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