Championship Tactics: How Anyone Can Sail Faster, Smarter, and Win Races

Championship Tactics is the tactical manual for the racing sailor. This comprehensive volume contains lessons from decades of world-class competition. Gary Jobson was a collegiate champion and raced in three Americas Cup campaigns twice as Ted Turners tactician and once with Tom Blackaller. Tom Whidden called the tactics in three of the Americas Cup matches he sailed with Dennis Conner. Now the authors have put experience gained at the top in a format that racers of single-handed dinghies or maxi boats can use. Championship Tactics melds expert advice with a rich collection of anecdotes from the greatest races of our time. The book also contains well-diagrammed professional secrets (there are over 150 illustrations) that even the Wednesday-night club racer will enjoy. Topics include: starts and finishes; upwind reaching and downwind legs; mark roundings; steering; handling varied winds and waves; boat speed; tactical electronic instruments; the psychology of racing; key racing rules; and protests. "Local knowledge" of racing conditions from Long Beach to Long Island has been gleaned from a survey of regional experts. The book also covers how to gather vital information on conditions before a race and how to record what youve learned. The result is the most complete guide of its kind by sailors ideally equipped to reveal state-of-the-art techniques.