You can be leading a sailing race and still be losing. A useful little complication when the finish line seems to be right there.

I hadn’t raced yachts for about ten years. This season I unexpectedly returned and sailed in two regattas, both on SB20s: small, quick, manoeuvrable boats with a gennaker. Everyone had the same kind of boat.

The first regatta was a two-against-two team race. Under its rules, if either of your team’s boats finished last, your team lost.

So imagine being first while your teammate is fourth. The other team is second and third. You are having an excellent individual race, and your team is currently losing.

Heading straight for the finish doesn’t solve that. You need to slow down, turn back, take wind away from the other boats, and help your teammate move ahead. The objective function has quietly become something other than “finish first.”

Four outlined sailboats approach a finish boundary, with a curved route linking the leading boat and its teammate behind.
The route changes when the result belongs to the team.

We took second place in that regatta. A week later came a conventional race, with ten crews on the starting line. We finished first.

The nicest part, though, was finding that the feeling hadn’t gone away. After such a long break, I could still feel the boat and the wind, and I wasn’t lost in the race. Sailing still does something to me.

I’d also forgotten how good it feels to spend several hours with almost nothing else in my head: wind, boat, opponents, and the next decision.

I hope the next break won’t last another decade.