This week Liv Leigh and Armchair Binder both posted comments emphasizing Start Line issues as part of racing strategy. I agree; as Liv pointed out, a good start is pretty critical for a winning race.  In fact, this was so obvious in the recent Tako Cup Challenge that MarkTwain White altered the Start rules so that skippers could not ‘game’ their positions during the pre-start.

I thought it would be worthwhile to review some simple start line strategy issues today, in the hope that it might spark further discussion about tactics and Rules as they apply to the line.

I guess one major issue with start lines turn out to be the “traffic jams;” all the boats are in close proximity;  everyone wants to get over the line as soon as possible after the gun goes off.  It’s important to have Right of Way over the other boats to get through that congestion, so most skippers choose to cross the line on a Starboard tack. Here’s a picture from a recent race where ALL eight boats used the same strategy, cutting the line together on Starboard:

Most start lines in SL are set up so the first leg of the race progresses upwind, and usually one end of the line is better than the other since it minimizes the number of tacks to the first mark. At NYC, the South end of the line near the red nun is the most popular spot to cross (see below). It gives a skipper the longest initial tack before needing to come about. Even more important, that starting position puts the boat upwind of the other boats, optimizing wind shadow effects and giving the skipper an unobstructed path to flip to the next tack at will. 

Here’s a picture of RnSdriver Lane using this exact strategy, snuggling up to the red buoy as she crosses the line:

Unfortunately, life is never simple.  I just argued it was best to be the most windward boat off the line, but it’s often not so easy to get in that position. As the boats jockey during the Pre-start, for example, the LEEWARD boat has ROW and can push around the windward boat.

Let’s look at an example. In ”A“ below, Gemma Vuckovic and Har Dyrssen are parallel and overlapped, turning together to aim for the line. Hpathe Boucher is on Port tack, getting ready to come about and join the other boats in a dash towards the red buoy. “B” shows the boats after they finished their turn. All three boats are now together on Starboard tack.

Look what happens next, below. All three boats are parallel and overlapped in “A” and “B,” with Gemma in the most leeward position. Gemma is aiming for the spot just next to the red nun, and she’s actually headed higher than the other two boats. She can call “UP! UP!” for Leeward rights and try to force Har and Hpathe to miss the line or hit the buoy!

As shown in “C,” Har does indeed head up; he just barely squeaks out enough room to cross the start line and capture the lead. 

Har’s lead is going to be short lived, however! Look at the sequence to the right. Hpathe is just crossing the line, but he’s still overlapped with Har. Hpathe heads up in “A” and “B,” forcing Har to luff head-to-wind!

As shown in “C,” Gemma and Hpathe then blow past Har on their way to the first tack point. Within just five seconds, Har has gone from first to last place in line.

If you want to know what happens next, you can go here.

Probably the most remarkable thing about the sequence to the right is the fact that all three boats were squashed together at the South end of the line, clear testimony that sailors think that corner start position is something worth fighting for.

So, for new sailors reading this, let me summarize what I think is a good start:
1. Use a Starboard tack;
2. Pick the best side of the line;
3. Try to end up windward of the fleet after you cross the line; and
4. Use leeward rights to jockey for position before you cross!

For more advanced sailors, here’s a start line Rules question I have nightmares about (below):

If two boats are approaching the line parallel and overlapped (”A“), can the leeward boat suddenly change tack and force the windward boat into the red buoy (”B“)? I think I know the answer in RL…. I’m not sure what people think in SL Sailing!