A recap note from skipper to crew after first spring regatta in 2008.
Hey Alie.
First off I want to let you know how great of a job you did this past weekend. Your skills have progressed significantly since we sailed last. I was most impressed with your aggressive flattening technique on day 2 in the bigger breeze.
That being said I want to eliminate our weaknesses together...
Things we need to iron out --
1. I would much rather tell you the boat is too flat than ask you to come up to the rail. I think this is a mental attitude that we need to build together.
2. Hiking was better than I remember it, but still not anywhere close to where it needs to be. Toes pointed down straight legging (at least for the first bit of the beat where we need to stay with the first group -- and in crossing situations).
3. Heeling going into tacks in light air. I think this is a very critical final step in our light air boathandling. If we can keep the mast vertical until we make a conscious decision to violently roll the boat, then the roll will be a lot harder. Another difficult transition for you will be to roll with your hips square to the boat.
And the last point about upwind boathandling... our tacks are not hurting us in light air even in 420s, but if we can make them a weapon (like our downwind boathandling in an FJ) then we can reach new heights. Flatten from the straps and then that quick move back to the leeward rail.
This is the hardest manuever either of us have to make in a sailboat. I don't ever have to do anything like that... I have 1 trip across the boat--- you have 3. I can't imagine the speed and strength it takes to do that --- but I know you have it in you somewhere.
4. Downwind winging and wing to wing jibes were outstanding. The flaw was in our reach to reach gibes. This is a small change that will iron itself out very quickly. The roll (on both of our parts) was way too early. Remeber, we are gybing through 90 degrees -- that is a huge, long, slow turn... it takes a long, long time to do that turn without the rudder. We want to flatten on a higher VMG angle than we were this past weekend... it will definetly give us a bigger speed gain.
5. In light air (420s) upwind, when you are between stradling the CB trunk and being on the rail we need to be further forward. When you make that transition to where your butt is on the rail, I think we want you to be infront of the jib fairlead (this way you wont sit on it creating some pain!) then I will be right on the other side of it touching shoulders...
6. I really liked the mounted watch on the mast! And I really liked the aggressive countdown you gave. It was hard to give a great countdown becaus it seemed like the RC was inconsistent with when they started their watch... but we worked it out. When I have to look down in the last 30 seconds to check a watch I get a little disoriented... so its great that you can incorporate that in your repetoire. On the starting line I'd really like you to keep an eye on the wankers coming from astern to steal our hole...
We did a great job of nailing a bunch of starts (probably 9-12). When we didn't quite nail them, we were over, or in not such a great position. The ability to focus on doing the "right thing", instead of trying to get it back all at once was crucial. Occasionally we will have bad starts -- after that happens we have to eliminate all negative attitudes, do the right things, and NEVER EVER GIVE UP!!!
Just like we did in those races where we were over this past weekend. It will be tougher as the season goes on, but if we keep that in mind we will do great!
Let me know anything you want me to work on...
Our communication was outstanding this weekend -- we were on the same page almost all the time -- I can only remember 1 bad tack (due to a huge lull at the top of the course on day 2 where we didn't realize how light the breeze was).
Great job last weekend. I am delighted to be in the boat with you -- lets work hard and iron out some of these issues.
<3 Ben
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Friday, December 14, 2007
Regatta Report Harry Anderson 2006
Harry Anderson
YCYC
420s
9.2-3.06
Saturday – Winds ENE 15-25 knots Outgoing tide in the AM.
Big lefties at bottom and middle. Light and variable at top near shoreline.
Went heavy, suffered at top of course where big boathandling was necessary.
Boatspeed – easier near pin off start (rumble, rumble 420 with breeze… tails straight plane upwind.)
Great control off the wind with crew to weather (Stable). Problem – where can you fit in a few bails?
1. Lulls
2. Go regular til boat is dry
3. Skipper bails?
Very easy to gybe, flick it and rip it.
** Find a good way to do a wing to reach transition when stable.**
1. crew stands
2. skipper rolls off bar
3. double flatten
**** problem # 3 seems a bit dangerous/complicated
Trip MD – very good, agro, needs to settle down a bit, work on downwind boathandling.
Rough 1st set on Saturday… 1 DFL.
1. too many tacks
2. No speed (Rumble, Rumble
3. Easier to rumble from pin.
Be confident – let it rip, rumble in breeze.
Sunday 6 races in A+B
7,10,10,16,4,6
Last set saved face for us in the regatta
Races 3-6 3-5k SE breeze.
Roll the boat HARD and LATE
Super light you must romp (speed first, height later)
Breeze from same direction as Sunday at Frosh NE’s. See righties on upper right quite often. Know what the tide is doing, especially off wind.
Current was ebbing early (races 3-5) huge gains around offset when you could gybe.
Past success has come from: Win the pin, cross the fleet be the first to get into the rightie off the bluff. On the downwind big gains were seen in the ebb when you gybe immediately
1. current sweeping hard.
2. Fight it early while reacing (in clear breeze!), not winging
3. When battling for overlaps at gate, you are sweeping in while others are sweeping out. Also the left gate makes more sense since you are sailing against the current less.
4. Don’t get lost trying to boathandle your way in current and light breeze.
E, Stork says “you can’t get sucked into reaching around on the run. Point it at the mark and fly. Find a lane and go.”
Races 7-8 saved our ass. We went from 16th to 9th in A.
Breeze came up to 12-14 knots. Upper edge with Kerry. Need a medium with some height… Hannah? Won the pin 2 races straight, rumbledout to within 5 boatlengthes of port tack layline. Ducked a few (1 pack) they went too far, but couldn’t pin me because the breeze was up. I pinned a group that called for room to tack. In breeze you can almost always leebow when its close…. Especially when its you are on the outer fringe pinning a group.
3-8 Boatlengthes is desired but not necessary… tons of carnage at top, nobody knows what is going on (waves and breeze)
A guy on the inner fringe of a pack (calling for room to tack due to starboard tackers) almost always gets boned.
9th in A
16th in B
16th Overall
YCYC
420s
9.2-3.06
Saturday – Winds ENE 15-25 knots Outgoing tide in the AM.
Big lefties at bottom and middle. Light and variable at top near shoreline.
Went heavy, suffered at top of course where big boathandling was necessary.
Boatspeed – easier near pin off start (rumble, rumble 420 with breeze… tails straight plane upwind.)
Great control off the wind with crew to weather (Stable). Problem – where can you fit in a few bails?
1. Lulls
2. Go regular til boat is dry
3. Skipper bails?
Very easy to gybe, flick it and rip it.
** Find a good way to do a wing to reach transition when stable.**
1. crew stands
2. skipper rolls off bar
3. double flatten
**** problem # 3 seems a bit dangerous/complicated
Trip MD – very good, agro, needs to settle down a bit, work on downwind boathandling.
Rough 1st set on Saturday… 1 DFL.
1. too many tacks
2. No speed (Rumble, Rumble
3. Easier to rumble from pin.
Be confident – let it rip, rumble in breeze.
Sunday 6 races in A+B
7,10,10,16,4,6
Last set saved face for us in the regatta
Races 3-6 3-5k SE breeze.
Roll the boat HARD and LATE
Super light you must romp (speed first, height later)
Breeze from same direction as Sunday at Frosh NE’s. See righties on upper right quite often. Know what the tide is doing, especially off wind.
Current was ebbing early (races 3-5) huge gains around offset when you could gybe.
Past success has come from: Win the pin, cross the fleet be the first to get into the rightie off the bluff. On the downwind big gains were seen in the ebb when you gybe immediately
1. current sweeping hard.
2. Fight it early while reacing (in clear breeze!), not winging
3. When battling for overlaps at gate, you are sweeping in while others are sweeping out. Also the left gate makes more sense since you are sailing against the current less.
4. Don’t get lost trying to boathandle your way in current and light breeze.
E, Stork says “you can’t get sucked into reaching around on the run. Point it at the mark and fly. Find a lane and go.”
Races 7-8 saved our ass. We went from 16th to 9th in A.
Breeze came up to 12-14 knots. Upper edge with Kerry. Need a medium with some height… Hannah? Won the pin 2 races straight, rumbledout to within 5 boatlengthes of port tack layline. Ducked a few (1 pack) they went too far, but couldn’t pin me because the breeze was up. I pinned a group that called for room to tack. In breeze you can almost always leebow when its close…. Especially when its you are on the outer fringe pinning a group.
3-8 Boatlengthes is desired but not necessary… tons of carnage at top, nobody knows what is going on (waves and breeze)
A guy on the inner fringe of a pack (calling for room to tack due to starboard tackers) almost always gets boned.
9th in A
16th in B
16th Overall
Commandments of College Sailing
Commandments of College Sailing
Ben Spiller
1. Sail the boat flat – “Flatness is a state of mind.”
2. You may heel to leeward only when heading up.
3. You may heel to windward only when bearing off.
4. Beat your neighbors off the staring line.
5. Have a hole to leeward.
6. Pin boats on your weather hip.
7. Have the ability to tack.
8. Cross’em when you can!
9. Don’t let them cross you! (parallel them)
10. Sail the lifted tack.
11. Pin boats to the layline.
12. Approach the Starboard tack layline 3-8 boatlengths from the weather mark.
13. Sail low on the first reach.
14. When the first reach is a run, always consider gybing.
15. Sail high of the rhumbline on the second reach.
16. Work to the inside downwind.
17. Never round on the outside.
18. Sail hot angles downwind in light air.
19. Use telltales on the shrouds.
20. Wing with the breeze 2-5 degrees off your weather hip.
21. When winging have the board all the way up.
22. When things get hairy downwind ease the board down half way.
23. Crew weight together.
24. Crew weight forward.
25. Loose cover packs when going the correct way.
26. Tight cover packs to force them the correct way.
27. Jib cars back in heavy breeze.
28. Tight jib halyard = high pointing, but smaller groove.
29. Loose jib halyard = bad pointing, but wider groove.
30. In no breeze point directly at the mark.
31. You get one freebie each leg.
32. Double tack around the leeward mark when ahead.
33. Double gybe around the weather mark when breeze is very light.
34. When the vang is on in breeze pull the mainsail’s draft forward with the Cunningham.
35. You have a 50% chance of winning going into the protest room.
36. Sail at a crew weight of 260-275 lbs.
37. Have a heavy option of 295 pounds in an FJ.
38. Have a heavy option of 300 lbs in a 420.
39. Have an extreme option of 330 lbs in a 420.
40. Have the centerboard down when gybing for speed.
41. Have the centerboard half way down when gybing in heavy breeze.
42. Sail towards the persistent shift upwind.
43. Sail away from the persistent shift downwind.
44. Velocity is of utmost importance in light air.
45. Shifts are of utmost importance in heavy air.
46. “Single digits dudes!”
47. A fifth place average wins regattas.
48. Start in the middle to minimize risk.
49. Plan for 15 extra minutes when picking people up in the morning.
50. Plan for 15 extra minutes in drive time.
Ben Spiller
1. Sail the boat flat – “Flatness is a state of mind.”
2. You may heel to leeward only when heading up.
3. You may heel to windward only when bearing off.
4. Beat your neighbors off the staring line.
5. Have a hole to leeward.
6. Pin boats on your weather hip.
7. Have the ability to tack.
8. Cross’em when you can!
9. Don’t let them cross you! (parallel them)
10. Sail the lifted tack.
11. Pin boats to the layline.
12. Approach the Starboard tack layline 3-8 boatlengths from the weather mark.
13. Sail low on the first reach.
14. When the first reach is a run, always consider gybing.
15. Sail high of the rhumbline on the second reach.
16. Work to the inside downwind.
17. Never round on the outside.
18. Sail hot angles downwind in light air.
19. Use telltales on the shrouds.
20. Wing with the breeze 2-5 degrees off your weather hip.
21. When winging have the board all the way up.
22. When things get hairy downwind ease the board down half way.
23. Crew weight together.
24. Crew weight forward.
25. Loose cover packs when going the correct way.
26. Tight cover packs to force them the correct way.
27. Jib cars back in heavy breeze.
28. Tight jib halyard = high pointing, but smaller groove.
29. Loose jib halyard = bad pointing, but wider groove.
30. In no breeze point directly at the mark.
31. You get one freebie each leg.
32. Double tack around the leeward mark when ahead.
33. Double gybe around the weather mark when breeze is very light.
34. When the vang is on in breeze pull the mainsail’s draft forward with the Cunningham.
35. You have a 50% chance of winning going into the protest room.
36. Sail at a crew weight of 260-275 lbs.
37. Have a heavy option of 295 pounds in an FJ.
38. Have a heavy option of 300 lbs in a 420.
39. Have an extreme option of 330 lbs in a 420.
40. Have the centerboard down when gybing for speed.
41. Have the centerboard half way down when gybing in heavy breeze.
42. Sail towards the persistent shift upwind.
43. Sail away from the persistent shift downwind.
44. Velocity is of utmost importance in light air.
45. Shifts are of utmost importance in heavy air.
46. “Single digits dudes!”
47. A fifth place average wins regattas.
48. Start in the middle to minimize risk.
49. Plan for 15 extra minutes when picking people up in the morning.
50. Plan for 15 extra minutes in drive time.
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Regatta Recap Brass Rat 2007
MIT Brass Rat 2007 October 6-7
2nd of 48
College Sailing Rules Apply
Boat Set Up:
When sitting in the boat on thawrt, lower centerboard all the way (past 90, angled forward).
CB forward and rake forward (Max foward rake 2 fat fingers behind mast).
Shrouds are different lengths so center mast in partners and go for 2 fingers in light breeze -- progressively back as breeze increases.
Sailing the Tech: Tech Slide when sail won't back, otherwise reach with slight leeward heel, minimal board and weight very far forward. Never sail Xtra distance when sliding!
Upwind: the first move when hit with a lift, or a puff is an ease (very critical). If you are knocked, tack. If you can't see the weather mark without turning your head, tack. If you don't know what to do, double tack. The tech can maintain speed with a roll tack at winds much higher than an FJ and even more so for a 420. This makes the tactical options more important. One can tack on every shift and not worry about losing distance.
Recap:
Race 1 -- Cheat fest (Zero breeze) warned by 1 competitor and RC. I courteous "thank you, I'll try to control myself better in the next race" was greatly appreciated. In hindsight, the kinetics rules were pushed a little too hard.
After a short break, an easterly breeze, right of center (of middle of river) filled. It made the right side favored, so much so that an OCS turned into a 2 by rounding the committee boat and tacking. Got velocity lifts and rolled majority of fleet. Got into trouble later in the day with an OCS taht turned into a 21. Poor timing -- a lifting puff at go. I was a little too greedy and pulled the trigger .5 seconds to early. If end is favored, try starting 3-6 boats down from the start -- much more conservative.
INSERT PICTURE
Day 1 could have been more conservative. A 9-21 really hurt and lost the regatta ultimately. Two 7's would have won. Not difficult in a fleet of 30 boats which was only 7-10 deep.
Day 2 saw NE going E finally settled slightly right of center. Started with 8-14kts, died to 2-4 by 3pm.
Left favored most of the morning. Won the pin a few times, but couldn't cover both side -- resulted in 3s, 4s, and 5s instead of 1-2s.
Insert Diagram
Right gate was good for short second beat.
End of day there were no lefties to get over the top, to a windward mark that was near the boston shore (VERY TYPICAL).
Overall thougts:
Things done well
1. Good starts, excellent used of double tacks and timing.
2. Good boat handling and tactics all around.
Things to work on:
Could have been more conservative in the first half of the regatta when you aren't sure of strategy. Wait for others to make mistakes. As the others get deep they will do stupid things and compound their mistakes. This makes doing the correct thing easier!!!
If you focus on doing the right thing ALL the time, instead of taking the temptation and taking risks, you will surely finish higher.
Gateways to Progression
Gateways to Progression
Progression is the goal. Always improving, some times in greater increments than others, but always learning a little something and avoiding any long plateaus. It makes things fun, builds confidence and self esteem, and opens up greater possibilities for future success. So how do we progress?
First you need to simply enjoy what you're doing. It can't be a chore. It has to be something you love. Did you ever look at all those x-gamers doing all those flips and twists on all kids of toys. The stuff is pretty impressive but what really impresses me is their love of the sport. I mean these dudes and dudettes will literally die for it. They work hard yeah, but not exactly, because it isn't work at all. It's play, and if they "play" hard enough and become good enough, they might even pick up a paycheck here or there. But whatever. They're doing something near and dear to their heart and for that they rejoice. I respect them for that and I can relate.
It also helps to have the right tools. The boats are already there for you and all you need is a little gear to make the going a bit easy for you. Another tool you have is your coaches, your team mates, your partner, and yourself. Use all these coaching tools you have and the whole team benefits.
Sailors have to individually dissect their current skills and identify strengths and weaknesses. You also need to understand your likes and dislikes as it relates to your current ability. I hope I can help you out with both identification and application. But help me help you. That is, keep the lines of communication flowing.
Often a sailor practices what they like, what they're good at. More often this is a less successful approach. Of course, they don't mind because they feel like they're having fun all the time. Yeah, but are they effectively improving? Are they missing out on a totally new realm of fun, controlling others and kicking butt on the weekends? You have to work on your weaknesses. You try to to do it in a manner that is fun for you so you have the best of both worlds, efficient training and a happy environment. That's one of the reasons I like that Eric Twinname book so much. It teaches you how to teach yourself and offers various methods to do so to keep things varied, interesting, productive, and hopefully more fun.
Sometimes coaches look at general team deficiencies and work on those areas even if they're not as fun as some other things. And you can bet that not all team members think the same thing is fun. That's why we try to vary things up in practice. However, I think I personally can do that to a fault, trying to keep things interesting by moving things along. It may be more productive in the long run to work on certain skills sets for longer periods of time. But you have to be in tune with that and give it the attention span it needs. In the team's case, our biggest deficiency remains to be the ability to get off the starting line in the front row with clear air (notice the omission of favored end distinction).
We practice the skills but we're not getting them down well enough, especially when it counts in a live regatta. Specifically, we need to have a stronger, more efficient load and flatten to rock and punch off the line at least as well as our neighbors, and we need to be better at our stop and go (the go part) physically and time-wise (pulling the trigger). Besides the physical skills of creating good acceleration across the starting line, there are the mental skills and emotional aspects of being the hammer not the nail. We have to work on those skills too. So, if you've got a good idea of how to make starting skills more fun, shoot away because we're going to be plugging away at this stuff 'til we get it right and enjoy the spoils. Let's find ways to have fun while practicing our weaknesses.
"Condition Sailors"
"Condition" Sailors are those that can only do well in a certain type of wind condition, or in a certain kind of boat, or a certain kind of venue (I.E. steady, flat water). They may be "conditionally challenged" regarding the starting line too, only good at the boat, only good at the pin, only good if there's no one directly beneath. These Condition Sailors have molded their game for what they like and probably spend little time on their weaknesses. They have a great excuse though, "those aren't my conditions". In collegiate sailing, to be blunt, Condition Sailors are losers. Taint no place for that kinda crap in these here watahs.
We must learn the variations in boats and breeze and get it all up to speed. Hey, a tack is a tack and though it's different in different boats but it ain't that different, and we know what the difference is. So practice it. Yes, you sail differently in different breezes but it ain't that different, and we know the difference in the realm from being under-powered to over-powered. So we hope and welcome varied conditions for it gives us more experience and makes us stronger. The sooner we take the boat speed and boat handling issue off the board (because we're as good or better than our competitors), the sooner we more efficiently handle wind diagnostics, route planning and general tactics. So you can get back to the tactical game of taking the breeze to the buoy with minimal disturbance from other boats.
Fast sailors go fast, unless they are limited in their condition range, unless they are hemmed in by other boats disturbing them, unless they point that speed in the wrong the direction, on the wrong tack. Smart sailors are rarely that slow. Smart sailors win.
"Work on Small Pieces"
Twinname says it so well in his book. He uses the analogy of one piano player trying to learn a "piece" all together, from start to stop while another learns only sections at a time but puts it all together in precise chapters. The more difficult areas are fine tuned and when put together, the end result is perfection. Yeah, that's it, let's go do that.
-Coach
Progression is the goal. Always improving, some times in greater increments than others, but always learning a little something and avoiding any long plateaus. It makes things fun, builds confidence and self esteem, and opens up greater possibilities for future success. So how do we progress?
First you need to simply enjoy what you're doing. It can't be a chore. It has to be something you love. Did you ever look at all those x-gamers doing all those flips and twists on all kids of toys. The stuff is pretty impressive but what really impresses me is their love of the sport. I mean these dudes and dudettes will literally die for it. They work hard yeah, but not exactly, because it isn't work at all. It's play, and if they "play" hard enough and become good enough, they might even pick up a paycheck here or there. But whatever. They're doing something near and dear to their heart and for that they rejoice. I respect them for that and I can relate.
It also helps to have the right tools. The boats are already there for you and all you need is a little gear to make the going a bit easy for you. Another tool you have is your coaches, your team mates, your partner, and yourself. Use all these coaching tools you have and the whole team benefits.
Sailors have to individually dissect their current skills and identify strengths and weaknesses. You also need to understand your likes and dislikes as it relates to your current ability. I hope I can help you out with both identification and application. But help me help you. That is, keep the lines of communication flowing.
Often a sailor practices what they like, what they're good at. More often this is a less successful approach. Of course, they don't mind because they feel like they're having fun all the time. Yeah, but are they effectively improving? Are they missing out on a totally new realm of fun, controlling others and kicking butt on the weekends? You have to work on your weaknesses. You try to to do it in a manner that is fun for you so you have the best of both worlds, efficient training and a happy environment. That's one of the reasons I like that Eric Twinname book so much. It teaches you how to teach yourself and offers various methods to do so to keep things varied, interesting, productive, and hopefully more fun.
Sometimes coaches look at general team deficiencies and work on those areas even if they're not as fun as some other things. And you can bet that not all team members think the same thing is fun. That's why we try to vary things up in practice. However, I think I personally can do that to a fault, trying to keep things interesting by moving things along. It may be more productive in the long run to work on certain skills sets for longer periods of time. But you have to be in tune with that and give it the attention span it needs. In the team's case, our biggest deficiency remains to be the ability to get off the starting line in the front row with clear air (notice the omission of favored end distinction).
We practice the skills but we're not getting them down well enough, especially when it counts in a live regatta. Specifically, we need to have a stronger, more efficient load and flatten to rock and punch off the line at least as well as our neighbors, and we need to be better at our stop and go (the go part) physically and time-wise (pulling the trigger). Besides the physical skills of creating good acceleration across the starting line, there are the mental skills and emotional aspects of being the hammer not the nail. We have to work on those skills too. So, if you've got a good idea of how to make starting skills more fun, shoot away because we're going to be plugging away at this stuff 'til we get it right and enjoy the spoils. Let's find ways to have fun while practicing our weaknesses.
"Condition Sailors"
"Condition" Sailors are those that can only do well in a certain type of wind condition, or in a certain kind of boat, or a certain kind of venue (I.E. steady, flat water). They may be "conditionally challenged" regarding the starting line too, only good at the boat, only good at the pin, only good if there's no one directly beneath. These Condition Sailors have molded their game for what they like and probably spend little time on their weaknesses. They have a great excuse though, "those aren't my conditions". In collegiate sailing, to be blunt, Condition Sailors are losers. Taint no place for that kinda crap in these here watahs.
We must learn the variations in boats and breeze and get it all up to speed. Hey, a tack is a tack and though it's different in different boats but it ain't that different, and we know what the difference is. So practice it. Yes, you sail differently in different breezes but it ain't that different, and we know the difference in the realm from being under-powered to over-powered. So we hope and welcome varied conditions for it gives us more experience and makes us stronger. The sooner we take the boat speed and boat handling issue off the board (because we're as good or better than our competitors), the sooner we more efficiently handle wind diagnostics, route planning and general tactics. So you can get back to the tactical game of taking the breeze to the buoy with minimal disturbance from other boats.
Fast sailors go fast, unless they are limited in their condition range, unless they are hemmed in by other boats disturbing them, unless they point that speed in the wrong the direction, on the wrong tack. Smart sailors are rarely that slow. Smart sailors win.
"Work on Small Pieces"
Twinname says it so well in his book. He uses the analogy of one piano player trying to learn a "piece" all together, from start to stop while another learns only sections at a time but puts it all together in precise chapters. The more difficult areas are fine tuned and when put together, the end result is perfection. Yeah, that's it, let's go do that.
-Coach
Planning
Buds,
Successful regattas start well before the first warning signal. Planning and preparation must go into the logistics of the event in addition to training and practice that's put in. There's a difference between training and practice too. Practice is only one form of training, there are mental, physical, and emotional aspects of training that can and must be done off the practice field. You need to be physically fit, mentally astute, and emotionally strong. Faith, Confidence and Will are the important ingredients, for with that you are best suited to work towards your goals. If you want to be at that top of your game, and want to compete with others attempting to be at the top of theirs, then here are some suggestions.
Physically, I think the team in general is okay but few are truly fit to the Core. Core fitness is your gut and all the important do-dads within it like tissues and muscles and organs. Yeah, I know I'm one to talk. When your Core is fit it benefits more than your physical health, it helps you emotionally and spiritually. Not to get all Tai Chi on you or anything but it's true. So there's something to be said for sticking to those crunches and side tilts, twists and extensions to work those abs and obliques. I'll be glad to show you a simple routine that can do the trick. It's hard to tell, but I've been given myself a dose of this for years, which has stemmed little of the tide. I just need to jack up the medication.
Mentally, I think we have to learn from our mistakes more efficiently, understand the chess game better, and put our piece in stronger positions on the board. As a coach, I try to emphasize this but I'm not doing a very good job. It's a matter of learning from experience and from "Case Studies". In practice I only point out the "Route Decisions" of very few on any given race. On weekends I get much more involved with individual sailors but am preaching to a smaller audience. We need to spend more time on the chalk board going over these "case studies". Fortunately, we don't have to make up such case studies, just merely review some weekend experiences. Outside of practice you can keep your sailing notebook and refer to it often. You can dissect your own case studies. You can talk sailing with sailing buddies, competitors, yourself, complete strangers or other people that could care less (in my case, my wife). You can email your coach and/or team also.
Emotionally, in general we don't seem to have that "take the bull by the horns" attitude on much of our starting technique and other situations for most of the regattas I've witnessed. Yeah, you need physical skills and mental knowledge (like your competitors do) but Ya Gotta have that Go Get Em' 'Tude. And you have to know when you are in a critical time and place on the race course, that "Do or Die" Clock Ticking.
That happens a lot...
1). On the starting line to gain a controlling position.
2). Right after the start to clear your air and work the first shift or set up for 2nd one.
3). When you're heading towards the corners of doom (edges of the race course on a beat). 4). When you're sailing "against the grain" (the majority of the fleet on the opposite tack).
5). Where your competitor "threat" is, and when it has shifted sides.
6). When the pack's condensing on the downwind and you can get gobbled in the middle.
7). Sealing the deal on the last beat and maintaining controlling positions.
8) When you absolutely need to do something; tack, jibe, rock, pump, ooch, heat it up, to get the boat moving so you can be a player again. The first one is a freebie, but then be careful! The next has to be justified within the "context" of the race (and time is very relevant). Know when to pull out the weapon and with good aim you can reduce your bullets and stay out of jail (and get those other bullets).
On that note, remember why we practice the things we do in practice. It's very disheartening to coach Varsity regattas and say "hey, where's the pivot drill now, where's our load and flatten, where's my stop and go, where's that sweet roll I saw during the week. Why are we second row at the start? Why are being lee-bowed from below and/or rolled over from above. Give yourself a Chance, an Opportunity. Get emotionally charged, mentally prepared, and use your physical skills.
When our confidence is high, we'll be more in tune to stepping on them before they step on us. That comes from lots of practice time and just having the balls to push the envelope on weekends. Knowing there's always another race, and you have just as much right to win this one, or the next. Stand up for yourselves and put yourselves in more controlling positions on the race course. Let's see how your competitors react to that.
So there's some things you can work on.
But there's some things I can work on.
Besides coaching, things like regatta planning and preparation.
-I should have had the van situation figured out earlier, though that had something to do with my PE Department. It's tough when you're asking for three vehicles for a weekend and
they've got other plans.
-I should have had the lodging covered in advanced for Hobart (and perhaps another van driver going).
-I should have got the Central Series personnel settled by Thursday.
-I should have confirmed coaching availability sooner. Although we still can't expect three coaches for each weekend. What teams have that?
-I should have got my teams on the road sooner for the long road trips that left us getting in at 1:30 and 2am, before 9am report times. A coaching switch, a van driver, and an early van confirmation could have corrected that.
-I should have had a coach at a NE Championship and let some of the above effect that
deficiency.
There were other planning issues that I was happy with, like the regatta line-up. I'm glad to give some freshman the opportunity to sail a bigger event. I'm fine with who started and who sat and waited for a turn. I'm okay with sending an upperclassmen squad to B level trophy regatta that presented plenty enough challenge, and an opportunity to help our performance ranking. And I certainly knew we could have arranged things differently at Navy Women's to set up a better finish result. No regrets at all, it was a developmental move that goes beyond just single-handed nationals. We held our own, and though there's lots to learn from, we still beat some excellent competitors on any given race and overall. It bodes well for the future. We'll talk more about the Navy Women's when I use it for Case Studies in another email. Lucky You.
Congratulations to Billy Martin who gave a great run at it and still finished in a good position (10th out of 25, which translates as 7th out 16 teams, the best coed performance ranking points of our season!). Billy, Harry, and Gordon took care of each other from regatta prep to conclusion. Shame on me for not having their back.
-Coach
Successful regattas start well before the first warning signal. Planning and preparation must go into the logistics of the event in addition to training and practice that's put in. There's a difference between training and practice too. Practice is only one form of training, there are mental, physical, and emotional aspects of training that can and must be done off the practice field. You need to be physically fit, mentally astute, and emotionally strong. Faith, Confidence and Will are the important ingredients, for with that you are best suited to work towards your goals. If you want to be at that top of your game, and want to compete with others attempting to be at the top of theirs, then here are some suggestions.
Physically, I think the team in general is okay but few are truly fit to the Core. Core fitness is your gut and all the important do-dads within it like tissues and muscles and organs. Yeah, I know I'm one to talk. When your Core is fit it benefits more than your physical health, it helps you emotionally and spiritually. Not to get all Tai Chi on you or anything but it's true. So there's something to be said for sticking to those crunches and side tilts, twists and extensions to work those abs and obliques. I'll be glad to show you a simple routine that can do the trick. It's hard to tell, but I've been given myself a dose of this for years, which has stemmed little of the tide. I just need to jack up the medication.
Mentally, I think we have to learn from our mistakes more efficiently, understand the chess game better, and put our piece in stronger positions on the board. As a coach, I try to emphasize this but I'm not doing a very good job. It's a matter of learning from experience and from "Case Studies". In practice I only point out the "Route Decisions" of very few on any given race. On weekends I get much more involved with individual sailors but am preaching to a smaller audience. We need to spend more time on the chalk board going over these "case studies". Fortunately, we don't have to make up such case studies, just merely review some weekend experiences. Outside of practice you can keep your sailing notebook and refer to it often. You can dissect your own case studies. You can talk sailing with sailing buddies, competitors, yourself, complete strangers or other people that could care less (in my case, my wife). You can email your coach and/or team also.
Emotionally, in general we don't seem to have that "take the bull by the horns" attitude on much of our starting technique and other situations for most of the regattas I've witnessed. Yeah, you need physical skills and mental knowledge (like your competitors do) but Ya Gotta have that Go Get Em' 'Tude. And you have to know when you are in a critical time and place on the race course, that "Do or Die" Clock Ticking.
That happens a lot...
1). On the starting line to gain a controlling position.
2). Right after the start to clear your air and work the first shift or set up for 2nd one.
3). When you're heading towards the corners of doom (edges of the race course on a beat). 4). When you're sailing "against the grain" (the majority of the fleet on the opposite tack).
5). Where your competitor "threat" is, and when it has shifted sides.
6). When the pack's condensing on the downwind and you can get gobbled in the middle.
7). Sealing the deal on the last beat and maintaining controlling positions.
8) When you absolutely need to do something; tack, jibe, rock, pump, ooch, heat it up, to get the boat moving so you can be a player again. The first one is a freebie, but then be careful! The next has to be justified within the "context" of the race (and time is very relevant). Know when to pull out the weapon and with good aim you can reduce your bullets and stay out of jail (and get those other bullets).
On that note, remember why we practice the things we do in practice. It's very disheartening to coach Varsity regattas and say "hey, where's the pivot drill now, where's our load and flatten, where's my stop and go, where's that sweet roll I saw during the week. Why are we second row at the start? Why are being lee-bowed from below and/or rolled over from above. Give yourself a Chance, an Opportunity. Get emotionally charged, mentally prepared, and use your physical skills.
When our confidence is high, we'll be more in tune to stepping on them before they step on us. That comes from lots of practice time and just having the balls to push the envelope on weekends. Knowing there's always another race, and you have just as much right to win this one, or the next. Stand up for yourselves and put yourselves in more controlling positions on the race course. Let's see how your competitors react to that.
So there's some things you can work on.
But there's some things I can work on.
Besides coaching, things like regatta planning and preparation.
-I should have had the van situation figured out earlier, though that had something to do with my PE Department. It's tough when you're asking for three vehicles for a weekend and
they've got other plans.
-I should have had the lodging covered in advanced for Hobart (and perhaps another van driver going).
-I should have got the Central Series personnel settled by Thursday.
-I should have confirmed coaching availability sooner. Although we still can't expect three coaches for each weekend. What teams have that?
-I should have got my teams on the road sooner for the long road trips that left us getting in at 1:30 and 2am, before 9am report times. A coaching switch, a van driver, and an early van confirmation could have corrected that.
-I should have had a coach at a NE Championship and let some of the above effect that
deficiency.
There were other planning issues that I was happy with, like the regatta line-up. I'm glad to give some freshman the opportunity to sail a bigger event. I'm fine with who started and who sat and waited for a turn. I'm okay with sending an upperclassmen squad to B level trophy regatta that presented plenty enough challenge, and an opportunity to help our performance ranking. And I certainly knew we could have arranged things differently at Navy Women's to set up a better finish result. No regrets at all, it was a developmental move that goes beyond just single-handed nationals. We held our own, and though there's lots to learn from, we still beat some excellent competitors on any given race and overall. It bodes well for the future. We'll talk more about the Navy Women's when I use it for Case Studies in another email. Lucky You.
Congratulations to Billy Martin who gave a great run at it and still finished in a good position (10th out of 25, which translates as 7th out 16 teams, the best coed performance ranking points of our season!). Billy, Harry, and Gordon took care of each other from regatta prep to conclusion. Shame on me for not having their back.
-Coach
Jib Halyard (Spiller)
Heyo.
I've heard a lot of people talk about jib halyard tension and they think that might be a reason for poor speed and/or pointing. Any time the boat is unbalanced you create excess drag in the boat. This not only hurts speed through the water, but pointing too.
Since we are dealing with college boats where you can't change the pin placement, I say we should flush the maxim "mast forward for point, mast back for speed." It really doesn't apply unless you are in junior sailing, or sailing V15s...
If you are going to read no further a good basic key phrase is tension the jib halyard so that when you are sailing upwind in day's medium strength and you trim the main as tight as you would during the day, you should just start to see the leeward shroud become minimally slack.
Thats a good starting point, and for the majority of sailing we do this is "good enough."
So if you remember nothing else, pull on the halyard tight enough so that the leeward halyard starts to wiggle when you are at max trim.
BUT, if you really want to maximize your upwind speed and pointing you can take it a step further.
Here's what I do in an FJ.
First remember all these steps should be done in the average breeze (not a puff or a lull).
Second make sure when you make an adjustment to the following items, make sure you are completely flat, have both sails trimmed in to the same upwind angle, and be forward in the boat (weight positioning).
1. Get the boat flat and sails trimmed appropriately. If the boat heads up into the breeze, pull on more jib halyard. If the boat bears away from the breeze, its probably time to ease off the jib halyard. Imagine what tightening the jib halyard does to the entire sail plan, moving forward or aft compared to the CLR (centerboard basically) if you need a visual image.
2. Now you have the approximate halyard tension! Next is jib cars. I believe we have been having the jib cars too far forward in general. Slide your cars back and forward and look at how the jib telltales break. When the cars are back, the upper (inside) tales break first. When the cars are forward the foot of the jib is more round and the jib leech tension is tighter. Find a region on the track where the upper and middle telltales break evenly (at the same time)... This is a neutral setting. If it is very flat water, or in wind I think it is ok to set the cars farther back. If you are sailing in chop, or if your boat is a bit heavy, I believe you need extra power. This power can come from the jib by moving the cars forward a touch.
These are very minute changes. We are talking about 1/4 inches in jib halyard tension and 1-2 holes on the jib cars.
The jib cars can range from all the way back to 5-6 holes showing behind the jib car.
One thing to remember: Tightening the jib halyard will have one sure negative effect. It will narrow your steering groove and make the boat more sensitive, more responsive to tiny helm changes... and ultimately harder to steer. So when you are learning, its better to err on the side of too little tension. This will make the boats "groove" larger and the boat more forgiving.
Finally, anything any one person tells you about sailing should be taken with a grain of salt. You have to find your own way of sailing. What works for some people may not for others.
Lets push ourselves this week at practice!
--BTSpill
I've heard a lot of people talk about jib halyard tension and they think that might be a reason for poor speed and/or pointing. Any time the boat is unbalanced you create excess drag in the boat. This not only hurts speed through the water, but pointing too.
Since we are dealing with college boats where you can't change the pin placement, I say we should flush the maxim "mast forward for point, mast back for speed." It really doesn't apply unless you are in junior sailing, or sailing V15s...
If you are going to read no further a good basic key phrase is tension the jib halyard so that when you are sailing upwind in day's medium strength and you trim the main as tight as you would during the day, you should just start to see the leeward shroud become minimally slack.
Thats a good starting point, and for the majority of sailing we do this is "good enough."
So if you remember nothing else, pull on the halyard tight enough so that the leeward halyard starts to wiggle when you are at max trim.
BUT, if you really want to maximize your upwind speed and pointing you can take it a step further.
Here's what I do in an FJ.
First remember all these steps should be done in the average breeze (not a puff or a lull).
Second make sure when you make an adjustment to the following items, make sure you are completely flat, have both sails trimmed in to the same upwind angle, and be forward in the boat (weight positioning).
1. Get the boat flat and sails trimmed appropriately. If the boat heads up into the breeze, pull on more jib halyard. If the boat bears away from the breeze, its probably time to ease off the jib halyard. Imagine what tightening the jib halyard does to the entire sail plan, moving forward or aft compared to the CLR (centerboard basically) if you need a visual image.
2. Now you have the approximate halyard tension! Next is jib cars. I believe we have been having the jib cars too far forward in general. Slide your cars back and forward and look at how the jib telltales break. When the cars are back, the upper (inside) tales break first. When the cars are forward the foot of the jib is more round and the jib leech tension is tighter. Find a region on the track where the upper and middle telltales break evenly (at the same time)... This is a neutral setting. If it is very flat water, or in wind I think it is ok to set the cars farther back. If you are sailing in chop, or if your boat is a bit heavy, I believe you need extra power. This power can come from the jib by moving the cars forward a touch.
These are very minute changes. We are talking about 1/4 inches in jib halyard tension and 1-2 holes on the jib cars.
The jib cars can range from all the way back to 5-6 holes showing behind the jib car.
One thing to remember: Tightening the jib halyard will have one sure negative effect. It will narrow your steering groove and make the boat more sensitive, more responsive to tiny helm changes... and ultimately harder to steer. So when you are learning, its better to err on the side of too little tension. This will make the boats "groove" larger and the boat more forgiving.
Finally, anything any one person tells you about sailing should be taken with a grain of salt. You have to find your own way of sailing. What works for some people may not for others.
Lets push ourselves this week at practice!
--BTSpill
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