Sailors show off their America’s Cup base in Barcelona: Alinghi Red Bull’s new empire is a high-security wing

The construction crane on site gives the wrong impression. There is no longer a construction site here. Alinghi Red Bull Racing’s new team base for the America’s Cup in the autumn of 2024 has been operational for a few weeks. The Swiss flag waves proudly in the wind.

Here in Barcelona the racing boat is being designed for around 120 million francs, training has been going on here for months in the future competition water and the practice boats are being tinkered with and tinkered with.

“We used to be temporarily housed in another place for a few months, which was not ideal,” says sailor Florian Trüb (29), “now everything is under one roof, now we feel very comfortable. We work here every day, with a five-day working week you won’t win anything in the America’s Cup.”

The fear of espionage is ubiquitous

The new empire is not a shiny palace. And no ‘place to be’ like the energy station that Red Bull places in the Formula 1 paddock for its teams and guests.

The new head office in the middle of the tourist hotspot of the old port is a highly secured wing. Anyone who invests millions in a flying high-tech monster protects their expensive secrets.

The fear of espionage by opponents is also ubiquitous. Thousands of tourists pour out every day, but there is nothing to see at Alinghi Red Bull. The entrance door is guarded by a guard. Even in the building, many doors only open with a badge; not all team members have authorization for every room.

The media also stays outside this Fort Knox of sailing. With one exception. On Wednesday, the day before the first America’s Cup pre-regatta, a group of journalists will be given exclusive access to the new empire.

But under strict conditions. Photos are prohibited in the building; the images for publication are provided by Blick and other media are provided by the team. Naturally, the topics are chosen in such a way that no rival would be able to notice a sensitive detail from the sacred Alinghi halls.

In Formula 1 on the water, suspicion always plays a role. Because all the teams are still working on their yachts for the big race in a year’s time. The focus of the secrecy is on the ‘foils’, the supporting surfaces that allow the boat to race across the water at up to 100 km/h. If you have a technical genius in this area, you may be able to outrun all your opponents.

Only a few people in the team know what Alinghi Red Bull plans to do with the foils in 2024. Silence is as much a part of the America’s Cup as the wind. There are no secrets at the base in the catering area with the large terrace including a view of the future racing site. The snacks feature the team logo. The refrigerators are filled with all kinds of cans. Only the coffee, the Catalan mineral water and the well-stocked wine do not come from the Bulls.

To welcome you, co-managing director Michel Hodara shows the lightning-fast formation of the new home with a time-lapse film. “In March there was still an empty area here,” says the Roman. Before that there was a cinema at this point. That was destroyed for the people of Geneva.

Five of the six teams based in Port Vell

The America’s Cup leaves its mark on Barcelona. There is already a prominent exhibition in the port about the upcoming mega sporting event. And five teams have set up base around Port Vell, with La Rambla boulevard just a stone’s throw away. Only the French application, which came in late, has to make do with a location at the unattractive car ferry port.

Back to the Swiss team. Where there used to be a cinema, around 120 people are now working on the big dream of bringing the oldest sports trophy in the world to Geneva during the comeback, just like in 2003 and 2007.

Sailor Trüb leads Blick and Co. through the three-storey building. Everything in the base is designed for simple functionality and maximum success. Would you like to watch a football match or a cycling stage on the TV screens in the weight room while training? Fitness coach Alex Hopson says: “We don’t watch TV. The screens are for data analysis or to show a new program.”

Would you like to enjoy the beautiful view of the city while eating in the canteen? That is not possible, because there are only small windows here. It is not the skyline that should shine here, but rather the kitchen, which can be seen from the dining room. There are currently three male and female chefs working. The crew can choose from meatballs, chicken thighs, potatoes, broccoli pasta or quinoa risotto as a main course on this day. The catering chef runs several renowned restaurants in the city. He cooks food tailored to the needs of the sailors for the sailors. Keyword power food.

Right next door, in the weight room, the sailors empty their energy reserves again. In the hallway to the gym there is a huge cardboard box in front of a television. Not every detail of the new Alinghi home has been finished yet.

Looking at the designers’ screens is taboo

There is an English motivational saying on the wall in the gym, which translates to: “Think big, think unconventional, do it with full passion.” The floor is covered with rubber mats. The physiotherapists and a masseuse work in the adjacent room. The heaviest dumbbell weighs 50 kilograms and each spin bike has a fan. “We are often here twice a day,” says Trüb. Coach Hopson explains that he is constantly changing the program to combat the monotony.

There are stairs down to the office wing. There is a tranquil silence here. The design team is working on the computers, thousands of details have to be designed for the new high-tech boat. The yacht is built in Ecublens VD, but the thinking takes place in Barcelona. “This is the secret floor,” Trüb says, grinning, but he really means it. Because the crowd of visitors cannot view the screens properly. The room with the simulators remains completely taboo.

Blick and Co. are led to the design department break room. There is a stack of sailing magazines near the corner of the sofa. In addition to cans of drinks and coffee, there are bowls of fresh strawberries and peaches and even a nut dispenser. Nuts are considered brain food. Aurore Kerr is one of about 50 bright minds on the design team. She describes how the collaboration with Red Bull Racing’s technology factory in England is clearly noticeable in her daily work. The technical knowledge from Formula 1, for example when it comes to aerodynamics or the material carbon, also helps in the race for the most prestigious sailing crown.

What is conceived virtually on the first floor takes shape on the ground floor. On the day of the visit, the garage door of the sail maker is also open. Trüb: “Otherwise you almost always have the gate open because of the air conditioning.”

The entire surface is covered with tarpaulins and more are stored rolled up on planks. A gigantic sewing machine is built into the floor. A mainsail for the AC75 racing boat weighs 550 kilograms, must be able to withstand 15 tons of pressure and be strong enough to lift the 6.5-ton boat out of the water, while offering as little air resistance as possible. Flight mode.

There are no secrets with the small boats

The masts are stored in the central hall. After each use, these extra large carbon toothpicks are inspected for cracks and repaired if necessary. Trüb: “These guys often work at night, so that everything is operational again the next morning.”

The showpiece and heart of the team base comes at the end of the trip: the boats. The 2019 AC75 boat bought by the New Zealanders for training and one of the smaller AC40s are jacked up on mobile bases, like in a hangar – the foils are covered with cloths to prevent prying eyes.

The second AC40 yacht is currently in use during the pre-regatta. These baby versions of the racing monsters are standard models for all teams, so there are no AC40 secrets. Apparently these baby hunts are fun too: on the whiteboard in the corner, someone has scribbled a smiling face in the zero of AC40.

In the container boxes with the workshops integrated into the hangar, about twenty boat builders try to realize every designer idea, no matter how crazy it seems. “If the idea is too crazy, I pretend I forgot the order,” says boat builder Dan Smith, laughing.

And then on the forecourt towards the water there is the same construction crane with the team logo. It remains in the team base despite the completed building. The crane is used to lift the masts for installation and then hoist the entire boat into the water. When will he hitch the Alinghi-Red Bull race boat for the first time before 2024? That will of course also remain a secret.