Dos and Donts from Michael Blackburn

Michael Blackburn's Sailing Mind Skills Audio CD © Rooster Sailing

Steve Cockerill analyses one chapter of Michael Blackburn's Sailing Mind Skills CD and gets some inside information from Michael himself.

I have listened to Michael Blackburn's Mind Skills CD on and off for a couple of years. Apart from its ability to help you get in the right frame of mind when tackling competitions or difficult windy or light conditions, Michael has also recorded a list of Do's and Don'ts in the last short chapter of the CD which I always find fascinating and thought provoking. Note there are 14 chapters on the CD - and they are highly recommended.

Here they are together with my thoughts in italics and where applicable with Michael's own extra explanation.

When in doubt:

• DO position yourself between the next mark and your opposition - an honest basic rule that works upwind and downwind - especially when in doubt
• DO cross ahead of other boats - it might be your only chance to cross them when either offwind or upwind, at least then you can put yourself between the next mark and their boat
• DO gybe - sometimes you think that the boat has started to slow down. Doubt creeps in, perhaps I should gybe
• DO apply dirty air to other boats - not my philosophy really - unless its the boat that I have to beat
• DO let it out - mainsheet outhaul vang - if you don't change the settings - you may never know if its better, but this is particularly true with the sail - letting out the mainsheet is often quicker than holding it in, letting out the sail controls also help you power up when in doubt
• DO obtain an inside overlap - rounding on the inside gives you so many more options; better to drop one place but round inside than risk being outside a boat
• DO tack inside boats that are close to the layline early on a beat - you will be the winner once the expected header kicks in. If you don't tack, you risk having no tactical options and sailing along the layline on a long header
• DO exhaust your lead to keep it - an example - you may look like you are in a large lead on the left in a big left shift. Pinching may make you look great for a while, but your lead can turn into a loss if the wind goes back to the right shift. This DO would mean when in the lead - foot off to cross the middle of the fleet and gain a smaller but more defendable distance in front of the fleet, ready for when the shift goes back to the right
• DO tack parallel to the majority of the fleet - can they all be wrong (this is if you are in doubt)
• DO keep to the right of close competition when sailing upwind and left downwind so you have the advantage of starboard tack - Your close competition will find it harder to cross you on Port than on Starboard

For all the DO's and Don'ts together with Michael Blackburn's personal insight... read more

All original words by kind permission of Michael Blackburn.