Sail

2008 was an incredible year, and Nick and I certainly did not win the Gold Medal alone. To have gone through a year like we had and to come out achieving what seemed at times to have been an impossible goal, well it feels a bit miraculous at times. See photos of the medal ceremony...

People ask me how we did it. For Nick, he sacrificed everything to save himself to sail. The cancer diagnosis we got in January, during the training year leading to the Games would have been unbelievable for any parent...it was surreal for us. Nick passed earlier this year from his ALS  -see article or Read more in blogs.....

What's on tap for 2009 and the London 2012 Olympics? Well, I simply do not know. What I do know is that I really enjoy sailing the SKUD 18 - the first performance sportboat for the disabled and a class which emphasizes participation for more women sailors and more severely disabled sailors. I did sail a Sonar in the 2009 Rolex Miami OCR and had a great time. We finished second USA boat, placing me and the rest of the team of Rick Doerr and Hugh Freund in Bronze overall. So, I am back on the US Sailing Team Alphagraphics for the 7th time.

I do know that wherever sailing takes me this year, it will be unaffordable on my non-profit salary. It will take more fundraising, this task is what may choke my desire to continue. If you would like to make a donation, use the form to the left.. This year, World Rankings will be in affect, which means a good deal of overseas travel and boat charters and no increase in funding. Though it is a great honor to be on the US Team, and it does come with funding for good performances, the expenses go far above that. We all need outside support to help defray costs that add up beyond what MOST sailors can handle to remain truly competitive.

My plan is to try to attain some sponsorships again, but they are hard to come by and take hours of legwork.

Here are some of the awards Maureen has recieved since China: Scandone Spirit, Frank Sully Award, the JYC award, the Connolly Award at EYC, nomination for Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year, the Hearne Award for National Disability Leadership, the Zonta Women Making a Difference award, and later this summer the Womens' Sailing Conference Sailor of the Year.