Sailing And Learning Techniques
Sailing looks so easy on paper. You get on a sailboat, maneuver it according to the wind conditions and you are all set to sail. But then, doesnt everything seem easy on paper? Sailing has a lot more to it than just these two things. You have to learn the basic sailing techniques in order to be a good sailor. There are four main aspects of the basic techniques.
Steering And Turning
The ability to turn and steer a sailboat depends on the direction of the wind. There are some terms which better describe the steering and turning techniques on a sailboat.
Heading Up means to steer so that the wind is closer and comes up directly from front. You might have to pull the sail towards the center of the vessel to head up. This is also called as trimming. If you bring the bow of the boat through the wind, it is called as tacking and this is one of the most common turning techniques.
Heading Down is the opposite of the earlier one and this requires steering so that the wind comes closer to the aft. In this, you have to ease out the sails or let them away from the center of the vessel. Jibing is another important steering technique that requires mastery as it can easily lead to a small vessel capsizing owing to the wind.
Trim
After steering and turning techniques, trimming is the most important aspect of sailing. There are several techniques that one must master in trimming as well.
Trim is the front and rear balance of the sailboat. The aim of the sailor is to adjust the crew in the front and rear so that he achieves an even keel or exact balance. If the boat is a large sized one, the position of the crew does not matter that much.
Course to steer is how you steer the boat using the wheel. You should be able to steer towards any direction.
Balance is the port and starboard balance in which the aim is once again to adjust the weight to the front and rear.
Trimming the sails or pulling it exactly until it fills with wind is the right technique. However, this should only be done till the front edge of the sail is exactly in line with the wind.
Running
When you sail the boat within 30 degrees of dead downwind, it is called running. This can be the easiest but at the same time the most dangerous point in sailing. The sailor can always stop the boat by heading into the wind in upwind conditions. But this is not possible in downwind conditions.
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