Oscar Angervall - Victory Challenge, Sweden

	Traveller/runner Oscar Angervall, Victory Challenge, Sweden.

He’s visited Auckland before, to compete in the Steinlager-Line 7 Cup, a key event on the world match racing circuit.

Now he’s back as a traveller/runner for the multinational Victory Challenge, Sweden’s first America’s Cup campaign since 1992.

Oscar has also been joined in New Zealand by his partner Linda.

Q: What activities do you enjoy while you’re in New Zealand?

A: Surfing is the big one for me and some of the others involved in the Regatta. There are no surf beaches in Sweden, so I have to travel to somewhere like Biarritz in France to find surf beaches.

But in Auckland, you only have to drive a short distance out of the city and you find all the West Coast beaches at Muriwai, Piha, Bethels Beach and Karekare. They’re all great and I’ve also been up to Maori Bay in Northland, which was a good spot for surfing. On another trip around the Coromandel Peninsula, we found some really good waves as well.

Apart from surfing, I also like to play golf and tennis when I have time away from sailing.

Q: What do you enjoy about living here?

A: What you notice most are the people in New Zealand. They are very easy to talk to, compared to Europe where people tend to keep to themselves.

We stayed up beyond the Bay of Islands before Christmas and the people up there were just so friendly and easy to get on with.

The other thing we find is that we feel really comfortable living in Auckland.

Q: What tourist attractions and activities have you taken in here?

A: We haven’t had the time to go too far outside Auckland so far. We’ve been up north, but not quite as far as Cape Reinga. I’ve been to Ninety Mile Beach – that was great – and also visited the Bay of Islands, but I haven’t seen too many tourist attractions yet. That will come later.

Q: You live in Gothenburg in Sweden. What are the big differences you notice about life here?

A: Again, it’s the friendliness of the people here. You just don’t see that back home in Gothenburg. Auckland is a much bigger city, but the people are easier to get on with. You also feel a lot safer here when you go out anywhere at night, and you can’t say that about home.

The other big difference between Auckland and Gothenburg is being so close to the sea.

Q: What would you rate as your favourite holiday destinations in New Zealand?

A: Apart from the Bay of Islands and Coromandel Peninsula, I haven’t seen a lot, but we are planning to go to the South Island for about two weeks at the end of the Regatta. We want to drive around and see as much as we can, especially Queenstown and Fiordland.