Other

Just a couple of other things worth mentioning.

Running by the Lee: This is a training runwith the mainsail on the windward side of the boat.  The sail won't be at 90 degrees to the wind (unless you've got a really long mainsheet) which is about the best angle for it.  The boat will still move forward but there is a danger of gybing accidentally.  This can happen ifa slight alteration of course to windward is taken or if the wind shifts direction slightly and gets behing the sail.  The advantage of running by the lee is that it's faster than an ordinary training run.

Going upwind: As mentioned on another page, sailing vessels cannot travel directly upwind.  To move upwind you must take a zig zag course of beating.  This is called tacking, probably because you have to tack at the end of each leg of the zig zag.  See a note on the word "tack".

Reefing: If the wind is strong you may want to reduce the sail area.  The way you do this depends on the boat; usually you tie the mainsail down to the boom or wrap it around the mast.  With most yachts, a number of storm jibs are provided.  These are jibs of different sizes and you choose the one most appropriate for the wind conditions.  Some yachts have furling genoas (a type of fore sail) which can be very easily furled to reduce its size.

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