Gary Jobson Remembers Sailing Legend Ted Turner

Ted Turner Receives a Star on The Hollywood Walk of Fame in Hollywood, California, United States. (Photo by Chris Polk/FilmMagic)

FilmMagic

“Turner started out sailing at the age of eight in Savannah, Georgia,” Jobson continues. “He would tell you his early days didn’t produce good results. ‘I wasn’t losing, I was just learning how to win,’ he’d say.

“Turner’s virtues were grounded in hard work, loyalty, and kindness. Anyone who has ever met Ted will always say nice things about him. He was down to earth and cared about making the world a better place. Turner had a bumper sticker on all his vehicles that states, ‘Save Everything.’

Ted Turner aboard 'Courageous' in Newport, Rhode Island, August 31st 1977. (Photo by UPI/Bettmann Archive/Getty Images)

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“For the sailors who’ve raced with Turner, the friendship extended a lifetime. He was colorful and always drew a crowd. As an example of how Turner demonstrated leadership and earned loyalty, I recall a race on Courageous that had gone very well. After the race Turner invited his tactician and mainsail trimmer — me and Robbie Doyle — to the post-race press conference.

“John Ahern, a 58-year-old writer from The Boston Globe, asked “What was the key to your victory?” Without missing a beat, Turner answered, “With a tactician like Gary calling the wind shifts and a trimmer like Robbie making us go fast it was easy. I steered, but these guys and the rest of the crew are the reason we won.” The very next day we had a terrible race. I missed a wind shift, and Robbie had the wrong jib up. Ted invited us to the post-race press briefing again. I was not looking forward to it.

FILE - Ted Turner, center, is carried off by his crew following a news conference after his vessel Courageous won the Americas Cup sailing race, Sept. 19, 1977, in Newport, R.I. At right is Bill Ficker, skipper of cup winner Intrepid in 1970. (AP Photo/J. Walter Green, File)

Associated Press

“Once again John Ahern asked, ‘After yesterday’s great race, what happened today, Ted?’ Turner looked straight at Ahern and said, ‘I had a bad race today, it was on me, we will try to do better in the next race.’ I stood there listening and realized what Ted was all about: When we won, he spread the credit around. But when we lost, he took the blame. That lesson has resonated with me throughout my life.

(original caption) Cable television mogul Ted Turner is photographed with his trophies (mostly for sailboat racing) in his office at Turner Broadcasting System on January 28, 1977 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Tom Hill/WireImage)

WireImage

“Turner was colorful. Immediately after winning the fourth race of the 1977 America’s Cup, he was obligated to attend the post-race press conference, but he got sidetracked on his way down Thames Street in Newport to the cavernous Armory building that was bulging with the assembled press corps. We all knew Ted had a low tolerance for alcohol. Someone handed him a bottle of the Swedish liquor Aquavit. He took several generous swigs and by the time he arrived at the Armory he was brash, colorful, and outrageous.

(Original Caption) Courageous skipper Ted Turner celebrates defeating Australia in four straight races to successfully defend the America's Cup in 1977.

Bettmann Archive

“The press loved the moment. Turner had been asked to behave all summer and now he could let loose — and he did.

Some 33 years later at a 12 Meter reunion in Newport, someone asked Turner about the infamous press conference. Ted put his head down, paused for a moment and with a half-smile said, “I would like to apologize, once again, for my behavior that afternoon.” His comment brought the house down.

“At the 30th reunion of the Courageous America’s Cup victory Turner recalled “The ’77 Cup race was a high point of our lives. It would be hard to beat. We all had such a great time together. We pulled together. We all knew if we were going to have any chance to win, we were going to have to all perform at an absolutely superlative level. It was a crew of 100% winners. There was not a loser in the bunch. Everyone rose to the occasion, otherwise we would not have won.”

Ted Turner is featured at the Sailing Museum in Newport, Rhode Island

© Annabelle Henderson

“Over the years I have given nearly 3,000 lecture presentations. While the topics have varied, one subject is always included — The America’s Cup. And the most frequent question I am asked is ‘What is it like to sail with Ted Turner?’

“I always take my time when I answer. Ted was a gifted sailor, and he recruited top sailors. Ted always said he likes when decisions are made at the lowest level. He is quite methodical when working with a tactician and navigator. He asked probing questions that challenge you to think hard. He appreciated people who think through all the possible options available. He often surprised me with an alternative option that I might not have thought about. In sum, Ted did three things well on long distance races: He was a superb helmsman. He was very good at trimming spinnakers and will spend considerable time continuously adjusting the sail. He was at his best as a leader. When Ted makes a decision, the crew buys in and executes.

And when he was asked what the highlight of his remarkable career was, Ted Turner said, ‘Racing sailboats was the greatest time of my life.’”

Thank you Gary. And thank you Ted Turner.

This article was originally published on Forbes.com