Keep the lead in a close race downwind

Dave Perry, editor of The Dial Up publication which promotes match racing in the USA, provides the playbook on how to keep the lead in a close race downwind. His “brain food” is specific to the match race course with a starboard windward mark rounding, but the ideas can be applicable to all racing:

In a close match race, you often round the windward mark just ahead of your opponent. It turns out that the trailing boat passes the leading boat over 50% of the time. These are not good odds for the leading boat. Here are some suggested tactics for keeping the lead in a close race downwind.

1) Happy to Let Them Go!
The key to knowing what to do is knowing where the “first layline” is. The “first layline” means, on the first run, the starboard-tack layline to the leeward mark; or if a gate, to the right-hand gate mark (looking downwind). On the second run, the “first layline” is the starboard-tack layline to the Pin end of the finishing line (right-hand end looking downwind). – Full report