Sailing To Win Blog!

See The Wind

Weather, Wind, Waves and Current

-

08/04/2020

See The Wind. Perhaps the most important skill that separates the best sailors from the rest of the fleet is their ability to see the wind.

The reason that this is critical is that it enables them to consistently get to the windier side of the course and thus sail faster than their competition.

Obviously, no one can actually see the wind but there are a number of ways to indirectly see what the wind is doing, particularly what it’s doing farther up the course.

Tricks To See The Wind

Flags, smoke or other sailboats in your course area are great indicators but in many cases, these are not available so the most consistent way to see the wind is by observing how it effects the water.

The higher up we are the easier it is to see the effect on the water but most of us do not have the luxury of height above the water. In light air, standing up in your boat and looking to windward will give you a better picture and in a larger boat there is the ability to get winched up the mast to look further afield to see what is happening.

Contrasting colours caused by ripples in the water indicate the presence of a puff. With practice and observation, you will get better at predicting strength and direction.

As part of a drill and a way to hone your skills, sail upwind and try to spot puffs. Don’t worry about tacking for puffs. When you see a puff, try to predict how many seconds it will be before you sail into it. Then start counting down the seconds.

By practicing and getting better at this you’ll also develop the ability to discern how strong a particular puff will be. This is valuable information because it allows you to anticipate the effect and trim accordingly. Sailing into more wind can greatly increase your boat’s speed.

Looking Up The Course

Looking up the course should tell you which side of the course is favoured. Don’t discount other variables such as current or wind shifts. Remember that the goal is to spend as much time as possible in the puffs.

An important consideration is to not sail for a puff that is too far away. In most cases, it will have dissipated before you get to it.

I have spoken up to now about looking up the course. Downwind puffs are even more important because they will be with you longer.

If you are in a crewed boat, one team member should be allocated the task of looking for puffs. They should also be responsible for communicating to the team regarding wind on the course.

Their observations should be constantly updated on what puffs are doing, where they are coming from, their strength and what effect they are likely to have on the boat.

SAILING TO WIN

Consider Current When Planning

Weather, Wind, Waves and Current

Brett Bowden

-

01/04/2020

0

Consider Current When Planning a Race. An excerpt below from an interview that I did on the subject of Current and How to Plan for it with Professional Sailor and International Sailing Coach Andrew Palfrey.

It’s important to know what the tide is doing, what observations do you make on the course in assisting you to know where to go?

Ideally, you have pre-gamed the strategy based on the tidal strength, the times and the course location. Consider Current When Planning

It’s good to validate all of the above by physically checking the current, either by tossing an object by a fixed mark or with your eye as you pass marks through the race

Big picture, I’d make decisions based upon what effect the current might have on a leg, but also factoring in the characteristics of the wind. IE: if there is current, but it the same side-to-side on the race track, I would cancel that out and focus more on the wind.

If the current does favour one side, but the wind-shifts / velocity are really big, I would prioritise the wind.

If I can’t see any difference in the wind from side to side, or the True Wind Direction is steady-state, I would put more emphasis on the tide strategy.

Lay-lines play a bigger part in current, as people will make mistakes with this and over-lay (or underlay at the top mark and hit the mark). I’d be conservative on my laylines and hope to pick up some gains there.

How do you gather local knowledge regarding tides and currents?

We are very fortunate these days to have so much info on the internet that is easy to access. There are also books on the tidal flow in places where the tide plays a big factor.

Talking to locals regarding local effects like shadows and eddy’s is also key. I’d make sure I do this for bigger events. Consider Current When Planning.

Sometimes the best resource is your own experience in practice racing prior to the event and the early races of a regatta.

What happened?
When did it happen relative to the cycle?
Where did it happen?
Why did it happen?
Which of the resources you looked at prior to racing were the most accurate in retrospect?
What can you trust moving forward?

The depth of the water across the course will affect tidal flows as will the topography of the bottom, do you take this into account?

Yes, this is fundamental to tidal strategy. Knowing where you are relative to the depth changes is fundamental to sailing the tide well. Also knowing how quickly the depth changes in different areas, as the flow is generally faster in areas of tighter depth gradients.

In learning the Solent (where I now live), it is really interesting watching good local sailors place the boat. I think that is where I have learnt the most.

Free Sailing Tips

Become a Student of The Weather

Weather, Wind, Waves and Current

Brett Bowden

-

26/03/2020

0

Become a Student of The Weather – Part 2 of the interview that I did on the subject of weather and how it affects your sailing with Professional Sailor and International Sailing Coach Andrew Palfrey.

Do you take notice of the clouds on the course and how do they affect your decision-making?

Yes, absolutely. I think broadly speaking, the clouds can tell you a lot about whether the forecast is playing out, or not. This assumes you had that information to hand prior to racing.

What can Clouds tell you?

Lots but to highlight a couple of things that I look for:

In terms of a sea-breeze development, they are fundamental in highlighting the convection above the land
On a day of squally and rainy conditions, the clouds are your main indicators for where to go and where to avoid going.
The approach of a change in conditions (be it a tightening of pressure gradient, a front etc..).
Basically, they are part of the environment in which we make our decisions

If the wind shift seems persistent how do you establish a new mean or is this a constant process? Become a Student of The Weather

The mean is something we set in our minds, so of course, it is quite a fluid number. Keeping an open mind and constantly updating what is happening and where we are relative to course and laylines is key.

How do you calculate wind strength in order to set your boat up for the conditions?

I think the keys here are:

What is the sea-state?
How dense does the breeze feel on the sail plan?
Are the waves offset to the True Wind Direction?
I’ll try to get a quick feel for these questions in the first couple of minutes in a pre-race line-up. Set the boat up and adjust as necessary using your senses. Then check in with performance relative to other boats and make some simple evaluations based upon your power level and balance

If a front is predicted during the race, does your strategy take this into account?

Yes – you’d be constantly monitoring the sky and the True Wind Speed and True Wind Direction.

If you feel a sudden change in temperature either up or down, what can you read in to this?

Tricky one… we all feel when the wind becomes warmer when sailing toward land on a summer’s day in an offshore breeze or the colder air filling in when a sea-breeze starts to build.

Hard to generalise what this means. Sometimes it is obvious, like the examples here. Other times it can be quite subtle.

But I think it is another indicator that things have just changed and you need to be tuned into what it might mean and how it affects your decision-making in the short term.

What effect can a rain squall moving across the course have and how can you use it to your advantage?

If the squall is generally upwind, I’d be aiming to place the boat near to the leading edge of the rain squall. But not so close that I get engulfed too quickly relative to the fleet.

In general, you will find more breeze and shifted direction on the edge. If the rain squall is downwind of the gradient True Wind Direction, I’d try to get away from it as quickly as I could (or try to avoid it if you are sailing downwind).

In this case, the colder air coming from the cloud would generally reduce the True Wind Speed.

Do you time shifts to get an idea of when to expect the next shift or is it something that you feel?

I’ve never really taken the times of shifts methodically like that and I do not write the shift range down I seem to have a good recall for the numbers.

Where is the best place to get your weather information from? Become a Student of The Weather

I have developed a trust in Predictwind. Very user-friendly. Gives a good overview snapshot, but allows you to dig deeper into the bigger picture synoptic and cloud situation with a few clicks. I like it.

Do you look at a weather map and what do you read from it?

Yes – I think it important for sailors to know what is driving the weather and what are the 2 or 3 biggest influencing factors. This helps over the course of an event.

I just like to know what is driving the wind we see and how might that change over the course of the day or the event, I think it is just another component in developing your decision-making instincts.

Become a Student of the Weather

Weather, Wind, Waves and Current

Brett Bowden

-

18/03/2020

0

Become a Student of the Weather. Because I am not a student of the weather but now know what I should have realised much earlier after speaking with a lot of high achieving competing sailors, that no race planning is complete without gathering as much information as possible prior to heading out to race.

To that end, I have put together a 2 part interview that I did on this very subject with Professional Sailor and International Sailing Coach Andrew Palfrey. The questions and answers from that interview are below.

How do you collect data about weather and wind at a regatta venue especially historical information prior to arriving?

I think the “gold standard” is to try to make contact with a respected local. The main things to speak to them about are:

a. What are the two or three biggest factors to concern yourself with in terms of race-course effect (ie: tidal? Geographic features that affect the wind? the characteristics of sea-breeze evolution? etc). You just want to hone in on the big things.

b. What are the best forecast resources locally? Again, this will save a lot of time. We are so much more fortunate these days in regard to the number of resources available. The downside can be that there is too much info. You need to hone in on the best resource.

c. In the lead-up to the event, touch base with this person again and discuss the weather map and what he/she might see as important over the coming days.

Do you put together a plan for the days racing with regard to the forecast?

The first thing would be sail choices then also the sailing kit to take afloat. Sounds simple, but if you are not comfortable, you’ll find it harder to get the most from yourself.

Spend the morning continuously checking the sky and water to see if the forecast is playing out – you want to know if the forecast is accurate, in order to gauge the confidence to have in it.

Obviously, forecasts are general and not necessarily specific to the regatta venue, what notice do you take of the forecast? Become a Student of the Weather

Depends on all of the above. If you have done the homework and have done some validation in order to gain confidence, then it can be quite a weapon. If not, well, you’d take it into account, but more likely to sail the fleet and place the boat conservatively.

How do you call wind shifts and what feedback do you want from your crew?

Its important to get a feel for the range of shifts and what you’d class as mean headings on either tack. This gives you a framework for the decisions during the race.

Re feedback, it is critical to know your position relative to the laylines and relative to the fleet.

How long before the start do you collect data on the wind?

From first waking up in the morning. I want to know if the forecast is playing out accurately to start with – or more likely, which forecast to start with has it more accurate.

Can you tell whether a puff is a lift or a header before it gets to you?

I think I have a reasonable eye for that. Not as good as some people I have sailed with!

But I think this is a constantly “improve-able” skill. eg: During the pre-race tune-up, I will develop my instincts by looking at an approaching wind line and taking a stab at whether it will lift, head or stay in the same direction.

The resultant change (if any) in the True Wind Direction will go in the memory bank for later when I see a similar-looking wind line approaching.

Other things help with this “instinct”, ie: if we are already one edge of the wind range, odds are that the next shift will be back towards or beyond the mean.

In an oscillating breeze, how do you work out when to tack?

Again, where are we on the course in relation to laylines? I’d be more likely to tack from port to starboard on a “mean” heading if we only have a few per cent left of starboard tack in the leg.

Where are we in relation to the fleet? If 90% of the fleet is to our right – and on port tack, you’d be silly to continue on starboard tack for too much longer looking for more left shift unless you had established in the pre-race tune-up that gusts are not moving down the course.

Where is the True Wind Direction in relation to what we consider to be our “range” of shift?

sailingtowin.com

To Improve – Get Back To Basics

Strategy and Tactics

Brett Bowden

-

11/03/2020

0

To Improve – Get Back To Basics. The best sailors are those who understand the importance of solid boat handling skills as the foundation for performance.

What Can Improve Our Performance on The Water

A question that we should always ask ourselves is, what would make the biggest difference to improve our performance on the water?

The answers we give ourselves range from tactics and strategy, sail trim, navigation, better speed, and knowledge of the rules, to understanding the weather.

In reality, the biggest leaps in performance when you are racing come from going back to the foundation of sailing itself. That is boat handling.

Once we learn the basics of sailing, we then focus our energy on the nuances of the sport. The majority of the mistakes we make come from the poor execution of basic sailing manoeuvres.

Bad mark rounding, poor control in acceleration and deceleration, tacking and gybing just to name a few, all force us to sail with our heads in the boat.

Keep Your Head Out Of The Boat

If our heads are in the boat, there is no way that we can concentrate on refining the other aspects of performance sailing. Things like sail trim, boat speed and strategy.

If we handle our boats well, if we can manoeuvre them readily in and out of tight situations, if we can use the currents, and closely duck a competitor then the confidence we have in ourselves will enable us to then work on the nuances.

Once we hone our boat handling skills, our confidence level rises, as does our ability to put our sailboats where we want them. When we achieve excellence in boat handling, we can then focus on the next big piece of performance.

Reading, learning and studying the nuances of tactics and strategy is one thing. Applying them in situations under pressure is quite another.

If we don’t have speed off the line, if we can’t effectively complete a lee-bow tack or a close duck, then we can’t really make use of the tactics and strategy that we have learned.

With regards to boat handling, this is where the biggest gains are to be made. You can’t reach the top of the mountain without starting at the base!

SAILING TO WIN – SHOP

Psychology and Competitive Sailing

Psychology

Brett Bowden

-

19/02/2020

0

Psychology and Competitive Sailing. Where your equipment is the same as everyone else’s, there are only two ways to beat your opponent – through superior physiology (your size, weight and fitness) or through superior psychology (just about everything else!).

Psychology is perhaps one of the most neglected parts of sailing, your mental approach and the attitude you bring to your racing is one of the most effective ways of improving your results on the water.

Learning new mental skills will do you more good than buying a fancy new gadget for your boat and they won’t cost you a penny either.

Paul Elvstrom on Psychology

I am going to take the liberty of setting out below some dot points regarding Psychology and sailing from the great Paul Elvstrom.

You must not believe that a fellow competitor is better than you. If he is currently sailing a little faster than you, you have to say to yourself that this is just happening at this moment, soon it will be my turn to be faster.
You must try to put his past achievements out of your mind and you must concentrate on the race that you are in now. Many times we have seen an opponent who has let you past because he thinks you are better than him.
In a regatta, it is important to sail in the practice races and to show your worth. Always arrive at a regatta a number of days before the event. Sail around the course and tune your boat. This will not go unnoticed by your adversaries.

Give Fellow Sailors a Complex

When lining up against practice partners or other competitors sail your hardest. You can bet that your fellow competitors may get a complex about you.
Many sailors get a complex about you and a simple thing like sailing hard on the run or beat out to the course will show others that you are a force to be reckoned with.
You must always keep your spirits up and say you are hurting after a long beat just remember that so are your fellow competitors.
If you are behind in the fleet and you are tired and hurting, remember so are the guys in front of you.
If you get a bad start you must still go the way that is the fastest. You should not get flustered and start taking chances or going off on a flyer. Never do the opposite of what the leading boats are doing in the hope that you may pick up a little advantage.

Are You Going The Right Way?

If you are sure the leading boats are going the right way then all you have to do is follow them. If you think they are going the wrong way, of course, you shouldn’t follow them.
It is really important to recognise the difference between good and bad luck and also skill and good fortune.
It is important that when you have a bit of good luck, recognise it for what it is. In the next race or leg you may not concentrate or think it through as thoroughly.
Don’t keep clear of the better sailors on a run for fear of interfering with them. Compete hard and sail your own race taking all factors into account.

Practice Techniques For Sailing

Drills, Training and Coaching

Brett Bowden

-

13/02/2020

0

Practice techniques for sailing. You will have invested considerable time money and effort to enter and travel to a sailing event so it makes sense to invest some time into preparation involving well-planned practice hours leading up to the races.

Dedicated practice rather than just racing – Practice Techniques For Sailing

It amazes me, how many competitors at events that I have attended have put in no extra effort. All they do is normal club racing prior to turning up to State or National championships.

It goes without saying that if you want to win, practice is essential and importantly, it doesn’t matter how close to race day it is. A day or two, immediately prior to racing begins, and in the waters that you will compete in will reap the greatest benefit.

All you need are a couple of hours to fine-tune everything. Plan the night before the practice and come up with a list of things you want to work on. When you get on the water, no time is lost. Get down to the important task of working on your weaknesses.

Two or three boat practice is a huge advantage if you can swing it. After practicing some drills it is really advantageous to carry out some short races. This further hones your skills and shows the things that still require attention.

What Should Practice Races Consist Of?

Practice races should include a start, upwind leg and downwind leg, short and sharp with a number of starts in order to give you time to make adjustments and have a discussion between the participants to improve the things that are troubling you.

Short races and on-water discussions are important. Most benefits can be had though back on shore with a debrief between all participants.

Obviously having a coach on the water during your practice sessions is the ideal situation and they will be able to guide the debrief using their observations but there is still plenty to be gained in discussions between participating sailors should you not have the luxury of a coach.

Take Notes – Practice Techniques For Sailing

Note-taking is essential after all training and practice sessions. I highly recommend keeping a journal of training and practice findings. Also, jot down a few notes of observations from every time you hit the water.

This journal should be referred to regularly. Don’t come in from a race to discover that you didn’t use a setting that worked in a previous race.

Use your Traveller or Mainsheet

Setting Sails and Boat Tuning

Brett Bowden

-

05/02/2020

0

Use your Traveller or Mainsheet to depower the mainsail. The traveller has two functions, it controls the boom’s angle to the wind and it steers the boat controlling helm and heeling in puffs and lulls.

Mainsheet

The mainsheet controls the twist and then you use the traveller to position the boom on the centreline. This gives maximum power and pointing as long as the helm and heeling are within the normal parameters. These are the ones that give the best results for your respective type of boat.

As a general rule of thumb, as the breeze builds and mainsheet tension increases, the traveller will gradually be dropped to keep the boom on the centreline.

Traveller – Use your Traveller or Mainsheet

In medium conditions, the role of the traveller will expand to include control of helm. As the boat generates weather helm, drop the traveller to de-power the boat.

The position of the boom, relative to the centreline becomes irrelevant. In medium air, play the traveller aggressively to maintain the correct amount of helm.

Dump the traveller quickly at the onset of a puff. Pull it up as the initial power of the puff dissipates and turns into forward speed instead of heel.

If you leave it down too long you will miss the opportunity to point once the boat has

accelerated.

The beauty of using the traveller is that the mainsail twist which is controlled by the mainsheet and which is vital to both speed and pointing, does not change, only the total amount of power.

The mainsheet is the Gross Trim

The main sheet is the “gross trim” adjustment for the overall amount of power.

As a general rule of thumb, on fractional rigged boats with large mainsails, the mainsheet is played more aggressively and the traveller is usually kept closer to centreline.

The mainsail trimmer continually makes adjustments to both traveller and mainsheet based not just on the overall amount of power, but issues like boat speed, waves, and even a tactical situation.

How to get the Most out of Using a Coach

Drills, Training and Coaching

Brett Bowden

-

23/01/2020

0

How to get the Most out of Using a Coach

Now that most of us in the Southern Hemisphere have completed our National championships, our attention must turn to analysing our results so that we can improve for next year’s competition.

Some competitors will be more than satisfied with the end result but for most, now that they have competed on the same track with the best in their class, their minds will be turning to what they need to do to show up higher on the leader-board next year.

Of course most of us lament the fact that we did not have enough time on the water but a surefire way to shorten the process is to engage a coach. Coaching doesn’t have to be an expensive venture for it to add immense value.

Step 1: Find the Right Coach

Consider avoiding a coach who has a personality similar to yours. Sailors often assume that understanding the sport will come easier when explained by a like mind, but benefits will come from those who notice your weaknesses. Seek coaches who are experts in your weak areas. For example, if you struggle with starts, look for a coach skilled in that area.

Step 2: Show Up with the Right Attitude

You’re not there to show the coach how much you know, you’re there to grow. Show up with an open mind, ready to improve or learn something new. Keep your emotions in check. they cloud the experience and distract from getting every bit of information from a coach.

Step 3: Come with Questions
If you have a question, chances are that someone else does too. Either as an individual or as a team, spend time writing down a few questions to ask the coach. Having questions ready will help the coach make sure you get the experience you’re looking for.

Step 4: Debrief
Take time to debrief with the coach and then debrief with your crew immediately afterwards to share thoughts and the biggest take-aways. Discuss ideas for improvement and make a game plan for implementing and practicing new techniques.

Step 5: Document & Implement
Turn your game plan into a playbook for the boat. In addition to being a great resource, a playbook gives new crew ideas on how manoeuvres are made. The key to an effective playbook is to keep it simple with not much confusing detail.

ALTERNATIVE COACHING IDEAS

Video: Coaching doesn’t have to be expensive, take Go-Pro videos and have a coach review them plus trade and evaluate each other’s tapes.
Peer Review: Sailors can find coaches in their peers. Take turns making manoeuvres and then discuss what went well and what didn’t – exchange ideas.
Split Costs: Set up a few-day training session or a clinic for the fleet, and split the coaching costs.
Seminars: Take advantage of seminars, if there aren’t any in your area, call your sailmaker and arrange one for your local yacht club.

Pressure of Being in the Lead

Psychology

Brett Bowden

-

08/01/2020

0

The pressure of Being in the Lead. Holding on to a lead can be as much about your mindset as it is your speed or tactics. Being at the front of the fleet is daunting, but to stay there it’s important to focus on the little things.

The anticipation of losing the lead you’ve achieved can create a multitude of thoughts that are unrelated to sailing smart and fast.

The anticipation of success can come with fears that are unrelated to getting to that finish line such as “Will I maintain this success in later events? What will people say? Do I really deserve this?”

Outcomes are largely based on uncontrollable variables, like how fast other people are sailing.

When you find yourself in the lead, you did something right, you focused on variables such as wind shifts, current, and fleet positioning or such controllable variables as your boat speed, boat handling, and keeping calm.

The pressure of Being in the Lead

Once you’re in the lead, you don’t want to start doing something different such as wasting mental space on what place you will or won’t finish.

You can influence your thoughts, but not control them and over time, you need to form new habits in thinking, if you’re going to play mind games with yourself, play games that work for you, not against you.

Picture what you want to happen, rather than what you want to avoid and your mind programs your body for action.

Practice mental skills, these are like any other skills, could you imagine having good roll tacks without practicing them?

Tricks To See The Wind

Looking Up The Course

It’s important to know what the tide is doing, what observations do you make on the course in assisting you to know where to go?

How do you gather local knowledge regarding tides and currents?

The depth of the water across the course will affect tidal flows as will the topography of the bottom, do you take this into account?

Do you take notice of the clouds on the course and how do they affect your decision-making?

What can Clouds tell you?

If the wind shift seems persistent how do you establish a new mean or is this a constant process? Become a Student of The Weather

How do you calculate wind strength in order to set your boat up for the conditions?

If a front is predicted during the race, does your strategy take this into account?

If you feel a sudden change in temperature either up or down, what can you read in to this?

What effect can a rain squall moving across the course have and how can you use it to your advantage?

Where is the best place to get your weather information from? Become a Student of The Weather

Do you look at a weather map and what do you read from it?

How do you collect data about weather and wind at a regatta venue especially historical information prior to arriving?

Do you put together a plan for the days racing with regard to the forecast?

How do you call wind shifts and what feedback do you want from your crew?

How long before the start do you collect data on the wind?

Can you tell whether a puff is a lift or a header before it gets to you?

In an oscillating breeze, how do you work out when to tack?

What Can Improve Our Performance on The Water

Keep Your Head Out Of The Boat

Paul Elvstrom on Psychology

Give Fellow Sailors a Complex

Are You Going The Right Way?

Dedicated practice rather than just racing – Practice Techniques For Sailing

What Should Practice Races Consist Of?

Take Notes – Practice Techniques For Sailing

Mainsheet

Traveller – Use your Traveller or Mainsheet

The mainsheet is the Gross Trim

Step 1: Find the Right Coach

Step 2: Show Up with the Right Attitude

Step 3: Come with QuestionsIf you have a question, chances are that someone else does too. Either as an individual or as a team, spend time writing down a few questions to ask the coach. Having questions ready will help the coach make sure you get the experience you’re looking for.

Step 4: DebriefTake time to debrief with the coach and then debrief with your crew immediately afterwards to share thoughts and the biggest take-aways. Discuss ideas for improvement and make a game plan for implementing and practicing new techniques.

Step 5: Document & Implement Turn your game plan into a playbook for the boat. In addition to being a great resource, a playbook gives new crew ideas on how manoeuvres are made. The key to an effective playbook is to keep it simple with not much confusing detail.

ALTERNATIVE COACHING IDEAS

The pressure of Being in the Lead

Step 3: Come with Questions
If you have a question, chances are that someone else does too. Either as an individual or as a team, spend time writing down a few questions to ask the coach. Having questions ready will help the coach make sure you get the experience you’re looking for.

Step 4: Debrief
Take time to debrief with the coach and then debrief with your crew immediately afterwards to share thoughts and the biggest take-aways. Discuss ideas for improvement and make a game plan for implementing and practicing new techniques.

Step 5: Document & Implement
Turn your game plan into a playbook for the boat. In addition to being a great resource, a playbook gives new crew ideas on how manoeuvres are made. The key to an effective playbook is to keep it simple with not much confusing detail.