Which end of the start line is better?

A start line is rarely exactly square to the wind. Then one end lies further upwind, and a boat that starts there is ahead. A two-minute video, with everything to read below.

The video as text

The question

At the start, many boats often crowd at one end of the line. Why there?

The skewed line

The start line runs between the committee boat and a buoy. After the start, the boats sail upwind to the first mark.

If the line is exactly square to the wind, neither end is better. All boats start equally far upwind.

But most lines are a little skewed. Then one end lies further upwind. That is the favoured end.

How much it is worth

A boat that starts at the favoured end is already further upwind at the start signal. It is ahead of the boats at the other end.

An example: the line is 100 metres long and 10 degrees skewed. Then the better end lies about 17 metres further upwind. That is more than seven Opti lengths.

How your child checks

How do you find the favoured end? Your child sails to the middle of the line, a little behind it. There, the child turns the bow straight into the wind until the sail flaps.

Now the child looks left and right at both ends. The end that lies more ahead of the bow is further upwind. That is the favoured end.

The wind indicator works too. Boat speed always turns it a little forward. So sail the line once in each direction, at the same speed. In which direction does it point further forward? That is where the favoured end lies.

Where the rule of thumb ends

The wind often shifts a little. So it pays to check again just before the start.

At the favoured end it gets crowded. The boats take each other's wind. And a boat that is boxed in cannot tack after the start.

A fast start in clear air a little further down is often worth more than a slow start in the crowd. And a boat in clear air can tack when the wind shifts.

Remember: in the middle of the line, turn the bow into the wind. The end that lies more ahead of the bow is favoured. Check again just before the start. And clear air is often more important than the better end.

This is sailing know-how, not a rule. You can read more in the exercise collection of the German Sailing Federation. Talk to your coach about it.

Sources (in German)

• German Sailing Federation (DSV), RTK exercise collection: Start – favoured end (in German)
• German Sailing Federation (DSV), RTK exercise collection: Start – sailing the start line, comparing the compass course along the line and head to wind (in German)
• German Sailing Federation (DSV): overview of the RTK exercise collection (in German)

Tactics is general sailing know-how; the racing rules do not say which end is better. The DSV exercises use a compass to compare the course along the line with the course head to wind. The video uses the same picture without a compass: with the bow in the wind, the favoured end lies more ahead of the bow. The wind indicator only works by comparison: while sailing it shows the apparent wind, which boat speed turns forward, often by more degrees than the line is skewed. Sailing the line in both directions at the same speed largely cancels this error out. The example: 100 metres times the sine of 10 degrees is 17.4 metres; an Opti is 2.31 metres long. The 17 metres are a lead in the wind direction; the distance actually sailed upwind is longer. Whether the favoured end is also the best place to start depends on wind shifts and the favoured side of the beat as well.

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