RACE STARTS by Matt Kirman

The start has often been quoted as being 80% of the race. With a good start it is possible to keep competitors behind you, but with a poor start it is next to impossible to sail through an evenly matched fleet. Therefore, the easiest place to increase your performance on the water is by working on your starts. In this article I will show you how to get the best start in the fleet, every time.

Rules

The first place to getting the best start is by knowing what you can and can't do on the water. A rule book is essential for all aspects of racing, not just for starts. I recommend that you buy a copy, though you may wish to download a free copy of the rules from the ISAF web site. Rules which are applicable at the start:

10 - when boats are on opposite tacks, a port-tack boat shall keep clear of a starboard tack boat

11 - when boats are on the same tack and overlapped, a windward boat shall keep clear of a leeward boat

12 - when boats are on the same tack and not overlapped, a boat clear astern shall keep clear of a boat clear ahead

15 - when a boat acquires right of way, she shall initially give the other boat room to keep clear

16.1 - when a right of way boat changes course, she shall give the other boat to room to keep clear

17.1 - if a boat clear astern becomes overlapped within two of her hull lengths to leeward of a boat on the same tack, she shall not sail above her proper course while they remain overlapped within that distance, unless in doing so she promptly sails astern of the other boat

18 - room is room for an inside boat to round or pass between an outside boat and a mark or obstruction, including room to tack and gybe when either is a normal part of the manoeuvre

18.1 (a) - rule 18 applies at a starting mark surrounded by navigable water or at its anchor line from the time boats are approaching them to start until they have passed them

42 - propulsion

It is important to fully understand what you can and can't do when governed by the above rules. Unfortunately, specific details of these rules lie outside this article so I will take a much more general look with regard to the start.

10 - this rule is fairly easy to understand - yet it is probably the most important as it applies all over the course. The definition of which tack you are on is "a boat is on the tack, starboard or port, corresponding to her windward side". In effect this means that if you have got the wind coming over your starboard side, you are on starboard tack. An alternative is that when your mainsail is set to port, you are on starboard tack. However, this is not a recognised definition but does help to avoid confusion. A common mistake for telling what tack you are on is by saying that if you are sat on the starboard side you are on starboard tack. This is not the case since in light winds it is perfectly feasible to be sat on the leeward side of the boat. Please note that there are a number of cases where a port tack boat has rights over a starboard tack boat - the most notable being that if a starboard tack boat changes course so that the port tacker has to change course the starboard tack boat is in the wrong. Other cases exist but lie outside the scope of this article, but will be discussed in more detail in a later article

11 - fairly self explanatory. As in all the rules, there has to be enough room for the 'give way' boat to keep clear in a seamanlike way.

12 - basically you cannot run into the back of someone.

15 - this applies to all rules. Room is defined as "the space a boat needs in the existing conditions while manoeuvering in a seamanlike way". Please note that 'room' changes in different conditions. What may be plenty of room in a gentle force 2 may be completely different in a gusty force 6.

16.1 - fairly self explanatory.

17.1 - please note that there is no concept of "proper course" before the start, as long as you are sailing towards the line. However, once you have crossed the line the concept of proper course comes into effect. Proper course is defined as the "course a boat would sail to finish as soon as possible in the absence of the other boats referred to in the rule using the term".

18 - please see discussion on rule 15 for definition of room

18.1 (a) - you have the right to round the port mark as long as you do not have to tack.

42 - the list of prohibited actions is to numerous to explain here. However, this rule has come under close scrutiny recently since the use of illegal propulsion could make a big difference to the race. Please note that some classes have altered this rule so that it only applies when the wind is below 10 knots (12 mph).

Excellent knowledge of the rules is not vital for racing. There is no point in knowing all the rules and their corresponding rule numbers - you can always look them up. As long as you have a rough idea of what you can and cannot do on the race course you should be fine for club or open racing. As you progress into regional or national comptetion knowledge of the rules needs to become more indepth.

Race Signals

There are many race signals which cover every eventuality. Those code flags that you need to be able to recognise are:

AP - Postponement

N - Abandonment Signal

X - Individual Recall

P - Preparatory Signal

S - Shortened Course

First Substitute - General Recall

There are other signals, but they are not as essential if you are just starting to race. It is essential that whilst waiting for the race to start you watch the committee boat for any race signals given.

The standard system for the starting of races is a five minute countdown. There will be a signal at five minutes to go, four minutes, one minute and go. At the five minute signal the class flag is hoisted accompanied by 1 short sound signal. With four minutes to go the preparatory signal is hoisted, which is also accompanied by a short sound signal. At the one minute to go signal the preparatory signal is dropped with a short sound signal and at go the class flag is also dropped. At this point if there are any boats on the wrong side of the line, i.e. on the course side (OCS), there will be another sound signal and the X flag will be hoisted. It is your responsibility to realise that it was you who were over the line and return to behind the line before recrossing. In the case of the majority of the fleet being OCS then the first substitute will be hoisted with the accompaniment of two sound signals. This flag will then be dropped one minute before the next countdown starts. If the start is likely to be late the race officer may hoist the AP flag. This will be accompanied by two sound signals and will be dropped one minute before the five minute countdown.

The abandonment and shortened course signals can be used at any time during a race. The abandonment signal will be hoisted with the accompaniment of three sound signals. This means that the current race is to be stopped immediately and will not be restarted, usually only used for extreme occurrences such as poor weather conditions. The shortened course signal can mean two different things. Firstly, it can mean finish between a rounding mark and a staff which is displaying flag S. Secondly, at a line that boats are required to cross at some point during each lap.

It is vital that some form of stopwatch is carried onboard during the race. In order to achieve a good start you need to be at the start line when the gun goes. Therefore, you need to know how long you have got till the start. The race committee is unlikely to display a countdown so you must therefore carry your own. There are many different types of watch available, but to start with a simple watch with stopwatch and waterproof seal is fine.

Crossing the start line when the gun fires

What do we need to get a perfect start? The principle of getting is, in theory, not that difficult. The key points can be summarised as:

   Sailing the right course for the first mark as the line is crossed

   Getting to the line at maximum speed as the gun fires

   Good positioning on the line

The key to achieving the three points above is to know exactly where the start line is. This sounds like common sense, but only a few sailors can actually do this. Once you have mastered this you should notice a massive increase in your position off the start line. The natural tendency is to assume that you are actually closer towards the line than you are. Whilst I was coaching I asked a couple of sailors to sail to the line and tell me when they thought that they were on the line. Every time they indicated that they were on the line when they were actually about half a boat lenght to a boat length behnd the line. If you can get on the start line as the gun goes you have automatically given yourself a half boat length lead!

So how do you know where the start line is? The answer is very simple - take a transit. In order to take a transit you need to find two points that are in line when your bow is about to cross the line. This can be done by sailing just behind the line but parallel to it. Line up a point with the mast of the committee boat - or the part that is one end of the start line. When you are approaching the line to start you know that you are about to cross the line when the two points are in line. Of course, this won't apply when you sailing at sea but a similar concept can be used with compass bearings.

Once you know where the start line is you need to be able to hit it at maximum speed as the gun fires. This is the more difficult part. In order to succeed you must be able to control your speed effectively. You must be able to slow down and speed up your boat in a relatively small space. Unfotunately I cannot tell you exactly how to do this, as techniques differ from class to class. For small dinghy sailors it is possible to 'hover' in once place on the start line for most of the countdown and then accelerate with about ten seconds to go and cross the line at max speed. This is the ideal start, but takes lots of practice. However, in heavier boats it is often better to sit further back and have a long run-up.

Positioning on the line is quite possibly the most important factor yet. It is all very well if you have got the best speed off the line and you crossed the line as the gun went but you started from the end of the line that was further from the first mark. Any start line will have some inherent 'line bias'. A biased line is one where there is a distinct advantage from starting from one end rather than the other. For example, one end of the line may be closer to the first mark, it may be possible to reach the first mark without tacking from one end or there may even be more wind on one side of the line than the other. In big fleets you will find that there is a massive bunch of boats around the biased end of the start line. In this case it is entirely possible that there will be so many boats around this end that it would be impossible to get a decent start there. In this case there are two options:

  Start below the group and try to sail fast to get out in front

  Wait, and sail behind the group

The first technique will work well if the group is unorganised and 'messy' i.e. they are spread out over a fairly large area. The key is that they will be effecting each others wind, meaning that they will struggle for speed. This is unlikely to work well in a top quality fleet. The second option is very effective when the line is starboard biased and the fleet is nicely lined up. The idea is that when the fleet sails off on starboard tack you sail behind them on port tack. You will find that if you get close enough you will experience a change in the direction of the wind, which will allow you to sail further upwind. If this is done correctly you will be able to tack onto starboard at the top of the fleet and you won't have lost out by not getting the best possible start.