Flying Boats in the Big Apple: What Makes SailGP in NYC Special

The beauty of such a global series is that each venue injects a unique twist to the competitive considerations and overall spectacle for fans. New York City, which just held its fourth SailGP Grand Prix since the series launched in 2019, is no exception. The city’s harbor is quickly becoming an iconic sailing course, summoning elite sailors from around the world in front of the Statue of Liberty to battle wind, rain, and currents in front of more than 10,000 cheering fans.

And these aren’t just sailing fans. The 2025 race was FanAmp’s first SailGP event, and we spoke with fans from all over the world who were in the same boat (pun intended), watching sailing for the first time.

So what are the ingredients that make SailGP’s New York City Grand Prix, and the sport in general, such a special experience? We’ll break down what we learned and why it should be on any racing fan’s to-do list.

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Challenges of the New York Harbor

Location, location, location. One of the biggest draws to the New York race is simply the setting. Tom Slingsby, driver for Australia’s BONDS Flying Roos SailGP Team, called it out immediately in our interview. “To think that sailing can come so close to a city and race in front of such an iconic city it’s pretty amazing,” he said.

The racecourse is situated between the Statue of Liberty and Governor’s Island where spectators can access grandstands and various hospitality suites. The setting creates unique challenges for sailors navigating its waters.

Anna Weis, grinder for the United States SailGP Team, emphasized the limited space and need to figure out the water movements. “I mean this racetrack is a super tight one, so lots of congestion. And there's current and really, really shifty and puffy conditions so it just makes it really tricky when you're having to manage a lot of boats within a small, small space but also really, really challenging conditions as well. Even if you had a bigger space to be sailing it's still challenging so there's a lot of different factors that are going to make it one of the trickiest racecourses this season.”

The boats are entirely powered by wind, making the weather above the waves another critical factor, and each day of racing completely different. Saturday brought rain and limited wind, capping the crew each boat could run. “It was very new for us, first of all, to sail three up,” said Germany Deutsche Bank SailGP Team’s Erik Heil. “Lots of tasks which are otherwise shared on the team with six people you do with three people. That was very special.”

Come Sunday, the sun was out and stronger winds brought boats back to the six-person capacity. “Big shifts, big patches in the wind. It was a real sailor’s day out there,” said Slingsby. With the winds and currents constantly shifting, “you needed all your sailing skills to be successful out there.”

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The technological wind beneath the sail

Wind may be at the core of sailing, but it is not the only thing that matters. The technical innovations SailGP has introduced have pushed the sport forward for athletes and audiences alike.

While teams compete on uniform sailboats, the F50 catamarans are highly-sophisticated and one of a kind. Tom Herbert-Evans, Head of Community Engagement for SailGP, joked during a tour that very few sailors on the planet - specifically those competing in SailGP - have the experience to operate them. “And that is a pillar issue is that people that are in those positions, they’ve kind of got the hot commodity,” he said “They are in that position so they get more training time. So we’ve got to accelerate, particularly for the women partner program as well, [getting] people into those positions, particularly using the simulator.”

So what makes the F50 catamarans so challenging to master? The sails and foils are the first place to start.

The wing sails, for example, can be adjusted each day based on the wind conditions. If winds are stronger, the main 18m element is used, and if winds are lighter a 24m or 29m element is installed to give more surface area with which to capture the airflow and propel the catamarans through the water. This allows SailGP boats to perform in a wider range of wind conditions.

And “perform” probably isn’t the best term, because the sophisticated nature of the sails above coupled with the foil system below allows these catamarans to fly above the water at speeds nearly four times that of the wind.

“We're harnessing nature's energy and multiplying it as much as we can,” emphasized Tom Herbert-Evans.

The result? We were able to see a full weekend of sailing in both low- and high-wind conditions.

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Front-row viewing on shore

Technical innovations onboard elevate the competitive nature of the sport, and SailGP’s innovations with the racing product elevate the in-person fan experience.

First, the course itself is dynamic, with boats racing toward robotic marks that move into new positions with simple gestures on a screen.

“What we've got now is an electric propulsion system on the mark and somebody has sat on the land here today with an iPhone and they're just dragging their finger and putting the mark in position,” Herbert-Evans explained. “And then what happens [is] we'll put that mark right in front of the fans so they'll always see the best part of the action.”

And that’s exactly what happened. In the case of New York, the grandstands are positioned alongside the Governor’s Island shoreline, giving fans near-constant visibility of all the boats on the racecourse with the Statue of Liberty in the background. Near the end of each race, finish line markers would journey just off the shoreline.

Soon after they were in position, F50s began foiling past with sailors waving to cheering fans who could snap Instagram photos without the need for a telephoto camera lens.

Tim and Cathy, from Staten Island, had been watching SailGP for three years after being hooked on the speed and competition in such a tight space. They decided to attend in-person for the first time this year and were blown away. “Being able to see the Statue of Liberty, boats shooting by, in your hometown—it’s just simply amazing,” emphasized Tim.

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It’s the athletes that steer this ship

At the end of the day, the athletes are the stars of the show, and SailGP puts in the work to make the personalities come to life through on-screen profiles and constant shoutouts by the hype team.

Beyond that, the winners of each race are interviewed live on their boats immediately after racing stops. It felt incredibly unique to hear their thoughts on the race as they bobbed up and down with the waves. It would be like getting Max Verstappen’s thoughts between Qualifying rounds while sitting in his car.

And the icing on the cake? Fans in the main grandstand are treated to the trophy presentation and champagne spray. Just be prepared to get caught in the crossfire if you’re in the first few rows.

Whether you’re new to sailing or a long-time fan, the SailGP experience will make you a believer. From iconic venues, to incredible technology, to interesting personalities, the series has gone all-in on making sailing something any race fan can enjoy. And seeing all the action just a short ferry ride from Manhattan is icing on the cake.