Building Better Sailors: Races With a Twist

When you’re coaching, running races is always part of the agenda at some point during your program.  Unfortunately, unless you consistently have at least ten or fifteen boats at your practices, it is hard to keep races interesting and tactical.  Races with small groups of boats tend to get spread out, and the final result is almost completely determined by boat speed.  Starts, tactics, and boat handling are all still part of the deal, but none are pronounced in ways that will challenge sailors enough to take these skills to the next level.  Young sailors in particular are more reticent to do things that are comfortable in traditional races, as the outcome of a race is not determined by a bad tack, a poor mark rounding, or starting at the favored end.  To make races more exciting, interesting, and effective, present simple and unique twists in races that force sailors to utilize more diverse skills in order to win the race.  Speed will still play a large role in races, but you will have started on the road to building a stronger and more technically diverse group of sailors.

There are many fun scenarios that will make races more fun, interesting, and effective in your race program.  For example, the most common twist coaches add to races is putting a small gate in the middle of the upwind leg.  This gets sailors, who will typically sail hard and fast to a corner, to engage other boats in a way that they typically would not.  It also gets sailors to make tactical decisions much more early, making them more comfortable sailing near other boats, as opposed to separating from the group before making any real tactical decisions.  While this is one way to add an interesting twist to a race, there are an unlimited range of setups you can use to get the desired skill set across to your sailors.

Boat vs. Boat

Set up a mark that is upwind, and relatively close to the line.  Force sailors to leave it to port before sailing upwind.  This will get port end starters to pinch off others early to tack, and will force starboard end starters to hold their lane, using starboard tack to their advantage.  You can further twist this setup by using the short mark as a first windward mark, and sail a short windward leeward before doing a long windward leeward.

Quick Hitch:

Set up a mark that sailors must leave to port before going to the upwind mark.  Set it up so that sailors must tack off to port within a boat length or two of the start line, if not immediately.  Sailors will learn to use starboard advantage, and will compete to win the boat end of the line.  This will also teach sailors strong boat handling skills in tough, competitive situations.

Early Lanes:

Set up a mark much further off the line, and have it set up so that a sailor starting at the boat end is laying it right off the line.  Sailors must leave this mark to starboard before sailing to the windward mark. This way, sailors will not have the ability to tack out early, and are forced to hold their lane, or eat the bad air early on in a race.  This will put an emphasis on holding lanes, winning the pin end, etc.

Winning Sides:

As opposed to the traditional gate, where sailors sail through a small line in the middle of the course before proceeding upwind, make a much larger gate that sailors are not allowed to sail through on the upwind leg.  This forces sailors to choose a side early, win it, and approach the windward mark from a side of the course.  This will keep sailors from sailing across the middle of the course, and to think a few steps ahead of their competitors.

Risky Business (Editor's Choice): 

Set up two marks in carefully selected places upwind.  Make sure they are separate, and that one mark is considerably more favored than the other.  When you start a race, have your sailors round one of these marks to port, and then round the pin end of the line to port, before sailing around the regular windward leeward.  To make this interesting, you put a rounding cap around each of the two short marks.  For example, with four boats on the course, I will usually say that only one boat is allowed to round the favored mark, and three boats have to round the other mark.  This is done on a first come, first serve basis, and any boat that fouls to get around first must go to the other mark.

This is really interesting because it forces sailors to choose between sailing aggressively or consistently.  It puts a lot of pressure on great starts, and will teach others to cut their losses early if they realize they won’t be the first to round the favored mark.  I will typically only allow ONE boat to round the favored mark, in order to implement a more extreme risk/reward structure to the drill.

There are an infinite amount of ways that you can modify and tweak this drill.  As long as you are creative, you can set it up to stress whatever skill set you want your sailors to get a better understanding of.  Either way, this drill is guaranteed to pique the curiosity and creativity of your sailors.  Get out on the water and start practicing!

See you on the water,

Zim Coach

Mitch Hall on Coaching Team Racing

Name: Mitch Hall

School/Title: College of Charleston/Assistant Coach

College of Charleston Sailing Team: http://bit.ly/CofCSailing

College of Charleston Sailing Team on Facebook: http://bit.ly/CofCSailingFB

Can you speak to what spring semester is like for college sailors? How does it differ from the fall?

Spring semester is more team racing oriented, where you work towards team racing nationals in May. The fall is all about fleet racing.  At College of Charleston, we like to focus on the fundamentals of team racing.  We won’t run any starts, or sail any races, until we feel comfortable in every play and every position on the course.

What does team racing do for you as a sailor moving forward from college sailing?

The most exciting aspects of team racing are how it implements the rules, boat speed, and boat handling at the same time.  To be successful, you have to be good at all three.  Team racing also emphasizes team work.  You can be the fastest boat on the entire race course, but your team won’t win unless you work together, and execute plays.

In today’s sailing world, there are actually a lot of ways to stay involved in team racing after college.  There are a lot of large regattas like the Hinman, Charles River Team Race, Morgan Cup, and a few more in the New England area that a lot of college sailors and ex-college sailors take advantage of, and compete in every year.

What qualities and skills make a good team racer?

Aside from the actual sailing skills, having the ability to identify and analyze certain situations quickly is critical.  Situations unfold in the blink of an eye, and you have to adapt without hesitation.  Confidence in your abilities is another important attribute.  If you are confident, you will know what to do in any situation without hesitation.  The person, who has this confidence and does not hesitate, can usually take advantage of a situation.  Lastly, it’s good to have the mindset and understanding that situations are always changing, and a race is never over until you cross the finish line.

What separates a good team racing team from a phenomenal team racing team?

Last year’s Team Racing National Championship was very competitive.  To give you an idea, I think we won the regatta with three or four losses.  Georgetown, who we struggled against all year, didn’t make the final four.  It’s always anyone’s championship.  Basically, any team that steps up, starts well, manages races, and can stay in control from start to finish is going to take it.

What do you feel are the most effective team racing drills?

Having a complete understanding of the rules is essential before you get into on the water drills.  One of the most effective drills we use, after we understand the rules, is the box drill.  Essentially, you set up four marks like a box, and continuously practice pass backs on each leg.  We always do this with simple three boat pass backs to get people in the mindset of team racing, before you get into any combinations or plays.

What are the biggest mistakes made by less experienced team racing teams?

I see a lot of people get overly aggressive at the start, and lose track of time in the process.  This obviously leads to a lot of poor starts, which really hurts teams during short races.  We really focus on making sure we have all 3 boats on the line at go.  It substantially increases your odds of winning races.

How do you balance all of the different personalities you see on a team race team?

We have a great group of sailors here, who are all working towards a common goal.  Having that goal helps a lot.  At the end of the day, though we all have different methods, we are working towards the same outcome.  We all end up falling on common ground.

Do you mix and match teams at practice, or do you always keep your top group together? Why?

Our teams all stay together as much as possible.  We do this because communication is so important.  You have to communicate all the time, and sometimes without saying anything.  The more you sail with each other, the easier that is to accomplish.

When you have multiple boats competing for the third spot on the team, what stands out to you about a sailor that helps make that decision for you?

Fortunately, we have not seen many of those situations since I started working here.  Seniority is a big factor in that decision.  Having someone with more experience is crucial to making all the right decisions, and we would want that person in the open spot.  At the same time, you want to continue to grow and develop your younger sailors, as they are the future of your program.  You don’t want to spend too much time and effort in developing someone who won’t be at the school next semester.

What things are not coached enough in team racing?

College sailing goes by really quickly.  So much time and effort are put into results.  You need to enjoy the experience, and keep a positive attitude.  If you don’t like what you are doing, you will not do well at it.  We like to stress a positive attitude for team racing at College of Charleston.  This is definitely not coached enough.

Mitch Hall

A Drill to Change Perspective

While coaching this weekend, I noticed during the races that each sailor ended up in about the same spot in the fleet every race.  There were some minor back and forth changes in position, but one sailor typically jumped out into the lead, two sailors lightly pushed behind him for the next spots, and everyone else fell into neat little packs made just for them. There is a tendency for sailors to get accustomed to sailing in a certain area of the fleet, which stifles sailors of all skill levels. 

This is problematic for sailors who do not see the front of the fleet often.  All sailors usually take a few years to initially develop some semblance of top-level boat speed.  This learning curve keeps them far away from that top group for a long time.  When they are finally able to hang with the top sailors in terms of speed, they then have to take the next steps to learn how to use that speed, and maintain their position in the top groups.  This weekend, I saw two young sailors, who had every bit as much speed as the top three kids in the group.  Early on, they were often hanging with the top sailors.  However, it didn’t take long for the three strongest sailors to pick them apart tactically, and squeeze them out of the picture.

This is problematic for the stronger sailors as well.  In nearly every regatta, there is AT LEAST one race (probably more), where a few of the best sailors get into trouble early in a race, and have to work there way out of the middle or back of the fleet.  At every single regatta, having a race or two like this usually costs at least one person from winning.  Sailors, who so easily skip to the front of the fleet, rarely have to sail in tight lanes, fight for room with 50 boats at a leeward mark, duck a pack of boats to get out to the favored side, etc.  These are important skills that grow dull over hours and hours of time spent at the front of a pack.

In the afternoon, I decided to add as twist to the races.  As the sailors went upwind, I would blow a whistle, and, from there, all had to race to the leeward mark, up to the windward mark, and then finish downwind.  Everyone has experienced this drill.  It is not groundbreaking in any way.  However, when this drill is typically run, it is done on a very short course, and the focus is on creating a tight leeward mark rounding.  This was different.  The course we sailed on was 20+ minutes long, and the whistle was never blown until the top sailor was within five boat lengths of the windward mark.  This gave everyone time to sail in his or her new positions.  As I suspected, the top kids ended up in the middle of the group by the leeward mark, and many struggled with mark roundings. They pushed themselves much harder throughout the whole race, and usually ended up back in the front.  The rest of the sailors got new perspective as well, and usually lost hold of their leads, even if they were as fast as the trailing boats.  However, it gave them an initial look at what to expect at the front of a fleet, and a first hand experience of what the top sailors do in that position. 

Ultimately, this drill will not get anyone results in a day.  Over time, it is meant to make the top kids work much harder than they are used to, and teach the middle and bottom kids how to control a fleet from ahead.  This way, your top sailors get better at dealing with tough situations, and the bottom sailors learn front of the fleet tactics long before they reach that point in their sailing careers.  Make sure to stretch the course, and let your sailors reach the top before reversing the race.  With steady use in practice, you should see results on the racecourse much faster than with traditional races.

See you on the water,

Zim Coach