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Trouble Starting?


Paul Brotherton looks at big fleet starting techniques
Lost on the Line, Lymington

Many highly committed teams fail to become regular performers on the national or international scene, and a lack of good consistent starting is often the reason. It plays a huge part in one-design racing - if you start behind you have to sail better than everyone else just to draw level!

The watch word for starting has to be control. Let's start with a list of the minimum number of elements that need to be considered during the period up to the gun:

  1. Which tack you would like to be on after the start
  2. Line bias
  3. Wind shifts
  4. Current
  5. Acceleration technique for the conditions
  6. Distance covered while accelerating
  7. Time elapsed while accelerating
  8. Position of the other boats
  9. Countdown - time to the start
  10. Transits to both ends of the line - you need both a line-up transit (to mark the position you want to begin your run into the line) and a safety transit (safe position behind the line from where you can accelerate)
  11. Fleet 'cover' at both ends - can you be spotted by the race officers?
  12. Speed of boats to windward and leeward compared to your speed
  13. Other boats attacking your gap to leeward
  14. Controlling your boat at slow speed

There are 14 basic points, if we went into more detail there would quickly be 20. I would bet that 90% of active racing sailors in the UK only consider countdown and line bias. But I have a feeling that your next question would be - well, fine, but how can I possibly consider all of those points when it all happens so quickly? My answer to that would be - preparation, practise and the division of responsibilities between yourself and your crew.

Preparation: It's been said a thousand times, but make sure you're out there early enough to track the wind shifts, check the current on the line, get a visual and compass bearing on the windward mark, work out the transits and so on.

Practice: Acceleration techniques are absolutely crucial to good starting, but how many people practice them? So stop the boat and hold station (as you do on any busy start line) then investigate different techniques to get you up to speed in the minimum amount of time and covering the minimum distance to leeward and forward. Remember that you need some movement forward to allow the foils (rudder and centreboard) to work, so the acceleration angle you sail at must initially be below close-hauled.

Division of Responsibilities: Ask yourself - what does your crew do during the period from the warning signal to the gun? If you're one of the many skippers that ask their crews to do nothing more than the countdown, or even just to pull the jib in, then spreading the load will improve your starting enormously. In the last couple of minutes things change quickly, it is absolutely essential that you are aware of all these changes, while still maintaining a focus for your position relative to the start line.

In general, I would recommend that the crew has responsibility for everything from the bow to windward and astern, the skipper from everything from the bow to leeward and astern. They have to talk constantly about everything they can see in that zone that effects any of our 14 basic points above. To give you an idea what I mean, here's a typical information exchange between the two team members, approaching the line in a big fleet on starboard tack:

Skipper: I cannot see my transit - pin well covered (meaning the fleet to leeward is covering the pin end of the line and the skipper doesn't know how far from the line they are).
Crew: I can see the committee boat clearly, no cover, not close to our line-up transit - 1.15 to go (the crew can see his transit to windward and can reassure the skipper on his position relative to the line).
Skipper: We are moving forward faster than the bunch to leeward, still well covered at pin (the skipper's concerned that they may be early as they are overtaking the fleet to leeward).
Crew: Moving across transits quickly, now at line-up transit - 50 seconds (the crew agrees, their position relative to the transit is moving too quickly and they are approaching the line too fast).
Skipper: Slowing down, still covered (the skipper reacts to this information).
Crew: Still no cover, just passed line-up, moving across transits more slowly now - 30 seconds (the crew's telling the skipper they can be clearly seen from the committee boat, but the crew can see the transits and the slowing has worked).
Skipper: Pin is still covered - can I move forward? (the skipper still can't see his transits to leeward and is asking the crew where they are on the line).
Crew: Yes - not at safety, 20 seconds (the crew says they can move forward to the safe acceleration transit).
Skipper: Feels like I'm heading (the skipper thinks the wind has headed them and that he is approaching the line more slowly).
Crew: Yes agree, covering transits slowly, 12 seconds (the crew agrees, their movement past the transit has slowed).
Skipper: Let's go - flat out (the skipper reacts, realizing they can safely accelerate, and calls for maximum speed).
Crew: At safety, 5, 4, Safe, Go! 2, 1, Gun! (the team goes smoothly into their practiced acceleration technique, the crew can still see the transit and calls them right into the line).

The above conversation seems calm and controlled. As each sailor has a consistent view, the angles, transits, cover and relative speeds are all easy to judge. This is definitely not the case if you are tacking, gybing or swinging your head around trying to take in all the information alone!

So for solid starting remember: Preparation, Practise, Division of Responsibility - and let me know how you get on!

Author : © Paul Brotherton. Published : 13 Aug 2000



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