Annie Lush is one of the very great sailors in The Ocean Race, which started in Alicante on Sunday, January 15. Experienced like Abby Ehler and Sam Davies, with whom she sailed around the world in the all-female team SCA in the Volvo Ocean Race 2014/15, she is in The Ocean Race as pit responsible for the trim in Team Guyot Environnement – Team Europe of skippers Benjamin Dutreux and Robert Stanjek.

The 42-year-old won last year’s Ocean Race Europe with Offshore Team Germany. In 2017/18, she was part of Team Brunel. This is her third Ocean Race. Kerstin Zillmer spoke to Annie Lush shortly before the race start.

float: Annie, are you well prepared for the race?

Annie Lush: Yes! The team has been together for two weeks and we had good trainings. I’m really excited about the start. My family is here, my four-year-old daughter Giovanna is with me. My parents take care of her when I’m in the race – a whole new experience for me (laughs). Alone it was a little easier, but I’m very happy.

The last Ocean Race in 2017/18 was the first time at least one woman had to be on board. Four years ago it was VO65 racing yachts on which the race was sailed, today it is Imocas. In this Ocean Race, a quarter of the crews are women. Is that a big success for women?

I think the most important thing about this race compared to the last one is that there is less hierarchy. It’s not so much about what position the women are in anymore. They have very similar roles. Every woman is equally included.

The problem with the Imocas is more that you can’t take inexperienced women because the crew is smaller. It’s more of a race for the experienced women sailors to come out on top. And there are fantastic women.

VO65 is the platform for young female sailors

When I walk through the harbor, I see a lot of very young women who participated in the Magenta Project as mentees. They are now sailing on the VO65 boats, which are, yes, sailing some legs. This is a great platform for young female sailors to gain experience and push themselves. It’s the best thing young female sailors can do.

Women are just as good sailors as men. What makes sailing different for women?

Not much (laughs). Power was often a reason why women were less in demand. I think that’s becoming less true as more women participate in offshore racing. I don’t think that’s the point either. Many of the men who sail Imoca, solo or doubles, tend to be small. On these boats, offshore is much more about endurance and resilience.

I’ve seen a lot of women who can do that. The only difference is that right now there are fewer women who have a lot of experience. The maneuvers on the Imocas tend to be slow. So it doesn’t make much difference if you’re a 95kg man who can have the sail up in five seconds, or a 60kg woman who is a little slower.

Hygiene is difficult on board, you pee in a bucket. For that, women have to undress more than men. Do you have some tricks to make it work better?

It’s definitely hard for both of them. I also see the guys struggle a little bit. Everything is difficult when foiling if you’re not in a secured position. To be honest, I haven’t found a convincing solution yet.

A chat group is part of the race

There is a WhatsApp group for female sailors called TOR Chicas. Who set up the group?

There was already a WhatsApp group at the last Volvo Ocean Race. Then I set one up for the Ocean Race Europe. And now another woman has taken it over for this race.

What do you exchange?

Just any useful information. We usually organize a meeting with the girls at every stopover. There we just blow off some steam, talk about what happened on board, and share experiences. That way we have a connection with the other girls.

I think it’s important to support each other, just like the men do. It’s great to get to know the other female sailors in person. When you need a female sailor with a certain skill on the next project, you already know her. Even if you haven’t sailed with her.

So you also found Tamara Echegoyen for the crew. Have you sailed with her on an Imoca before?

Yes, a little bit. I’m a little sad that she’s going to replace me on the legs where I sit out. So we won’t be able to sail together. But I’m pushing for maybe on one of the last legs we’ll be two guys and two gals.

Tamara is an incredibly good sailor and a great person to have on the team. She has a lot of energy and helps me with catering, which is the worst job (laughs).

Since SCA, there hasn’t been a women’s team. Do you miss that? Have you thought or talked about the possibility of having a women’s crew in this race?

Yes, there were some talks, but I wasn’t that involved. Before the women’s team SCA 2014/15, after the Maiden Team, there were actually no women in the Ocean Race from 2001/2. There was no way for women to get into the race at that time. So a women-only team was the only way for women to participate.

Since then, the Ocean Race has evolved. There are already many good women with Imoca experience, and after this race there will be even more. I would be happy to see a women’s team in the next Ocen Race.

Imoca versus VO65: You’ve sailed both. What is the biggest difference, and what is the biggest challenge now?

Being below deck on an Imoca is the biggest challenge for me as a pit: the autopilot is unfamiliar to me because I no longer have feedback from the skipper. Also, I’m inside and can’t see the sail trim and the waves. It’s a whole new way of sailing. I rely a lot more on numbers. It’s a steep learning curve for me.

You’re responsible for trim on board. How does that work?

When we sail offshore, there are three of us on deck. The change of watch on deck is every three hours. In the first hour and a half, you assist the skipper on the winches and trim. In the second half, you take over or control the autopilot – if it’s running – and do the main trim. Basically, we all have the same tasks.

When we’re maneuvering or in port, I’m the pit or trimming the headsails. Offshore, it’s the same. Every time we do a maneuver, even if it’s in the middle of the night, we all wake up and do the maneuver with the same people and in the same positions.

I am always the pit and control sheets, halyards and stretchers. I basically run the maneuver. I’m connected to the foredeck via the headset.

The cockpit is a gloomy space. It’s hard to feel the wind or see the waves here. On one hand, that’s great, because on the VO65 you get drenched by the waves every few seconds.

The cockpit is a gloomy space

On the VO65 it’s much harder because you’re outside all the time. When you’re in the doldrums, you’re standing in the sun at 45 degrees and you can’t get out. On a VO65, everything is big and heavy: you’re on the foredeck a lot, changing sails a lot – it’s very physical.

The Imoca is a bit more manageable because you’re doing fewer maneuvers. But when you do a maneuver, you basically have to stop the boat. When you foil, there’s so much water coming over that you can’t even get out of the cockpit. You just sit strapped into your seat and try to sail the boat (laughs).

So everyone sits in the cockpit?

When we sail offshore, two people are on watch. One person steers the boat, has the mainsheet in hand, controls the autopilot and focuses on speed. The person in the other seat checks the radar because you can’t see much else – other boats, fishing boats, land or whatever. This second person makes sure the trim is correct and checks all other things.

On the Imoca, it is very important to check loads. On a VO65, you push the boat as hard as you can. Here it’s the other way around. The autopilot steers the boat; it has so much power that it just keeps going no matter what the conditions are. You try to regulate it so it doesn’t tear the boat to pieces. You go as far as the material can take it. To me, it’s like the inverse of the previous situation.

As far as the material can take it

Is that still sailing then?

Yes, but differently. Of course I miss sailing like I used to. I miss being outside sometimes. On the other hand, I couldn’t sail around the world again on a VO65. And I look forward to learning new things.

The whole life is more and more determined by technology, this is the sailing version of it. But you still need the same knowledge. It’s just what you do and how you execute it that’s very different.

Autopilot example: I’m still thinking about how I would sail myself in this swell and wind. So how can I tell the computer to do it exactly like that? I have to try to translate it into the autopilot software.

What’s the biggest challenge in doing that?

That something could happen that we didn’t expect. And how we deal with that as a team.

What is your role in the team?

That depends on the situation. Our team rotates, so it’s not always the same four people on board. We know each other’s characters pretty well from the Ocean Race Europe. And from the Transat, where we brought the boat back to Europe after the Route du Rhum. At the In-Port Regatta, we saw that we were pretty familiar with each other, and that was great.

Once we sail offshore, I’m a bit of a sergeant (laughs). I have the most experience in big teams on the ocean. Out there, you have to be very strict, for example, about guards. Even in our small team, I think it’s very important to maintain that.

So I’m definitely the one who calls for structure the most. I have many years of experience and I know that’s how it works best, especially when something goes wrong. Being the oldest on board and a mother, I’m a bit of a mom on the team (laughs).

Not on board for two legs

You’re sailing the first leg now, then the third leg and then you’ll see.

Yes, I’ll be there for the whole race except for two legs, the second and the fourth. That’s when I’m with my daughter.

Annie, thank you very much for the great interview. We wish you and your team a good, safe and successful race!

Annie Lush, a World Champion

Annie Lush became world champion in four match races. She has sailed in two Ocean Races and is a passionate advocate for diversity and equality. She advises companies on women in leadership and is one of the founders of The Magenta Project.

The goal of this project is to support young female sailors with training courses, mentoring programs and the formation of regatta teams. float is a partner of The Magenta Project. In the 2016/17 season, Annie Lush founded Team Magenta and participated with them in the World Match Racing Tour.

Female sailors in the Ocean Race

In addition to Annie Lush, sailors in the 2022 Ocen Race on Team Biotherm are Sam Davies and Amelie Grassi, on Guyot Environnement – Team Europe are Támara Echegoyen and Anne Claire le Berre, on Malizia are Rosalin Kuiper and Axelle Pillain, on Team Holcim – PRB are Abby Ehler and Susann Beucke, and finally on 11th Hour Racing are Justine Mettraux and Francesca Clapcich.