My role is with the Race Committee on the race course, for starts, course organisation and selection depending on the wind conditions. The Race Committee works with a team of ‘mark layers’ to set-up the race course every day.

I am also responsible for communication on VHF to the competitors so they receive as much information as possible about what is happening, what the Race Committee are thinking, and are informed about the start and all procedures for the course type chosen. I assist Maria, the Principal Race Officer in making decisions; the whole group collaborates in collecting the full information, but the PRO always has the ‘final word’ as such.

I also work with the results. This year we have made great progress and results are sent by telephone (to Juan Paradilla in Palma) and mark roundings recorded and entered on the Audi MedCup Circuit web site. Once the results are on the web, I inform the teams over the radio of the provisional results at the end of each race. A specific radio channel is used for this communication (in English, the official language of the regatta) and also a private channel for us in the Committee to work with wind readings for example, so not to annoy the boats. We have a lot of communication between us.

Each Race Official tries to go out on the race course a minimum of two hours before the start to check out the conditions, wind direction and strength, and see whether the race course needs to be moved to one area or another.

In Sardinia for example, the location of the course was a little more complicated because there were a lot of different entrances to the port. The race course set-up and start line is quite fast: the mark guys are very experienced and know perfectly what they are doing. We begin to lay the start line about 25 minutes before the start of the race, sometimes even less. If the day is stable it can be done calmly, but if the wind is very shifty it is done in the last ten minutes (although five minutes minimum is given before the first warning signal); the boats have a incredibly advanced apparatus to record information and plot the Committee Boat and pin. We always allow those five minutes beforehand.

I have been sailing since I was five. I was born in France, brought up in Andalucia, and have been living for a long time in Palma de Mallorca. My parents are French so I am a bit of a ‘pot pourri mix’! I moved through the classes from optimist to cadete, Europa and a number of others, but started to suffer serious problems with my knee at the age of 18, and it gradually got worse. I was also operated for a back hernia and unfortunately had to stop racing.

I have always worked in sail lofts, and also as a sailing instructor and coach ….sailing really is my life! I now have a company which makes sail covers and bags. I just couldn’t live without the sea; it really means everything to me!

As I had to stop competing and wanted to keep going out on the water (I now sail just for pleasure because I can’t race) I gradually moved into working with the Committee. The movement on the water isn’t exactly ideal for my condition but it isn’t as bad as the strain of a regatta.
I started working at Palma yacht club in regattas with the mark laying, and finally in the Race Committee.

To do a good job in the Race Committee you need a good team; not just professionally speaking but on a human level, have a good relationship with the people around you. You have to fully trust the people working with you when making such important decisions every day, and I love the team of people we have working here. It is fundamental to get on with your team.

The fact that the Audi MedCup is a full circuit and not just one regatta makes a big difference, and the advantage is that you can build a really good working relationship with the competitors. There is real communication; – both when their criticism is good and bad, and it builds a relationship of trust so that teams come and speak to you after racing and share their opinion. It is this two-way dialogue that means we can improve. It also means that when you receive compliments for a job well done it is incredibly satisfying!

I make a mental note every day of the things that I have done wrong and try to learn from my mistakes at all times.  I speak to the people around me; you can learn so much from just watching and listening. I’m quite self-demanding, and I always try to pick up something new from the people around me. But the way to move forward is really just experience; hour upon hour on the water, and lots and lots of races!

Having been the ‘kids’ on ABN AMRO2 at the beginning of the Volvo Ocean Race 2005/06 the main difference now is that we are now all working as professional sailors on a number of different projects and big boat campaigns.

When I finished the Volvo I went to work for the North Sails group in Italy with the aim of learning additional skills as a sailor for the future. I chose sail making as I am really interested in the trimming and shape of sails

The Audi Q8 team asked North Sails Italy to be their main supplier for the Audi MedCup Circuit, and one of Ricardo’s requests was to have someone who was responsible not only for the follow-up after the sail had been made, but to ensure that it arrived on time, and in the event of any problems a solution could be found rapidly. North Sails Italy suggested me as this ‘technical’ person for the team as a member of the shore crew/sailor/advisor.

I have been working alongside Sandro Benigni (previously sail designer for Spanish America’s Cup Team Desafío Español). He is responsible for the technical side of things and I make sure that the team receives the sails they need. Between the two of us we deal efficiently with the work load and ensure that deadlines are met on time for each regatta. I am taking part in the whole process, and although I am young and don’t have as much experience as the others it is really satisfying to be making suggestions and have them met with the same openness as everyone.

It is a good experience watching how all the other boats sail. On board you have just one perspective but from the outside you expand your horizons as you can see and learn a lot of other things.

For me being on the boat is definitely much better but everyone knows that at college it is much more fun to attend parties than to attend class, but my thoughts are that maybe later on you can make money and enjoy life a bit better. I was thinking of it more as an investment long-term! So now I have the opportunity to sail with the team and it feels like a huge upgrade to move onto being the main sail trimmer.

It is a big improvement for me and I am really happy to be in this position, although I was also a little sad as the team lost a very important person- Philippe Presti who had personal affairs to attend to. The team was upset to lose him but at the same time had to find someone else. I was over the moon to be given this opportunity and hope to do a good job!

This is actually my first Audi Medcup sailing with the team on board, although I had a little bit of practice with them and some racing in the Sardinia Cup which was a good experience. I made a lot of mistakes as I was expecting, but it was a good practice. Making mistakes is positive to point you in the right direction. We all feel that we are now doing very well and have a great chance to improve in the Circuit.

The time I spent in the first two events looking in from the outside has helped me as I have had the chance to see different styles of trimming and boat performance; how the other guys are sailing or reacting to the wind changes. I also think they all appreciate on board that someone has had an outside view, and has come in with a positive attitude to make changes and try and improve the team as well.

The main sail trimmer has a tough, difficult job and it is a big responsibility, so I have to step up and do my best, but I think it will be a positive change for the boat at the same time.

In my opinion the position of the trimmer is no less important than the position of the grinder, sewer or bowman. A race is won not by a good driver or trimmer but by a good team, and that is the main philosophy of the Audi Q8 team.

The trimmers have their responsibility because the driver is guiding the boat, and they have to ensure that it is powerful enough – or not. But at the same time if the spinnaker doesn’t go up at a mark rounding, there is nothing you can do if you are just fast upwind; there are still a lot of turns to do - it is not just a drag race!

As things stand right now this is my new job. I will understand later on if it is not permanent as I am still young, but I am going to fight hard and do as best a job I can to stay here!

Before arriving in Cagliari, the team got together to compete in the Sardinia Cup, which was a fantastic opportunity to train for a couple of weeks after a problematic start to this season in the Audi MedCup Circuit. Alicante was the first event for the new boat, we broke the mast a couple of days before the regatta started and had to scramble our training. In Marseille the guys were also unlucky (I actually feel fortunate that I was away that week) because the team had a really tough time of it.
However the boat has been fixed, the team is back sailing together and we had a great training session in Porto Cervo. I think we have made a great step forward both in our practice and boat preparation although there is still quite a lot to do, because we feel that we are not consistent enough in our performance: we need a bit more work to be up at the front.

There is seldom just one thing to work on in sailing. There is usually a whole number of particulars needed to get good results, a number of different factors that all have to come together.

In some ways this is Vasco’s (Vascotto, tactian) team because he has been sailing in the TP52 class for a long time, and most of the team is the same. It is also the same team that competed in the Louis Vuitton Cup together in Mascalzone Latino in 2007, so we know each other pretty well!
In my opinion it is absolutely essential in our sport: racing here is a team competition and you have to know your crew and trust them.

I have been sailing since I was ten years old and haven’t stopped. There is definitely an element of luck involved with being a helmsman, sometimes you have good results and then people offer you the chance to drive some good boats….I keep going because this is my favourite job! I don’t know why but people keep calling me to drive, which has to be a good thing I suppose!

In the past I worked for seven years as an accountant in an office but I gave it up. I was an even worse as an accountant than at driving! But seriously I love this work, I really can’t complain!

 In some ways it is quite difficult to come back into an event after missing one (I am back competing in Sardinia after not being able to sail in Marseille) because you lose some of the evolution and momentum of the team. In each event the team always learns something new.
But when Vasco called me to sail with Mutua Madrileña I had already made commitments with a team for the Melges 24 Worlds, and I was lucky that he accepted that.
However I will now be sailing in all the other events in the Circuit.

Right now we hope to get a little closer to the head of the fleet. It is difficult to say what our specific aims are. Obviously everyone wants to win, but it’s not easy. It is a tough competition, but if we keep improving we can achieve a good result in the end.

My role is divided into two parts – as navigator, and also assisting the guys with communication; they all speak mainly Russian, some speak English and others a little Italian.
When we are travelling with the circuit I also help the team with translation for the logistics for example. Language is quite difficult for them.
I also work with boat data when we come off the water after racing to try and understand how we can be better and faster from the analysis, we then meet as a team to find a way to achieve it. We are trying different sailing modes to better understand which is better for the different conditions.

My ‘normal’ job is actually in IT. I am a programmer in computer analysis and discovered that it was a perfect crossover with sailing – two things I really love. I liked the role of navigator and about four or five years ago I started in this role.
The TP52 class is totally different to any other with much greater attention to design and technology and it is a great way to grow and learn more about sailing as well as the fact that being on the water is much more enjoyable than being in the office!

On Rusal Synergy we normally communicate in English; both the helmsman and tactician understand and speak it, and the main sail trimmer speaks Italian so with him I change language. It is not easy as my English is not that strong, and I translate from my native Italian which is quite difficult, but I try to explain as best I can so with concise, clear information. I am also trying to learn some Russian – basic words like ‘tack’ and ‘gybe’ to be used in racing. I don’t have that much time but in the near future I hope to have a few, important words of vocabulary that would be really useful on board! Curiously I have not studied Russian nor have I been there but it is a good challenge for me!

It is quite an adventure to share such a close relationship with the team because it is such a different culture. Russia is of course in Europe but their proximity is more geographical than any thing else as they have a totally different way of doing things.

The guys are very good sailors but with a totally different approach to racing. In the past they were more geared to the Olympic classes although are adapting relatively quickly. The biggest change is trying to understand the boat itself as well as the instruments, which are totally new for them; interpreting what the data represents but the process involves stopping, observing and understanding before making any judgement or drawing any kind of conclusion.

There has been a great evolution since last season. The organisation within the team was not really appropriate for this kind of boat, but it is gradually changing to head in the same direction as the other teams. There are also new crew members: the helmsman and the tactician are different which has also made a difference. The guys now feel that it is their own boat, and have not just come as ‘guests’ on board – that is important.

The decision to purchase the new boat was an important one. We decided to buy USA 17 originally to compete in some events outside the Audi MedCup circuit but quickly decided to use the boat this season because of some doubts regarding the structure of the old boat. We weren’t too confident after its inspection, and although we hoped it would be fine the inspector advised us that more investigation was necessary. So we decided to start again despite losing the points.

It was a big change; every time we had a bad result with the old boat we always had the doubt that it was due to the boat. But that is no longer a question.
The new boat is clearly fast, especially in stronger wind. We saw the Oracle guys win in Marseille; they are of course some of the best sailors in the world but the boat is also much better. We can see that just by looking at the data off the boat – so now we have no excuse. There is no doubtful interpretation of our results and that makes it clearer for the future and a path to follow.

Finishing in second place on the first day was a great result for us. Any change always involves an element of doubt but we now know that it was a good move and that we just need time to see how the boat works. We finally seem to have begun to find our way; it is now just a matter of understanding the boat better.

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I have come back to a Spanish team! In previous editions of the America’s Cup (in 1995 and 2000) I sailed with Spanish teams, whilst in the 32nd Cup I was with Luna Rossa. I learnt a lot and have now come back ‘home’ with new experiences and very keen to work hard. I have been given the chance to coordinate the whole sail programme for the America’s Cup and TP52 campaigns; which has the same team structure for both events.

It was a hard decision for me to leave CXG as I had been sailing with them for many years, and they are a solid group, very good friends of mine, with a fantastic atmosphere on board and some amazing results in the last couple of years.
Particularly in my position as main sail trimmer, I had been used to sailing with chuny – we know eachother very well. It is really essential that main trimmer and the helmsman have a good working relationship – at least when sailing! – so that as a trimmer you know how to interpret the helmsman’s options, you have to know how to look ahead. So in that sense I am now starting from scratch again with the team of Desafio.

 It really is a great personal challenge. I am slowly but surely adapting to the helmsman throughout the races, which are extremely competitive, and this year we have more than one driver with the team! There is quite a bit of pressure on because the trimmers are responsible for adjusting the speed of the boat and the two positions have to work together well. It is a change but a good challenge; there comes a time in life that you have to make decisions that involve your future, and although it was hard, it has also been because I want to keep improving and learning.

The first thing that comes to mind when I think about the things I have learnt recently is adapting to working with an international group of people of different nationalities. The combination between the Anglo-Saxon character (the Americans or New Zealanders) with the ‘Latin’ nationalities – Spanish or Italians, who for me are quite similar in nature, is interesting when taking an approach to doing things. It is really nice to see this mixed group come together because you learn to adapt your personality – the ‘Latin’ nature for example often adopts a more ‘systematic’ way of doing things whereas other nationalities might become a little more passionate in their attitude and bring in that additional energy when sailing.

I became the main sail trimmer after having sailed for a few years as skipper in the IMS classes. When the sponsor decided not to continue one year I was approached by Chuny (who I had sailed with in the past) to join the team on Caixa Galicia, and I stayed for five years! A main sail trimmer is often also a helmsman as he needs to know how the boat moves and what it requires at different times in the race.

Outside of racing I am also in charge of the sail programme coordination. In these races there are a lot of sail changes throughout the season. We are allowed 25 sails but there are always quite a few more made. The sail development is very active between events (normally about 15 days) – sail shapes have to be changed, coordinated, developed and overseen.

My current objective is to get to know Paul (Cayard- Helmsman) as well as possible because if everything goes according to plan, he is more than likely going to be the Spanish boat’s skipper for the next America’s Cup. It is also really important to me to get to know the rest of the team well. Desafío has made a great effort to build a new boat to compete in the circuit and keep the group together, sailing and evolving.

And other ambitions of mine? I have to admit that I have always been curious about doing a round the world race. But this year with such uncertainty surrounding certain projects it was difficult to make that choice…. the interest however remains!