A windward-leeward course has one mark directly upwind of the start and one downwind, so boats beat up to the windward mark and run back to the leeward mark, usually for two or more laps. It tests upwind and downwind sailing evenly.
A windward-leeward course, sometimes called a sausage course, is the most common course in modern club and championship racing. The race committee lays a windward mark directly upwind of the start and a leeward mark, or a gate, near the start area.
A typical race:
- Start, then beat (sail close-hauled, tacking as needed) to the windward mark.
- Round it, often followed by a short reach to an offset mark placed a little to one side, which spreads the boats out so those still coming up are not tangled with those bearing away.
- Run back downwind to the leeward mark or gate.
- Round and beat again, repeating for the number of laps signalled.
- Finish, either at a line near the windward mark or near the leeward mark, as the sailing instructions say.
A gate is two marks set side by side, square to the wind. Boats sail between them and round either one, which spreads out the fleet and lets each boat choose the side of the course she wants for the next beat.
Why committees like it: the marks are moved to keep the course square to the wind, so every boat must sail properly upwind and downwind, and tactics depend on wind shifts rather than on chance.
Tips for sailing it:
- upwind, look for shifts and more wind, and avoid tacking more than you need;
- work out the laylines, the lines from which you can just fetch the mark close-hauled, and avoid reaching them too early;
- downwind, stay in clear air and sail the angle that gives the best speed towards the mark, gybing on shifts;
- at the gate, choose the mark that leads to the favoured side, not simply the nearer one.
Club races in harbours often use fixed marks instead, mixing beats, reaches and runs, but the same skills apply.
More in the book: Chapter 15, Your first race