Betsy and crew at Swedish Match Race |
The
level of female participation in the sport has grown exponentially over
just the past few years. Has there been much male-backlash?
BA
Male
backlash - exactly what is that? Is it a glorified kind of self flagellation?
Frankly, it seems to me that the traditional sexist overtones that have
characterized sailing in the past are fading. Women are certainly starting
to be recognized for the job they can do, and the skills they have.
And socially…..I really can't picture an après sailing party with a
bunch of guys dancing by/with themselves.
The female numbers are definitely up in lots of areas: high school and
collegiate sailing; big boat stuff like PHRF, IMS, class OD and handicap
racing; and there seems to be an increased interest by women in women
only events as well. It is good to see. It certainly seems that more
women are sailing and are doing well - not only in crewing roles but
as drivers as well. There are more of opportunities out there than ever
before, but there is still a long way to go before we see real equity
across the board.
You've
certainly been one of the pioneers in the women's sailing arena. The
obvious breakthroughs were the Women's America's Cup Team (until Koch
nicely ruined that concept by adding a man to the afterguard. And it
really does the word irony great justice that said man blew the leg
that would have put the gals in the show!) and the Volvo Ocean Race.
What's next for women's' sailing?
BA
There
have been lots of cool things that women have been doing in sailing
for a while. The Women's AC team did a lot for visibility and credibility
of women in sailing, though I am not sure you will see an all female
AC team again any time soon. Female sailors like Tracy Edwards, Dawn
Riley and Lisa Charles have led teams in the Whitbread and now the Volvo
Ocean Race. Isabelle Autissier and most recently, Ellen MacArthur on
Kingfisher have shown that gender is not a big issue in singlehanded
round the world efforts. Many of us have made our mark in inshore, Olympic
and one design classes, as well as been recognized for educational contributions
and coaching efforts. I think you have to look at the question NOT as
what's next for women's' sailing, but what is next in sailing for women.
I believe that we are only limited by what we believe we are capable
of, or incapable of. If we set goals that are realistic, then achieving
them is well within our grasp - its good to have dreams.
Ynglings frostbiting...brrrrrrr |
I
have enjoyed sailing with girls on the crew - I find then to be some
of the best beer-fetchers around, and damn, they look good in a bikini.
Just kidding. Seriously, my experience has been that they were great
team players, concentrate well and were always much calmer than some
of the boys. What advice would you give to girls looking to move up
in this sport?
BA
Go
for it! Take the opportunities when they come along, learn from every
one, be it good or less than perfect. You may not get in a premier program
right away, but use every sailing experience as a platform to move up
from. Learn what you can from each program, and when you are ready to
move on and learn some more, don't be afraid to take the chance. Women
seem to be very cooperative by nature. They are really strong team players
and can focus for long periods of time. They make great trimmers and
drivers if given the chance. When the proverbial s___ hits the fan,
most female sailors can be found calmly dealing with the fallout. The
best part about sailing as a sport is that it is not static - you can
always learn or relearn something each time you face the elements. If
you are proactive, the sport will always be interesting. And by the
way, the ladies look way better than boys in bikinis.
Is
the statement that "She's not as good as a man would be" still prevalent
in the sport? And does it even matter?
BA
Sure
you still hear it - maybe not in that exact way. Experience leads to
opportunities, and opportunities give you that needed experience. Kind
of like the chicken and the egg. If two sailors were standing on a dock
looking for a ride, neither sailor being well known, one being male
and the other female, more often than not, the guy would get asked to
sail first, unless of course it was a weight related issue. The perception
that women are the weaker sex in sports is still out there and unfortunately,
with many boats out there requiring size combined with strength, a lot
of female sailors are at a disadvantage. The women that have made the
biggest inroads to top levels of competition in sailing have not let
gender issues get in the way. We tend to recognize where our limitations
are and then make a niche for ourselves where we become valuable to
any program. But think about it, outside of the hard core racing scene,
there are tens of thousands of women who are sailing recreationally,
going cruising, and racing in local and regional events. So, does it
matter, not really, unless you are trying to make a living in the industry.
Yngling Worlds 2nd overall and top chicks too |
Will
you make an Olympic bid for the next go-around?
BA
Most
definitely.
Funding
will obviously play a big part of your effort. How much will you need
and how will you get it?
BA
Ah,
the age old question of money. Funding is always an issue. Any program
can be done on a shoestring budget, however, with more foreign NGB's
fully funding their athletes (read full time professional sailors),
the cost associated with doing an Olympic campaign has risen. To do
the job right as in qualifying for the games and winning a medal (gold
being the color of choice) it will take significant financial resources.
Since most of the Yngling sailing will be happening outside of the US
borders, any campaign will require extensive traveling abroad, boat
- sail - rig development, physical and mental training, and a lot of
coaching. I estimate our budget to be in the $600,000 to $700,000 range
over the next 3 years.
Financial support for US athletes by our governing body and Olympic
Committee is very limited, so the balance of funds will have to come
from private donations and corporate support. We are actively looking
for sponsors, particularly from a cash standpoint. Would you or your
readers like to make a donation? Product is always welcome too, especially
on the travel related side, like air transportation, boat shipping costs,
fuel and tow vehicle. ISAF rules allow for advertising on hull, clothing
and sails which is helpful. The biggest limiting factor is the lack
of TV coverage of sailing in general. Most US corporations are less
likely to even look at an effort that cannot bring TV media coverage
to the table - and honestly, how interesting is a 15 boat Yngling fleet
race to anyone but the participants?
Tax
deductible contributions can be made to(Rhode Island International Sailing
Association - a 501c3) earmarked for Alison Olympic Campaign:
RIISA
40 Elm Street
Newport, RI 02840.
Our web site will be active in the next few weeks, www.basailing.com
What's
up with the Olympic Yngling and what is your take on all the controversy?
BA
The
powers that be pick the equipment and make the rules, the rest of us
get to decide whether or not to play! We're in for the long haul.
The
Yngling is a 3 person keelboat, 21' long that was designed as a trainer
for the Soling. The original controversy started years ago, when ISAF
intimated that the next Olympic discipline for women would be Match
Racing. Many of us began sailing on the circuit, building events, helping
establish developmental events in the US, and establishing ourselves
at the top of the ISAF rankings in women's match racing. In November
1999, ISAF Council voted for MR as the Olympic event for women's keelboats
for 2004. Last year, in November 2000, MR was voted out by that very
same Council for "political" reasons, and fleet racing in Ynglings was
chosen. So, now we are sailing Ynglings. I think the biggest loss that
came in change of disciplines is the loss of TV coverage and event sponsors
that were ready to commit long term to the MR scene.
Interestingly enough, I think the Yngling class is in for a shock. A
lot of development will be happening in the class, a lot of money will
be spent on optimizing equipment, sails, and techniques on how the boats
are sailed. The class will make a leap from being a friendly, low key
"family" class to an intense, highly focused Olympic discipline. The
issue of crew weight limits is now a critical one. The Yngling class
itself has no weight limit, and a movement is under way to try to impose
one for the women. Go figure, no other Olympic class has a weight limit
(except for the Star class which has a CLASS imposed limit). Every other
class has the right to choose - and the ideal crew weight seems to "find
itself" over time. I don't see why people are trying to "fix" what is
not broken. As you may guess, I am not in favor of one.
Tell
us about your involvement with the Disabled Sailing Team
Betsy and Serge Coaching |
BA
I
became involved with the US Disabled Sailing Team in 1998, when Hugh
Elliot ( a long time friend, chairman of the US Sailing Sailors with
Special Needs Committee) called me and asked me to help coach the US
team at the World Championships here in Newport that year. I had never
worked with disabled athletes before, but my feeling was that sailors
are sailors, and the theory, tactics and strategy are the same for all
sailors. The physical limitations provide logistical and functional
challenges on the boats, but that's just an obstacle to overcome. Our
sailors finished 1st and 2nd in those World Championships, separated
by a mere ¼ of a point! I really enjoy working with the sailors. Each
individual and each team has its own set of challenges to work around.
Sailing
is a great equalizer - physical limitations can be minimized in a boat
on the water through adaptive equipment. It is not unusual to see disabled
sailors mixing it up on the race course with everyone else. Biggest
challenge is on the recruiting side. That and the cost of boats and
adaptive equipment. There are over 50 community sailing programs in
the USA that have programs for sailors with special needs.
I am still involved with coaching disabled sailors. I will be working
with the US Sonar teams at the IFDS (International Federation of Disabled
Sailors) World Championships in St. Pete, FL at the end of October.
How
do you continue to improve in this sport?
I thnk Betsy likes power boats too. |
BA
I
study the sport. I always try to learn something when I go out to sail.
I think it is important to use different techniques and other types
of sailing to complement my performance - like using my match racing
experience to enhance my fleet racing skills. Most recently I crewed
for a team in the Rolex International Women's Keelboat Championships
( an event I have won 5 times). Instead of driving, I was the tactician
and spinnaker trimmer. Doing events in positions other than what I am
normally used to makes me a better sailor. It allows me to see the same
situations from a different perspective, and think "outside the box."
Sailing, coaching, watching - they all help me improve. And, since I'm
not ready to be put out to pasture any time soon, you'll keep seeing
me out on the race course!
Some
say that women now get special treatment in the sport - sort of a politically
incorrect understanding that no one say anything bad about female sailors?
True or False?
BA
How
do you define "special treatment"?
And,
if its out there, can I get some?
We
know you can't sit on your laurels to win the Rolex Yachtswomen of the
year 5 times and surely racing isn't the only thing you do, what other
pies do you have your finger in or plan on getting into?
Crusin the Caribbean |
BA
Though
an Olympic Campaign and coaching seem to take up an extraordinary amount
of time, it is still satisfying for work at the moment. I'd like to
learn a bit about meteorology and forecasting to complement the sailing
stuff and a bit more on the sports psych side.
I haven;t really decided what I want to do when I grow up, so I think
I will delay the inevitable --- do we really have to grow up? No, seriously
though, I think I would like to continue doing a little bit of TV work,
settle down to a more regular 9-5ish type job in order to have a more
"normal" social life. Being on the road as many days as I am is tough,
and gets tiring. When I have a bit of down time, I love nesting in at
home in Newport, RI and spending time with friends I don't get to see
all that often. I really enjoy working in my garden and growing things
like vegetables and herbs (edible ones) and doing home improvement projects
- even fixing the lawn mower can be fun. There's tons of sports things
I have to do yet - more snow skiing, some white water rafting, climbing
Kilimajaro, seeing all of the National Parks in the USA....... Know
any cool people that want to come along? At some point, I'd like to
write a book since its actually pretty great to be able to help people
get better at what they enjoy doing. That's just a few of the things
on the list...........
Thanks
Betsy. Tune into the Forum and maybe you'll find someone to hit those
parks with you.
Tax
deductible contributions can be made to(Rhode Island International Sailing
Association - a 501c3) earmarked for Alison Olympic Campaign:
RIISA
40 Elm Street
Newport, RI 02840.
Our web site will be active in the next few weeks, www.basailing.com
