In the Heat of the Moment

Racing sailboats with multiple crew.
By Victor Jean Ouellette July 12, 2012

NOTE: This article is not for beginners so I am going to assume the reader understands the terminology. It is written for new crew working the foredeck.

This is the kind of lesson where it doesn’t matter how many times you read it or even memorize it, you will still make these mistakes in the future because it is human nature to make them.

The Scenario
AFTER the start, the wind changes. It is now apparent to the tactician that a jibe-set will be required at the upwind mark rounding. This likely is not anticipated by the rest of the crew especially if they are inexperienced. (See the other article on this site to learn how to guestimate that a jibe-set may be needed.)

The call is made to reset the spinnaker pole for a jibe-set. (Jibe the boat first, then set the sails.) I assume your boat is going around the course three times buoys to Port, and it is an off-set course with the two windward marks fairly close to each other.

The first time around may go just fine, and the second time around may also go just fine. But, the third time around there may be other issues that sneak in to cloud the strategy, like another boat very close for instance. If there is a single person calling the strategy then they may not call what they had originally planned on, and had already announced a bit earlier to the crew.

How’s that?? Why the abrupt change?

In the heat of the moment they may forget the original plan and go with a memorized reflex routine call when things get tense and tight. It is a mistake, yes, but it is human nature at work. Here is how that situation goes.

The Set-Up

• Race starts
• Wind changes direction (Recognised by the tactician on the upwind leg.)
• Jibe-set is needed at windward mark after the rounding
• Foredeck crew is learning but, know their jobs
• Call is made to set up for a Jibe-Set  (That means JIBE the boat FIRST, then set the sail.)
• Spinnaker pole is made-up on Port side spin sheet.
• First two times around the course go great, no problems
• On last rounding competition is right on your heel
• • In the HEAT of the MOMENT, at the point of the first mark rounding after laying off the tactician calls for POLE-UP. (The Mistake.)
  • The boat is on a starboard reach before the jibe.
    
  • Foredeck crew say to themselves “OH %$#T dang and unhook the pole from the Port sheet, and set it out on starboard as just ordered. They do this very fast and commendably. They say nothing, just get it done and done fast. (The second mistake from the boats point of view, but not from the foredeck crew’s point of view.)
  • 2 minutes later the tactician calls for the jibe-set at the second mark. Oopsie.... surprise, the pole is already up on starboard as just ordered. BIG $%#&* up now eh.

Analysing this Mistake
Boats are never going to get tacticians to NEVER make this mistake a second time because it is human nature to forget and then rely on past training and habits especially when things get very harry and fast decisions are necessary.

To solve the problem a boat needs foredeck-to-tactician talk. It is no good to just tell the tactician to remember not to do that again. Its no good to tell the foredeck about how a JIBE-SET goes. They already know that. Solving the problem requires experience, simple as that. On that order to hoist the spin pole the foredeck needs to say to the tactician “We are set for a Port hoist. Do you want to change that?” The tactician may take 5 seconds to click the brain over and then say “Oh, ya, don’t hoist yet.”

The problem is that inexperienced crew just tend to follow orders. Sometimes even experienced crew do that too. When the crew are ‘well-oiled’ there will be minimal talk-back and only at critical moments. So there is a balance to be found between too much talk among crew with actual arguments, and minimal talk about critical issues. That all takes experience to become that 'smart crew'. It is not good enough to expect other crew members to catch this error because they are all tending to their sail settings jobs during the rounding and layoff. They are very busy.

The Afterthought
There are two main times that come to mind right now when the brain seems to get overloaded on the race course. The first is when the wind picks up and becomes very strong. Lots of weather input is going into the brain at these times. The brain is also looking out for other boats that are screwing up.

The second time is when multiple events start to come very close together. At these times even experienced crew may not do what they have done successfully before a hundred times or more. In the heat of the moment the brain temporarily forgets things it already knows. The brain focusses on the moment at hand and the immediate immanent moments.

So, it may be said that it is unlikely that four brains are going to forget the same thing at the same time. However, in sailboat racing that is not unheard of either. Murphy's Laws, we must remember Murphy's Laws.

On a sailboat, in a race, we all live for improving our behaviour in the heat of the moment.

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