Full Time Gig for Betsy
And a few Questions from SA

But first here is the official press release from US Sailing.

US SAILING Hires Betsy Alison As US Disabled Sailing Team Coach

Portsmouth, R.I. (March 9, 2006) - US SAILING, national governing body of the sport, has hired Betsy Alison (Newport, R.I.) as the full-time coach of the US Disabled Sailing Team. Alison, a five-time US SAILING Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year and two-time Yngling World Champion, has been working with athletes of the US Disabled Sailing Team for several years, accompanying the U.S. Paralympic Sailing Team to the 2000 and 2004 Paralympic Games.

"It's great to have Betsy Alison, an athlete of such high caliber, working with the members of the US Disabled Sailing Team," said Dean Brenner, Chairman of US SAILING's Olympic Sailing Committee which manages the US Disabled Sailing Team. "Our disabled athletes have been achieving great results in major international competitions and we look forward to continuing these successes as Betsy expands her responsibilities."

Alison now officially joins a staff of three elite sailing coaches employed full-time by US SAILING: High Performance Director and US Sailing Team Head Coach Gary Bodie, as well as US Sailing Team Coaches Luther Carpenter and Skip Whyte.

Created in 1998 to develop and prepare the Team representing the U.S. at the Paralympic Games, the US Disabled Sailing Team annually recognizes the top three competitors in the three classes selected for the Paralympic Games: 2.4 Metre (Open Singlehanded), UD18 (Open Doublehanded) and Sonar (Open Triplehanded). Sponsors of the US Disabled Sailing Team are Rolex Watch U.S.A., Vanguard Sailboats, Nautica, Zodiac of North America, Gill, Vineyard Vines, Sperry Top-Sider, Nikon, Harken, New England Ropes, Extrasport, and Team McLube.

The United States Sailing Association (US SAILING) is the national governing body for sailing and sailboat racing. Headquartered in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, the organization's mission is to encourage participation and promote excellence in sailing and racing in the U.S. US SAILING offers training and education programs, supports a wide range of sailing organizations and communities, and provides administration and oversight of competitive sailing across the country, including the US Sailing Teams and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Sailing Teams. For more information, please visit www.ussailing.org.

And a here is a 5 minute clip of Betsy on TV.

So. you've just been hired full time as the USDST coach. How did you get here?

BA:
How did I get here? As the Grateful Dead said "What a long, strange trip its been...." No seriously, I was asked to be part of the coaching team as a "local expert" for the 1998 IFDS Worlds held in Newport, RI sailed in Sonars. I had never coached sailors with physical disabilities before, and I thought "Why not?". I got hooked, and I've been at it ever since. My appointment as Coach of the US Disabled Sailing Team indicates to all of us how important the involvment of disabled sailors in our sport is to US SAILING. The US Olympic Sailing Committee has been very supportive of not only the Olympic sailing classes but also with the three Paralympic disciplines, and I feel fortunate to be part of this great team. The vision is to see the USA succeed in all 14 sailing disciplines - including the disabled ones!

How does being a top flight competitor compare to coaching and most specifically coaching those of us with physical disabilities?

BA:
Racing and coaching are two totally different experiences, but have some crossover for me. My racing programs, in recent years focused more on match racing and my Olympic campaign for the 2004 Games, allow me to apply personal technical skills and racing knowledge (and that of my team) to making my boat go around the course. Plus, racing personally sates my need and desire for competition. From a coaching standpoint, I watch a lot of sailboat racing and spend a lot of time analyzing performance. I enjoy being able to help my athletes formulate a game plan for their own individual programs from logistics, to physical training, fundraising, tactical and strategic development, etc, and help them implement it. My own experience, doing exactly the same thing, helps in the process and increases my credibility with the sailors. Coaching sailors with disabilities is really no different than coaching able bodied sailors, except that the physical parameters are slightly different. We have to consider that dimension in decisions regarding boat choice, equipment, mobility, stability and functionality. The tactics, strategy and preparation are no different.

Anything in particular bring you to gravitate towards what probably could be called "The Fringe of Sailing" as a coach?

BA:
The personalities of the people involved are amazing - plus, once an individual has come to terms with their disability and is ready and excited to take on the sport of sailing and work hard to achieve success, there is no greater reward than to see them succeed - whether in an event strictly for disabled sailors or on the Open Event like Nick Scandone winning the 2.4mR Worlds last year, or John Ross Duggan and team finishing 3rd at the Sonar Worlds in 2003.

Are sailors lining up for the new boat the "Scud 18", formerly known as the UD18 and what do you think about the mandatory coed crew?

BA:
We have had a lot of interest in the new SKUD 18 (Skiff Universal Design - a "lead assisted" skiff as described by the designer). The boat has a bobsled like seating system - two people fixed on centerline fore and aft, a bulb keel below, and an asymmetrical spinnaker. The classification parameters require a SDS (Severely Disabled Sailor) or VSDS (Very Severely Disabled Sailor) on board. This means a sailor who is a current classification of #1 (like a quadriplegic, where there are difficiencies that affect all four limbs; or someone who has upper extremity disfunction in both arms) or someone who might only be able to function using joystick controls or sip and puff controls. The second teammate must meet IFDS FCS 2005-08 minimum disability criteria (found on www.sailing.org). One of the sailors needs to be female (both can be as well). Like the IOC (International Olympic Committee) did in 2004 by requiring 33% female participation in all sports, it is my understanding that IPC (International Paralympic Committee) wants to see a similar participation by women for the 2008 Games in China. By mandating at least one female on board for this new discipline, IFDS (International Association for Disabled Sailing) makes sure that sailing meets this criteria. Because of it, I think we will see more female athletes coming out to play - Do you or any of the other Anarchists know of any who want to be part of a team? I am recruiting - always.

How is the US doing in disabled sailing and how does it look for Beijing?

BA:
The USA currently has strong teams in both the Sonar and 2.4mR classes. We have shown this on the Paralympic stage in the past two Games by winning medals in 3 or 4 possible events. We have veterans who are back campaigning, and new teams that are showing their strength on the international scene. In the new SKUD 18, we have 4 teams that have already ordered boats that we hope to have delivered by May. We hope that other sailors will get on board and get their own boats and their own programs rolling. Out of our new SKUD 18 owners, we have several who have had great success in the two person asymmetrical spinnaker boats, the Martin 16. We are encouraging our two person teams to keep cross training in the M-16s to maximize racing time and coordinating teamwork and communication on board with their partners. The 2007 IFDS Worlds (a country qualifier for China) are being held in Rochester, NY in September 2007 in all three disciplines. Our performance there will be a great indicator of our medal prospects for 2008. We are always looking for new and interested players in all three classes (Sonar, 2.4mR and SKUD 18). Some skippers are looking for crew with the right classification configuration to make a good team. The possibilities are endless. I encourage any and all of you to encourage friends, families, recently disabled military to get in touch with me if they have any interest in getting involved.

Betsy Alison
Head Coach, US Disabled Sailing Team
40 Elm Street
Newport, RI 02840 USA

PH: 401-848-5146
Fax: 401-848-6226

03/10/06