On his Sailfaster podcast Pete Boland recently featured Sara Stone, a professional sailor with extensive racing experience including the TP52 Super Series and the America’s Cup. Sara shared her approach to competitive sailing and her passion for advancing women in elite sailing—all while thriving in the high-pressure world of competitive racing. Hear the full episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify or watch it on YouTube!
What drove you to be a professional sailor?
Sara: I didn’t even know that was a thing you could do. I was working in public health, sitting at my desk, and I saw Team SCA in the Volvo Ocean Race. I thought, ‘What the hell am I doing in Colorado sitting behind a desk when I could be doing that?’ I used that as fuel and as a roadmap. I thought maybe that could be me.
How was the transition to foiling the American Magic AC40 in the Women’s America’s Cup?
Foiling an AC40 for the first time is pretty surreal! You don’t really feel the speed; you focus on what you’re doing. I had access to the simulator before getting on the boat, so I was familiar with the buttons and screens. And then you do it for real. On the AC40 you have this huge sail—I’ve never been on a boat where you are truly blind to half the course.
How did you manage communications and decision-making when you couldn’t see the other boat!?
It’s unique! We spent time talking through ‘What are we going to say? What do we mean when we say it? How do we make it short and concise?’ You’re talking over headsets, and you’re sailing really fast with closing speeds of 80 knots. You can’t be having a conversation when you actually need to be doing something. So, we spent a lot of time working out how to build out those decision points. Ultimately, it’s a game
of trust.
You describe offshore racing as “the art of doing nothing perfectly.”
Yeah, it’s about managing everything all the time for a prolonged period. It’s different from inshore racing when you have one role that you need to execute perfectly; offshore you can’t always trim to 100 percent of potential boat speed because you have this other task that’s a higher priority.
What’s your favorite moment racing on Quantum Racing’s TP52 in the Super Series?
I love the feeling on the TP52 of bearing away around the top mark, and you are absolutely ripping. Everything happened exactly as it was supposed to. Everybody just did their jobs. The boat is quiet and fast. It all came together right in that moment. Maybe it lasts for one second or three seconds, but it’s that sense of, ‘Okay, this is it!’ Sometimes that happens at a start: you accelerate across the line, and you’ve nailed it. I was on the line, I was over targets, I have the lane I want, the position I want, and I’m absolutely ripping. It’s so good when that happens. If you can make those moments happen more, you’ll be sailing better. You’re probably going to get better results. There are moments for sure on every team where blood pressure goes up, but you’re all striving for the same outcome.
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