We had to sort of tie a knot,'' she said. She left the water Saturday knowing that despite mechanical problems, ''we had tremendous speed upwind.'' Good wind readings on the part of Stookey and Van Voorhis kept Hayley's team out of first place in the next race. The second race looked like good match racing for the first two legs, with the other four boats far behind. Stookey trailed Hayley until a downwind leg, and with the spinnaker billowing out, she left Hayley behind. Swanson and Probst finished third and the final three boats were well behind.
Sailors get one point for first place, two for second and so on.
The boat with the lowest score after 16 races goes on to the Olympics. In most classes, one can finish well behind in some races. Olympic team member Will Martin proved that last week when he won in the Finn class despite finishing as far back as eighth, 11th and 13th. His final race that earned him the Olympic berth was a seventh-place finish. With a fleet of 26, the overall point spread ranged from Martin's 41 points and last-place finisher Jeff Schroeder's 275 points.