BOAT-COMPARATOR Guide

Tacking: Mastering the Basic Manoeuvre on a Charter Sailboat

Calls, the helm’s role, working the genoa across, the mistakes that stall the boat: sailing’s fundamental manoeuvre explained for a charter crew.

There is no sailing upwind without it: the tack is THE basic manoeuvre of sailing, the one a charter crew repeats dozens of times a week. Done well, it happens smoothly and without a shout; botched, it leaves the boat parked head to wind with the genoa backed. Here is the method, station by station.

Tack or gybe: do not confuse them

A tack takes the bow through the eye of the wind: the sails deflate during the turn and the boom crosses gently. A gybe takes the stern through the wind with the boom loaded — a far more delicate manoeuvre with its own guide: boom strikes and gybing. When the wind rises, you tack; you only gybe deliberately and prepared.

Preparation: one call, two sheets

The helm calls “Ready about?”; the crew checks that the leeward genoa sheet is ready to be cast off, that the other sheet has two or three turns on its winch, and answers “Ready”. Check visually that the area is clear — a tack is a decisive course change, and the right-of-way rules still apply. Speed first: a slow sailboat will not tack; if needed, bear away a few degrees to reload the sails before starting the manoeuvre.

Execution: decisive at the helm, precise on the sheets

The helm calls “Tacking” and puts the rudder over firmly, without brutality. When the genoa starts to flog, the crew casts off the leeward sheet completely, lets the sail cross, then hauls in on the new side — first hand over hand while the sail is depowered, then on the winch for the last inches. The helm stops the turn on the new close-hauled course, without bearing away too low. The mainsail mostly looks after itself: the traveller may need a touch, nothing more. On a boat with an autopilot, an auto-tack function exists — our autopilot guide explains its limits.

The three classic failures

Getting caught in irons: too slow, too much chop, too timid at the helm — the boat stops head to wind. Reload the sails by bearing away on the original tack and start again with speed. The backed genoa: sheet released too late, the sail plasters against the forestay and the boat refuses to finish its turn; cast off completely and the boat will bear away on its own. The winch override: the sheet rides over itself on the drum and jams under full load — best prevented by keeping tension on the sheet while hauling in. Hands stay clear of the winch turns: sailing-injury research, such as the survey by Nathanson, Baird and Mello published in 2010 in Wilderness & Environmental Medicine, ranks sheet handling and cockpit falls among the leading causes of injury on board (see the study on Google Scholar).

Practising intelligently

Use an afternoon of moderate breeze to string five or six tacks together, rotating roles: everyone should be able to handle both helm and sheets. Complete the skillset with our guides to reefing, trimming the furling genoa and the essential knots — the trio that, with the tack, covers most of a successful charter week.

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