Do Yacht Racers Make Better Cruising Sailors?

[Skylark]

......................much less likely to winge about being cold or wet.

I didn't realise that you'd met my wife

 

[MissFitz]

Do racers get this, or are they going to be conditioned into getting there as fast as possible, at the expense of enjoying the moment?

Racers get to appreciate the journey more because they don't have the worry of deciding where they're going.............

 

[Tomahawk]

I learned my sailing by racing..

When I gave up the racing and began cruising .. I really began to enjoy sailing... I suspect that enjoying sailing is part of what cruising is all about..

 

[jordanbasset]

They're also much less likely to winge about being cold or wet.

That is why they will never make cruising sailors, you should not get cold and wet, if you do you are doing something wrong

 

[stav]

I learned my sailing by racing..

When I gave up the racing and began cruising .. I really began to enjoy sailing... I suspect that enjoying sailing is part of what cruising is all about..

I agree as I have aged the thing I enjoy most is a good sail. Doesn't have to be a certain destination, I don't have to win I just want to feel the surge and the kick of the helm. But to get here I have raced on all sorts of boats with people a lot better than me and a few not as good as me and learnt things from everyone. So it isn't just a case that cruisers should join up for a race isn't it about sharing experiences.

Personally I find putting the kite up in 16knts of breeze with the girls asleep down below more 'butterflies in the stomach' than being on someone else's boat in 30knts of breeze and putting the kite up with a full crew but it is that that has given me the confidence to do the former.

 

[wotayottie]

Better cruising sailors? What is better in this context? You cruise how you want to cruise. It isnt competitive. Thats the whole point. So there really isnt better or worse. There's just different.

 

[Three kings]

Do racers get this, or are they going to be conditioned into getting there as fast as possible, at the expense of enjoying the moment?

I had an Open 60 guy on my boat who was a disaster. He made it his mission to push the boat as hard as possible (we were passage making) and below decks on his watch was less than comfortable. He wouldn't be told either and complained bitterly whenever a decision was made to reef.

The last straw came when he accused us of being cowardly for remaining in port an extra day to avoid going to windward in 35+Knots. We left the following afternoon in 20 knots - he left in a Boeing 737!!

The next 600 miles with just 2 of us was a delight.

 

[FullCircle]

I had an Open 60 guy on my boat who was a disaster. He made it his mission to push the boat as hard as possible (we were passage making) and below decks on his watch was less than comfortable. He wouldn't be told either and complained bitterly whenever a decision was made to reef.

The last straw came when he accused us of being cowardly for remaining in port an extra day to avoid going to windward in 35+Knots. We left the following afternoon in 20 knots - he left in a Boeing 737!!

The next 600 miles with just 2 of us was a delight.

Yep.

 

[Daydream believer]

A lot depends on how you define the term "racer". If you ,mean someone who just sits on the rail all day with very little input to the decision making then I would think that they may not make a good cruising sailor. However, if that person was ,say, the helm or navigator then there experience will certainly assist the cruising side.
The thing about racing on a well run boat is that one learns teamwork, sail trimming & general boat handling a lot faster than when just cruising.
One of the things about racing is that you have to actually "do things".
By that I mean that on has to put the chute up on a run whereas a cruising sailor may not bother. A cruising sailor may decide not to sail from A toB because it means a rolly run dead before the wind. To race the race boat has to sail the course. This means he gets the experience faster than a cruising sailor
This is particularly so in a dinghy. If you race you learn to sail all points of sailing. If you just sail about you may just end up reaching back & forth because it is easy & exciting
But of course other skills may not be learned ie how to find a sheltered spot to anchor & set the boat up for a comfortable night

 

[boaterbaz]

Racers ( the drivers) tend to be more confidant in boat handling and close quarter maneauvers. Racers (the gorillas) tend to be more confident in sail handling and trim.

Most racing crews drool at the thought of a kite in 25 knots. Maybe its because the owner has to foot repairs.

 

[Jamesuk]

Round the cans only experience, not at all. That lot wouldn't survive a day longer than 24 hours at sea.

Ha ha ha ha ha ha sorry not laughed like that in a while...

Whether they are 'round the cans' racers or experienced cruisy's is irrelevent the simple fact that most cruisers are looking for in a crew is good people who can survivie long periods on a boat.

Racers teach about all sorts of tricks that you may not have thought about and vice versa.

I think you might have london bankers 'race weekends' in your mind for the round the cans racer which if that is the case i fully understand where you are comng from

 

[haydude]

Following the fascinating thread about dinghy sailors, I wondered what people thought about Yacht Racing as a training ground for Cruising Sailors?

Pete

Yacht racing can be good training for a cruising sailor, I have done some racing and I have learnt a lot of skills that I use when I cruise with my cruiser. However I cannot see a pure racer becoming a cruiser. Most of the lads I race with cannot possibly conceive cruising. Simply too boring, they say. Also they have no understanding of yacht conservation (they abuse anything that they can put their hands or feet on) and comfort for long passages. Their meals are based upon tea and sausage rolls with the odd home made cake popping out at the end of a race.

 

[Tomahawk]

Following the fascinating thread about dinghy sailors, I wondered what people thought about Yacht Racing as a training ground for Cruising Sailors?

Pete

I would observe that at club level, you do learn a lot about boat handling by racing. After all when cruising it is too easy to decide the kite would make us go better but it is too much effort to drag it out... Because of that you do not necessarily learn how to handle sails Etc..

When you race you have to change sails, trim them for everything you can get, and sort out the cockups when things go wrong... which will happen quite often as you are pushing yourself for performance... All that experience comes into its own when cruising. You learn to do things more effectively. When cruising that translates into being able to make a tide gate, or lay a headland, or be comfortable taking in reefs and changing sails when needed...

But to become a true cruising sailor, you have to leave the killer instinct at the quayside.

 

[KREW2]

I started racing cruisers 2 years ago, and in my opinion better late than never.
I enjoy both passage races and round the cans, though I don't take it too seriously.
Racing may not make you a better or worse cruiser, but it does help make you a better sailor, and gives you a better knowledge of your capabilities. For example, if it's blowing over 20kts, and the start line is crowded I don't mix in with all the close quarter stuff jockeying for position, even the experienced ones hit each other, and my boat is worth more than a few seconds to me.
The other aspect I like is, it gets you out in conditions you may not want to go out in for a jolly across the bay, and having a course to sail focusses both yours and your crews mind.