Team's boat builder watches proudly

Ben Malcolm said it had been more than a two-year lead-up and had involved a huge team effort which he was proud to be a part of.

He may be dockside in San Francisco, but former Rotorua lad Ben Malcolm admits he's been watching the America's Cup racing with his head in his hands, peeking through his fingers.

The 30-year-old has plenty invested in the racing - he's one of those working behind the scenes helping make sure the black boat goes as fast as it possibly can. He's been working as a boat builder for Emirates Team New Zealand for the past four years and is in San Francisco as part of the on-shore team working around the clock as racing heats up.

It's a dream come true for the former Rotorua Lakes High School student - even if he's struggling to watch the racing due to nerves.

"I barely slept the night before the first races ... I just sit on the floor of our media office with my head in my hands watching it through my fingers," he said. "[It's been] seriously awesome racing."

Mr Malcolm said it had been more than a two-year lead-up and had involved a huge team effort which he was proud to be a part of. "Everyone has worked so hard to get here. They are all great people and good friends."

Mr Malcolm said the support the team had received made the atmosphere amazing. "It feels like we are racing for our home crowd."

Mr Malcolm said the crew were putting in a lot of work around the clock making sure the base could be open between 18 and 20 hours a day.

"We are all good friends. The crew are humble, talented guys and the shore crew are all meticulous. It's a lot of hard work but completely worth it."

While they'd managed some celebrations after taking out the Louis Vuitton Cup, they'd always been focused on the big prize, he said.

"We all celebrated for a while but in our heads we knew what we had to do and that it was just step one."

Mr Malcolm said he'd been keen on boats since he was a youngster and studied boat building at Unitec in Auckland after leaving school, before getting an apprenticeship at Salthouse Boatbuilders.