LAND ROVER BAR HAS STAR QUALITY IN NEW YORK

 Land Rover BAR
Land Rover BAR team

The sun came out and the winds finally picked up on the Hudson River, New York, to round off a star studded weekend of America’s Cup racing for Land Rover BAR.

The British team, led by Sir Ben Ainslie, wasn’t short of celebrity support as the city played host to the Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series. Big names from the world of film, television and business joined Land Rover BAR for a weekend of racing under the iconic Manhattan skyline.

 

As Britain’s mission to win the America’s Cup for the first time gathers momentum so does interest from some of the biggest names in showbiz. Hollywood actors Liam Hemsworth (star of Independence Day: Resurgence)and Mark Ruffalo, Game of Thrones actor Alfie Allen and business tycoon, Richard Branson all joined Sir Ben Ainslie and his team on board Land Rover BAR’s flying catamaran.

 

After the obligatory safety briefing, the A-list guests were kitted out in drysuits, life jackets and helmets before joining the crew on board the AC45’s as the official ‘sixth man’. Sitting on the stern of the boat behind the Skipper on a strip of webbing no more than a metre wide, the celebrity sixth men got to experience life in the fast lane on the water.

 

Despite difficult sailing conditions across the weekend, Land Rover BAR managed to keep their rivals at bay to retain third position in the overall Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series rankings. The team now head to Chicago on 11 and 12th June to race on Lake Michigan in the hope to chase down second place Oracle Team USA and leaders Emirates Team New Zealand.

 

After a challenging final day, Ben Ainslie, Land Rover BAR Skipper and Team Principal“It’s hard to describe racing in those conditions. It was fantastic to see so many people out supporting the event. It’s such a great city. The last two races, the guy in last place at the penultimate mark, won the race on the penultimate leg.

 

“So as competitors that’s tough to deal with, but that’s the game. We knew it would be like that going into this event, and you roll the dice and see which side of it you come out. Unfortunately it didn’t go well for us today, so the guys are frustrated. I think we sailed the boat really well, and did everything just about as good as we could, but it just didn’t fall our way.”

 

Commenting on his experience on the boat, Alfie Allen, who plays Theon Greyjoy in the award winning HBO series, said: “It’s still sinking in really that I’m here with this amazing team – Ben’s a legend! I’ll be honest I’m not an avid sailor but being ‘sixth man’ is a once in a lifetime opportunity. It’s incredible watching how the team and the boat operate on the water, we got foiling – it was amazing.”

 

Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series overall results after four events: 

Emirates Team New Zealand – 244

Oracle Team USA – 236

Land Rover BAR – 227

Softbank Team Japan – 203

Artemis Racing – 201

Groupama Team France – 194

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