An Aussie's view of the EDS - pt3

In this final part Nick Moloney talks about Ellen, sailing with girls and looks forward to the final leg

The third and final part of Nick Moloney's look at the EDS and the Open class.

Part 1

Part 2

Ellen

Without trying to be a kiss-arse or anything, Ellen is not your average pint-sized chick. She's an incredible sailor and she's a lot better than she gives herself credit for. There were a lot of people out there thinking 'how much can she know? She's 24 years old, she's taken on the Vendee, there's a huge element of luck and preparation, boat design, etc.' So many guys have breakdowns, lose time or never finish, but the whole package came together for her and set up the fairy tale story.

But that's such a small part of it. The bigger picture is that in that whole equation this one grunty chick got on a boat, 100% determined and focused, and went and kicked arse. But now you think - she's got so much committment to the media and the public, does she ever lose her focus? Is it now a life in the public eye, not a life at sea? But then she steps on the boat and she just snaps into it. She becomes this chick who's just so happy crawling around the bilge, shit's breaking everywhere and she's fixing everything.

She's a bloody good trimmer. She's a really good helmsman. She's an incredible navigator. She's the most amazing fix-it person I've ever seen on a boat. And if I had the opportunity to run a Volvo campaign, I'd ask her to come. I can't give her enough praise. She's a very extraordinary person and it doesn't have an inch to do with our sailing or working together.

Continued on page two...