Racing is a great way to improve your sailing skills Here Brett Bowden goes through 15 TACTICAL TIPS TO IMPROVE YOUR RESULTS as part of his Sailing to Win series Key tactical tips on how to improve your sailing both upwind, downwind, and around the course. When sailing downwind, use your masthead wind indicator to [...]
By Brett Bowden from Sailing to Win HOW TO WORK OUT THE FAVOURED END WITHOUT INSTRUMENTS Getting a great start in clear air can be the most important part of your race and knowing the favoured end and determining how much it is favoured will help you settle on your starting strategy. Some of the [...]
Depending on the boat you sail, the boom vang will be one of the most important controls to determine the twist of your mainsail. As we go from sailing upwind to across the wind and then downwind, the difference in mainsheet tension will determine how much the boom will try to lift as you ease [...]
Chasing stars Night Sailing offshore is easier if you pick a star to follow rather than constantly squinting at the compass. But be aware that the star is always moving across the sky. Seeing as how Penny was new to sailing, let alone sailing across the Channel and south to St Malo at night, I [...]
The Royal Yachting Association (RYA) and Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) have joined forces to produce a new series of ‘How to’ videos with advice and tips on how to safely enjoy being on the water. The RNLI were called out more than 13,000 times to boaters between 2017 and 2019. The first video, released [...]
A TRIP TO BRISTOL WITH MY DAUGHTER. Reproduced with permission from Imray, Laurie, Norie and Wilson Ltd. by Annabel Bowker-Dance Lydney Yacht Club, based in the Severn Estuary in Gloucestershire, run a 9-day Summer Cruise around the Bristol Channel. For many years there have been a number of wayfarers in the fleet, and [...]
The rule of tenths is a ready reckoner which you can use as a rough guide to working out the current height of tide in your head. It’s very easy to do – it’s based on percentages and all you need is the range for day. [/fusion_youtube]
The story of sailing aboard Mariquita - a big class yacht built in 1911 to the 19-M rule [/fusion_youtube] Update: Mariquita was sold in February 2020 at auction. See report: HERE Transcript Take a look at this boat… she’s one of the most beautiful boats ever built… She’s Mariquita launched in 1911 [...]
The full-rigged or fully-rigged ship was an excellent example of early industrial standardisation, writes Dan Houston. With the trade of the sailor being international there was a need to rig ships in the same way, so that when new crew came aboard they needed little time to familiarise themselves; all the rigging, sheets, buntlines, haliards, [...]
