Yachting: Conner boat likely to be ready

By SUZANNE McFADDEN

There is an underlying mission for Stars & Stripes to have their boat repaired today: Dennis Conner wants finally to race his old America's Cup buddies from New York fair and square.

Twice in this Louis Vuitton Cup, Conner's crew have had to sail around the course alone when their opponents, Young America, had mast troubles.

Tomorrow they want a real race with their rivals, with both teams vying to stay alive.

Last night the Stars & Stripes team were, in their own words, cautiously optimistic of beating the clock and having the back of their boat rebuilt today after it exploded of its own volition on Sunday.

Bill Trenkle, a trimmer on the boat and head of the campaign's operations, said the boat should be ready to be dunked back in the water this afternoon. The syndicate were given 48 hours to make the repairs.

"We really want to be there for this race, because we still haven't raced them yet in this regatta," he said. "It's bizarre - but it's true America's Cup drama."

The drama of whether Conner would sail again in this regatta had died down yesterday as boatbuilders worked around the clock to replace the stern cockpit which cracked open.

"There were one or two little trouble areas that we were working on," Trenkle said. "There were four little holes in the bottom of the hull that have been filled now, so she is watertight again.

"It has come down to a timing thing - it's a painstaking, delicate job. With carbon-fibre, everything has to be done in cycles, so you can't rush anything. Some areas we had to wait eight hours for the carbon to harden and cure before we could work on them again."

Stars & Stripes might never know what exactly happened in the accident, which Trenkle rated as five-out-of-10 on the seriousness scale.

"It has been a worry. I won't be able to sleep again until the boat is loaded and back out sailing again," he said.

While the builders got down and dirty in the shed yesterday, Conner was out on the water, taking a close look at his competitors.

He gave the crew a pep-talk before he left. Said Trenkle: "He reminded everyone how in the 1995 defender series, Stars & Stripes almost lost the keel and started sinking. We had to win five straight races to stay alive - and we did."