by: Nick Turney of North Sails Learn the ins and outs of sail trim and how rigging and tuning affect the shape of your sails. The Mainsail Trim includes: Main Sheet, Traveler; Cunningham; Outhaul and; Vang. The Headsail & Spin Trim includes: Jib Lead; Jib Halyard and; Jib Sheet. Mainsail Trim Headsail & Spin TrimRead More
Written by Peter Isler, with additional contributions by Chuck Hawley and Michael Jacobs "Man Overboard" is probably the third most famous nautical hail, after "Land Ho" and "Thar She Blows," but it is by far the most serious and potentially life threatening of the three. Man Overboard Rescue Procedure Although we should keep in mind…Read More
By: David Dellenbaugh When you’re not sure where the next shift will come from, get onto the longer tack to the windward mark (the tack on which your bow is pointing closer to the mark). This is one of my most reliable strategies. Sailing the longer tack works because of probability. Your chances of success…Read More
By: Nick Turney of North Sails Learn how to read wind on a course and make appropriate tactical decisions to improve your performance on the water. Reading the wind, includes: types of puffs; reading the puffs and; predicting the wind. Predicting the wind, includes: data collection; weather maps and; isobar maps. Reading Wind & Weather…Read More
By: Nick Turney of North Sails Prepared for the 2011 US Sailing One Design Symposium, this hands-on seminar will show you the proper steps of tuning a mast and also how to use mast bend to your advantage. These steps will assist in boosting performance and improving safety. The Art of Rig Tune & BendRead More
By: David Dellenbaugh When you want to go fast upwind, bad air is your enemy. So watch out for other boats, and look ahead for lanes of clear air. Wind shadows extend farther and slow you more in light air than they do in heavy air. So when there’s not much wind, don’t stay in…Read More
By David Dellenbaugh When you’re sailing in a lot of breeze, your boat is usually overpowered. Because of this, finding more wind velocity probably won’t help you go much faster or point higher. In fact, in some cases a strong puff might even slow you down. A good wind shift, on the other hand, can…Read More
By: Dave Perry, Chairman of US Sailing Appeals Committee Dave Perry presented the dos and don’ts of filing an appeal at the Sailing Leadership Forum last February in San Diego. Perry is the author of Understanding the Racing Rules of Sailing and Dave Perry’s 100 Best Racing Rules Quizzes. He is also a US Sailing Senior Certified Judge. When filing…Read More
Quiz 23 Boats W (a windward boat) and L (a leeward boat) are reaching towards the gybe mark. L becomes overlapped with W from clear astern. They are both sailing proper courses and are on a collision course. As they near each other, W hails, “You came from clear astern and I’m on my proper…Read More
By: David Dellenbaugh This is a sure-fire rule of thumb that works in any wind condition. Of course, you must be able to predict which way the wind will shift next. But if you can do this, all you have to do is sail in that direction and you will come out ahead (assuming you…Read More