Racing Away From Home

RACING AWAY FROM HOME

Sailing in Lake Garda in 1995

LOCAL KNOWLEDGE

I grew up sailing on Sydney Harbour and the Georges River. In both places racing is complicated by bays, headlands and variations in the depth of water and current. After some time I learnt that the local club champion didn't perform well in interclub regattas and also the best sailors tended to win no matter where they sailed. This couldn't be entirely attributed to boat speed as they seemed to go the right way and correctly pick the shifts. The good sailors will tend to win no matter where they race, and if you are sailing in an important regatta, you should make an effort to understand the peculiarities of that particular venue. The main variables being the geography of the venue, the weather and the current. I have found the best way to be successful in the FD is to go as fast as you can in the right direction and not worry too much about tactical sailing.

In some courses local knowledge is definitely a help. For instance if you are racing in the Solent [the stretch of water between the English South Coast and the Isle of Wight] in a south-westerly wind and flood tide you have to beat up the Isle of Wight's short tacking in yachts to minimise the effect of the adverse current. There is a reef called Gurnard Ledge projecting from the shore which brings yachts to a sickening halt. The reef's position can be determined by lining up a stone lion on the seawall with a pine tree on the hill behind. However in the majority of the time around the world obstacles like this are not a problem.

Local sailors can sometimes help you. Before the first heat of the Napier-New Zealand worlds my starting watch broke and I went to the local ship's chandlery to buy a new one. The owner seemed to be very knowledgeable so I asked him which way he would go in the light sea breeze predicted that day. He explained he would go right to take advantage of a bend in the wind probably due to a headland so I did and won the first heat. As a general rule, unless there is adverse current in that area, if you are racing to windward in a harbour and the wind is blowing down the harbour and there is a headland sticking out then aim for it. The wind will be stronger as it compresses around the headland and when you tack there will be a lift on that tack. In Port Lincoln in South Australia a local fisherman in the pub told us the wind blew harder on the leeward side of an Island on the course which I didn't believe until we found it did.

Of the triad of geography, weather and current first is the easiest to determine. If there is a prevailing wind then a study of the height and shape of the shore and adjacent hills or mountains will indicate the likely direction of the wind on the course.

GEOGRAPHY

The wind is not stupid and will take the easiest and most obvious route. If you are sailing in an enclosed harbour or lake then before the start look around you and determine what you would do if you were the wind. Remember that when you start the wind may funnel down a bay but it may only take a 15 degree shift and it may not be able to blow down that bay and start blowing down the adjacent one.

I find the weather in Europe more complicated than Australia and the oscillations last longer so I prefer to sail on a lake or harbour where the wind is more predictable and the shifts can be seen on the water.

On Lake Garda in the morning the cold air flows downhill and blows down the valleys. Before the Torbole world championships we sailed the course area for a few days before the regatta looking at the structure of the hills and cliffs and in the warm up regatta the compass headings at various parts of the course and felt that we had the venue worked out. For example after rounding the leeward mark on port, if the wind was 350 degrees then we felt we were on a lift and would continue on port until there was a knock or the wind became lighter nearer the cliffs. I would assume the wind has been behaving in this fashion for thousands of years. In the second heat which was a morning race we were about 15th three quarters up the first beat. We had noticed that gusts occasionally came from the right near the top mark probably due to a small hill inland and noting a windsurfer in a gust to the right we went for it while everybody else went left and sailed into a light patch resulting in a substantial lead at the first mark.

Hamilton Island race week in the tropics of Queensland is a fascinating regatta to sail in as a tactician and the intellectual exercise almost outweighs the problems associated with being a tactician for a rich businessman in an expensive yacht with a large crew. There is strong variable current, numerous islands and a shifting breeze which both oscillates and clocks. Most variables can be worked out before you start by looking at the structure of the islands and depth of the water on the charts as well as the weather map and observation from the yacht. The wind tends to take the line of least resistance and it bends around the islands and bends a blows through depressions in the mountains and the direction can be determined by looking at the contour map of the island In the morning the wind usually blows from 160 to 180 degrees and then gradually backs to the trade wind direction of 135 degrees.

WEATHER

Sailing in a thermal seabreeze in Australia is often an exercise in boat speed. Aim to make sure you can sail fast and high in 8 knots when everybody is competitive. In NSW if you wake up with dew on the grass and a north west gradient wind you know you are going to get a fresh north east sea breeze after lunch. On the water cloud offshore begins to disperse and cumulus clouds appear over the land. One of the problems in Australia and New Zealand is that the sea breeze freshens at roughly the same time races start making choice of headsail difficult. The sea breeze also freshens when the tide turns and runs in with the breeze on Sydney Harbour.

Over the years I have usually kept a diary of the wind behaviour at championship venues in Australia so if I go back to a place after a number of years I can refer to my diary and read what happened in previous regattas there. This is particularly useful in a thermal breeze where you have documented how far left or right the breeze usually oscillates.

When the breeze is blowing from the sea with a post frontal gradient and low cloud then the velocity of the wind can be roughly guessed by looking at the speed of the clouds. The wind will shift either side of the gradient influenced by the clouds. When the wind is blowing diagonally from the shore there will generally be a lift closer to the shore so it is best to sail towards the shore on a lift or mean wind direction and then hook into the lift on the shore.

CURRENT

Current is the hardest of the variables to predict and often requires local knowledge. The current will be strongest where the water is deepest in harbours and the tide will change first in shallow water closest to the shore. If sailing on a yacht in areas such as the Solent make sure you know the rules on anchoring.

When sailing upwind with current pushing you to windward when you sail into stronger current the wind will appear to lift. Paradoxically if you are sailing against the current you will knock particularly in light air. If you are beating up a shore in adverse current at a venue such as the Solent and the rounding mark is in the channel sail a bit further than you think is necessary to allow for the apparent knock in the channel. Line up the mark with a point on the shore to see if you are winning or losing on the mark as you approach it.

Sailing downwind large gains can be made in strong current. If you round the windward mark in a poor position and the current is pushing you to windward on the reach look for an opportunity to sail low. The best opportunity is if there is a gap between you and the next boat and you pull away in the clear wind between the boats above you. If you approach the wing mark on a tight reach always consider the option of pulling away and gybing later.

In summary by carefully examining the geography of the venue, talking to locals, looking at the weather and the current plus pre regatta practice or a warm up regatta you can sail as well or better than the locals particularly if the weather doesn`t behave as it normally does.

AUS 33 reaching, Lake Garda 1995

IAN MCCROSSIN

AUS33