By Magnus Liljedahl
The Star Worlds is always an amazing sailboat regatta, one that I certainly would try to attend if at all possible. It includes today’s “rock stars”, legends of the past, tomorrow’s champions and other great sailors who represent Fleets and Districts from all around the globe. If you ever have a chance to be apart of it, do it.
I had identified two different skippers who I wanted to sail with at the Worlds, but none of them had materialized. I wanted to go to Varberg, Sweden badly but only with a legitimate chance of winning. Time was running out. I had prepared myself by road biking on a regular basis in the event there would be a last minute opening for me to race. If not, I would benefit from the workouts in many other ways but I got lucky … ones dead is another’s bread, sort of. With less than four weeks to go, Brad Nichols contacted me, needing a replacement to sail with Andrew Campbell. Within a week, the details were worked out and I had a ticket to the 2009 Star World Championship, in my native Sweden.
There was one big cloud, however, on the horizon. I am battling shoulder problems which I have nursed for several months. My Doctor ordered me not to go; I wasn't supposed to pull, push or do any activities above my head and, if I did, I fully expected to re-injure myself and face surgery after it was all said and done. Living in fear of living was never me and I was willing to put it all at risk for another shot at glory. I made a final visit to my orthopedic surgeon and was given a prescription pill to reduce swelling, should I need it. I even booked an appointment for cortisone shot once I returned to Miami. I figured that my Advils wouldn't be enough.
I arrived in Varberg on Tuesday afternoon. I wasn't sure what Andrew Campbell looked like. We met once at Coral Reef Yacht Club during the Bacardi Cup, but it was very brief and the bar was busy. I was relived when Rick Peters introduced us in the parking lot. At first I thought that the kid was helping Rick to make deliveries, but I soon realized that it was Andrew, a Georgetown grad, former College Sailor of the Year and 2008 Olympic rep in the Laser class… no slacker but a pretty good sailor.
I grew up in Göteborg, just north of Varberg and my Mom’s family still operates a farm just inland from where we sailed. I had raced in Varberg several times as a junior and also in the 1997 Star Europeans. I had many reasons why I wanted to come and race here.
The Star Worlds certainly provided some great opportunity for team building and the US team became as homogenous as it could get during the fortnight in Sweden. The power of a team is an awesome thing, one worth mentioning. What made it extra special for me was that I had previously sailed with all of the top skippers on our team. Mark Mendelblatt, George Szabo and Andrew Macdonald are all former teammates of mine and we were now going to race again, but on different boats against each other.
Andrew and I had decided to leave the dock early every day and usually got towed to the starting area by our Coach Mark Ivey. This way we would all be together and be able to line up against one and other, wasting as little time as possible. After checking in, Coach Mark would typically take pictures of our sail set-up, take current readings and give us last minute updates. The coolest thing was that in the beginning of the regatta we joined in on line-ups from other nations that included the fastest and most competitive teams out there, but as the regatta progressed they were looking for the US line-up to check their speed. That is an awesome feeling and the ultimate endorsement from your competition.
The conditions were very windy prior to the regatta, but as the practice race neared, the wind fizzled. Why is it like that so often? I prefer not to get too excited and have big expectations as to what the wind conditions will be. It can be bad for your head to predict nature and you're bound to get disappointed when your perceived, ideal conditions don't prevail.
The power of a team is huge but also rare among US Star sailors, at least on a broader level. I can remember being barked at for helping to fold a competitor’s sail. We had none of that in Sweden. Even though the top three teams had different boats and sail makers, we got along fantastically. One particular moment sticks in my mind; it must have been before the 3rd race, Mark Mendelblatt and Mark Strube came up to us about 6 minutes before the start and related information that he had received from Coach Mark, who could not get to us in time. It had to do with current and was hugely important. Please note that Team “Mark” (Mendleblatt and Strube) were second in the regatta at that point, but took time away from their game to help us. I don't think that I have experienced this before. Thank you guys!
Andrew and I got along great and our sailing reflected the harmony in our team. It has its challenges to just hook-up with someone and go sailboat racing. Much is the same no matter whom you sail with, but during the heat of the battle it helps to know your partner real well, especially concerning communications. He reminds me a lot about a young Mark Reynolds, a very even keeled “type A” individual who wins by being conservative. It is scary how much he knows at such a tender age.
I made it very clear to Andrew that there would only be a couple of things that I wouldn't do for him, so “stop asking me if I would or could”. I was super motivated to do well. I wanted to show my ambition to be the very best, not hesitating to do anything that would make us better and winning the regatta. I suggested that we have a firm plan for every race and I promised that I would never second-guess his tactics.
The Championship came down to the final race and Andrew and I were still in the hunt. We were 8 points out of first, sitting in fifth place over all. Having a chance to win the regatta going in to the final race is all one can really hope for and we had achieved that. Only the Kiwis had a better score than we did, counting all the races, so we had some room for error at the very end of the series. George Szabo and Rick Peters started at the committee boat and went right. Argentina and Brazil were there as well. We wanted left and got of on a long starboard tack with all the other players right around us. Initially, our side looked pretty good. I had our side favored by a fair amount and I was thinking that we would never see the right side again but our side faded and we lifted about 20 degrees. The right side had a 20-degree port knock and increased velocity. We were truly in the basement of the 90-boat fleet. We managed to get back to a mid-thirties finish, one that we would be our drop race. Coach Mark informed us right after our finish that George and Rick were the new World Champions and that we missed out on third over-all by one point. We were happy for the winners and we were pleased with our effort and result. It seems like that lousy point could have been shaved off at numerous occasions, but “would have, should have, could have” will never win any regatta and this was no exception.
Based on these championships, you can forget your lunges, leg presses and leg extensions. Our sport is for the most part mental, which some sailors tend to ignore. Lars Grael won the final race with a gigantic margin and he and Ronald Seifert ended up with a podium finish. Lars is a one legged amputee and a fabulous athlete and sailor. George and Rick are the new World Champions and neither one are "gym rats". Skippers like Pelle Peterson and Sune Carlsson are in their mid seventies and made it around the racecourse looking pretty good. How about yours truly, I can still compete with the best as long as wind conditions permit? There is a lot to be said about muscle memory!