Show Notes
Peter Montgomery has the most recognisable voice in world sailing and is known colloquially as the Voice of the America’s Cup, having commentated the last 13 editions of the Auld Mug. But he’s much more than that having also been involved in the broadcast of all 13 round the world races and the last 10 Olympic Games, not to mention countless All Blacks tests and weekend sports shows.
Peter delves into some of the highlights of his 51-year broadcasting career, how he stumbled into the industry, how he pioneered many of the approaches to modern broadcasting and his relationship with a mythical little old lady with blue rinse hair from Riverton. He also talks about the story behind one of the most recognisable pieces of New Zealand sporting commentary, the time Dennis Conner labelled Team New Zealand cheats, what made Sir Peter Blake tick and how Team Zealand wouldn’t have won the 1995 America’s Cup without him, and his take on his sometimes frosty relationship with Grant Dalton. On a more personal level, he opens up about one episode in his life he’s not altogether proud about, namely his reaction to being told he had cancer.
Peter is full of stories, and has an incredible recall for details and dates. He's one of the special characters whose influence goes well beyond sailing because he's had an enduring impact on sport in general and New Zealand broadcasting.
More from Broad Reach Radio - The Yachting New Zealand Podcast
The number 202.9 might not mean a lot to most but is a figure Glenn Ashby has become obsessed about. The two-time America’s Cup winner is now leading a group from Emirates Team New Zealand trying to break the wind powered land speed record. They need to go faster than 202.9km/h on the salt flats of Lake Gairdner in South Australia to do it.
New Zealand has a proud tradition in the round the world race and a lot of that started with Ceramco New Zealand in the early 1980s – the first New Zealand-flagged boat to compete in the gruelling event. It was a campaign headed up by Sir Peter Blake and something that captured the imagination of Kiwis everywhere. But disaster struck on the first leg of the race when the boat’s mast came down in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean as the team were vying for the lead. It was a devastating blow for the crew, including Simon Gundry who is today’s guest on Broad Reach Radio.
Karl Budge doesn’t purport to be much of a sailor, but he is one of this country’s leading event organisers having previously turned the ASB Classic into one of the world’s best tennis tournaments. He consistently attracted some of the world’s top tennis players to this country and now he’s looking to sprinkle his magic dust on the New Zealand leg of SailGP.
Karl Budge doesn’t purport to be much of a sailor, but he is one of this country’s leading event organisers having previously turned the ASB Classic into one of the world’s best tennis tournaments. He consistently attracted some of the world’s top tennis players to this country and now he’s looking to sprinkle his magic dust on the New Zealand leg of SailGP.
Mike Sanderson is one of the most successful sailors of his generation. He’s a former World Sailor of the Year, two-time winner of the round the world race including when he skippered ABN Amro to victory in the 2005/06 Volvo Ocean Race, been involved in multiple America’s Cup campaigns, a record breaker, a successful maxi yacht skipper and now co-owner and CEO of Doyle Sails.