I have often heard the phrase "Tack On Headers" and supposedly this
tactic is used to help you recognise a shift. What I dont understand
is how much of a header is a HEADER ? I often notice when I'm being
knocked and if I sail on a little longer I may be lifted again so ask
myself was that a header I should've tacked on ? I often wait till I'm
nocked persistently e.g. compass heading changes so that I'm sailing a
persistently lower coarse and then tack but I feel like I've missed
the lift by this time. Should I just tack as soon as I notice the
header or wait a little to see how it plays out ? I would really
appreciate your opinions on this one.

Thanks,

Shawn.

On 10 Nov 2003 16:45:59 -0800, (Shawn
Marshall) wrote:

I have often heard the phrase "Tack On Headers" and supposedly this
tactic is used to help you recognise a shift. What I dont understand
is how much of a header is a HEADER ? I often notice when I'm being
knocked and if I sail on a little longer I may be lifted again so ask
myself was that a header I should've tacked on ? I often wait till I'm
nocked persistently e.g. compass heading changes so that I'm sailing a
persistently lower coarse and then tack but I feel like I've missed
the lift by this time. Should I just tack as soon as I notice the
header or wait a little to see how it plays out ? I would really
appreciate your opinions on this one.


You have asked a more complicated question than you intended. It
depends on a lot of things. If you can tack without loss, or nearly so
(like a 505, for example) you will want to react to much smaller
headers than you would if a tack is a big investment.

OTOH, sometimes a header is a (kinda sorta) stationary geographical
shift, like coming to a river bank. Then it may be advantageous to
sail into it for some distance, so you will stay in the (now lifted)
wind for more time.

If you have a small jib and big main, and you are in a tacking duel
with a boat with a small main and big genoa, you may be able to wear
down the crew on the other boat by tacking on every small shift.

HTH



Rodney Myrvaagnes NYC J36 Gjo/a


"Curse thee, thou quadrant. No longer will I guide my earthly way by thee." Capt. Ahab

"Rodney Myrvaagnes" wrote in message
...
On 10 Nov 2003 16:45:59 -0800, (Shawn
Marshall) wrote:

I have often heard the phrase "Tack On Headers" and supposedly this
tactic is used to help you recognise a shift. What I dont understand
is how much of a header is a HEADER ? I often notice when I'm being
knocked and if I sail on a little longer I may be lifted again so ask
myself was that a header I should've tacked on ? I often wait till I'm
nocked persistently e.g. compass heading changes so that I'm sailing a
persistently lower coarse and then tack but I feel like I've missed
the lift by this time. Should I just tack as soon as I notice the
header or wait a little to see how it plays out ? I would really
appreciate your opinions on this one.


You have asked a more complicated question than you intended. It
depends on a lot of things. If you can tack without loss, or nearly so
(like a 505, for example) you will want to react to much smaller
headers than you would if a tack is a big investment.

OTOH, sometimes a header is a (kinda sorta) stationary geographical
shift, like coming to a river bank. Then it may be advantageous to
sail into it for some distance, so you will stay in the (now lifted)
wind for more time.

If you have a small jib and big main, and you are in a tacking duel
with a boat with a small main and big genoa, you may be able to wear
down the crew on the other boat by tacking on every small shift.

HTH

Rodney Myrvaagnes NYC
J36 Gjo/a

....and if you do decide to tack on headers you have to make sure
you differentiate wind speed changes from direction changes and
you want to have developed a sense of the timing/pattern of the
headers so you don't tack on the very small ones. Figure out how many
boatlengths a tack will cost you, how big the headers are, and how long the
header has to persist for to make up that # of boatlengths by tacking.

In a nice oscillating breeze (something that only exists on paper) you want
to aim for the mid-point of the shift...say its a 20 degree range. When you
start
to get headed you're "up 10". Wait till you lose these 10 (at which point
you're even)
and then tack, otherwise if you tack as soon as "the header hits" you'll be
down
20 for the 1st 1/2 of the oscillation.

Shawn Marshall wrote:

I have often heard the phrase "Tack On Headers" and supposedly this
tactic is used to help you recognise a shift.

I think you have it backwards. First you have to recognize a shift and
*then* tack, if appropriate. If you're really good, you'll see the
header coming and tack before it gets to you.


What I dont understand is how much of a header is a HEADER ?
I often notice when I'm being knocked and if I sail on a little
longer I may be lifted again so ask myself was that a header I
should've tacked on ?

Wind shifts are often temporary with the wind immediately shifting back
to where it was a moment ago. These short shifts aren't usually worth
tacking on, unless they're of a long enough duration and you're good
enough to tack twice and come out ahead.

What you really don't want to do is sail through a header, then tack
just as the wind is shifting back so that you tack from header to
header.


I often wait till I'm
nocked persistently e.g. compass heading changes so that I'm sailing a
persistently lower coarse and then tack but I feel like I've missed
the lift by this time. Should I just tack as soon as I notice the
header or wait a little to see how it plays out ? I would really
appreciate your opinions on this one.

Look upwind, try to figure out what's coming and act accordingly. If
it's a short oscilation, ride it out. If it looks like it will last
long enough to be worth tacking, tack as it arrives or before. Note
that this isn't as easy as it sounds.


--
//-Walt
//
//

$author = "Walt " ;

I think you have it backwards. First you have to recognize a shift and
*then* tack, if appropriate. If you're really good, you'll see the
header coming and tack before it gets to you.

Actually, it pays to sail a little into the knock before tacking. Granted
you still need to assess whether the shift is persistent enough to tack on,
but it pays to hold off on the tack until you have seen at least 50% of the
heading change.

cheers
Marty

Martin wrote:
$author = "Walt " ;

I think you have it backwards. First you have to recognize a shift and
*then* tack, if appropriate. If you're really good, you'll see the
header coming and tack before it gets to you.

Actually, it pays to sail a little into the knock before tacking. Granted
you still need to assess whether the shift is persistent enough to tack on,
but it pays to hold off on the tack until you have seen at least 50% of the
heading change.

This depends on the conditions and the boats. I mostly sail dinghys on
inland lakes where a "header" might be a puff that comes with a 20 or 30
degree change in direction, increases the windspeed by a factor of two,
and lasts all of ten seconds. If you wait till it arrives to tack,
you've missed it.

Bigger boats, more steady wind, and you're probably right.

--
//-Walt
//
//

It's a good question. I once took a tactics course where the
instructors spent about half the course trying to beat "tack on
headers" out of our heads and replace it with "always be on the
favored tack"

Another way to answer: "When is a header big enough to tack on?" is
"When it's big enough to put you on the unfavored tack."

Of course the question is which tack is favored. Another poster
mentioned that the perfect oscillating breeze exists only on paper,
but it's a good clean case from which to work out the general
principle, which you can then modify to cover persistent shifts and
random breezes.

Let's say it's oscillating between 230 and 270, and the mark bears 250
from the starting line. Any time the wind is less than 250, port tack
is favored. Any time the wind is greater than 250, starboard is
favored. (so long as you stay out of the corners!) Lets say your boat
tacks through 90 degrees. So you're sailing along on starboard tack
and your compass reads 225, meaning the wind is coming out of 270.
Now comes a header and your compass reads 220. Now 215, now 210. Your
crew is screaming "Cap'n, we've been headed 15 degrees, when are we
gonna tack?"

You answer "Yes, we've been headed 15 degrees. We used to be on the
favored tack by 20 degrees, now we're only on the favored tack by 5
degrees, but we're still on the favored tack. When our course goes
below 205, *then* we'll tack.




(Shawn Marshall) wrote in message . com...
I have often heard the phrase "Tack On Headers" and supposedly this
tactic is used to help you recognise a shift. What I dont understand
is how much of a header is a HEADER ? I often notice when I'm being
knocked and if I sail on a little longer I may be lifted again so ask
myself was that a header I should've tacked on ? I often wait till I'm
nocked persistently e.g. compass heading changes so that I'm sailing a
persistently lower coarse and then tack but I feel like I've missed
the lift by this time. Should I just tack as soon as I notice the
header or wait a little to see how it plays out ? I would really
appreciate your opinions on this one.

Thanks,

Shawn.