Yachts & Yachting | Sailing Techniques
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A leading performance sailing magazine, covering every aspect of the racing scene, from dinghies to keelboats and sailing techniques. Here, you'll find news & events, event spotlight, sailing techniques, and equipment guides.
Yachts & Yachting | Sailing Techniques
8M ago
Mark Rushall looks at the protest process – how and why to protest
Experiencing a protest, as a party, an observer, or even as part of the protest committee, is a great way to learn the rules, understand the process, and prepare for the big occasion.
As most of the action occurs ‘When boats meet’, we’ll focus on Part 2 protests here – though the process for a non-Part 2 protest is the same, as is a request for redress.
Generally, unresolved rules issues are caused either by a misunderstanding of the meaning of the rules, or a difference of opinion over what actually happened. Many c ..read more
Yachts & Yachting | Sailing Techniques
8M ago
Erivale 111,GBR 236R,Ker 39, RORC IRC Nationals 2017
Mark Rushall looks at how to make the best choice in some classic port-starboard situations, and the rules you need to know
When a port and a starboard tack boat converge, it is all too easy for the port tack boat to default to a lee bow tack. But the instant gratification from a successful lee bow tack is all too often trumped by the loss of subsequent tactical options, and it is very frustrating to send your closest rival off on the other tack, only to find that he’s gained the advantage on the next cross.
As with all boat on boat decision ..read more
Yachts & Yachting | Sailing Techniques
8M ago
Olympic gold medallist Saskia Clark on how a good crew can contribute to straight-line speed, in an excerpt from her book Crewing to Win
Crewing is often considered to be not as important as the helming role – the perception is that you can just jump in and go. In the early days of your crewing career this might be the case, but a great crew will contribute equally to the speed, decision-making and outcome of their team’s racing. There are myriad aspects to this, from the personal to the practical. Over the next few pages I focus on one of the basics that is often ignored – going faster in a s ..read more
Yachts & Yachting | Sailing Techniques
8M ago
Helena Lucas talks through the essential skills of adjusting settings and crew weight to help maximise your pace
Have you ever started a race in 15-20 knots of wind to find yourself crossing the finishing line in just six knots? You then look up at your mainsail and see horrible over-bend creases and realise you have forgotten to change gear for the lighter winds, and have left the kicker and Cunningham on.
Sailors are far more responsive to an increase in pressure and the boat being overpowered, than to the wind dropping and feeling underpowered. Consequently, we tend to be quicker to de ..read more
Yachts & Yachting | Sailing Techniques
8M ago
Mark Rushall on moves to help you defend and attack on the run
So we’ve worked out what the fastest route down the run is likely to be, got ourselves into a clear lane, on the right gybe, sails trimmed to get us there as quickly as possible. In this feature we’ll look at the small picture: how we might take advantage of the changing patterns to gain or defend places against boats sharing our part of the racecourse.
Thinking ahead
Before engaging in any boat on boat combat, make sure that the desired outcome is clear. If the leeward mark is a starboard rounding, or it is a gate and you want to ..read more
Yachts & Yachting | Sailing Techniques
8M ago
In our series on How to Sail Faster, veteran Flying Fifteen campaigner and multiple Worlds-winner Steve Goacher shares hard-won advice on preperation for a big championships
Photos (c) Flying Fifteen Association; David Harding, Sailing Scenes
Over the years I have competed in everything from single-handers to fully crewed yachts, but for the last 20 years my focus has been the Flying Fifteen, which provides a unique mixture of challenges and rewards, a blend of yacht strategy but with planing performance.
The Fifteen goes downwind like a dinghy, but it rewards the long-term thinking that is re ..read more
Yachts & Yachting | Sailing Techniques
8M ago
© Copyright British Sailing Team
From our series on How to sail faster. Hold your own around the race course as Helena Lucas explains how to execute some sure-fire winning moves
Photos: Richard Langdon/British Sailing Team; Tom Gruitt; Richard Langdon/Sailing Energy; Tim Olin
Sailing is very much like a game of chess, with many tactical situations occurring around the race course. It’s not just about how to sail faster all the time. There will be times when you need to attack the boats around you, but other times when you need to defend your position in order to carry out your bigger pict ..read more
Yachts & Yachting | Sailing Techniques
8M ago
Despite the title of our long-running series in Yachts & Yachting magazine, racing is not always as simple as how to sail faster. You need to know when to accelerate and when to slow down in a race, as Helena Lucas explains
Photos (c) Richard Langdon/Sailing Energy; Pedro Martinez/Sailing energy; Jean Marie Liot
How to sail faster? It’s never that simple! Knowing when to put your foot down, when to really accelerate, is key. Then there are times when tactically it pays to slow down, but how do you then get your boat back up to speed again quickly? Good acceleration is really important, but ..read more
Yachts & Yachting | Sailing Techniques
8M ago
Olympic coach Mark Rushall offers some advice on when and how to perform the lee-bow tack, and who does what on board
In small boat racing, especially one-design, upwind gains are always hard won. Its not surprising that if uncertain whether we’re crossing ahead of an approaching boat on starboard tack, the leebow tack feels like a less painful option. That’s certainly the case here: the tacking boat would have given away almost two boats lengths if she’d chosen to duck bow number 8…. Or would she?
The tactician’s roleHelm, crew, or other designated person, it’s the tactician’s ..read more
Yachts & Yachting | Sailing Techniques
10M ago
Mark Rushall looks at the protest process – how and why to protest
Experiencing a protest, as a party, an observer, or even as part of the protest committee, is a great way to learn the rules, understand the process, and prepare for the big occasion.
As most of the action occurs ‘When boats meet’, we’ll focus on Part 2 protests here – though the process for a non-Part 2 protest is the same, as is a request for redress.
Generally, unresolved rules issues are caused either by a misunderstanding of the meaning of the rules, or a difference of opinion over what actually happened. Many c ..read more