Hakan Svensson and Sam Usher are two leading lights in the sport of sailing. Usher is the founder of Redhanded TV, a UK-based media production company that's been pushing the boundaries of what's possible in the sport of sail racing. Svensson is the owner of Aston Harald, the umbrella organization responsible for building and selling the M32 Catamaran and the owner of the World Match Racing Tour sailed in said multihull. We chatted for a couple hours one spring evening in a commentary container on the shores of Svena Mura Bay in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Sailing Anarchy Podcast # 5 - Hakan Svensson and Sam Usher

The world’s most popular sailing website and online community’s Senior Editor Alan “Mr. Clean” Block goes deep! Sure, we’re a sports podcast about yacht, dinghy, multihull, iceboat, and board racing, but we plan on touching every subject that effects not only our sport, but our sailors.  That means everything: Fitness and training, the yachting lifestyle, event and media issues, politics, and just about anything else that comes to mind.

As any reader of Sailing Anarchy knows, we’ve got plenty to say about everything!

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Mr. Clean hits a slew of wide-ranging subjects raised by the 2017 America’s Cup competition with some of the leaders in the sport of sailing. INTRO SHOW NOTES: 00:00:19 Sailing Anarchy current podcast numbers – 200K downloads - thank you listeners! 00:01:04 Reach out on itunes, stitcher,  if you have any show ideas. 00:05:55 The Ellison Era – the good, the bad, the ugly. 00:16:30 Cup media program, media coverage. 00:18:50 The in-person experience at AC Bermuda, 00:19:33 Broadcast/production problems with analysis. 00:26:222 Clean goes to Nacra 17/49erFX/49er European Championships – what to expect. First, a discussion of the event itself with two writers with 6 decades of AC coverage between them; Associated Press sailing correspondent Bernie Wilson and longtime Aussie scribe Rob Mundle. Show notes: 00:28:55 Intro to Bernie Wilson and Rob Mundle, plug for Mundle’s soon-to-publish Spithill biography. 00:30:57 legendary parties and the Society of International Nautical Scribes (SINS). 00:34:00 Does the Associated Press see sailing as a major sport? How do they cover it and why? Who is following the SA in mainstream media? 00:46:22 ACEA/Coutts/Bermuda administration; did Russell take his eye off the prize? “If they want to be mainstream, they have to act like a mainstream   sport.” 00:54:22 “Good riddance to Larry Ellison and the Cup. The Louis Viutton effect vs. the Red Bull effect. 00:58:00 will the US get behind an American challenger? 1:01:08 The Cup as a hooker and Coutts as the pimp. Next, a tech talk with the man behind the on-screen broadcast graphics known as Liveline, multiple world-record-holding navigator Stan Honey.   Show notes: 01:03:07 Stan’s interesting month in Bermuda, his role in the 2017 AC. 01:06:42 Stan’s/Liveline’s role in AC35, differences between SF and BDA systems. 01:08:52 Factchecking Spithill’s claims that the software caused his multiple OCS. 01:11:20 On screen graphics/green screen/Hockey Puck swoosh from 1993/geeky broadcast stuff. 01:15:19 Bringing Liveline to lower budget classes/events. 01:18:18 Too much information for sailors? 01:21:08 Tech’s ability to make the sport less intimidating for both fans and competitors. 01:22:55 Storytelling, digital streaming, customizable interactive viewing, the PGA tour, professional directing. “The key to everything is the story.” 01:27:43 Stans’s experience at the AC, overall highlights. 01:28:45 Stan’s Transpac record, what’s next. 01:29:35 That’s a wrap – custom feed and the importance of the storytelling team.The Interview Wrap-Up: The Custom Feed & the Right Storytellers 01:29:35 Finally, a chat with America’s fastest foiler, double Moth world champion Bora Gulari, about the recent Mackinac Race, his picks for the Moth Worlds, and some foil design thoughts about the AC50, as well as a discussion on what Bora would like to see in the next America’s Cup (hint, it ain’t a multihull!).   Show Notes: 01:35:27 Mackinac carnage – what happened to Natalie J? 01:38:38 the MOD aboard Meridian X, thoughts. 01:41:48 Safety conscious sailing – more sensible these days or more reckless? 01:43:19 Battle of the Lakes superboats, damage to Earth Voyager. 01:45:15 America’s Cup impressions, good vs. bad matches, and the problems with the grinding. “It just doesn’t feel right to me.” 01:47:46 Foil shapes and changeable surfaces, new Gitana, flaps. 01:50:07 Wing trimming vs. sail trimming. 01:51:25 automatic foiling, the Holy Grail of perfectly stable/low drag foiling. 01:53:07 The rise of Burling – luck vs. skill vs. maturity. 01:54:05 Foil shape analysis of AC. “Aspect ratio is king”, daggerboard shredding. 01:59:19 Getting personal/emotions at missing the Cup after being part of Luna Rossa team. “They definitely got the short end of the stick.” 02:01:53 Underdogs and outsiders. 02:03:15 If Bora picked his perfect boat for the next AC, what would it be? Why don’t we have widespread automated electronic foil control now? Other formats, “I think the Superfoiler has a lot of potential.” 02:10:30 Bora pulls out of Moth Worlds. 02:13:27 Moth Worlds form guide. 02:19:30 Outro/What’s next for the Sailing Anarchy Podcast/Wishlist for future talks

# 24 - America’s Cup Bermuda Wrap with Bernie Wilson, Rob Mundle, Stan Honey, and Bora Gulari

Alan Block sits down in Bermuda with the legendary Aussie catamaran sailor for a half hour of fascinating subjects the day after his Kiwi team closed the Larry Ellison chapter of the America’s Cup. Subjects:  How his time as a kid, watching the C-Class cats on the beach near Melbourne, led to his current job.  Wing development boss Steve Collie’s work and their different design philosophy for wing handling.  “You can’t fly a plane with a piece of rope”.  Why no one else copied their wing system, and how many secrets are they still guarding?   How their wing trim and foil loading gave them stability without penalty, and enabled their slick maneuvers. Once and for all, were they sandbagging in the earlier rounds?  “We kept our good fruit for the end” How did they balance the need to push and develop the boat with the fact that any breakage in Auckland might mean an end to their campaign? “27 hours before the first race of the America’s cup was the first time we had all of our good componentry on the boat”. What was the actual speed difference between oracle and ETNZ?  To what does Glenn attribute Pete’s 7-1 advantage over Jimmy in the starting box?  What maneuvers could they do that no one else could? In what conditions does the jib hurt boat speed, and why didn’t they go bareheaded in their racing? Will wing sailed boats in the future need jibs? Why did Glenn and so many sailors take less money than other offers in order to stay on ETNZ? Just how close did ETNZ come to shutting their doors and walking away from competition? Will Glenn return with ETNZ for the next America’s Cup? If Glenn was given a free hand to pick any boat for the next America’s Cup, what would it look like? Did ACEA/Oracle’s shenanigans provide additional motivation for ETNZ to fight their hearts out? Next for Lenny: Moths? A-Cat Worlds?  Vacation?

#23 - The Secrets Of The America's Cup, with ETNZ Wing Trimmer Glenn Ashby

You’ve read or heard the rest of the world’s thoughts on the subject, but now’s the time for the best of them; It’s the Sailing Anarchy Podcast 35th America’s Cup Preview and Form Guide!  First, we get Clean’s thoughts on the subjects, before he hooks up with former Luna Rossa helmsman, Olympic Nacra sailor, and double Moth World Champion Bora Gulari for his analysis and picks.  Who’s quickest, who’s sneakiest, whose foils look the best, and whether ETNZ needs to worry about being sunk by one of the ‘Framework Five.” Then we hook up with Match Race World Champ, US-One crew (WMRT, M32, GC32) and former BMW Oracle crew Hayden Goodrick for a more culture-based look at the teams; who is most likely to melt down, what are the unexpected obstacles they’ll face, who has the best team culture for adapting and winning, and what secret weapons are we likely to see.    You only need one source to show the world you know everything about the 35th America’s Cup: This podcast!

#22 - Preview To The 35th America's Cup with Bora Gulari and Hayden Goodrick

On the 21st episode of the Sailing Anarchy Podcast, we go straight to the source for an analysis of the new direction announced last week by the Volvo Ocean Race.  First, Clean updates us on the Podcast's status, tells us his story of hunting and killing a 300 pound alligator in Charleston, and gives us his view on the new Volvo plans.  Then VOR big boss Mark Turner explains the reasons for their decision to use foiling monohulls for the offshore legs and foiling multihulls for the inshore legs of the two or three races following the next one.  Listen for Turner's views on what other options they considered, what the new 60 footer will look like and how it is expected to perform, how the new lease model will effect the organization, and why teams have had such difficulty finding major sponsors.  The discussion moves to the timetable for full flying boats to take over the race and safety considerations between mono and multihulls, and finally what kind of events would make up the more permanent annual racing schedule for VOR teams.  Next we spoke to Nick Bice, Director of Operations and founder of the Boatyard, about more technical matters: How, exactly, a new-rules VO60 can be converted to an IMOCA-legal Open 60, what kinds of differences does a Volvo require compared to a singlehanded boat, and a whole lot on foil control systems and logistics for a two-fleet race owned entirely by Volvo.  Clean and Bicey got deep into the subject of the continually shrinking crew component and the impact of this shrinking pool to ocean racing and the sport in general, and plenty more.  Finally, we spoke to pro trimmer and former VO70 crew (ABN AMRO2, 2005) and medical officer George Peet on the anniversary of his crewmate Hans Horrovets' death about a race that remains very close to his heart.  GP and Clean got deeper into crewing issues with a general discussion of the state of professional offshore racing as well as the usual pull-no-punches analysis of the new classes with a guy who always tells the truth.  As a bonus, we got Bear - one of the nation's top Moth racers - to give us his America's Cup picks...  Enjoy!

# 21 - Future Shock - Big Changes For The Next Decade Of The Volvo Ocean Race

Sailing anarchy talks with foiling Americas cup winner Shannon Falcone about his adventurous few months with the sexy F4 one design racing foiler and shares his picks for the 2017 Americas Cup, and then we have an hour of wizardry from the king of Iceboat racing on racing in Siberia, raising kids on the ice, and more about the fastest sailing in the world.

Sailing Anarchy Podcast # 5 - Hakan Svensson and Sam Usher

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