Your diet offshore should be as good as, or even better, than it is at home. As with any sport, nutrition and hydration are essential for maintaining good performance. The…
shorthanded sailing
Short-handed sailing: Pip Hare on gybing a symmetric spinnaker
Gybing a symmetric kite double-handed is a tough manoeuvre and there is no question that practice makes perfect. Setting up your boat so things are within reach is essential, as…
How to execute the perfect spinnaker drop when sailing short-handed
Dropping the kite double-handed may seem a daunting challenge, but provided you take adequate steps to ensure the spinnaker is deflated, a drop can be successfully achieved by any size…
Pip Hare: How to stay safe on board when you’re sailing short-handed
A man overboard is every double-handed crew’s nightmare; with only one pair of hands left on board to call for help, handle sail, get back to the casualty and then…
Sailing upwind when short-handed requires different techniques
Excessive heel is your enemy when sailing upwind, and with no hiking crew this is something the double-handed sailor needs to consider. To sail upwind well you must learn the…
How to plan watches and sleep when sailing short-handed
Before you decide on the best way to run watches double-handed, answer this question: are you sailing double-handed or single-handed in shifts? Successful double-handed teams pushing hard together have often…
Short-handed navigation – and how to create your ‘road book’
Navigating when sailing short-handed can be an often-overlooked challenge. It can throw up stressful situations, particularly when it is the responsibility of just one member of the crew, navigating in…
How to use the outside gybe for short-handed sailing. Pip Hare explains
Outside gybing is not purely reserved for boats with extra-short poles or top notch race crews. If you practise, it can be less risky than pulling the clew inside the…
Record smashed in “boat breaking” Azores and Back shorthanded yacht race
The Azores and Back race record of 5d 23h 11m set in 1987 and all other records except the multihull record, have been smashed by the Class 40 Coix du…