“At this stage of the America’s Cup, you don’t want to be too comfortable.” – Inside INEOS Britannia

Helen Fretter

Just one week out from the start of the 37th America’s Cup, Helen Fretter goes behind the scenes with British Challengers INEOS Britannia

TAGS:

“There’s a moment where you cut the chase boat for the last time and then you’re by yourself. There’s eight of you left to do it. I love that moment.” It’s one week to go until the first race of the 37th America’s Cup. The opening races for the America’s Cup Preliminary Regatta in the AC75 begin on 22 August 2024.

For every team, there is still a huge amount to do and the clock is ticking relentlessly, but after four years of hard graft, stress, sweat and anticipation, that first race is tantalisingly close.

I spent a day behind the scenes with the INEOS Britannia British America’s Cup squad. What, right now, are they are most looking forward to?

“It’s T minus 5,” cyclor David ‘Freddie’ Carr says. “So we have a call sheet, from T minus 90 to the entry all the way down to the start. Every minute is planned in that 90 minutes for warming up.

“And from T minus 25 to T minus 5 we have 20 minutes where the chase boats are alongside. The shore crew get on and do their last checks. The coaches come on and input into the afterguard about what they’ve seen. The performance team will talk to the trimmers about where they think the set up’s at. The cyclors will do their last bit of fuelling and cooling.

“And then at T minus 5, you cut the chase boat for the last time and then you’re by yourself.

“That’s the moment. That’s the moment where there’s eight of you left to do it. I love that moment.”

Article continues below…

Good vibes in British camp

That first race is a delicious prospect – but this is also the point in the campaign when stress levels ramp up. Freddie Carr knows better than most how the mood of an America’s Cup team can fluctuate. This is his sixth America’s Cup campaign, having worked with: GBR Challenge; Swedish Victory Challenge; Team Origin; Luna Rossa; Ben Ainslie Racing; INEOS TEAM UK. What’s his assessment of the mood in the British camp?

“The team vibe is good, actually. It’s really good. It’s not comfortable. And I think that’s really good. You don’t want to be comfortable.

“I would not be happy sitting here right now going, ‘Oh yeah, the boat’s really fast. We’ve maximised everything, and we think we’re in a good spot,’ because you know if you’re at this point in the America’s Cup and you’re happy with everything, you’re going to get overtaken pretty quick.

August 13, 2024. Training in Barcelona ahead of the Preliminary Regatta. INEOS BRITANNIA

“And we’re not there. We’re in a position where we’re – I’m reluctant to use the word happy because you’re never happy – but we’re in a position where we are satisfied with where we’re at.”

“Comfortably uncomfortable,” I suggest?

“Comfortably uncomfortable,” he agrees. “And with some potential performance gains on the cards, which I’m sure all the other teams have got as well.

“And excited. I think that’s the big thing. I’m not going to lie – the previous two America’s Cups with this syndicate, we’ve been in this spot and I’ve been filled with a little bit of trepidation because I knew that we weren’t hitting the performance markers that would put us on a trajectory to achieve what we wanted to achieve.

“Now, that’s not by any means saying that I expect us to go and clean up this summer, but we are comfortably uncomfortable. Let’s leave it like that.”

If you enjoyed this….

Yachting World is the world’s leading magazine for bluewater cruisers and offshore sailors. Every month we have inspirational adventures and practical features to help you realise your sailing dreams.
Build your knowledge with a subscription delivered to your door. See our latest offers and save at least 30% off the cover price.