Starting in the middle of a long line, everyone around me thought they were on the line at the gun, but we were all a length or two back — how do you know where the line really is when you can't see either end?
In the middle of a long line nobody can see the ends, so the whole middle hangs back — the mid-line sag. Use a transit: before the start, look along the line from the committee boat end, through the pin, to something on the shore behind it, like a tree. During the start, when the pin covers the tree, you're on the line; if you can see the tree beside it, you're not. Then you start on the gun while the boats either side of you start nearly two lengths behind.
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<p><a href="https://sailing.kiwi.nz/v/x-juUkgXjCI/">Source: Sailing Kiwi</a></p>Go deeper: books and gear
- Ronstan Clear Start race timer — A countdown timer made for sailing starts.
- The Rules in Practice 2025-2028 by Bryan Willis — Situations round the racecourse, worked through for the current rules.
- Tactics Made Simple by Jon Emmett — Racing tactics, explained simply.
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