Points of Sail — Your First Sailing Road Map

Once you understand the points of sail, sailing suddenly starts to look less like magic and more like navigation.

One of the first things a new sailor discovers is that a sailing boat cannot simply point in any direction, pull the sails in and expect everything to work.

The direction of the wind matters.

A lot.

Change the angle of the boat to the wind and you also have to change the position of the sails. Some directions make the boat feel fast and lively. Others are calmer and easier to understand. Point too close to the wind and eventually the sails begin flapping and the boat stops.

That relationship between the direction of the boat and the direction of the wind is what sailors mean when they talk about the points of sail.

At first the names can sound like another batch of mysterious sailing terminology:

• close hauled;

• close reach;

• beam reach;

• broad reach;

• run.

But there is a surprisingly simple way of understanding them.

Imagine a clock.

Put the wind at 12 o'clock.

Suddenly the whole thing starts to make sense.

The PMR Sailing Clock Face

Imagine looking down from directly above your sailing dinghy.

The wind is blowing towards you from 12 o'clock.

Your boat can sail around much of the clock face, but there is an important area near 12 o'clock where it cannot sail directly.

If you remember the previous lesson, this is the no-go zone.

A conventional sailing boat cannot simply point straight into the wind and continue sailing forwards. Get too close to the wind and the sails stop producing useful driving force.

But turn the boat slightly away from 12 o'clock and everything changes.

On either side of the no-go zone we begin with close hauled.

Turn further away and we move through:

Close hauled -> close reach -> beam reach -> broad reach -> run

And as we move around that clock face, there is another very useful rule.

The further away from the wind you turn, the further out the sails normally go.

That one idea will take a beginner an extraordinarily long way.

---

1. Close Hauled — Sailing as Close to the Wind as We Can

Imagine the wind is coming from 12 o'clock.

Your boat might be heading approximately towards 1:30 or 10:30.

You are not sailing directly into the wind, but you are sailing as close towards it as the boat can efficiently manage.

This is called close hauled.

The sails are pulled in relatively tightly towards the centreline of the boat.

You will probably hear someone say:

"Sheet in."

That means pulling the sheet so that the sail comes further towards the boat.

On many dinghies, close hauled feels quite purposeful. The boat may heel as the wind loads the sails, and everything suddenly feels much more like what newcomers imagine "proper sailing" to be.

It is also the point of sail that lets us make progress towards somewhere that lies upwind.

Not directly towards it — but gradually, by sailing a zigzag course.

More on that shortly.

What should the sails look like?

On close hauled:

• the mainsail is pulled in relatively tightly;

• the jib is also sheeted in;

• the sails should be reasonably smooth rather than flapping;

• the boat is pointing fairly close towards the wind.

Do not make the common beginner mistake of assuming that "tighter must always be better".

If the sails are pulled in too far, they can become inefficient.

Sailing is often about finding the right position rather than simply pulling harder.

---

2. Close Reach — Turn Away a Little

Now turn the boat slightly further away from the wind.

Perhaps on our imaginary clock the bow is pointing somewhere around 2 o'clock or 10 o'clock.

You are now on a close reach.

The sails need to be eased out a little.

This is an important beginner lesson.

If the boat changes direction but the sailor does nothing with the sheets, the sails may no longer be correctly adjusted.

So as the boat bears away from the wind:

ease the sails.

Not necessarily dramatically.

Just enough to keep them working efficiently.

A close reach is often a comfortable and fairly quick point of sail. The boat still feels positive, but compared with close hauled it may feel slightly less demanding.

---

3. Beam Reach — The Beginner's Best Friend

Now imagine the wind is still coming from 12 o'clock but the boat is pointing towards 3 o'clock.

Or 9 o'clock.

The wind is now coming more or less directly across the side — or beam — of the boat.

This is a beam reach.

For beginners, this is one of the most useful points of sail to learn first.

Why?

Because several things become easier to recognise.

The wind direction is relatively obvious.

The sails are neither pulled in tightly nor completely let out.

The boat normally makes good forward progress.

And if you turn a little towards or away from the wind, you can immediately see how the sail trim needs to change.

That makes the beam reach a wonderful teaching position.

What should the sails look like?

On a beam reach, the sails are normally eased considerably compared with close hauled.

As a very rough beginner's picture, think of the sails as being somewhere around halfway out.

The exact position depends on the boat, the wind and the conditions, so this is not a measurement to be taken literally.

The more useful technique is:

Ease the sail slowly until it just begins to flap at the front edge, then sheet it back in slightly until the flapping stops.

That begins to introduce the real skill of sail trimming.

You are not memorising one fixed rope position.

You are looking at the sail and responding to what it tells you.

---

A Simple Practical Exercise: Start on a Beam Reach

If I were introducing someone to steering and sail control for the first time, I would normally want them to experience a beam reach quite early.

Imagine we are sailing across a fairly open piece of water with plenty of room.

The first exercise might be very simple.

1. Put the boat onto a beam reach.

2. Hold a steady course.

3. Look at where the wind is coming from.

4. Ease the mainsheet slightly.

5. Watch the front of the sail.

6. When it begins to flap, pull the sheet in gently until the flapping disappears.

7. Keep looking ahead rather than staring permanently at the sail.

That small exercise teaches several things simultaneously.

You are steering.

You are feeling the wind.

You are adjusting the sail.

You are seeing the effect of your adjustment.

And, most importantly, you are beginning to understand that sailing is a continual conversation between the boat and the wind.

---

4. Broad Reach — Let the Sails Out Further

Continue turning away from the wind.

Your boat may now be pointing towards roughly 4:30 or 7:30 on our sailing clock.

This is a broad reach.

The wind is now coming from behind the boat, but still from one side.

The sails are eased out further.

Broad reaching can be tremendous fun.

In a decent breeze the boat may accelerate noticeably. In some dinghies it can feel beautifully balanced and fast.

But there is something important happening here.

The boom is now further away from the centreline of the boat.

That means that if the boat changes direction or the wind shifts, the boom can move through a much larger arc.

Beginners therefore need to start developing an awareness of where the boom is.

Sailing instructors develop a remarkable habit of automatically ducking.

There is a reason.

---

5. Run — Sailing Away from the Wind

Finally, turn until the boat is travelling approximately in the same direction as the wind.

On our clock face, with the wind coming from 12 o'clock, the boat is now heading towards 6 o'clock.

This is called a run or sailing downwind.

The sails are eased well out.

It looks as though this should be the easiest possible point of sail.

After all, the wind is simply behind you.

And in some respects it is simple.

But beginners can sometimes find running less comfortable than expected.

Why?

Because when the wind comes directly from behind, small changes in direction can cause the sail and boom to move from one side of the boat to the other.

If that happens unintentionally, the boat may perform an accidental gybe.

That can make the boom cross the boat very quickly.

So although sailing downwind may appear easy, it requires awareness.

For the beginner, a broad reach is often more controlled than sailing dead downwind.

---

The Simple Sail-Position Rule

If you remember nothing else from this article, remember this:

Towards the wind: sails in.
Away from the wind: sails out.

Or, using our sailing clock:

Close hauled — sails well in

Close reach — ease slightly

Beam reach — ease further

Broad reach — sails well out

Run — sails almost completely out

That is not a perfect scientific rule.

Sail trim is a much richer subject, and later we can talk about telltales, sail shape, twist and airflow.

But for someone stepping into a dinghy for the first few times, it is an extremely useful mental map.

---

But How Do We Sail Somewhere Upwind?

This is where the points of sail suddenly become much more than vocabulary.

Imagine the place you want to reach lies directly towards 12 o'clock.

Unfortunately, the wind is also coming from 12 o'clock.

You cannot simply point the boat there.

So instead you sail close hauled on one side.

Then you turn the bow through the wind — a manoeuvre called tacking.

You then sail close hauled on the other side.

Your route becomes a zigzag.

You are never sailing directly into the wind, but each leg takes you partly towards your destination.

This is one of those moments when sailing begins to feel slightly miraculous.

You can use wind coming from the direction you want to travel to help you get there.

Not directly.

But very effectively.

---

Heading Up and Bearing Away

There are two more expressions worth learning because instructors use them constantly.

If you turn the bow towards the wind, you are heading up.

If you turn the bow away from the wind, you are bearing away.

These movements immediately affect sail trim.

If you head up:

sheet in.

If you bear away:

ease out.

Again, this is a simplified beginner's rule, but it creates an excellent habit.

Imagine turning gradually around our clock face.

Starting on a run at 6 o'clock and heading towards 3 o'clock:

the sails progressively come in.

Continue towards close hauled:

they come in further.

Turn back towards 6 o'clock:

they progressively go out again.

That connection between steering and sail position is one of the foundations of sailing.

---

Don't Stare at the Ropes

One of the easiest beginner habits to develop is looking down into the boat.

You start thinking:

"Where should this sheet be?"

So you stare at your hands.

Meanwhile the boat gradually turns through 30 degrees.

Now the wind angle has changed.

Which means the sail position you were carefully adjusting is wrong anyway.

Try instead to develop a simple sequence:

Look ahead.

Feel the wind.

Look at the sail.

Adjust the sheet.

Look ahead again.

Eventually the process becomes almost automatic.

---

The Boat Will Tell You When Something Is Wrong

Sailing becomes much easier once you realise that the boat constantly gives you information.

If you turn too close towards the wind:

the sail begins to flap.

If you bear away without easing:

the sails may feel heavily loaded and badly positioned.

If you ease too far:

the front of the sail may begin flapping.

If everything is roughly right:

the sail fills smoothly and the boat accelerates.

Beginners sometimes imagine that experienced sailors somehow know the perfect sail position by calculation.

Usually we are doing something much simpler.

We are constantly observing.

The wind changes.

The boat changes direction.

We adjust.

Then we adjust again.

---

A Useful Exercise: Sail the Clock Face

Once you can steer reasonably confidently, try turning the idea into a practical exercise.

Start on a beam reach.

Then gradually head up towards a close reach.

Sheet in slightly.

Continue towards close hauled.

Sheet in further.

Now bear away again.

Ease the sail.

Return through the beam reach.

Continue to a broad reach.

Ease further.

Eventually approach a run.

Then reverse the exercise.

You are effectively sailing around the PMR Sailing Clock Face.

Do it slowly.

The objective is not speed.

The objective is to make the connection:

Boat direction -> wind angle -> sail position -> boat response.

Once that connection settles into your mind, a great deal of sailing suddenly becomes logical.

---

What Beginners Often Get Wrong

"I've turned the boat, but nothing has happened"

You probably forgot to adjust the sails.

Steering and sail trim work together.

"The sail is flapping"

You may be too close to the wind, or the sheet may be too loose.

Look at the wind direction before simply pulling ropes.

"The boat suddenly slowed down"

Again, check your angle to the wind.

A perfectly good sail setting can become wrong because the boat has changed direction.

"We're going downwind, so surely I pull the sail in to catch more wind?"

Usually the opposite.

As you turn away from the wind, the sails generally need to be eased further out.

"I thought sailing downwind would be easiest"

It can be straightforward, but watch the boom and be aware of accidental gybes.

For early practice, a beam reach is often much easier to understand.

---

Why the Beam Reach Is Such a Good Starting Point

For a beginner, I would much rather establish control on a beam reach than immediately insist on perfect close-hauled sailing.

A beam reach lets someone experience what a working sailing boat feels like.

You can steer.

You can see the effect of the mainsheet.

You can feel acceleration.

You can turn gently towards and away from the wind.

And because you are not right on the edge of the no-go zone, small steering errors are usually more forgiving.

That confidence matters.

There is plenty of time later for precise tacking angles and perfect sail trim.

The first objective is to make the boat respond predictably.

---

Try This Next Time You Are at the Club

Before launching, stand beside the water and work out where the wind is coming from.

Imagine the clock face floating over the sailing area.

Ask yourself:

• Where would 12 o'clock be?

• Where would a beam reach take me?

• Which direction would be close hauled?

• Where is directly downwind?

• Where is the no-go zone?

Then, when you get into the boat, see whether the picture still makes sense.

It probably will.

And that is when sailing starts becoming much less mysterious.

Instead of simply pulling ropes and hoping for the best, you begin to know why the boat is behaving as it does.

---

Your First Sailing Road Map

The points of sail are not merely names to memorise for a sailing course.

They are your first genuine map of how a sailing boat moves through the wind.

With the wind at 12 o'clock:

Close hauled: sail as close towards the wind as the boat allows.

Close reach: turn a little further away and ease the sails slightly.

Beam reach: sail across the wind with the sails further out.

Broad reach: the wind comes increasingly from behind and the sails are eased further.

Run: sail downwind with the sails well out.

And sitting above it all is the no-go zone — the part of the clock where the boat cannot sail directly.

Once that picture is fixed in your mind, many other sailing skills become easier.

Tacking starts to make sense.

Sail trimming starts to make sense.

Planning a route starts to make sense.

Even instructions shouted from another boat begin to sound less mysterious.

"Bear away!"

"Ease the main!"

"Come onto a beam reach!"

You suddenly know what everyone is talking about.

And perhaps that is the real moment when learning to sail begins.

The boat has not changed.

The wind has not changed.

But now you have a road map.

Understand the wind. Understand where the boat sits on the clock face. Adjust the sails to match — and suddenly sailing stops looking like magic.

My name is Philip. I started sailing when I was 65. 

I joined a club and because my son had already been part of a club for many years - borrowing all types of boat. He knew what we needed and the type of boat I would require. 

So we did by an RS Toura - a virtually unsinkable dinghy which has given me the confidence to experiment and learn and take my RYA exams and become a competent sailor and then to move up to the boat of my dreams - the A-Rater.

Coming up Next Lesson Lesson 9: Your First Ten Minutes at the Helm.
Your first few minutes steering a sailing dinghy can be wonderfully confusing.

Want the boat to go left?

Move the tiller right.

Then overcorrect.

Then correct the correction.

Then discover you've invented sailing in zig-zags.

Return to https://pmrsailing.uk/Lessons.html

 

How Does a Sailing Boat Actually Sail?

Lesson 7: The First Bit of Sailing Theory You Really Need

The surprising thing about sailing isn't that a boat can sail downwind. It's that it can sail towards the wind at all.

If you have never sailed before, the basic idea seems perfectly reasonable when the wind is behind the boat.

The wind blows.

It pushes the sail.

The boat goes forwards.

Excellent. Sailing explained.

Except that sailing boats can also travel across the wind and, rather remarkably, can make progress towards the direction the wind is coming from.

That seems much less obvious.

If the wind is coming from where you want to go, surely it should simply blow you backwards.

Yet watch a sailing dinghy travelling up a river or across a lake and you may see it zig-zagging steadily towards the wind.

How?

The answer lies in the interaction between two surprisingly simple things:

the sail above the water and the centreboard or keel below it.

Once you understand what those two are doing together, an enormous amount of sailing starts to make sense.

---

First: Which Way Is the Wind Actually Going?

Sailors describe the wind by where it is coming from, not where it is going.

So a northerly wind comes from the north and blows towards the south.

That sounds obvious when written down, but it is worth getting right because almost everything else we do in sailing depends upon knowing where the wind is coming from.

When I am introducing someone to sailing, one of the first questions I want them to keep asking is:

"Where is the wind?"

Not:

"Where am I going?"

Not:

"Which rope do I pull?"

But:

"Where is the wind coming from?"

Once you know that, you can begin making sensible decisions about everything else.

There are lots of ways of working it out.

Look at:

• flags and burgees;

• ripples on the water;

• trees and reeds;

• smoke;

• other sailing boats;

• telltales or ribbons on the rigging;

• and, with experience, simply the feeling of the wind on your face.

A useful beginner's trick is to turn your head slowly until you can feel the wind equally on both cheeks.

You are now facing approximately into the wind.

That direction matters enormously.

---

A Sail Is Not Simply a Big Wind Catcher

When sailing downwind, the sail can behave rather like a large curved sheet being pushed by the wind.

But when we sail across the wind or towards it, something more interesting happens.

A properly trimmed sail develops a curved shape.

Air flows around that curved sail and the sail behaves, in a simplified sense, rather like an aircraft wing standing vertically.

The airflow around it produces an aerodynamic force.

There is plenty of sophisticated physics behind exactly how that force is generated, involving pressure differences, airflow and the deflection of air.

Fortunately, you do not need to solve the mathematics while sitting in a dinghy.

The important beginner's idea is this:

The wind flowing around the sail produces a force that is not simply pointing straight forwards.

Part of that force is trying to drive the boat forwards.

But another substantial part is trying to push the boat sideways.

And that creates our next problem.

---

Why Doesn't the Boat Simply Slide Sideways?

Imagine putting a sailing dinghy on an enormous sheet of ice.

Raise the sails and put the wind on the side.

What would happen?

Without anything providing sideways resistance, the boat could simply skid sideways.

Water gives us the opportunity to prevent that.

Underneath most sailing dinghies is a centreboard or daggerboard.

Larger sailing boats may have a fixed keel.

These underwater surfaces resist the boat's tendency to move sideways through the water.

The hull itself also contributes some resistance, but the centreboard is particularly important.

So we now have two systems working together:

Above the water: the sail interacts with the air.

Below the water: the centreboard interacts with the water.

The sail tries to push the boat partly forwards and partly sideways.

The centreboard strongly resists much of that sideways movement.

What remains is a useful forward component.

And now we have a sailing boat.

---

The Sail and Centreboard Are a Team

This is probably the most useful way for a beginner to think about it.

A sailing boat does not sail upwind because the sail somehow magically pulls it directly towards the wind.

It works because the forces created by the sail and underwater surfaces act together.

Think about squeezing a wet bar of soap between your fingers.

If you squeeze it from opposite sides, it can shoot forwards.

The analogy is far from perfect, but it gives us a useful mental picture.

The boat is effectively working between two moving fluids:

air above and water below.

The sail interacts with one.

The centreboard and rudder interact with the other.

The result can drive the boat forwards even when the wind is coming from somewhere ahead of the boat.

That is the clever part.

---

So Can We Sail Directly Into the Wind?

No.

And this is one of the most important things a new sailor needs to understand.

Point the bow directly towards the wind and the airflow over the sail can no longer maintain the useful aerodynamic force we need.

The sail begins to flap.

Sailors call this luffing.

If you remain pointing directly into the wind, the boat will slow down and may eventually stop.

You are now head to wind.

It is quite a useful position when you deliberately want to reduce the sail's driving force, but it is not a good way of travelling towards somewhere.

If you unintentionally stop there and cannot easily get moving again, sailors may say that the boat is in irons.

That expression sounds rather dramatic.

For a beginner it usually means:

"We've stopped, the sails are flapping and I need to work out which way to turn."

---

Welcome to the No-Go Zone

Imagine looking down from above at your boat.

Draw an arrow showing where the wind is coming from.

Immediately in front of the boat's possible sailing directions is an area into which the boat cannot sail effectively.

This is called the no-go zone.

Its exact size varies according to the boat, sails, conditions and sailing technique, but for beginner purposes imagine a wedge extending perhaps roughly 40 to 50 degrees either side of directly into the wind.

Point the boat inside that zone and the sails will begin losing their ability to drive the boat efficiently.

Point sufficiently far outside it and the sails can begin working again.

That gives us a wonderfully important fact:

We cannot sail directly towards the wind, but we can sail diagonally towards it.

---

How Do We Get Somewhere Directly Upwind?

We zig-zag.

More properly, we tack.

Suppose your destination is directly upwind.

You cannot point the bow straight at it.

Instead, you sail towards one side of the wind at the closest practical angle your boat will maintain.

After travelling some distance, you turn the bow through the wind and sail towards the other side.

Then you do it again.

Your actual route looks something like:

left — right — left — right.

But overall you are steadily making progress upwind.

This is known as beating to windward.

It may not be the shortest distance between two points, but it allows a sailing boat to reach a destination that would otherwise appear impossible.

---

Windward and Leeward

This brings us to two sailing words you will hear constantly.

Windward

Windward means the side towards the wind.

If the wind is coming across the boat from your right-hand side, the right-hand side is the windward side.

Leeward

Leeward is the side away from the wind.

In that same example, the left-hand side would be the leeward side.

You will hear these words used in all sorts of situations:

"Sit on the windward side."

"There's another boat to leeward."

"Move your weight to windward."

"The leeward mark is down there."

They can initially sound like unnecessary sailing jargon.

Very quickly, however, they become extremely useful because they describe positions relative to the wind, and the wind is what matters.

---

The Wind Changes the Whole Geometry of the Boat

One of the lovely things about learning to sail is discovering that the same boat behaves completely differently depending upon its angle to the wind.

Point directly into the wind:

The sails flap and you stop.

Turn slightly away:

The sails begin to fill and the boat moves.

Turn further away:

The sails need easing out.

Keep turning until the wind is behind you:

The sails may be well out from the boat and the whole feeling changes again.

The boat has not changed.

The wind has not necessarily changed.

What has changed is simply the angle between the boat and the wind.

That angle is at the heart of sailing.

---

Try This Without Even Leaving the Bank

You can begin understanding all of this before launching.

Stand beside a rigged dinghy on a reasonably breezy day.

First identify where the wind is coming from.

Now imagine the boat travelling directly towards it.

That is the head-to-wind direction.

Imagine the no-go zone spreading out on either side.

Now point towards a direction just outside that zone.

That could become an upwind sailing course.

Turn further round.

You are moving progressively towards sailing across the wind and eventually downwind.

You can even walk around the boat while imagining that the bow is pointing in different directions.

It sounds simple.

It is.

But this simple exercise begins creating something every sailor eventually develops:

a mental map of the wind.

---

Try It Again When You Are Afloat

Once safely afloat with an instructor or experienced sailor, watch what happens as the helm slowly turns the boat towards the wind.

Do not worry initially about steering.

Watch the sail.

As you turn closer towards the wind, eventually the front edge of the sail begins to flutter.

Turn closer still and more of the sail begins flapping.

Now turn away again.

At some point the sail fills.

The boat accelerates.

You have just crossed the boundary between an angle at which the sail cannot work effectively and one at which it can.

That experience teaches more than several pages of aerodynamics.

---

A Common Beginner Mistake: Pulling the Sail Tighter

There is an understandable instinct when a sail begins flapping.

Pull it in harder.

Sometimes that is exactly what is required.

But not always.

If you are pointing too close to the wind, pulling the sheet harder cannot change the laws of physics.

The boat may simply be inside the no-go zone.

The solution may instead be to turn the boat slightly away from the wind.

This is called bearing away.

As the boat comes out of the no-go zone, airflow can become properly established around the sail again and the boat begins moving.

Learning this distinction is important.

A flapping sail does not automatically mean:

"Pull the rope."

Sometimes it means:

"Change the direction of the boat."

---

The Centreboard Matters More Than Beginners Realise

The centreboard can easily look like one of the less exciting parts of a dinghy.

The sail is colourful.

The mast is obvious.

The rudder controls where we go.

The centreboard appears merely to stick down underneath the boat.

Yet remove its sideways resistance and the whole business of sailing efficiently across or towards the wind becomes much more difficult.

You can sometimes feel this very clearly when sailing.

The boat is not travelling precisely in the direction the bow is pointing.

There is usually some sideways movement as well.

This is known as leeway.

A good sailing boat minimises that unwanted sideways slipping while converting as much of the available aerodynamic force as possible into useful progress.

Again, the important beginner's message is wonderfully simple:

The sail needs the centreboard, and the centreboard needs the sail.

They work as a system.

---

Sailing Is About Balance, Not Brute Force

There is another lesson hidden inside all this.

Sailing is rarely about forcing the boat to do something.

You cannot make the boat sail directly into the wind simply by pulling the mainsheet harder.

You cannot demand that the wind arrives from somewhere more convenient.

Instead, you work with what is available.

You choose an angle the boat can sail.

You adjust the sail.

You balance the boat.

You observe what happens.

Then you make another adjustment.

That is one reason sailing becomes so satisfying.

You are constantly solving a moving puzzle involving the boat, wind and water.

And every few seconds the puzzle changes slightly.

---

Don't Worry About Understanding All the Physics Yet

If you start reading deeply into sailing aerodynamics you will soon encounter discussions about:

• pressure;

• circulation;

• lift;

• drag;

• flow separation;

• apparent wind;

• angles of attack;

• foil sections;

• induced drag;

• vortices.

All of these have their place.

But none of them needs to be mastered before your first sail.

For now, remember just five things.

1. Always know roughly where the wind is coming from.

2. The sail generates an aerodynamic force.

3. Some of that force tries to push the boat sideways.

4. The centreboard or keel resists much of that sideways movement.

5. The combination allows the boat to move forwards and even make progress towards the wind — but never directly into it.

Understand those five ideas and you already understand something fundamental about sailing.

---

Your Practical Challenge

Next time you are beside a sailing boat, do not immediately start worrying about ropes.

Stop for a moment.

Find the wind.

Then identify:

• the windward side;

• the leeward side;

• the head-to-wind direction;

• the approximate no-go zone;

• two directions in which the boat could sail to make progress upwind.

If you are sailing with someone experienced, ask them to point the boat progressively closer to the wind while you watch the sails.

Notice the moment they begin to luff.

Then watch what happens when the helm bears away by just a few degrees.

The sails fill.

The boat begins accelerating.

You have just watched aerodynamic theory turn into sailing.

---

Suddenly the Boat Makes a Little More Sense

When you first stand beside a sailing dinghy, it can appear to be a rather complicated collection of sails, ropes, fittings and strangely named pieces of equipment.

But gradually the logic starts appearing.

The rudder helps determine where we point.

The sail interacts with the wind.

The centreboard resists sideways movement through the water.

And the sailor puts them all together.

Perhaps that is the extraordinary thing about sailing.

We cannot control the wind.

We cannot sail directly into it.

Yet by understanding it, we can use the wind to take us remarkably close to where it came from.

That is not just one of the most important ideas in learning to sail.

It is one of the reasons sailing remains so fascinating.

Next time you see a sailing boat apparently heading towards the wind, look carefully. It isn't defying physics at all. It is using physics beautifully.

My name is Philip. I started sailing when I was 65. 

I joined a club and because my son had already been part of a club for many years - borrowing all types of boat. He knew what we needed and the type of boat I would require. 

So we did by an RS Toura - a virtually unsinkable dinghy which has given me the confidence to experiment and learn and take my RYA exams and become a competent sailor and then to move up to the boat of my dreams - the A-Rater.

Coming up Next Lesson 8 Sailing feels mysterious until somebody gives you a clock face.

Wind from 12 o'clock.

Close hauled -> close reach -> beam reach -> broad reach -> run.

And one beautifully simple rule:

Towards the wind, sails in.
Away from the wind, sails out.

Once you understand the points of sail, the whole boat starts making sense.

Return to https://pmrsailing.uk/Lessons.html

 

Before We Launch — The Five-Minute Safety Check

The best safety equipment in sailing is often the five minutes you spend thinking before launching.

You have found a sailing club.

You have discovered what all the mysterious bits of the boat are called.

You have learned that a sheet is not something you sleep under, a halyard is not a place where you store broken boats, and the kicking strap is not there for kicking.

You have even managed to rig the boat without accidentally creating modern art.

Surely it is time to push it into the water?

Almost.

Before we launch, there is one habit worth learning right from the beginning: stop for five minutes and check that you, the boat and the conditions are ready.

This isn't intended to make sailing sound dangerous. Quite the opposite.

Most club dinghy sailing is remarkably safe because sailors don't simply shove a boat into the water and hope for the best. There are routines, safety boats, experienced people around and sensible precautions.

And, eventually, many of those precautions become automatic.

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Safety Begins Before the Boat Touches the Water

There is a temptation, particularly when you are new, to think that safety equipment means complicated emergency equipment.

It usually doesn't.

For a beginner sailing a dinghy from a club, the most useful safety precautions are often wonderfully ordinary:

• wearing the right buoyancy aid;

• checking the weather;

• knowing what the river is doing;

• making sure the boat has its bung;

• dressing appropriately;

• knowing where you are supposed to sail;

• and checking that someone knows you are actually out there.

None of this takes very long.

So before we launch, let's walk around the boat.

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1. Start With Yourself: Is Your Buoyancy Aid Properly Fitted?

Putting on a buoyancy aid isn't quite enough.

It needs to fit properly.

For dinghy sailing, buoyancy aids are designed to give you support in the water while still allowing enough freedom of movement to sail and, if necessary, climb back into the boat. The RYA specifically identifies buoyancy aids as appropriate for activities such as dinghy sailing, where entering the water is possible and self-rescue may be expected.

Do up the zip or buckles.

Adjust the straps.

Then check that it isn't so loose that it could simply ride upwards if you entered the water.

A useful test is to pull upwards on the shoulders. The RYA advises that if it rises more than about 50 mm, it is too large or not adjusted correctly.

This is particularly important with children.

A buoyancy aid bought several sizes too large on the basis that "they'll grow into it" isn't a bargain if the child can slide out of it.

Beginner habit

Before every sail:

Buoyancy aid on. Fastened. Adjusted.

Not sitting in the boat.

Not lying on the pontoon.

Not "I'll put it on if the wind gets stronger."

Wear it.

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2. Look at the Weather — Not Just the Sunshine

It is a beautiful summer afternoon.

The sun is out.

What could possibly go wrong?

Possibly nothing.

But sunshine tells you surprisingly little about whether it is a good time to sail.

What matters much more is the wind.

Ask:

• How strong is it?

• Is it gusty?

• Is it increasing?

• Which direction is it coming from?

• Are stronger winds forecast later?

• Are showers or thunderstorms approaching?

If you are sailing at a club, one of the easiest things you can do is ask an experienced sailor.

"Are these sensible conditions for me to go out?"

There is absolutely no shame in asking.

In fact, learning when not to sail is part of learning to sail.

A competent sailor does not prove anything by launching into conditions beyond their experience.

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3. On a River, Look at the Water as Well as the Wind

River sailing brings another consideration.

The water itself may be moving.

After prolonged rain, a river can behave very differently from the pleasant stretch of water you sailed on the previous weekend.

The current may be stronger.

There may be floating branches or other debris.

Getting away from a pontoon may become more difficult.

Returning to it may become much more difficult.

And if the wind drops completely, the current can suddenly become the most important force acting on your boat.

This is particularly worth remembering because the current may not look dramatic from the bank.

Before launching, ask:

What is the river doing today?

If the club has restrictions because of river conditions, respect them.

If experienced sailors are standing around saying the stream is unusually strong, that isn't the ideal moment for a beginner to announce:

"It looks all right to me."

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4. Is There Safety Cover?

At many sailing clubs there will be a powered safety boat on the water during organised sailing, racing or coaching.

That doesn't mean you should deliberately capsize just to give the safety crew something to do.

But it does mean there is someone available if a sailor has difficulty, a boat becomes damaged, somebody becomes cold or a beginner simply gets into a situation they cannot sort out.

Before launching, establish:

• Is a safety boat operating?

• Who is running it?

• Is there organised club sailing taking place?

• Is independent sailing permitted?

• Are there any particular restrictions today?

For beginners, sailing while organised safety cover is operating can make the whole experience considerably more reassuring.

You are learning.

You are not expected to know everything yet.

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5. The Most Embarrassingly Important Question: Is the Bung In?

There are some pieces of sophisticated sailing equipment.

Carbon-fibre masts.

Precision racing sails.

Electronic compasses.

Advanced control systems.

And then there is the humble bung.

A piece of plastic costing very little which can have a surprisingly large influence on whether the inside of your boat remains dry.

Many dinghies have a drain bung which must be fitted before launching.

Forget it and you may discover that your boat appears to be developing an unexpectedly intimate relationship with the river.

The important point isn't that forgetting the bung is a catastrophe.

It is that it is so easily prevented.

Make it part of the routine.

Walk around the stern.

BUNG?

Check.

Eventually you will probably find yourself checking it even when somebody else tells you they have already done it.

That isn't distrust.

That's sailing.

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6. Rudder: Present, Attached and Ready to Work?

Remember our earlier tour around the sailing dinghy?

The rudder is the blade at the back that allows us to steer.

It becomes rather more important once you actually leave the bank.

Check that:

• the rudder assembly is there;

• it is attached correctly;

• the tiller is secure;

• any retaining clip or fitting is engaged;

• the rudder can be lowered when required;

• nothing is tangled around it.

On shallow launching areas you may initially need the rudder raised.

What matters is knowing how and when it will be lowered.

A surprisingly poor time to investigate the rudder mechanism for the first time is when you are already drifting backwards away from the pontoon.

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7. Centreboard or Daggerboard: Don't Forget the Other Underwater Bit

The centreboard or daggerboard helps stop the boat sliding sideways through the water.

Again, you may need it raised while launching in shallow water.

But check that:

• it is actually in the boat;

• it moves properly;

• you know how to lower it;

• any retaining system is fitted correctly.

A beginner may concentrate so much on sails, sheets and steering that the centreboard is forgotten altogether.

The boat will still sail.

It just won't necessarily sail quite where you intended.

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8. Dress for the Water, Not Just the Car Park

This is an important one.

You arrive at the sailing club and it is 23°C.

The sun is shining.

You are warm walking across the boat park.

Therefore shorts and a T-shirt must be plenty.

Except you aren't going to spend the afternoon walking across the boat park.

You are going onto the water.

There may be wind chill.

You may get splashed.

You may capsize.

And the water can be considerably colder than the air.

Layers are useful because sailing conditions change.

Depending upon the time of year and type of sailing, suitable clothing might include:

• quick-drying layers;

• sailing waterproofs;

• wetsuit;

• spray top;

• hat;

• gloves;

• additional warm clothing ashore for afterwards.

Avoid relying on heavy cotton clothing which becomes cold and uncomfortable when soaked.

And don't forget sun protection.

Cold water and sunburn are perfectly capable of existing on the same afternoon.

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9. Why Cold Water Matters on a Warm Day

This is something beginners can easily underestimate.

The air can feel delightfully warm while the water remains cold enough to cause a very different reaction.

The RYA warns that cold-water shock is a genuine risk in water below 15°C. Sudden immersion can cause an involuntary gasp and rapid breathing, with the effects strongest immediately after entering the water.

That matters because your first instinct after unexpectedly falling into cold water may be to panic and immediately start swimming.

The better response is to let your buoyancy aid support you, protect your airway and regain control of your breathing.

The RYA notes that the initial effects usually settle after the first minute or two.

This is one reason wearing an appropriate buoyancy aid before launching is so important.

You cannot reliably predict when you might fall in.

And your swimming ability doesn't somehow switch off the body's automatic cold-water response.

The important lesson

Don't judge the temperature of the river by the temperature of the air.

Dress for the possibility that you might actually end up in the water.

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10. What Is on Your Feet?

Sailing barefoot can look wonderfully carefree in photographs.

It becomes rather less attractive when you step on:

• a fitting;

• a cleat;

• a stone;

• a sharp object;

• or something unpleasant hiding beneath the water beside the slipway.

You also need grip.

Smooth wet surfaces, pontoons and slipways can become surprisingly slippery.

Wear footwear which:

• stays securely on your feet;

• provides reasonable grip;

• protects your toes and soles;

• and can get wet.

Old loose flip-flops are generally better suited to sitting beside a swimming pool than controlling a sailing dinghy.

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11. Glasses, Phones and Everything Else That Doesn't Float

There is a useful rule around boats:

If something isn't attached to you or the boat, eventually it may attempt to become part of the river.

Glasses should ideally have a retaining strap.

Sunglasses too.

Phones need particular thought.

Putting an expensive smartphone into an ordinary trouser pocket and then climbing into a dinghy is an interesting form of financial risk-taking.

Use an appropriate waterproof case or pouch if you need to carry it.

Otherwise, consider whether it needs to come sailing at all.

The same applies to:

• keys;

• cameras;

• wallets;

• watches;

• loose hats.

Ask yourself:

What happens to this if I capsize?

If the answer is "it sinks" or "I buy another one", do something about it before launching.

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12. Where Exactly Are You Allowed to Sail?

This is easily overlooked.

You can see water.

You have a boat.

Surely you simply sail wherever you like?

Not necessarily.

A club may have:

• defined sailing areas;

• restrictions near locks or weirs;

• navigation channels;

• areas to avoid;

• particular turning points;

• rules about sailing beyond certain landmarks;

• restrictions for inexperienced sailors.

There may also be commercial traffic, rowing boats, paddleboards, canoes and motorboats sharing the water.

Before your first independent sail, know your boundaries.

Ask someone to physically point them out.

"You can sail from here to there."

That is much more useful than discovering afterwards that the little red buoy you sailed happily past actually meant something.

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My Five-Minute Pre-Launch Routine

You don't need a clipboard.

You don't need a laminated 47-page operating manual.

You simply need a routine.

I would reduce it to five questions.

1. ME

Buoyancy aid fitted?

Correct clothing?

Suitable footwear?

Glasses, phone and valuables secure?

2. WEATHER

Is the wind suitable for my ability?

Is anything significant approaching?

3. WATER

What is the current doing?

Are there any unusual river conditions or restrictions?

4. BOAT

Bung in?

Rudder fitted?

Centreboard fitted?

Rigging checked?

Nothing twisted, loose or obviously wrong?

5. PLAN

Where am I sailing?

Who knows I am going out?

Is safety cover operating?

How am I getting back in?

Five minutes.

Often considerably less.

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The Classic Beginner Launch

There is another reason for doing all this before launching.

Once the boat goes into the water, everything suddenly becomes more complicated.

Someone is holding the painter.

The boat is moving.

The wind catches the sail.

Somebody asks you to get aboard.

The rudder needs lowering.

The centreboard needs lowering.

Another boat wants to use the slipway.

Your instructor is giving instructions.

And this is normally the precise moment somebody announces:

"Has anyone put the bung in?"

It is much easier to solve problems while the boat is sitting peacefully on dry land.

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Don't Let a Checklist Replace Thinking

A checklist is useful.

But this lesson isn't really about remembering ten individual items.

It is about developing a much more valuable sailing habit:

Stop and look.

Look at yourself.

Look at the boat.

Look at the river.

Look at the sky.

Look at what the experienced sailors are doing.

If something doesn't feel right, ask.

Experienced sailors ask each other questions all the time.

Being safe doesn't mean knowing everything.

It means recognising when you don't know something and finding out before it becomes important.

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Your Practical Challenge

Before your next sail, don't immediately launch.

Stand beside the fully rigged boat and spend five minutes checking it.

Can you identify:

1. your correctly fitted buoyancy aid;

2. the bung;

3. rudder and tiller;

4. centreboard;

5. suitable clothing;

6. suitable footwear;

7. wind direction and approximate strength;

8. river conditions;

9. the sailing area;

10. the safety boat?

If you can do that without being prompted, you are already becoming a more competent sailor.

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Five Minutes That Make the Rest of the Day Better

One of the pleasures of learning to sail is that what initially looks complicated gradually becomes normal.

Rigging becomes normal.

Launching becomes normal.

Tacking becomes normal.

And so does safety.

You don't stand beside the boat trembling while completing a terrifying risk assessment.

You simply develop good habits.

Buoyancy aid. Weather. Water. Boat. Plan.

Check them.

Then launch.

Because the point of the five-minute safety check isn't to make you worry about everything that might happen.

It is to deal with the obvious things beforehand so that, once the boat leaves the bank, you can concentrate on the much more enjoyable business of learning to sail.

My name is Philip. I started sailing when I was 65. 

I joined a club and because my son had already been part of a club for many years - borrowing all types of boat. He knew what we needed and the type of boat I would require. 

So we did by an RS Toura - a virtually unsinkable dinghy which has given me the confidence to experiment and learn and take my RYA exams and become a competent sailor and then to move up to the boat of my dreams - the A-Rater.

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Next in the series

How Does a Sailing Boat Actually Sail?

Lesson 7: The First Bit of Sailing Theory You Really Need

The surprising thing about sailing isn't that a boat can sail downwind. It's that it can sail towards the wind at all.

Return to https://pmrsailing.uk/Lessons.html