Act 1, Singapore training day – The sailors thoughts

Nine Extreme 40s entered the Marina Bay racecourse today, under the shadows of some of Singapore’s largest skyscrapers surrounding the Act 1 Stadium for one final training session. We spoke to some of the sailors after racing to get their thoughts on the venue, as they look ahead to four days of Stadium Racing in Singapore.

Wednesday 4th February 2015

Nine Extreme 40s entered the Marina Bay racecourse today, under the shadows of some of Singapore’s largest skyscrapers surrounding the Act 1 Stadium for one final training session. We spoke to some of the sailors after racing to get their thoughts on the venue, as they look ahead to four days of Stadium Racing in Singapore. Find out what they had to say here:

Seve Jarvin, Skipper/Helm - GAC Pindar “Training was pretty good. It was pretty shifty today and I think it’s all about the snakes and ladders out there, and I think it’s going to be up and down all the time on that course - you’ve just got to hang in there. There’s a good group of guys sailing against us, it feels like there’s a bit more of a younger generation, it should be fun this year.”

Sarah Ayton, Tactician - The Wave, Muscat “It was good, I think we realised pretty quickly just how tricky Singapore is with big differences in breeze and shifts, but it was a big lesson for basics so we just need to keep it simple. We finished with the same team in Sydney last year and it’s just really enjoyable and fun to be back sailing with the guys - it was good fun out there today. It’s all about trying to get the title back this season, and being the champs’ at the end of the year, but it’s only the start!”

Stevie Morrison, Skipper/Helm - Oman Air “I think last year in Singapore the team had a hole in the boat within 15 minutes of training, thanks to a knight of the realm - Sir Ben Ainslie. So fortunately he’s not here this year and our boat’s all good and in one piece. We’ve got a great team - I like to think I’m young, and we’ve got a young team with a fun bunch of guys who are all looking forward to the challenge. It went well out there but I think we need to be fairly relaxed because the wind is crazy. It’s going to be crazy racing this weekend, it’s going to be easy to get emotionally attached but you have to realise that if you’re being given a bit of a seeing to by the wind gods, then hopefully they’ll come and sort you out next time around.”

Anil Berk Baki, Bowman – Beko Team Turx “I think today was good, very light wind conditions but a breezy race, we didn’t finish badly. I’ve never sailed in Singapore before, it’s good to sail between the Sky towers, but the wind conditions are very difficult and they can be very shifty. The crew is good, Diogo Cayolla is our new crew but we are sailing like we’ve sailed together for many years - he is a good guy and is very experienced. In Turkey, people don’t really know what sailing is, they watch football or basketball, but they are now starting to show sailing on TV which is good for us and the sport.”

Nick Moloney, Skipper/Helm - Team Aberdeen “It was a good day training today, the morning session was great as there was good breeze and the afternoon session, we were just trying to work out what the right modes are for the boat. I don’t mind the light stuff here; we just need to get the better end of the shifts to have a good week. If we can be in the top five, that would be great but if we got on the podium I’d be super stocked. Representing the home nation team is great as you always get the bigger cheer, and a lot of support.”

Phil Robertson, Helm - Gazprom Team Russia “It was good to get out racing on the bay, and figure out just how hard it is, and it was awfully hard - it’s going to be a tough week. I expected the sailing to be tough here, but it’s a lot tougher than I thought, so it’s going to be a very tricky week and it will be tough to stay consistent. We’ve got three Russians onboard this year, which is a big move for the team and a big step in the class so it’s going to be a very cool year. The Russian guys are doing a great job so far and English is obviously the biggest barrier, just explaining stuff and getting it across is tough - so yeah, time for me to learn Russian. There’s some really good teams, a lot that have done many seasons on the circuit and the hardest part will be to beat those teams so we’ll just keep working on that and hopefully we can score some podiums on the way.”

Lorenzo Bressani, Skipper/Helm - Lino Sonego Team Italia “It was a good day, the wind is very shifty. It is the first time for me racing on an Extreme 40. It is very difficult as I don’t understand the acceleration and the speed of the boat, but I think I was better towards the end of the day. The crew is a lot better than me! Tom (Buggy) is very good, he has been sailing the boats for the last three or four years, so he knows the boats very well. The other Italian guys have done some sailing in the Series, but I am here for the first time, but we will go forward.”