New Trade Routes

Drawing digital pathways on the new trade maps.

Seattle, WA USA

Trade drives the way people interact.  People, products, money, and ideas follow the trade routes and impact everything in their path.  Keeping pace with the way trade routes are changing is essential to success or even survival.  New Trade Routes is working to better understand the changes so we can help our clients, investees, and grantees improve their chances of success.

 

Sail GP: The Formula 1 of Sailboat Racing

February 15, 2023  /  Jay Leon

There is a new sailboat racing series that wants to become the Formula 1 of sailing.  The boats go fast (50 MPH) and the races are short (15 minutes).  And that’s not all, there are also crashes and clashes of personalities. 

The events occur over a weekend, with a some fleet races of 9 boats to determine the top three and then a winner take all final at the end of racing on Sunday.  If sailing and exciting are two words that just don’t go together for you, give me 15 seconds and watch the start and first leg of the final in Spain during season 2.

Start of the final in Cadiz, Spain, Season 2

https://www.youtube.com/live/aKBIhM650H8?feature=share&t=3841

In Formula 1, there are usually a dozen or maybe two dozen passes during a race between 20 cars that lasts 90 minutes.  Give me 3 more minutes and just try to count the number of passes in this three minute segment during the St Tropez event this season:   

Finish of Race 1, St Tropez, France, season 3

https://www.youtube.com/live/L7NPqx5mV34?feature=share&t=1270

From last to first, from first to 5th, and plenty of mixing it up in between.  You just cannot look away for a second. 

If you want more, Sail GP is in Sydney, AUS this weekend and will be live on YouTube for those of you in the USA.  The races start at 2 PM Sydney time, which is 7PM the day before on the west coast.  So perfect for Friday night entertainment.  You can also watch after the fact on YouTube – any time you like.

The live sessions should be posted on the YouTube channel tomorrow sometime:  https://www.youtube.com/@SailGP

Some Nuts and Bolts about Sail GP

Formula 1 has been building its circuit since the first race in Turin in 1946.  The 2023 season will feature 24 races for 10 teams with 2 cars each.  The first race weekend is March 3-5 in Bahrain. Over 500 million people watched the last Formula 1 season.

SailGP has 3 events to go in its 11 event, 3rd season and 9 teams are competing.  The next event is this weekend in Sydney.  Then New Zealand, and then the grand final in San Francisco in May.  65 million people watched the first half of season 3.  The 4th season will have 14 events and viewership is growing at over 50% per year. 

Some Formula 1 sponsors, technology consulting firm, Cognizant for example, also sponsor Sail GP.

Some Formula 1 teams are affiliated with Sail GP teams (and also Americas Cup teams).  Formula 1 implemented a $145 million spending cap in 2021. Some people think that the affiliation between the teams is an attempt to move expenses out of the Formula 1 spending cap.  There is good overlap in materials science, data and analytics, and back office functions, so this may be true.

SailGP has a strong environmental message because the boats are powered by the wind.  This has generated some interest among sponsors and venues. SailGP has been running a parallel competition since season 2 called the Impact League, where teams compete to reduce their carbon footprint.

Initially, all of the Sail GP boats and the teams were owned by SailGP itself.  In December of last year, Great Britain became the first team to buy out SailGP founding investor Larry Ellison.  The boats are all still owned and maintained by SailGP.

The data collected from the boats is available to every team.  The idea is to even out the learning curve so all of the teams learn at similar paces.  This has proven to be true as new teams are getting up to speed very quickly.

Larry Ellison and Russel Coutts should be congratulated for building so much so quickly. SailGP will most certainly be a sporting event to watch as it grows into the very big shoes its founders have imagined.

Comment