Rod Davis
Do you get it? Opposite – clockwise from lower right: four of the greatest exponents of the need to be the best ever, where winning alone is not
You know sometimes you look back at advice you received and realise that at the time you did not really understand the full extent of what it meant...
Very early in my career a guy named Don
Cohan, a Dragon Olympic bronze medallist, Soling sailor and very successful businessman, told me ‘Whatever you do, be it making cameras or building houses, be the very best at it.’
It never really hit me what he was trying to say, not in a conscious way anyway. Subconsciously, however, it must have planted a seed. Don’s actual words lay buried for many years until I heard Richie McCaw’s father’s advice: ‘Richie, don’t just be an All Black, be the best All Black.’ When he was named captain of the All Blacks, he needed to be the best captain.
That passion set the stage for what became the most successful rugby team in the world, in terms of both winning record and culture. It led to McCaw becoming New Zealander of the Year, though not because he could play rugby. Lots of people can do that, but Richie was an inspiration to a whole country. A role model of dedication and passion to making the team the best it could be, the best in the world.
To be the very best, be it an All Black captain, sailboat racing crew, sailmaker or coach, takes passion, commitment to constant improvement, both yours and others’, and, unless you are in an individual sport, an overriding dedication to the team. The simple fact is that at most only about 10 per cent of people ‘get it’ – and most people never will.
Sailing’s transformation from an amateur sport to a way to earn a living is ongoing and, not surprisingly, not all smooth water. The issue for those who do ‘get it’, and understand what it means
24 SEAHORSE
enough. Dennis Conner, Sir Ben Ainslie, Rodney Pattisson and Paul Elvstrøm… quite a gathering. And then of course there is the extraordinary Robert Scheidt (above) – back winning in Lasers aged 43 after 10 years’ racking up medals and titles in the Star class
to be the best you can be, first for the team and then as an individual, is that in these days of social media, with the battle for self-promotion and recognition, you are not fast-tracking your way to stardom. You read about the superstars of pro sports and his or her talent and aggression and how much money they make, but you rarely read about their dedication to the team, making the team and him- self the best they can be, or that he is showing the others on his team all the tricks he has learnt over time.
Professionalism in sailing is a tricky business: the crossover of playing a sport to make a living versus playing a sport because it’s your passion. In the first case you do get paid to do what is required and aim to get the maximum in return. A kind of maximise the monetary return on your time investment. Hey, it’s a good way to make a living, better than gardening or cleaning cars. The second case, passion to be the best, means you are always looking to improve yourself and what you bring to the table. Basically you do extra both on and off the field. You think 24/7 about ‘what you can do next time to be better’, both in terms of yourself and the team you are involved with. Lowell North used to say, ‘Build the fastest sails in the world,
then you will make money.’ Forty years ago he and his band of selected sailors were obsessed with building the fastest sails and did not make much money until the world was convinced that these new sails were faster than the competition.
The world is in a different spot from 40 years ago, that is why it’s ripe for history to repeat itself.
In today’s world profit is the dominant factor. Yes, we want a good product but the people who own these companies want a return on their investment. When Mom and Pop buy shares in a company they want their seven per cent annual return. If they don’t get it, they will move the money somewhere where they will. You
MAX RANCHI
HENRI THIBAULT/DPPI
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