Starboard Tack having rights is only the beginning. Here are methods to avoid the opposite tack boat without messing up your strategy and if emergency action is necessary. This is one of our free online sailing lessons.
It is important to see the examples of right action. We hope they will play back in your mind at the right time!
My Mistake and a near thing for two beautiful classic boats
A few years I was asked to sail on a very beautifully restored classic boat – borrowed. Gusty and I was busy on the mainsail controls.
We were coming up on a simple port and starboard situation with this boat right. Other boat was right of way. Our helm starts steering behind the other boat and a gust hits.
I’m easing main, but but our boat won’t steer behind. My fault .. hadn’t let the leeward runner (rigging wire) out enough and it was stopping the mainsail from easing out. The sail I was controlling was steering the boat and the rudder wasn’t big enough to overcome it.
I would have kept trying to go behind, but the helmsman made a neat decision, couldn’t go behind so he decided to tack … matching course and direction with the other boat. …
Our bow was pointing at the side of the other boat but slowly moving toward the front as different parts of the other boat as we tacked … knowing it was me that made the mistake and chaos was about to descend.
Port and Starboard Tacks – Which is Which when boats are on opposite tacks?
Damaging another boat whether you are in the right or wrong doesn’t feel good at all. Unless you are a psychopath.
I’m going to assume that we are all the opposite of a psychopath!
This image is simply to identify Port and Starboard Tack. They are on opposite tacks. One with wind from the left and one with wind from the right.
Some books say something about the side the wind is coming over. But the wind is not always coming over a side. Sometimes it is from the back. The opposite of the side the mainsail boom is on is a more consistent way.
Port and Starboard Rule – Think in Advance to Avoid a Close Call.
Unspoken rule in every situation
– The job of both boats to avoid a collision and damage
Making time is proactive and the mark of intelligent sailors. Intelligent sailors decide where they want to go in advance and their decisions will allow them to go where they want with minimum interruption.
What the Right Of Way (Starboard Tack) Skipper Should Do with Time Available
The responsibility of the Right of Way Skipper is to keep sailing efficiently. Do not try to take avoiding action until absolutely necessary.
- Watch the boat that does not have right of way. Make sure they have seen you. Hail them Loudly. “STARBOARD” at top of your voice! Do it EARLY.
- This usually means that the right of way boat should not alter course until it is necessary to avoid a collision. If you alter course when it is not necessary you will confuse the other boat.
- If a collision is going to occur the right of way boat must attempt to avoid collision.
One way to make more time for yourself is to do an early hail of “STARBOARD” at the top of your voice. In the photo below the orange boat has hailed once already – this is the time to hail a second time.. Orange is watching other boats. If there is more than one boat hail much earlier and much louder.
When it gets close and it is time for emergency action the Right of Way boat needs to to do something – See section below on Emergency Crash avoidance
How the “Port Tack” Skipper Should Use the Time Available.
There are two choices for a proactive sailor. They want to keep going in the current direction, or, they want to change direction.
They will make the choice early so one of these choices can be made in the most efficient way.
When going behind it is really important to ease your mainsail. This gives more speed and stops your boat from heeling and stops sail power from preventing the direction change. It is part of correct sail trim to maximise power and speed.
Less talented sailors never learn this trick. Some even think they are clever by pushing other boats around by choice without realising that they haven’t got a strategy themselves – relegating themselves to be among the non improvers.
Plan Situations in Advance. Make choices intelligently.
Here is a video of the two right ways from New Zealand.
Video image can take a moment to load.
COLLISION MINIMISATION – what Port Tack Boat and Starboard Tack Boat NEED to do.
This is when a collision is imminent and there is no chance of smooth avoidance – emergency action.
It is strange that many sailing lessons don’t go into this clearly. Having some idea of what both boats can do as a last ditch collision avoidance can make the difference between a paint scuff or a serious hole.
As we take care of 74 Oz Geese in the Philippines, we have to think of the big picture.
Intelligent choices by both boats can prevent big holes and keep to paint scuffs. That is good for our repair team!!!
Making the Best Decision in a Bad Situation. The two principles of avoiding Damage
The plan was to do everything in advance but we are about to hit – what should both boats do?
The aim with Collision avoidance is to
- Avoid high relative speeds – try to get both boats heading in the same direction.
- Avoid increasing speed
The Left Drawing shows both boats (right of way AND give way) boats steering to head in similar directions. So both boats are travelling together.
- Right of Way Boat’s Priority is to Avoid Collision by matching the direction of the other boat.
- Non Right of Way Boat wants to match the direction of the other boat.
Both Boats Make the WORST DECISION and big damage results – above Right.
I’ve made enough mistakes to know the wrong thinking of both skippers that makes the situation much worse as in the right panel above.
Typical Mistake by Right of Way Boat – the worst decision is “I am Right of Way and it is not my problem”.
Reality Check – The rules require that you avoid collision. If you don’t you may have to pay or if racing be disqualified.
Typical Mistake by Give Way Boat – the worst decisions 1/ “It is too hard to tack”, or 2/ I want to go somewhere on the other side of the Right of Way boat”.
Forget what you want and avoid the worst of the collision by matching direction and speed with the right of way boat.
You may have to pay for all the damage and be disqualified if you are in an event.
Video of Boat making the Wrong decision and deciding to go behind too late
It is difficult to know the sound volumes. But the call of “Starboard” from the Right of Way boat should have been earsplitting. They certainly started calling early enough.
My guess is that the Give Way boat on Port Tack was thinking “It is too hard to tack, I will go behind” or “We want to go to the Buoy just to the right of the video frame”.
If these were the strategy they should have eased sails and sailed smoothly behind the other boat so they could fulfil their strategy. I think they don’t have a strategy or it has become lost in their inflexibility.
It is best to ease sails and go behind early, but can close the gap between your bow and the back of the other boat when you know you are going to miss.
Video image can take a moment to load.