The following are articles taken from our bimonthly newsletter, The Buzz. If you would like to subscribe to the electronic or hard copy version, please let us know.

COURT RULING A VICTORY FOR TITLE IX

On June 11, U.S. District Court Judge Emmet Sullivan dismissed the lawsuit National Wrestling Coaches Association v. United States Department of Education.

The plaintiffs contend that Title IX leads to schools cutting men's teams and causes discrimination against male athletes. They have also challenged the 1979 Policy Interpretations and 1996 Clarification used by the Department of Education to enforce Title IX regulation, referring to the proportionality standard (part of the three-part test to determine Title IX compliance) as a "quota."

The court stated, ". . .upon consideration of many of the same arguments advanced by plaintiffs here, courts have held that the 1979 Policy Interpretation and the 1996 Clarification do not establish "quotas" or impermissibly discriminate against men or men's teams."

The court also referred to the "critical importance of the protections offered by Title IX, the significant flexibility built into the DoE's enforcement scheme, and the multiplicity of considerations beyond Title IX which influence educational institutions' athletic decision-making."

"Before entertaining claims which contemplate taking the.dramatic step of striking down a landmark civil rights statute's regulatory enforcement scheme, the Court must take pains to ensure that . . . issues will be fully and fairly litigated.

"This is particularly true where the challenged enforcement scheme is one which has benefitted from more than twenty years of study, critical examination, and judicial review, and for which a demonstrated need continues to be recognized by the nation's legislators."

To read the decision, go to: http://www.dcd.uscourts.gov/02-72.pdf

SEND US YOUR TITLE IX CONCERNS!

Are you concerned about Title IX compliance at a local school? Tell us about your experiences - all school names will be kept confidential. Respondents will be kept confidential unless you give us permission to publish your name.

For a tool to assess compliance, go to the National Women's Law Center at www.nwlc.org.

Click on "Athletics" and scroll down to the heading "Is Your School Complying with Title IX?" Click on the link for "Check it Out."

Send your stories by e-mail to:

bodyelectric@bodyelectric-sb.org

or by mail to:

P.O. Box 762 Santa Barbara, CA 93102

We'll publish your reports in an upcoming issue of The Buzz.

KATHLEEN'S JOURNAL

Part four in a series, the following is an excerpt of the journal of Kathleen Horton, a woman with a typical list of many competing priorities: job, spouse, children and personal time among them.

With our journal series we bring you the challenges and accomplishments of an average woman: someone who, like all of us, balances a life full of work, play, friends, family and occasional struggle.

We hope you find inspiration in their daily endeavors, and perhaps decide to try something new and challenging yourself!

May 11 Ð Mother's Day was so much fun. Rode my bike to Emily's house (put my paddle in T.J.'s bike seat), loaded up her two-man outrigger canoe on the car, drove to Goleta Beach and enjoyed a sunny one-hour paddle. We paddled, sweated, talked and almost decided to stay at the beach all day! Reality set in and we made it back to our homes.

Eric fixed a great Mother's Day brunch for me, my sister-in-law and Grandma. We all felt very spoiled.

May 17 – Today was frustrating. Had a chance to paddle in a race in Carpinteria but just couldn't arrange childcare in time for T.J. I took him to the race site so we could play at the beach while I breathed in the racing atmosphere. I caught up with all the dads on the beach waiting with their children for their wives to come in from the race.

What a difference from the old racing days where families were in the minority. Maybe by next summer I'll be up for racing.

May 21 – 26 – Our first extended camping vacation turned out great including the two long drives to get to the outside of Yosemite and back home. Kids did lots of rock climbing, swimming in a cold lake, paddling in a little raft, walking all over the campground. Of course that meant that Eric & I were right there with them. We were all pooped out at bedtime.

May 27 – Good to be home from vacation. Felt wonderful to walk Madeline to school then power walk with T.J. in the stroller.

May 28 – Beautiful warm weather. Tonight at paddling was delightfully sweaty due to the heat. I even considered jumping in the water to cool off! Great sunset to enjoy with fellow paddlers as we carried up the canoes.

Enjoyed paddle talk with my carpool paddling buddy on the way home. Both of us are moms of young children trying to balance family time with this crazy love for paddling.

May 29 – Another good power walk with T.J. in the stroller. He is usually very patient with his mom and her long walks.

June 3 – Sick again! Missing out again on another paddling race, this time in Ventura.

June 11 – Paddled tonight - very invigorating due to paddling straight out into the ocean with windy choppy swells. Due to a shortage of paddlers that night I was asked to steer. I was nervous because of my not steering for four years combined with the rough conditions. It turned out okay except physically my legs were cramped in the rear seat. I couldn't sit comfortably. I ended up asking the alternate steersman to take over. Also there was a substitute coach. Very interesting to hear different coaching outlook.

I don't feel like I'm in much better shape than six months ago but I'm sure having fun!

WINDS OF CHANGE - WOMEN SAILORS CHANGING THE FACE OF LONG-DISTANCE RACING

Sailing is a sport that allows women and men to compete on an equal platform. Endurance and focus are more critical than big brawny muscles. It's all about tactics, navigational know-how, a steady touch at the helm — and nowhere is this more crucial than long-distance racing.

This month the biennial Transpacific Yacht Race leaves Los Angeles, venturing 2,216 miles to Honolulu, with numerous women among the 60 teams entered. But that hasn't always been the case. Wooden ships and iron men were slow to make room for "the weaker sex."

And when they did, it was often as chief cook and bottle washer. In 1934 Mrs. D.H. Radcliffe raced the Transpac aboard her husband's 45-foot schooner "Monsoon". They arrived in Honolulu telling stirring tales of fierce seas that tattered the sails … which Mrs. Radcliffe dutifully mended (fifteen times!) cutting up her aprons when she ran out of canvas.

Others, like Georgia Caswell Overton, made early strides by acing navigational skills. Although not officially listed as the navigator, the ship's log shows Overton had an active role in getting "Spindrift" to Hawaii. A Los Angeles headmistress, Overton sailed with her husband, son, a crew of six, and even the family dog — and when she got to Honolulu, took up surfing.

Another spirited young woman, Fern Mullinix Dickson – honoring a pre-nuptial agreement that she would not interfere with her husband's sailing – postponed her honeymoon to race the Transpac. Historical documents record her husband J.T. Dickson as "owner/skipper" of the 40-ft yacht, while Mrs. Dickson's position is listed as "bride."

It wasn't until the 1950s that women started taking the helm of boats racing to Hawaii. In 1959 Beverly Hills socialite Sally Blair Ames purchased a proven winner, "Constellation" and armed with a professional crew of sixteen, was the first woman to win a first-place Transpac trophy.

Martha Baker, a single mom, brought her twelve-year-old daughter along on the Transpac in the 50s as well. Her boat was old (33) and small, (42-feet) and who could afford a babysitter for the nearly three weeks it would take to sail to Hawaii?

In 1979 the Transpac saw its first all-woman team, on the amusingly named 40-foot boat "Concubine". It took another fourteen years for the next all-female entry to apply. But in 1993 the Santa Barbara sloop "Antara" tackled the Transpac … then returned in 1995 … and by 1997 had spawned two all-woman teams.

Now, in this current event, women from those teams are evident in various crews, such as third-timer Sue Senescu, who serves as navigator on the co-ed team of "Horizon".

Another third-timer is Wendy Siegal, who will skipper her classic 40-foot yacht on her third consecutive Transpac. And at the conclusion of this year's race, Siegal will have matched the record of Peggy Slater — until now the only woman to havecaptained a trio of Transpacs.

Siegal, a 51-year old schoolteacher from Sunset Beach, lives aboard her boat "Willow Wind". She insists she's not a hot shot racer but merely loves to sail. About opportunities, she said, "If you don't like something, then it's up to you to do something to change it. That's why participating was so important to me."

Follow the action of the 42nd Transpac on the Internet at www.transpacificyc.org

By Betsy Crowfoot