(From the Long Beach Yacht Club website: www.lbyc.org)

LONG BEACH---Sally Barkow, Nashotah, Wis., made history Sunday by winning the 2009 Ficker Cup match race and becoming the first woman to sail into a spot in the Congressional Cup.

Sponsored by St. Nicks Holiday and Event Lighting and hosted by Long Beach Yacht Club, the top prize for the ISAF Grade 3 Ficker Cup is an invitation to compete in the 2010 Congressional Cup, the only ISAF Open Grade 1 match race in North America.

Two other women have skippered in the Congressional Cup over the years---J.J. Isler (1993) and Betsy Alison (1999)---but competed in the event through the normal skipper selection process.

Sailing in variable winds of anywhere between 5-14 knots over the three days, Barkow, two-time Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year, and her all-woman team had only three losses in the triple round robin three-day event posting five wins on the first day and setting the bar high for other teams to reach.

“The first day really helped us out,” Barkow said. “It gave us the confidence we needed. Then losing on the second day… well, that’s the best thing and worst thing about match racing… losing. It kept us focused.

“But the team was fantastic. No mistakes on their part. You can’t ask for anything better than that.”

Finishing second was Dave Perry, Southport, Conn., two-time Congressional Cup winner (1983,1984), who narrowly missed the top spot by only one win.

“On our first day we made mistakes that cost us races,” Perry said. “But Sally’s team really sailed well and deserved to win.”

Third place went to Chris Nesbitt, Newport Beach, Calif., and his team from Balboa Yacht Club who won the first annual Butler Cup match race one week before.

“We got off to a slow start,” Nesbitt said. “We are a new team and we continue to get better. We’re really not disappointed.

“Our goal was to get better every day, and we’re satisfied considering who finished first and second.”

Capping off the regatta on the last race, Perry was paired with Barkow. Doing the math, Barkow already had the regatta won, but Perry gave her a preview of Congressional Cup level match racing.

Leading at the start, Barkow covered Perry on every move, both upwind and down. Coming to the finish, Perry slid inside on a critical jibe. Jibing back and fourth, Barkow tried to regain the lead but Perry held on to finish one boat length ahead.

“That’s the way every race is in Congressional Cup,” Perry said.

Barkow commented, “We have a very, very tough road ahead of us. We are going to do the best we can.”

The Ficker Cup was established by LBYC in 1980 to honor Bill Ficker, world class Star champion in the 50s and winner of the 1970 American’s Cup as skipper of the 12-meter class yacht Intrepid. During Intrepid’s 1970 America’s Cup campaign, the phrase “Ficker is quicker” was coined --- later changed to “Ficker was quicker” when he beat Gretel II to win the cup.

Final standings
Sally Barkow, 12 wins – 3 losses
(crew: Annie Lush, Liz Baylis, Mary Rook, Dana Riley, Katie Pettibone, Suzy Leech)
Dave Perry, 11 – 4
Chris Nesbitt, 8 – 7
Bruce Stone, 6 – 9 (tie breaker)
Annie Nelson, 6 – 9
Casey Shilling, 2 - 13

Full final results also available at: www.lbyc.org .