I’ve just had the most exhilarating afternoon on Auckland’s beautiful harbour on one of Team New Zealand’s yachts.

Getting ready

ANZ host, Deb Hisco, took a team of woman out on the harbour to experience the hard yards at the helm, grinding and putting the spinnaker up.

The spinnaker is up

Our skipper Tom told us Team New Zealand takes 8.5 seconds to take the spinnaker down and store it in the hatch, ready to go again. We were still fumbling after 8 minutes as we stuffed it into the hatch………….  I’m pleased “Dean the Dream” wasn’t there to witness our antics! I’ve come away with a new appreciation for the skills and effort required to sail one of these yachts, let alone race it.

Me and my wonderful host, Deb Hisco