Pure adrenaline rush for Hollywood actor Ewan McGregor. The enthusiastic motorbike rider (including "Long Way Round") and adventurer took the opportunity on Saturday to sign up as a guest for the Emirates Great Britain SailGP Team on the Hudson River. The sixth race of this year's series took place in New York last weekend. The sporting excursion, in which McGregor was even allowed to steer, took place after the first day of racing on the Hudson River and is part of the preparation for a transatlantic sailing adventure. The project is being documented under the title "True Wind", directed by David Alexanian from Elixir Films. The team has already produced the well-known series "Long Way Round", "Long Way Down", "Long Way Up" and "Long Way Home". McGregor sailed with helmsman Dylan Fletcher, wing trimmer Stuart Bithell, flight controller Luke Parkinson and grinders Nick Hutton and Neil Hunter.
McGregor enthusiastic about the experience
"It's an absolute adrenaline rush," commented McGregor enthusiastically on his sailing experience with Emirates GBR. "The speed and the G-forces in the turns are amazing. I realised straight away that I knew nothing about sailing. It was a damn good sailing lesson and I had a great time."
Extreme conditions on the Hudson
The race track in New York is one of the most spectacular in the SailGP calendar. The teams sail on the Hudson River with the Statue of Liberty and the Manhattan skyline as a backdrop. On Saturday, the area presented itself with some of the most difficult conditions ever experienced in the SailGP. The wind speed was around 40 km/h, with strong river currents and narrow racing areas. Due to the high winds, the craning of the F50 boats into the water was delayed. Only four teams made it onto the water: Australia's BONDS Flying Roos, Emirates GBR, Spain's Los Gallos and the USA team. The crane order was based on the championship ranking.
Australia eliminated after nosedive
Although four boats were craned, only three ultimately took part in the race. The Australian crew suffered a nosedive during the practice laps and damaged their F50 so badly that they were unable to take part in the race. Three races were held, with Emirates GBR posting a 1-2-2 record. The scoring system was adapted to the reduced fleet, with a maximum of three points possible for a regatta victory according to the 3-2-1-0 scheme. Significantly lighter conditions were expected for the second day of racing on Sunday. The plan was for three races with a full fleet, after which the top three teams would compete in the winner-takes-all event final.
Emirates GBR on course for title defence
The Mubadala New York Sail Grand Prix marks the sixth stop of the Rolex SailGP Championship season. A total of 13 teams will compete against each other at 13 venues around the world. They will take place in 2026 in this order: Perth, Auckland, Sydney, Rio de Janeiro, Bermuda, New York, Halifax, Portsmouth, SassnitzValencia, Geneva, Dubai and Abu Dhabi. The Ewan McGregor sailing instructors from Emirates GBR are the reigning champions after winning the Grand Final of the 2025 season in Abu Dhabi in November. The British team under CEO Sir Ben Ainslie is currently in second place in the season standings with 35 points. Spain's Los Gallos follows in third place with 34 points, while Australia's BONDS Flying Roos leads the table with 45 points.
Fletcher praises Ewan McGregor
Helmsman Dylan Fletcher was pleased with the first day of racing: "It was super tough conditions out there, but it was great to be out on the challenging course. We felt we got off to a good start but unfortunately we let the Spaniards get past us." On having Ewan McGregor on board, the rider said: "It was great to have him on board, he was really excited to be out there in these sporting conditions and he learnt a lot. He did really well, even though we had a lot of G-forces and went into the corners with a lot of speed."
Martin Hager
Editor in Chief YACHT
