A r r i v i n g on a beach cruiser bike, in dark sunglasses, and with paint-splattered hands, Morgan displayed an aura of friendly and relaxed self-assurance. 
Perhaps his experience in the 49er Olympic Trials, and Americas Cup breeds this type of attitude. Or maybe it comes with being a native of the laid back landscape 505’ers call “Mecca”, Santa Cruz. Morgan met me harbor-side at the site of this year’s International 505 World Championships 4 1/2 months before the event for an interview.

Morgan’s experience belies his age. At 32 years old, Larson already has two major America’s Cup and three Olympic campaigns under his belt, and is one of the select few Americans to make a full-time career as a professional sailor. Morgan also earned All-American honors in 1993 and 1994 while attending the University of Hawaii. It was this success that helped launch his professional career and get a better taste for big-boat sailing. Currently, Morgan is employed by a number of programs, including Philippe Kahn’s “Pegasus Racing” team. Among other things, Morgan operates as a coach for the ever-expanding Pegasus 505 program, and also fills the tactician role for Philippe on the Melges 24.

As of this writing, Morgan is teamed for the 505 Worlds with 18' Skiff and International 14 World Champion, Trevor Baylis. The duo is having a new 505 built by Waterat that may prove to offer some interesting refinements in layout and rigging. While neither Morgan nor Trevor has much of a track record in the 505 class, their experience and skill will undoubtedly make them dark horse candidates. The team only expects to have six weeks to prepare for the world championship once their boat is finished, but the Santa Cruz natives figure they can learn a lot in that time.

TT: So Morgan, what’s with the hands?
ML: I’m doing a renovation project on my house. The paint wouldn’t come off. No worries.

TT: I understand you are getting a new 505 made for the Worlds even though you had a new one made just a few years ago. What happened to your “older” boat?
ML: Well, I had a boat built for the Worlds in Portugal. Steve Bourdow and I were going to go out for that event. Like a lot of boat projects, we got a little bit late and weren’t able to get it into the container. This was actually good because it allowed us to sail a bit before going to Portugal. We got some practice in. We were going to fly the boat over. It was actually the morning of 9/11 when I was driving the boat up to the airport. I wasn’t able to fly for 10 days and we weren’t going to make it. That was a bummer.

TT: So what happened to the boat?
ML: It went into my garage and I went down to New Zealand. Trevor [Baylis] and I pulled it out to sail in one local Santa Cruz regatta (ed. The 2001 Pacific Coast Championship, which they won). Then it went back into my garage. I was hoping to go to Sweden but had too many work commitments and not enough preparation time. Then it sat and sat. I thought, “Perfect, I’ll pull it out for the Santa Cruz Worlds”. Trevor had all these ideas about rigging and doing a few different things with the boat. As it turns out, we were going to really chop that boat up. Putting so much effort into building such a nice boat, I was hesitant to do that. Pierre Hubert from Southern California wanted it. He likes it. It is set up like Howard Hamlin’s. Most boats down there are set up like that so it is perfect for him. It allowed us to explore a few different designs with rigging and different things. Larry [Tuttle] is making a few new changes with our new one.

TT: What are some of these new changes?
ML: Nothing revolutionary. He’s making it a little more comfortable to sail with a little more room for the crew for tacking and jibing. (ed. Trevor crewed for Larry Tuttle in the 1981 World Championship in San Francisco sailing 505 7200, which has no forward thwart. They finished 6th. He liked it so much, he asked Larry to build another... 24 years later).

TT: How is he managing that?
ML: He is moving the forward thwart back to where the skipper is.

TT: Won’t this limit your movement as a skipper?
ML: Yes, it will limit how far I can get forward, but we feel it isn’t that important for the skipper to get too far forward. Even in light air the crew is able to step forward. At least in other dinghy classes, separating the weight seems to be fast.

TT: From what I understand that is contrary to popular opinion. You see a lot of crews and helms very far forward in light air.
ML: I don’t know if that is fast, but we’ll see. Also, I’m light so it probably isn’t as crucial for me to go far forward.

TT: What other new things can we expect to see on your boat at the Santa Cruz Worlds?
ML: We’re changing the floor a bit so it drains a little better. Small things like that.

TT: When do you expect it to be completed?
ML: We’re hoping by the end of April. We’ll rig it ourselves. Hopefully that will take 2 weeks, maybe a little bit longer. We have an old “D” section mast that we made a few changes to. We’ll put that in another boat and have it all ready at least.

TT: Will you be using the latest high aspect foils?
ML: We’re going to start where everybody is. I’m not sold really on the high aspect, especially here in Santa Cruz. But I could be wrong.

TT: Where did you learn to sail?
ML: I did my junior sailing here in Santa Cruz. Dave Wahle, who will be doing the race committee for the Worlds, taught me how to sail for the most part. He would drive the junior program around with Lasers and Laser IIs all over the place. He’s a Santa Cruz character. He has a lot of heart and does a good job.

TT: Where did you do your college sailing?
ML: I started off at Charleston for a year. Then I was interested in doing a 470 Olympic campaign. I didn’t enjoy traveling at that time. I did one year of community college while sailing 470s. Then I took 1 year off. Then in ’92 my junior year I went to Hawaii and finished up there.

TT: When did you start sailing professionally?
ML: I was sailing a lot in Hawaii with a guy named Doug Taylor on a J-35 then on a Mumm 36 and a Farr 40 “Zamboni”. He hired me for a few different projects. It helped pay for school and beer money. It wasn’t much but it kept getting better.

TT: How do you handle the transition between competing in professional sailing and sailing in amateur regattas?
Do you expect anything more out of yourself out on the water?
ML: In any sailing I do, I try to do the best I can and have a great time. The difference is when you are getting paid to do it you are expected to put a certain amount of commitment into the program. When you are doing it for fun you can back off when it isn’t fun anymore. I’m really looking forward to this year. Most of the sailing I’m going to be doing is fun sailing.

TT: What is your current sailing focus now, the 505 Worlds?
ML: Yeah, as soon as we get my boat, we’ll be focused more and more on that. I’m still doing a bit of sailing with Team Pegasus. Both Philippe and his son have 505s and are passionate about the boat. So I’m working with them in a coaching roll and as a training/ sparring partner.

TT: How many 505s does Team Pegasus own now?
ML: Well, let’s see, they have 2 boats here and 3 boats in Hawaii. One of the boats in Hawaii they bought from the University for about $100. The boat was about to be thrown into the dumpster. They fully resurrected it. They had to lay carbon up on the deck, re-fair it, paint it, re-rig it, and put a new rig in it. They call it the “Rasta Rocket”. It is painted green, yellow, and red. There may be a marijuana leaf glued into it somewhere. They may also be getting a couple more. He [Philippe] loves having boats around him. Then when he goes sailing he can have 3 or 4 near him. (ed. As of press time, Pegasus Racing has more than a dozen 505’s in its program).

TT: What do you think Philippe enjoys about 505 sailing?
ML: You can tell from the team website (www.pegasusracing.com). He’s loving it! It is a challenge for him sailing dinghies, but being here in Santa Cruz and doing something his son enjoys doing is fun for him. He was surprised he hadn’t gotten one sooner once sailing it. You can plane upwind. He couldn’t believe it.

TT: In an article on Philippe, he mentioned that you were there through much of his steep learning curve in sailing. Beyond your coaching roll for the 505, are you involved in other Pegasus campaigns?
ML: Yeah. I’m doing a little sailing. I did the Key West Race Week on the Melges. I’ll do the Melges Nationals this year in Santa Cruz. But then after that I’ll pull back from his program to focus on the 505. Although we will be sailing his Farr 40 a little bit here and there. After the 505 Worlds we’ll be pushing pretty hard for the Farr 40 Worlds.

TT: How many boats will Team Pegasus enter for the 505 Worlds?
ML: Philippe is sailing with Andy Escourt, a young New Zealander. Shark is sailing with Paul Allen. Mark Christenson who is managing the whole sailing end of the program may sail or may coach.

TT: I’ve been told that Trevor likes to tinker on the boat. Are you into that sort of thing?
ML: Yeah, I enjoy it. Trevor is more utilitarian. He doesn’t mind pulling things and moving them and making them work. I like the finer aspects of the aesthetics. I enjoy it when you have time in the winter in your garage and nothing else is going on. But when you are trying to get your boat on the water I like to go sailing.

TT: After the 2001 505 PCCs in Cabrillo, I was talking to a friend of mine in the fleet. He said you were a level above everyone in that regatta. Prior to that event, had you sailed a 505 for any length of time?
ML: I had sailed 505s a bit, but not much.

TT: To what do you attribute your success at that event without spending much time in the boat?
ML: I think just coming off the America’s Cup and the 49’er Olympic campaign I had sailed so much. I had so much time on the water. I think we just ended up racing well. Howard loaned us one of his boats and it was set up pretty well for us. We were competitive with speed but with some pretty scary boat handling.

TT: In 2000, you barely missed making the Olympic Team in the 49’er. You were on the losing side of a couple close races at the Trials. What did you learn from that competition and how did you become a better sailor from it?
ML: Yeah. It was a battle. At the end we were beaten by a better team. It was tough. You have to project yourself past the Olympic Trials and think what a great experience going to and medaling in the Olympics would be. If you can do that early enough, I think you can dig out and drive a little harder. We worked hard. We took a little time away to do the America’s Cup on AmericaOne. Maybe that took a little focus away from us. But, there was an upside to doing the Cup too. Now I look back 4 years later and ask “why didn’t I just push a little harder”. Maybe it would have made a difference. Obviously it was really close. At the time we thought we were doing what we needed to do.

TT: Why did you forego another try for the Olympics in the 49’er for 2004?
ML: I did sail the 49’er a bit this year. I was struggling to team up with someone to put in the time and have enough experience. I finally teamed up with a guy named Adam Cook from Seattle. He had done a bit of 49’er sailing when they first came out when he was young. He is not so young anymore, but he is a professional kite-boarder and a really good athlete. We gave it a good effort, but after the Worlds we added it all up. Both of us had only a certain amount of time and the Trials were coming. The light at the end of the tunnel was pretty dim.

TT: Do you see yourself in another Olympic campaign?
ML: I don’t know. The dream is still there. As you get older it gets a little harder —not only on the physical side but also commitment-wise. I think the level of the game is going up so quick. There are a lot of really talented sailors out there doing it full time. That makes it a big challenge.

TT: And the America’s Cup, are you up for it again?
ML: I’m up for it. I don’t know if I’m up for it at the same commitment level as in the past. Putting that much time and dedication into a project and letting everything else go is hard.

TT: What is your feeling on the next competition for the Cup taking place in Europe?
ML: I think it will be great for the sport. It will be a great event. I wish I was a bit younger with a little more passion towards match racing. I would be there. Now I’m pretty happy being here in Santa Cruz doing some recreational sailing like the 505s.

TT: What has drawn you to sailing the 505?
ML: A little bit of everything. There are so many talented sailors out there and many are here in California. There is a great local fleet here. The people are great and the boat is fun to sail. It is hard to beat it. The design has been around since the 50s. That tells you something.

TT: What are you expecting out of yourself for the 505 Worlds this year?
ML: It is hard to say without being out on the water yet. It looks like Howard and Peter will be tough. Mike Martin will be up there. They put in the time. Those are at least two guys to beat right now. I feel like Trevor and I have competed with them in the past. I think we’ll be able to sail at their level. We don’t have the experience of sailing in so many World Championships as they do. That is a little bit against us, but we’re here at home [smiling]. Trevor and I enjoy sailing together. We’ll have a new boat. I think we’ll have enough time to get the kinks worked out, so that should be good.

TT: What is the team dynamic like between you and Trevor? Who calls tactics? Who calls the side before the start?
ML: That is not entirely clear. As a helmsman, I typically like to concentrate on steering the boat - at least upwind, then have the crew handle all the tactics. Before the start we will both come up with the strategy. Trevor is so strong on the boat speed aspect. I believe allowing him to focus on boat speed will be important. We’re going to share the tactical responsibilities. It will be an interesting dynamic.

TT: You mentioned several times that you like to sail with Trevor. What do you like about it?
ML: Trevor is intense. He loves sailing. He loves winning. He works really hard out there. That is good for me because I’m pretty laid back. I tend to lose focus once in a while. He is animated. He gets into the zone. That is a good thing for our team.

TT: What does your racing schedule look like to prepare for the Worlds?
ML: We’re not going to have a whole lot of time to work things out as far as doing a lot of racing. But, there will be enough racing. We’re hoping to sail our first regatta up at Treasure Island in May.

TT: How much 505 practicing are you committing to?
ML: We’re hoping to go out 2 to 3 times a week. Our goal is to practice at the time of day when we will be racing. Trevor and I are fortunate right now that our jobs allow us to get out on the water at one o’clock. We heard there might be some Thursday night racing going on with the Pegasus group. They offered to put a race committee out there. We’ll definitely try to join that.

TT: Where do you see your career in two year?
ML: I’m really enjoying the offshore sailing. I haven’t done as much recently as I might have liked. I’d like to do the Bermuda Race. I’ll gear up again for some more Pacific crossings. I might have an outside chance to be involved with a Volvo team. I like going offshore.

TT: What gets you fired up about sailing now?
ML: More and more I’m enjoying being on the water and learning about dinghy sailing again. Every day you spend sailing on keel boats seems to slow down your motor skills and weaken your ability to sail a dinghy well. At the moment I am really focused on getting my balance back and feeling the boat under me.

TT: Thanks Morgan, and best of luck in the 505 campaign this year!

What the Winners Used

TANK TALK - SUMMER 2004