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Lesleigh Green was one of two women on the team that wrested the 1983 America's Cup from the New York Yacht Club after 132 years.
The former journalist was recruited to the team as a media manager by the director of the challenge, Warren Jones, and soon found herself managing a media storm when the trials began and the Americans realised just how fast the Australia II yacht was.
The bid by the Royal Perth Yacht Club to challenge the New York Yacht Club, which had held the cup since its inception in 1851, was backed by Perth businessman Alan Bond and had a secret weapon — a highly unusual winged keel designed by Sydney marine architect Ben Lexcen.
Green came aboard as the team was preparing to compete in trials in a bid to become the official challenger for the cup.
As the Australian team began to find success in the trials off the coast of Newport, Rhode Island, the previously obscure race began to attract huge interest at home and among the American press.
Lesleigh Green shared her story with Nadia Mitsopoulos on ABC Radio Perth:
"Warren said to me, 'Look, I think we need to get you to come to Newport with us. We've got this very unusual boat. It's so unusual that we're not talking about it,'" she said.
"I went to Cottesloe with him and walked into the boatshed … and it had a sort of curtain around its keel.
"We lifted up the curtain … I peered underneath it and I just couldn't believe what I was seeing.
"I said to Warren, 'You know, this is going to be the basis of a fantastic media campaign.'"
Green said she arrived in Newport, she was "horrified" by the office she had to work in.
"Firstly, it was an old shed on the end of a rickety dock that was due for demolition after the America's Cup," she said.
"The shed was totally insecure and it was tiny, and we had to fit basically four people in there, with Warren Jones, my desk, Alison Baker's reception desk, and a drawing board for Ben Lexcen. And it was a squeeze and a squash.
"On Alison's and my desks, we had the two electric typewriters — that's how we wrote everything. We had a telex machine.
"The only way I could release a press release to the international media was by taking my piece of paper up to the media centre and pinning it on the noticeboard, and they would all gather around to read it and take notes and take it from there.
"Once we got out on the water and started, you know, trialling with other Australian contenders, and also when we started racing, it became very clear that we were so much faster.
"So they immediately assumed it must have something to do with this thing that we had covered up — and so there was a lot of curiosity, a lot of interest."
Loose cannons
Green said while the racing campaign was on, one of her jobs was to keep Alan Bond away from the media.
"Because he tended to be a bit temperamental and anything could happen," Green said.
"[We also had to] keep Ben Lexcen away from the media, because Benny was a loose cannon when he got going.
"If someone made a comment to him, he would make some great witticism back.
"But anything could come out of his mouth — you just never quite knew.
"The American side was getting a little desperate then, they were trying to say … again and again, that we were not a 12-metre [yacht] and we shouldn't be racing, and all we would ever do during that time was come out with a one-word statement and just calmly ignore the rest of it.
"We refused to be riled because it was very important that the crew remained focused and on the job.
"A day or so after becoming the challenger, we allowed all interested media on to the dock for the presentation of the Louis Vuitton Cup to the successful challenger.
"I was supposed to hold back the media from getting too close … and I initially tried pushing back the mob with my elbows akimbo, which was a complete failure, needless to say.
"After that, I simply tried to remain upright against the surge while also trying to avoid getting bonked on the head by a TV camera, pushed in the neck by a microphone, or strangled by a length of lead."
Crossing the line
"On the day of the final race, I went out on a media boat," Green went on.
"Above the racecourse, there was something like 31 helicopters in rotation around in circles.
"You can imagine the noise and the big blimp flying up there as well, with television crews on board.
"Earlier in that race I had despaired because we didn't always look like we were going to win that final race and it was essential that we did.
"But as we crossed the line, I knew that I had to get back to the dock immediately.
"One of the chase boat drivers came over and I basically got thrown into the chase boat and hung on to this rail, and the seas were like a storm had happened because all the other boats were surging in towards Australia II — the waves were sky high.
"I was bouncing up and down.
"I could feel the bones in my back, you know, clattering and I thought, 'I'm going to die. I'm not going to get back to the dock.'
"But I did manage to get back to the dock and I got basically thrown out onto the dock.
"The day after the last race, when Alison and I came down the dock towards the office, we could see telexes spilling out from under the office door onto the dock itself — we could hardly open the door.
"When we got inside, we couldn't believe our eyes. An entire, enormous roll of telex paper, covered in print, had unrolled everywhere and the telex machine was still clacking away without any paper to print on.
"They came from everywhere, including the Aga Khan and Buckingham Palace, from schools in Australia and from heads of government in places like Egypt and Turkey, Japan and Russia … oh — and Australia."
'So precious'
"We had no idea what was going on in Australia — we had no idea what any of this was going to be like," Green continued.
"It was a rude shock, really, as each group of people came back — they were just amazed at the welcome that Australia put on for us.
"There was a motorcade through Fremantle and Perth to Langley Park on Australia II Day, 30 October 1983.
"All team members rode in vintage MGs. Along the way in Stirling Highway, Nedlands, the cars stopped for a few minutes as one of them overheated.
"The crowd lining the footpaths all along the highway started to move closer to the cars to talk to the occupants. One woman — clearly mystified by the presence of two female team members, each in their own car — called out to me, 'And what were you, the cook?'
"I have lots of very special things and they were all special for different reasons.
"But my very special thing was when we went to Canberra to meet with the prime minister and have lunch with him at the Lodge and we were all presented with a solid gold medal made at the Australian Mint in Canberra.
"It is so precious because if it came from the prime minister of Australia — it was saying thank you from the people of Australia to the wonderful guys who won this amazing cup, which hadn't been won by anyone [other than the Americans] for 132 years."
Nadia Mitsopoulos will broadcast ABC Radio Perth Mornings live from the WA Maritime Museum Australia II 40th anniversary celebrations on September 26.
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