American sailor Taylor Canfield, 35, grew up in the U.S. Virgin Islands and has been competing as a professional match racer and fleet racer since graduation from Boston College in 2011.
Currently the driver for the SailGP U.S. team, Canfield is part of a new and eclectic team of investors led by founding Uber engineer Ryan McKillen; his partner and J/70 champion skipper Margaret McKillen; and two-time world champion sailor Michael Buckley. On April 30, the team announced that skier and Olympic Gold medalist Lindsey Vonn would also join the board of US SailGP. Vonn also serves as an athlete advisor for US SailGP investor Avenue Sports Fund.
Canfield and the team are focusing on the upcoming Grand Prix circuit at events in Bermuda (May 4-5) followed by Halifax, Nova Scotia (June 1-2), and New York City (June 22-23).
SAIL Magazine caught up with Taylor Canfield this week from his home in Newport, Rhode Island.
SAIL: In college, you won the ICSA Match Racing National Championship in 2010 and 2011 and became the 2013 World Champion in match racing as well as being a five-time Congressional Cup winner. What is it that drew you to match racing? How did you carve a path to professional sailing?
TC: It started with my all-time goal of getting to the America’s Cup because—at the time—match racing events were a feeder into the America’s Cup. I certainly can credit match racing for my success, but I think persistence is the key to making sure you are the best. If you want to excel at the sport, it’s important to be able to sail as much as possible. I would say sail as often as you can, and you will get better.
SAIL: Would you agree that college sailing was important to your development as a competitor?
TC: I have to credit college sailing for so much. In part because of the team racing aspect, because you develop an awareness of boat-on-boat interactions, you become comfortable around other boats at slower speeds, it gives you spatial awareness and prepares you for those chaotic moments. Additionally, sailing every day of the week and almost every weekend is incredible training.
Further, the co-ed teams in college teach all of us competing that, in the end, the best sailors get put forward. I am happy to see the co-ed movement growing into professional sailing and the growth of women’s involvement in every level of the sport.
SAIL: Currently, the SailGP US team, which is co-ed, is made up primarily of American sailors. Would you say this is a golden opportunity for younger American men and women?
TC: Building and recruiting an all-American team has been a goal of ours. We want to see American sailors of my generation and younger get this opportunity. I worked toward sailing at this level throughout my match racing career. But the F50s are far different and technically far more advanced than what most American sailors compete on. We are looking towards the younger generation coming up. In fact, during our North American stopovers in Bermuda, New York, and San Francisco we put out the word that we want to have youth volunteering, and the response has been amazing. They are so keen to get a closer look at this kind of racing.
SAIL: Tech investor and founding Uber engineer Ryan McKillen and his wife Margaret McKillen are competitive sailors who are some of the primary investors of SailGP US. Is this a unique opportunity in our sport, that many of the key investors are also competitive sailors?
TC: I think whatever avenue you choose in the sport; we create our own opportunities. I have been on a long journey, trying to climb up the rankings and prove myself at each level. It is a long road, and you’re going to be told “no” a bunch of times. However, the networking opportunities in competitive sailing are huge. In fact, I met Ryan McKillen sailing J70s and developed a friendship then. We have a lot of respect for each other. We are also teammates on the M32s. It is a super unique sport because there is so much mixing of professionals and amateurs.
SAIL: Now that you are the driver of the U.S. team, how well do you know the competition?
TC: There are at least four guys that came out of match racing that we will compete against next week in Bermuda and throughout the North American portion of Season 4. People like Phil Robertson of SailGP Canada and Nicolai Sehested of SailGP Denmark are both our long-time competitors on the match racing circuit. We know their tendencies and what they do. I am glad I have had so much experience in the M32, which is kind of a slowed-down version of the F50s. When it comes to the F50s, all kinds of scenarios come up. I do like to go out and win every race I can. And it is true these boats are another level of complex, and there is a lot more risk involved sailing on an F50. I would say they are one of the hardest boats in the world to sail.
For more on Taylor Canfield and the American SailGP team, keep an eye on SAIL’s social media @sailmagazine. Managing editor Lydia Mullan will be joining the team in Bermuda this weekend for a firsthand look at sailing’s most cutting-edge race circuit.
May 2024
