THE GUEST RACER COCKPIT ON THE AC75 - THE MOST COVETED RIDE IN SPORT TODAY

Housed in Rule 40, deep in the AC75 Class Rules, the stipulation in 40.1 states that: “At the discretion of the Regatta Director, a Competitor’s yacht may carry a Guest Racer, whose mass shall be limited and equalised according to Rule 6. If a guest racer is not aboard, equivalent ballast shall be included as per Rule 6.11.”

The rule also stipulates that: “A guest racer shall not contribute to the racing of the yacht in any way,” and also that: “The guest racer shall not be a Team Member, as defined by the Protocol, except where the individual is the Team Principal or holds a similar title...”

From left to right: George Russell on INEOS Britannia. Roy, Wrighty, Carra, and Gary from The Overlap saiilg with Athena Pathway. MotoGP World Champion Pecco Bagnaia aboard Emirates Team New Zealand's AC40. Kai Lenny joining the sailing team of Alinghi Red Bull Racing during training for the Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup in Barcelona. (Source: Instagram @athenaracinggbr / @athenapathway / @emiratesteamnz / @teamalinghi)

Instantly social media and broadcast outlets sprung alive with speculation about who would get to ride onboard the AC75s during racing. The truth is that whoever gets the nod to sail an AC75 in a race at the Preliminary Regattas, the Louis Vuitton Challenger Selection Series or the Louis Vuitton 38th America’s Cup Match itself, is in for the ride of their life.

From a personal perspective, I can attest to the thrill of sailing onboard an AC75. In 2024, I sailed onboard the 2021 winning AC75 of Emirates Team New Zealand Te Rehutai and in truth, it changed the way I view sailing as a sport. Distances became unbelievably shortened. Waveforms mattered not a jot. Windage was real and the G-forces exerted on the body through manoeuvres were extraordinary. Speeds on the bear-away off Rangitoto Island were something I had never seen on a boat and am unlikely to see again in my lifetime. It was everything and more.

Going into a one-on-one match race against another AC75, or to take part in the planned fleet races, will be an unforgettable experience for whoever gets the opportunity. An AC75 at race pace is a visceral, exhilarating prospect where complete trust in the crew and equipment is paramount.

Peering over the side you see the foils at work and with the sheer scale of the AC75 above, those foils seem paltry to the physics. But they work, and the onboard screeching of the mast rotating and the traveller being adjusted for optimum sail shaping is something hard to get used to. The boat seems to groan and creak the harder it is pushed and with the best sailors in the world around the Guest Racer, it is undoubtedly the greatest experience that an individual can have in sport. Period.

LEFT Valencia, Spain: Luna Rossa sailing through dynamic waters during the second Round Robin of the Louis Vuitton Cup in 2007. | RIGHT James "Jimmy" Spithill at the helm of the IACC Luna Rossa in the lead-up to the 32nd America's Cup in Valencia, Spain in 2007. Photos: © Carlo Borlenghi

Guest Racers in the America’s Cup are not a new concept, however. Back in Valencia in 2007, the ‘18th Man’ was brought in to experience the thrill of sailing the IACC yachts – sedate in comparison to the AC75s of today.

Sat in the aft scoop of the non-foiling sloops, it was a precarious and, at times, wet ride. Fast forward to the foiling AC72 catamarans in San Francisco in 2013 and due to the extremity of those boats, Guest Racers were prohibited for racing although famously the film actor Tom Cruise and his son Connor were brought onboard the Emirates Team New Zealand boat during training for a blast. Onboard, Cruise told Grant Dalton: “I’ve raced cars, I’ve driven airplanes, but this was the coolest thing I have ever done.”

From Top Gun to America's Cup: Tom Cruise and his son Connor sailing aboard Emirates Team New Zealand's AC72 in San Francisco (Photos: © Chris Cameron / Emirates Team New Zealand).

Other notable names that have been on America’s Cup boats in the past include the likes of motor-racing legend Michael Schumacher and tennis ace Anna Kournikova. In Barcelona throughout the Louis Vuitton 37th America’s Cup, stars of the sporting world came to experience foiling. From motor-racing there was Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen, George Russell, and Toto Wolff. Marc Márquez from superbikes, World Cup alpine ski racer Marco Odermatt, footballer Ferran Torres and surfing legend Kai Lenny all enjoyed rides on the fastest monohull yachts in the world.

Fair to say Max Verstappen knows a few bits about going fast... Here he shares his experience with Arnaud Psarofaghis.

Now with the AC75s capable of speeds well in excess of 50 knots, the Guest Racer is going to experience something almost other-worldly and it’s a huge opportunity for the America’s Cup to engage with global audiences.

Fans, VIPs, journalists, sponsors and influencers will all have the chance to experience the highest pinnacle of the sport of sailing, the America’s Cup, in a completely unique way. In no other sport can a regular person be a part of the real, meaningful action. Experiences have long been offered in sports such as motor racing, but to actually be onboard during America’s Cup racing, especially onboard the AC75 yachts, is an exciting prospect and a welcome re-addition to the regatta.

Speaking about the Guest Racer concept Dan Bernasconi, Head of Design at Emirates Team New Zealand, commented: “For the event to broaden its appeal, the Guest Racer spot was a key initiative that we decided upon in conjunction with the Challenger of Record. It’s giving unparalleled access to the raceboats for a wide variety of people to experience the very pinnacle of sailing and I’m looking forward to their reactions. Anybody who has had the privilege to sail on one of these boats knows just what a thrill it is and bringing that to new audiences is going to be very interesting from a media perspective.”

For the design teams, the new Guest Racer cockpit will have to be factored into the overall design with some strict limitations that stipulate that the Guest Racer plus their equipment must not total more than 125kg, and that if no Guest Racer is present, then equalising ballast will be added. The windage of a Guest Racer will also need to be factored into the overall deck design and the human tendency to look around and experience the occasion will be something that teams will be considering into their aerodynamic equations.

The Guest Racer arguably has the ‘best seat in the house’ at the Louis Vuitton 38th America’s Cup and all related events. It’s the hottest ticket in the America’s Cup and a privilege beyond compare.

Form an orderly queue...

by Magnus Wheatley

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