Why boathandling techniques are fast

A few scientific sailing minds delve into the forces at play when it comes to these common boathandling techniques. Report by Mike Ingham for Sailing World:

I’m about to lose the surf, so I lean in, steering up to a momentary reach. Then, at just the right moment, I roll the boat to windward, carving down to catch the next wave. Surfing, I follow the trough, sailing well by the lee. Sadly, I can’t ride this wave forever, so once again I lean in to head up. Carving S-turns down the course is a hoot.

On the upwind leg, I lean in to head up and start my tack. Then as I near head to wind, I snap my shoulders back, rolling the mast hard over me. That sets me up for an aggressive flatten, accelerating my boat up to speed on to the new tack. A satisfying roll tack is a welcome break from ghosting along in light air.

I had always figured that the reason kinetics like these are so effective is because as we roll our boat, and thus rig, through the air, we create extra wind over the sail. Although partially true, it turns out a recent Cornell doctoral thesis shows that it is way more interesting than that. – Full report