Broad Reach Radio - The Yachting New Zealand Podcast

The number 202.9 might not mean a lot to most but is a figure Glenn Ashby has become obsessed about. The two-time America's Cup winner is now leading a group from Emirates Team New Zealand trying to break the wind powered land speed record. They need to go faster than 202.9km/h on the salt flats of Lake Gairdner in South Australia to do it. Glenn joins us for this episode of Broad Reach Radio to talk about why he and Emirates Team New Zealand are chasing this record, what they need to do to break it and just how fast he thinks they can go. He also talks about what it's like to sail the craft the team have built, what tricks they've taken from motor racing and just how much he can see when he's strapped into the cockpit. Glenn talks passionately about this quest and provides a fascinating insight into the project from its inception to the point they are now. The team have had plenty of setbacks over the last few weeks, mostly due to the weather, but momentum is building towards an official record attempt and their quest to see how fast they can go.

New Zealand has a proud tradition in the round the world race and a lot of that started with Ceramco New Zealand in the early 1980s – the first New Zealand-flagged boat to compete in the gruelling event. It was a campaign headed up by Sir Peter Blake and something that captured the imagination of Kiwis everywhere. But disaster struck on the first leg of the race when the boat's mast came down in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean as the team were vying for the lead. It was a devastating blow for the crew, including Simon Gundry who is today's guest on Broad Reach Radio. Simon details what happened that day when the mast came down and how the crew rallied to sail 4000 miles under jury rig to complete the leg but also describes the inescapable feeling on board that they had let the nation down. He talks about their epic battles with the crew on Flyer in subsequent legs, including when they had their rivals in sight for 10 of the 24 days across the Southern Ocean to Cape Horn, and provides an insight into Peter Blake, from his unorthodox approach to crew selection to his recognition of the value of media to build support for Ceramco. Simon is one of the characters of New Zealand sailing, and talks about the imaginary animals he had on board, his love of reciting poetry, how he managed to pull a team of yachties together to play in a rugby sevens tournament while in port in Argentina and the after-effects of one of their annual Mast Falling Down parties. He's a terrific story-teller who was able to give a detailed insight into that 1981/82 Whitbread Round the World Race and a campaign that changed Kiwi yachting.

Karl Budge doesn't purport to be much of a sailor, but he is one of this country's leading event organisers having previously turned the ASB Classic into one of the world's best tennis tournaments. He consistently attracted some of the world's top tennis players to this country and now he's looking to sprinkle his magic dust on the New Zealand leg of SailGP. Karl talks about why he got involved in SailGP and what his vision is for the New Zealand legs that will be held in alternating years between Christchurch and Auckland. He also talks about what the fan experience is like at SailGP events around the world. Talk inevitably turned to tennis and what tricks he used to lure players like Serena and Venus Williams, Ana Ivanovic and Maria Sharapova to these shores. He also talks about the time he gave Serena a piece of his mind after a less than inspiring performance. But she still came back the following year. Karl delves into his background that saw him leave school at 16 only to find himself working at the WTA and Manchester United, but also turn down job opportunities with Formula 1, Manchester City and the NFL. This is a slightly different episode of Broad Reach Radio, but a good way to mark the 50th podcast.

Mike Sanderson is one of the most successful sailors of his generation. He's a former World Sailor of the Year, two-time winner of the round the world race including when he skippered ABN Amro to victory in the 2005/06 Volvo Ocean Race, been involved in multiple America's Cup campaigns, a record breaker, a successful maxi yacht skipper and now co-owner and CEO of Doyle Sails. Mike has plenty of stories to tell, and we touch on a few of those in this podcast, from why he left school early and how he earned his ticket alongside many of his heroes on New Zealand Endeavour, to heading up international teams and dealing with the tragedy of losing a friend at sea while still racing. He clearly has a passion for the sport and it doesn't matter if he's racing in a high-pressure environment or going for a blast with a son on the Auckland Harbour. He's also fascinated by trying to work out how to make a boat go fast and clearly been very good at figuring it out.

There's not a lot Sharon Ferris-Choat hasn't done in sailing. She's a two-time Olympian, first woman to be part of a team to win a round the world race, world distance record breaker and the first woman to skipper a GC32 team. And she's not done yet. The Northlander talks about how she stumbled into the sport, how she found herself at the Atlanta Olympics only two-and-a-half years after committing to an Olympic campaign, her long association with the legendary Tracy Edwards and what's still left on her bucket list. There have been plenty of highlights along the way, like breaking the 24-hour distance world record and winning the Oryx Quest, but also major disappointments, not least of all when Royal & Sun Alliance dismasted deep in the Southern Ocean when on track to claim the Jules Verne Trophy. Sharon was on the helm when the maxi catamaran lost its rig and details what happened and why she still has regrets about that day nearly 25 years later. Sharon is an extraordinary sailor who is largely unheralded in this country. She's deeply passionate about the sport and the need to provide greater opportunities for women and is always searching for what might be around the corner.

Jo Aleh always maintained she hadn't retired when she stepped away from top-level sailing after the 2016 Rio Olympics but it was still a surprise in some circles when she announced earlier this year she was targeting a third Olympic medal in Paris. Rather than do it in the 470, the boat in which she and Polly Powrie excelled for so long, Jo has taken up a fresh challenge and jumped in a 49erFX with fellow Rio medallist Molly Meech. Jo talks in this podcast about what drew her back to the top level of the sport, what it has been like trying to master a new boat and form a new partnership, what it will take for the pair of them to win a medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics and how she will deal with expectations. She also delves into how she coped with the last five years, when she combined office work with coaching, and talks about what she's trying to achieve in her role as chair of World Sailing's athletes' commission. One of the more important conversations we had was around the struggles Jo had with her health during her Rio campaign and how she approaches that part of her life now, which could be valuable for any young sailor, parent or coach, and we kicked things off by talking about her involvement in Live Ocean Racing, which was announced earlier this week.

Peter Burling and Blair Tuke are never far from the action, whether it's the America's Cup, SailGP or in their environmental work, but the spotlight for this episode of Broad Reach Radio is on their Olympic sailing in the 49er. We take a look back on where it all began for one of the world's most successful partnerships, some of the challenges they faced in the early days when some wondered if they could actually realise their potential and how they went on to become so dominant. They delve into that golden period between the London and Rio Olympics, when they were virtually unbeatable, what brought them back for a crack at another Olympic medal in Tokyo and how they dealt with the impact of Covid-19 and the postponement of the Olympic Games. Pete and Blair also give an insight into two of the most dramatic races they've been involved in, the medal race at the 2019 world championships on home waters and last year's medal race at the Tokyo Olympics.

Steve Ashley was an 18-year-old sailmaker living in England when he was asked to crew on a 34-foot yacht for the 1979 Fastnet Race. Little did he know, like the rest of those scattered on the 303 boats who took part that year, he was about to be involved in one of the most notorious races of all time and one that led to the largest combined rescue operation since the evacuation of Dunkirk in 1940. Steve talks about the leadup to that race, the fact they received no warning about the ferocity of the storm they were sailing into, what happened when hurricane-strength winds hit in the middle of the night and how he and the rest of the crew on board went about ensuring their survival when others perished. Steve has found himself in dicey situations many times, and also talks about a notorious passage he had from Bermuda to New York, as well as his role in the early days of the Westpac Rescue Helicopter. 

The America's Cup has long been at the cutting edge of yacht racing and we've seen incredible development over the last decade or so and a lot of that has to do with Dan Bernasconi. Dan is head designer at Emirates Team New Zealand and played a large hand in things like the evolution of foiling in the America's Cup, the use of cyclors on Team New Zealand's boat for the Bermuda campaign in 2017 as well as the design of the AC75 monohulls used in the last edition in Auckland. Dan's route to the America's Cup came via Formula 1, and he talks about the six years he spent with McLaren when they were at the top of the tree, how he then got into the sailing game and how he approaches boat design. He also delves into some of the major developments he's been behind, the team's thinking around when to reveal to rival teams some of the latest innovations they've been working on and what it's like when some of the radical design features come off.

Andy Ventura sailed solo from New Zealand to the UK via the Southern Ocean so he could get to his mother's 80th birthday party in the middle of a global pandemic. As you might imagine, it was a remarkable and sometimes dramatic journey. He experienced everything from being becalmed in the Southern Ocean to raging storms, capsizes to concussion, and also endured some worrying equipment failure that could have led to an altogether different outcome. Andy talks about how he prepared for the journey, what life was like on board his 35-foot yacht and how he dealt with the ongoing obstacles and setbacks.

It's fair to say Erica Dawson has had a big year in 2021 for a number of different reasons. She broke her leg in a training accident only five weeks before the Tokyo Olympics, but made a speedy recovery to take her place alongside Micah Wilkinson in the Nacra 17. She also joined the New Zealand SailGP Team and made history when she became the first Kiwi woman to compete in the high-octane sailing circuit. Erica reflects on the last 18 months, the highs and the lows. She talks about what it was like to be selected for the Olympics only to go through the uncertainty of not knowing if she'd actually get to go and compete, how she coped with breaking her leg in the leadup to the Games and what her experience was actually like in Japan. She also delves into life on the SailGP tour and what it's like sail on the foiling catamarans. Erica is also an advocate for women's sailing and played a leading hand in the development of Yachting New Zealand's Women and Girls in Sailing Strategy and talks in this podcast about what she'd like to see over the next few years.

A couple of weeks ago, Tom Saunders became just the second New Zealander to win the Laser world title in nearly 50 years of trying. It was a breakthrough result for the 29-year-old and sets him up nicely as he not only tries to go to his first Olympic Games in Paris in 2024 but also win a medal for his country. Tom has been on the circuit for the best part of a decade and talks about his experiences in that time – how he's coped with disappointments after finding success came quite easily to him as a youngster, what was different about the last world championships in Barcelona and how he might not have even gone to the world championships had he stuck to his original plan. He also delves into his background growing up in and around a group of young sailors in Tauranga who have gone to achieve phenomenal success, what influence his brother has had on him and how training for and racing in an ironman event last year has helped shape his mentality as he commits to another Olympic cycle.

Roger ‘Clouds' Badham is one of the world's pre-eminent meteorologists and was also the first person to forecast for yachties and boaties on a fulltime basis. His 50-year involvement in the sport has seen him work on 10 America's Cups, nine Olympics Games, more than 40 Sydney to Hobart races and countless world championships and big events. He's been a critical member of Team New Zealand for 20 years, helping them firstly win the Cup in Bermuda in 2017 and then retain it earlier this year in Auckland, and has also worked with New Zealand's top Olympic campaigners for the last five Games. Clouds has described weather forecasting as like short-term futures trading - either selling or buying left or right – but his accuracy is something he's renowned for it and it earned him a job working with the Ferrari Formula 1 team. Roger talks about his career in this episode of Broad Reach Radio, how he got into the industry, what forecasting was like in the early days before computer modelling and then the arms race as teams tried to get the edge, what impact he's had on various campaigns and the pressure he can sometimes come under to get it right. He also touches on the world of Formula 1 and how it differs to high-level sailing.

Martin Tasker spent most of his time behind a microphone, having commentated and presented news stories on anything from the America's and Admiral's Cup to the Ocean Race and Olympics. In fact, in his time as a reporter with TVNZ, he produced close to 5500 stories, many of them about yachting. He lifted the lid on a number of news breaks, like the time Russell Coutts and Brad Butterworth were lured to Alinghi, but was equally happy telling the story about something happening at grassroots level. Martin talks about his career as both a yachting reporter and commentator in this podcast and tells the stories about how he and Peter Lester were threatened by Oracle with expulsion from not only the America's Cup but also the country, what it was like to be on the inside with Team New Zealand in Bermuda in 2017, the lengths he would go to for a story, and the time he became the story after a seemingly innocent comment picked up when he thought he was off air caused a huge controversy.

Leah Fanstone (nee Newbold) and Keryn McMaster were trailblazers for New Zealand women's offshore sailing in the 1990s. The pair notched up two laps each around the globe in the Whitbread Round the World Race, once together on the all-women's crew on board EF Education, and they tell their stories from those epic races in this episode of Broad Reach Radio. None of those circumnavigations were particularly easy, as they battled a catalogue of bad luck, breakages and broken promises, not to mention old-fashioned attitudes, but they made a big statement for women's sailing. Leah and Keryn have so many memorable stories from those races and talk about everything from mutinies and swimming in the Southern Ocean to haul sails back on board to messages from the American first lady and getting smothered by rotten fish. They also delved into various important topics around women's sailing including how female sailors can get noticed as well as last week's news that women's teams will be involved in the next America's Cup.

Chris Bouzaid has been called the father of New Zealand international keelboat yachting who inspired the likes of Sir Peter Blake and Grant Dalton. He was the first non-Australian to win the Sydney-Hobart Race, first non-European to win the One Ton Cup which, in those days, sat only behind the America's Cup in terms of importance, and was part of the New Zealand team that finished 1, 2, 3 at the 1971 Sydney-Hobart Race, something that had never been done before, and which saw New Zealand claim the Southern Cross Cup. These achievements saw Chris named New Zealand sportsman of the year in 1969, and he was also inducted into the New Zealand sports hall of fame, awarded an MBE and listed as one of New Zealand's sportsmen of the 20th century. But Chris considers himself more of a businessman than a top yachtie and also ran one of the world's biggest sail making businesses. It was something he was thrust into early in life, taking over his dad's business with his brother when only a teenager, but he recognised the importance of marketing and did a lot of this through his yachting exploits. We traverse a lot of Chris Bouzaid's career on and off the water in this podcast and the part he played in awakening New Zealand's passion for international yachting. He tells the story of the day he shared the front page with the moon landing, how he won 121 races with his famous yacht Rainbow II, the impact hosting the 1971 One Ton Cup had on this country and the embarrassing, but scary, tale of his worst wipeout ever.

Finishing fourth at an Olympic Games is one of the hardest things for any athlete to go through and, unfortunately, it's what happened to Paul Snow-Hansen and Dan Willcox at the recent Tokyo Olympics. What made it even more emotional was the fact the medal race was probably the last time the pair will sail a 470 competitively together with the class going to a mixed format for the 2024 Paris Olympics. Paul and Dan are presently in MIQ in Christchurch but Broad Reach Radio caught up with them just before they left Enoshima, the sailing venue for the Games. They reflected on that Olympic campaign as well as the nine years they had been sailing together. But their association goes back way further than that, to the time they competed against each other as young Opti sailors and went to junior world championships as teammates. Paul and Dan have some good stories to tell, like the time they scrambled to get out of Spain as Covid-19 took a hold on the world and how their Rio Olympics was scuppered by illness but they also give a good insight into what it's like being an Olympic sailor and the impact it has on loved ones. And, of course, they tell the stories of their worst wipeouts ever.

The Olympics have played a large part in Tom Ashley's life, firstly as a competitor and Olympic gold medallist, then as an international coach and now as a CEO of a national sporting organisation with high hopes of success in Tokyo. In this episode of Broad Reach Radio, we talk to Tom about the many layers to his journey, from growing up in the sport at a time of remarkable success in this country and his non-conventional approaches to training to achieving his lifelong goal and then rather stumbling into coaching in a vastly different environment to the one he was used to. Tom also talks about how he got into sports administration and his plans for the future and offers his thoughts on what athletes can expect at the upcoming Tokyo Olympics. Tom Ashley is articulate, thoughtful and engaging and has a really good recall of details, which all come across in this podcast.

Few people have done as much in sailing as John Cutler. He's been involved in five America's Cups and will next month go to his fifth Olympics – he came home from his first in 1988 with a medal – and is also a multiple world champion and Admiral's Cup winner. On top of that, John has been a professional sailor for more than 30 years, and also been heavily involved as a coach and official. John talks about his journey, from lanky teenager who discovered the sport after moving to New Zealand to his place now as an elder statesman, and most things in between. He never really thought you could make a career out of sailing, and still wonders how he has in an industry he's labelled as precarious because of its ruthlessness, politics and egos. John is well liked and well respected and offers a good perspective on the sport and his place in it in this podcast. 

Suzanne McFadden has been instrumental in the upsurge in coverage of women's sport in this country and was recently named New Zealand sport journalist of the year. She's also had a long association with sailing, having reported on the sport since the early 1990s. Suzanne writes almost exclusively about women's sport these days, and talks in this podcast about a range of topics from quotas in professional sailing to the dangers of an unhealthy lifestyle for top athletes and what more can be done to shine a light on females. She also dives into a number of stories from reporting on sailing, like the time Team New Zealand tried to influence her, how Peter Blake became synonymous with red socks, her run-in with Chris Dickson and the story behind the split in Team New Zealand in the early 2000s.

Thousands of people with disabilities go sailing every year and it’s a side of our sport that is growing all the time as people experience a level of freedom and control that can be hard for them to find elsewhere in life. Tim Dempsey and Brendan Tourelle both play major roles in Sailability, the name given to sailing for people with disabilities, and talk in this podcast about who can participate, the technology used, where the sport can take them and what it is even like to get out on the water. Both Tim and Brendan bring plenty of their own experiences, given both are confined to wheelchairs, and tell their vastly different but powerful stories. They also delve into some of their experiences on the international circuit, including Tim’s journey to the 2012 London Paralympics, what the racing scene is like in this country and the chances of sailing being included again on the programme for the Paralympics. Tim and Brendan were open and honest in this podcast but mostly enthusiastic about the possibilities for people with disabilities to get involved in sailing. If you haven’t seen Sailability in action, it can be very inspiring and they’re always looking for more people to get involved.

Peter Montgomery has the most recognisable voice in world sailing and is known colloquially as the Voice of the America’s Cup, having commentated the last 13 editions of the Auld Mug. But he’s much more than that having also been involved in the broadcast of all 13 round the world races and the last 10 Olympic Games, not to mention countless All Blacks tests and weekend sports shows. Peter delves into some of the highlights of his 51-year broadcasting career, how he stumbled into the industry, how he pioneered many of the approaches to modern broadcasting and his relationship with a mythical little old lady with blue rinse hair from Riverton. He also talks about the story behind one of the most recognisable pieces of New Zealand sporting commentary, the time Dennis Conner labelled Team New Zealand cheats, what made Sir Peter Blake tick and how Team Zealand wouldn’t have won the 1995 America’s Cup without him, and his take on his sometimes frosty relationship with Grant Dalton. On a more personal level, he opens up about one episode in his life he’s not altogether proud about, namely his reaction to being told he had cancer. Peter is full of stories, and has an incredible recall for details and dates. He's one of the special characters whose influence goes well beyond sailing because he's had an enduring impact on sport in general and New Zealand broadcasting.

Statistics show the number of females who belong to yachting and boating clubs in this country drops from about 30 percent at youth level to 20 percent at senior level. This is something clubs and Yachting New Zealand are trying to address and leading a lot of the work in this area is Rosie Chapman. Rosie is the women’s sailing manager and Laser Radial coach at Yachting New Zealand and is focused on attracting more female participants, retaining those already sailing and also advancing equal opportunities. We talk about a range of things in this podcast from quotas and gender equity at the high performance level to pathways and obstacles. But we also discuss important topics like menstruation and body image and what needs to be done to cater more to the needs of female sailors. Rosie also talks about her journey from high performance sailor to coach and how this has affected her outlook and opens up about some of the struggles she’s faced. This was a really good discussion about some important issues and it would be useful for any young sailors, both female and male, and their parents and coaches to have a listen.

Max Sirena is an America’s Cup survivor, having done seven campaigns with various teams, but he has a burning desire to win the America’s Cup with an Italian team. He got close recently, taking Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli to the America’s Cup match, but ultimately came up short against Emirates Team New Zealand. The team boss dissects Luna Rossa’s campaign in this podcast - the dual helmsman strategy, their top speed, the pivotal race eight when they led by nearly nine minutes only to lose and what happened for his relationship with Emirates Team New Zealand to break down. But we also delve into what happens next, like Max’s future with Luna Rossa and the America’s Cup, his thoughts on where and when the next one will be and the impact some of the new rules will have on other teams.

Dave Austin is well known to many in the New Zealand and Australian sailing communities as Dr Dave. He’s sailed more than 40,000 offshore miles, done a number of Sydney Hobart races, a couple of two-handed Round North Island races and raced up to the Pacific Islands multiple times. He’s also one of the pre-eminent intensive care specialists in Australasia and in 2019 was nominated for Australian of the Year despite being a Kiwi. Dr Dave, who has assisted with a number of medical emergencies at sea and been Yachting New Zealand’s medical officer since 2015, talks about what yachties and boaties should do to make sure they are prepared if the worst happens. He also delves into some of his sailing experiences, like when he had to walk away from Digby Taylor’s Whitbread campaign in 1985, his dramatic experiences during the 2002 Round North Island Race when he was nearly washed onto the rocks at Cape Palliser and the time he was so sleep deprived he thought he saw a flock of sheep on the foredeck.

Elana Connor’s story is a remarkable and powerful one. Born into a violent family where she feared for her life, she ran away from home as a teenager and bounced around foster homes until she reached 18 and was told to fend for herself. By accident, she discovered sailing and it’s given her purpose and direction. Elana arrived in New Zealand at the end of 2019 as she circumnavigated the globe and has been here ever since. She’s now close to finishing a figure eight of New Zealand and along the way has been casting light on the 6000 children in care and raising money for them to participate in a Spirit of New Zealand adventure. It’s a programme that is gaining traction and momentum and Elana would love nothing more than to see this develop into something much broader. Elana tells her amazing story on this podcast, from the trauma of her childhood and seemingly hopeless situation she found herself in, to suddenly sailing solo around the world. She talks about the challenges she’s faced along the way, including being in New Zealand when Covid-19 hit, the impact her journey around the country has had so far, what Kiwis, including yacht clubs, can do to make sailing more inclusive and how she’s been able to rebuild her own life.

Simon van Velthooven has made an art form out of turning pedals. In a past life he was a world-class track cyclist, winning Olympic, world championship and Commonwealth Games medals. Now he’s a sailor with Emirates Team New Zealand and next week will help them defend the America’s Cup against Luna Rossa. The 32-year-old made a name for himself as a top cyclist, highlighted by the bronze medal he won in the keirin at the 2012 London Olympics. He was involved during the emergence of the highly-successful New Zealand track cycling programme and he delves into that but also the weird and wonderful world of professional keirin racing in Japan where cyclists were essentially seen as colourful greyhounds riding on steel-frame bikes complete with padding and oversized helmets. It was all done among the backdrop of a monk-like existence and the spectre of big-money betting and the Japanese mafia. It was Simon’s achievements on the bike which landed him an invitation to work with Team New Zealand in 2016 as they explored putting bikes on boats. He liked what he saw, hung around and found himself on the boat in Bermuda as they won the America’s Cup. Incredibly, his first sailing race was and America’s Cup race. Simon is still with the team but has had to reinvent himself as a traditional grinder, turning handles with his arms rather than his legs. Simon, though, has fallen in love with sailing and can often be found in his spare time racing keelboats, and he’s also worked in the industry beyond the America’s Cup.

Shirley Robertson is one of the most recognisable voices in the sailing world, as a commentator for anything from the Olympics and America’s Cup to magazine shows and SailGP. She’s also one of the most successful female sailors of all time, having won two Olympic titles and been named female world sailor of the year. There are so many layers to her story, and she talks about her work as a broadcaster, including her present role as part of the commentary team for the America’s Cup in Auckland, and delves into her experiences as a sailor which featured heartbreak before success. We also explore gender inequality in the sport, talk about her plans to chase a third Olympic gold medal in Paris in 2024 and, like all guests, Shirley details her worst wipeout ever.

Jim Turner was a leading figure in American Magic's challenge for the America’s Cup, which ended last week when they were eliminated from the Prada Cup. Jim talks about his experiences and observations with the team, including the dramatic capsize that almost saw their boat sink, the impact it had on the team and their incredible recovery to get back on the start line. Jim has been involved in three America’s Cup campaigns, starting with the British challenge in 2003, and he talks about how the competition has changed over that time and where he sees it going. He also gives his thoughts on how the role of the grinder has evolved and what it was like for many in the engine room while on board the AC75s. There’s a lot more to Jim’s career than the America’s Cup and he’s accumulated 15 world titles in various classes and has sailed on a number of different professional circuits. He also competed for New Zealand at the 2012 Olympics, which were sailed only 30km from where he grew up. Jim is also an Opti dad and explains what it’s like now to help his kids as they begin their journey in the sport.

Nigel Blackbourn has been involved in the superyacht industry for a large part of his 40 years at sea. He’s worked for some of the wealthiest people in the world, including the Qatari royal family, overseeing the running of 19 superyachts and hundreds of staff. He was also team boss of the German America’s Cup team in 2007 and more latterly has been captain of the famous schooner Altair, which is often seen as the vessel that set the standard for classic yacht restorations. Nigel talks about what got him into the industry, what it was like to work for the Qatari royal family, some of the demands owners place on their staff and how often he really spends on land each year. He also talks about how people can get into the industry and the similarities of running superyachts and running an America’s Cup campaign.

Conrad Colman astonished the sailing world with his feats in the last Vendee Globe, the single-handed, non-stop race around the world. He faced a catalogue of challenges, from being swept overboard at night in the Southern Ocean, to constant capsizing when his auto pilot played up, a fire on board, his mast nearly coming down in 60+ plus knots in the remotest place on Earth, being dismasted less than 1000 miles from home and then running out of food. The Crazy Kiwi, as he’s known among the fleet, dives into some of these amazing episodes of misadventure but also talks about why he wasn’t among the starters for the present Vendee Globe which started a couple of weeks ago, why he’s desperate to compete in the next one and what the sailors face when they’re on their own for three months at sea.

In 1987 New Zealand won the Admiral's Cup, considered the world championships of keelboat sailing, for the first and only time. It was something New Zealand had been chasing since the mid-1970s and in 1987 it all came together through a combination of good designs, good boats, good team culture and good sailors. The one-tonner Propaganda was the top boat at the regatta and had a top-class crew including Peter Lester on helm and Ross Field on main sheet. Peter and Ross reminisce about the brutal nature of the New Zealand trials, racing in the Solent and the famous Fastnet Race, what the win meant to sailing in this country and what it did for the careers of those involved. They also look back on the personal rivalries, like the one between Brad Butterworth and Lawrie Smith, and controversies, particularly over allegations of cheating by the British team, and also tell the stories of their worst wipeouts ever.

In this podcast we bring you a special edition on New Zealand’s great race. The Coastal Classic was first contested in 1982 and now attracts more than 150 boats for the annual blast up the coast from Auckland to the Bay of Islands. Matthew Flynn took part in the very first race and was also on the organising committee that brought it all together and he's still doing both all these years later. Matthew talks about the race’s origins, some of the changes over the time and what makes it so special, and also explains why he's taken to doing the Coastal Classic single-handedly in recent times. We then catch up with Bianca Cook who will tackle the race on the Volvo 65 she hopes will feature in the next Ocean Race. The Coastal Classic will actually be the first outing in a race for the boat as plans for the New Zealand Ocean Race team step up a gear. We talk to her about the significance of hitting the race track next week and also get an update on her campaign to put together an all-Kiwi team in the next Ocean Race starting in 2022. Our final interview is with Simon Hull, who has done the race more than 30 times, including claiming line honours 10 times, and he also held the race record until last year. Simon talks about chasing race records, the social element and the time he choppered in America’s Cup skipper Jimmy Spithill to join his crew.

Nathan Outteridge is one of the world's top sailors, having been an Olympic 49er champion and four-time world champion, skipper of two America’s Cup campaigns and now skipper and chief executive of the Japan SailGP team. He talks about his journey in this podcast, from training with a young Peter Burling and Blair Tuke and having three America’s Cup syndicates all chasing him at the same time to his superstitions and why he is seemingly so calm on a boat. But he also reflects on the low moments, like the time he was involved in a serious car crash and didn’t know if he would ever be able to sail again, the trauma of seeing an America's Cup teammate killed when out training and the devastation of capsizing with Olympic gold in his sights. Those experiences have shaped Nathan as a sailor and a person and allow him to provide a rich insight into a hugely successful sailing career.

Graeme Sinclair is a boatie who has been the face of the television show Gone Fishing for 27 years, presented various documentaries, been involved in environmental and charity work and written a number of books. He even had a stint as a weatherman. But he’s also done a lot of it living with multiple sclerosis. Graeme talks about his relationship with the ocean and how that has evolved over time. He also traces the background to Gone Fishing, why it has proved so popular both here and overseas and how he, a salesman, ended up presenting the show. Graeme also shares his experiences with MS, the day he received the devastating news, the impact it’s had on his life and why he now talks about it as a gift.

Sally Garrett is best known for her exploits in short-handed sailing, being the only woman to have competed in two Round New Zealand races, and she’s also sailed in three Round North Island races. On top of that, she’s the reigning women’s national keelboat champion, been involved in leading clubs and organising offshore races and was the leading female helm at the last Flying 15 world championships. But Sally also works as an environmental scientist with the defence technology agency and studies the waves, tides and weather in the Southern Ocean in order to make it safer for people to go there.  Sally talks about her experiences in short-handed sailing, both good and bad - the rough weather, injuries, sleep deprivation and mental game - and also the rewards of the sport and how to get more women involved. Sally also delves into her work as an environmental scientist and what a whopping 23.8m wave really looks like and what impact this has on her keelboat and dinghy sailing.

Alistair Moore is probably best described as a sailing adventurer. He's amassed over 300,000 nautical miles at sea and was a member of Blake Expeditions for two years before the ill-fated trip to the Amazon in 2001 when Sir Peter Blake was killed by pirates. Alistair talks about how he was invited to join Blake Expeditions and the joy of working with his childhood hero as well as what happened in the Amazon. He also talks about his determination to try to continue Peter Blake's work after his death and how it brought him to work with the NZ Sailing Trust onboard Blake’s old boats Lion New Zealand and Steinlager 2, and explores similarities he sees in Peter Burling and Blair Tuke.  Alistair likes, as he says, playing boats, having worked at anything from the America’s Cup to coaching in Oman. He was supposed to be setting off this year on a journey to sail around the world with his wife Sarah-Jane – who happens to be Peter Blake’s daughter – but that’s now on hold due to Covid-19.

Barbara Kendall is the rainbow girl of New Zealand sailing, collecting the full range of Olympic medals during an illustrious career, and she's also the only Kiwi woman to win medals at three consecutive Olympics and only New Zealand female to go to five Olympic Games. On top of that, Barbara won 11 windsurfing world championships medals, four of them gold, and 25 national titles. For most of the past 15 years she’s been heavily involved with the International Olympic Committee, and more latterly has been a vice president of the International Surfing Federation, playing a key role in surfing’s inclusion onto the programme for the Olympic Games.   Barbara talks about what influence her brother Bruce had on her, the time she was told she would never windsurf again, how her success changed her life, how she managed to juggle being an elite athlete with motherhood and the moment she knew it was time to retire. She also delves into her work with the IOC as well as her experiences on Dancing With the Stars and Celebrity Treasure Island.

Harold Bennett is best known for being the principal race officer for five America’s Cup between 2000 and 2013. He was front and centre for Team New Zealand’s first defence of the Cup and also their dramatic loss in San Francisco more than a decade later meaning he oversaw racing as it transformed from monohulls to foliling catamarans. But there’s a lot more to Harold than the America’s Cup. He was this country’s first professional sailing coach, is credited with establishing the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron’s youth training programme, coached at five Olympic Games and more latterly has been heavily involved with the Manly Sailing Club and Russell Coutts Sailing Foundation. Harold talks about some of his experiences at the America’s Cup, including the controversy, conflict and craftiness. He delves into the time when race officers he was working with refused to go into a start sequence, swearing on live TV and the pressure he came under with so much at stake. He also details his experience of taking the Pakistan sailing team to the Olympics, how he became involved in race management and how he got roped into working with Russell Coutts. And, of course, like all guests, he tells the story of his worst wipeout ever.

Hamish Willcox has achieved incredible success in the sport as both a sailor and coach. He won three 470 world titles with David Barnes in the early 1980s, was involved with four America’s Cups campaigns and even sailed in the Round the World Race. Since moving into coaching, he’s been to seven Olympic Games and helped his athletes win multiple world championships titles, including Peter Burling and Blair Tuke who have dominated the 49er class for most of the last decade. He talks about his phenomenal success as a sailor but frustrations at never going to an Olympics as an athlete, the 470 scene in New Zealand when this country dominated the class, four-and-a-half hour time limits and wearing water jackets. Hamish also opens up about his transition into coaching and issues with the New Zealand set up, seeing his two children compete at the Olympics and his return to New Zealand and teaming up with Peter Burling and Blair Tuke.

Jenny Armstrong competed at two Olympic Games, one for New Zealand and another for Australia. She went to the 1992 Barcelona Olympics under the New Zealand flag and finished fourth in the Europe dinghy. Eight years later she was sailing at 'home' in Sydney for Australia and winning gold in the women’s 470 with Belinda Stowell. The pair are now members of Australia Sailing’s Hall of Fame. Armstrong’s decision to switch allegiance is one that still irks her but she says it’s one she would still make today if facing the same circumstances.  She goes into the background behind that decision, being written off by legendary coach Victor Kovalenko, winning Australia’s first gold medal in sailing in 28 years, trying to learn the Australian national anthem right up until the moment she stepped onto the dais and her recent return home to Dunedin and move into the world of coaching.

Nick Egnot-Johnson has been second in the world match racing rankings since October 2019, something he achieved when he was still 21. But Nick rather fell into match racing because of an unfortunate set of circumstances. He talks about his earlier days, what influence his mother Leslie Egnot had on him, his Olympic ambitions and how he got into match racing. He also delves into how he found himself racing, and often beating, some of the world’s best at the Congressional Cup when a relative unknown, the times he’s felt like a salesman trying to get into events and the amusing story behind how his team, Knots Racing, came up with their name. 

Aaron McIntosh has worn a series of different hats throughout his career. As an athlete, he won three windsurfing world titles in the 1990s and went on to win bronze at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. For the last decade he’s been the windsurfing coach with the Dutch national team and achieved incredible success, delivering multiple world and Olympic titles. More latterly, Aaron has been an advocate for windfoiling, pushing for the class to replace the RS:X on the Olympic programme, which was confirmed late last year for the 2024 Paris Olympics. We talk to Aaron about his journey to the top as an athlete, his relationship with Bruce Kendall and his Olympic experiences and then his reinvention as a top coach. We also delve into why someone who coached the world’s top two RS:X windsurfers would push so vigorously to see that class dropped in favour of windfoiling, and what he thinks the change could mean to the New Zealand windsurfing scene which was once at the top of the world but has been largely dormant for the best part of the last decade.

Justina Kitchen has rapidly established herself as one of the world's best female kitefoilers and has her sights on the 2024 Paris Olympics. It will be her third attempt at competing at an Olympic Games after previous attempts in windsurfing but this campaign is completely different and she does it as a mum of two young girls. Justina talks about growing up as the daughter of two-time Olympic medallist Rex Sellers, coping with Olympic dreams being shattered then acceptance that going to a Games just wasn't meant to be and now renewed hope of achieving that ambition with the goalposts shifting yet again. She also discusses the difficulties of campaigning as a fulltime mum and offers advice to others interested in taking up the fledgling sport of kitefoiling.

Josh Junior and Andy Maloney both wear a couple of different sailing hats these days. Both are America’s Cup winners with Emirates Team New Zealand and they're also among the world’s best Finn sailors, with Josh becoming the first Kiwi to win the prestigious Finn Gold Cup in 2019 and Andy currently ranked third in the world. They talk about their pathway to the top, weight gain, riding bikes on boats, their Olympic experiences and what the 12-month delay to the Tokyo Games means for them, getting to grips with a new class and, like everyone on the show, their worst wipeout ever.

Last week marked the 25th anniversary of Team New Zealand's victory at the 1995 America’s Cup but that was only one of a number of major storylines during a dramatic event. Leslie Egnot was skipper and helm of America3, a women’s team who came agonisingly close to beating Dennis Conner and Stars and Stripes for the right to defend the Cup against Team New Zealand. In many ways, that team became a symbol for feminism, not only in sailing, yet they encountered so many obstacles along the way, whether it was gender stereotypes or some pretty unkind jibes from Dennis Conner himself. Leslie tells her story from the '95 campaign, how she became involved, the challenge of putting a competitive team together, her interactions with Dennis Conner, the controversy of a man being substituted onto the boat from the semifinals series and the backroom deal that saw Conner’s team survive to make it to the final and ultimately take on Team New Zealand. She also delves into her Olympic sailing and the injury that ended her career.

Sam and Molly Meech are best known for winning bronze and silver respectively at the 2016 Rio Olympics but they also spent seven years as youngsters sailing around the world before returning to New Zealand and making a name for themselves in the youth and Olympics classes. They talk about their upbringing, being accosted by the military in the Red Sea, going to school for the first time when Sam was 12, being part of the highly-successful generation of sailors to come out of Tauranga, their experiences at the Rio Olympics and their achievements and challenges on the world stage.

Glenn Ashby is New Zealand's favourite Australian sailor and in 2017 skippered Emirates Team New Zealand to victory in the America's Cup in Bermuda. In this podcast, Glenn talks about that campaign and how things are shaping up for the next one but also delves into his background, his love of motorbikes, winning the first of his 17 world titles on his first overseas trip as a green 18-year-old, the impact of missing out on winning gold at the Beijing Olympics and what it was like for the boy from Bendigo to get immersed in the big business world of the America's Cup. And, like all guests, he describes his worst wipeout ever, and it was a painful one.

In 2018 Bianca Cook became the first Kiwi woman since 2001/02 to compete in the Ocean Race and now she's looking to be the first Kiwi woman to skipper a boat in the iconic round the world race. She talks about her plans for the next Ocean Race but also shares her experiences from her first trip around the globe, looking at some of the highs and the lows. And like all guests, Bianca dives into her world wipeout ever. 

Phil Robertson is a Kiwi sailor in demand as a multiple world world champion, SailGP skipper and former world No 1 match racer, but it wasn't always an easy pathway to the top. He talks about his journey in the sport as well as the time he was rescued by the Auckland police boat, his run-in with Sir Ben Ainsley and what it was like to get his hands on the flying SailGP catamaran for the first time. He also tells his story of his worst wipeout ever, and it's not a pretty one.

Team Jolly (Jo Aleh and Polly Powrie) went into the 2016 Rio Olympics as one of the favourites for gold but plenty went against them in a dramatic regatta that saw them disqualified from two races. Somehow, though, they managed to secure silver in a result they look back on as their proudest achievement. Jo and Polly reflect on what happened in Rio and then talk about the many challenges they have faced adjusting to life away from Olympic campaigning.