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This month, podcast host and Double Olympic gold medallist Shirley Robertson talks to the first American woman to have sailed non-stop, alone, around the planet, as the remarkable Cole Brauer takes time out from an Admiral's Cup campaign to sit down and talk about her remarkable career to date.
It was in March 2024, aged just 29, that American sailor Cole Brauer crossed the finish line of the Global Solo Challenge in her Class40 First Light. After 130 days at sea, she'd set a new Class40 record, and scored a second place in the first edition of the race. Remarkably, she also became the first ever woman from the United States to sail non-stop solo around the planet. Her story is a tale of grit, determination and perseverance, and it's a story she tells well.
In a candid interview with Robertson, Brauer discusses the drive and motivations behind her success, which are varied and complex, but also admits to drawing on inspiration from famed British solo legend, Dame Ellen MacArthur...:"This woman is my size, she is...against all these very very skilled experienced men and in the the early 2000s, especially to do it at such a young age and...she killed it, she completely rocked it and I remember just crying and thinking 'That's it, I've got to do that, whatever it takes, that's my way in to this offshore world'. And of course that's pretty far fetched for anyone from the United States, man or woman, because there isn't that many people that are American that have even thought about the Vendee...or even know what it is. But I knew at that moment after reading her book that that was what I really wanted to do."
Brauer's interview reveals a comparatively late discovery of the sport, early days spent living in a van, working through a long list of boatyard jobs, before significant success in the Bermuda One-Two led to bigger opportunities. Brauer backed herself, seized the opportunities and soon found herself on the start line of the solo non stop Global Solo Challenge. It's an inspiring tale, that over the race, Brauer would share with a growing number of fans. Throughout the 130 days, her following grew by the thousands, so much so that she currently boasts more Instagram followers than almost any other sailing based account on the photo sharing platform...:
"After the first month we went from ten thousand followers and I finished the first month with one hundred thousand followers, and then it just accelerated from there, where we were just getting seven thousand followers a day, and these people were real, they were real like your Mom and Pop just watching this, who had no idea, anything about sailing."
By Part 2 of this two-part episode, the social media aspect to Cole's story leads to an interesting discussion as she reveals to Robertson the good and the bad sides of daily posts to hundreds of thousands of followers. The duo also then discuss Brauer's feeling of responsibility as a role model, a position she takes very seriously, and her feelings on the lack of opportunity for women in the sport.
This edition of the podcast is in two parts and is available to listen to via the podcast page of Shirley’s own website - www.shirleyrobertson.com/podcast or via most popular podcast outlets, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcast and aCast. The podcast is produced and written by Tim Butt - for further enquires, please contact [email protected].Support the show
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This is Part 2 of podcast host and Double Olympic gold medallist Shirley Robertson's chat with the first American woman to have sailed non-stop, alone, around the planet - the remarkable Cole Brauer, who took time out from an Admiral's Cup campaign to sit down and talk about her remarkable career to date.
In Part 1 we hear how, aged just 29, American Brauer crossed the finish line of the Global Solo Challenge in her Class40 First Light. Throughout the first episode Brauer discusses her late discovery of the sport, a passion for sailing offshore and how she found herself taking up the opportunity of a solo round the world race.
Brauer had backed herself, seized the opportunities and soon found herself on the start line of the solo non stop Global Solo Challenge. It's an inspiring tale, that over the race, Brauer would share with a growing number of fans. Throughout the 130 days, her following grew by the thousands, so much so that she currently boasts more Instagram followers than almost any other sailing based account on the photo sharing platform...:
"After the first month we went from ten thousand followers and I finished the first month with one hundred thousand followers, and then it just accelerated from there, where we were just getting seven thousand followers a day, and these people were real, they were real like your Mom and Pop just watching this, who had no idea, anything about sailing."
The social media aspect to Cole's story leads to an interesting discussion as she reveals to Robertson the good and the bad sides of daily posts to hundreds of thousands of followers. The duo also then discuss Brauer's feeling of responsibility as a role model, a position she takes very seriously, and her feelings on the lack of opportunity for women in the sport...:
"I'm living in a van in the parking lot. And the guy next to me is making ridiculously more money than me. Why...? It's because he asked for more. Because he walked into the room and he realised with what he was worth."
It's a topic Brauer is passionate about, but she also discusses this in an eloquent and powerful manner.
Shortly after the interview, Brauer went on to win the Admiral's Cup as part of Monaco Yacht Club's two boat Jolt team. She is currently co-skipper onboard IMOCA Malizia, competing on the Ocean Race Europe.
This edition of the podcast is in two parts and is available to listen to via the podcast page of Shirley’s own website - www.shirleyrobertson.com/podcast or via most popular podcast outlets, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcast and aCast. The podcast is produced and written by Tim Butt - for further enquires, please contact [email protected].Support the show
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This is Part 2 of Double Olympic gold medallist and podcast host Shirley Robertson's chat with eight-time World Match Racing Champion Ian Williams, as the duo get together to discuss Williams' career at the sharp end of the most combative discipline in the sport of competitive sailing.
Williams discusses his early route to the top of the World Match Racing Tour rankings, a climb that involved turning his back on a full job as a lawyer, to make the most of his very obvious talent in the tough one-on-one world of match racing. It is however clear that the analytical and exacting approach required from a legal professional did not escape him, having made the switch to full time match racing...:
"One day I thought 'hang on, we're pretty good at this, we're pretty fast, we can read the shifts well, we've got the start under control, how's is he going to beat us', and suddenly that was like a light bulb going off, and suddenly we were able to beat him and from that day on I haven't focused on other boats, I've always gone with the approach that if we just go with our plays we should be good."For any sailor interested in the complexities of the match racing world, this is a fascinating listen. Williams has won the tour an unprecedented eight times, and has a unique approach to taking on the world's best and winning.
"I think the most useful is a frame work for what is a winning start, and how do you get there. The most useful thing is being able to analyse after the start how you won or lost and why, and that often gets lost if you don't have that framework. Sometimes you win by luck, by default, by a mistake by the other boat and if you haven't understood why you've won, then you're not learning."But from a discipline that was once a well trodden path to America's Cup involvement Williams also discusses how the Cup's move to multi hulls and then foiling left the multiple Match Racing World Tour winner without an America's Cup pathway...:
"The America's Cup was the dream that made me quit the law and go sailing, that was in 2005, in 2007 the last displacement monohull Cup was the same year that I made number one in the match racing world rankings and then the game moved away from me and if I look at it critically I didn't have the flexibility to adapt quickly enough to where the game went....by the time I figured out catamaran sailing the boats were foiling."
His disappointment has been the British AC37 team's gain, as Williams discusses his role in Barcelona as Pre-Start coach at Sir Ben Ainslie's INEOS Britannia team.Throughout this two part podcast Williams and Robertson touch on a wide range of subjects around the complexities of Williams' journey from a nine year old school chess champion to his position as one of the most respected match racing champions in the sport of sailing.
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This month, Double Olympic gold medallist and podcast host Shirley Robertson is joined by eight-time World Match Racing Champion Ian Williams, as the duo get together to discuss Williams' career at the sharp end of the most combative discipline in the sport of competitive sailing. This is Part 1 of the two part edition.
Williams discusses his early route to the top of the World Match Racing Tour rankings, a climb that involved turning his back on a full job as a lawyer, to make the most of his very obvious talent in the tough one-on-one world of match racing. It is however clear that the analytical and exacting approach required from a legal professional did not escape him, having made the switch to full time match racing...:
"One day I thought 'hang on, we're pretty good at this, we're pretty fast, we can read the shifts well, we've got the start under control, how's is he going to beat us', and suddenly that was like a light bulb going off, and suddenly we were able to beat him and from that day on I haven't focused on other boats, I've always gone with the approach that if we just go with our plays we should be good."For any sailor interested in the complexities of the match racing world, this is a fascinating listen. Williams has won the tour an unprecedented eight times, and has a unique approach to taking on the world's best and winning.
"I think the most useful is a frame work for what is a winning start, and how do you get there. The most useful thing is being able to analyse after the start how you won or lost and why, and that often gets lost if you don't have that framework. Sometimes you win by luck, by default, by a mistake by the other boat and if you haven't understood why you've won, then you're not learning."But from a discipline that was once a well trodden path to America's Cup involvement Williams also discusses how the Cup's move to multi hulls and then foiling left the multiple Match Racing World Tour winner without an America's Cup pathway...:
"The America's Cup was the dream that made me quit the law and go sailing, that was in 2005, in 2007 the last displacement monohull Cup was the same year that I made number one in the match racing world rankings and then the game moved away from me and if I look at it critically I didn't have the flexibility to adapt quickly enough to where the game went....by the time I figured out catamaran sailing the boats were foiling."
His disappointment has been the British AC37 team's gain, as Williams discusses his role in Barcelona as Pre-Start coach at Sir Ben Ainslie's INEOS Britannia team.Throughout this two part podcast Williams and Robertson touch on a wide range of subjects around the complexities of Williams' journey from a nine year old school chess champion to his position as one of the most respected match racing champions in the sport of sailing.
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This is Part two of Double Olympic gold medallist Shirley Robertson's chat with US sailing legend Ed Baird. A World Sailor of the Year award winner, Baird also holds a coveted spot in the America's Cup Hall of Fame, he's a multiple Match Racing World Champion and is a regular across multiple Grand Prix Sailing leagues, from the 52 Super Series to the Maxi circuit.
Robertson and Baird regularly sailed against each other back in days of the Extreme Sailing Series, but their chat was a little less competitive as Baird dropped by while in Cowes training for this summer's Admirals Cup. In this Part 2 the pair begin their discussion talking about Baird's 1999/2000 Challenge for the America's Cup in Auckland New Zealand, a Challenge representing the Newe York Yacht Squadron that was going well, but did not end as planned..,:"You could see the waves coming and we hopped up out of the water and smashed down on the next wave and the boat broke in half!"
Baird continued his involvement in the Cup and ultimately ended up in Valencia with Swiss Defender Alinghi, initially, again, under helm, Russell Coutts, but soon that was all to change..."The team...were missing Russell and they expected him to come back, and they spent a year this way, expecting that he'll come back with us...but he didn't....so I went to talk to Brad and the team and they asked me to come and work with them." Baird ended up steering the boat, and went on to helm a Cup victory as Alinghi successfully defended in Valencia.
Throughout this two part podcast Baird and Robertson touch on a wide range of topics, from Olympic Sailing to nationality rules, and a whole host in between, as they wind their way down the fascinating road that is Ed Baird's long and distinguished career as a pro sailor.
This edition of the podcast is in two parts and is available to listen to via the podcast page of Shirley’s own website - www.shirleyrobertson.com/podcast or via most popular podcast outlets, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcast and aCast. The podcast is produced and written by Tim Butt - for further enquires, please contact [email protected].
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Shirley Robertson's Sailing Podcast is back for another season of interviews with leading lights from the world of sailing, and the new season kicks off with US sailing legend Ed Baird. A World Sailor of the Year award winner, Baird also holds a coveted spot in the America's Cup Hall of Fame, he's a multiple Match Racing World Champion and is a regular across multiple Grand Prix Sailing leagues, from the 52 Super Series to the Maxi circuit.
Robertson and Baird regularly sailed against each other back in days of the Extreme Sailing Series, but their chat was a little less competitive as Baird dropped by while in Cowes training for this summer's Admirals Cup. The pair begin their two part chat with a discussion on Baird's early career, and how at just twenty two, he won the ultra competitive Laser Worlds in Kingston, Ontario, a regatta boasting the largest World Championship fleet the class has ever had...:
"When you look back at the scoresheet from that race and you see the world class pros that we know today finishing seventy third or fifty seventh, you just think 'wow I didn't even know that guy then and look what he's done in the sport' so it really makes me feel lucky to have had the chance to do that."From a hard won Laser World Championships win, Baird and Robertson discuss his fight to make a name for himself on the star studded Match Racing scene, but also touch on his multiple and ultimately unsuccessful campaigns to sail for Team USA at the Olympic Games. There's also some real nuggets of information from the three time Match Racing World Champion on his approach to the sport before the duo discuss Baird's entry into the world of the America's Cup...:
"I was walking down (Cowes) high street and walked around the corner and literally bumped into Russell Coutts and he said 'How's it going with the Australians' and I said 'Oh, well, it's not' and he said 'You should come work for us'....so next thing you know I'm working for Team New Zealand" and within weeks Baird was in San Diego coaching the ultimate winners of the 1995 America's Cup.
Episode One of this Two Part edition sees the duo discuss Baird's coaching role with the successful New Zealand Team, lead by Coutts, as they won trhe America's Cup for the first time, beating Dennis Connor in San Diego.
In the next Episode the pair then touch on a wide range of topics, from Olympic Sailing to nationality rules, and a whole host in between, as they wind their way down the fascinating road that is Ed Baird's long and distinguished career as a pro sailor.
This edition of the podcast is in two parts and is available to listen to via the podcast page of Shirley’s own website - www.shirleyrobertson.com/podcast or via most popular podcast outlets, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcast and aCast. The podcast is produced and written by Tim Butt - for further enquires, please contact [email protected].Support the show
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This edition of the podcast sees Shirley Robertson in Barcelona just days after the end of the 37th America's Cup. With the smell of champagne still fresh in the air, Robertson sits down with successful Defenders Emirates Team New Zealand, to talk to port side helm Nathan Outteridge, and sailing team coach RayDavies, to discuss how the Cup was won. In this edition Robertson also talks to Challenger INEOS Britannia's port side helm Dylan Fletcher and starboard trimmer Bleddyn Monn, about the most successful British Challenge in the modern Cup era.
Part One of this edition of the podcast sees Robertson discuss the Cup Match, first with Fletcher and then with Outteridge.
Having commentated on every moment of every race throughout the Barcelona Cup regatta, Robertson is well placed to quiz her four guests and kicks things off with Cup rookie Dylan Fletcher. An Olympic 49er gold medallist from Tokyo, Fletcher was a late edition to the afterguard at INEOS Britannia but played a pivotal role in mastering the AC75 and progressing through an enthralling Louis Vuitton Challenger Series, which ultimately saw the British team reach the Cup Match for the first time in sixty years...:
"It was unbelievable to cross the finish line and book our place in the Match, obviously it was too long since a British boat was in that and to do that alongside Ben and the rest of the Team that's been ten years in the making was a massive achievement."
Robertson stays with the port side helm seat as she then jumps yachts, to talk the Defender's Nathan Outteridge, another 49er Olympic gold medallist, and former training partner to Team New Zealand starboard helm Pete Burling. Outteridge is no stranger to Cup campaigns having twice represented Sweden's Team Artemis Racing in previous America's Cups, but was sailing a Cup match for the very first time, against a very well matched opponent...:
"I received an update from the design team saying 'this would be the expected performance deltas between the hulls in a thirty minute race' and it was under five seconds. Between all of them "
For Part Two of this edition, Robertson shifts back to the Challenger to talk to INEOS Britannia's starboard trimmer Bleddyn Mon. She then goes on to talk to Emirates Team New Zealand super coach, multiple Cup winner Ray Davies.
Throughout this podcast all of Robertson's discussions serve to illustrate the dedication and intensity of racing the AC75s at such a high level. Attention to detail, processes and systems are all discussed to a fascinating degree as each team member reflects on their time racing the Cup Match in Barcelona.
This edition of the podcast is in two parts and is available to listen to via the podcast page of Shirley’s own website - www.shirleyrobertson.com/podcast or via most popular podcast outlets, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcast and aCast. The podcast is produced and written by Tim Butt - for further enquires, please contact [email protected].Support the show
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This two part edition of the podcast sees Shirley Robertson in Barcelona just days after the end of the 37th America's Cup. In Part One she sits down with successful Defenders Emirates Team New Zealand, to talk to port side helm Nathan Outteridge, and Challenger of Record INEOS Britannia's Dylan Fletcher, while in this, Part Two, Robertson talks to Team New Zealand's sailing team coach Ray Davies, and to INEOS Britannia's starboard trimmer Bleddyn Mon.
Robertson commentated on every match of the thirty seventh America's Cup so is well placed to quiz her four guests and kicks things of in Part Two of this edition, with Bleddyn Mon. Sailing in his third America's Cup with Ben Ainslie's British team, Mon studied as an aeronautical engineer and has a key role in data analysis...:
"A lot of the races are won and lost by a few metres here and there and that distance you can really claw back in some manoeuvres and small gains in performance so a big part for us was in manoeuvres, we spent a lot of time looking at tacks. Every single day!"
Robertson's final chat is with America's Cup regular Ray Davies. Sailing coach at Emirates Team New Zealand, Ray has been a permanent fixture in the Team since 2003, Barcelona marking his seventh Cup campaign after a career chasing the illusive trophy. He's done so with some success, boasting multiple wins for Team New Zealand both on and off the boat, and has relished his time coaching a sailing team rich in high end sailing expertise...:
"They developed a boat that at the end of the day was relatively easy to sail, because they put the hours and hours into the systems and the way they could change the modes on the boat relatively easily, so when they were actually racing....the steering of the boat became the easy part of it."
Throughout this podcast all of Robertson's discussions serve to illustrate the dedication and intensity of racing the AC75s at such a high level. Attention to detail, processes and systems are all discussed to a fascinating degree as each team member reflects on their time racing the Cup Match in Barcelona.
This edition of the podcast is in two parts and is available to listen to via the podcast page of Shirley’s own website - www.shirleyrobertson.com/podcast or via most popular podcast outlets, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcast and aCast. The podcast is produced and written by Tim Butt - for further enquires, please contact [email protected].Support the show
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This month on Shirley Robertson's Sailing Podcast we preview the 37th America's Cup, as the city of Barcelona readies for what promises to be one of the most exciting editions of the famous trophy.
Five Challengers are set to battle it out on the fastest foiling monohulls ever built, as they go head to head in the Louis Vuitton Cup, in a fight to take on the Defender, the current holder of the trophy, Emirates Team New Zealand.
Robertson talks to representatives from all six of the Cup teams, chatting to team members with a wide range of roles, to get a real insight from across the fleet into what to expect come race day.
In this edition, Part One, Robertson kicks off with Emirates Team New Zealand naval architecht, Dan Bernasconi, the brains behind the AC75, the foiling mono-hull that all six teams have built for this edition. With all six AC75s now blasting around the waters off Barcelona at speeds of up to fifty knots, Bernasconi discusses some of the differences between the race boats, as well as discussing changes to the rules for this edition, and the issues that the lumpier sea state off Barcelona may bring.
Robertson also then talks to Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli's port-side helm, Francesco Bruni, helming partner to Jimmy Spithill in the last Cup, the pair that pioneered the dual-helm setup now favoured by all of the America's Cup teams. While at Luna Rossa, Robertson also caught up with match racing guru Philippe Presti, to take a look at how the increased manoeuvrability of the version two AC75s may lead to more engagement and closer racing as the Challenger Series kicks off.
Robertson then heads to AC37 HQ, to catch up with Abby Ehler, the offshore sailing legend and sailing logistics supremo now tasked with delivering the Youth and Women's editions of the America's Cup. Twelve teams will compete in the AC40 race boats for both the UniCredit Youth America's Cup and the Puig Women's America's Cup, the youth event making a return to the regatta after a break in AC36 due to covid travel restrictions. This is however the very first time a women's regatta will take place at the America's Cup, a first that is heralded as a landmark event in sailing's long road to gender equality.
This edition of the podcast is in two parts - in part two Robertson catches up with representatives of the remaining four teams.Support the show
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This month on Shirley Robertson's Sailing Podcast Shirley previews the 37th America's Cup, as the city of Barcelona readies for what promises to be one of the most exciting editions of the famous trophy.
Five Challengers are set to battle it out on the fastest foiling monohulls ever built, as they go head to head in the Louis Vuitton Cup, in a fight to take on the Defender, the current holder of the trophy, Emirates Team New Zealand.
Robertson talks to representatives from all six of the Cup teams, chatting to team members with a wide range of roles, to get a real insight from across the fleet into what to expect come race day.
In this the second episode of this two part edition Robertson kicks things off talking to INEOS Britannia's Design Lead, Martin Fischer. Based at Brackley in the UK, Fischer and his Cup design team share an office with the might of the designers behind Lewis Hamilton and George Russell's Mercedes AMG Formula 1 team, so an obvious discussion point is the influence on F1 design on the increasingly imnportant area of aerodynamics. Fischer was lead design at Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli for the last edition of the Cup, and is an expert voice on the evolution of the AC75 design rule, as well as some ideas on how the other teams' boats are shaping up.
Robertson then heads to Orient Express Racing Team, to talk to team CEO Bruno Dubois. Leading a French team that's based heavily on the talented French Sail GP team, Dubois discusses the talented line up in his team of Quentin Delapierre and Kevin Peponnet, he talks about the design package deal between the team and the Defender, and discusses the fact the team were the last to launch their AC75 in Barcelona.
From France, Robertson heads across the Barcelona yacht basin, to the home of American Magic, to site down with podcast regular and all around sailing super-helm, Tom Slingsby. Part of the American dual-helm seup with Paul Goodison, Slingsby is a previous Cup winner, but missed the previous Cup in Auckland, The pair discuss much about sailing the AC75, compare it to the F50 of Sail GP, but also discuss the adoption of recumbent cyclors by the American Team, the only team in the Cup to do so.
Robertson's final chat is with Swiss Olympic rowing star Barnabe Delarze, one of several rowers in the cyclor team at Alinghi Red Bull Racing. A two time Olympian with a win in the famous University Boat Race on his CV, Delarze discusses life as an AC37 cyclor, how pivotal the role is, why so many of the teams are packed with Olympic rowers, and what winning the Cup for two time winners Alinghi would mean to the team.
This edition of the podcast is in two parts.Support the show
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Tales from The America's Cup with Six Time Winner Murray Jones
This month's podcast sees Shirley Robertson talking to New Zealand's Murray Jones about a remarkable career spanning over two decades chasing the oldest trophy in international sport.
Talking during a break in racing at the St Barth's Bucket earlier this year, Part One of the podcast sees Robertson start the conversation with a chat about Jones' early life growing up in New Zealand, and how he soon starting making a name for himself in the 470 Class. In this, Part 2, Robertson picks things up with Murray Jones as Swiss team Alinghi prepare to defend the Cup in Valencia without key team member Russell Coutts.
It's a revealing insight into what was a fascinating time in international sailing, as Murray discusses the successful defence in Valencia and then the politically charged disruption that followed. For 2010 Jones was at the heart of the Alinghi team that went on to eventually lose the Cup in the much discussed Deed of Gift Match, a one of a kind race between two giant ninety foot multihulls, ultimately won by American Challenger BMW Oracle Racing
While the result of the Deed of Gift match saw Alinghi withdraw from the Cup arena for for over two decades, Jones's Cup career continued, with another move, this time to the Defender, BMW Oracle. Injury put a halt to Jones' career as a Cup sailor, but his continued involvement in the Team saw him as a pivotal part of the 2013 San Francisco campaign, his memories of capsizes, espionage, and inevitable tales of the impossible comeback are again fascinating.
Jones' final Cup campaign saw him back where it all started, coaching Team New Zealand to their eventual win in the waters of Bermuda, wrapping up an incredible seven Cup campaigns with another Team win, the sixth winning campaign of his career.
This edition of the podcast is in two parts and is available to listen to via the podcast page of Shirley’s own website - www.shirleyrobertson.com/podcast or via most popular podcast outlets, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcast and aCast. The podcast is produced and written by Tim Butt - for further enquires, please contact [email protected].Support the show
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Tales from The America's Cup with Six Time Winner Murray Jones
This month's podcast sees Shirley Robertson talking to New Zealand's Murray Jones about a remarkable career spanning over two decades chasing the oldest trophy in international sport.
Talking during a break in racing at the St Barth's Bucket earlier this year, Robertson starts the conversation with a chat about Jones' early life growing up in New Zealand, and how he soon starting making a name for himself in the 470 Class. A reserve in the Olympic team as a teenager, Jones' early career saw him part of a spectacularly talented generation of New Zealand sailors. For the national Olympic Team, medals soon followed, but two Olympic appearances in the Flying Dutchman class saw Jones disappointed with two top five finishes, but no medal.
Pretty soon though, the Cup came calling, and Jones became a pivotal member of the 1995 Team New Zealand challenger under Sir Peter Blake. Sailing as strategist in the 1995 San Diego America's Cup, Jones talks of hours spent up the mast of Black Magic, as the team went on to the defeat Dennis Connor's team 0-5, his recollections at times almost understated as he looks back on what was New Zealand's fist ever Cup victory...:
"We'd just test the whole time, we didn't do any racing, we took the attitiude that the Louis Vuitton Cup would be our practice racing and we were just fast and we basically sailed away from all the boats in the Louis Vuitton Cup and Dennis in the Cup. The fastest boat always wins the America's Cup! '"
With the win in San Diego and New Zealand's successful defence of the Cup in Auckland in 2000, by the age of just thirty three, Murray Jones had twice won the most coveted trophy in sailing. But for the world of New Zealand sailing, unexpected events were on the horizzon...:
"Out of the blue, Russel (Coutts) rang me and said 'I want to talk to you about something, I've got an offer to sail for this Swiss guy for the America's Cup and...I'll do it with a couple of you guys, would you be in..?' It blew me away, I had no idea, I said 'Wow!' I hadn't even thought about sailing for any other country other than New Zealand. Anyway, I rang him up the next day and said 'Yeah, I'm in, let's see what happens!' "
Jones and Robertson then discuss how the New Zealander moved over to the newly formed Swiss Alinghi sailing team, the team that then went on to successfully Challenge for the 2003 Cup, winning the Cup from their old team mates at Team New Zealand.
It's a revealing insight into what was a fascinating time in international sailing, as Alinghi Murray discusses the implications implications of the then controversial decision, joining a team that would ultimately see him go on to win two more Cups, in 2003 and 2007.
Part Two of the Podcast gets underway as Robertson and Jones pick things up as Alinghi prepare to defend the Cup in Valencia, without key team member Russell Coutts.
This edition of the podcast is in two parts and is available to listen to via the podcast page of Shirley’s own website - www.shirleyrobertson.com/podcast or via most popular podcast outlets, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcast and aCast. The podcast is produced and written by Tim Butt - for further enquires, please contact [email protected].Support the show
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Tales from Sailing Folk Lore with British Adventurer Pete Goss
This month, Shirley Robertson's Sailing Podcast talks to British offshore adventurer Pete Goss, an accomplished offshore sailor famed for executing one of the bravest solo ocean rescues of all time.
Talking at his home in the south west corner of the UK, Robertson and Goss kick their discussion off with chat about his formative years, his time in the British Marines, and how, in the nineteen nineties, he found a love of offshore sailing through Chay Blyth's British Steel Challenge, a round the world yacht race that was the forbearer to today's amateur offshore circumnavigation events. Goss was an instructor and skipper on the first event, and it was during that time, he hatched a plan to enter the Vendee Globe, the legendary non stop solo offshore race also, in the mid nineties, in it's infancy.
As one of the first British entrants in the then famously French race, Goss' tales of pre-internet sponsorship gathering are inspiring, and with a new boat, he managed to make the start line, for the third running of the race. What followed was one of the most brutal editions the Vendee Globe has ever seen. Of the sixteen boats that crossed the start line, just six finished. Tragically, one competitor, Canadian Gerry Roufs was lost at sea, but it was the rescue of French sailor Raphael Dinelli that for several days between Christmas and New Year 1996, was headline news around the world.
Pete's telling of the rescue, his memories of the vicious Southern Ocean storm, and his fight to find Dinelli's rapidly sinking boat are compelling. At times emotional, Goss describes how he first heard the mayday while himself fighting for survival in the relentless storm, and how his radio comms with the Royal Australian Airforce eventually led him to the boat...:
"The plane that had dropped him a raft came down to me, and they came up on the VHF so I remember chatting to them, and I said 'How many people are involved', because I was still seventy miles away or whatever, 'how many people are involved in the rescue', and he just said 'It's you!'"
With guidance from the Royal Australian Airforce plane, Goss found Dinelli's life raft and in a heaving Southern Ocean swell, somehow effected the rescue of a near death Raphael Dinelli. He had arrived just in time...:
"I met the pilot and the navigator (of the RAAF plane) a year later at the boat show and from the air they saw this figure clamber into the raft and then the boat just ghosted away and disappeared underneath it."
It's an emotional and intense telling of a remarkable story, that continues into the second part of this two part podcast, as Pete sails on, determined to finish his Vendee Globe - in Part 2 Robertson discusses the impact he rescue had on Goss, before going on to discuss his next major project, the famous TEam Philips multihull project.Support the show
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Tales from Sailing Folk Lore with British Adventurer Pete Goss
This month, Shirley Robertson's Sailing Podcast talks to British offshore adventurer Pete Goss, an accomplished offshore sailor famed for executing one of the bravest solo ocean rescues of all time.
Talking at his home in the south west corner of the UK, in Part 1 Robertson and Goss kick their discussion off with chat about his formative years, his time in the British Marines, and how, in the nineteen nineties, he found a love of offshore sailing through Chay Blyth's British Steel Challenge. Episode 1 goes on to see the pair discuss the dramatic ocean rescue that took place in Pete's 1996 Vendee Globe race, as he recalls the events oc Christmas 1996 that saw him rescue French sailor Raphael Dinelli.
It's an emotional and intense telling of a remarkable story, that continues into tis episode, the second part of this two part podcast, as Pete sails on, determined to finish his Vendee Globe.
His return saw him awarded an MBE from Her Majesty the Queen, and the Legion d'Honneur by then French President Jacques Chirac. Undeterred, Goss immediately launched his next project, taking part in Bruno Peyron's ambitious concept, "The Race".
To take on the no-rules round the world challenge, Goss built one of the most futuristic race boats the sport had ever seen. His insights into the project, and the theories behind his Team Philips multihull are fascinating. With an educational division and a free visitors' centre that saw over 1.2million visitors, Pete's pride in the project is clear to see. Sadly, just weeks before the New Year start of The Race, the project abruptly ended, after the catastrophic loss of the catamaran in a violent North Atlantic storm.
Throughout his career Pete Goss has embarked on a multitude of groundbreaking projects, and while this edition sees him concentrate on two of his more famous endeavours, he also discusses the delightful "Spirit of Mystery" project, a challenge born from Cornish folk lore that ended up in the recreation of one of the bravest offshore navigations of the 1800s.Support the show
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This month, Shirley Robertson's Sailing Podcast hosts one of offshore sailing's most accomplished names, as multiple world record holder Brian Thompson drops in for a two part chat about being one of the fastest offshore sailors on the planet.
This is the second part of a two part chat with a man who, by his own admission, doesn't even know himself how many offshore World Records he's held. In Part 1 they discuss his multiple record setting antics, from Trans-Atlantics to circumnavigations, the final figure is up in the forties, a fact Brian attributes to a long time spent sailing with American adventurer Steve Fossett.
In this part, the second edition ofthe two part podcast, Thompson discusses his 2008 Vendee Globe campaign, reealing how his succsful solo circumnavigation was something of a repair project for much of the race.
The pair also go on to discuss Brian's role in the succesful Jules Verne record attempt on French offshore legend Loick Peyron's Banque Populaire V, a circumnavigation that set a forty five day, thirteen hour record that stood for five years.
This edition of the podcast is in two parts and is available to listen to via the podcast page of Shirley’s own website - www.shirleyrobertson.com/podcast or via most popular podcast outlets, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcast and aCast. The podcast is produced and written by Tim Butt - for further enquires, please contact [email protected].Support the show
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This month, Shirley Robertson's Sailing Podcast hosts one of offshore sailing's most accomplished names, as multiple world record holder Brian Thompson drops in for a two part chat about being one of the fastest offshore sailors on the planet.
By his own admission, multihull expert Brian Thompson doesn't even know himself how many offshore World Records he's held, but in his opening chat with Robertson, the modest British sailor does admit to knowing for a fact that no one in sailing has ever held more than he has! From Trans-Atlantics to circumnavigations, the final figure is up in the forties, a fact Brian attributes to a long time spent sailing with American adventurer Steve Fossett...:
"Steve was a remarkable guy who was obsessed, and fascinated with breaking world records, and not just in sailing, but in all sorts of sports, so I think it all started with him, and we probably got fifteen world records with Steve, and later on with Lloyd Thornburg on Phaedo, we got another ten. Sometimes I've done the same record multiple times...round Britain three times, round the world twice, so in all I've probably broken near forty world records!"
Further into this first Episode, Robertson and Thompson discuss Brian's first circumnavigation record onboard Fossett's PlayStation, called Cheyenne at the time of the record attempt, and his growing ability to safely sail big boats fast in big seas. It's now something that Thompson is well known for, and as his career developed, he was in increasing demand, finding himself on a star studded ABN AMRO I as stand in helm for a southern ocean Volvo Ocean Race leg that would prove pivotal to the team's overall Race win...:
"I really concentrate on getting a maximum VMG where there is a sweet spot where if you go half a degree lower you're just going to fall of the cliff and stop. You could be a little bit higher, and you're doing a nice boat speed, and it's all very easy but to be gaining that extra one or two degrees of depth you have to play with fire, and I really enjoy that!"
Into Part 2 and the sailing chat continues as Brian reveals the many difficulties experienced throughout much of his solo Vendee Globe campaign of 2008, before moving onto his sensational Jules Verne record onboard Loick Peyron's Banque Populaire V, a forty five day, thirteen hour record that stood for five years.
This edition of the podcast is in two parts and is available to listen to via the podcast page of Shirley’s own website - www.shirleyrobertson.com/podcast or via most popular podcast outlets, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcast and aCast. The podcast is produced and written by Tim Butt - for further enquires, please contact [email protected].Support the show
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This month, Shirley Robertson heads to Barcelona to interview some of the key personnel from American Magic, the New York Yacht Club's challenger to the 37th America's Cup.
Embarking on their second America's Cup challenge, American Magic are a team rich in sailing talent, with a roster boasting a mix of some of the most experienced campaigners and some of the sport's brightest rising stars.
Robertson starts the two part podcast with one of the sailing team's newest signings, co-helm Tom Slingsby. A previous winner of the Cup in 2013, Slingsby joins the team as co-helm with Paul Goodison, creating a mouth watering combination that sees two of Olympic Laser sailing's fiercest of rivals come together in the Cup's new "dual helm" configuration. As Slingsby admits, it's a setup the pair are still figuring out...:
"Goody and I for sure, we have different ways of racing, I might be a bit more aggressive probably and a bit more into boat on boat sailing and Goody, his way is to go fast and make sure that we're sailing the boat at optimum, and we'll sail away from them that way. It's just going to be a blend...who knows how that's going to work, we're still working on it honestly!"
Robertson also talks to sailing super coach Tom Burnham, the man tasked with getting the most out of American Magic's talent pool, before spending time sailing the AC40 simulator with rising star Harry Melges.
In Part two of this edition Robertson gets things underway with Slingsby's co-helm, Paul Goodison. One time Olympic team mates, Goodison and Robertson reflect on the legacy of the team's AC36 campaign in Auckland, a challenge cruelly cut short by dramatic capsize, before discussing the intricacies of the twin helm setup, in a chat that reflects the rising confidence of the team.
"I think we've got a real chance. I think...there is a belief that we are good enough on our day to do this and to get over the final line and I think if we get a boat that we think we're going to receive... and we race to the level we know we're able to then I think on our day we're going to be right there."
Part two continues with a discussion on AC75 design, as Robertson talks to American Magic design team member David Oliver, before moving on to Riley Gibbs, another of the team's rising young stars. Robertson's final guest is the mastermind behind American Magic, Terry Hutchinson, himself embarking on his sixth America's Cup campaign. Robertson and Hutchinson discuss what kind of racing we're likely to see in next year's Cup, as well as the make up of the new look American Magic sailing team.
This edition of the podcast is in two parts and is available to listen to via the podcast page of Shirley’s own website - www.shirleyrobertson.com/podcast or via most popular podcast outlets, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcast and aCast. The podcast is produced and written by Tim Butt - for further enquires, please contact [email protected].Support the show
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This month, Shirley Robertson heads to Barcelona to interview some of the key personnel from American Magic, the New York Yacht Club's challenger to the 37th America's Cup.
Embarking on their second America's Cup challenge, American Magic are a team rich in sailing talent, with a roster boasting a mix of some of the most experienced campaigners and some of the sport's brightest rising stars.
In this, Part Two of this edition, Robertson gets things underway with American Magic co-helm, Paul Goodison. One time Olympic team mates, Goodison and Robertson reflect on the legacy of the team's AC36 campaign in Auckland, a challenge cruelly cut short by dramatic capsize, before discussing the intricacies of the twin helm setup, in a chat that reflects the rising confidence of the team.
"I think we've got a real chance. I think...there is a belief that we are good enough on our day to do this and to get over the final line and I think if we get a boat that we think we're going to receive... and we race to the level we know we're able to then I think on our day we're going to be right there."
Part two continues with a discussion on AC75 design, as Robertson talks to American Magic design team member David Oliver, before moving on to Riley Gibbs, another of the team's rising young stars. Robertson's final guest is the mastermind behind American Magic, Terry Hutchinson, himself embarking on his sixth America's Cup campaign. Robertson and Hutchinson discuss what kind of racing we're likely to see in next year's Cup, as well as the make up of the new look American Magic sailing team.
In the previous episode Robertson starts the two part podcast with one of the sailing team's newest signings, co-helm Tom Slingsby. A previous winner of the Cup in 2013, Slingsby joins the team as co-helm with Paul Goodison, creating a mouth watering combination that sees two of Olympic Laser sailing's fiercest of rivals come together in the Cup's new "dual helm" configuration.
Robertson also talks to sailing super coach Tom Burnham, the man tasked with getting the most out of American Magic's talent pool, before spending time sailing the AC40 simulator with rising star Harry Melges.
This edition of the podcast is in two parts and is available to listen to via the podcast page of Shirley’s own website - www.shirleyrobertson.com/podcast or via most popular podcast outlets, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcast and aCast. The podcast is produced and written by Tim Butt - for further enquires, please contact [email protected].Support the show
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This month, Shirley Robertson visits Swiss America's Cup powerhouse Alinghi Red Bull Racing at their base in Barcelona as they prepare to Challenge for the 37th America's Cup.
They're the only team to have ever launched a successful challenge to the America's Cup at first attempt, and the only European team to have ever won it, but for over a decade Swiss America's Cup syndicate Alinghi have been waiting, watching, following developments. And now, they are back, relaunched as Alinghi Red Bull Racing, and already well established in the host city of Barcelona. In this month's podcast, double Olympic gold medallist Shirley Robertson visits the Swiss team and talks to several key players, to hear just what it is about AC37 that has rekindled interest, and to look at how one of the most successful Cup teams of the modern era is launching a bid to reclaim the illusive silver ware.
Robertson starts the two part podcast with the team's principle helm, Arnaud Psarofaghis. No stranger to racing fast foiling yachts, Psarofaghis is visibly excited at the development process of a Cup campaign, as the pair discuss the way the team have learned to sail their first generation AC75...:
"When you are on the boat, you start to accelerate, 12 knots, 14 knots, 15 knots, and it's incredible because the boat is big, noisy, it's quite a brutal environment, and I remember the first time we got to take off speed and suddenly there is a moment of silence. Nothing is happening...you feel like it's a dinghy...you have that moment of joy for ten seconds, and then you come back to reality!"
Sailing team manager Pierre Yves Jorand then discusses the challenges ahead for the team, as well as revealing the process that saw Alinghi owner Ernest Bertarelli re-enter the America's Cup arena...:
"We were listening, we were watching the America's Cup, we were reading the protocols and Ernesto (Bertarelli) always said that once the protocol will be right, we'll be back. A couple of years ago he mentioned the America's Cup is like climbing Everest, and to be successful you need a good forecast. And for us the weather forecast is the protocol, and this time, the protocol seems to be fair, and we decided to come back. We are super excited to be back."
In Part 2 of this edition, Robertson talks to Yves Detrey, Alinghi team veteran and winner of the Cup with the Swiss syndicate in 2003 and 2007, she talks AC75 design with America's Cup naval architect Adolfo Carrau from Botin Partners, the design house of choice for Alinghi Red Bull Racing. and she wraps things up with team board member Brad Butterworth, a key component of the Swiss syndicate since the earliest days of campaigning.
This edition of the podcast is in two parts and is available to listen to via the podcast page of Shirley’s own website - www.shirleyrobertson.com/podcast or via most popular podcast outlets, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcast and aCast. The podcast is produced and written by Tim Butt - for further enquires, please contact [email protected]Support the show
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This month, another two part podcast sees Shirley Robertson visits Swiss America's Cup powerhouse Alinghi Red Bull Racing at their base in Barcelona as they prepare to Challenge for the 37th America's Cup.
As the only team to have ever launched a successful challenge to the America's Cup at first attempt, they're also the only European team to have ever won it, but for over a decade Swiss America's Cup syndicate Alinghi have been waiting, watching, following developments. And now, they are back, relaunched as Alinghi Red Bull Racing, and already well established in the host city of Barcelona. In this month's podcast, double Olympic gold medallist Shirley Robertson visits the Swiss team and talks to several key players, to hear just what it is about AC37 that has rekindled interest, and to look at how one of the most successful Cup teams of the modern era is launching a bid to reclaim the illusive silver ware.
In Part One Robertson chats to principal helm, Arnaud Psarofaghis and to Sailing team manager Pierre Yves Jorand, then in this, the second part of the podcast, she kicks things off with Yves Detrey, Alinghi team veteran and winner of the Cup with the Swiss syndicate in 2003 and 2007. The pair share memories of the Cup wins, in a conversation that takes in the immensity of those Cup victories at home in Switzerland, as well as the challenges to overcome in the new Cup arena.
Robertson also talks AC75 design with America's Cup naval architect Adolfo Carrau from Botin Partners, the design house of choice for Alinghi Red Bull Racing. Driving the design team for American Magic in the last Cup, Carrau's discussion on the evolution of the second generation AC75s will leave the listeners impatient for a glimpse of the new boats. This edition is then wrapped up with team board member Brad Butterworth, a key component of the Swiss syndicate since the earliest days of campaigning. Butterworth, as ever, has interesting views on key aspects of this Cup cycle, including the nationality rule, the other Challengers, and collaboration with Formula One teams.
This edition of the podcast is in two parts and is available to listen to via the podcast page of Shirley’s own website - www.shirleyrobertson.com/podcast or via most popular podcast outlets, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcast and aCast. The podcast is produced and written by Tim Butt - for further enquires, please contact [email protected]Support the show
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