ALLEN (Fanatic) : "I’m loving it out there today ! You can’t complain with four bullets. The wind has been kind of on the limit but on my 12.5m I have had good power the whole race. A lot of guys seem to prefer their 11m sails and have not been able to tune their 12m’s in so they are struggling a little bit"
The final race saw Brian Rogild once again take the runner up placing with Micah Buzianis of also posting another excellent performance to take third. Buzianis has now moved up into the podium places at the expense of Kevin Pritchard who has dropped down to fourth overall.
MICAH BUZIANIS (North Sails) : "It has been a pretty good day. The racing was tough with the light winds. I had good starts so I was lucky to be in there in most of the races. I shot up a little bit in the results but anything can happen over fifteen races. There can be light winds, strong winds and anybody can screw up"
Wojtek Brzozowski was struggling with the light winds today and posted a 9th, 5th, 4th, and 29th. With one discard now counting he remains in the lead narrowly ahead of Steve Allen. With Allen on fire in the light winds, Brzozowski will no doubt be praying that the wind picks up tomorrow.
In the women’s racing Dorota Staszewska (Starboard, Neil Pryde) continued her winning ways taking three victories out of the four races. A rare mistake in race four from Dorota meant a disqualification although she was able to discard the race from her overall results. Lucy Horwood (Gaastra, AHD) of England is still holding on to second overall after posting a 3rd, 2nd, 2nd and 2nd during today’s races. Verena Fauster (Starboard, Gaastra) of Italy remains in third although Margit Germany (Starboard, Neil Pryde) of Austria is steadily closing the gap back in fourth.
DOROTA STASZEWSKA (Starboard/Neil Pryde) : "The wind was light but I was doing surprisingly good in those conditions. I don’t like light winds normally. Lucy Horwood can kick my ass if the wind gets strong so it is good for me to get some good results under my belt. I am very happy with my speed, I feel very comfortable. It is fantastic to win here in front of my home crowds. The people here really believe in me and believe in Wojtek. I think winning is the best gift I can give back to them. They will remember this event for a long time. I think this is really good for me and good for windsurfing in Poland !"
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