Jiyai Shin has her Saturday in San Diego all planned out. She'll try to protect her lead in the Samsung World Championship at Torrey Pines, then go hang gliding over the nearby shores of the Pacific Ocean.

Shin, of South Korea, shot a 3-under 69 to take a one-shot lead over No. 1-ranked Lorena Ochoa and Ai Miyazato in the second round yesterday on the South Course.

Shin, who was tied for the lead after the opening round, has a 36-hole total of 135 to top the elite field of 20.

She admits to being scared of heights, but was intrigued by the hang gliders that float silently over the holes that line the cliffs adjacent to the Pacific.

"Yes, I want to try," she said. "But today, a couple of holes, I saw the hang gliders. This is scary. At the course, I told my caddie, 'I want to cancel because it looks so scary.' He says, 'It's fine, try it, try it, try it.' I will try it tomorrow. Maybe it will make a good feeling for me. Fly the sky."

Ochoa, of Mexico, had a seesaw round of 69. Miyazato, of Japan, might have tied Shin, but her second shot on the par-5 18th splashed into the big pond that protects the green, leading to her only bogey of the day and a 68.

AUTO RACING

MONTOYA SPRINTS IN

Juan Pablo Montoya set a track record while winning the pole for the NASCAR Sprint Cup's Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, N.H.

Montoya turned a lap at 133.431 mph to take the top qualifying spot yesterday. Montoya broke the record of 133.357 set by Ryan Newman in 2003.

The former Formula One driver will start on the front row for tomorrow's opener of the Chase for the championship.

DIXON WINS IRL RACE

New Zealand's Scott Dixon won the Indy Japan 300 at Motegi today to take over the IndyCar series points lead with one race remaining.

Dixon, who started from the pole position and led for most of the race, took over the lead for good on the 164th lap and finished 1.4475 seconds ahead of Target Chip Ganassi teammate Dario Franchitti for his fifth win of the season.

Dixon leads the standings with 570 points followed by Franchitti, who has 565.

TENNIS

CZECHS LEAD SEMIS

Radek Stepanek overcame a record 78 aces to defeat Ivo Karlovic in five sets in one of the longest matches in tennis history yesterday, when the Czech Republic took a 2-0 lead over Croatia in the Davis Cup semifinals at Porec, Croatia.

Stepanek won 6-7 (5), 7-6 (5), 7-6 (6), 6-7 (2), 16-14 in a match that lasted 5 hours, 59 minutes. In the second singles, Tomas Berdych beat Marin Cilic 6-3, 6-3, 3-6, 4-6, 6-3.

In the other semifinal at Torre Pacheco, Spain, David Ferrer and Juan Carlos Ferrero won their opening singles in straight sets to give Spain a 2-0 lead over Israel.

Ferrer beat Harel Levy 6-1, 6-4, 6-3, and Ferrero defeated Dudi Sela 6-4, 6-2, 6-0.

SHORTS

Friendly skies for NHL: Air Canada and U.S. transportation officials said yesterday they reached a deal to allow the airline to fly National Hockey League teams within the U.S., averting the possible last-minute cancellation of flights that could have affected the NHL schedule.

Local gender tests: A South African newspaper has published what it says are e-mails showing local track officials authorized to conduct gender tests in the country on runner Caster Semenya. South African officials have repeatedly said tests were done only abroad, not in South Africa.

Haas leads with a 62: Jay Haas shot a 10-under 62 for a three-stroke lead after the first-round of the rain-delayed Greater Hickory Classic at Conover, N.C. Gil Morgan was second after his 65.