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Sailing Glossary
Abeam: Direction at a right angle to the centerline of the boat.
About: Across the wind in relation to the bow. When a sailboat tacks into the wind to bring it from one side to the other, she is said to go about.
Adrift: Floating free. A boat which can not move by its own power.
Aft: Toward the back of the boat
Alee: Away from the direction of the wind.
Aloft: Above the deck, overhead on the mast or in the rigging.
Amidships: The middle area of the boat.
Angle of attack: The angle of a sail in relation to the direction of the wind.
Angle of Heel: The degree of list a vessel has when underway.
Apparent wind: The difference between natural and movement generated wind.
Aspect Ratio: The relationship between the sails height (luff ) and length along the foot.-high aspect ratio means a sail that is tall and narrow, low aspect ratio is a short, wide sail.
Astern: Backwards, somewhere behind the vessel, or towards or behind the stern.
Athwartships: Across the boat from side to side.
B
Back stay: A cable supporting the mast, from stern to the top of the mast.
Bad air: The turbulent or disturbed air that exists to the leeward of a boat under sail.
Bale:A fitting on the end of a spar, such as the boom, to which a line may be led.
Ballast: Weight below decks that keeps the boat upright.
Barging: An attempt by a boat to squeeze in causing another boat to have to react to avoid a colission.
Battens: Strips of wood or other materials used to support a sail or sail area.
Batten Down: Secure hatches and loose objects for approaching bad weather.
Beam: The widest dimension of a boat's hull.
Beam Reach: A point of sail where the boat is sailing at a right angle to the wind (wind coming from abeam).
Bear off: Steer away from the wind, shore or object. To steer a new course further off the wind.
Beat (also) Beating: To sail towards the wind by making a series of tacks. -Sailing close hauled.
Below: Beneath the decks, i.e., inside a cabin or in a hold.
Bilge: Hull area between the keel and the boats sides.
Bitter End: The last part of a rope or final link of chain. The end made fast to the vessel, as opposed to the "working end", which may be attached to an anchor, cleat, other vessel, etc.
Blow a halyard: To simply let a halyard run free when dousing a sail.
Boat: Generic name for all water vessels. A boat is a small open vessel, compared to a ship that has decks and cabins.
Boom: A pole running at a right angle from the mast supporting the sails foot.
Boom vang: A device used to keep the boom from rising.
Bosun's Chair: A seat attached to a halyard to raise and lower someone to work on the mast.
Bow: The front area of a boat.
Bow Line: A docking line leading from the bow.
Bowline: A knot use to form an eye or loop at the end of a rope.
Breakers: Waves breaking over rocks or shoals. A wave that approaches shallow water, causing the wave height to exceed the depth of the water it is in, causing a cresting wave with water tumbling down the front of it.
Brightwork: Varnished woodwork and/or polished metal.
Bring About: To reverse or change directions, to turn around.
Broach: The turning of a boat out of control, broadside to the wind or waves.
Broad Reach: A point of sail where the boat is sailing away from the wind, but not directly downwind with the sails let out nearly all the way.
Bulkhead: A watertight vertical partition or wall which separates different compartments and adds strength to the hull.
Bubble: The effect created by easing a sail so the leading edge is blown slightly to windward without blogging. Used to decrease power without reefing
Buoy: A floating anchored object used to mark the navigable limits of channels, sunken dangers, isolated rocks, etc.
By the Lee: Sailing downwind with the wind blowing over the leeward side of the boat.
C
Cabin sole: The teak and holly floorboards down below.
Camber: The curvature of an object such as a sail, keel or deck.
Capsize: When a boat is turned over.
Captain: The person in charge of a vessel and responsible for it and its occupants.
Catamaran: A twin hulled boat.
Catboat: A sailboat rigged with one mast and one sail.
Caulking: Forcing material such as oakum into the seams of planks on a deck or a boats sides to make them watertight.
Centre line: Imaginary line running the length of a boat at the centre.
Chain plate: Attachment of shrouds to hull.
Chop: Small, steep chaotic waves.
Cleat: A fitting to which lines are made fast.
Clew: For a triangular sail, the aftmost corner.
Close hauled: Sailing on-the-wind, on a beat.
Close reach: Sailing betwween a beam reach and close hauled
Coamings: Built up sides around the cockpit that prevent water from coming in.
Come About: To change tack when sailing windward.
Cunningham: Line that pulls down on the mainsail near the tack to adjust the sail shape.
D
Dead Ahead: A position directly in front of the vessel.
Dead Astern: A position directly aft or behind the vessel. Deadhead: A floating log.
Deck: A covering over a compartment, hull or any part of a ship serving as a floor.
Distance Made Good: Distance traveled after correction for current, leeway and other errors not included in the original distance measurement.
Down haul: Adjusting the tension of a sail's luff.
Down wind: The direction the wind is blowing to.
Draft: Distance between the waterline and the lowest part of the keel or hull. -The amount of bend in a sail's shape.
Driver: The one steering the boat.
E
Ease the sheets: To let a small amount of line out on a jib or the main to get propper shape.
Ebb tide: A receding tide.
Even keel: When a boat is floats evenly to its waterline, well balanced.
Eye splice: (knots) Braiding the end of a line into itself to form a loop.
Eye of the wind: The direction that the wind is blowing from.
F
Fairlead: A fitting that a line passes through to guide it in a particular direction.
Fall Off: To change direction so as to point farther away from the wind.
Fathom: A unit of measurement relating to the depth of water or to the length of line. -one fathom is 6 feet or 1.83 meters.
Fid: A pointed tool used to separate strands of rope.
Floor: A major structual member on a boat that goes across the boat from side to side. These support the cabin sole.
Flotsam: Debris floating on the water surface.
Following Sea: An overtaking sea (wind and waves) that comes from astern.
Foot off: Change direction to point further from the wind and make sail adjustments for greater speed.
Foreward: Toward the front of the boat.
Fore-and-aft: Direction of centerline of boat
Frames: Structural pieces that the hull planks are attached to that run from the deck to the keel.
Furl: To fold or roll a sail and secure it to its main support.
G
Genoa: A large foresail or jib that overlaps the mainsail.
Give-Way: To yield the right of way to another boat.
(GPS) Global Positioning System: Method of using satellite signals to fix a position.
Gooseneck: The fitting that connects the boom to the mast.
Guy: Controls sail to weather, analogous to sheet controlling sail to leeward, used with spinnaker or poled jib.
Gybe: To change tack, sailing downwind with the wind crossing the transom instead of the bow as in a tack (also Jibe)
H
Halyard: A line that hauls a yard.
Hanks: Rings or clips used to attach sails to stays.
Harden up: Change direction to point closer to the wind, probably also adjust sails.
Header: An unfavorable windshift that causes the wind to be closer to the bow so that you have to fall off or harden up.
Head Down: To fall off, changing course away from the wind.
Head to Wind: Where the boat is pointed directly into the wind, sails luffing. (Papoose will not do this).
Head Up: Change direction to point closer to the wind. The opposite of falling off.
Headsail: A sail set forward of the foremast on the headstay.
Headstay: The stay leading from the mast to the bow.
Heading: The direction the boat is going.
Heave To: To stop a boat and maintain position by balancing rudder and sail to prevent forward movement.
Heavy Seas: When the water has large or breaking waves.
Heel: Leaning of a boat to one side in response to the wind.
Helm: The boat's directional controls, tiller or wheel of a boat.
Helmsman: The one at the helm.
Hike: Leaning out over the side of the boat to counteract heel.
Hull: The body, or shell of a boat.
Hull Speed: The maximum speed a hull can achieve.
I
In Irons: A sailboat with its bow pointed directly into the wind, preventing the sails from filling properly and stopping the boat.
J
Jam Cleat: A cleat designed to hold a line in place without slipping. -It consists of two narrowing jaws with teeth in which the line is placed.
Jenny: A genoa jib. A large jib that overlaps the mast, also Genny.
Jetsam: Anything deliberately thrown overboard - debris, jettisoned items, floating at sea.
Jib: A triangular sail mounted on a stay from the stem or bowsprit to the mast.
Jib Car: A block that is mounted on a track on the deck of a sailboat. The jib sheet goes through one or more jib cars then to the winch.
K
Keel: The very bottom edge of a boat, the structural member that the hull is built on.
Ketch: A sailboat with two masts, a shorter mizzen mast is aft of the main mast.
Knockdown: To be capsized by the wind or waves.
Knot: A speed of one nautical mile (6,076 feet or or 1,852 meters) per hour. - A method of attaching a rope or line to itself, another line or a fitting.
L
Latitude: North or south distance from equator measured in degrees 0 to 90.
Layline: Up wind line for beating to the weather mark without pinching.
Leach: The aft edge of a fore-and-aft sail.
Leeward: The direction the wind is going, downwind. Opposite side of windward.
Leeward Mark: The mark at the end of the running leg of a windward-leeward racecourse, or following the second of two reaching legs on a triangle racecourse.
Leeway: Distance a boat drifts off course due to wind.
Lee mark: A mark that is down wind.
Lee rail: The boat rail on the down wind side of the boat. The low rail.
Lee Shore: Land which is on the leeward side of the boat. A potential danger because the wind will be blowing the boat towards it.
Leg: The portion of a racecourse between two marks.
Lift: A windshift that is favorable so that a higher course can be taken or the sheets can be eased.
Longitude: West or east distance from 0 meridian measured in degrees 0 to 180.
Luff: The forward edge of a fore-and-aft sail.
Luffing: To head into the wind, causing sails to flap and flutter.
M
Main sail: (mainsl') The largest sail on a multiple sail boat.
Main sheet: Line that controls the position of the mainsail.
Make Fast: To attach a line to something so that it will not move.
Make Way: Moving through the water.
Mark: A permanent or movable buoy at the end of a leg or a turning point on a racecourse.
Mast: The vertical pole or spar that supports the boom and sails.
Mast Head : The top of the mast.
Mast Step : The fitting in the bottom of the boat in which the bottom or heel of the mast sits.
N
Nautical: Of sailors or navigation.
Nautical mile: About 6076 feet, aka one minute of Latitude.
O
Off the Wind: Sailing with the wind coming from the stern or quarter of the boat.
On the Wind: Sailing close hauled. Sailing toward the wind as much as possible with the wind coming from the bow.
One-design: Any boat built to certain standards or rules so that is like all others in the same class.
Outhaul: An adjuster that tensions the sail's foot.
Overlap: A condition in which a portion of a boat is abeam of any portion of another boat. A boat has overlap if looking directly sideways from the bow there is another boat. If you have overlap, you cannot turn without hitting the other boat (loosly stated).
Overstanding the mark: Sailing beyond the layline. Usually a bad thing.
P
Pinch: to sail closer to the wind than one's usual close-haulled course, sacrificing speed in an effore to gain distance to windward usually to avoid a pair of tacks.
Planning: A boats ability to lift up from the water by diverting water under its hull.
Points of sail: From into the wind to downwind -- In irons, pinching, close hauled, close reach, beam reach, broad reach, running.
Port: The left side of the boat when you are looking forward.
Port tack: When the wind is coming from the port side of the boat and the boom is on the starboard side.
Point of sail: The angled position a sail is held to the wind.
Polar diagram: A diagram showing a boat's speed at different angles of sail in different wind strengths. Useful to determine target speed for any given wind speed.
Preventer: Line to prevent boom from gybing.
Proper course: The course a boat would sail to finish as fast as possible in the absence of other boats; the most direct course to the next mark.
R
Reaching: Sailing across the wind, with the wind on the side of the boat.
Reefing: Reducing the amount of sail area.
Rhumbline: The straight line course from one point to another. As the crow flys.
Rig: The arrangement of a boat's mast, sails and spars.
Rigging: The cables and lines that support or control a boat's rig.
Roach: A curvature in the leach of a sail.
Rudder: Underwater part of a boat used for steering.
Running: Sailing with the wind blowing from astern. Sailing downwind.
Running rigging: Halyards, sheets, guys; not permanent rigging
S
Sailing by-the-lee: Sailing with the wind on the wrong side of the boom. This is dangerous and can result in an accidental gybe.
Scallop course: An irregular course that the helmsman steers to maximize overall speed. Alternates between heading off for speed and pinching for position.
Seamanlike rounding: Rounding a mark as close as possible, as opposed to a tactical rounding.
Sheet: Ropes that control the sail position.
Shoal: Shallow areas of water.
Shroud: Standing rigging to support the mast side-to-side
Spar: The term for a mast, boom or gaff.
Spreaders: Arms extending from the mast supporting shrouds (supporting cables).
Standing rigging: Permanent or semi-permanent rigging that supports the mast
Stand-On: To hold a boats course and speed.
Starboard: The right side of the boat when you are looking forward.
Starboard Tack: When the wind is coming from the starboard side of the boat and the boom is on the port side.
Stays: Standing rigging that supports the mast fore-and-aft.
Stem: The tip of the bow.
Stern: The back end of a boat.
T
Tack: To change direction from a port tack to a starboard tack or visa versa
Tack (when referring to the jib or the main sails): The forward lower corner of a sail.
Tactical rounding: A rounding of a mark where the boat stays a couple of boatlengths wide on one side of the mark so as to maintain boatspeed.
Telltails: Light pieces of yarn attached to a sail that indicate how the wind is flowing along the sail's surface.
Toe Rail: A low rail around the outer edge of the deck.
Transom: The wide area at the very back of a boat spanning between its sides.
Trim: To adjust the sails to make the most of the wind.
Target speed: Based on the polar diagram, the speed the boat travels when making maximum VMG.
True wind: The actual direction from which the wind is blowing.
U
Upwind: The direction the wind is coming from.
V
VMG: Velocity made good. The speed of the boat toward the mark as opposed to the speed toward where it is heading.
W
Wake: Moving waves, that a boat leaves behind it, when moving through water.
Waterline: Where the waters surface meets the hulls side.
Windward mark: The mark at the end of the windward leg of the racecourse.
Weather mark: The mark that is to weather on a racecourse.
Weather rail: The boat rail on the up wind side of the boat. The higher rail.
Windward: The direction the wind is coming from, upwind.
Work Boat: A boat used for earning a living.
Y
Z
Jib Trim |
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Knots
There are hundreds of kinds on knots that can be used on sailboats but you
can do almost anything by learning six basic ones.
Reef Knot (Square Knot) - The reef knot is useful for Sail ties when
reefing or furling the Sail. To tie this knot follow the steps in the illustrations
from left to right.
Round Turn and 2 Half Hitches - This knot can be used almost any time
you want to tie something to something else. It is often used to tie fenders
to a stanchion or lifeline. Although it won't keep a line from slipping on a
spar it stay tied even when jiggled. To tie this knot follow the steps in the
illustrations from left to right.
Bowline - The bowline, called the king of knots, is used to tie an eye
onto the end on a line. It is used for attaching the jib sheets to the jib.
A correctiy made bowline is very secure, yet easy to untie. To tie this knot
follow the steps in the illustrations from left to right.
Figure Eight - This knot is useftil as a stopper knot. Stoppers or put
on the end of sheets to keep them from running through the fairleads. To tie
this knot follow the steps in the illustrations from left to right.
Clove Hitch - The clove hitch is good for tying lines around solid objects.
One use is in tying the tiller up to the main sheet. It may come undone if jiggled.
To tie this knot follow the steps in the illustrations from left to right.
Sheet Bend - The sheet bend is used to tie two lines together, end to
end. It is meant to be used when the lines are about the same size. If lines
are very different or are slippery a double sheet bend is recommended. To tie
this knot follow the steps in the illustrations from left to right.
Cleat Hitch - The cleat hitch is the way a line is secured to a deck
cleat. To tie this knot follow the steps in the illustrations from left to right.
RIGHT OF WAY RULES
Whenever two boats try to occupy the same water at the same time, a right of way situation exists. When this happens, one boat is obligated to give way to the other. The boat that is supposed to give way is Called the give way vessel and the other one is called the stand on vessel The stand on vessel should keep to its course so the skipper of the give way vessel can get out of the way without collision. There are specific rules to use in determining which vessel is which.
Motor vs. Sail: A motor boat is any vessel using an engine regardless of whether it is a sailboat or a motorboat. A sailboat is considered to be a motorboat even if the SailS are up as long as the engine is running. A sailboat that is sailing generally has the right of way over motorboats. But there are some exceptions.
- Large motor vessels are given the right of way in channels where it is difficult for them to maneuver. In the case of ships, the whole San Francisco Bay is considered to be channeled so that ships always have right of way in the Bay.
- In narrow channels such as Redwood Creek, motor vessels as small as 65 feet may be limited in maneuverability enough to make them the "stand on" vessel.
- Motor vessels that are restricted in maneuverability due to the special job they are doing are "stand on" This could be anything from towing nets to dredging, pile driving, or tending buoys.
- Motor vessels don't have to give way to sail boats that are motoring when the rules for motorboats give the motor vessel right of way. (When motoring, a sailboat is treated like any other motorboat.
- If a motor vessel is experiencing some kind of difficulty restricting its maneuverability, it is given right of way.
- If a sailboat is overtaking a power boat, the power boat has the right of way.
Head On - When two motor boats approach each other head on, both boats turn to the right and pass each other port to port.
Crossing - When motor boats paths cross, the boat on the other's right is stand on and the one on the other's left is the give way boat This is like two cars coming to a 4-way stop except that a give way boat would alter course to go behind the other boat
Sailboats When encountering sailboats that are sailing, motorboats generally should give way. If you are motoring in a sailboat, you should give way to sailboats that are sailing.
Rules for Sailboats
Port Tack vs. Starboard Tack
Anytime Two Sailboats Are On Opposite Tacks - The Boat On Starboard Tack
Has The Right Of Way
Windward vs. Leeward
Anytime Sailboats Are on the Same Tack The Boat Most To Leeward Has Right
of Way
Overtaking - The overtaking vessel should give way regardless of tack
or whether sailing or motoring. The notable exception to this rule is in the
case of large vessels that are confined to the channel due to draft. Even at
minimum speed, ships usually move faster than sailboats, therefore you should
keep an eye out behind your boat as well as ahead.
Overtaking Vessels
Overtaking Boats Give Way to Boats Being Overtaken
General Rules - Whenever there is a risk of
collision and it appears that the give way boat is not taking appropriate action,
it is the duty of the stand on boat to avoid the collision by altering course.
Having the right of way is a poor excuse for having a collision - alterations
in course to avoid a collision should be made obvious enough so that the other
skipper can see what you are doing. Sometimes you can tell if you are on a collision
course by the compass bearing to the other vessel. If the bearing remains steady,
collision is imminent unless someone changes course.
Sometimes it is difficult to see in all directions on a sailboat, especially
when sailing close hauled. The jib can block 25% of view from the cockpit. The
area of obstruction occurs on the leeward side from straight ahead to abeam.
It just so happens that when you are close hauled or close reaching, sailboats
close hauled or close reaching on the opposite tack will remain within this
blind spot sometimes right until the time of collision. It's important to have
a crew member keep an eye out to leeward when ever the jib obstructs your view.
Rules of Racing
Wikipedia Rules of Racing with good chart of signal flagsThe real rules of racing RRS
Signal Flags
The actual flags
Using a Whisker Pole
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