[Music]
this training video will show you what
to do on your first sale you'll learn
how to start and stop the boat control
your speed and turnaround for your first
sale you should choose a light wind day
and the objective is to sail backwards
and forwards across the wind with the
wind blowing over the side of the boat
like this this is called a beam reach
and this is the best point of sailing
for your first sail when you have more
experience you can then master the other
points of sailing this video assumes
that you're familiar with rigging your
boat and you know how to launch safely
and that you understand the points of
sailing identify where the wind is
blowing from by looking at flags ashore
or masthead burgees or look at ripples
on the water a flapping sail will also
indicate where the wind is blowing from
you need to be careful of the no-go zone
which is an area forty-five degrees
either side of where the wind is blowing
from the sails do not work in this zone
and you will not be able to sail by
identifying where the wind is blowing
from you should be able to work out
where the no-go zone is likely to be and
try to ensure that you do not steer
unintentionally into this zone you
should be sitting in the boat well
forward like this and with the tiller
extension in the dagger grip in front of
your body this leaves your other hand to
control the mainsheet avoid sitting too
far back it may feel comfortable but
you'll find it difficult to turn around
and the boat will not sail as
effectively in the water you should be
able to gently push and pull the tiller
extension to turn the boat
keep these movements small and always
return the tiller to the straight
position as your default remember that
the boat will turn with even the
smallest amount of angle on the tiller
pushing the tiller towards the boom will
turn the nose or bow of the boat towards
the wind this is called roughing up and
pulling the tiller away from the boom
will make the bow of the boat turn away
from the wind this is called bearing
away the easiest point to get a feel for
steering starting and stopping is to
position your boat so the wind is
blowing across the boat at 90 degrees
this point of sailing is called a beam
reach here you can see a boat on a beam
reach point of sailing and the mainsail
flapping to help you understand how the
wind powers the boat you should think of
your sail as an engine pulling in on the
main control ropes will pull in the
sails which fills them with wind which
in turn generates drive to the boat
through the water letting the ropes go
makes the sails flap which reduces power
and subsequently slows you down the
control line for the mainsail is called
the mainsheet starting with the
mainsheet loose and the mainsail
flapping with the tiller completely
straight you should gently pull the
mainsheet until the sail doesn't flap
anymore when you pull a sail in from a
slack position the last bits are filled
with wind is the front part of the sail
so this is the area to look at to make
sure that it doesn't flap you'll notice
that the boat will immediately drive
forwards sailing dinghies don't have
brakes
so to slow down you must release the
power in the mainsail by slackening the
mainsheet until the sail just starts to
flap when sailing it's a good idea to
take note of a fixed object on the shore
and try to adjust the rudder to maintain
a steady steering direction towards that
point
it's very easy to get disorientated when
sailing so having a constant reference
point is a big help to ensure you
continue sailing in the right direction
sooner or later you're going to run out
of water or need to turn for some other
reason there are two ways to turn a boat
around for your first sail you should
turn the nose of the boat through the
wind this is called tacking the other
way of turning which you should avoid to
start with it's called jiving this is
where the nose of the boat turns away
from the wind
when tacking the boat will slow
significantly and it's for this reason
you should use this maneuver on your
first sail don't worry too much about
your technique just now the full tacking
procedure is the subject of another
video to tack round you should be
sailing along your beam reach in
preparation look around and make sure
that the immediate area is clear from
other vessels or hazards the object of
the exercise is to sail back along the
track from where you've just come check
once again that your turning area is
safe you can then start the maneuver
gently push the tiller towards the boom
the boat will immediately start to turn
duck under the boom and move across on
to the other side of the boat once the
boom has passed overhead keep turning
until you've gone through 180 degrees
you should now be on a beam reach once
more sit down
straighten the tiller and swap your
hands over and resume the dagger grip
once more like this
the sale is then adjusted once more to
find the point where it just stops
flapping now let's take another look
sailing along the beam reach point of
sailing take a quick look to decide
where you plan to end up heading and
check the area is clear gently push the
tiller towards the boom and turn the
nose of the boat through the wind
stepping across the boat ducking under
the boom keeping the rudder in the same
turning position once you've turned 180
degrees straighten the tiller swap the
hands on the tiller and resume to the
dagger grip you can then find the point
where the sail just stops flapping on a
single hander if you want to stop and
have a rest you should adopt the lying
to position here the sail flaps with the
boom well clear over the side and the
boat will almost stop to get to this
situation first position the boat
somewhere between a beam reach and a
close reach point of sailing then
release the mainsheet
so that the sail flaps and half raise
the centreboard
the boat should almost stop maintain a
good lookout and adjust the tiller to
maintain a steady position relative to
the wind to slow you even further you
can also release the kicking strap to
get out of the lying to position simply
lower the centreboard pull in the
mainsheet and off you go
whilst tacking across the wind you may
straighten the rudder too soon here
you'll be stuck in the no go zone with
the nose of the boat pointing head to
wind this is called being stuck in irons
if this happens don't worry you need to
force the bow of the boat to one side of
the no-go zone or the other to achieve
this push the mainsail out by hand as
far as you can with the boom this will
force the wind to hit the back of the
sail which will introduce Drive and
start to push you backwards to turn the
bow away from the wind you then need to
push the tiller towards the boom once
the boat has traveled about 90 degrees
you can then release the boom straighten
the tiller and then quickly pull in the
mainsheet and sail away in short it's a
push on the boom and a push on the
tiller and then a pull on the mainsheet
and a pull on the tiller
if you sail in windier conditions
everything is the same but events happen
considerably faster you'll notice that
the boat will turn faster the sail flaps
louder and the boom travels across the
boat faster you should consider reefing
the mainsail on windy days this reduces
the amount of sail area and take some of
the power away watch our rigging and
reefing video to see how reefing is done
common mistakes not understanding where
the wind is blowing from so not setting
the sails correctly for the point of
sailing you're on for your first sail
you should turn around by tacking
through the wind as this is easier to
master than jiving getting stuck in
irons not keeping a good lookout can put
you in a hazardous area with lots of
boats or other water users not keeping
the rudder straight during the tacking
maneuver the boat will keep turning key
learning points first time out
avoid winds greater than about twelve
miles an hour so that you can get the
maneuver at a manageable speed pulling
in the mainsheet so that the mainsail
fills with wind will drive your boat
forward releasing the mainsheet so that
the mainsail flaps in the wind will lose
Drive and slow you down in your early
days of sailing the easiest condition to
practice in is when the wind is blowing
across the boat in 90 degrees called a
beam reach the safest way to turn your
boat round is to tack which is when the
bow or nose of the boat goes through the
eye of the wind and out on to the other
side it's likely that you'll become
disorientated as you tack back and forth
so identify a point to aim at before you
turn that will become a reference point
for you if you want to stop and rest you
should adopt the lying to position if
you get stuck in the no go zone push the
boom away from you and push the tiller
towards the boom
then when the mainsail fills with wind
pull the tiller towards you again pull
the sail in and sail away next steps
watch this video as many times as is
necessary to have a good understanding
of how to start and stop your boat and
make simple turns use the script and
glossary accompanying the video to help
you you should continue to practice this
until your familiar and comfortable with
the effect of the rudder and steering
controls
you