Some of the others gave fun answers, I went and found something's I wrote for our fleet newsletter a couple of years back, so, on a more serious note I submit the following for your consideration.
In my opinion, you win and lose races with your BOAT, BODY, BRAIN, SKILL, and LUCK.
Boat Preparation
A valuable piece of advice I got from Ken Marshack ( Hobie 18 Continental Champion) was "Once you head for the start line you have to be able to get your head out of the boat." To me, this means that you have to know that your boat is in top condition and that it is as fast as you know how to make it. That means that the hulls are smooth and aligned, that the rudders and daggerboards are clean and repaired, that the tramp is tight, and that all the adjustments (shroud and batten tension, mast rake, and cleat angles) are set for the conditions you expect for the day. At this point, when you approach the starting line, you no longer are worried about "the boat." You know that it is as well prepared as you know how to make it. At this point you can focus on the course, the laylines, the wind shifts, the competitors, all the OTHER things that will be happening on the water that will affect the eventual outcome of the days racing.
Personal Preparation
You have taken whatever steps you feel necessary so that you are physically prepared to not only compete with the other skippers and crews, but to cope with your biggest competitor—Mother Nature. What ever she may decide to throw at you during the race, you need to be aware of your physical condition so you know when you have reached your limit and need to call it a day. I have a saying when I am snow skiing—I never make a last run. Almost everyone I know that has been seriously injured when skiing has been injured during the "last run" of the day. It may be a superstitious thing, I know, but the point is to quit while you've got something left.
Knowledge
Prepare yourself mentally. Read! Read! Read! That's what Winter is for. There is a plethora of sailing books out there, many of them written by and for catamaran sailors, and there is a wealth of information to be gained from their experience and knowledge. Spend 1/2 hour a week or pick a chapter. I usually try to start out on my weak subjects. For example, at the 2001 Nationals I had a terrible time pointing on the upwind legs. As a result, I spent a lot of time this last winter making adjustments to the boat that will help my upwind performance. Also, I read the Upwind Leg chapter in Welcome to A-Fleet at least once a month as a refresher. Look at how your season went last year: did you find that you lost ground, or worse, lost places at mark roundings or on the downwind legs? If so, as you read those chapters, try to figure out what you might have been doing wrong and more importantly, what you can do better. Last but not least, READ THE RULES. I know it is dull stuff, but an understanding of the rules WILL change the outcome of your races, and it can certainly keep you from losing a few. Knowing the rules keeps you from being a victim of shameless bullies. Knowing the rules becomes a big part of tactics and strategy. Knowing the rules allows you to place yourself on the course such that you will have the advantage when you cross the path of a close competitor. Having the "Right of Way" at a mark rounding can be a huge advantage. Having the right of way at the finish line is often the difference between winning and losing. Play out race situations on the beach and then try to figure out what you would do in that situation and more importantly why. Get together with another sailor once in a while and discuss a particular rule. Hold a mock protest hearing, dissect the rule, understand it, get your arms around the concept behind how and why the rule was written. It can certainly keep you out of trouble and that is important. It doesn't do much good to finish first and get thrown because of a protest. Its even worse to be racing well and end up putting the boat on the trailer because of an on the water collision that may have been your fault.
Skill
This comes with boat time; nothing takes the place of experience. You can shorten the learning curve by reading and talking about all the finer points of sailing these quick little cats. But, you need to know what it feels like to surf a wave properly, you need to be able to feel the boat pick up that 1/2 knot of speed as you catch a wave, and you need to be able to feel it slow down as you start to lose it, and you have to be able to read wind patterns before they effect you. You can't get that feeling out of a book or from around the campfire after a days racing. If you are trying to gain experience make the effort to attend a few "non Hobie" regatta's. Denver Sail Association puts on open regatta's through the summer. I used to go down and race with the Southern Colorado Yacht Club at Pueblo Reservoir. Those weekends I focused entirely on how the boat felt. There were no points at stake, so it was merely Practice-Practice-Practice. I didn't care as much about how I finished as how much more instinctive my feel for the boat became. You'll know you're there when you can feel that the main needs to be sheeted in 3 inches without looking at the tell tales and when you can feel that you can steer 10° closer to that leeward mark without losing any boat speed. Then you are getting to be a "natural." Last year I commented to someone that John Cox was a better sailor by accident than most people are on purpose. This individual corrected me and explained that "every time John goes out he is ready to race." He dresses to stay warm. He goes out before the races and "gets in tune" with the boat and the wind. He practices before the flag goes up. He works at it every time he goes out. I personally have tried to distract John while on the course . . . I couldn't do it. The man is FOCUSED. I aspire to have that level of concentration.
Luck.
Lady Luck—not much I can say about the Fickle Finger of Fate. However, I will say that if you have addressed the previous four areas to the best of your ability, you often make your own luck. There are going to be those days when you sail into a wind hole and have to watch the fleet sail by. But if you have done all your work in the other areas, the time you have to spend in that black hole will be greatly diminished. There will be days when the wind fills from the rear and you helplessly watch as the fleet catches you at the finish line, but if you have positioned yourself well, maybe you don't have to watch all of them finish in front of you because you're on port and they're on starboard.
In conclusion, I would say that Catamaran Racing is a Thinking Sport. You don't have to spend hours and hours in the weight room, you don't have to spend thousands and thousands of dollars keeping up with the latest technology and equipment. But it takes knowledge, commitment and practice to consistently be the first one across the line at a Hobie Regatta. Some of the best and most memorable times of my life have been on sailboats, in a competition of some sort. Sailboat racing is my escape. It is the one thing I do that takes me away from the day to day worries. No matter how I finish, when I am racing, I am not worried about house payments, insurance, yard work, the job, taxes, asteroid impacts, or any of the other things that can make life complicated and tedious. In short, in my opinion, win, lose or draw, sailing is good for the soul.
Stephen
Hobie 18
