Young America Edged out of Finals

AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND, April 5, 1997- NYYC/Young America narrowly lost the battle for a berth in the Mini America's Cup final today in a must-win match with the San Francisco Yacht Club team. Meanwhile, the British defeated the French assuring them the right to face Team New Zealand.

The final standings for the Mini America's Cup round robin are England's Royal Dorset Yacht Club (5-1) NYYC/Young America (4-2), San Francisco Yacht Club (3-3), and France's Societe Nautique Port Camargue (0-6).

In the showdown with San Francisco, NYYC/Young America had the right side ofthe course at the start as the patchy breeze went left. "We saw the breeze and knew where we wanted to be, but just couldn't get there," said Young America skipper Ed Baird. "We ran out of time."

The San Francisco boat made an early gain on the windward leg, but Baird and crew were only a boat length behind at the top mark. "We were poised to come around in a puff that they didn't have," Baird said. But a tight wrap in the chute cost Young America valuable ground. "It was about as bad of a wrap as I've ever seen," Baird said.

The foredeck crew worked to free the hourglass in the spinnaker, sailing for several minutes without a filled chute. Meanwhile, Rod Davis and the San Francisco team stretched ahead to a comfortable lead. Baird and crew continued to attack, gaining on each leg but never enough to erase the deficit. Young America had narrowed the gap to four boat lengths at the finish.

"This has been a productive week for the Young America sailing team," Baird said. "The competition has been close, allowing us to up the bar on our performance. We've accomplished what we came here for. This series gave us
our first chance to work together and I'm proud of the job we've done. The road to the America's Cup is a long one and we've off to a great start."

The British faced Team New Zealand in the first two races of the Mini America's Cup final today, with each team winning a race. The standings going into the final day tomorrow are 1-1.