Racing Strategies for the South Bay and Redwood Reach Appreciation to Sequoia Yacht Club Andrew Lesslie Racing Coordinator Spinnaker Sailing One-Design Fleet Let’s get to know each-other… Some icebreaker questions
● Do you sail with a chartplotter, ipad or portable GPS device? ● Do you have a steering compass? ● Does the boat you race carry a spinnaker? ● More than one spinnaker? ● Can you spell “asymmetric”? ● Do you have a polars for the boat you race? ● Is your sailmaker on speed dial? ● Does the boat you race draw more or less than 5’? ● Does the boat you race have a depth sounder? (one that works) ● How about a refrigerator? ● Can you see your jib tell-tales from your helming position? ● Does the boat you race rate more or less than 100? ● Have you argued about why your rating isn’t fair, ever? ● Do you know the magnetic bearing from S to Y? Strategy vs. Tactics?
Strategy is the plan you make so you can sail the race course in the shortest possible time. Strategy is based on your boat and the sailing conditions.
Tactics are the actions you take relative to other boats, so that you are free to follow your strategy.
Your strategy is always your priority
Your race is against the clock, especially when handicap racing The strategic process 1, 2, 3
Research the expected wind, current and sea state for the race area and the time of the race.
Once we have the course, overlay our predictions on the course. What circumstances do we expect to see on each leg?
Make a plan to sail the course in the shortest possible time, given the characteristics of our boat. (Draft, sail choices, running angles, etc). We’re not talking about boat handling today, but…
The better our boat handling, the more strategic options we have.
Good tacking skills give us the option to tack away to clear our wind, to short tack along the favored side and to exploit wind shifts.
Good spinnaker skills let us hoist sooner, keep our wind clear, sail VMG angles, douse later. Three key environmental factors
Wind, Current, and Waves
Can be favorable or adverse
How do we make best use of favorable and avoid the worst of adverse conditions? Wind predictions
Local Sources
National Weather Service Forecast for “PZZ531” and Forecast Discussion
Watch the trend on the harbor weather station “RTYC1”
Big Picture
NOAA Ocean Prediction Center for surface analysis and synoptic weather
3rd party sites, Ventusky, WindyTV, Sailflow, etc What are the wind factors we’re looking for?
What wind strength do we expect?
● Mean speed and gusts ● Increasing or decreasing? ● Under or over powered? ● Sail Strategy, fly the correct sail for the conditions
What wind direction do we expect
● Stable or shifty? ● Persistent shift expected during our race? ● Local wind bend? ● Wind strategy: anticipate and sail the shifts What do we expect to see in our race area?
< WindyTV zoomed in to display our racing area
On this day, we had a NW synoptic wind, plus a strong sea breeze.
There was a wind bend up towards the SM bridge.
Average wind speed was 16kts, with gusts to 20kts.
What sails would you carry? Now let’s overlay our marks and a course
Today’s wind is from 290°m at 12kts, gusting 16kts W
PRO sets a course as follows:
Start 1300 at 3-4 Xp, Ep, Sp, Yp, Ep, Finish 3-4
Wind direction and strength are the most critical parts of our race plan so we’ll start with wind and add current and sea state later.
From our icebreaker quiz: A direct course from S to Y is prevented by the shallow water and marker 12. Sail to 12, then to Y But first… a really handy web page www.sequoiayc.org/sycracingmarkers
Locations of SYC markers
Bearings and distances between marks (or make your own, mine has bearings in °mag) Let’s plan the first three legs
Difference Notes for crew Use T or M, between brg for to prep for next your preference leg and wind leg
W
Leg Brg & TWA Notes dist Wind (290)
3 - X 340° P50° #2 Jib, full main 1.5nm Start close to M3, drive for speed. 7.2kts, 12.5 mins Mode for beating prior to mark
X - E 275° S15° Tack at mark, sail close hauled 1nm on S for 0.6nm 6.1kts, 6 mins, tack to P
E - S 195° S95° Jib reach, target 7.5kts, 8mins, 1nm prep MH runner for gybe set Summary, so far
We research the expected conditions: We plan our race strategy
Wind direction and strength For each leg of the course: Current direction and strength Depth of water (tide) What is the bearing to the next mark? Expected changes during race Can we lay it directly? What sails do we want? We attend the skipper’s meeting to What’s the preferred first tack / gybe understand the course Are there obstructions? What’s the course to steer? What’s our start time? Target speed Where’s the start line? What are the signals? For each mark of the course Which marks, which order? Do we know where the marks are? Which way around? Which way round? New course to steer Where is the finish? Sail evolutions Target speed
We re-assess as we race and make any adjustments we might need Be ready to refine or even discard our plan and improvise Racing to windward
Later in the race we have a long,
upwind beat from Y to E W
Wind is still 290°, brg to E is 300°
Our boat tacks through 90° so our tack headings will be S245° and P335°
Generally we would always want to sail the tack that lays closer to the mark first, in this case P.
Why might we not do so here? What can we do instead? We’re constrained by the shallow water to the NE
We have to sail our beat in the
W available water
We’re watching our depth carefully, either with instruments or with reference bearings
Note we start with shorter tacks, then make longer ones in the middle, then back to short tacks.
Factors such as current and sea state might encourage us to sail further into the channel, or avoid it. Current Strategy: Use or avoid tidal current
Last hydrographic survey: 2005 Last tidal flow survey: 1984
Tidal current data is sparse, we’ll need to apply some general principles Current Strategy, ride favorable current, escape adverse current when possible
Deeper water flows faster In channels, water flows faster on the outside of bends Water accelerates through bottlenecks Shoals indicate slower water, undercut banks indicate faster water Same leg, this time with current
Stbd tack W Current vector S260°
7.7kts
295° 2kts 1kt
S245° 6kts
2kts 295°
Port tack 2kts Current vector
P335° P325° 7.1kts 6kts
A strong current is a powerful strategic factor. It has ‘shortened’ our leg from 4.7nm to 4.1nm (-0.6nm). At 6 kts, that’s a time difference of 6 minutes.
If we had spent half of our time in the 1kt current, what would the effect have been? What about sea state?
Minimize slamming / stalling upwind Promote surging / planing downwind
Does your boat slice through waves as Does your boat leap onto a plane and if they weren’t even there? skip and dance over the waves?
Or does it feel like it’s being knocked Or does it wallow and roll like a back by every wave? barrel? When wind is against tide
Given sufficient fetch, wave speed is ~⅔ wind speed, so in 12kts of wind, wave speed will be 8kts.
If we have a current of 1kts against the wind, wave height will increase to 130%, wave spacing will reduce to 70%
2kts If we have a current of 2.0 kts against the wind, then wave height will increase to 1 kt 200% , wave spacing will reduce by to 50% Depending on our boat, a steep, head-on sea state might slow our progress by as little a 5% or as much as 30%
It certainly has an effect on crew morale Strategy for steep waves and chop, upwind Wind is 30° left of wave path, e.g. as afternoon sea breeze develops
Port is taking waves on the bow, waves will Stbd is taking waves against the hull, waves slow the boat. Strategy: Trim for will bear boat away. Strategy: Trim for acceleration and steer a path between pointing and pinch up over biggest waves biggest waves
wind wind Let’s revisit our upwind leg with wing against current
Stbd tack
Waves push us W sideways at 0.25kts S250° 7.3kts
295° 1kt
2kts S245° 6kts
2kts Port tack 295°
Waves reduce our 2kts speed by 1.5kts
P335° P325° 6kts 5.6kts
The beneficial effects of sailing in favorable current can be negated by wind against tide conditions. It might be favorable to give up some current for flatter water Did it work out?
Dashed red line is our track, when It’s possible that your boat may sail a affected by severe chop in wind faster leg by taking the green course. against tide conditions. Advantage of It gives up some current, but there will seeking current has been reduced be much less chop What about windshifts? Take advantage, whenever possible
Gusty = Shifty
Gusty wind is generally associated with low pressure systems. Gusts are pockets of descending, faster moving air.
Stronger gusts = bigger shifts
High pressure and sea breeze winds tend to be steady.
Our local afternoon summer breeze is a thermal and is perpendicular to coast, so slightly S of W Afternoon Synoptic summer breeze Wind Onset and collapse of sea breezes give (thermal wind) persistent shifts NW > W > NW What is an ‘oscillating shift’ pattern?
The classic, ‘tack when headed’ scenario that all the race training books and courses tell us about.
The greater the wind shifts, the more there is to be gained (or lost)
The challenge is not understanding the concept, but recognizing a shift pattern and where we are in the sequence. How do we tell we have an oscillating wind pattern?
We can use our old-school steering compass, our fancy electronic gizmo or our chart plotter
Our helm steers their best close-hauled course, adjusting to the wind as necessary
A crew member is tasked to watch the compass and call out when the bearing changes by 5° or more
On a practice day, try watching the compass for lifts and headers that last for minutes, not seconds
When you can recognize shifts, tack on headers, foot slightly on lifts Let’s look at our beat from Y to E again
The blue track is our original track,
length 4.85nm W W
W The wind is now oscillating by 5° either side of mean. The green arrow favors stbd tack, the red favors port.
The pink track represents our path if we tack successfully on each shift
This new track is 4.5nm, 0.35nm less.
At 6kts we’ll be 3.5 minutes ahead So, how do we select an upwind track?
The boat colors indicate different ways we could sail up a beat
Yellow and blue sail out to the laylines, red and green tack up the center
The horizontal line indicates equal sailing distance to the top mark and is perpendicular to the wind
(anyone not believe that no boat is ahead of the others?)
What happens when the wind shifts? Effect of shifts on boats sailing upwind
5° Left shift 5° Right shift
Blue is lifted, but can’t use it, now eases sheets Blue is headed, but is too close to the lay-line to tack Green and Red are both lifted and can’t use the shift Green is now slightly ahead of Red Green and red are both headed and can now tack Yellow has been headed, but is too close to the Red is now slightly ahead of green lay-line to tack, can’t use the shift Yellow is lifted, but can’t use it, now eases sheets The upwind diamond, reconsidered
Our upwind diamond is traditionally
windwindwind defined by our tacking angle, nominally 90° Let’s superimpose 15° right and left shifts with windward mark as pivot and see how the lay-lines move
Even if not over the laylines, if we’re too close to them, we can’t tack on the shift, so we should stay well inside them Our area for playing wind shifts is much narrower than our 90° tacking angle would suggest To take advantage of wind-shifts
We have to recognize the pattern and We have to be in the right place to use understand where we are in the shift the shift, not jammed against a layline cycle or a boundary Wind Strategy, Sail toward a persistent shift first
Wind at 2pm Wind at 4pm
Slight wind Pronounced bend at bend at 2pm 4pm, port tack lifted. Sail toward the inside of the bend first Response to gusts when beating? Yes, this is boat-handling, but by special request
Q: when a gust hits, do you a) Feather up into the wind to keep the boat upright
or b) Something else? Ease, Drive, Trim
When a gust hits, our apparent wind goes aft. We’re now over trimmed and we’re sailing below our target speed (polar) for the new wind.
A higher target speed is available to us. Let’s go get it!
Ease: trimmers ease sails to match the new apparent wind direction
Drive: move crew weight to windward so trimmers can sheet back on (hike hard)
Trim: once close to new target, fine trim back in sail close hauled at the new target speed And in lulls
When we sail onto a lull, we’re traveling faster than our target for the new wind speed, the apparent wind goes forward and the sails behave as if we’ve hit a header.
This is called a ‘velocity header’, don’t bear away.
Glide: Let the boat coast forward under its momentum without changing course. Trimmers ease both sail leeches* which will have hooked and stalled. Crew move inboard to maintain target heel.
Assess: once at the new (slower) target, assess the wind direction
Trim and steer: Sail to the new wind and wait * Without wind pressure to hold them open, the leeches will hook and dramatically increase drag. for the next gust Ease the mainsheet and ease the jib car back to open the jib leech and slot. Good, engaged crew make the difference
Give crew the task of watching competitors , conditions and mark finding. Is anyone upwind of us headed or lifted? Are they experiencing more or less wind?
Note! On-time crew action in lulls is more critical than on-time crew action in gusts
Keep the information flowing between the crew and the back of the boat. Windward strategies
Practice looking for shifts, and involve our crew
Tacks cost us time / distance. Be conservative until we understand the shift pattern (if there even is one)
Don’t sail to the lay lines, unless our boat is very fast and hates tacking
If we can’t recognize the shift pattern at the start of the beat, begin on the longest tack and start watching the compass
Persistent sea breeze shift beyond markers 12 / S Strategies for sailing in the channel
Wind is from the W or NW
Race start is in the turning basin
Boats rush to the left hand side of the channel and sail from red marker to red marker.
Why?!?! Prevent a boat from passing to windward
(boundary is an obstruction) W Sail the shortest distance (arguable)
Creates a ‘parade’ with boats backed up around the boat that gets to the boundary first What strategies might we have to pass the ‘parade leader’? Channel starts
PRO’s remedies
Pursuit starts With individual times reduce line congestion, but passing challenges are still there. W
Mark-set line It isn’t possible to set a line square to the wind, but we can set a line that lets leeward boats get their bow ahead of the wind shadow of a boat to windward. Reduces bunching around the windward end of the line.
But we still get ‘parade order’ on the boundary Why clinging to the boundary may not be the fastest option We can apply standard reaching techniques
wind
Yellow accelerates in the gust Yellow decelerates in the lull and holds course along boundary but can’t head up boundary
Blue bears off in the gust to build separation and reduce wind As the lull hits, blue heads up to shadow maintain speed as yellow slows Patience works as a strategy too!
If the wind is between NW and NE, when we get to marker 8 (sometimes 10) the course becomes close hauled and tactical options open up: Sailing shifts, footing off, tacking to clear wind
W Here’s where to ‘sit and wait’:
W
Poor etiquette to impede a faster boat, esp from a different fleet Best position (if available). Can pinch then roll, or tack away Poor position, in dirty wind OK position to wait to attack Watch for the mid-channel bend in the wind
Land slows and turns wind due to increased friction
Wind direction changes across channels and open water, zone B to zone A
Wind is further bent by high objects, docks, silos, ships and tends to flow along the channel, zone D
Note, the change in wind direction between B and A can be in either direction, depending on the dominant weather factors (high, low or sea breeze) and angle to the channel
Often more useful on a return leg than outbound My appreciation to:
Wednesday race planners; Skip Fleet Advisor: Juan Dezine Wuerk-Erly, & Windsor Blowin Port tack look-out: Hugo Furst Weather advisers: Clair Visibility & Gail Warnins Layline judge: Stan-Don Summore
Maintenance Pro: Lou Stiller Obstructions advisors: Doc Pilings, Mo Rumpleaz & Heywood Yatacnow Boat ramp captain: Rusty Axles Tide and current data: Max Flood & Leigh Mainsheet rigger: Paul Hard Bow
Backstay rigger: Paul Evenharder Spinnaker specialists: Guy Tangled & Pauline Thatwun Windward sailing specialists: Luke Fordham-Ark & Gus Cummin Handicappers: Paula Plott & Timon Distanz
Upwind tactics by: Luke Underjib, Izzy Protest committee: Reed Daruls & Turner Clear, & Betty Tacksonus Roundtwice Thank you SYC!
Q & A Which software tools did I use for this preso?
Google slides Open CPN (macbook)
Boat Scenario (emulator) Navionics (on ipad)