Sailing Today

Reaching starts

Lockdown trends of self-organised races, small fleets, and unusual starts look set to continue a while longer. As I have found from sailing at my own club this summer, one of the most common adaptations is a reaching start line. Let’s see how last month’s self-coaching principles can be applied here...

The reaching start

The problem: How do I start at the windward end of the line, without being pinned out by right of way boats to leeward?

The knowledge: Two key pieces of understanding needed here are transits and rules: everything else can be learned on the water.

The transit (if there is one) helps in two ways. Firstly, if you are not near an end, the transit is a guide

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