I was watching Untold: The Race of the Century recently. For anyone remotely interested in sailing and the America’s Cup it’s a great watch. A classic tale of the underdog beating the favourite, with fewer resources and experience but a helluva lot of grit and determination. Our cousins across the ditch have always done that well.
When John Bertrand got it into his head to have a go for the Cup many thought him crazy. After all, it had been happily ensconced in the palatial surroundings of the New York Yacht Club since 1851. The Americans had no plans to change that. But Bertrand, and a bunch of stubbies wearing Aussies did.
Under-resourced from the off Bertrand knew that to beat the Americans he would need to know them inside out, build a different kind of team, think differently, and finally, perhaps most importantly, simply believe.
In what amounts to a throw-away line, we are told that Bertrand “got a scholarship to MIT’ and spent several years studying boat design from the Americans. He wanted to learn everything he could so he could push further. Getting a scholarship to MIT doesn’t come easy, but Bertrand was just getting started.
Next, he pulled together a team that would make the dream possible. Amongst them were Grant Simmer who, in his own words, “had never navigated a yacht before”, and “the barefoot Australian” yacht designer Ben Lexcen, an unlikely choice having left school at 14. The Americans had the US Navy, aerospace technology and huge design teams at their disposal. But the Australians “just had Benny. We had Benny. That was it.” A designer who lived in a world of art rather than the world of calculus and geometry, Lexcen would prove a master stroke. As Bertrand put it “Benny was different. He was not constrained in a box…he was the Leonardo Da Vinci of Australia.”
By the fourth attempt it was clear the Australia II team had to think differently. A superior boat design and mindset were needed. The first was in the hands of Lexcen who looked to the skies for inspiration. His now famous winged keel, which has evolved into the foiling yachts of today, was inspired by watching birds take flight. In parallel, Bertrand was focused on the psychology of the team – “We had to believe. We just had to believe.”
And so it was, after winning 36/42 preliminary races simply to get a chance to challenge, on 26 September 1983, despite every obstacle, including a legal challenge to the keel design, a scrappy crew of Australians rewrote history, lifting the America’s Cup in the 7th and final race of the challenge. Australia II crossed the line 42 seconds clear of Liberty having made up a 57 second deficit on the last upwind leg, bringing to an end the 132 year winning streak and breaking the hearts of all involved. Dennis Conor, defeated, faced the press alone, abandoned by his club and sponsors. A funereal atmosphere pervaded the NYYC.
The associated Press reported the win with the headline “Australians go bonkers”. And so they did!
5 Lessons from Australia II
- Have a dream – As Jim Dator famously puts it “Any statement about the future must at first seem ridiculous.” What is your version of Lifting the America’s cup? What are you willing to go all in for?
- Know the territory – Do you know enough about those around you whether they are competition or collaborators. If not, get to know them and the territory you’re playing in.
- A coalition of the willing beats a coalition of the ‘best’ – You need both willingness and different ways of looking at a problem in order to innovate. Those who consider themselves already the best are less likely to be a Da Vinci in waiting. Those who are willing to try new things, have a restless curiosity and share the dream make the best collaborators.
- Have a mindset of abundance – resources aren’t the whole story. Are you letting a lack of resources stop you from achieving the dream? Find other ways around it. With great collaborators you will.
- Believe – Do you really believe the ambition is possible even if you don’t know how yet? Will you keep believing when it looks bleak? At 57 seconds down in the deciding race, Bertrand says the reason they won that day is because they believed they could. That simple. That hard.
With thanks to John Bertrand, Grant Simmer, the late Ben Lexcon, and all the Australia II team for the inspiration – and the joy.
Photo Credit: Australia II and crew celebrate the 1983 win. Photo: Larry Moran (Creative Commons)
©Ann Braithwaite 2023
