| When you are learning to sail, the first thing you will | | | | therefore comes as no surprise that we have our |
| notice is that it is full of confusing terminology. For the | | | | own names to refer to these directions. Windward |
| beginner it can be quite overwhelming, but everyone | | | | therefore refers to the direction in which the wind is |
| has to start somewhere, even British Olympic heroes | | | | blowing, and leeward the direction opposite the way |
| such as Ben Ainslie or Sarah Ayton. So if you don't | | | | the wind is blowing. People tend to confuse these quite |
| know your sheets from your booms, or your port from | | | | a bit to start with, so don't worry if it takes a while to |
| your starboard, here are some definitions of some of | | | | remember them. |
| the most common sailing terms. | | | | The Boom, the Rudder and Sheets |
| The Bow and the Aft | | | | These are all objects found within a sailing boat. The |
| The bow is the name given to the forward part of the | | | | boom refers to the horizontal pole that connects to the |
| boat, and the aft is the name given to the back half. | | | | foot of the sail. It moves from side to side to harness |
| However, the aft is slightly more problematic because | | | | the power of the wind, and can be quite dangerous if |
| it is also known as the stern. The bow is important to | | | | the sailor is not paying attention to it. The rudder is the |
| know because its location directly relates to two of | | | | flat piece of plastic or wood that is positioned under |
| the most important terms in sailing: port and starboard. | | | | the boat, and is responsible for steering. It is controlled |
| Port and Starboard | | | | with a sheet, which is the name given to any rope that |
| Port refers to the left-hand side of the boat when you | | | | is used to control either the boom, the sail or the |
| are looking forward towards the bow. Starboard is the | | | | rudder. Sheets also have different names according to |
| opposite, referring to the right-hand side of the boat. | | | | their role, but we won't go into that here. |
| Beginner sailors often think that it would be easier to | | | | Tacking and Jibing |
| use 'left' and 'right', but these could refer to something | | | | These are two of the most common maneuvers in |
| else whilst out on the water and become confusing. It | | | | sailing. Tacking is accomplished by turning the bow |
| is important to know these two terms because many | | | | through the wind, allowing the wind to change from |
| sailing rules regarding the rights of way that oncoming | | | | one side of the boat to the other, and the boat moves |
| boats have refer to them. One common way to | | | | towards an upwind location in a zig-zag manner. Jibing |
| remember them is that 'port' has the same amount of | | | | is essentially the opposite of this, and involves turning |
| letters as 'left', but they will soon roll off the tongue | | | | the stern of the boat through the wind in order to |
| easily. | | | | travel downwind. However, the maneuver is often a lot |
| Windward and Leeward | | | | quicker and less controlled than tacking, and the |
| As you will already know, sailing is intricately linked to | | | | quick-moving boom can make it more dangerous. |
| the wind and what direction it is coming from. It | | | | |