Best way to track wind shifts

danstanford

danstanford

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Aug 2, 2010
502
J-Boat J/88 Cobourg
Hi folks, this question has been of interest to me for some time and I have asked it before in a couple of different ways to a few different audiences but it has never locked in for me.
When on the upwind leg I am spending so much time looking for room, wind, and ROW situations and I find myself with not enough memory or brain power to track the shifts to see if we are being headed or lifted. On at least half of our track we cannot see shore to use the shore heading to tell and I have not found any display on my Raymarine Chart Plotter to help so please let me know what you do. One of our crew suggested that there must be something on the chartplotter to help but the only thing I can imagine is using the track to follow our angle and how it shifts.
Are you all using the compass to track the variations in heading? Do you have any tricks to help me fit compass watching and calculations into what I am doing?
Thanks, Dan
 
Kopite

Kopite

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Mar 11, 2015
110
Catalina 27 Monroe MI
My Garmin 840XS has a wind gauge page which has a running chart plotting true wind speed and direction with time.
 
Meriachee

Meriachee

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Aug 1, 2011
3,972
Catalina 270 255 Wabamun. Welcome to the marina
Depends on which Ray chartplotter we're talking about.
 
Stu Jackson

Stu Jackson

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Feb 26, 2004
22,776
Catalina 34 224 Maple Bay, BC, Canada
danstanford said:
On at least half of our track we cannot see shore to use the shore heading to tell and I have not found any display on my Raymarine Chart Plotter to help so please let me know what you do.
Click to expand
Any chartplotter, even my little hh Garmin GPSMap76Cx, has a HEADING readout, which I always place next to the bearing (to the waypoint) on each of the screens.
Why can't you use the heading? Doesn't matter whether you can see land or not.
 
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cb32863

cb32863

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Jun 29, 2010
1,287
Beneteau First 235 Lake Minnetonka, MN
I have a tell-tale window on my head sail. I drive to those during a race, if I have to come down, a knock, if I can come up, I am being lifted. I know that some Velocitek units track this for you as well. You set your wind angle on each tack before the race and it lets you know if you are up or down. @Jackdaw would know more on that as he reps them.
 
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jssailem

jssailem

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Oct 22, 2014
21,104
CAL 35 Cruiser #21 moored EVERETT WA
Back in the day before chart plotters, we watched and plotted our course on a chart. We used a radio bearing and a compass to mark our progress when out of sight of land. Over some time period we were able to identify if the wind was lifting us to the way point or not.

Now a days there is so much available instant information that unless the plotter is actually telling your "Hey your being headed" it is like no one knows.

Might I suggest you go out for a practice sail. With your plotter on and recording your track you set a tack and then draw a bearing line to match the tack heading you have selected.
Then just watch the track evolve. If you are sailing above the bearing line then you are being lifted. If your track is below the bearing line then you are being headed.

The time to play with the toys is during practice. At least that is the way I learned this stuff.
 
R

Rick486

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Oct 1, 2007
1,858
Boston Whaler Super Sport Pt. Judith
cb32863 said:
I have a tell-tale window on my head sail. I drive to those during a race, if I have to come down, a knock, if I can come up, I am being lifted. I know that some Velocitek units track this for you as well. You set your wind angle on each tack before the race and it lets you know if you are up or down. @Jackdaw would know more on that as he reps them.
Click to expand
This is basically how I learned to sail and race. Sailing, tactics and strategy. Sail the boat and watch for headers and lifts. Then on top of that is the strategy element consisting of currents, persistent shifts, and local shifts. I would always let the crew manage watching the other boats and I had them trained when to alert me to "take a look". The tactics piece is a slower developing scheme except at the start. I was always amazed how the top guy in our fleet always had a good start, knew which side of the course to favor, and when to tack.......
 
JRacer

JRacer

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Aug 9, 2011
1,333
Beneteau 310 Cheney KS (Wichita)
Here is a good article by Dave Dellenbaugh. Suggested reading. http://www.sailingbreezes.com/sailing_breezes_current/articles/april02/dell.htm

Also, pick up Greg Fishers Book: "sailboat racing with Greg Fisher".

Get out to the racecourse plenty early. Sail a half of the upwind leg on starboard writing down the compass headings of the high and low readings. Tack to port and do the same for the second half of the leg. The point is to sail long enough on the tack to see the complete range of the oscellations. Mid point on each set of readings will be your median headings. Then once racing pay attention to the compass and whether you are above or below the medians on the respective tack. Also, pay attention to whether the highs and lows are being violated and a shift of the whole system is taking place (vs routine oscillations). Keep track of the high/low ranges throughout the race. Dellenbaugh's article adds a bunch to this that I need not repeat.
 
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Meriachee

Meriachee

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Aug 1, 2011
3,972
Catalina 270 255 Wabamun. Welcome to the marina
We use the wind input to the AP more than we care to admit. Not only can it steer the boat to the slight variances way, way faster than anybody on board can, it frees up hands and eyes to concentrate on the tasks at hand. Paying attention to laylines and marks then becomes the decision process.
 
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JRacer

JRacer

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Aug 9, 2011
1,333
Beneteau 310 Cheney KS (Wichita)
AP may be useful on a long, long or offshore leg. But, not so much on a half mile to one mile leg! Miss the shift(s) on either and you get killed. It's just more rapidly evident on the short courses. And, AP won't make the call to tack on the lifts/headers. It will just keep "eating" that knock! And, I would submit that using the AP takes your head out of the game re: shifts and managing/taking advantage of them unless you are paying close attention to the headings.
 
Meriachee

Meriachee

.
Aug 1, 2011
3,972
Catalina 270 255 Wabamun. Welcome to the marina
I'd argue that, in as much as just like any tool, there are parameters that come into play. The key for this approach is variance, not outright lift or knock.
 
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jon hansen

jon hansen

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May 25, 2012
4,335
john alden caravelle 42 sturgeon bay, wis
understanding how the wind crosses the surface of the earth is a science. predicting the wind for any venue is doable. knowing what to expect on any given day is doable. sailing your vessel to those predictions is how you win consistently. waiting to see your telltail show you the shift, you are already late. reading the wind, understanding the probabilities, choosing the good lane changes, sailing your vessel to that wind, it is a science. it is learnable.

high performace sailing, by Frank bethwaite. read it 20 times. start doing what it teaches. start winning every time.

race course tactics: put your vessel in stronger winds for a longer period of time and you win every time.
if you want to learn this science read Frank.

https://www.amazon.com/High-Performance-Sailing-Faster-Techniques/dp/1408124912/ref=dp_ob_image_bk
 
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M

markwbird

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Nov 26, 2012
1,653
Hunter 34 Berkeley
Before the race take some wind direction readings over a few minutes to get feel for the shifts and what the average wind direction is. During the race keep an eye on your compass. Some folks keep a pencil with them and write down the headings after each tack.
 
Davidasailor26

Davidasailor26

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May 17, 2004
5,079
Beneteau Oceanis 37 Havre de Grace
Our chartplotter (B&G Zeus 3) shows a 10 minute graph of wind direction and speed. It's ok, but really during a race I find it's just easier to feel the lifts and headers as I steer to adjust to them. The graph is a pretty good way to get a sense for wind strength and variability when sitting at the dock waiting for crew to arrive.

Part of the problem I have using the graph during races is that the true wind calculation shown on the graph is based on having an accurate boat speed. Our transducer reads higher on starboard tack than port because it's affected by water flow over the keel. That inaccuracy means the graph shows a somewhat different true wind direction on each tack. It's not the end of the world, but it means watching compass headings and telltales is just the better way for us.
 
jon hansen

jon hansen

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May 25, 2012
4,335
john alden caravelle 42 sturgeon bay, wis
during the race my crew will call out every approaching puff or lull. it helps. the helmsman needs to keep "his head outside the boat" he can feel the sail trim in the helm. the crew can tickle the sheets.
it's all about the wind and where to find it.
 
Jackdaw

Jackdaw

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Nov 8, 2010
11,386
Beneteau First 36.7 & 260 Minneapolis MN & Bayfield WI
If your plan involves your plotter you have already lost.

You need to know only TWO things.

The median upwind angle on both tacks (median wind +/- tack angle.

Your current upwind angle, via your compass. It changes constantly.

If you are not using your compass, there is NO WAY you can do this well. No way.

Job1 is to know your median angles. This takes Pre-race time to figure out. I can say more if interested.

Once you know this, you can compare to your current upwind angle to know if your need to tack. 90% of people who race do not do this. It’s why they suck.

We monitor our mast mounted RaceGeek D10 to constantly check our angle vs the median.
 
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