Update
Just won the America’s Cup at the age of 26… whatever. It’s fair to say that in trying to unsettle the super laid-back (on the surface) Kiwi skipper – on land and on the water – the US defenders only seemed to unsettle themselves, Spithill clearly losing confidence in his starting abilities once the usual moves had bounced back in his face a few times. The way Burling was so comfortable steering such a sensitive ‘windcraft’ – especially in light air – while buried deep in the cockpit to reduce windage was frankly a little spooky
COOL BURLING – Ivor Wilkins Peter Burling, the youngest helmsman in the America’s Cup class of 2017, astonished the sailing world with his stellar debut performance in this toughest cauldron of international sailing – not just for his skill at the wheel but also for the preternatural calm he brought to the task. Although his team nickname is Pistol Pete, he might just as well have been dubbed the Iceman for his unflappable demeanour in all circumstances. In this modern version of the Cup the pressures are heightened
by the speed of the boats and the consequent speed of decision- making demanded. In battle they hurtle towards each other at closing speeds of 75kt, leaving scant margin for error, the conse- quences of which would be unthinkable. The men in the hot seats have more in common with fighter pilots with every race that passes. Through it all, Burling, the youngest member of the Emirates
Team New Zealand sailing crew, maintained an uncanny serenity. He was asked about it several times at media conferences and seemed almost baffled by the interest, although he did expand a bit on the eve of the Louis Vuitton Cup finals. ‘I generally feel quite relaxed. I don’t think there is any point in getting too worked up.’ If a particular style of sailing could be applied to most top New
Zealand crews, it would probably be characterised as a no-fuss approach. Not much talk, just a competent group going about its business. Certainly that description would apply to this team. ‘We have seen a few other teams blow up,’ Burling continued. ‘We like to think of ourselves as a bit more clinical and just try to make sure we do what we need to do to win the race.’ On the international scene Burling first made his mark as a
17-year-old in 470s at the Beijing Games and then, with longtime sidekick Blair Tuke in 49er skiffs at the London and Rio Games, where they won silver and gold respectively. (Their closest rivals in the class were Nathan Outteridge and Iain Jensen, who took gold and silver in 2012 and 2016 – and also mirrored the switch to the America’s Cup for the Artemis campaign.) In preparation for the Rio Olympics Burling and Tuke selected
Hamish Willcox (issue 436) as their coach and he quickly recognised their uncanny ability to compartmentalise their lives and then apply
10 SEAHORSE
a laser-like focus on each compartment. ‘They have a great way of switching on and off at will. They can work really hard and play really hard on the same day,’ said Willcox. ‘Similarly, when they had setbacks they acknowledged them, extracted the lessons and then moved on without allowing them to fester or erode confidence.’ As a mechanism for handling pressure, that ability to switch is a real attribute, said Willcox. ‘It is quite freaky how they do it.’ Another attribute Willcox admired was their drive and ‘fantastic
work ethic’, which involved a lot of cross-training. They turned their hands to different but relevant classes, like Moths and A-Class catamarans, and also entirely different sports including surfing, mountain biking or paddling SUP boards. All of which served their Olympic ambitions, but also facilitated
the switch to America’s Cup foiling catamarans. ETNZ coach Ray Davies quickly recognised Burling’s coolness under fire. ‘It is very impressive. He has an amazing ability not to dwell on things that are not important and focus on what matters. He just doesn’t get caught up in the small stuff. As Hamish found out too, he has this very good thing where he can just switch on and off.’ One of the things Burling and Tuke transferred from their Olympic
programme to the America’s Cup was after-dinner performance debriefs away from the team base. This established a mental separation from race mode to a more relaxed environment for analysis mode, part of that switching process. First order of business coming off the water was a ‘capture meeting’ to liaise with the shore crew on setting a worklist to restore the boat and equipment to 100 per cent and make any changes. Then home for dinner and a period of unwinding, before the afterguard meeting attended by skipper Glenn Ashby, Burling and Tuke, Andy Maloney, Josh Junior, Richard Meacham and coaches Ray Davies and Murray Jones. ‘These meetings are about sailing techniques and tactical
elements,’ said Davies. ‘They are really more about art than science, about feelings and instincts rather than technical issues. It is a com- pletely different type of discussion. You are not in your work shirt, so it is not so threatening. You can take all the emotion out of it. ‘It is good to have those discussions in the evening, when you
can talk through the scenarios at length and understand the processes and ensure that onboard communications are working.
GILLES MARTIN-RAGET
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