A post from Quantum Sails by way of Sailing World. A reminder on how to get a good start. In large fleets, starts can make or break a race, so make sure when you line up for go, you know exactly where you want to be, and how to get your boat moving afterwards. Remember these key aspects of every start and you'll get off the line every time! Starts On the line Checks Head to wind check. Sight across the boat, which end is higher or favored? Where is the next mark? How strong is the fleet? Size/speed of [...]

A post from Mike Ingham in Sailing World In run mode, wind flows vertically in the spinnaker, entering near the head and exiting from the foot. Photo by Paul Todd/Outside Images. In the previous issue we visited Cornell University’s wind tunnel to see how wind flows around an asymmetric spinnaker. We learned a lot, of course, especially the importance of being dynamic with our trim, so we went back to the tunnel to explore some key points of symmetric spinnaker flow and trim. Before stepping into the tunnel, I had a naïve vision of attached flow on both [...]

Once you start wrapping your head around VMG, you start to realize that making the boat go faster sometimes might be the slower way to the mark. From Sailing World. From Sailing World Although it defies our instincts, it pays to pinch in a lull. By Mike Ingham Posted February 10, 2015 We were in Newport, R.I., last summer doing some straight-line upwind speed tests. The puffs felt good with crew weight nicely on the rail, but the lulls sent the crew scurrying inboard to balance the boat. The helm got that terrible squishy feeling and the jib’s windward [...]

The T-Birds get a solid start at the Shipwrights'. Photo, one of many great ones, by Wendy Feltham. Dear Sailors, For those of you participating in the Shipwrights' regatta, let's hear what you learned from our sessions this winter! Did you repack the spinnaker? Did you hoist the spinnaker on the way out to the racing course? First beer already!!!!! Did you practice jibing a few times? Did you go up wind and check you jib leads. Did you check the wind direction on either tack ? Was there any osscilations any pattern to the shifts? Did you [...]

From the 2015 Etchell's Sid Doren Race. Watch the whole mess unfold in a One Design melee. Sequence on Scuttlebutt here, photos by John Payne whose web site is here. One design madness at the mark. Photo by John Payne  

Here is a reminder that we are still meeting. Next seesion is on Monday, February 9the at 6pm at the NWMC. We are planning to discuss the racing rules. If you need an update, Speed and Smarts #124 Jan/Feb 2013, and for a rules Quiz, #125 March/April 2013 issue. They can all be downloaded on the internet so you can get immediate access. Jim Heumann will discuss a smartphone app called RaceQs and give a demo on this as well! It is raining in the mountains, plead for dropping freezing levels!!!!! Cheers!! Stig

Excellent seminar on the 26th. Stig showed this video and pointed out that he and his crew watch it frame by frame. Lots of great information from technique, to timing, to using crew weight to steer the boat. Shipwrights is just around the corner. What are you working on to up your game?

May 08, 2009 on board Telefonica Blue in Boston. Rounding the windward mark behind Puma as other boats come in on port tack. Here is a reminder that we are now rounding the windward mark and heading downwind. Please review Speed and Smarts issue 130, Downwind Strategy and Tactics. See you on Monday at 6 pm at the Maritime Center. Stig

Photo from SAILJUICE.COM Post by Nick Turney, Destination One Design 10/2/2007 8:02:19 PM What are upwind tactics? Up wind tactics involve positioning yourself compared to other boats or groups of boats to take advantage of wind shifts or current. There are many levels to upwind tactics. The first and most important level of upwind tactics is the wind shifts. I think of sailing upwind like climbing a ladder. The steps or rungs of the ladder hang perpendicular to the wind direction. The boats on the same rung are the same distance upwind. This ladder rotates as the wind [...]

More sail trim tips from Chris Davidson and Chuck Skewes at Ullman Sails Seattle/San Diego. Photo by Tim O’Connell Sailing downwind in light airs can be very challenging but some big gains can be made. Weight should be distributed forward and grouped together. It is not uncommon for people to go below at this point. We would not recommend this approach unless you are on one gybe for an extended period of time as the time delay and the shaking of the boat when the crew has to move negates the gain of having them below.  Main trimmers [...]

From David Dellenbaugh's always interesting and usefully monthly publication, Speed and Smarts. In light air, pressure can make all the difference. Illustration from Speed and Smarts. When you're sailing on a beat or run, the two main strategic factors are usually changes in the wind direction and changes in the wind velocity. Obviously, you want to sail toward the next windshift and sail toward better pressure. But sometimes you can't do both, so which is more important? In light air, sailing in better wind velocity is relatively more valuable. That's because a small increase in wind pressure will [...]

Photo #1 Dan Newland offers up some ideas on outboard sheeting when reaching. Here are some photos I happened to stumble into when I looked at PTSA racing pictures.  The pictures illustrate why you need to go to outboard sheeting when reaching. Modern high aspect, low clewed jibs/genoas work well going to weather but suffer on a reach. When you crack off your headsail on a reach what happens is you twist off the top of the sail reducing power while the clew continues to line up with the inboard track. if you switch the headsail lead to [...]

At the leeward mark DORADO came barreling in, dropped their chute within two lengths, rounded tight to the Tower and pulled away. You may have heard someone say, "you can win or lose it in the corners" but seeing how it should be done makes that point very clearly. From Sailing World, Terry Hutchinson on rounding the leeward mark. Photo by Keith Brash/Quantum RacingThe telltales of a clean leeward mark rounding: a good upwind exit angle, crew on the rail, no ghosts on the foredeck. A clean exit around the leeward mark requires a few consistent parts: a [...]

Shipwrights Regatta is coming up. Here's a post we could have used last year from Dobbs Davis on Destination One Design. Sydney Hobart Line Honors winning WILD OATS finishes under double reef and small jib. Racing in heavy air can be exhilarating or intimidating, depending on how well the boat and the crew are set up to deal with the conditions. Unlike light-air racing, where the challenge is mostly mental, sailing in the breeze can be physically demanding, with static and dynamic loads on running and standing rigging regularly reaching dangerous levels even aboard small boats. Combine this [...]

Sailing is a succession of high and low moments. Learning from each one—and laughing about many—is the secret to a successful lifetime in the sport.by Gary Jobson in Sailing World Photo by John Payne During a celebration for an elderly sailor who was retiring from racing, I noticed a silver brick on his fireplace mantel. On it was an inscription that read, “Yacht Racing 1946-2009.” He’d taken every silver trophy he’d won during his racing career and melted them down to form the brick. It made me laugh, as I thought about all the emotions of a lifetime [...]

The man with the parrot on his head would like to point out it is a sparrow. From Dan Newland We are doing a practice rather than a race since races seldom allow you the luxury of talking through maneuvers and letting everyone become familiar with new positions and new maneuvers.  As I said in the past, a common problem with a practice is the lack of focus and having clear goals for what it is about.  Going out and hoisting a few beers/spinnakers has limited benefit since it is generally what everyone has done before but stating [...]

From Sailing World

For those of us who grind a way in the middle of the pack, the performance of the better sailors in the club is an ongoing mystery. Is it some trick boat part? One secret move? Dan Newland, the man with the parrot on his head, was kind enough to break down one Friday night race and you come to see it was a series of small, correct choices that took him to the front, again. Analysis of Cats Paw race #2 Jon Kaplan has hounded me relentlessly to write something up for the website and at long last, I [...]

A post from UK Sailmakers reminds us that, especially in light air, limiting your mistakes is the key. Fewer mistakes are the key to victory in sailboat racing. By Adam Loory, General Manager of UK Sailmakers International Last Thursday I re-learned the adage that to win sailboat races, you need to make fewer mistakes than your competition. Even though my boat SOULMATES was on the line at the gun, we did not have the best start. After sailing a few boat lengths we got squeezed out the back when the J/130 DRAGONFLY below us came up and the [...]

The upcoming Shipwright’s Regatta is the start of the often windy spring sailing season. With rusty skills we may be heading out into challenging conditions. Before we untie from the dock it just makes good sense to check safety equipment, put on our PFD’s and review rescue  procedures. Below is a post from the Royal Ocean Racing Club’s website that goes over some of the key elements in a successful crew overboard rescue. When a crew member goes over the side recovery time is of the essence. In an effort to come up with a recovery system that is simple [...]

from www.pressure-drop.us

Terry Hutchinson boils down his good starts to five easy-to-remember tips. "From the Experts" in the September 2008 issue of Sailing World. by Terry Hutchinson Going for the line As a tactician for the past eight years I've been fortunate to sail alongside some of the best helmsmen, and from each of them I've learned many different starting styles. When the time came this summer for me to fire up the starting instincts for the TP52 Breitling MedCup Circuit there was plenty of nervous anticipation. But there was also the reminder from my college coach K.C. Fullmer to [...]

The Whitecap Series was a light wind affair, which will probably mean the summer Cat's Paw Series will be take two reefs and hang on tight. Just in case we get more light wind races, here's an article from mysailing.com.au on sailing in light wind by Michael Blackburn. Michael Blackburn offers advice on sailing in very light airs. Light winds require a subtle and accurate sailing technique. Rather than muscling a hull through rough water, the challenge becomes delicately sailing a rig through slowly moving air. Australians are not as good in light winds as their European counterparts. That’s partly [...]