Yachting: With friends like these who needs enemies?

Adam Minoprio. Photo / Kenny Rodger

Adam is a world champion who sleeps on friends' floors and couches. Phil was a builder before he downed tools to chase a dream. Both could be mistaken for typical Kiwi backpackers, but they are making their mark on the sailing world.

"We are great mates but when we hit the water they are probably the No 1 team we want to beat," says 23-year-old Phil Robertson. "When we race them it really stirs the determination and the passion."

"It is always a tough battle because we know each other's styles," says Adam Minoprio. "But we never hear the end of it if we lose to them."

Robertson is the new kid on the block. With his team Waka Racing they have won consecutive Asian match racing championships and have an eye on a fulltime spot on the World Match Racing tour in 2011.

Minoprio is hardly a veteran but the 25-year-old who became the youngest-ever world match racing champion in 2009 is switching to ocean racing next year and is happy to pass on the mantle.

"Phil has decided he wants to do it and is 100 per cent committed. In the past, other crews have not been as committed and don't do as well."

Both Robertson and Minoprio see New Zealand's relative isolation as an advantage and one of the main reasons why this country produces so many young, world-class sailors.

"If you want to do well in sailing from New Zealand, you have to commit to it completely," says Minoprio. "We had a goal and we had to leave the country and fully commit. If you are from Europe you can half-commit to the goal. You can still go to university and do other things. They are never as focused as we are."

"It's definitely harder," says Robertson, "but it stirs a lot inside of you to perform straight away and learn really fast. You have to go hard - because you can't go home."

Minoprio denies he's experiencing what many consider to be second-season syndrome but admits 2010 has been difficult for his Black Match racing team. Last year's incredible triumph came on their first full season on tour and probably two or three years too early.

"The world champion tag changed things a little," he says. "Before that we had always been the young guns. We were probably looking beyond this year and we lost a bit of focus."

Robertson can tell a similar story. After a breakthrough year in 2009, culminating in a surprise sixth placing at the Monsoon Cup, expectations were raised.

"I learned a lot about how to manage a team in the tough times," he says. "There were no expectations last year. Whatever you did was good. This season we have been more under the microscope."

There is an obvious bond between the two.

"Apart from being friends, I also really respect him as a sailor," says Robertson. "His main strength is that he never gives up. I've seen numerous times when he has come from a long way behind to win a race."

Minoprio is a straight-shooter and not one for pre-race team talks.

"We try to avoid any motivational stuff - that is all just crap," he says candidly. "Everybody knows what they are there to do. If you need anyone else to tell you, then you shouldn't be there."

Roberston takes a similar low-key tack: "We have a motivational speech but it's always from the same guy and he's the worst guy who could do it - it's more of a laugh. We just tell each other to dig in and have a good race - typical Kiwi stuff."

Both men say instinct is critical in their chosen sport.

"You need to go with your gut feeling," says Robertson. "A lot of the time you tend to be right and if you don't go with that it tends to be wrong."

Minoprio: "The biggest mistake you can make in sailing is hesitating to make a decision. Then the situation changes and then, when you make your decision, it is probably the wrong one."

While the rest of the Black Match team have bases in London, Minoprio has lived out of a suitcase for the past two years. The skipper is slightly envious of his crew, who all have girlfriends with flats and jobs in England's capital.

"I'm a full nomad - it is a drag sometimes," he laughs.

"He's a drifter," jokes Robertson. "He is always crashing on their floors."

Minoprio has been mooted as a possible heir apparent to Dean Barker but is not looking beyond 2011.

"I have to survive the Volvo [Ocean race] first," he jokes. "I will stay focused on that and see what is best from there."

He is adamant his skills would be transferable to the new multihull class in the America's Cup.

"Sailing is sailing at the end of the day," he says. "It is all about the wind and being technical with the boats. If you change boats, then you just have to change your techniques."

While Minoprio and Black Match have come to the end of a cycle, Robertson and Waka Racing are just beginning their adventure. The skipper compares it to being in a big, slightly dysfunctional family.

"We are friends off the water and try to get along but it gets tricky when we spend so much time together," he says. "You know things are getting edgy when guys start to have different opinions on where to go for dinner or what train to catch."

Robertson was completing a building apprenticeship when he decided to give sailing a crack. He retains an easy going attitude, despite the high stakes.

"We have got to enjoy it and not take it too seriously. You never know when it is going to end and it tends to go better when you enjoy it."

They both enjoy the unique elements of the Monsoon Cup, with its spectacular setting in Kuala Terengganu, 500km northwest of Kuala Lumpur. The heavy rains can come at any time and racing in a basin fed by two rivers throws up all kinds of intangibles.

The purpose-built marina sees spectators just metres from the action and the increased prize money and extra points on offer always attracts the best skippers from around the world.

* Michael Burgess travelled to Malaysia with the assistance of the World Match Racing Tour.