Crew Position

[Don Guillette]

I see all kinds of stuff in pictures. This thread does not apply to cruisers, unless they are trying to give their cruising buddy a "GO" and beat him back to the dock!! When most skippers put their crew on the rail they find some comfortable spot and plop down there and that spot is generally near the cockpit. Just having the crew sit any old place on the rail is a mistake. You can pick up extra speed on every point of sail and wind condition by knowing which side of the boat and where (forward/aft) to place your crew.My Sail Trim Chart and book The sail Trim Users Guide defines those positions. The little bit of extra umph and edge you get from the correct position would amaze you. You don't shoot ahead like a rocket but there is an increase. On boats I race on, from an instructional stand point, after the skipper has set his sails and the crew settles in on the rail, I always ask the skipper if he's forgotten anything. Most say no. I then ask what about crew position? It is a question I only have to ask once.

 

[CharlieCobra]

I read your book...

and figured that I already was doing most of the things detailed in your book. Not that I didn't pick up new knowledge, I was just impressed that I was doing as well as I was considering I was self taught. Now when I go sailing or racing with other captains, I notice the little things that cost us speed. I don't say anything since it's not my boat, even if we're losing but it just reaffirms my suspicions that a large percentage3 of folks haven't a clue about sail trim, even if they've been sailing and racing for many years.

 

[Don Guillette]

Giving Advise

Charlie C: I'm like you. I rarely give sail trim advise when I'm a guest on a boat UNLESS the trim is so bad that I can't stand it. On the other side of the coin, what has happened to me a couple of times is that the skipper contacts me because he is having a problem and I go on the boat and he starts telling what needs to be done and won't listen to anything. In those cases I wonder why he contacted me and I'm glad to get back to the dock.With my book and chart I've delt with sailors all over the world and I think the way it comes down is that 25% of the sailors worldwide are in the expert catagory. At the other end of the spectrum are the 25% of sailors that realize there are things they need to know. The middle 50%, to varying degrees, think they know everything but don't know what they don't know. Each of us knows guys like that.Some sailors that contact me start out with "I've been sailing for 20 years" and then go into the question. Everytime that happens I think I've been playing AT golf for 25 years and until a cople of years ago I never hit the ball to the same place twice!! In many cases the longevity of doing something has nothing to do with the end reslt. If you want to know what your dock neighbor knows just ask him in a very nice way to explain the difference say between twist and draft position and then ask what control are used for the main and jib to adjust to 12 knots of wind. Most of the time you'll get some convuluted answer but if nails the question latch on to him and sail with him as much as you can.