Author: David Dellenbaugh

Race committees usually try to set their finish lines square to the wind direction, but windshifts and other factors often skew the line and favor one end. It’s not uncommon for this favored end to be two or more boatlengths closer, and when you’re trying to gain every inch to beat your competition, this can make a huge difference. Theoretically, a good way to understand the orientation of any finish line is by visualizing “ladder rungs,” or…

The layline is a critical part of any windward leg because every boat has to get there eventually and, once they do, it’s a tactical dead-end. The closer you come to a layline, the fewer options you have, so you need smart tactics whenever you are approaching (or avoiding) it. When you’re behind Going to the layline when there are boats ahead of you is like running into a dead-end alley while you are being chased: there…

One thing you can say for sure about the wind direction is that it’s always changing. Even when it seems like a nice steady day, the wind is constantly wriggling back and forth at least a little bit. And whenever the wind shifts, it creates a large opportunity to gain distance on the other boats in your fleet. Wind shifts are generally the most significant strategic factor of all. Each time the wind changes direction it re-shuffles…

Once you get good at using crew weight and sail trim for turning your boat, you can think much more about the shape of the course that you steer around marks. When it comes to carving turns, I imagine that sailing is a lot like racing a car. Both sailors and race car drivers want to travel the shortest distance possible, but they can’t cut any corner too sharply or they’ll lose a lot of speed. Therefore,…

Sailboat racing would be a lot easier if there weren’t so many boats getting in your way all the time. Even when you have fast boatspeed and a sound strategic game plan, you won’t get to the windward mark very quickly if you let other boats push you around the racecourse. That’s why you need good upwind tactics. Tactics are the boat-on-boat moves you make when you are fighting for position with other boats. The purpose of…

By David Dellenbaugh The goal of your starting tactics is simple – it’s to get yourself into a good position when the race starts. A ‘good position’ is one that allows you to do two main things: 1) Come off the starting line in the front row with speed and clear air; 2) Follow your strategy for the first windward leg. Tactically, your position at the start must consider two factors – the location of the fleet…

There are few places on the racecourse where the ability to turn your boat efficiently is more critical than when you are bearing off around the windward mark. Of course, from a safety standpoint, ducking another boat in lots of breeze is probably number one. But if you want top performance, you must be able to steer smoothly and quickly around the first mark. When you bear off onto a reach or run, you must employ all…

Most sports require a certain amount of thinking ahead. If you’re racing a Formula 1 car, for example, you wouldn’t want to come out of a curve and wonder which way the track will turn next. When you’re skiing a slalom race, you always need to know where the next few gates are so you can set up properly for each turn. The same is true with sailing. The more you are able to anticipate the future,…

One of the most important parts of tactical planning is avoiding the bad air of other boats. The effects of sailing in wind shadows, even for short periods of time, can be devastating. This is especially true on the first beat, where everyone starts out so close together and losing even one boatlength can put you back in the pack. Here’s another way to think of it: Many sailors work very hard on boatspeed (and that’s a…

If you want to get around the windward mark quickly, you have to know something about laylines. Laylines are those imaginary dotted pathways on the water that show the course a boat would sail to fetch the mark on either tack. Though laylines are generally good places to avoid, you have to reach one sooner or later in order to round the mark. So it’s important to know where they are. Of course, laylines are never etched…