A key reason for our trip was to visit with Emirates Team New Zealand. Look for some really cool things to come in the near future from RD2 and this crew! Emirates Team New Zealand is a really amazing organization. We had the chance to meet there most of one of our days. We were able to tour the facility and even go for a ride on one of the chase boats in the bay.

This was such a tremendous learning experience about the history and the culture of Team New Zealand. Here's a quote from Wikipedia:

Team New Zealand has become a household name in their home country following their consecutive wins in the America's Cup in 1995 and 2000. In doing this, they became the first team from a country outside the United States to successfully win and then defend the America's Cup. Their success in America's Cup competitions have contributed to New Zealand's reputation for producing world-class sailors and boat designers.[citation needed] Emirates Team New Zealand is currently competing in the World Match Racing Tour. Led by their skipper Adam Minoprio, they are widely expected to be the basis for a future America's Cup campaign for New Zealand.

This is a picture of a chase boat following one of the teams in a test boat. This was amazing to watch.

Here's the bossman, Grant Dalton. Incredibly cool guy. He's a living legend in New Zealand and it was great to spend the day with him. He's also got a passion for motorbikes which makes him even cooler!

Here's a pretty good video I found of a laid back Grant Dalton. I think in this video you get a good view and perspective on the culture of New Zealand and the culture of New Zealand racing. Love his little comment about Greg LeMond at the end!

[youtube width="670" height="378"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_WVSow0YNR8[/youtube]

New Zealand - Team New Zealand