Sailboat Racing

[Llamster]

A few questions for those of you who know about this stuff..

Not sure if this is the correct section but here it goes..

How does one get into this type of sport?
How do all these teams make money?
How much money do they make?
Is there prospect for big guys in the sport? 6'4" 270 (cutting to ideal 225-230)
If so, what position????
What are the different "positions"
Where should a person start if they are new?
Where is the best place to go (country-wise or state-wise in the U.S.) to get with the program, learn from the best?
What is the current best team out now?
Where can I find more information about this sport?

It seems that this is just kind of a sport that you never really hear about.. kind of like airplane racing or something to that extent.

[David M]

The vast majority of sailboat racing is done by amateurs on the weekends. Probably only less than 0.1% is done by people who are paid professionals racing on ultralight multi-million dollar boats. Its one of those sports where once you reach a certain level, everyone knows each other meaning recommendations are by word of mouth

You start racing by going out with other amateurs who teach you the ropes. You start getting recognized as good by winning regattas. After earning a good reputation, you start getting asked to crew on larger and faster racing machines. Nobody really starts out at the top unless you are an owner who hires a professional crew or are an owners personal guest. Strength and size is not much of a requirement as is knowledge, skill and talent. Some boats in fact prefer smaller crew members depending on their class rules.

[paradix]

Most professional racers in this part of the world started out racing sailing dinghies as kids and progressed through the olympic class boats before hitting the big crewed boats. Many of them still go back and sail those small boats competitively to keep their skill levels up.

Having said that, on the bigger boats there are definitely positions for people with little sailing experience who nonetheless have the physical skills required for specific roles - openings for "big guys" here if you're especially fit and strong. Team New Zealand famously employed champion olympic rower Rob Waddell as a grinder in the Americas Cup campaign, based on his extraordinary strength and fitness and certainly not for his sailing experience.

It depends what your ultimate goal is. If you get on a big boat as a grinder or similar, you'll certainly learn a little bit about sailing from the experience. But it's extremely unlikely you'll get the chance to move further up the crew towards the skipper's role unless you prove yourself as a sailor in other forms of sailing. If your aim is just to get in amongst the hype and atmosphere though, then that might be the most direct route. I imagine that in the US, those positions are all filled by word of mouth as David suggests. But if you come down to NZ or Australia you'll find much more sailing going on per head of population, and the competition for positions might be less fierce. If you're genuinely committed, there are a lot of offshore races here where you can pick up a crewing position if you're fit, able and available. You won't get paid very much (if at all) but you'll get to meet a lot of people and get your foot in the door.

[Ex-Calif]

The predominant path to "professional racer" is through dinghy's as a kid, a team member in college, an olympian and then pro. As in all endeavors other ways are possible requiring tons of dedication. The world of paid sailors as in all sports is quite small.

We just had the World match racing tour in Malaysia. The tv coverage was awesome. Top prize money for the regatta was about $100k - split among the 5 sailors. Yacht racing is about sponsorship rather than prize money.

They asked the sailors what they would spend their "prize" money on. My top favorite answers -

- Some McDonalds hamburgers
- A haircut
- Pay my two month's back rent
- A tour card for 2010

These were the top professoinal sailors in their sport.

I reckon only about .000000001% of all sailors in the world make a living wage racing sailboats.

[Llamster]

Originally Posted by Ex-Calif

The predominant path to "professional racer" is through dinghy's as a kid, a team member in college, an olympian and then pro. As in all endeavors other ways are possible requiring tons of dedication. The world of paid sailors as in all sports is quite small.

We just had the World match racing tour in Malaysia. The tv coverage was awesome. Top prize money for the regatta was about $100k - split among the 5 sailors. Yacht racing is about sponsorship rather than prize money.

They asked the sailors what they would spend their "prize" money on. My top favorite answers -

- Some McDonalds hamburgers
- A haircut
- Pay my two month's back rent
- A tour card for 2010

These were the top professoinal sailors in their sport.

I reckon only about .000000001% of all sailors in the world make a living wage racing sailboats.

I've come to the realization that life is way too short.... In all honesty, I wouldn't mind doing it for free (srs) as long as someone showed me the ropes and I was able to be the best I could possibly be. The challenge of striving to be the best and reaching your full potential (in anything for that matter) for me is the most exhilarating and satisfying feeling on earth.

[wannago]

check the crew share websites, racing forums, and site for local yacht clubs sponsoring races.

If your in an area where there is racing, and all else fails, find out where most of the boats come to / from and hang out on the dock ready to go. Of course, chances are you'll get stuck on a loosing boat with an ahole skipper taking everything too seriously (and getting it all very arrogantly wrong) that no one else wants to sail with.

The best comment from someone that I heard was that he kept getting asked cause he showed up for EVERYTHING, no wind, pouring rain, freezing temperatures, he was there even if the owner decided he didn't want to go. For a lot of the guys that want to race there boats it's sometimes an issue just finding enough crew that knows the basics and will show up reliably. (this is in Seattle) Often enough, when it's not sunny and warm only the dedicated want to go.

Once you get started, assuming you get along well with others, you'll figure out more than I know.

[Joli]

Responses below in red.

Originally Posted by Llamster

A few questions for those of you who know about this stuff..

Not sure if this is the correct section but here it goes.. Not sure where you are located but get to a local sailing venue to get on a boat (yacht club, sailing club...)

How does one get into this type of sport? Go to where the racing is happening and introduce yourself, ask who might be looking for crew.
How do all these teams make money? Very, very, very few crews make money.
How much money do they make? Not much, I heard through the grapevine so don't know if it is true but a local sailmaker earns about $12k/year. Paid sailing positions are generally expenses.
Is there prospect for big guys in the sport? 6'4" 270 (cutting to ideal 225-230) Yes
If so, what position???? You start spinning winches and learn from there.
What are the different "positions" Grinders, foredeck, mastman, trimmers, navigators, tactitions, snacktitions , drivers, cooks.
Where should a person start if they are new?
Where is the best place to go (country-wise or state-wise in the U.S.) to get with the program, learn from the best? East Coast, Annapolis or Newport. Midwest, Great Lakes. West Coast, San Diego.
What is the current best team out now? How long is a string? Dinghy teams, big boat teams, amateur teams, pro teams....
Where can I find more information about this sport? Magazines, books, internet, local racing clubs, local regattas, national regattas, or my favorite,,,the Heiniken Regatta

Sailing and racing are great sports but it is extremely dificult to make a livng as a racing sailor. Good luck though.

It seems that this is just kind of a sport that you never really hear about.. kind of like airplane racing or something to that extent.

[Ex-Calif]

I forgot to add: Sailboat racing is an activity undertaken by very rich people so that very poor people can go sailing with them.