Changing the name and focus

My newest endeavor will be preparation for cruising with my husband and son for the next 8-9 months. This will be far more challenging than the Rift campaign, but with more rewards. More Cowbell is our 40 ft Caliber sailboat. Items on the agenda include refitting More Cowbell for the “cruise” , preparing to home school Sam (6th grade), preparing Chelsea to go off to college and getting our Captain’s licenses, just to name a few. My husband’s site (www.bethancourtworld.wordpress.com) will compliment my version of the process with usually more sarcasm and humor. Let’s just say our priorities are a little different, which is going to make the “cruise” more interesting to say the least. There are bets on how long we will be able to live together on a boat. I won’t say where my money is riding…

I just created another site called www.morecowbellsailing.wordpress.com. I will be playing with that to see if it will work out.

It’s over

http://www.byrneartandphoto.com/photo/sailing/2007_Rolex/01/index.html

Well, I am happy with our results and relieved that it is over. We’ve been working for a year and have had good results. Were we completely prepared to win this? No, we had the talent and knowledge to finish in the top ten. Our team work was very good at the end. The bickering between Chelsea and I was down to a minimum. Patricia and Sandra were flawless. Tactically, we suffered, team work, we excelled. That is the reason we did so well on Thursday we worked as a team and didn’t have to think about tactics (only survival). I need a lot more experience as a tactician before we can move up in the ranks. Over all, we met a lot of fantastic sailors, had a great time at the parties and had nice wind (except Saturday, ha ha).

Thanks to our many supporters and sponsors! We couldn’t have done it without you. I will attach some of the blurbs from articles written about us, pictures and links.

Torreson.com November 6th, 2007
Another local team is skippered by Dana Bethancourt, who will compete with bow #1 for being the first registered team. She and her daughter Chelsea, a high school senior, are joined by Patricia Escorihuela (Ensenada, Mexico) and Sandra Baldridge who competed in the very first Rolex IWKC in 1987. Bethancourt says that sailing with her teenage daughter, while challenging at times, has led to a stronger mother-daughter relationship both on and off the water. “This will be a first Rolex IWKC for Chelsea, Patricia and me, but we have all done some national and international sailing events,” said Bethancourt. “Our goal is to be the top local boat and hopefully to break into the top 10. We are all strong and determined women, and will do the best we can!”

sailing.org November 6th, 2007
Another local team is skippered by Dana BETHANCOURT (USA), who will compete with bow #1 for being the first registered team. She and her daughter Chelsea, a high school senior, are joined by Patricia ESCORIHUELA (MEX) and Sandra BALDRIDGE (USA) who competed in the very first Rolex IWKC in 1987. BETHANCOURT says that sailing with her teenage daughter, while challenging at times, has led to a stronger mother-daughter relationship both on and off the water. “This will be a first Rolex IWKC for Chelsea, Patricia and me, but we have all done some national and international sailing events,” said BETHANCOURT. “Our goal is to be the top local boat and hopefully to break into the top ten. We are all strong and determined women, and will do the best we can!”

Day 1
The top local boat today was RIFT, skippered by Chelsea Bethancourt (Shoreacres) a senior at LaPorte High School. One might guess that a prestigious regatta such as the Rolex IWKC would cause a bit of nerves, especially for such a young woman. “Oh my gosh, this morning I felt like I was going to throw up,” said Bethancourt back at the dock after racing. “I had a headache and I got on the boat and still had a headache going out to the course. Then, when the first gun went off I was OK. We had a bad start, but it was OK, we finished respectably.”

Team RIFT finished a very respectable 17 in the first race, and then gathered up their confidence for the next race. “It was beautiful!” said Bethancourt. “I don’t know what happened. We had a seventh row start and we went right even though we didn’t want to, but we rounded in seventh and thought ‘Oh! Maybe right is good.’ So we went right the second upwind leg and right again on the third upwind, and we finished ninth. We lost two boats on first downwind and stayed in ninth. It was pretty brutal racing.”

“Our communication was really good,” Bethancourt continued. “My Mom (Dana Bethancourt) calls boat speed really well and whether we can tack or not. Patricia (Escorihuela) calls wind and puffs and waves, and I’m going in and out of the mainsheet. Sandra (Baldridge) is on the Tacktick saying ‘Up one, we’re down one.’ The constant information that I had driving was phenomenal and definitely helped.”

Day 2
The top local boat continues to be RIFT, in seventh place and skippered by Chelsea Bethancourt (Shoreacres), the youngest skipper at the regatta.

Tonight the competitors will be treated to an exclusive visit to NASA’s Johnson Space Center, where the daily first awards and the KaenonAward, awarded to the team with the lowest score of the day. Racing continues through Saturday and is hosted at the Houston Yacht Club.

Day 2 Preliminary Results
Top 10 of 39 teams
Position, Boat name, Skipper, Hometown, Results, Total points
1. Sally Barkow, Nashotah, Wis., 2-[16]*-3-3-2-1, 11 points
2. Derby Anderson, Annapolis, Md., 1-[22]-4-2-4-6, 17
3. Lucy, Cory Sertl, Rochester, N.Y. 5-[7]-1-6-3-4, 19
4. Anna Tunnicliffe, Plantation, Fla., 3-18-[21]-4-1-2, 28
5. Nicole Breault4-[OCS]-14-1-5-8, 32
6. Devonvale, Dominique Provoyeur, Capetown, RSA, 6-[21]-2-12-15-5, 40
7. RIFT, Dana Bethancourt, Shoreacres, Texas, 17-9-[24]-8-93, 46
8. Sundog, Kathy Parks ,Annapolis Yacht Club, 12-8-10-11-8-[16], 49
9. Black Socks, Jo Ann Fisher, Annapolis, Md., 10-[20]-8-9-6-18, 51
10. Lynette Edenfield, Fort Worth, Texas, 16-2-5-20-[28]-11, 54

Day 3
Rounding out the top 10 places are Jo Ann Fisher (Annapolis, Md.) in seventh; Chelsea Bethancourt (Shoreacres, Texas) in eighth and maintaining her top local boat position; and Kathy Parks (Annapolis, Md.) in ninth place.

Tonight the competitors have a free night, socially, and many will most likely enjoy the Kemah Boardwalk, a famous Texas landmark featuring amusements, shopping and restaurants. Under a tent on the lawn of the Houston Yacht Club, daily first awards were handed out by PRO Jim Tichenor along with the Kaenon Award, awarded to the team with the lowest score of the day. Racing concludes tomorrow.

Day 3 Preliminary Results
Top 10 of 39 teams
Position, Boat name, Skipper, Hometown, Results, Total points

1. Team 7, Sally Barkow, Nashotah, Wis., 2-[16]*-3-3-2-1-1-1-1, 14
2. Derby Anderson, Annapolis, Md., 1-[22]-4-2-4-6-6-4-2, 29
3. Lucy, Cory Sertl, Rochester, N.Y. 5-7-1-6-3-4-2-[8]-8, 36
4. Anna Tunnicliffe, Plantation, Fla., 3-18-[21]-4-1-2-9-6-3, 46
5. Nicole Breault4-[OCS]-14-1-5-8-7-3-6, 48
6. Devonvale, Dominique Provoyeur, Capetown, RSA, 6-[21]-2-12-15-5-3-24, 49
7. Black Socks, Jo Ann Fisher, Annapolis, Md., 10-20-8-9-6-[34]-8-5-7, 73
8. RIFT, Dana Bethancourt, Shoreacres, Texas, 17-9-[24]-8-9-3-11-12-14, 83
9. Sundog, Kathy Parks, Annapolis Yacht Club, 12-8-10-11-8-16-10-[22]-11, 86
10. Sunrise, Sarah Bury, 11-3-12-18-13-22-4- [24]-15, 98.00

Day 4
Top local team was led by 17-year-old Chelsea Bethancourt and her team RIFT, that included Mom Dana, Patricia Escorihuela and Sandra Baldridge, who competed in the very first Rolex IWKC in 1985.

With the Rolex IWKC founded 23 years ago to encourage women to step up to the male-dominated world of keelboat racing, the regatta has moved from New England to the Mid-Atlantic and now to the Southwest to host over 500 teams, 2400 women and 23 countries. Until its next edition in 2009, its reach will be ever expanding through ongoing clinics around the globe and the Next Step to Rolex junior program, further fulfilling the mission of inspiring women to set new goals.

Final Results
Rolex International Women’s Keelboat Championship
Nov. 14-17, 2007 at Houston Yacht Club (Shoreacres, Texas)
Top 10 of 39 teams
Position, Boat name, Skipper, Hometown, Results, Total points
1. Team 7, Sally Barkow, Nashotah, Wis., 2-16-3-3-2-1-1-1-1-5-[DNS]*, 35
2. Lucy, Cory Sertl, Rochester, N.Y. 5-7-1-6-3-4-2-[8]-8-2-4, 42
3. Anna Tunnicliffe, Plantation, Fla., 3-18-[21]-4-1-2-9-6-3-7-2, 55
4. Derby Anderson, Annapolis, Md., 1-[22]-4-2-4-6-6-4-2-11-16, 56
5. Devonvale, Dominique Provoyeur, Capetown, RSA, 6-[21]-2-12-15-5-3-2-4-10-12, 71
6. Nicole Breault, Old Lyme, Conn., 4-[OCS]-14-1-5-8-7-3-6-19-26, 93
7. Black Socks, Jo Ann Fisher, Annapolis, Md., 10-20-8-9-6-[34]-8-5-7-3-24, 100
8. Sunrise, Sarah Bury, Toronto, Ontario, CAN, 11-3-12-18-13-22-4- [24]-15-8-7, 113
9. Liten’ Up!,Terry Schertz, Lakewood, Colorado, 29-[37]-9-5-12-9-12-7-17-15-5, 120
10. RIFT, Dana Bethancourt, Shoreacres, Texas, 17-9-24-8-9-3-11-12-14-16-[28], 123

Womensportreport.com

Einnews.com

http://video.aol.com/video-detail/bulletin-barkow-wins-rolex-womens-championship/1680129778

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Last day!

Whew. We are tired, but very happy with our standings. Today looks interesting, the forecast is for rain and 10-15 out of the south, but as I look out the window we have negative breeze. I am sure race committee will try to get one race off today for the sponsors. Chelsea had her first protest arbitration yesterday and learned a lot. It was kind of a downer since we missed our own Blind Squirrel Rum party, but it was really good for her to get that experience. The other competitor withdrew the protest after hearing that the judge couldn’t find fault and that if she continued to persue it they would have to have to go to the jury.

Sandra and Patricia gave the Squirrel girl in training hat to Erin Caulk. She was the perfect squirrel girl. She was unrelentless in her dedication to squirreliness. More photos to follow. Vince Morvillo also received a hat for being squirrely. He brought up that our team should do an Adam’s cup (hinting of sponsorship). We were honored.

We ate at Classic cafe last night and Chelsea was getting much deserved attention for her performance so far.

7th heaven

We are so incredibly excited to get into the top ten, not to mention 7th. I am so proud of our crew. Chelsea did very well in the chop and heavy breeze, she concentrated very well the entire race. Sandra was amazing, she is our role model, trimming the chute when you are 120 lbs in heavy breeze after a radiation treatment, I can’t say enough about how great she is. Patricia is, of course, our cheerleader, she is brilliant on the bow and keeps us focused. We are not resting on our laurels though, there are a lot of boats within striking distance. The wind today is out of the SE and blowing 14-20 right now. I hope it stays! We like big wind! Chelsea was honored last night at the party, being the youngest helmsperson in the RIWKC. We were called up for the third place award in the third race (see photo). We are feeling very squirrely today and dressed in all of our Blind Squirrel Rum gear. Can’t wait to get out there. Will report later….

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It’s blowing dogs off chains!

I am looking outside and cringing, the wind is blowing about 20 kts, gusting to 25 out of the North. The water is choppy and whitecapping. It’s going to be fun today. We are tied for 15th place with 50 pts. We are exactly where we want to be. We got an incredible 9th is the second race yesterday and boy did it feel good. So far that is the moment of the regatta. I am hoping for more moments today. If Chelsea can keep the boat flat and we can go up wind in this heavy breeze we will do well. We are one of the heaviest crews out here after all. By, David and Mike were very helpful yesterday as our coach boat. I hope By will be out today. David is going back to work today. The party was fun last night. Sam and I learned some new line dances. We were joined by Julie and her team, Linda et al was out there cutting a rug also. Chelsea, Sandra and Patricia went to bed early to prepare for today. I just can’t miss a party, especially with all of the hard work we have put into this regatta. Chelsea was interviewed by US Sailing’s Dana Paxton, since we were the top local boat yesterday. Check it out on the RIWKC website under Day one. Well, I have to suit up for today. Wish us luck!

Here are some pics from yesterday.
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Practice race

Sponsors.jpgfireworks.jpg
We had the perfect practice race…Sandra forgot shoes, we forgot waters, we were late, our battery was dead on the VHF and we forgot the sailing instructions in my car. Beth Gibson had shoes and waters to spare prior to the race so that helped. The first start was a general recall, which was good because we were over too. The next start was a general recall and postponnement. The last start was a decent one, but we were slow off the line and got blanketed by 7 boats. Chelsea footed off for speed and we looked for lanes to tack in, we looked, and looked with no luck. We finally got one, but the damage was done. We were pretty deep at the first rounding, but were in the pack at least. We decided to stay on starboard and felt like we picked up a few boats. The rounding wasn’t the best, but we managed to tack out and go towards a cloud, which gave us a little velocity on the boats on the left. Once, we had a decent lane and we were headed a little, we tacked back to starboard and had a very successful, if arduous leg. It was a washing machine in the the middle, very painful, but Chelsea drove through it well and we picked off some more boats, Speedeaux in particular. We ended up around 15-17th and in a 39 boat fleet with a pretty bad start we felt good with our preformance.

Here are some pictures of the opening ceremony. I had video, but it didn’t download correctly.

Sponsors unite!

One of our sponsors, Blind Squirrel Rum has supplied us with a bottle of rum, custom hats and custom shirts. At the party last night, several of our competitors were inquiring about the hats and where to get one. So we are having a blind squirrel party on the dock on Friday and the “best squirrel girl in training” gets a hat. We have very competitive bunch of girls already planning their best squirrel moves. We’ll have pictures later.

One of our first sponsors, Lynn Revak, is hosting some top women sailors for the regatta at his house. Before dinner on Sunday night, he said the blessing and added, “Please help these women sail well and get second to the girls we are supporting”. Thank you Lynn, Shan and Tom for your morale boost.

Article worth looking at.

http://www.torresen.com/news/?p=4215

We made it!

We were on ice chip rationing since 5:00pm last night. Patricia, Sandra and I had one glass of wine for dinner. It was glorious. I sipped on that glass for one hour. We watched video of us practicing and listened intently to By and David’s suggestions. Then off to the hot tub! Chelsea and I lost 2 lbs in there.

We weighed 602! Wahoo! We were three pounds under. We are all checked, measured and weighed. We ate immediately after the weigh in. As we eating hamburgers and chicken sandwiches we were already planning our next meal at Classic Cafe. Patricia and I took a nap and are now ready to party! David is a little concerned. I think I will leave the cowbell at home.

Practice tomorrow, wash and wax the boat. It is all so exciting.

Three days until weigh in

I am hungry. I’ve lost 12 lbs. Can I keep it off? Doubt it, but it is fun to dream about. Chelsea is down 5 lbs and counting. Sandra is losing too, even though we told her not to. We’ve lost touch with Patricia, she is visiting her friend in Conroe, and we can only hope she is being good.

We are down to the wire. Spinnaker is getting inked by us (scary) because it is cheaper. Pedro is so cool to let us use the UK loft and supplies. Patricia is doing most of the work because she can. Sandra will be able to help her tomorrow.

A couple of practices to go and then off to the races. We will go out on Saturday, hopefully with a couple of boats to tune with and David filming. Charlie’s suggested to chill out Sunday after weigh in and I have to agree, it has been pretty stressful trying to lose weight. Monday we will get all of our sails measured and maybe practice if we have time. Tuesday, will be the official practice at 1:00 and the opening ceremonies. Wednesday, is the start of competition. We are bow number 01, sail number 919 and will have a blue chute with Classic Cafe on it, if you are out there watching. We will also be flying a battle flag with all of our sponsors on it out to the course and back at the dock. Our boat will be docked on Pier 9, past the sheds, but before the boat lifts, if you want to come by and say hello and have some rum.

We are the Official Blind Squirrel Girls (OBSG), so come by and try our rum.

I am now, entirely, excited about this regatta. I know I said it before, but I think I was really stressed masked as excited. Things are finally falling into place, coming together, gellin’, whatever you want to call it. The only thing we need now is “MORE COWBELL”!cowbell.jpg