The more you limit excessive helm or rudder drag, the faster you go and because of this, you need to evaluate what your helm is telling you. If you have excessive helm, the driver is working against the boat’s natural course and each movement of the tiller is creating drag. Helm on different boats varies quite a bit but one thing is consistent across them all and that is excessive helm equals drag and drag is slow.

There are 3 factors that contribute to excessive helm and these are:

1. Sail Trim: The jib pulls the bow down away from the wind and the mainsail, when trimmed in, pushes the bow up into the wind. Using this knowledge, you must set your boat up in balance to eliminate drag by getting each sail to work with the other. Adjustment of each sail will affect helm, trim the main in and helm will increase, ease it and the helm will decrease. Using this information, consider other powering up and powering down factors such as vang sheeting, outhaul adjustment and traveller movement up or down. These too will affect helm so when you or your crew make these adjustments communicate with reference to the effect the new trim has had on the helm and thus drag and make adjustments to renew balance.
2. Heel and Fore & Aft trim: Heel induces tug on the tiller and many boats load up quicker than others. Communication again is very important and you need to discuss the effect that sideways heel and fore and aft trim are having on the helm. Generally the flatter a boat is the faster it will go but you need to establish the transition point between windward and leeward helm, that’s the sweet spot and where you should aim to be. In light winds, you may need to establish a little windward helm to generate a little lift off the blades and this can be achieved by heeling slightly to leeward. As the breeze kicks, you will feel the helm load up so flatten the boat to reduce the rudder drag.
3. Centreboard Position: In classes or boats where you are able to adjust centreboard depth or rake, pay particular attention to the effect that board position has on the helm. In boats where the board can be raised, by pulling the board up you move the centre of lateral resistance back which reduces helm and therefore drag. As a guide, when sailing in waves, a little bit of board up will ease the helm and alow you to steer more effectively around waves.

You should always be thinking about helm, by easing the mainsail, adjusting the centreboard or depowering you will be balancing the boat and achieving the best upwind performance

Using a sailing coach to get better does not have to be expensive. Coaching is an investment that will pay dividends whether it be to work on a particular aspect of your sailing or to prepare for a club, national or world championship regatta.

There are a number of steps that you should take to gain the greatest benefit for the time and money you will invest:

1. Find the right coach: you need a coach who will be an expert in the areas that you are weak in and not someone who gives you the answers but someone who guides you in the process of improvement and who can help you find the answers from within yourself. Be open to change, sometimes you need a coach whose personality is different to yours but the biggest changes come about from coaches who can spot your weaknesses.
2. Questions: Don’t arrive at a training session with a blank sheet of paper hoping to be lectured to and the off chance that the coach may touch on something that you believe need improvement. Every sailor will achieve more from the session if the coach can address what the individual or team is interested in.
3. Come to the training session ready to learn:  Many sailors come to training and treat it as a necessary chore, come with an open mind and be ready to learn something new. You need to keep your emotions under control, you are not there to show the coach how much you know, you are there to add every bit of knowledge you can.
4. Know all roles on your boat: You are being coached to improve your sailing in your chosen position but knowing what is expected of your teammates will help you to work more efficiently together. You should pay attention when the coach is talking about a manoeuvre that doesn’t involve you.
5. Debrief: Have a get together with your teammates after the coaching session to talk over what you have each learnt and then formulate a plan to implement and practice to make those new techniques second nature.
6. Make notes: One of the best ways to guarantee that new ideas are remembered is to write them down. Have a notebook and put down what you have learnt in your own words. Don’t be afraid to make sketches if that helps you to remember better.
7. Video and voice recording:  Get your on-water sessions videoed, even use your mobile phone to record as much of the session as possible. When you are having the debrief with the coach and then the debrief with the crew, at least record the sound and then rewatch or relisten at a later date. You will be amazed at what extra benefit you will gain by hearing and seeing it all again.
8. Further ways of learning to get better: Watch videos of sailing events with your team and critique them. Sail with your fellow competitors from time to time and see how they sail and manage their boat. Attend seminars run by clubs, sailmakers and other class associations. Attend training clinics with other sailors not necessarily run by your chosen class, there is plenty to be learned from those sailing in differnt boats than your own.