Grant Stanley Dalton (born 1 July 1957) is a New Zealand

sailor A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who works aboard a watercraft as part of its crew, and may work in any one of a number of different fields that are related to the operation and maintenance of a ship. The profession of the s ...

who has competed in five Whitbread Round the World Races and currently manages Team New Zealand.

Background

Dalton is a professional sailor who started sailing at the age 8 in the P Class and soon started racing as a member of Maraetai Sailing Club. He was appointed an Officer of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

in the

1995 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1995 were appointments by most of the sixteen Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to Orders and decorations of the Commonwealth realms, various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those co ...

, for services to yachting. He was shortlisted in 2001 by the

International Sailing Federation International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

for the

ISAF World Sailor of the Year Awards The World Sailor of the Year Awards were launched in 1994 by World Sailing (formerly the International Sailing Federation) to reward individual sailors for outstanding achievements in the sport. The awards have been sponsored by Rolex Rolex ...

. His other passion away from sailing is motor racing; as an avid F1 fan and with life with Emirates Team New Zealand more settled than a round-the-world campaign, he can now race on the New Zealand motor racing circuit.

Sailing career

Offshore racing

Grant Dalton has raced around the world seven times; the first five as part of the Whitbread Round the World Race later to be called the Volvo Ocean Race. This race has evolved through this time from a race of adventurers to a grand prix yachting event. Dalton has participated in the following major events: * 1981–82 Whitbread in '' Flyer II'' * 1983 Southern Cross Cup * 1985 Admiral's Cup * 1985–86 Whitbread in ''Lion New Zealand'' * 1987 Admiral's Cup * 1989–90 Whitbread in ''Fisher & Paykel'' a Maxi Ketch designed by

Farr Yacht Design Farr Yacht Design, founded by Bruce Farr in Auckland, New Zealand, is a racing yacht design firm based in Annapolis, Maryland, United States. The firm is led by Patrick Shaughnessy. Its yachts measure from to . Farr develops custom and produc ...

* 1991 Fastnet * 1993–94 New Zealand Endeavour * 1997–98 Merit Cup –

Volvo Ocean 60 The Whitbread 60 (W60), later known as the Volvo Ocean 60 (VO60), was a class of ocean racing yacht built to a " box rule" specifying key design parameters of the 10 smaller yachts which took part the 1993–94 Whitbread Round the World Race. ...

* 2001–02 Amer Sports One –

designed by German Frers He then skippered and won The Race, a sprint around the world on maxi catamaran Club Med. The race started on 1 January 2001 and finished on 3 March. Club Med broke several records along the way including the distance sailed in 24 hours (656 nautical miles) and the fastest circumnavigation (62 days and 7 hours).

America's Cup

He was called in to restructure and revitalise Team New Zealand after its loss of the

America's Cup The America's Cup, informally known as the Auld Mug, is a trophy awarded in the sport of sailing. It is the oldest international competition still operating in any sport. America's Cup match races are held between two sailing yachts: one f ...

in February 2003. * 2017 35th America's Cup Team New Zealand CEO Winning Team * 2021 36th America's Cup Team New Zealand CEO Winning Team

Motorcycle road racing career

Manx GP & Classic TT

In 2014, at 57 years old, Grant entered the

Manx Grand Prix The Manx Grand Prix motorcycle races are held on the Isle of Man TT Course (or 'Snaefell Mountain Course, Mountain Circuit') every year for a two-week period, usually spanning the end of August and early September. New for 2022 is a period re ...

as a newcomer, and also the F1 Classic TT, saying 'I’ve done seven laps around the world and a few America's Cups, but this is the most extreme thing I’ve ever done.' Dalton's 2014 Classic TT could perhaps best be described as a baptism of fire, given his lack of relevant experience; his best lap in qualifying in 2014 on his F1 Suzuki was 87.799 mph and he did not finish the Classic F1 TT, which was won by fellow Kiwi

Bruce Anstey Bruce Anstey (born 21 August 1969 in New Zealand) is a professional motorcycle road racer. He is a former lap record holder on the world-famous Snaefell Mountain Course with a time of 17 minutes 6.682 seconds, at an average speed of set du ...

at a race average speed of 121.597 mph, but he was back in 2015 and this time qualified for the F1 TT with a lap of 100.047 mph. He gained a coveted finishers medal for the 2015 Classic F1 TT, with an overall race average speed for the four laps, which includes the time spent stationary in the pits for a gravity-fed refuelling stop, of 97.047 mph.2015 F1 Classic TT Results
iomtt.com

References

External links

*
ISAF World Sailor Microsite

Team New Zealand Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dalton, Grant 1957 births Living people Sportspeople from Auckland New Zealand male sailors (sport) Team New Zealand sailors New Zealand Officers of the Order of the British Empire People educated at Saint Kentigern College Volvo Ocean Race sailors 2013 America's Cup sailors 2007 America's Cup sailors