Poole near perfect at Oakcliff International

Oyster Bay, NY (September 4, 2014) – The 2014 Oakcliff International began with a remarkable level of match racing competition during the first day of racing.

With lighter breeze in the morning, teams had to be on the top of their game. Riptide Racing, the current leader in the round robin, realized the importance of concentration against their toughest competitors.

“We did really well today,” said Christopher Poole, skipper for Riptide Racing. “When we were behind, we tried to keep our head in the game to stay in the match. With a better mindset, the team was meshing better and sailing fast.”

When teams lost their attentiveness, they made significant small avoidable mistakes. During Flight 2, Pierre-Antoine Morvan, current leader of the US Grand Slam series, and Dave Perry were battling downwind towards the finish line. With a penalty to kill, Morvan’s first kill attempt fell short after he did not reach a close-hauled course on port tack according to the umpires. During his second attempt, Morvan made contact with Perry, which gave him another penalty and cost him the race.

“During today, my team was able to learn a great deal during each race,” said Charlie Lalumiere, the skipper for the Oakcliff Sailing team. “It is an honor to be racing out here with these incredible teams and have the chance to learn from them is amazing.”

With a promising forecast of 6 -12 knots for Friday, racing is scheduled to begin with Flight 9 at 10 a.m. Racing concludes on Sunday.

Current results for the round robin are listed below:
Christopher Poole (USA) 6 – 1
Sam Gilmour (AUS) 5 -2
Chris Steele (NZL) 5 – 2
Eric Monnin (SUI) 4 – 2
Maxi Soh (SIN) 4 – 3
Dave Perry (USA) 4 – 3
Mark Lees (GBR) 3 – 3
Pierre-Antoine Morvan (FRA) 3 – 4
David Storrs (USA) 2 – 5
David Niemann (USA) 2 – 5
Charlie Lalumiere (USA) 1-5
Dustin Durant (USA) 1 – 5
Results: http://www.matchracingresults.com/2014/usa-grand-slam-oakcliff-international/

Report by event media. Photo of Chris Poole, Riptide Racing.

2014 USA Match Racing Grand Slam Series
Chicago Grand Slam: August 15-17
Detroit Cup: August 21-24
Knickerbocker Cup: August 28-31
Oakcliff International: September 4-7

Winner of the 2014 US Grand Slam series will qualify for the 2015 Chicago Match Cup, a stop on the Alpari World Match Racing Tour, and the 2015 Congressional Cup. Details: www.usamatchracing.com/2014