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24-The Canadiean Champigon, Tuesday, June 19. 2001 I Sailor looks to make waves at world championships1 By MURRAY TOWNSEND Special to The Champion Stephanie laylor leaves Milton today for the world sailing chaanpionships in Portugal. That's no small accomplisbment because ste caine very close toi falling overboard in ber quest to make it overseas. First, a little history. Sailing didn't corne naturally to 23-year-old Stephanie. Ini fact, it didn't corne at al until she was well into ber teens. "I wasn't a big fan of it - I played t-ball and softball. It wasn't that much fun for me because I wasn't any good at it." Stepbanîe's father had grown up with sailing, so she was exposed to it above the normal level, especially eacb suminer when tbey retumed to ber grandparents home in Hudson, Quebec. At 15, ber parents bought ber a byte class boat, which is basically a training boat. It's predomi- nantly a youth class boat that fits one small per- son. That seemned to kick-start ber inteoest and she stared to enjoy it, spending much of the summer on the boat. At 16, she starting racing. She cornpeted in a circuit around the Maritimes, Quebec and Ontario, until she made it to CORK. That stands for the Canadian Olympic training Regatta at Kingston. She finished dead last. Stephanie laughs wben she mentions ber placing. It didn't even bother ber because she was having a great tirne, travel- ing with the teain, and in ber words, "having a blast." "I loved sailing, I just wasn't any good at it."1 That was thc last tirne she'd think that. TMe next year, t age 17, tbey bad a trial in Quebec to determine whorn tbey would send to Vancouver for the Canadian Youth Charnpionsbips, the biggest regatta for youth in this country. "I ended up being the top feinale at the trial event. Al of a sudden I won a regatta and didn't knoW wbat to do witb myself." Thai was just the beginning. In Vancouver, she won the Canadian Youth Chanîpionships. 1t blew my mind and blew mny coac's mi. I'm stilI not sure bow it bappened. AIl of a sudden, over tbe winter, from 16 to 17, sornetbing clicked and I learned bow to sail." Tbat's wben Stephanie started to race even more seriously. And started to win consistently. Sbe won four of five major byte events over a two year spant and figuoed it was turne to move on toa different class of boat. If sbe want- ed to stay "single-banded," sbe bad to sail tbe Europe Olympic class boat. She bad to leam bow to sail it, and sbe also wanted to compete in tbe 1997 Canada Gaines. It was ber ast year of igh school at E.C. Drury, but sbe took it off to move to Hudson so sbe could quai- ify for Quebec under the Gaines residency standard. Stepbanie trained there and won tbe trials, earning tbe rigbt to go to Stephanit tbe Canada Gaines. The yacbt club takîng ha bougbt ber a used Europe and sbe aklîs to1 bad just a couple weeks of training champions on it. Portugal. Tbe one regatta sbe entered sbe finisbed asat. Stephanie laughs again at tis, perbaps illustrating that tbose wbo finish last, laugb first. Sbe wasn't taken- seniously at the Canada Games, competing against those wbo bad already been training for a year on their boats. It carne down to the last event on the last day of the five-day marathon. Sbe bad to finish first and another competitor bad to finish sixth or worse. 'Ibat's exactly what happened, and Stephanie had won a gold medal. "Basically, after I won at tbe Gaines, it was a no-bramner that 1 was going to keep sailing the boat. That was the start ci the whole Ulympi., dream - international sailing idea." Stephanie adinits tbat much of tbe rest is a bit of a blur. Sbe went back and finisbed bigb school, spent a winter in Florida sailing, trained in Victoria, B.C. for a summier, enrolled in Queen's University, went to Australia for tbe Canadian Olympic trials, and went to Spain for tbe World University V » Gaines. InSpain sbe finished last, to wbich Stephanie naturally laugbs. Tbat was tbe last turne sbe would laugb for a wbile, for any reason. Wbile in Spain sbe got sick. At first sbe tbougbt it was just a flu bug. So, did tbe doctors. In fact, sbe bad been getting sick ever since sbe went to universîty and didn't know why. Sbe laugbs about finishing last now, but she didn't at tbe turne. "Wben I carne borne I wanted to le Taylor la oedeem myself and went on a crazy er saîîîng training prograin. I didn't want to the world make a fool out of myself two ahIps In times in a row." Sbe finisbed second in tbe trials and qualified for tbe 2000 Canadian national teain. But, sbte kept getting sick, and when it carne time to go to tbe world cbarnpionsbips in Brazil, sbe couldn't even go. Eventually it was determined that Stepbanie bad Crobn's Disease. She lost weight, sbe was loaded up on drugs, she was constantly tired and she couldn't est. But, because sbe was on tbe Canadian teain she kept training. Part of the reason was that national teain rnem- bers are sponsored by Sport Canada. Sbe needed the money they provide. shec d ram toï thtcedays and îhei sieep lof' four. Climbing up a flight of stairs would exhaust ber. -TMe drugs tbemselves were almost worst tban tbe disease," recounts Stepbanie. '7hey weren't wol-rog witbin my system. I was con- stantly baving to cbange drugs." The Canadian 2001 trials were going to be dif- ficult because tbey weoe a five-day event and sbe could only stay awake for tbree days. But, after four days sbe was in second place - with tbe top three earnîng national teain berths. On tbe last day, however, they encounteoed beavy winds and eigbt-foot waves. "I was so small and weak tbat it was kind of a bopeless cause. 1I bat enougb points tbat I went from second to fourtli." Tbat was disbeartening, but after tbose trials a drug was found that actually worked. Sbe bas been training and racing tbrougbout tbis year. "Four weeks of training and sailing and I badn't got sick. It was sucb a nice feeling to feel healtby agan." Tben she finally got a bit of luck. One of the top tbree womnen in tbe Europe class couldn't to tbe world cbarnpionsbips, so she gets to go. As she bas regained ber healtb Stepbanie bas started to renew ber dreain of competing in tbe next Olympics. Crohn's Disease is incurable, but bers is almost in complete remnission. As for tbe world charnpionsbips, ber goal is to finish in Gold Fleet. The field, usually around 180 boats, is divided into three classes for the final races after qualifying -Gond Silver, and Bronze. If she somebow flnished last, Stephanie Taylor would no doubt laugb. After tbe bealth problems she's already suc- cessfully battled, in miany ways she bas flnished first beote sbe even leaves Milton. lie le 1 la