Getting Started in Sailboat Racing [Paperback]

Adam Cort (Author), Richard Stearns (Author), Adam Cort (Author), Richard Stearns (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

A complete course in the fundamentals, Getting Started in Sailboat Racing dispels the sport's elite aura and makes racing accessible to any sailor who wants to give it a try. This illustrated manual takes readers around the buoys, explaining the rules and tactics that govern starts, finishes, mark roundings, and boat-to-boat struggles for speed and advantage.

From the Inside Flap

EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO WORK YOUR WAY UP THROUGH THE FLEET

If you sail—even a little—you’ve probably thought about trying your hand at racing. Now you can stop thinking and do it. Getting Started in Sailboat Racing makes this endlessly fascinating lifetime sport accessible to anyone who wants to give it a try.

This complete course in racing fundamentals breaks the racing experience down into bite-size pieces, making the process easier to understand and reflecting the leg-by-leg nature of a typical race. With scores of helpful illustrations, this user-friendly manual takes you around the buoys, explaining the rules and tactics that apply to each part of the race. You’ll learn how to:

*Execute quick, competitive starts *Maximize speed and efficiency on the windward leg *Maneuver for position around the windward mark *Take full advantage of downwind and reaching legs *Handle the spinnaker and beat the crowd at the jibe and leeward marks *Eke out every last bit of speed as you sprint to the finish

There are few things in this world more satisfying than racing a sailboat. Get in on the action and find out what you’ve been missing. All you need is a competitive spirit and a little help from Getting Started in Sailboat Racing.

Adam Cort is a former editor and regular contributor to Sailing magazine and a lifelong sailor, racing everything from dinghies to big keelboats. Richard Stearns is an America’s Cup veteran and a career sailor, sailmaker, and boatbuilder. He has participated in 28 Chicago–Mackinac races, winning it twice, and has compiled an impressive record of international victories including three wins in the Southern Ocean Racing Circuit (SORC).

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Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: International Marine/Ragged Mountain Press; 1 edition (May 24, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0071424008
• ISBN-13: 978-0071424004
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.4 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #36,488 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

  #71 in	Books > Sports > Water Sports
  #35 in	Books > Outdoors & Nature > Outdoor Recreation > Sailing

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is the ticket to winning races, November 20, 2005

By	Patrick J. Nowak (Holland, MI USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Getting Started in Sailboat Racing (Paperback)

Stearns and Cort do a great job explaining sailboat racing with clarity and brevity and a dash of humor. I've read Melges, the Colgates, Stuart Walker and those are all fine authors. But I think "Getting Started.." is much easier to understand. The little quizzes with their answers right after the questions at the end of each section hammer home the essential principles.

This might just be a series of happy accidents but I bought the book at the beginning of September, '05, and we won the next four races in our Colgate 26 racing on Lake Michigan near Holland, MI.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Decent How-To Guide for Novices to Racing, April 27, 2005

By	J. Comfort - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Getting Started in Sailboat Racing (Paperback)

I found this to be an excellent how-to guide that concisely explained the nuts and bolts of sailboat racing for the novice. Too many other books on racing, by big-name sailors, seem to me to be full of a lot of hot air, and lack an emphasis on the basics. Cort and Stearns do a great job of covering rules and tactics from start to finish.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good for beginner and the more seasoned sailor, July 29, 2006

By	Robert H. Miller (Chicago, IL USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Getting Started in Sailboat Racing (Paperback)

Each time I pick this book up I learn something new. While it's written to introduce racing, it's really a useful reference to improve your racing over time.

I recommend this book to anyone interested in the subject, regardless of skill level.