15 Things a Crew Should Do Pre-Start

For the longest time I was under the impression that there wasn’t much for a crew to do before the start. However, bit-by-bit little things started falling together and eventually I realized (and I know this sounds corny) that the process of preparing for a race was just as important as the race itself.

The most important thing to do is whatever makes you and your skipper feel confident or lucky for the next race. Preparing for the next race is the best time that superstition comes in handy. Other than looking over the boat, it also helps me to visualize some of the most basic things I’ll need to remember in the next race and reflect on the last race(s). Sometimes it helps to get into the routine of reviewing with the skipper the good or bad things of the previous race before each start.

It’s hard to be focused for an entire day, so between races is also a good time to take a mental break. What follows are 15 things that don’t necessarily need to always happen, but they are generally what cross my mind before a race whether I act on it or not. Keep in mind that I’m the type of person who includes “Things I’ve Already Done” on my “To Do” lists for the thrill of crossing them off, so some of this may be redundant or obvious.  Hopefully there are some new pointers here, but ultimately my ethic is about having a very complete list that can be done before each start even if you’re short on time.

  1. Jib Sheets. Make sure that they don’t cross over each other or twist. Sometimes towards the clew they may cross once, and it is worth fixing especially in light air. It will make a slight difference in boat speed.
    1. In a CFJ make sure that the bowline or something is tied between the mast and the bow to keep the jib sheets up and from snagging on the halyard cleats.
  2. Check and tighten the jib sheet stopper knots. My favorite knot is a hybrid between an eight-knot and a barrel knot. Usually I re-tie the knots when I switch boats. I guess I do an eight knot but with looping the line 3 times instead of two. I feel like eight-knots are too little and barrels too clunky… so that’s how this happened.
  3. CFJ Jib Blocks. Make sure there are three holes showing in the back (towards the skipper) no matter what. Don’t change them until sailing upwind. If you’re dramatically over-powered, bring it back to two holes, and if the conditions are ridiculous, take it to one or no holes showing.
  4. Keep the bottom of the boat clean, organized, and dry. Keep the bailer out of the way.
  5. Jib Halyard. Don’t bother with the jib halyard until you sail upwind for a bit. Expect to adjust it. Sailing upwind, the leeward shroud should be loose and very slightly bouncing.
    1. Ideally, it should be at the point where it looks taut from the windward rail, but if you were to touch it, the chain plate would shake a little bit. In chop, it should be loose enough to have some visible “bounce.”
    2. Keep in mind that you want to trim the jib halyard to the lulls and not the puffs. In other words, set it as if the entire course was a lull.
    3. I‘ve found that the jib halyard can be a subjective setting that depends a lot on skipper’s preference. Make sure to tell your skipper how much you’re putting on/off, since it’s hard for them to see. Usually smaller adjustments are about ½ an inch and bigger ones are like 2 inches at a time.
  6. Vang. Before the start it should be trimmed to how it would look good on a reach. When you sail up wind before the start, take the slack out to eyeball what the sail should look like after the gun, but it should be loose before the start. This is especially important in team racing where there’s a lot of gibing and circles before the start.
  7. Check both the halyards.
    1. Make sure the main is up all the way.
    2. Make sure both halyards are behind the spreaders. If you’re rotating off of a dock, this should actually be done before you get in the boat. If you’re an alternate or just finished a set, it’s a really nice gesture to jump into your teammate’s boat and do this for them while they talk to the coach or put gear on.
    3. Check that neither halyard is snagged on the part of the spreaders where they attach to the mast (where the plait with the ring-dings ends). 
  8. As long as you’re looking up, get a mental picture of what the jib looks like when it’s about 2 inches away from the spreader. Take a moment to study the cut of the jib so you know what it looks like trimmed correctly without having to look up later in the race.
  9. Coil the slack of the halyards and tuck them between the mast and taut part of the halyards.
    1. Coming off of the cleat, the tail should be coming towards you so that if you need to do a last-second adjustment, the line has leverage. Also, they should be tied in a clean figure “8”. Don’t wrap the slack around more than necessary.
    2. If in a 420, make sure to put the coiled slack below “the partners," so it doesn’t snag the jib sheets.
  10. Outhaul. Adjustments should be small.
    1. Generally there should be a VERY slight vertical wrinkle along the boom. You can let it off in measures by just taking the line out of the cleat and then putting it back in. This won’t really feel like an adjustment but it’s enough. Basically, this should go along with jib halyard adjustments. Go upwind and see how it looks.
    2. The best way to tighten the outhaul (esp. in breeze) is to pull the taut part of the line down, and then feed the slack through the cleat.
    3. Once you feel overpowered at all, just crank it on.
    4. Check to make sure the line or the cleat isn’t worn out from age. If they are, try to tie some sort of knot around the cleat.
    5. Also, be sure to tie a stopper knot at the end and loop the slack under the outhaul if you want to keep the slack out of your way.
  11. Downhaul.
    1. Look up at the sail for horizontal creases. In general there are 3 basic modes: off, on, and cranked.
    2. When it’s really light breeze (or in the “off” mode) you can thread the line through the slug rather than the clue. That way it doesn’t really de-power, but it slightly changes the angle of the sail.
    3. When overpowered, you can use your foot for leverage to get enough on. This means hugging the mast with your left side and stepping down on the slack of the line. A lot of the time the skipper will take care of the downhaul if its windy, but really the crew should be able to do this.
    4. Tie the stopper knot.
  12. Center Board. Make sure the bungee/lines are correct and running smoothly. It helps a lot to make a mental note in the pre-start of how easily the board moves up/down (depending on the bungee or the gaskets). Whether the board is tight or loose totally changes boat handling on gybes and mark roundings. In an FJ if the bungee is slack, it helps to wrap it around the knobs a few times.
    1. If sailing in more open water, be sure to check for kelp or debris on the board. In case your skipper forgets, remind him to check the rudder too.
  13. Straps. You should get to the point where the straps are at the same place every time you get in the boat.
    1. In a CFJ, tie the straps up if they aren’t already. That is a top priority. Usually I use the tail of the main halyard (not the jib halyard in case you have to adjust it while racing). I prefer to tie some type of loose slipknot between the mast and the straps because it’s easy to de-rig.
    2. Before you race, pull the straps to the rail of the boat and gauge it against where the centerboard trunk is. You should have a mental picture of how far above the trunk you prefer the straps. However, if you don’t have a lot of time, this isn’t one of the most important things to be stressing about as long as you can manage to hike properly.
    3. Also, be sure that you’re positioning yourself with optimal leverage. Play around with efficient ways to keep the boat down but also different strap heights will greatly change this.
  14. None of these adjustments need to be announced to your skipper. Just do what you think works. Although the skipper makes the final call, that doesn’t mean a crew should wait for the skipper to tell them to change something. Be proactive.
  15. Look up the course and know where the marks are and if there are any major wind shifts. Also know which side of the line is favored, if there’s current, and all of those things.
    1. I like to psychoanalyze the race committee. Think about how determined they are to race you, how motivated they are to move the course around, and how much experience they’ve had. The same goes for judges, talk about what sort of things they’re most likely to make calls on and/or the accuracy of their calls.
    2. If you can see a start before yours, watch it closely and try to study the boats doing well.